With the departure of the black dragon, the battle finally came to an end. Although its arrival destroyed more than half the town, fortunately, thanks to An putting up a barrier in time, at least part of the place survived.
Afterward, Duanmu Huai and the others were summoned by the Imperial Legion.
"So it was you who repelled that dragon's attack?"
Standing before Duanmu Huai was a short, bald man—General Tullius of the Imperial Legion. To be honest, when he first laid eyes on Duanmu Huai, General Tullius was startled, but he quickly accepted that this group of adventurers indeed had the strength to drive off a dragon.
It just went to show that looking fierce did have its benefits.
"Who are you people?"
"We're just a group of adventurers, passing by by chance."
"Adventurers?"
Hearing Duanmu Huai's reply, General Tullius cast a questioning glance at the girls behind him, but soon withdrew his gaze.
"Whatever the case, you've done me a great service. On behalf of the Empire, I offer you my thanks."
As he spoke, General Tullius produced a pouch of coins.
"This is a small token from me personally, please accept it. Also… since you are adventurers, I would like to ask you for another favor."
"What is it?"
Duanmu Huai accepted the pouch and looked at General Tullius. He did not mind lending a hand. After all, their group had no local currency. If trouble came up and they needed money, this could be useful.
"I think you've already seen it—there's a dragon roaming this land. We need to stay vigilant. So I want you to go to Whiterun and deliver this news to Jarl Balgruuf."
As he spoke, General Tullius handed over a sealed letter.
"This is written in my own hand. Once he reads it, he'll understand the situation."
"Of course, no problem."
Duanmu Huai took the letter and nodded.
"However… we're not too familiar with the lay of the land. If someone could guide us, that would be best."
"Hahaha, just as I thought, you don't seem to be a local."
General Tullius did not seem bothered by Duanmu Huai's words. He simply nodded and gestured. Soon, an Imperial soldier stepped forward and saluted respectfully.
"General."
"Take them to Whiterun."
"Yes, sir."
The soldier nodded, then turned to Duanmu Huai and the others, giving them a courteous salute.
"Please, come with me."
"Alright."
It suited Duanmu Huai perfectly, since he also wanted to learn more about this land and the current state of the Empire. Without further delay, they packed up and set out once more.
On the road, they finally learned from the Imperial soldier—whose name was Hadvar—the situation behind the civil war.
In the end, it all came down to faith and race.
Although Skyrim nominally belonged to the Empire, its history with the Empire was a cycle of union and independence.
This rebellion, however, revolved around the worship of Talos.
The Empire worshipped nine divines—the Nine Divines. Talos was one of them. But unlike the others, Talos was not a god from the start; he was once a mortal who became divine.
Some, however, refused to acknowledge this—specifically, the High Elves of the Aldmeri Dominion.
Historically, the Dominion and the Empire had been bitter enemies, waging war against one another several times. But in the current era, the Thalmor's power had grown vast, while the Empire was in decline. Under pressure, the Empire had been forced into signing the humiliating White-Gold Concordat, which barely secured peace.
But one of the terms of the Concordat enraged the Nords of Skyrim—that the Empire could not recognize Talos as a divine. Worse, the Thalmor even stationed "embassy" squads in Skyrim to enforce the Concordat, slaughtering Talos worshippers in droves.
Faced with this, the Nords of course could not stand idly by. Thus, under Ulfric's leadership, the rebellion was born. Their rallying cry was: Skyrim belongs to the Nords, and Talos is the god they revere. Anyone who dared to suppress their faith or massacre their kin—be they Thalmor, Empire, or anyone else—must be driven out of Skyrim!
And so, the land fell into civil war and rebellion. Ulfric had only recently been captured…
Only to escape when the black dragon struck.
Now, General Tullius had to send people after him. If Ulfric returned to his stronghold, things would become even more troublesome.
Although Hadvar, as a Nord himself, despised the Thalmor's actions, he didn't believe Ulfric's rebellion was the right answer either. That was why he joined the Imperial Legion instead of the Stormcloaks.
Listening to Hadvar's account, Duanmu Huai found himself with even less goodwill toward the Thalmor and the Aldmeri Dominion. As an Inquisitor, I fight to protect humanity. And you, a bunch of pointy-eared elves, dare to trample humanity underfoot? Sounds to me like you're begging for annihilation.
Hmph… worst case, why not just call in an orbital strike on the Dominion?
Well, that wasn't urgent for now.
"By the way, Gureya."
As Hadvar led them toward Whiterun, Duanmu Huai turned to the dragonkin girl beside him.
"What was that dragon shout you mentioned earlier?"
"That's… an old legend of the dragons…"
Perhaps recalling the black dragon's overwhelming presence, Gureya's expression darkened.
"I remember hearing that in the ancient days, dragons wielded immense power. Even their voices, their language, could reshape the world. I always thought it was only a legend…"
Now that he thought of it, the black dragon had merely shouted, and meteors rained down from the sky. Dragon shouts are really that powerful?
"You can't use it yourselves?"
"Well…"
Faced with Duanmu Huai's question, Gureya looked troubled.
"Sorry, in Regnes it's nothing more than a legend too. I never imagined we'd meet a dragon that could truly use the dragon shout. Honestly, all I could tell was that it was speaking—but as for what it actually said, I couldn't understand a thing."
That was only natural. Like ancient languages from a thousand years ago—barely anyone could speak them now. Throw a Tang dynasty man into the modern world, and he'd struggle to converse too.
"We're almost at Whiterun."
At this point, Hadvar's voice pulled Duanmu Huai back to the present. Looking up, he saw a stone-built city rising from the plains ahead. It wasn't as large as the cities of Manaria, but it had some scale to it—though to Duanmu Huai, by modern standards, it was no more than a town.
Still, for this land, it wasn't bad.
Soon they reached the gates. But as they approached, they found the entrance completely barred, soldiers stationed heavily on the walls and guard posts. A soldier strode up to them, nervously glancing at Duanmu Huai before shouting sternly.
"Stop! Due to dragon sightings nearby, the gates are sealed. Only those on official business may enter!"
"We come on the orders of General Tullius of the Empire!"
Hadvar quickly declared their purpose.
Duanmu Huai also reached into his pocket and produced the letter. When the guard saw the seal, he froze for a moment, then nodded.
"Alright, go in. But watch yourselves—we'll be keeping an eye on you!"
He glared particularly hard at Duanmu Huai—no mystery who those words were aimed at.
The gates opened, and they entered Whiterun.
As Duanmu Huai expected, the city wasn't large. The houses were neatly arranged, and the place had a somewhat peaceful air—though the soldiers everywhere made things tense.
Naturally, their arrival drew curious stares. But the townsfolk only peeked from windows, whispering about the giant man in terrifying armor, not daring to approach. Before long, the guards escorted them up to Dragonsreach, the palace at the city's highest point, where they met Jarl Balgruuf.
"I see…"
After reading the letter, Jarl Balgruuf furrowed his brows. He was a Nord in his fifties or sixties, with the long hair and beard typical of his people. Though not especially brawny, he carried himself with the dignity of a ruler.
"So Helgen was destroyed by a dragon, and Ulfric—who should have been executed—escaped. A real headache…"
"My lord!"
A courtier at his side quickly spoke up.
"We must immediately muster troops to defend Whiterun, to ensure the dragon does not strike here!"
"So what you mean is that I should abandon my people? Let them be slaughtered by the dragon?"
At this, Jarl Balgruuf's brows shot up, and he slammed the armrest of his chair.
"I will never do such a thing, Irileth!"
He turned to the dark elf woman at his side.
"Send a detachment to the nearby villages at once. Make sure they are not struck by the dragon. And also—"
"Bang!!"
Before he could finish, the great doors burst open, and a soldier stumbled inside, breathless.
"M-my lord! Bad news! A dragon! A dragon at the Western Watchtower!"
"What!?"
Jarl Balgruuf leapt to his feet.
"What's it doing? Is it attacking the tower?"
"I don't know, my lord! When I left, it was circling above us. I've never run so fast in my life—I thought for sure it would catch me!"
The guard's face was pale, drenched in sweat. Clearly, staring death in the form of a dragon had been too much for him.
"Alright, I understand. Rest now, lad. Go back to the barracks, eat something, and get your strength back."
After comforting the messenger, Jarl Balgruuf turned to his captain.
"Irileth, I order you to take some of my guards and see what's happening there. And…"
He turned to Duanmu Huai and his companions.
"Forgive my rudeness, but I would like to ask you to accompany her. According to General Tullius's letter, you once repelled the dragon at Helgen. Clearly, you possess great strength. So I ask that you go with my captain, Irileth, to the Western Watchtower and find out what has happened there. Of course, as Jarl, I will ensure you are well rewarded."
Hearing his request, Duanmu Huai raised an eyebrow, then nodded.
"Of course, no problem."
He answered plainly.
(End of Chapter)