A high-pitched screech came from the sky and Nera lifted her head. She could see fairly well from behind the thin, gauzy veil over her eyes, but it was more instinctive when she looked up. She heard the words from the messenger falcon 'Momma, I have a message from Brother.'

They were sailing near the coast of northwest East Iveria. From their location, they couldn't see the shore at their distance, but if she steered the ship south, they'd get to land well before the sunset.

Though they weren't far from shore, it was still a task for any of the ravens or messenger falcons to find her. Falcons had poor smell, but as long as they flew over the general vicinity, they could find her. However, who knew how long her poor falcon had been flying.

"Is that another hawk?" Anhya asked, looking up from where she stood at the helm. It was a good opportunity for her to practice sailing, so Nera assigned her at least three two-hour shifts each day.

Donut flapped his wings and flew up to greet his brother, telling him to hurry and rest and that 'Momma will give you something good to eat.'

Soon, a sleek falcon landed on the railing of the quarter deck, right in front of the helm.

"Waffles, welcome back. Good job." Nera immediately praised the falcon with the tan and brown pattern on his chest resembling the grids on a waffle. She first gently touched Waffles' head and stroked his feathers back. "Good job. You worked extremely hard."

She then looked at the small metal canister on Waffles' leg.

Henry could only carry one bird with him and in terms of practical aid, Midnight the Raven would be more useful, but Waffles was sent in the direction of Henry. Waffles could then ask other birds if they saw a dragon and then track Henry that way.

Sure enough, the well-trained little raptor found Henry and was ready to deliver messages. Waffles chirped away as Nera unstrapped the canister and then unscrewed it. Waffles had arrived a good week and a half after Henry and got to live in Elka's tent. There was a large river nearby and the forest was plentiful, so even if Henry didn't feed him, he had plenty of food.

Elka made a little nest and complimented him a lot, so Waffles was particularly proud of himself when he returned.

"Well, she is right, you are very cute," Nera said. Waffles puffed off his chest and looked towards Donut, who'd landed nearby, as if gloating.

Nera put the canister in her pocket before unraveling the narrow, but long strip of paper. Before she read the words, she raised a brow. It seemed Henry was angry.

When she read the contents of the message, she understood why, and her own expression turned frosty. The good mood she had after a successful operation resulting in a captured Jahan Yazdan on behalf of Suna, and the detainment and confiscation of supplies of his avianid flock accomplices.

The Dragon Continent was ripe with magic. Magic that was more potent than on the Iverias, and anything sourced from reflected that. Crystals with magic energy were much more potent for their size compared to the ones mined in the Iverias. Those crystals were also heavily used for a variety of things on the Dragon Continent, from simple homeware to weapons.

As such, they were heavily valued by nearly all the various groups on the continent. If they were exported, it was usually the lower quality ones, which were still leagues better than Iverian crystals. Crystals had to be checked at ports of entry. If they were acceptable to export, there was a paper trail.

The miners, usually dwarves, were strict about what products went out, how much was paid for them, and who purchased them.

If the crystals were too high quality and were not supposed to be exported, they would be confiscated, and the parties involved punished.

Although Ash had cracked every single fire crystal on a spear he had seen, the avianids still wanted to go through with the deal, or at the very least, cheat Jahan Yazdan. With questionable logic, they carted all the unusable weapons to the port, ready to load them on to a ship.

Nera didn't know if Jahan Yazdan knew that Anhya had been rescued or not, but he didn't act like it. They watched from a nearby alley as he confidently spoke to the head of the avianid flock, and even checked the goods. It was obvious when he nodded and looked pleased that he had no idea what he was looking at, and didn't realize that the weapons had already been damaged.

But even damaged crystals couldn't be exported without proper papers.

Since they were not citizens of any group in the Dragon Continent, Nera went and reported to a joint enforcement task force that oversaw the overarching regulations and laws agreed upon on the Dragon Continent days before the attempted exchange happened. The port's Enforcement Leader was a wolf-humanoid who knew her.

Kane Rivermark was the grandson of the Dragon Continent's most prominent wolf-humanoid pack's head. He was two years younger than Nera and had met during his time visiting Carthage Harbor. Though she rejected his romantic advantages multiple times, they remained friends.

As he rose through the ranks in his pack, Nera would always send him a congratulatory gift. If she were honest, perhaps if she didn't have the past she did, she would consider his proposals. Logistics of living on two different continents aside, they got along well, and Kane was handsome. Awkward at times, but in an endearing way.

But she had her past, and a beloved son who didn't like Kane.

"I'll give him credit where it's due. He's a good-looking man," Ash had conceded when he was twelve. "Tall, golden eyes, white hair, fit and good with a sword, and a close-knit family, but I don't agree! How can you stand it if other people keep ogling your partner?"

While he had a point; despite his aloofness, Kane was also looked at and had countless young women flocking to the teahouse when he was there. Nera didn't mind, though.

Enroshan was so ridiculously charismatic that everyone, except possibly Soraya, adored him at the abbey. Nera always felt the admiration was well-deserved.

Henry felt he had no say in Nera's romantic life, though Nera always made a point to remind them that any choice she made would affect them. She was an individual, but also part of a unit. It was important for them, especially as future rulers, and leaders, to understand that their actions affected others, whether they liked it or not.

In the end, she liked Kane more as a friend than a romantic partner. In fact, she'd dropped by the Port Enforcement Building when they'd gone on shore the first day to greet him, but he'd been on patrol. So, when Ash, Henry, and Anhya went on a reconnaissance and revenge mission, Kane was invited onboard to catch up and discuss the situation.

The Port Enforcement group had been waiting in the shadows while the exchange was happening. When the weapons began to be loaded, they raided the dock. Nera joined them to ensure that Jahan Yazdan was apprehended. Typically, he'd be detained on the Dragon Continent under charges of smuggling, but Nera had arranged to do the raid jointly, on behalf of Suna because of the kidnapping.

With the legalities taken care of, Jahan Yazdan was hauled off to the Jotlok prison in the belly of the ship, to be escorted directly back to Suna to face his punishment.

The avianids had claimed that the crystals on the weapons were broken, so they didn't count, but anyone specializing in crystals could tell what the quality of the fire crystals were. To their credit, the avianids did not skimp on quality when it came to the arms they were dealing.

As for what would happen to them on the Dragon Continent, Nera didn't care much. To her, and to Yayae, the main perpetrator was Jahan Yazdan, a traitor.

The sail back to Suna was moving faster than expected, as Ash was using magic to push the ship forward and increase the usual speed. The good mood Nera had, as she looked forward to reuniting with her fluffy little girl, was dashed after reading Henry's message.

Her lips had tightened into a tight line, and her eyes were cold and narrowed beneath her veil.

"Godmother." Anhya craned her neck to look at her. "Is everything all right?"

Nera took a long, deep breath. "Quite the opposite," she replied in a dull voice. She turned towards the main deck. "Ash! Your brother's message!"

Her son had been seated on the deck with his legs hanging off the side. A bucket beside him had proven that his attempts at fishing were going well.

Anhya squinted and shook her head. "Who knew pieces of cloth shaped like little fish would be so successful."

Ash secured his fishing pole to the railing and stood up. He dusted his hands on his thighs as he climbed up the steps to the quarter deck. He extended his hand, and Nera handed him the slip of paper. Immediately, his brows shot up.

"Oh...Brother is angry."

"How can you tell?" Anhya asked. The narrow strip was filled with heavy-handed text, and she let out a hiss. "That looks angry...."

Henry had written in a Lunapsar shorthand he'd learned when they were in the West Wind Valley. It was ideal for fitting more information on the limited space of a messenger falcon's canister message.

Ash's initial amusement at wondering what had angered his brother to the point that he could almost feel it from Henry's writing quickly faded as he read on. His smiling face fell, turning pensive, before his eyes narrowed and his brows furrowed.

Nera heard her son's breath hitch. Henry did not shy from the details of the miners' conditions.

Ash lowered his hand holding the message for a moment and leaned against the side of the ship before sliding down to sit on the top step of the stairs. His chest rose and fell evenly, as his face reddened. Nera could see the muscles of his jaw clench as his shoulder shook ever so slightly.

"What's going on....?" she heard him mutter. "It's been so many years. Why are so many people still starving?" Ash shook his head and frowned. "And why did they send entire families to get into debt labor camp?"

"Entire families?" Anhya frowned. The practice of working off debt was widespread in the Iverias, but it only usually applied to the person or persons whose name the debt was under. Why waste time with irrelevant people, after all?

"It's not about the debt," Nera answered as she took the helm from Anhya. "It's about the land."

"The land?" The two teenagers asked and looked back at her.

She stood at the helm, her hands on the wheel as she looked ahead. "Land is valuable. They, that is, the current court, are making it so that it's impossible for normal citizens to afford their land by increasing taxes. Their property is seized by the court, at least on record. When the land is in the hands of the court, it can be sold or allotted to others as they please, but who can afford to buy that land?"

Anhya took in a sharp breath. "Only the wealthy."

"Yes, and an even better question: who would be allowed to buy it?" The court had the final say, after all.

Ash's eyes began to redden. "Supporters of the Old Bastard and his son."

Nera nodded her head. "They were doing it when we were still there. Those who supported him, and then his son, were rewarded with access to resources. Nobles and ministers who had the money, but opposed them, were denied access." Nera narrowed her eyes beneath her veil. "But even back then, during the duration of time the debtor was doing labor, the farm could not be sold. It was only a frozen asset. In addition, only the debtor was sent to do labor. Their families could remain on the property and work to maintain it until the debt was paid, then the property legally returned to them. To send an entire family to a debtor labor is unheard of."

"Why would they do that?" Anhya asked. "Chances are these people were farmers, right? Wouldn't a farm fall apart without proper maintenance?"

In Suna, the system was similar. Hereditary farms had the chance to remain in the family, as long as the debt was paid within the period given. It was more like an extension to pay. In order to keep the farms productive, the debtor's family remained. The debtor would eventually still have a home to go to.

"They don't want to give the debtors a chance to regain their land, and they need laborers." That was the simplest answer Nera could give them. The Emperor never hesitated to reward his supporters, even if it cost the lives of his own sons. Nera had seen that firsthand.

It was no wonder Henry was angry. She and Ash were, as well.

Her son ran his hand down his face as he leaned against the side of the ship. The anger of his face had melted into heartbreak. He was angry at the treatment and exploitation of his people, but it also hurt to know what their conditions were.

From Henry's message, the miners were no better off than the famine refugees they'd seen when they fled Ashtar. Malnourished, weak, and terrified.

Anhya sat beside Ash and patted his shoulder. "Brother will need to implement land reform."

Ash closed his eyes and nodded. "We'll also need to audit and investigate every courtier and their family in the country."

Anhya took a deep breath and exhaled, sympathetic. "As much work as that is, it needs to be done."

Ash shook his head. "I knew it had gotten worse in general, but not to the extent of the famine. Having an idea of the situation of the people is different from seeing in in person." He lifted the message and looked over his shoulder, back at his mother, with eyes pleading with her to help him make sense of it. "How is this different from the famine? I don't understand what the Old Bastard and his son are doing. It's as if they're purposely destroying the empire. And why? What reason do they have to?"

"I don't know, Ash. They have the most power and wealth of anyone in the empire."

Anhya frowned. "Maybe they're crazy."

Nera let out a little snort. "I could've told you that years ago." In fact, she'd yelled it to the Emperor's face.

"Momma, can I use Waffles to send a message to Hana?"

"Use Donut. Waffles will go back to your brother," Nera replied.

Ash let out a low breath and seemed to try to collect himself. "All right."

Anhya raised a brow. "A love letter?" she asked with a slight smirk. From her tone, she was trying to cheer him up.

Ash rolled his eyes. "No, I have to tell her I'm going to be away for a while."

"Ah," Anhya nodded with understanding. "To deal with the business arrangements in Ashtar."

Ash pushed himself up. "That's just the beginning."

Anhya nodded once more, but then froze. She snapped her head up to look at him, her brown eyes growing large. "Is it time?" She turned to look at Nera with a glint of excitement in her eyes.

"It's time," Nera replied. "I don't think my sons, or Ashtar, can wait any longer."

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Henry let out a heavy breath as his opponent yielded. The wooden training sword in Henry's hand retracted and he opened distance between them. In a sign of ending the match respectfully, the two saluted with their swords and then stepped out of the ring.

His opponent, a Dareisol soldier, was panting as he handed his waster to another soldier standing by. Near the shade of the trees, a dozen soldiers were seated with streaks and spots of dirt on their training gambesons. They were flushed, sweating, some still out of breath and others rubbing their arms and legs.

Henry put his sword in a wooden barrel with the other training swords. Aside from the sweat glistening on his shirtless torso, he didn't seem out of breath at all, just over heated. He'd even removed his training gambeson.

At first, the soldiers had restrained themselves to avoid putting too much pressure on Henry when their swords hit him.

Then, they found that their swords never touched Henry. The shirtless man had nary a bruise, let alone a streak of dirt, on him. It was an almost comical comparison to the soldiers who midway through, began looking at him as if he were a monster.

Despite the last several hours, which included endurance training runs, stretches, sword drills, and then training matches, Henry found that he was still pent up with energy. His hands almost shook as his blood boiled. He couldn't get his mind off the emaciated miners.

He sat down on a large stump of a tree and a cool, damp cloth began dabbing at his forehead and temples.

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Beside him on the tree stump, Elka was seated with her leg propped up on an upside-down bucket and a wooden crutch on the ground beside her.

"Take a break," she said as she frowned and wiped the sweat off him.

"I can go a few more rounds," Henry insisted. He still had a lot of frustration to get out.

Elka rolled her eyes and replied in a dull voice. "Admirable, but I don't think my soldiers can."

Henry looked towards the soldiers across from them. They quickly looked away and avoided eye contact. Henry scoffed. "I'm not a monster."

"Henry, why don't we go check on the rescued miners?' Elka suggested in an effort to distract him. He knew what she was doing, but it was on his to-do list for the day.

He took a deep breath and released it before nodding. "All right."

Elka beamed and continued to use the cloth to gently pat the sweat off his neck, and the move down to his chest. Henry took out his water jug to drink, and just as he was about to put his mouth on the opening, he sighed and gently put his hand on Elka's to stop her as she smiled to herself.

"You should stay. It's a walk through the forest to get to where the miners are, and you can't ride there. Your crutches will get caught on anything that juts out on the ground, too."

Elka scrunched her face and pulled back her arm. First, she couldn't go into battle. Not to the first one, and not to any subsequent one, no matter how she tried to persuade her family members. Now, she couldn't even ride a horse. Everyone was concerned that a wrong move getting on or off could damage her injured leg that was just healing over. She'd only managed to leave once because she took a small wagon.

The only thing that seemed to keep her sane was that she was allowed to walk around now, though with a crutch to ensure that she didn't put unnecessary pressure on or twist her injured leg. She complained about it, but she still used it.

Henry took a drink and then put his shirt on. He then stood up before helping her on her crutch. He stood beside her as she hobbled along, and matched her pace. At any moment, he was ready to catch her if she fell. The soldiers at her tent opened the flap so they could enter.

His eyes glanced at the nest in the corner, on the chair he usually sat in. Waffles should've reached Nera by now.

Elka followed his gaze and sighed. "I miss him. Before, I used to wake up and see his cute little face, but now he's gone."

"Auntie will send him back as a messenger," Henry told her. If they didn't need Waffles, he would've asked if the falcon could stay with Elka. Henry made sure she was comfortable on the chair before getting the stool to prop her leg up. "What do you want for dinner? We'll eat when I get back."

In hopes of helping her have some variation after being stuck in her tent and forbidden from leaving until the doctors checked her injury, Henry provided all her meals. Since then, neither of them had eaten the food provided by the camp.

"Do you have the sea salad from Baypoint Oyster Bar?" Elka asked after some thought.

"I do," he replied. That was her favorite thing to eat from the oyster bar. "I have oysters, too." He had all her favorite food packed with him in multiples. Every time Elka mentioned something she ate or drank that she particularly liked, Henry took note. Every time they passed by a restaurant, and she looked at the menu and mentioned something that looked interesting, he took note.

Those notes resulted in food hoarded in his bag. It wasn't that one day he foresaw a time when he'd needed to give her food, but he also wanted to try what she liked. If one day she was craving something, he could surprise her.

He learned to do this because Soraya had once mentioned that Enroshan Heigoren would, every morning, buy Nera's favorite pastries from a bakery that typically sold out by mid-morning, and kept them stocked in his flat so that if she wanted some, she could have them.

He didn't tell her he did, apparently. For two years, she didn't know that the bakery sold out by midmorning because Enroshan always had them for her.

Henry applied that to Elka, and he was lucky he had a space preservation bag to use.

Ash was working on something better for Hana, apparently. That something was her own personal space preservation bag. "Then, she can have what she needs, even if I can't be there."

"Tell me the truth," Elka said as she squinted her eyes at him suspiciously. "Did you really just shove all that food into your bag as soon as they were put on your table?"

Henry scoffed and lifted his chin. "I didn't shove them in there," he retorted. "I put them on disposable plates and meal boxes first. I'm not going to steal restaurant tableware." He'd never be allowed in restaurants again if he did.

Elka laughed and Henry left her with the reassurance that he'd return in a few hours. Once outside, he went to borrow a horse. The miners' camp was half an hour away from the camp on horseback, and situated near a river so they could have fresh water.

As he approached, he began to see the patched tents that had been brought from the raided mines and set up in neat rows, organized into sections. Dareisol soldiers patrolled around them, assisting with the move, and escorting the hunting and gathering teams.

In addition, two medics were sent to monitor food and check on people's health, as malnutrition and infection were a concern.

Over the last few weeks, four Ashtar-leased mines, two major and two minor, that were within two or three days of travel from their camp had been raided. Henry had hoped that the situation at the first mine was an isolated case, but every time they raided a new mine, his heart was stabbed with disappointment.

Imprisoned laborers who were arrested and displaced because of debt were kept in near unsanitary conditions, malnourished, and confined. There was the start of mass graves not far from the mines, as well. Considering the situation of the survivors, it wasn't a surprise. Miners pleaded with Henry to find where their dead or missing relatives had gone.

It had been a painful task to accompany the living to identify the dead.

Eli, at one point, had been so upset, that he had asked not to accompany them anymore.

Henry wished Ash or Nera had been there in order to facilitate proper death rituals in order to bring some solace and help the grieving families. Colonel Arelias sent a message for a priest to come, but it would take time for one to be sent.

Henry had asked another messenger to send a letter to the nearest temple to be sent via carrier bird to West Wind Abbey. In the meantime, he took it upon himself to lead prayers for the dead, though he had warned them that the prayers were in Lunapsar and they wouldn't understand.

The miners didn't care, as long as the souls of the dead were taken care of.

Elka had taken her one trip outside of the camp since her injury to accompany Henry, her brothers, and her uncle in prayers for the dead. Henry had incense, bowls, and set up a little altar. When the sun set, he began his prayers in the direction of the moon.

On his knees, he led them in a string of Lunapsar prayers and chanting. He even took out a small Lunapsar drum so he could use it to keep the beat as he sang the song that would normally have accompanied a ritual dance.

He'd performed this three times. Each time a new set of rescued miners arrived, they would bring their wrapped dead, and Henry would lead the death prayers. For health concerns, the dead were cremated.

Though Henry came once a day to deliver basic foods, some days he stayed for two or three in a row to oversee the death rituals and cremation. Ashtar practiced an astral religion, but their main deity was the sun goddess. Births and unions were celebrated with much greater fanfare, but it was the opposite for the Lunapsar, who saw death as a completion of one stage and beginning of another, closer to the gods.

His sincere efforts, though not on purpose, won him respect and good favor among the miners. They became much more receptive, and when people were receptive, they were easier to control and keep in order. In order to avoid the chaos of everyone clamoring at once, family groups were instructed to select one elder to represent them.

That elder represented them to the section head of their camp section. Then the section heads represented their groups to Henry. This also made it easier to divide and distribute resources. Specific individuals with useful skillsets were assigned tasks within the sections. Colonel Arelias had pointed out that Henry had seemed to use a sort of military-style unit system.

"It's just an efficient one," Henry had replied with a helpless shrug. "And this isn't my first time helping with the organization of displaced people."

Back then, Nera was much stricter, if not iron fisted. There were plenty of people who wanted to take control of the resettlement without the strict guidelines Nera put in place to ensure as much equity as possible. She had been very hands-on. At least in Henry's situation, everyone was much more complacent due to what they'd been through and had the Dareisol army behind him.

Henry still wanted to follow Nera's example and tried to avoid triggering envy and putting people in a worse situation.

With Nera's fighting ability and her natural air of authority from being both a Lunapsar royal and the daughter of a general, she'd taken control and kept it, even training the representatives to be firm and fair. It didn't always work as she wanted, but it worked well enough that the resettlement site became a bustling town with a road directly to West Wind Valley.

The Atractas name carried a lot of weight there as a result, and Henry planned to leverage it.

After each raid, the resources of the mine, such as food and housing, were confiscated for redistribution, as the Dareisol camp only had so much food and tents of their own. He didn't want the miners to feel too disenfranchised, especially considering there was still a long road ahead of them to get to the resettlement site.

According to his estimates, with nearly a thousand people having to take down camp, walk, then put down camp for the night, it would take over a month to reach the resettlement site on foot.

It was like fleeing a famine all over again.

"Young Master!"

"He's here!"

The excited voices of children greeted him as he reached the large oak tree that marked the start of the camp. It was also where representatives would meet him, and he would give announcements, as a large wide area had been cleared so it could be used as a meeting place. The little shrine for the dead was also beside the tree.

Henry smiled as he saw a dozen or more little children rushing forward to greet him.

"Good day," he said. "Are you excited to see me or for the dried fruit?"

The clamoring children laughed and a few blushed guiltily. However, Henry still dismounted off his horse and reached into his bag to get a large bag of dried fruit in order to pay his 'entry fee.'

"Thank you, Young Master!" The children were polite, blinding him with their small white teeth as they smiled. After being properly fed and rested, as well as given some semblance of security, the children looked much better than when he first them.

They were still skinny and wore rags, but there was more color on their faces, they were livelier, and any injuries they had were cared for.

"You can thank me by calling over the section heads and their assists. I need to distribute some grains," he told them.

The dutiful children agreed to their assignment and rushed out in all directions. A few hadn't taken a few steps before they started yelling for their grandparent or parent to come because Young Master Atractas had arrived.

Henry waited by the base of the oak tree. He took a moment to replace the incense on the shrine for the dead, and do a quick prayer.

By the time the section heads had gathered, Henry had taken some bags of grains and leafy vegetables from his bag. The surrounding forest had already been stripped of edible plants, so Henry provided them. The designated hunting groups were tasked with providing meat.

"Welcome back, Young Master." The old man who'd been the first to speak to Henry after the first raid put his hands together and bowed to Henry.

Henry had given up trying to get him to stop. "Good day, Grandpa Yenus," he replied. "Here are today's grains and some vegetables. Please distribute them amongst yourselves." There wasn't a place to store the food in bulk, so Henry only gave them one- or two-days' worth of food at once. "I have some milk here for the new mothers and babies."

The section heads were grateful and sorted the items according to population, considering children who ate less, and giving a little more food to people who did more labor.

"Young Master, I'm ready to give my report," one of the younger section heads said. He was from the small mining camp they'd last raided. Unfortunately, it wasn't that the mine was smaller, but it was because it was the oldest, and people had died.

"First bring your share back to your section. When you return, we can begin the daily reports." There were about fifteen section heads, so they would go in order from left to right, according to their camp's position from the oak tree. Everyone knew their position, so it was easy to remember.

Henry sat down and listened to their reports, which included their needs, concerns, and grievances. A few times, there had been some disagreements that Henry needed to mediate over, but it wasn't so serious that it caused deep-seeded problems.

He would respond the way he'd been taught by actual renowned imperial tutors as a child.

Repeat the concern in the way you believe it to mean it to confirm that you understand, then he'd ask for their opinions on possible solutions, he'd then apply what he felt was fair and possible in the circumstance, get feedback, and then make the final decision and confirm his or their next steps to remedy the issue.

Granted, they weren't always as satisfactory as all parties involved wish, but most agreed it was fair and possible to implement.

Efan had come with him a few times and had begrudgingly admitted that Henry was surprisingly efficient. He was able to understand their needs, address them, and find a course of action that was suitable in their situation. Being flexible was necessary.

Henry's judgements were taken as precedence amongst the section heads, allowing them to address similar issues in the same way. As a result, Henry was praised for his leadership, decisiveness, and generosity.

He often waved off the last part. "I'm doing what I can because you're my people." He didn't want to see the same scenes as the famine again.

"Your aunt taught you well," Efan had muttered once, when he'd accompanied Henry for a check on the medics and soldiers. "The merchants of the Federation are a different breed indeed."

Henry had only smirked a bit.

After several weeks of working with the section heads and family leaders, Henry felt he had built a good rapport with them.

"Young Master, we have finished clearing the section zones off last week," one of the heads told him.

Henry's brows shot up. "Excellent."

"Are we expecting another group soon?" one of the others asked with some excitement in his face.

The miners knew others who had been kicked off their land and taken away before they were. This included fellow villagers, neighbors, and extended family members. There had been many reunions in the past few weeks, with families grouping together with familiar faces for support.

After the first two raids, heads of the families had waited by the oak tree for the new survivors to arrive in hopes of finding missing family members. If they were lucky, there would be cries of acknowledgement and joy, then perhaps weeping for those who were lost. If they were unlucky, they would offer congratulations to their peers, but trudge back to their families brokenhearted.

Sometimes, Henry would hear them ask around if they heard of a particular person or family name in hopes of tracking down someone's whereabouts. Even if they were dead, the families would at least know. Identifications had been successful five times, and soldiers had to escort those people to the raid sites to bring back their dead.

Because of family reunification, when Henry asked them to clear a space, they figured it was because a new group would be arriving, which meant there was a chance. They were more than happy to prepare.

Henry couldn't give them the details, but he could give them an estimated arrival time.

"We expect to return in six days," Henry told them. "We believe this is the last of the mines in this region."

He even had to acknowledge that they, and therefore Dareisol, had extended their reach far beyond what a foreign power would be allowed to do in another. They'd raided mines in three different territories. Each territory leader had been notified, but none of them responded.

Mario and the other messengers said that it was hinted that the territory leaders would ignore what Dareisol did because Dareisol was the more powerful of the two. Colonel Arelias had snorted and said, "so be it."

Now, Henry would consider themselves almost unrestrained. They already mapped out the last of the mines targeted. He would leave that night with the usual team, leaving some soldiers to supply the camp with food while he was gone.

"I hope my cousin is there." One man closed his eyes and seemed to say a quiet prayer. A few others patted his shoulders sympathetically.

"Young Master," another man stepped forward, looking hopeful. "Will there be any more after this?"

Henry shook his head. "Dareisol is only retaliating against the enemies that harass them. They have no business with other mines." He also didn't know how many other mines Ashtar was leasing. He'd asked Colonel Arelias if they could investigate. It wasn't necessary for Dareisol to act, but additional information was never bad to have.

"In that case, will we be able to leave soon?" The others around Henry grew quiet and turned their attention back to him.

The question had been asked. They couldn't remain in a temporary camp in the middle of a mountain forest forever. Henry had already discussed his thoughts on bringing them to the resettlement site, and gave the warning that it was a long trek.

"I've sent a messenger bird to someone to help prepare your arrival. When the messenger bird responds with a confirmation, we will proceed. I expect before the next lunar phase, we will have to leave here," Henry said, looking up at the sky for a moment. The air around him seemed to tingle with excitement. The various section heads look at each other and their helpers with joy and eagerness. Henry looked back at them and hardened his face. "That being said, it will not be an easy or short journey."

The excitement in the air fell just a bit as they were reminded.

"We are not afraid of a long journey, Young Master," the old man replied with confidence.

"Young Master." The younger man appeared cautious as he spoke. "Will you be going with us?" His question seemed to remind the others that Henry was a go-between of sorts between them and the Dareisol military. He could feel their sudden uncertainty.

"I will be going with you and accompanying you on your journey, as well as assist with any mediation in getting settled," Henry told them. He heard a collective sigh of relief in response. "However, after you are settled, I will leave. I have to return to my family."

That was acceptable. After all, Henry couldn't stay with them forever. It was clear that he was doing more than enough for them.

The old man clasped his hands together and bowed low. "Thank you, Young Master." Seeing him bow, the others were prompted to mirrored the motion. Henry opened his mouth to try to stop them, but decided to save his words. He gave him a small nod instead before telling them to rise.

"Since you've asked, let's go over the map while the sun is out." Henry laid out a large rough blanket for them to sit on and then took out a map of the region. He had already marked where they were, as well as outlined the route he planned to take. "These small circles are prospective rest areas. The route itself is a major caravan route, so we will need to remain close together and make way for them, as they'll be moving faster."

"Will there be water sources nearby?"

"Yes, each of these locations have a water source not too far away. Mostly streams through the mountains," Henry told them as he pointed to a few lines on the paper. "Except for here and here, we are too far from a water source, so we will need to have extra for the next day's travel. I am being conservative with the amount of ground we can cover per day. Everyone will be on foot, and we have elderly and small children."

They discussed their plans, what to expect, and what was the best way to carry their things. Henry listened to them discuss amongst themselves, only interjecting when discussions began to go off on a tangent.

"Will the settlement welcome us?" one middle-aged man asked. "We have nothing to our names. And there are so many of us."

Nearly a thousand people, perhaps more depending on how many they found at the last mine. Henry took a deep breath. Perhaps these many people would've been unwelcomed, as the infrastructure of city couldn't manage the sudden influx, but the settlement was different.

It had been created specifically to manage Ashtari refugees in droves, as they were not the last to have fled the country. According to what his aunt said, the settlement city continued to accept refugees every few months, at least until the Emperor and son really put a choke on crossing borders.

"The settlement was created to deal with people like you," Henry replied calmly. "We understand that you are penniless and have nothing more to your names than the clothes on your back, but a system has long been put in place. First, you will be assigned a temporary lot to pitch your tent and settle. I've sent word to the council there, so they will be expecting you. The head of each family will go and register for their family. They'll then take you to your lot. When you've settled, go to the money-lending office. It's a loan office run by Snake, Scarab, and Sons."

It was one of two of its kind in the world, the other having been created in West Wind Valley after the Fall of Smiya. The money-lending office loaned money to the refugees to get started in buying some land, farming, selling, or starting some trade. The interest was low, and if payment was completed in the agreed amount of time, interest wasn't collected at all. Nera called them resettlement loans, and it wasn't designed to make money. The payment times were quite generous, and could be paid off bit by bit.

All that money had come from Nera's private accounts and donations from Soraya, Yayae, and friends from West Wind Abbey Girls Academy.

The loans had proven useful and an important part of giving another chance at a life. Most loans had already been paid back in full. Snake, Scarab, and Sons then offered to loan larger amounts, but for shorter time periods for businesses, and with a higher interest.

People were able to start small caravan routes and simple industries with that money.

Henry explained all of this in detail, including what forms they needed, what guarantees they had to provide, and the maximum amount of loans that could be taken out. This was a relief to hear.

Now that Henry thought about it, since he knew it was so successful, and had been for many years, he would open something similar in Dareisol. It looked like the people desperately needed capital to move forward.

Satisfied with Henry's answers, the group concluded their meeting. They all thanked Henry again.

"Young Master," one of the men said, causing Henry to look towards him. The man seemed hesitant, but Henry gave him a small, encouraging nod. "Young Master...will we...that is...is there a chance for us to one day return to Ashtar?"

The group of section heads and their people went quiet. A few people looked down, while others' eyes turned red.

Henry felt some sourness, as well. A resettlement, no matter how successful, was temporary. Which of them did not want to return home?

His heart clenched, and he found himself looking over the top of their heads, towards the east in the direction of Ashtar.

He wanted to go back, too. To see his mother, to save his people, and to take back his throne. But it would require some bloodshed first.

Henry swallowed hard. He, his brother, his aunt, and any allies they had would face Ashtar's Emperor, Crown Prince, and their supporters. While they'd try to limit the amount of collateral damage, it was impossible for blood not to be spilled. In what struggle for the throne had no one died?

A small voice in the back of his head dared to make a bold claim.

"Yes." Henry lowered his eyes and fixed them on his people with sincerity and determination. "One day, you will return to Ashtar. Alive and well," he stressed. I'll make sure of that myself.

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