As the situation in Bracken Woods was taken care of, those who stayed in Dracokin were still trying their best to find the mystery that was Qeveriyt. It would seem like a difficult task, but as the doors opened, it was only deceptively so.

The forbidden section of the college’s library was itself a spatial magic, sustained by runes that Alverian dispelled using his authority as the grand mage. Upon entering the forbidden section, Ritik was surprised by the spacious room that was clearly not contained within the library, at least from what he could see from the outside.

“Magnificent,” said Ritik with amazement clear in his voice. “To think there is a room that contains this many forbidden magical objects and tomes. Is this a pocket space?”

“An ever-expanding pocket space sustained by a constant stream of mana,” said Alverian. “Everything in this room is an accumulation of knowledge since the study of magic first started. The grand mage before me once explained that everything here is kept out of normal time flow. Once we leave this room, everything will be frozen in time.”

“But chrono magic requires a great amount of effort to maintain! Not to mention the complex incantation involved and the meticulous planning and the mana cost and—”

“You can theorize about it later, Ritik,” said Alverian. He looked around the room and said, “Now, I know why Seraphor asked permission to access this place. He knew what he was doing.”

Avila realized it and said, “I see. This room is detached from normal space. The rule of this room is different from the rules of the outside world.”

“And once that door is closed and we’re out of it, this room will be in its own pocket, suspended out of normal time flow to preserve everything kept here for thousands of years.”

Ritik also realized it. “So, anything kept here won’t be affected by the light dragons’ intervention? So, there really is a chance that—”

Alverian stopped Ritik and made a gesture that closed the doors behind them.

“Can’t risk letting the light dragons know about this place,” said the grand mage. “There is a very powerful rune that will separate this room from regular space. I do hope they can’t find us, but I want to believe Seraphor modified the runes so this place remains hidden from them.”

“Then, we have all the time to find it in…this vast archive.”

“Not necessarily. I know time is of the essence, so we will skip the hard work.”

Alverian held out his hand and said, “Search. Qeveriyt.” All of the sudden, several books flew from deep within the archives towards Alverian, stopping right in front of him. There were five books floating in the air.

“Five of them?” asked Ritik.

“No, only one, though I must say, it isn’t a very popular topic of research if the name only appears on five books.”

“You must consider the fact that this is your library’s forbidden section,” said Avila. “And the fact that Qeveriyt was somehow wiped out of recent memories.”

“Ah. So, there might be forbidden facts regarding Qeveriyt. Well, at least it is not a whole section. Otherwise, we will be in here for a while.”

They did not waste any time quickly delving into the books. Ritik was fascinated by the book he chose. ‘Lost Civilizations of the Central Region’. It had details on pre-Order civilizations and the relationship of the people from the past with each other. There were many tribes that inhabited the region around a single river somewhere north of Dracokin which continued from the river that started at the western sea and continuing towards the Eastern Region. The tribes were mostly beast people, specifically the cat people. The humans had an ancient kingdom much closer to the Southern Region.

As he read on, there were several mentions of Qeveriyt, which baffled the kobold even further. The author clearly stated that the city of Qeveriyt was a planned city that would involve dragons ever since the cat people, and the humans, managed to learn more about the dragons and their role to the continent. Qeveriyt was made first as a proof of concept, and the overpopulation problem caused the kingdom at that time to establish another city called Adrakarkin, which had better planning and made over an underground oasis that served as both its mana pool and its water source.

“Underground oasis? But Dracokin has one,” said Ritik. A sudden realization hit him. “Adrakarkin…is Dracokin?”

“That’s the connection,” said Alverian while reading the book he chose. “For some reason, that part wasn’t even written in history books. It doesn’t look like it is a harmful piece of knowledge, either.”

“Unless it is harmful for the light banes, and Seraphor hid that information here.”

“That is a possibility. What else did the book say, Ritik?”

“Adrakarkin was a city established to alleviate population problems around 50 years after Qeveriyt was established, given that it was a walled city. The name was chosen because it was poetic in the ancient language of the Central Region humans. It was part of the phrase Tharl Elkegin Adrakarkin Si Kheferis, which means, ‘The City of Dragons Shrouded by Light.’”

“Hmm…that is a good name,” said Alverian. “However, there is a bit of discrepancy. If it is what it said, the Qeveriyt is supposed to be just beside Dracokin, but there hasn’t been any archaeological discoveries of any city ruins of any kind.”

“What is the alleged position of the city?” asked Avila.

“That would be…somewhere near the riverbed up north. Something is not right. Is there a possibility that our history has been tampered with?”

“With the light bane, that is possible, especially now that we know they perceive time differently than us. Maybe we see it in linear term, but for them, it’s more malleable.”

“So, the most logical thing to do would just strike us before we were even born, long before you decided to be reborn.”

“Unless they couldn’t…because of Seraphor. And Zenithia with her own rebellion.”

“Then we really should try and learn—”

“No, I think the name of the city itself is a clue. The name is ‘The City of Dragons Shrouded by Light’. Now, what dragon we know of is shrouded by light?”

“The light dragons?”

“And light can hide anything if it is intense enough to blind. If our eyes are blind to it, it is practically invisible.”

“So, all we have to do is dispel it and the city will be revealed?”

“I’m sure that is not as easy as it sounds,” said Alverian. “We are dealing with the light dragons and so far, their light eats away magic. Let’s just assume that the light shrouding Qeveriyt is made out of Aetherium. We know the city exists, but can we open it for all to see?”

“If that is the case, we are in luck,” said Avila. “There is one dragon that can help us.”

“Zenithia? But she doesn’t even know where the city is.”

“She doesn’t know because she can’t, just like all of us. She might be able to help once she knows where to look.”

“So, now all we need to do is ask her and prepare for anything?”

“It might help if we get some insights as to what happened right before it vanished as the legend said, “said Alverian. “And maybe give us time to prepare. Unfortunately, we might not have that luxury and Dracokin is far from being rebuilt after that last attack. We just have to make do with what we have.”

Ritik wasn’t sure if that was a wise decision, considering that Dracokin was severely crippled by the attack from the light dragonborn. The soldiers were clearly not prepared for that kind of threat. If Qeveriyt was shrouded by the light, the light dragons would be there, waiting for them, alongside Seraphor.

And to make things worse, they could invade all the time, especially if Qeveriyt was really beside Dracokin, and no one would be the wiser against them.

“Wait…invading us?” said Ritik after he thought about it. “Why didn’t they just invade us if Qeveriyt was really just beside Dracokin?”

“That…actually makes a lot of sense. They did not expect us to find Qeveriyt, but at the same time, they did not think about attacking us after the first two. There might be more mystery in Qeveriyt than we initially thought. Maybe finding the city out could help give us some answer.”

“Will that be wise?”

“No, but at least it’s wiser than not doing anything.”

“Or we can just ask Zenithia about it.”

“Or we can do both.”

“So, it is decided,” said Alverian. “I will try and find out more about Qeveriyt. Ritik, I am tasking you to talk to Zenithia about what she knows while Avila helps me. Report to me as soon as you are able.”

Ritik nodded, never believing that he was given a direct order from the grand mage. He never expected anyone to look at him other than a kobold, especially not the grand mage himself. Feeling like he really could make a change, he turned around and opened the door with a big smile plastered to his reptilian face. He never felt so important in his life, and now he could feel that way.

As he left, leaving Avila and Alverian behind, the elf then closed the door with his magic. Avila noticed his grim expression and started to assume the worst.

“Was he your sacrificial lamb?” asked Avila.

“Now, why would you think that?”

“Your face, for starters?”

“I wasn’t giving him an impossible and deadly task if that is what you mean. I feel troubled. We might be looking at this the wrong way.”

“And you sent out Ritik even after knowing that is the case?”

“Ritik and his friends will not be in danger if they expect it. I don’t believe the kobold is a reckless mage. What I am troubled with is whether we are ready to see what the light hid from us. We are treading into a territory beyond our understanding of magic. Whatever the light hid…might be something that we don’t want to know.”

“You mean the fate of the people and dragons who vanished with the city.”

Alverian nodded. “I only wish we only see corpses and not something even worse.”

***

The destroyed state of Dracokin did not help make things easier for Richie, who could only sit around as he recovered. It had been three days since Ashaire’s attack, with Dracokin recovering very slowly. Richie felt that he was partially blamed for the destruction. No one could show it since he was both a victim and a dragonborn.

Yet, the biggest mystery he had was himself. The wounds and the burns caused by Ashaire’s brutal assaults were already mostly healed, with the Eastern dragonborn already able to walk unassisted. His scales were still burned off and he still wore his bandages, but his mobility returned to him the very next day. It was still painful to walk around, so he decided to sit while watching things unfold around him.

As he pondered on his rapid recovery, he became elated when he noticed a familiar and friendly bronze scaled, collar-wearing kobold walking towards him. Richie wondered if the leather dog collar he wore was a fashion statement and wanted to ask when he could. However, as Ritik approached him, it was clear that he had something important in his mind. Richie had seen draconic expressions enough to notice subtle changes.

Richie did not wait for Ritik to say something and said, “What’s on your mind?” before the kobold even had a chance to talk. Ritik, ever the straightforward one, also did not bother to ask.

“I need Zenithia. Where is she?” he said.

“Possibly sticking around Adeline, seeing that she is interested with that werewolf gal,” said Richie. “What’s up?”

“We might be able to solve the mystery, after all,” said Ritik. The excitement in his voice was apparent. Richie’s quick thinking knew what mystery Ritik was talking about.

“Qeveriyt? You mean, you know where the city is?”

“All thanks to a certain help from the past and the grand mage of the College,” said Ritik. “Never thought an elf will even see a kobold like me beyond petty thieves and pests, not to mention a very important figure at that.”

“Maybe try not to brag about it too much. Someone might get jealous, and you’ll be in danger.”

“I’m not that arrogant, Richie.”

“Not in my eyes. So, tell me. What did you find out?”

Before Ritik could even start to speak, a small flash of light appeared between the two. Zenithia quickly stopped the kobold by putting her claws around his maws, stopping him from speaking.

“One more word, and it will all for naught,” said Zenithia. “I can hear you from across the city, Ritik. Whatever you have in mind will surely catch the light dragon’s attention. Even if they don’t, I don’t want to risk that. But if it is that important, I can fix that for you.”

Then, to the dragonborn and the kobold’s astonishments, the landscape around them changed into a white, featureless room. Richie was aware what it was; he was given the hard truth by Ashaire in a similar room.

“Altered Reality,” mused Richie.

“Thanks to Shawar and Shalaka’s energy, I can access more of my powers,” said Zenithia. “It is still limited, but a light dragon’s Altered Space is their little pocket of solitude; other light dragons cannot find us in this Reality, nor will they be able to listen in on us.”

“Are you telling me they are always watching us?” asked Richie.

“Then, that part where we talked about—”

Zenithia turned to Ritik with a confused look. “What were to you talking about?”

Ritik quickly realized that, despite Zenithia’s earlier claim that she could hear anything, she apparently did not hear about his conversation in the grand mage’s study room. Either she pretended to be oblivious so as to not draw unnecessary attention, or the grand mage really had a magic that could block them from the light dragons.

Or, he thought. Maybe she didn’t know because she helped us. Maybe asking her is the right to do here. “Zenithia…did you seal the study?”

To Ritik’s elation, she smiled. “Even if that grand mage of yours made a null room, Aetherium can still seep through. A conspicuous layer of Altered Space strengthened it. You were fortunate I managed to realize that I regained parts of my powers. Otherwise, all that precautions and it’s still not going to be enough.”

“Does this mean I’m indebted to you?”

“If you so chooses to. Well, before we truly begin, I must invite Adeline.”

“Shouldn’t you invite everyone? The ones Avila chose to tackle this mystery, I mean.”

“The rest of them are dealing with a problem beyond this city. I have not recovered enough to call them from wherever they are now. Adeline and the two of you will have to do.”

Zenithia’s tail tapped the white floor. All of the sudden, a flash of light near them revealed a shocked Adeline. The red-furred werewolf held her chest as her heart pounded due to the shock, but also for another, deadlier reason that Zenithia instantly realized. The white-scaled dragon quickly put up a barrier, during which Adeline seemingly recovered.

“You’re not actually trying to kill me, are you?” said Adeline.

“Forgive my lapse of judgement.”

“It matters not unless you truly forget. So. What is the occasion?”

Ritik then started telling the rest of them of his recent discoveries in the forbidden section, including the revelation of Qeveriyt’s disappearance and why it quickly passed onto legend. Zenithia listened to the kobold carefully, trying to retrace what Seraphor did to hide a heavily populated city and make people forget. She knew it was possible if it was the light dragons, but it was not possible if it was just Seraphor alone.

Unless he somehow foresaw it, she thought.

After Ritik finished the explanation, Zenithia was the first to ask him one part that interested her.

“Did those books ever tell you why the city is called ‘City of Dragons Shrouded by Light’?”

“It was a poetic phrase, written in an ancient language, though we assumed that it was a clue from Seraphor.”

“The name itself is an obvious clue, and very subtle unless you know the translation. You see, Ritik, the reason Seraphor hid those books, aside from keeping them out of the light dragons’ reach, was to prevent you from knowing the true meaning of the city’s name. Before you realize what they meant, do you even know why the cities were named ‘Dracokin’ and ‘Qeveriyt’?”

“Maybe they sounded draconic?” surmised Richie. “I mean, ‘Dracokin’ is so obvious. Not sure about Qeveriyt. It sounds random.”

However, Ritik pondered about it and quickly drew a conclusion. “I see now! The names were corrupted. The names of the cities were originally Adrakarkin and Kheferis. Whatever’s written in those books happened in the ancient past.”

“That is one, but there is another. The corruption of the names were done because there is one bothersome magic that can reveal the clue instantly. You took that magic at face’s value because you can’t imagine living without it.”

Adeline was the next who knew what Zenithia meant. “The Gift of Tongues.”

“Or Translation Magic.” Ritik gasped upon the realization. “By the dragon god, you’re right! Using the original names will easily translated the cities' names! We never thought of that because Dracokin and Qeveriyt sounded draconic we assumed that the dragons did not let us translate it. It’s doubly more important for a kobold because we learned draconic tongue. The phrase was from the ancient language of humans that must have been translated and added with the Translation Magic, so corrupting them is necessary to prevent revealing the obvious."

“Wait a second. You mean, even if you know you can learn draconic, you don’t even bother thinking that the names sound wrong?” said Richie.

“It’s hiding in plain sight, as they say,” said Adeline.

“Now that the true names were already shown, there lies another problem. I know what to do from here, but are you really sure you are prepared for what’s coming?” asked Zenithia

“The fact that the city is an enemy stronghold, right?" guessed Richie. "Even with all our preparations, we are still horribly unprepared.”

“That’s one reason. The other one is…are you prepared for what’s really hidden behind the light? Cruelty has always been with us ever since the first Pillar of Light hit Pol Hain. Even will all that magic defense, you are still vulnerable against Aetherium and Prismatic Fog. Even if you are prepared against anything, are your prepared mentally?”

“We got you, right? You are our ace in the hole,” said Richie.

Zenithia shook her head. “The only thing I can do for you is protect you from the Aetherium and support Adeline. Mental trauma is something that I can’t protect from. That…depends on you.”

Everyone looked at each other, unsure of what the others thought. Zenithia had a point. The best magic defense and the support of a light dragon would not be enough against the horrors that lurked within the hidden city. Even imagining what the effect of the light did to them made them shudder.

Richie seemed to be the only one who knew what to expect, but he shuddered, too, knowing that what he expected was something he really did not want to see beyond the silver screen.

“I always hated The Thing and now that nightmare’s coming to life?” said Richie. “Fuck that.”

“The Thing?” asked Adeline.

“Something I called those mutated people. Don’t think too much about it.”

Though Richie would, considering that the movie might just became real for him. Good thing for him, it wasn’t a research base in the middle of the Antarctic and he got both thunder and wind magic.

Maybe he should start learning about how to properly use it for the next time he fought Ashaire and be fitting of the body he now had. No one wanted a useless dragonborn. Especially Richie himself.