Nearly midday after the battle against Acelin’s group, Jonn and his companions reached the top of the last hill overlooking the Eternal Village. From their vantage point, they gazed down at the settlement, still pristine and untouched. The gates were tightly shut, the guards alert, and the animals stationed outside stood calmly in position.

  The group let out quiet sighs of relief. Nothing seemed to have happened. The people remained safely confined within the walled area of the village, with only those assigned to guard duties placed outside the protective perimeter.

  Jonn scrutinized the scene further, seeing the undisturbed terrain and the absence of combat signs. There were no signs of magical contamination in the soil or blood, suggesting an outside attack. For a moment, the tension in his chest eased.

  Glancing at his companions, he gave a brief nod of acknowledgment, then leaned forward and rode ahead on Windy to complete the last stretch of the journey. Behind him, the common guards accompanying Hank and Eliot murmured quietly.

  Windy and the other horses, all level 2 beasts, maintained their impressive speed over the rugged terrain. Within three minutes, Jonn and the group slowed their approach as they reached the outer camp south of the village walls. A mix of relieved guards and dogs awaited them, the animals scanning the open fields with wary eyes.

  “Master!” Annabelle’s familiar voice rang out as she emerged from amid the animals and guards. The other dogs parted instinctively to clear her path, their deference clear as she, the most beautiful and commanding of the local beasts, made her way to Jonn.

  Near Annabelle, the armadillo and bear from the Triceratops horde entered the scene, their unmistakable forms standing out among the other animals.

  Sparing Annabelle only a brief glance, Jonn strode past her and addressed the two beasts directly. “You two,” he said, his voice steady with authority as he looked at the armadillo and bear. “I need one of you to travel west to the Lost Treasures. Return to your group and warn them about the trouble heading our way.”

  The two beasts exchanged a quick glance; their understanding was mutual. Without hesitation, they decided who would go and who would stay.

  The bear stepped forward and bowed slightly, signaling his decision.

  Jonn wasted no time. “Verris will probably have already alerted your group by the time you reach them. But no matter—reinforce the warning when you get there. Tell them Tyrannosaurus Rexes above level 2 are moving. It’s possible they’ve picked up on the Triceratops’ tracks. This might be a lone group, or it might be the start of something much bigger. Either way, your leaders need to know immediately, and they need to prepare for joint action.”

  “All right,” the bear answered.

  Jonn gave a sharp nod and continued, “There are two more tasks I need from your group. First, I need a team to investigate a specific area within the Lost Treasures. This is reconnaissance. I need an assessment of the numbers and strength of the forces stationed there—no risks, just report back with the information we need.”

  The bear listened attentively.

  “Second,” Jonn added, his tone growing heavier, “I need you to return here with a stronger group of your horde’s beasts. The village will need your support to stand a chance against the Tyrannosaurus Rexes.”

  The bear understood his task thoroughly but sought clarification on one point that remained unclear to him. “Where should the horde investigate?”

  Jonn nodded and explained in a way tailored for the bear, deliberately avoiding complexities like city names or human maps that the animal wouldn’t recognize. “Travel west from here until you reach a region where the black soil of the Barren Hills of Deepshadow fades, giving way to rocky terrain with red and yellowish hues. These rugged plateaus stretch out over a vast area. In that region, you’ll find a grand human city, one where the sound of chains echoes day and night.”

  The bear tilted his massive head slightly, absorbing the information. Though he lacked the nuanced understanding of human geography, Jonn’s description was clear enough for the beast to navigate. After a moment, the bear turned to leave.

  With steady steps, the bear began his journey westward toward his horde, unbothered by the prospect of traveling alone. His massive frame vanished gradually into the desolate horizon, his stride confident and assured.

  Meanwhile, the people and animals outside the village observed the departure of the hulking, fur-covered envoy. For a brief moment, the scene was still. Then the faint hum of noise from within the walled settlement grew louder.

  The bamboo gate creaked as it was pulled open by a group of guards. They had already spotted Jonn’s return and were preparing to welcome him back. The guards’ expressions were calm, yet watchful—none of them dared to believe the crisis was over. But Jonn’s swift return, without signs of battle or immediate pursuit, suggested that the most pressing danger had been averted, at least for now.

  As the gate widened, Elia stepped out from among the villagers who had gathered inside. Walking toward Jonn, she gazed at him intently. Her lips parted, as if to speak, but she paused upon noting his focused expression.

  Seeing Elia approach, Jonn turned momentarily to his animals to dismiss them before addressing his people. “I’ll talk to you later,” he said to Annabelle and the other domesticated creatures, his tone softer but no less commanding. “Go back to your coop and fenced areas and rest. Nothing should happen right away.”

  Annabelle, along with the other animals under Jonn’s care, obeyed without hesitation, wandering back toward the areas designated for them.

  Turning back to the gathered villagers, who had crowded into the initial street just beyond the gate, Jonn straightened his posture and addressed them with confidence.

  Sighs of relief and murmurs of gratitude to the heavens echoed around the outskirts of the village as Jonn and his companions made their way toward the interior. The tension that had gripped the village began to loosen, if only slightly. Elia fell into step beside them, discussing the events to the west as they walked.

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  They passed villagers returning to their duties outside the walled area, many of them aware of how many hours they were behind schedule. The routine tasks of daily life had been disrupted by the previous day’s events, and now everyone was eager to restore some semblance of normalcy.

  Even Betta hadn’t collected milk and eggs that morning. The villagers had used the stored provisions from the day before, but this was not sustainable.

  Betta and several others resumed their daily chores, understanding the importance of their roles in maintaining the village’s stability.

  The village Councilors were already gathered in the Council chamber by the time Jonn, Eliot, Hank, and Elia arrived. More than half of them had spent the night there, while the rest had hurried over at the first sign of Jonn’s return.

  With many pressing issues to address, the group settled into a tense silence around the large table in the Council Hall, waiting for Jonn to begin.

  Jonn scanned the room, noting Petyr, Lance, Tim, Arber, and several other key figures. He could see the concern etched on their faces, their thoughts likely dominated by the threat to the west. Petyr and the others had likely briefed the Council on the situation to the north, but the immediate focus was now on the beasts Eliot had spotted.

  Jonn began summarizing his findings from earlier that morning. “The beasts Eliot spotted don’t seem to be actively searching for the village and appear to have moved away from us for the time being. That’s good news, but it’s not a permanent case. We need to increase our patrols in that area and prepare for the worst. Sooner or later, they might find us, and when that happens, we’ll need to act quickly.”

  Urian leaned forward, his brow furrowed with concern. “How many dinosaurs are we talking about here?”

  “Eliot spotted six, but there could be more,” Jonn replied. “There may be other groups we haven’t seen yet. But even if it’s just one, it would be a difficult situation.”

  Jonn’s words sent a shiver through the room. Many of the Councilors, ordinary people who had never imagined themselves in such perilous circumstances, broke into a cold sweat at the thought of facing such formidable beasts.

  “That’s terrible!”

  “We’d be on the verge of a catastrophe if they came to the village!”

  “How can we fight beasts like that?”

  “With other beasts,” Petyr interjected, trying to calm the increasingly agitated tones of some of the older Councilors. “Our animals are ready to fight in defense of the village at any moment. There are also beasts from the horde who will fight alongside us.”

  Jonn nodded in agreement. “The battle hasn’t started yet, so there’s a lot to happen before we talk about destruction. But it’s a fact that we need to prepare. We can start by working on traps around the region.”

  This was a subject Jonn had already discussed with his fellow villagers and the Council. However, they hadn’t previously had the manpower to focus on such projects, as basic needs like housing and food had taken priority.

  “You mentioned this before,” Elia said with interest. “But what kind of trap will work against dinosaurs? Beasts, even more so.”

  Jonn replied, “There’s only one kind of trap that would work in our circumstances. We’ll dig large holes and create false floors in parts of our territory. We’ll place large steel stakes in these pits and add some magical tools to attack any targets that fall into them.”

  Petyr, with a serious look, asked, “Would that really work? Wouldn’t the magical senses of these creatures make them realize the trap before they step into it?”

  Jonn made a thoughtful expression as he replied, “Take my fellow mages and me. We could normally notice something strange if we focused on analyzing it. But we’re not omnipotent. If we were running around focusing on something else, we might fall into an easily avoidable trap.”

  Hank and William, standing nearby—one with his arms behind his back and the other with his arms folded across his chest—nodded in agreement with Jonn. The older of the two then added, “Magical beings only have this level of awareness of their surroundings at very high levels. It would be difficult even for a powerful Tyrannosaurus Rex to notice a trap, like the one Jonn described.”

  William said, “Dinosaurs, in general, are creatures whose characteristics are focused on their physique. They have strong, heavy bodies capable of easily destroying cities. But because they’re so focused on their physique, their mental intelligence isn’t as strong.”

  Eliot gave his opinion. “I think it’s better to have the traps and risk an enemy noticing them and not activating them than to have nothing at all.”

  Jonn nodded in agreement. “If everyone agrees, we’ll start setting traps around our territory tomorrow. A team of 50 men should be enough to dig 2 or 3 of these pits simultaneously.”

  The Councilors, one by one, approved the strategy after hearing Eliot’s argument that this was preferable to inaction.

  “As for the rest, we can only wait for our allies from the Dayflare Family to arrive,” Jonn said, glancing at Hank and William, who stood at the hall’s entrance. “But it’ll still take them weeks to catch up with us…”

  “We have no choice but to stick to our original plans. Besides, we always knew these beasts from Arcanis would pay us a visit sooner or later,” Elia remarked, closing her eyes as she tried to come to terms with their unfavorable situation.

  “That does seem to be the case,” Lance muttered.

  Despite the community’s recent progress, their resources remained scarce. They had little more than they needed, and their numbers—both human and animal—were low. Their mages were novices, and they faced challenges on all sides.

  What else could they do besides continuing their projects and setting up these traps?

  No one present could offer an alternative.

  Jonn set that matter aside and turned to Petyr. “How are Acelin and the others?”

  “We’ve confined them to the village guardhouse. We’re awaiting your return to determine how to proceed with them,” the head of the guard replied.

  The village now boasted a dedicated guard building, housing not only the village armory, study, and training areas for the guards, but also a small prison with six cells.

  Jonn shared his thoughts from the past few hours, “The nine men shouldn’t pose much of a challenge. We’ll prepare chains and weights to hinder escape attempts during work and put them to use in construction.”

  The councilors responsible for construction began planning how to make the prisoners’ labor beneficial to the village, while Tim volunteered to forge the chains and weights as a matter of urgency.

  “Acelin is a more complex case. He possesses valuable information and knowledge for our village. I want him detained for now and kept at our disposal.” Jonn turned to Elia and added, “You can interrogate him to learn more about the merchant profession and the current state of Lost Treasures and Sylvestria.”

  Elia smiled, having already considered requesting permission to discuss these matters with Acelin.

  Jonn concluded, “Petyr and I will also question Acelin about other topics over the coming days. Once we’ve extracted enough information, I’ll determine his future role.”

  It never occurred to Jonn to keep a physically and mentally capable man idle in his village while providing for him. He had vowed not to kill Acelin and intended to honor that promise. However, he had no interest in harboring a useless individual in his community.

  “What about this threat from Lost Treasures?” Arber inquired, steering the conversation back to Acelin’s group. “Their intentions seem even more sinister than those of the last group that attacked us.” She fixed the two mages with a grave look.

  The villagers were doing their best to interact with William and Hank, but they didn’t consider them friends and remained wary of the risk their family posed to the community.

  The two mages could only respond with bitter laughter and silence.

  Jonn addressed Arber, “They are indeed more dangerous. This puts us in a different position than we’re in with the Dayflare Family… But with luck, by the time our enemies track us down, we’ll have reinforcements from our allies here to assist us.” He gestured towards the two mages.

  “I’ve already reached out to our friends in the Triceratops horde. Depending on their success, we’ll have a means of counterattacking and preventing conflicts on our territory. For now, all we can do is wait and prepare!”