Adam stared at Dargon, whose lips were twitg in a smug, knowing smile. He wasn’t sure why the Iyrman was so excited, but he go Kandal and Eshva, who had been overjoyed to hear the tale of their aor’s fights. Dargon had done well iioning Tova’s fight iail, but also the ensuing battle.

  The pizza had gone down well in the Iyr, to the point that his old Iyrmen panions had barged in to politely ask if they could taste some. With the power of pizza looming over their heads, Adam had traded the taste of pizza for the end of the story. It was a steep price to pay, but he couldn’t deny them the taste of his favourite food, for he had a heart.

  “Okay,” Adam said, nodding his head slowly as he chewed on the end of the story. “I see why the current King wouldn’t dare to pick a fight with the Iyr.”

  Adam was still worried, but sidering how the Iyrmen had glossed over how they had mao assassihe various nobles within their own homes, and how they had abducted the Queen so easily without anyone knowing.

  ‘These guys are terrifying,’ Adam thought, w if they would still be able to do as they pleased. “Still, you should be careful, being outnumbered and all.”

  “The Iyr hasn’t been truly threatened over a thousand years,” Dargon said, biting into a pizza slice. “Even if the Kingdom outnumbers us a huo one.”

  “If it is ever threatened, we will fight for it,” Tazwyn said, as though that was all there is to it. She fihe pizza with all the vegetables, before biting into some sliced meat she had prepared.

  “I hope it doesn’t happen any time soon,” Adam admitted. “I don’t even have Fireball.”

  The Iyrmen threw him a queer gnce as he went into thought, but tio enjoy their pizza. He would always say things which surprised them, but they were getting used to it.

  “What happeo the Prind Princess?” Adam asked. They had just mentio in passing, but it had armed him.

  “They were adopted into the Iyrmen families,” Amokan replied simply, taking lead in the versation.

  “Right, but which families?” Adam gnced his way. Amokan had been listening in ily to the story, even though his family had not beeioned once during the tale.

  Jurot smirked smugly at Adam once again, before catg Amokan’s gaze. The pair exged a versation with their eyes.

  ‘Don’t tell him.’

  ‘I won’t.’

  “Perhaps you’ll find out?” Tazwyn said, barely able to tain her smile.

  “I thought Iyrmen were straight talkers,” Adam grumbled. “How disappointing.”

  The Iyrme Adam, feeling his words swing at their pride. Eshva growled quietly, grittieeth to stop herself from snapping at him.

  “You are not close enough to the Iyr,” Amokan said, pinly.

  “If you spar with us, we will tell you,” Timojin assured, biting into some of the meat Tazwyn had brought.

  Amokan threw the orcish Iyrman a look. “You would say it so simply?”

  “Adam may be an outsider, but his gift was better than ours,” Timojin replied, sternly. “Aren’t you ashamed.”

  “Do I look like I know how to ent? If I were stronger, I would have brought a dragon’s fang!”

  “The’s spar with him so we grow stronger!”

  The pair of Iyrmen butt heads together, while Kitool pced a hand on their shoulders. “Stop embarrassing yourselves in front of the half elf.”

  Adam chuckled, shaking his head. “Dargon, I didn’t hear mention of one of your aors.” Dargon had been so smug the eime, yet there was little mention of any of his aors withiory.

  “You did,” Dargon replied, simply.

  “I did? When?”

  “You haven’t figured it out?” Dargon asked, throwing the same smug smile to the half elf.

  ‘Seriously…’ Adam paused for a long while. ‘Who was it that could have been…’ Adam rubbed his gently. “Wait a sed. Greatswreatsword…” Adam squinted his eyes, staring suspiciously at the Iyrman. “Was it Elder Wrath?”

  Dargon grinned wide, crossing his arms as he jut out his chest. “It took you long enough.”

  Kitool threw Adam a look, w what she should say. “Did you figure out my aor?”

  “Your aor?” Adam stared at her, narrowing his eyes. His first thoughts went from one Great Elder to the . “Elder Peace?”

  Kitool’s lips twitched into a smile. “It is my honour to be the daughter of such a fine name.”

  “Wow,” Adam said, nodding his head. He hadn’t expected all these Iyrmen to have such close ties to the story. “I uand the feeling of having great aors, though…”

  “Though?” Jurot asked, his ears perking up.

  “Even if your aor is amazing, it doesn’t mean that you’ll end up just as great, right?”

  “That’s true,” Jurot said. “To take pride in your family is a great thing, but to shame someone else for it, it’s despicable. Most within the Iyr have at least one great story with their aors.”

  “The Iyr doesn’t seem to pce much sto blood retions, though,” Adam said.

  “We don’t,” Jaygak agreed. After all, back during the Bckwater Crisis, there were no devilkin in the Iyr.

  “I assume the nobles in the Kingdom care greatly?”

  “They do,” Jaygak said, recalling how her people were still persecuted in the Kingdom, even as Iyrmen.

  Adam nodded his head, sighing. “That’s just typical, isn’t it?” He took a long moment to think, his thoughts boung from one pce to the . “Does the Iyr still have Drakkensyer?”

  Amokan nodded his head, uo stop himself. “We do.”

  “So the Iyr has the aral sword of the Bckwaters, and adopted two members of the dynasty...” Adam’s voice grew quiet.

  “It is dangerous to think about such things,” Tazwyn warned, finishing the slice. Her eyes were stuck to the meat, but Adam could see the fieress within them.

  “You’re right.” Adam suddenly felt as though he had painted a target on his back. He cleared his throat. “Your aor retty cool though, managing to find a Roc.”

  Jurot smiled. “There are now Rukhs within these nds once again because of my aor!” Jurot puffed his chest with pride, nodding his head.

  “What?”

  “There are now Rukhs within these nds once against because of my aor!” he repeated, gleefully.

  “Aren’t Rocs terrifying?” Adam tilted his head, his face full of shock.

  “They are,” Jurot said, nodding his head. “There are Greater Rukhs as well.”

  Adam coughed. “In this nd?”

  “Yes.”

  “Doesn’t that mean it’s dangerous to walk the nds.”

  “Very,” Jurot said, excitedly.

  Adam looked to the other Iyrmen, who were beaming up at him. ‘Right, I fot I was the only normal person here.’ He rubbed his forehead. ‘They’ll be the death of me, I swear.’

  “Still, it’s amazing to here about the tale. I wouldn’t have believed it. I mean, how could anyone believe that you Iyrmen, outnumbered roughly four to one, could force the King to surrender, only to then influehe politics of the Kingdom after causing the various pces to kneel.” Adam wondered what it could be pared to in his previous life. “Though, I’m sure the Kingdom has its own version of the story.”

  “Yes,” Dargon replied back, instantly. “The Iyrmen attacked without warning, sughtering several towns.”

  “The King’s army fought brutally, only to surrender uhe tricks of the Iyrmen, and so the savages stole the nd ah of the Kingdom, causing it to fall into chaos for another five decades.” Tazwyn shook her head.

  “It was only thanks to the wisdom of the King that the Iyrmen were once again allied tainst the giants,” Amokan finished.

  “So how did you mao ally with the Kingdom again?” Adam wondered.

  “Chief Tamin and Elder Peace extended a hand ohe Kingdom was uhreat again,” Amokan said, recalling what had been told to him. “The Bckheart family had been kind to the Iyrmen during the various wars up north, and so when they were threatened, Elder Peace believed it was the best time to refe a retionship.” However, he also knew why Elder Peace wao refe the retionship.

  “What a tale,” Adam said, gng up at the m sky. “I’m gd that you all mao figure it all out in the end.”

  “Things have ged sihat time,” Dargon said. “Now the Kingdom thrives with such great wealth and strength. There is also the Drakkehe Kingdom of drakken to the north.”

  “Oh? Is it due to that drakken that Akrat saved?” Adam wondered just how mufluehese Iyrmen have had on this world.

  “Partly,” Tazwyn said. “Queen Silvari rules the Kingdom, having brought it under her heel. Her family had always been a strong influen the region for turies.”

  “A drakken Kingdom to the north…?” Adam tried to recall his past life. ‘I’m pretty sure that wasn’t a thing st time. Didn’t the drakken and the giants join together?’ He rubbed his , squinting his eyes in thought once again. He was trying to form a picture of the world, using the Iyr as a baseline.

  Dargon threw a look to Tazwyn, and then back to Adam. “You did not know?” he asked.

  “I didn’t know there was a drakken Kingdom, no,” Adam replied.

  Dargon threw another look to Tazwyn, who was staring at Adam.

  “What?” the half elf asked.

  “You’ve never heard of Drakkenlen or Queen Silvari?” Tazwyn asked.

  “her,” he replied. ‘Heh, Queen ah da norf.’ He shook his head, smirking at himself. ‘Too bad the st few seasons were absolute dog.’

  Tazwyn’s eyeshes fluttered violently, trying to think about what Adam was saying. ‘What?’ This was more unbelievable than him saying he had died several times already.

  Even Jurot, who had been with Adam when they had met the Queen, was giving Adam a suspicious look.

  “What?” Adam asked having snapped out of his thoughts, noting all the Iyrmen staring at him.

  “You don’t know Queen Silvari?” Jurot asked, leaning in close, staring deep into Adam’s eyes.

  “No, of course not!” Adam pulled back away from the Iyrman, whose face had been far too close for his liking. “How am I meant to know the Queen?”

  ‘He doesn’t know?’ Jurot thought.

  “Have you finally fihe tale?” a weak, feminine voice called from behind.

  The voice caused Adam to snap his head in her dire. Sonarot was using a e to walk as she stepped through the Rot family door, before slowly falling onto the rog chair beside it.

  “Are you alright?” Adam asked, scrambling up to stand at her side.

  “I’m fine,” she said, sighing slightly. “She was such a little fighter, wasn’t she?”

  Jurot stared at his mother, but he recalled the sight of her giving birth, and his face torted into an expression of tamed horror.

  “She’s going to be strong,” Adam assured her. “After all, she’s a daughter of the Rot family, isn’t she?’

  Sonarot only smiled at the words. “Did they mention the Rukhs?”

  “They did,” Adam replied, smiling.

  “Back then, the Rot family was at its peak. Jarot had done much for it, though he had left the Iyr for fifty years.” Speaking about Jarot was quite weird to her lips, sidering it was the name of another member of the Rot family. “Jarot had returned only to inform the Iyr of quite some news.”

  “What kind of news?”

  “It’s a tale for aime,” Sonarot said. “You must be tired.”

  “Tired? Me?” Adam stared at her for a long while. “Sonarot, I’m not the one who gave birth. It feels weird that you should say that about me.”

  “Didn’t you say you were but a feeble mage?” Sonarot smiled. “I will be returning to rest soon, I just wao see my little Lanarot.”

  “Do you need help?” Adam asked.

  She extended a hand and Adam took it, helping her walk to the Ool family, where Lanarot was currently sleeping. The little girl was still so tiny, with a wrinkled face, like a raison. Even so, to Sonarot, she was the cutest little thing in the world.

  “Hey,” Jaygak whispered. “You should do something before he steals your mother.”

  Jurot threw her a gre, which caused her to retreat beside Kitool. “Mother is kind,” he said, simply. “Adam may be weird, but I am his good friend.”

  “Didn’t you say you didn’t trust him?” Jaygak asked, squinting her eyes at him.

  “I don’t trust him, but I’m still his good friend.”

  “Jurot, you sure still say some stupid things, even after-” Jaygak ducked uhe cloth which Jurot had s her.

  Click banner for Patreon and e join my Discord too!

  chapter will be an interlude, I think? The Iyr seems to have some people who think at least.