“The Phoenix who chose me, gave me her egg. I excitedly went to my father, I wanted him to be the first person to know about this, but when I revealed the Phoenix’s Egg…
That man’s eyes changed.
The next thing I knew, he started calling me a corrupted human, had his men capture and chain me, and when my Bonds came out trying to protect me,
They were all massacred and the Egg I received was confiscated.”
Lavinia revealed the truth and Kael felt his body tremble as he played the entire scene in his head. He imagined a happy and cheerful Lavinia rushing towards her father, wanting to celebrate with him, only to be betrayed and hurt by him…
It was traumatizing.
‘He sure can act.’
Lavinia, who saw Kael’s reaction, stared at him with her cold, emotionless eyes. Not wanting to see the act any longer, she shook her head and,
“What I am trying to say is,
Reputation matters.
What people think of you matters.
You go into hiding, you will be labelled as a Hero who abandoned the people, and your enemies will turn people against you.
So unless you plan on becoming strong enough to take on the entire world alone while you are hidden,
Your plan is foolish.”
“…”
Kael was brought out of his reverie at those words. Seeing Lavinia’s cold eyes, he realized this wasn’t the time to feel bad for her.
She was trying to teach him something, something he needed to listen to and learn carefully.
“Then what do we do?”
“We?”
Lavinia tilted her head.
“You are coming with me, aren’t you?”
“…”
Lavinia stared at him in silence, then, she closed her eyes and,
“Right, I am in this with you.”
“That’s reassuring.”
Kael smiled and once again, Lavinia just stared at him in silence, not knowing what game this man was trying to play here.
‘I just need to prove my usefulness.’
She thought inwardly, and she once again exhaled deeply and glanced at Kael,
“Do you have a map?”
“Which map?”
“All of Nerathis.”
Kael nodded and brought out the map.
Lavinia glanced at it, and after a while, she pointed at the far southwest end of the map—a mountainous region with no specific name—and showed it to Kael.
“What is it?”
Kael questioned, curious.
“Ashen Heights.
Home to the Velmourn Family, or the Twilight Sovereigns as they called themselves.”
Lavinia answered.
“The… Twilight Sovereigns?”
Kael raised his eyebrow.
“Yes.”
Lavinia nodded.
“Must be quite a strong family.”
“They once were, yes.”
“Were…?”
“The Velmourns fell.”
Lavinia began.
“1200 years ago, the Velmourn Family ruled the central land that we call the Drakthar Kingdom today.”
“Wait…”
“Yes, our ancestors overthrew the Velmourns and founded Drakthar.
All those years ago, the Velmourn Family was hailed as the strongest family in Nerathis, and unlike today’s Drakthar, that can still be rivalled by other nations, Velmourn of that time was unrivalled, so much so that it was believed that if any power had the chance to unite the entirety of Nerathis under one banner,
It was the Velmourn Family, and that was their ultimate goal.
To rule over all.
The people of the Velmourn Family were prideful, they called themselves Twilight Sovereigns and considered themselves to be above everyone, even Lord Feraos.”
“Quite arrogant.”
Kael shrugged, he didn’t particularly care about them. After all, they were overthrown and were only a part of history now.
Lavinia, however, just laughed at those words.
“This is just the beginning.”
The woman started,
“Their society was rigid, extremely rigid. Nobles and military officers lived in luxury, while commoners toiled endlessly. Mutineers were condemned to forced labor in mines and construction zones, their entire generations died underground.
Even Beast taming was restricted to the nobility alone. Commoners found with bonded beasts were executed and their beasts seized.
They ruled with fear, public floggings, military parades, and show trials were a common sight. Schools taught only Velmourn history. Poets were controlled with power, and arts only glorified conquest and obedience.
The right to rule came from martial superiority. The suppressed commoners, who weren’t even allowed to form Bonds, never stood a chance against the tamers. The Velmourns thought of freedom as a weakness, a weakness that bred chaos. They firmly believed that only discipline could sustain a nation.
Rarely did any commoner live past 30 years under the Twilight Sovereigns’ rule, and things continued this way till Drakthar rose and replaced them.”
“So all that happened, huh…”
Kael muttered. He tried to show interest, but honestly, he couldn’t care less about what happened 1200 years ago. Heck, he didn’t even know the history of his own world that far back, he wasn’t interested in such topics.
Lavinia sensed it, and as if knowing exactly what to say to pique his interest, she added,
“This is where we will be going.”
“What…?”
Just as Lavinia expected, Kael’s expression changed.
“Just like every powerful nation, the Velmourns also had Guardian Beasts that protected them and strengthened their rule,
The Steel Dragons.”
“The Steel Dragons…?”
Kael’s expression changed in an instant.
How could he not react when Dragons were mentioned?
He fathered two of them.
Lavinia noticed his interest and didn’t find it odd, after all, every being was interested in Dragons, even those who are not from Drakthar.
“The Steel Dragons were different from normal Dragons. While normal Dragons preferred peace, the Steel Dragons loved war, blood, and conquest.
Because of their tendencies, they supported the Velmourns and ensured that they ruled with might. However, when Drakthar rose, Drakthar Dragons surrounded the Steel Dragons. Steel Dragons were strong, usually stronger than normal Dragons, however, our numbers were higher.
It was a battle the Steel Dragons could not win,
So in the end, the strongest Steel Dragon, Vorgath, made an unusual decision. He saw they couldn’t win, he saw that if he continued, the death toll would be ridiculous. Even though he was a being who loved war, in the end, he was still a Dragon.
A being whose very birth is celebrated by the world.
He surrendered.
He gave his life in exchange for his people. Drakthar Dragons accepted. What should have been a bloodied war with millions of deaths ended with about a hundred thousand casualties.
A treaty was formed. The surviving Velmourns and the men loyal to them were spared and were sent to Ashen Heights.
And this is where we will be going as well.”
“We are going to the Twilight Sovereigns…?”