We Live in Dragon’s Peak – Chapter 925

We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.

Full Blockade

“Not the Eastern Army, but the Central Divine Army!?”

“Yes, there’s no mistake.”

“What about the military banner?”

“The one I saw was the White Swan and Flaming Sword, signifying the First Army.”

“Of all the forces, it’s the main unit led by General Eiran, directly under the Emperor! Hey, hey, what in the world is going on…”

From the conversation between Alf and Uncle Navi, it seems like something serious is happening, doesn’t it?

We may not be familiar with the military affairs of the Empire, but we know that this is a frontier region. After all, the territory of Count Mondo extends this far. It seems that an army, which is supposed to be stationed in the central areas, has come to this frontier. Moreover, it appears to be deploying by pushing aside the Eastern Army, which should have been there. Indeed, it feels like this is no ordinary matter.

For a moment, Amira’s presence came to mind. Perhaps Teyu, the God of Battle, had secretly summoned the army to forcibly abduct Amira. Alf, perhaps fearing this possibility too, pressed Uncle Navi.

“What’s the reason? Tell me more details, Uncle Navi!”

Around them, Ruiseine and Madrine were tending to the wounded. Others who were able were inspecting carts and luggage, while the guards were moving about in a hurry. Uncle Navi, seeing the situation, judged that it would take some more time until they could depart. He then had chairs prepared for himself, Alf, and Amira, and sat down to explain in detail.

“I just happened to pass by, so I don’t know the specifics. According to a fellow merchant, there was quite a large earthquake a little while ago.”

“Ah,” we collectively gasped inwardly. Could it be that Amira’s voice had reached a distant place, and tension ran through us. However, there was a discrepancy in the dates between when Amira unleashed her power and the earthquake Uncle Navi mentioned.

“Apparently, more than ten days ago, the area around Count Mondo’s capital was shaken violently.”

“I-I see…” The commotion in our village happened about seven days ago. At least, it wasn’t more than ten days ago, so everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Of course, Amira, who was the most tense, had her anxious expression clear up when she realized it wasn’t her fault.

“So, why are the Central Divine Army here? I don’t understand the connection to the earthquake, do you?”

“That’s the strange part, you see.”

“Strange?”

“Yes. According to my fellow merchants, the Divine Army had already entered Count Mondo’s territory before the earthquake occurred.”

“If that’s the case, then the earthquake and the Divine Army are unrelated, aren’t they, Uncle Navi?”

“However, when a merchant asked a soldier about the reason for the blockade, they were told it was for an earthquake investigation.”

“Huh? What does that mean!?”

The timeline becomes strange. If the Divine Army came in response to the earthquake, their prior deployment is odd. Uncle Navi also tilted his head at the contradiction, but he didn’t have an answer.

“Information is in disarray. The entire area around Count Mondo’s capital, not just the roads, seems to be under blockade, completely cutting off all movement between Count Mondo’s capital and the outside.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Then how did you get here, Uncle Navi?”

“We merchants took a large detour through the mountains on that side…”

Even in a frontier region, there isn’t just one road. Uncle Navi and his caravan seem to have deviated from the blocked road and taken a branch path into the mountains, making a large detour to get here.

“As a result, we were able to make some earnings in a village we rarely visit, but I can’t say it was worth the effort.”

Well, it was probably the human slaves who pushed the carts and guarded the caravan’s luggage who suffered the most. Speaking of which, I looked around at the people bustling about. I don’t have the ability to discern races, but Uncle Navi’s caravan doesn’t seem to have any Heavenly Race or Divine Race members. They all appeared to be human slaves, working diligently. Furthermore, since they are also humans, they don’t have the ability to discern our race and seem to mistake us for Divine Race or something similar. They even treated Ruiseine and Madrine, the Miko who were providing treatment, with deference. I’ve encountered human slaves and the Divine Race who lead them for the first time since entering the Divine Race’s country, but is everyone else like this? A few Divine Race members traveling with a large number of slaves. Even merchants moving between regions entrust the escort of their caravans to human or other slaves, rather than powerful Heavenly Race or Divine Race mercenaries? In the Demon Race’s country, humans were treated as less than slaves, like livestock, and made to do various things, but important goods were entrusted to escorts of the same Demon Race. I’ll ask Alf about these doubts later. Uncle Navi, perhaps noticing me looking around, was talking with Alf while occasionally glancing at me.

“So, other merchants have no choice but to use detours or turn back.”

“Even merchants can’t freely enter or leave Count Mondo’s capital now… In that case, we’ll probably be refused without question.”

“It seems like even taking a detour through the beast paths is impossible, so I think it’s best to give up. According to my fellow merchants, those who tried to sneak into the blockaded area were quickly found and driven away by people resembling mountain troops.”

“It really feels like some kind of operation is being carried out in full force.”

What on earth is happening near Count Mondo’s capital? The more we listen to the story, the more we tilt our heads. At that point, Uncle Navi delivered a further blow.

“Oh, and this is also strange. Despite the strict deployment of the Divine Army, no one has seen the White Swan Heavenly Army.”

“Huh!?” Alf’s eyes widened.

“The Divine Army led by General Eiran is in operation, yet the White Swan Heavenly Army isn’t here!? That makes no sense. Where did the White Swan Heavenly Army, indicated by the military banner, go? And besides, wouldn’t they be able to pass through from the sky?”

“No, it’s not possible. It seems they are shot down by the ground forces of the Divine Army without question.”

“What’s with that!?”

According to the information we were given in advance, the armies of the Divine Race’s country are mainly divided into the Heavenly Army, composed of the Heavenly Race, and the Divine Army, composed of the Divine Race. And the Heavenly Race army, being more numerous than the less populated Divine Race army, was the main fighting force. That main force, the Heavenly Race army, isn’t here? To completely blockade a specific region, the presence of the Heavenly Army, which can control the air, is indispensable. Yet, the current situation where the Divine Army is responsible for blocking the sky is indeed inexplicable.

“In any case, we can’t go to Count Mondo’s capital by proceeding on this road. If you wish to travel, I suggest you go to another region.”

Alf turned to us, looking worried. We also exchanged glances, wondering what to do.

“By the way, Lord Alf. Could you tell me a little more about your companions?”

Perhaps because the conversation had calmed down, Uncle Navi finally commented on our presence. Our family accompanying Alf, who is of the Divine Race, and the fact that he treats us not as slaves but as companions, must have been on his mind for a long time.

“As I said before, they are guests from Dragon Peak. Well, various things happened. So, I wanted to guide them through the Divine Race’s Country… That’s right, Uncle Navi. Since you took the detour to come here, you’ll be visiting the village too, won’t you?”

“Of course.” Alf then made a request.

“Do you have any seeds or seedlings that can be planted this season?”

Uncle Navi was surprised by Alf’s requests for farming tools and various other daily necessities.

“W-wait a moment, Lord Alf. When I visited in early spring, you weren’t having trouble with even basic tools, let alone seeds and seedlings?”

“Ah. That’s related to the various things I mentioned earlier. But you’ll have to ask the village elder and the village chief about that. We can’t say anything further right now. And if you listen to the elder and the chief, you’ll understand who these people are in more detail.”

Amira, sitting next to Alf, hadn’t uttered a word so far. Alf likely wanted to maintain the pretense that Amira couldn’t speak to outsiders. This meant they couldn’t discuss the commotion in the village in detail here. After all, the secret of Amira’s voice absolutely could not be revealed. Therefore, Alf remained silent to avoid any contradictions between what he would say now and what Uncle Navi would hear when he visited the village.

“…It seems something has happened in the village that requires discretion? Hmm, then, let’s first stop at Lord Gildia’s territory and restock what we need before heading there.”

“In that case, it would be great if you could also take a detailed look at the town of Gildia while you’re at it.”

“Understood.” Alf revealed only the minimum necessary information. However, Uncle Navi seemed to understand a lot from that alone and went along with the conversation without probing further. Even just observing their exchange, one could feel the deep connection between Uncle Navi and Alf and the villagers. Therefore, when Uncle Navi and his caravan, with their cargo packed, disappeared up the road, I asked again.

“So, who is that person?”

Up until now, we hadn’t interjected, deferring to Uncle Navi, who was of the Divine Race. But now that he was gone, we could ask freely. Alf smiled at my question and said, “As you probably expect, he’s also connected to our village. He’s from a family that has served the descendants of the Fighting God for generations, though distantly. That’s why he still goes to such lengths to bring goods to the village.”

“So, he was a relative after all!” Alf asked, “Why do you ask? Elnea, when did you realize?”

“Um, I started to suspect something when Uncle Navi addressed Alf and Amira with the honorific ‘sama’.”

“You mean you suspected him from the start!”

That’s right. After all, even if he favors the residents of his village, it’s unlikely he would address young men and women who aren’t even the village chief with honorifics. Yet, Uncle Navi used honorifics for Alf and Amira and maintained a consistently polite demeanor.

“As expected, you’re not to be underestimated. I’m sure Uncle Navi saw through that as well. When we get to the village, he’ll surely pry a lot out of the elder. Merchants develop a good eye for people, so perhaps he had already seen through us without asking.” He probably also tolerated Ruiseine and Madrine treating the caravan members due to this.

“So, what do we do from now on?”

We stopped on the road, looking back at the direction Uncle Navi’s caravan had gone. Our journey so far had been enjoyable and smooth. However, from here on, there was nothing but an ominous presence.

“A blockade by the Divine Army. And right around Count Mondo’s capital, of all places.”

“Does that mean Count Mondo did something problematic?”

“I wonder? I don’t think a plea from someone who caused trouble would move even the God of Battle, let alone the Aristocratic Council.”

“True. If Count Mondo had a problem, they would likely ignore his plea and try to suppress him instead.”

“In that case, perhaps another issue coincidentally arose near Count Mondo’s capital.”

“And it’s something that would bring the Central Army all the way to the frontier?”

It’s hard to imagine, isn’t it? What exactly is happening near Count Mondo’s capital? Based on Uncle Navi’s story, the large earthquake that occurred more than ten days ago seems related, but we don’t have that information.

“Well, since the road is blocked, should we turn back?” Or go somewhere else? As long as we can investigate the Empire’s affairs, we don’t need to be fixated on Count Mondo’s capital. Well, we did want to see the island called the paradise of the Heavenly Race. However, Alf was the one who rejected my suggestion.

“No, we are definitely going to Count Mondo’s capital. And I’ll give him a good punch as a settling of scores!” We laughed at Alf’s absurd enthusiasm. And then, we started walking down the road again.