The cobblestone road on the main street was full of potholes, and most of the shops on both sides were wooden structures. Where they had decayed or cracked, they were merely patched over with wooden boards.
There were not many pedestrians on the road either, only an occasional resident in shabby clothes or a few weathered adventurers carrying weapons on their backs.
The entire city exuded an air of sluggish decay, like an old man who had been dozing off for too long and had yet to fully wake up.
"Morris," Sevein whispered as they reached the city center.
"Young Master?"
"This city is even worse than what was written in the report."
"Yes, Young Master," Morris replied unhurriedly.
"This place is indeed quite dilapidated, but the potential is still here."
He turned slightly and pointed his riding crop toward the northern part of the city, vaguely visible at the end of the street.
"Look, Young Master. The northern section over there is the trade distribution zone described in the documents. Although most of it is empty right now, the foundations and warehouses are still intact.
"It has only been a month since the Kingdom of Halen and our kingdom declared a ceasefire, yet three merchant caravans have already passed through here.
"Once the trade route is completely established, Emberfire City will be the first stop for border trade between the two kingdoms in this region."
Sevein glanced in the direction Morris pointed, remaining silent.
"Young Master," Morris added.
"It is good that this place is poor. Being poor means nothing has been set in stone, and no factions have had the chance to intervene yet."
"If this place were already as prosperous as the royal capital, my Lord father might not have sent us here."
Sevein glanced at Morris, the corner of his mouth curving slightly.
"You certainly know how to talk."
"Having served his Lordship for over thirty years, I haven't learned much else, but I have developed quite a knack for putting my master's mind at ease," Morris replied with a beam.
The group settled down in the only decent inn in the city.
The inn was named "Emberfire Hostel." The proprietor was a chubby middle-aged man who, upon hearing that a noble lord from the royal capital had arrived, nearly brought out all the finest ingredients from his kitchen.
After settling in, Garland walked over to the window alone, his back to the others, gazing out toward the faint outline of the forest to the northwest outside the city.
"Mr. Garland?" Sevein noticed his movement.
"That forest," Garland finally spoke, his voice low and coarse, like gravel grinding against an iron plate. "Whispering Forest?"
"Yes," Sevein nodded.
"The place where I fought with the kingdom's legion in the past was more desolate than this," Garland said, withdrawing his gaze.
"Even when it was just a desert, there were already monsters."
"And here..."
"Where there is a forest, there are monsters. Where there are monsters, there is trouble."
Having said that, he closed his mouth once more.
Sevein waited a moment, and seeing that the warrior had no intention of continuing, he turned to Morris:
"Make arrangements to hold a banquet at the best tavern in town tomorrow evening."
"Invite the people from the merchant guild, the guildmaster of the Adventurers' Guild, and several veteran adventurers."
"Does the Young Master wish to test the waters?"
"Mm. Since we've arrived on someone else's turf, we must first figure out how deep the water is here."
"Understood." Morris pulled a small booklet from his sleeve and was already writing and sketching in it.
"I'll go inquire about which taverns in town are presentable enough."
...
In the southwestern corner of the Whispering Forest, inside a cave halfway up the extinct volcano.
Kael was lying on the massive boulder at the cave entrance that glowed bright under the starlight, his dragon claw pressing down on a notebook scavenged from human adventurers that he had already flipped through several times.
He was using Draconic magic to practice a cantrip called "Magic Perception"—its range was not large, but it could sense the magic fluctuations of creatures within a hundred paces.
Inside the cave, Carlos and Nora lay in their respective spots.
Carlos was gnawing on a wild boar leg bone, making crunching sounds, while Nora had her eyes closed, looking as serious and focused as ever, memorizing the incantations of Draconic magic again.
Life was as peaceful as usual.
Until Grok brought that piece of news.
"My Lord." Grok stood straight at the edge of the river by the shrubbery, his grey-green face carrying a rare trace of solemnity and panic.
"It seems a group of big figures among the humans in the city has arrived."
Kael folded his dragon wings and landed on the riverbank, his golden vertical pupils sweeping over the goblin. "Tell me."
"Yesterday, while patrolling the forest edge with the brothers from the tribe, I spotted an extraordinary group of guys."
"Their pomp was much bigger than the previous merchant caravans. They had over a dozen horses, several carriages, and guards all dressed in matching armor. Even the merchant caravans they met along the way bowed and scraped to make way for them," Grok gestured.
"The leader was a young human dressed in mage robes. And another..."
He paused, seemingly weighing his words.
"And another?"
"And another guy with a scowling face, wearing old armor." Grok scratched a newly scabbed wound on his head, a mark left from hunting.
"I can't describe the feeling, but... just one look at him made my skin crawl."
"Even though that guy clearly noticed us, he didn't show any intention of making a move."
"We only dared to get up and retreat to the tribe after that group had gone far away."
Kael's vertical pupils narrowed slightly.
For a human to make a Third-Tier goblin warrior who had drunk dragon blood feel his skin crawl with a single glance, that person had to be at least High-Tier.
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure. I only took a quick glance at him from afar, and my legs went weak," Grok said honestly.
Kael was silent for a moment.
"Keep watching them. Mainly see if they leave the city."
"If they make any moves regarding the Whispering Forest, come tell me immediately."
"Also, spread your personnel out in the future. Don't make it look too deliberate."
"Yes, my Lord."
After Grok left, Kael lay on the riverbank for a long time.
Supporting his jaw with his dragon claw, his mind spun rapidly as he began searching through the knowledge stored in his brain.
A noble mage accompanied by a High-Tier guard coming to this small border city?
Judging from his draconic heritage and his experience reading web novels in his past life, he was either here to gild his resume, to run an errand, or, worst-case scenario: pioneer a settlement!
Whichever it was, the arrival of this fellow meant that the combat strength of the human forces surrounding the Whispering Forest had stepped up another level.
"Humans, humans..." Kael sighed, gazing off in the direction of Emberfire City, a feeling of nostalgia mixed with vigilance welling up inside him.
Of course, he didn't know that the High-Tier guard who made the goblin's legs go weak was named Garland, nor did he know that the young mage was named Sevein Lawrence.
He only knew one thing: he had to do his best to figure out the purpose of this group's arrival.
If they were merely passing through, that would be fine, but he feared...
"Sigh, looks like I need to make some preparations first." Saying that, Kael didn't go hunting in the forest today; instead, he flew straight back toward the dragon nest.
Rate on N.U.
