While the three leaders were locked in discussion inside the council hut, the sudden, booming explosion outdoors instantly arrested the attention of the entire settlement. Gazing at the pillar of crimson flame surging into the winter sky, the villagers felt a deep, unspeakable dread grip their hearts.
Panic rippled through the lanes as people began to whisper that an enemy division had launched a surprise assault upon their gates. A conflagration of that magnitude didn't look like the work of a single warrior; it bore the terrifying hallmarks of military incendiary munitions.
The rumors grew louder and wilder by the minute. A few families who had already bundled their belongings seized upon the chaotic diversion, throwing their packs over their shoulders and fleeing into the snowdrifts in the opposite direction.
Jeanne, however, knew precisely what that explosion meant. The exiled rogue elements had indeed cornered Alina out in the barrens, but unfortunately for them, they had run headfirst into Fafnir instead.
"Is that... the personal bodyguard you spoke of?" Talulah turned to look at Jeanne, her expression a mask of pure disbelief. Judging by the sheer, instantaneous fury of that blast, the fire unleashed by that child might very well rival or even surpass her own draconic flames.
Out on the snow-covered path, Alina stood perfectly still, staring down at Fafnir in stunned silence. Though Jeanne had drop-fed her warnings about the child's hidden strength, no amount of mental preparation could have lessened the shock of witnessing a literal dragon strike firsthand.
The Elafia maiden finally understood why Jeanne had insisted on leaving Fafnir in her care over the past few days. Her companion had clearly anticipated a strike from the outcasts, ensuring she would have an invincible protector if she chose not to draw blood herself.
Gazing at the young dragon girl, who was casually brushing a speck of ash from her sleeve, it was obvious that an engagement of this scale didn't register as a true battle to her; it was merely a localized display, a playful prank at best.
"Muuu..." Fafnir blinked her large eyes, shifting her gaze from Alina to the roaring bonfire behind them. The complex, wide-eyed look on the Elafia's face made the child worry that she had somehow misbehaved again, even though she had consciously held back the true fury of her breath.
"Thank you for watching over me, Fafnir," Alina murmured softly, breaking her stupor with a warm smile as she reached down to stroke the young girl's hair. "Come, let us return home."
The realization filled her heart with a bittersweet warmth. She had initially assumed the child was simply being clingy because Jeanne was away at the industrial blocks, but in truth, the dragon girl had been tracking her steps solely to guarantee her survival.
Because those who were currently turning to ash within that blazing inferno were men who had fully intended to take her life.
On their return journey, a band of exiles with murder written all over their faces had trailed them through the drifts, waiting until they entered the secluded grove to mount their ambush.
Their motivation was born from sheer, toxic spite. They could not endure the fact that they had been cast out into the cold with nothing to their names, while Talulah's loyalists had secured a massive moving town. Desperate for a twisted form of vengeance, they had targeted the one individual who had never displayed a single drop of martial prowess.
A gentle deer who looked entirely unsuited for the hardships of the frontier, accompanied by a small child who shared Talulah's draconic traits—to the outcasts, they were the perfect, defenseless targets for a bloody retaliation.
But their calculations had been fatally flawed. Even without Fafnir's intervention, the ruffians would have found it impossible to harm Alina; the gentle schoolteacher was no longer the helpless victim she appeared to be on the surface.
"Alina! Are you harmed?!"
Talulah, Jeanne, and FrostNova intercepted the pair halfway down the mountain track. The frantic Draco immediately rushed forward, her hands hovering over her companion as she checked for any hidden wounds.
Jeanne and Alina simply exchanged a knowing, amused glance. Watching Talulah pace back and forth in a frantic state of worry, the two of them merely shrugged in unison, remaining perfectly silent.
FrostNova could see at a glance that the Elafia was completely fine. Not a single strand of her hair was out of place, and her wool coat bore no traces of snow, indicating she hadn't even been forced to take a defensive step.
As for Jeanne, her faith in Fafnir's overwhelming power meant she had never harbored a single doubt regarding the outcome. To a primeval dragon, a few disgruntled bandits were lesser annoyances than common mountain flies.
Once they gathered the details, the reality matched their grim theories perfectly. Realizing they couldn't salvage their fortunes, the ungrateful wretches had resorted to direct violence against the innocent to satiate their wounded pride.
Though Alina recounted the ambush in a remarkably calm, matter-of-fact tone, the betrayal struck a devastating blow to Talulah's spirit. The sheer malice of the act had shattered her remaining patience, crossing her personal threshold entirely.
She couldn't bear to imagine a future where Alina survived the relentless campaigns against the imperial army, only to be struck down from behind by the very people they had bled to protect.
"Jeanne, can I impose upon you for a favor?" Talulah requested quietly as they entered the village gates.
Her voice was entirely flat, carrying a chilling serenity that left a shiver in the air.
"What is it? Speak your mind," Jeanne replied, waving her hand casually to maintain a relaxed demeanor, though she was already calculating what the Draco intended to do next. "There is no need for such formal language between us."
"Utilize your extraordinary tracking intuition to drag out every single agitator who has been poisoning the minds of the villagers over the past week. Do not concern yourself with gathering formal evidence or testimonies; we have passed the point where such legalities hold weight."
As Talulah spoke, a faint, flickering amber spark danced deep within her pupils. She had resolved to close this dark chapter once and for all before their vanguard departed the valley.
She didn't care if her actions ignited a wave of resentment among the populace, or if half the village chose to pack their bags and abandon the movement in protest.
"That is easily done," Jeanne agreed without a moment's hesitation. The task was trivial given her capabilities. "But... what do you intend to do with them once they are gathered?"
"Leave the final arrangements to me. One way or another, I am going to draw a definitive line beneath the history of this settlement."
Talulah swept her gaze over the surrounding crowds. The eyes staring back at her from the tents were filled with a chaotic tapestry of emotions—fear, doubt, and brewing resentment.
It was a bitter pill to swallow. While a handful of loyal souls looked upon her with genuine worry, the overwhelming majority stared with cold suspicion. They had actually begun to despise the very leaders who had liberated them from the imperial labor camps.
"Do not allow your fury to dictate your actions," Jeanne cautioned softly. It was the first time she had ever witnessed Talulah adopting such an unreadable, icy posture. Even when confronting the manipulative ghost of Kashchey, the Draco had never appeared so detached.
"I know my limits, Jeanne. I am not about to commit an act of blind madness. Do you take me for an undisciplined child?" Talulah countered, a rare, genuine smile breaking through her grim expression for the first time in days.
Seeing that her friend had retained her senses, Jeanne simply shrugged and walked away. After returning to their quarters to offer Fafnir a heavy dose of praise and a few treats, she strode out into the lanes alone to begin her hunt.
Under these circumstances, her divine revelation was the ultimate tool. It was as though a living map was unfolding directly within her mind, guiding her steps with infallible precision. In a remarkably brief span of time, she unearthed every single individual who had been whispering poison into the ears of the villagers.
She even managed to corner a slippery agent from the exiled faction who had infiltrated the tents under the cover of dusk and hadn't yet found an opportunity to slip back out into the barrens.
To the suspicious onlookers who had swallowed the rumors whole, Jeanne's ruthless sweeps painted her as a tyrannical brute. Yet, none of these disgruntled souls possessed the spine to voice their grievances aloud; they utterly lacked the courage to look Jeanne or Talulah in the eye.
They only dared to mutter their ridiculous grievances in the dim shadows of their tents, desperately comforting themselves with grand delusions of how they would one day achieve "true freedom" away from the vanguard.
They willfully ignored the reality that the targets of their burning hatred were the very women who had kept them fed throughout the brutal winter.
Perhaps their minds had locked away that inconvenient truth. After all, human beings are creatures who prefer to embrace only the stories that serve their immediate desires.
However, the sweep yielded one hilarious surprise that even Jeanne hadn't anticipated: the resolve of these agitators was incredibly fragile. The moment they were dragged before Talulah's desk, before anyone could even prepare an interrogation room, they completely broke down and confessed to every single plot!
Just as Patriot had observed with deep disdain, these schemers were nothing but spineless cowards devoid of any true conviction. Allowing such fair-weather parasites to remain within their ranks would only invite an absolute catastrophe down the road.
Even if Talulah turned a blind eye to their current treason, the moment their long-distance migration faced its first true hardship, these weak-willed individuals would undoubtedly panic and trigger a massive mutiny.
Having gathered the full scope of the conspiracy, Talulah directed her guards to assemble the entire populace in the village square. She was going to lay the entire truth bare before the community today.