[Vol. 7] Chapter 134: Veir and Enilu
And so, accompanied by nearly ten fully armed Imperial soldiers, the “outsourced” investigators entered the sealed-off camp.
The merchants in the valley seemed used to this kind of situation. When they saw outsiders arriving, most of them barely reacted, only glancing up before going back to their business.
Only a few curious ones cast intrigued looks at the two little girls, both adorably doll-like, seemingly no older than ten, as well as Miss Mia, the elegant and well-mannered maid in her high-end uniform.
Compared to them, Violet actually looked like the most “normal” person in the group.
As she wandered between the tents, casually observing the surroundings, the black-haired girl turned to the squad captain assigned to escort them and started asking questions.
"I didn't read too many reports before coming here. Can you briefly explain what's going on?"
The captain, having probably dealt with plenty of strange investigators by now, wasn't too surprised by her casual attitude. With a slight nod, he answered,
"Alright, but keep in mind we’re just following orders, so we don’t have all the details. Take this as a rough summary…”
“Basically, the Dragon Temple lost some kind of sacred artifact a while ago. Using certain tracking methods, they managed to trace its path and are convinced that someone from this merchant guild stole it while passing by the temple during that time.”
“To get it back, they sent people to track the merchants down and blocked off this entire valley, demanding to search everyone one by one. But you know how it is. Anyone who travels a lot has their own secrets. Nobody’s just going to willingly let themselves be searched that thoroughly. Of course, they refused.”
“But the Dragonkin insisted on this, outright declaring that no one would be allowed to leave until the artifact was found. This led to fights breaking out between them and some of the caravan guards. Eventually, we were ordered to step in and take control of the situation.”
“By law, the Dragonkin don’t have the authority to detain people or block roads like this, they’re not a military force. But… this case seems to involve some powerful forces behind the scenes. The higher-ups have decided we need to cooperate with their investigation, so..."
The squad captain gestured toward the direction they came from. He didn’t say much more, but his meaning was clear. The army was helping the Dragonkin seal off the valley and search for the unknown thief. However, since they hadn’t found anything yet, the lockdown was still in place.
"Right now, since a full-body search would violate privacy, the Dragon Temple sent over a few high-ranking priests. They supposedly have a special sensing technique that lets them search for the artifact remotely, without touching anyone. But the range is small, and it drains a lot of energy, so they can only scan small groups at a time. Until they finish checking everyone, we have to keep the area locked down."
"I see…"
The priestess nodded slightly.
The captain's explanation was vague and lacking in detail, but combined with what Violet had learned earlier, it was enough for her to piece together the bigger picture.
Setting aside the artifact itself, the fact that the Dragonkin chose to block people here meant that all routes leading up to this point had been sealed off. That meant anyone who traveled this way had no way to turn back or take a detour.
With so many people and cargo trapped in the valley, and both entry and exit points blocked, new travelers couldn’t move forward either. Their only options were to wait or turn back.
But Violet had already checked the map in the carriage earlier. Because of the landscape, going around this valley to reach the Dragon Temple area and then back onto the main road would take an extremely long detour. If that route was convenient, the merchants wouldn’t have chosen to take this more direct but isolated road in the first place.
Once they realized the road ahead was blocked, anyone trying to turn back would need at least half a month to return to the main highway. That was why so many supplies were stuck outside Sainz City, causing serious logistical problems inside.
Of course, locking up so many innocent people over a missing artifact, using an unproven accusation, was clearly unjustified. The Dragonkin's actions were borderline tyrannical, and logically, the local authorities shouldn’t have supported such a move…
But the squad captain had already mentioned that the Dragonkin were being extremely stubborn about this. Even though they were just one of the many races living in the Lannas Province, within the Empire’s borders, the situation here was complicated. It involved unresolved ethnic tensions from the Empire’s early expansion era. Because of this, the military had no choice but to cooperate for now.
The Dragonkin hold significant power and maintain strong economic ties with Sainz, which serves as the northern economic hub of the Austre Empire. This made things awkward for Sainz Academy, while they didn’t fully support the Dragonkin's actions, they couldn’t openly oppose them either. So, the best they could do was send investigators repeatedly, hoping to resolve the issue as soon as possible.
Now that the background was clear, it was time to focus on the core issue.
“The sacred artifact… So, you don’t actually know what it is, do you?”
The squad captain sighed and nodded.
“I’m just a low-ranking officer, there’s no way I’d know that kind of secret. If anyone knows the details, it’d be the high-ranking priests from the Dragon Temple. But they’re incredibly tight-lipped, refusing to share any real information with outsiders. That’s one of the biggest reasons why the merchants and travelers are so upset.”
“I figured. They expect people to cooperate but won’t even explain what’s going on? That’s just… Ahem, forget I said anything.”
The priestess gave a slight nod, signaling that they wouldn’t spread his complaint. However, inwardly, she was deep in thought.
It wasn’t just the merchants and travelers. Even many of the soldiers were frustrated by how overbearing the Dragonkin were being. If this tension kept escalating…
The squad captain didn’t seem surprised by Violet’s request. He nodded without hesitation.
“Alright, then we know what to do next.”
“Can you take us to meet the priest?”
“We can, but let me be clear, our job is just to escort you there. The Imperial Army won’t interfere in Sainz Academy’s investigation, nor will we offer any extra help. Whether or not you can convince the priest, that’s entirely up to you.”
"Heh~ Of course. Please, lead the way."
“Alright… follow me.”
The group changed direction and soon arrived near the largest tent in the middle of the valley. Unlike other areas, this place was guarded by warriors who looked completely different from the Imperial soldiers.
They still used primitive cold weapons, and some didn’t even carry weapons at all. Instead of wearing armor, their bodies were naturally covered in hardened scales, almost like they had grown an exoskeleton. They resembled upright lizards, but at the same time, they were clearly different.
These were the Dragonkin, or rather, one branch of them. Though they somewhat resembled walking lizards, a closer look would reveal their distinctive features: prominent, curved horns, sleek, well-formed scales, and tall, imposing physiques that set them far apart from ordinary lizardfolk.
"Dragonkin" was just a general term, much like how winged races could have different wing colors. As a special race formed from various transformed beings, their physical traits varied greatly depending on their ancestry. However, all Dragonkin shared three defining features: Dragon Horns, Dragon Scales, and Dragon Eyes, making them fairly easy to recognize.
That said, the Dragonkin warriors here, with their calm yet intense aura, likely didn’t belong to the Dorgon Tribe of Lenka. After all, the little girl in their group had barely any scales on her body, even when completely undressed in a bath, it was hard to find more than a few patches. She was probably descended from humans or a similar race before undergoing transformation.
“Stop. State your business.”
As the Imperial soldiers approached with their group of outsiders, a particularly tall and imposing Dragonkin stepped forward. He gave them a sharp, unfriendly glance before questioning them in [Enilu Language], a language spoken primarily in the Austre Empire’s western and northern regions, rather than [Veir Language], the more coastal language.
Both [Veir Language] and [Enilu Language] were official languages of the Empire, each originating from different cultural and religious backgrounds. [Veir Language] was more common along the coasts, while [Enilu Language] was widely spoken inland.
Though the religious associations of these languages had long since faded into mere legends, they still carried deep cultural significance.
Most Imperials, regardless of race, could speak both languages to some extent. However, regional and racial backgrounds often determined which language they favored. A lingering consequence of the Empire’s early aggressive expansion.
Incidentally, because the Empire’s original territory was coastal, [Veir Language] became the language of choice for the Imperial military, the royal family, and high-ranking officials. So when the Dragonkin warrior deliberately used [Enilu Language], he was subtly conveying a hidden message—
He and his people did not fully align with the Imperial forces.
In fact, they were wary of them. Otherwise, there would have been no need to station their own warriors to guard the tent so tightly.