Chapter 459: A week. That is all I ask.

“Draksis Velmourn,

As decided by the Council’s unanimous decision,

You are henceforth dismissed from the Council.”

Lavinia declared, her smile fading away as she said those final words.

And Draksis…

He stood still in utter disbelief.

He wanted to snap, shout at everyone present in the room, but Igni had moved a few inches closer to him—it was a clear warning that even the slightest voice of retort might lead to something… painful.

“M-Matriarch! I have been loyal to the Council for 28 years!”

In the end, the only thing he could do was to turn towards Morvain and seek help—any form of help.

But…

“…”

Morvain couldn’t say anything.

The decision was made by the Council’s vote; to say something about it right now would put her in an unreasonable light.

The only thing she could do right now was clench her fists in frustration as Draksis called her name and stared at her with helpless, desperate eyes.

Every second that passed felt like an eternity to her, making her realize how she had lost the power she once held in the Council Hall.

And Korvath, who could see the Matriarch’s troubled face, raised his voice, interrupting Draksis.

“Matri—”

“Did you not hear her?”

He called.

“You are dismissed from the Council.”

The Commander of Watch spoke as he glared at Draksis with piercing eyes. It was clear that while he was speaking up mainly because he did not wish to put Morvain in a more miserable position, he could not stand Draksis’s presence either.

Draksis’s voice cracked.

“No… no, you can’t—”

Then he raised his voice.

“You can’t do this! I’ve served longer than any of you! You can’t—”

But then—

“This will be your last warning, Human.

If you do not leave this Hall in the next five seconds, I will reduce you to ashes.”

Igni spoke in a voice much heavier than normal, instantly sending shivers down Draksis’s spine. For a moment, Draksis remained still, as if unable to process those words.

But—

“Five.”

Kael started counting, staring at Draksis with an expressionless look on his face.

“Four.”

“W-Wait—!”

Draksis finally came to his senses.

“Three.”

But Kael didn’t stop.

And finally—

Draksis, after a small stumble because of panic, rushed out of the Hall.

“Two.”

Kael’s counting continued, and Draksis quickly ran out.

The moment Draksis left, the Hall turned silent again.

“Igni.”

Only Kael spoke, looking at Igni. The Dragon nodded and slowly returned to the Council. Once the Dragon left, the Elders stayed in their seats, still on edge.

And finally, Lavinia began, grabbing everyone’s attention.

“Now that the nuisance is dealt with, I believe it is time we move to topics that actually matter.”

The ease at which she was talking showed how she had already predicted this outcome. Everyone, especially Morvain, stared at the Mage, feeling the power shift. The Matriarch could see how this might become a problem in the future.

Or maybe… it had already become something she could not solve.

Lavinia, however, seemed oblivious to Morvain’s gaze. She instead stared at Korvath and—

“Commander Korvath, you said the fire’s smoke blended together with the fog?”

“Yes, that is what the men at the Watch Duty said. While the dense fog did seem odd, it is not a rare sight in the winters, so they did not find it too out of place—especially at night, when the vision is limited.

By the time the sky lightened and the vision cleared up, it had already happened.”

Korvath answered.

The Commander knew the Council Hall’s atmosphere wasn’t good, and since conversing on that topic would only make the situation more difficult, he decided to brush past it and move on—just like Lavinia wanted him to.

This way, he would later also be able to bring Morvain back into the conversation, handing over the authority she seemed to have lost.

“What does everyone else think about this situation?”

Lavinia questioned as she glanced at the rest of the Elders.

“I personally believe the fog was man-made, or the enemy used it as a cover on purpose. But even then, to think it happened exactly on the day where we did not send a hunting party, I am leaning more towards the first assumption.”

“I think the same.”

Korvath spoke, and then, he said a name with a grim look on his face.

“The Frostvein Tribe.”

“The Frostvein Tribe…?”

Lavinia narrowed her eyes. She had heard this name before when she was studying about other Tribes living in the Heights.

“From how the men described it, the fog doesn’t seem natural.

It was too thick, too… controlled.

It moved and lingered only in one direction—toward the Wall, almost as if it was trying to limit our vision.

I believe the fog was created.”

Korvath spoke as he stared at Morvain, wanting her to speak.

The Matriarch understood his intention as well, so with a light nod, she added,

“So you are saying this was done by the Frostvein Tribe?”

“They definitely have the means.”

Nymeris nodded.

The Old Chronicler knew more about this than others.

“Their Ancestral Frost Mist Magic can limit one’s vision, especially with distance and low light. If it is them, they can definitely create a false fog to cover what they were doing.

They have used the same tricks in the past, mostly to trap prey and ambush enemies.”

She explained, and once again, the room turned silent.

This time, not out of awkwardness or infighting, but because of the grim situation they had in front of them.

After all…

If what Nymeris and Korvath were saying was indeed the truth, then…

“First the Stonefangs, then the Stormcallers, and now the Frostveins…”

Morvain muttered with a solemn look on her face.

“It is… almost as if all the tribes of the Heights are uniting against us.”

Aelindra spoke what no one wanted to say out loud.

The Elders gulped.

“But that doesn’t make sense.”

Tarevian raised his voice.

“The Tribes living in the Heights have been hostile to each other for generations. Since they have constantly fought each other for resources, their hostility with each other is even stronger than their hostility with us.

This is also the reason they could never unite against us for the last twelve hundred years we have been here.

Then…

Then how is it happening now?”

He asked.

And while some Elders were still confused, others already had the answer.

“A foreign enemy.”

Korvath spoke directly, and as all Elders turned towards him—

“A foreign enemy is influencing them.”

He spoke as he stared at Lavinia. The rest of the Elders did the same. After all, they all knew who this ‘foreign enemy’ was.

Lavinia stared back at them in silence, and this time, Kael was the one who held her hand.

“So what we were expecting did happen.”

He commented.

“Of course, all of this is still just speculation, but we still need to look into it. We need to understand how many tribes are part of this and how the enemy is influencing them in a way that they are willing to forgo thousands of years of hostility and work together.”

“And how are we going to do that?”

Morvain questioned, staring at Kael.

Kael stared back at her. For a small instant, the table turned silent again. It felt like it was another fight for power, where now instead of Draksis, Morvain had begun questioning Kael.

Aelindra, sensing that it might go out of hand, quickly jumped in.

“First, they took our hunters, and now they burn our trees. They are clearly trying to weaken us. They know that without the trees, our wood reserves will run out, and we will be forced to go beyond the Wall again.

It is as if they are sending a message,

Saying, ‘You cannot stay behind your walls forever.’

They are turning our walls into a prison and want to choke us slowly.

What do we do about this?”

Aelindra asked as she glanced at Kael.

Her question was the same as Morvain’s, but her tone, in her mind, was much more acceptable.

And Kael—

He then turned towards Aelindra, and after a simple nod, he gave an answer,

“For now, I think it is best we keep our men safe.”

Kael then glanced at Morvain and, with a meaningful nod,

“The Matriarch gave me a week to completely understand the situation. I am already working on it. Till then, even if our walls become a prison, please bear with me.

Once we have the information we need, we will plan our counterattack.”

Kael spoke, his eyes still glancing at Morvain, as if he was asking her permission. It was his way of handing the ‘power’ back to her.

After all, he never had problems with Morvain—it was only Draksis. If what happened today strained their relationship in any way, he wanted to mend it.

“Of course, as for the wood, we use the reserves for now, and when we are about to run out, I will go to the Shrouded Wild and bring some myself.

A week.

That is all I ask.”

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