"So explain how you four crossed a border that has been closed for years."
The commander’s voice echoed in Emberroot’s hot air.
No one answered immediately.
More than thirty soldiers had taken positions around the group. The spearmen with heavy shields formed the first ring of the encirclement, and the archers from platforms built among the massive tree trunks had them aimed.
The red lines on the soldiers’ armor flickered with Mana flow.
One had lowered its massive body.
Its six legs were placed on the ground at a proper distance, and its jaws were half-open. Only one command was needed for it to attack the first line of soldiers.
But Lian had not yet given such a command.
Through Hive Link, he clearly felt One’s anger and distrust.
The ant did not count the number of enemies, analyze the towers’ positions, or the archers’ angles. It only saw that a group of unknown creatures had aimed their weapons at Lian.
And for One, that was reason enough to attack.
"Don’t move." Lian sent a calm wave through the link. Although the situation seemed bad, he currently saw no need for conflict.
One’s jaws closed slightly, but its body remained ready.
Lian took his attention off the soldiers and focused on the commander.
A tall man stood in the center of the encirclement. His skin was dark bronze, and veins of red light extended from under his neck to the side of his face.
The veins were not constant.
With every pulse, their light would intensify and then fade; like molten flow moving beneath a layer of black stone.
His black hair was tied behind his head.
His ears were slightly more elongated than human ears, and their tips curved backward, but the difference was not so great that it made him resemble races like elves.
His eyes caught Lian’s attention more than anything else.
The center of his eye was black, but the iris surrounding it shone in dark red. The pupil was not visible in the usual shape, and the light inside the eye moved like glowing coal.
His armor was also different from human equipment.
Black metal, but not entirely metal.
In some sections, a texture like compressed wood could be seen, and red veins flowed between its plates. When the commander transferred Mana to his spear, those veins lit up.
[Race: Cindari]
[Level: 25]
[Rank: Mutated]
Lian kept his gaze on his Level for a moment. A border unit commander was Level 25.
Not a city leader, not one of the civilization’s most powerful warriors, only the commander of an outpost protecting one of the western entrances.
That number alone was enough for Lian to decide to avoid direct conflict with the Emberroot civilization for now.
Of course, there was the possibility that they only placed powerful individuals to guard the borders, but in any case, caution was necessary in such conditions.
On the other hand, the soldiers were also examining them carefully.
For the Cindari, four humans with skin without red veins, normal eyes, and round ears were probably just as strange as they were to Lian.
A few soldiers kept their gazes on Seris’s and Seraphina’s hair.
Others examined One.
A creature that size, with a black shell and jaws that could crush an armored soldier in half, could not be ignored.
Kael still held his spear pointed at Lian.
But before Lian could give an explanation, the commander narrowed his eyes slightly.
"You look like the outsiders we have found recently."
"There are other people like us here?" Lian’s mind immediately moved away from the passage issue.
The border commander, or Kael, examined him for a few seconds.
Perhaps he had expected Lian to first explain about his own safety.
"Many."
Only one word, but it was enough to make all four of them focus completely on him.
Seraphina leaned forward slightly.
Lian, without turning his head toward her, lowered his hand slightly; a small gesture asking her not to say anything for now.
Seraphina understood and remained silent.
"But we found all of them inside Emberroot." The commander continued.
His gaze moved among the four humans.
"Some appeared near the rivers. Some among the southern roots. We found a few groups inside the eastern ruins, and some near the hunting paths."
Then he turned his head toward the dark opening of the Cindervein Passage.
"None of them came out of Glassthorn." His spear rose slightly higher, and the light at its tip intensified.
"So I ask again. How did you cross a passage that has been closed for years?"
Lian could either tell the truth or come up with various excuses.
"Before I explain about the path, I want to know the condition of the outsiders you found." He answered.
"That race that calls itself human? Well... why should I tell you? I’m the one asking questions here!"
Lian nodded. Upon hearing the word "human," he was sure that other humans were really there.
This strengthened a few possibilities. Some of the main group members might be among them.
Even if none of their acquaintances were there, the humans present would have valuable information about Emberroot, its cities, and the events after the transfer.
"Now answer." Kael said with a colder voice.
"We found an old map that showed the path."
"A map from who?"
"An old group that had passed through different areas."
"Their name?"
"The Varkesh." Lian thought for a moment and decided to just randomly say one of the tribes’ names.
A few soldiers looked at each other upon hearing the name.
Kael hid his reaction, but the veins on his neck became brighter for a moment.
So they knew the name Varkesh, or at least had read about them in old documents.
"Where are they?"
"Dead."
"So you took the map from their corpses?"
"Yeah."
Lian was not lying. They had indeed obtained a piece of the map from the Varkesh tribe, right? He just didn’t need to give all the details.
Kael was silent for a short moment and then added.
"The passage should be unsafe. How did you manage to cross it without trouble? The other humans we found shouldn’t have such ability."
"Well, we are a bit stronger than them."
"Where are you from?"
"We are not from around here." Lian said with a blank face. Normally, he wouldn’t say such a thing.
But unfortunately, it was possible that the humans had already told the truth. In fact, he was sure some of them had told the truth.
But he still decided to give an ambiguous answer.
This time, the soldiers’ reaction was more obvious.
A few Cindari whispered something in their own language. Some spears went lower, some higher. An archer on the left platform adjusted his arrow’s angle directly at Lian’s head.
Kael did not seem surprised. He had probably heard the same answer from the other humans too.
"How did you enter this world?"
"Through a rift." Lian said. His guess was correct. This bastard knew they were not from this world, and he then realized something.
This guy was only asking formal questions that had probably been asked of all humans.
"How many?"
"There were many groups. We got separated after entering."
"Did all of you enter together?" Kael looked at Seris and then at the other two girls.
"Yes."
"What is your goal in Emberroot?"
"Finding the rest of our group members, and finding a way out of this world." He added the last part only as a relatively false excuse.
"Did you kill anyone from Emberroot’s people to get here?" The commander asked seriously.
"No."
"Did you attack an outpost or caravan?"
"No."
"Did you steal anything from our borders?"
"No." Lian said without changing his expression.
The three treasures he had found in the Cindervein Passage were not within the Cindari’s defined territory, and even if they were, it didn’t matter. They were his now.
Kael took his gaze off Lian and looked at his three companions, as if trying to examine them to see if there was any problem with them.
The commander was silent for a while.
Then he lowered his spear, but none of the soldiers put down their weapons.
"You must come with us."
"Where?" Seraphina asked.
"Vhalaris."
Kael pointed toward the eastern path with his spear’s tip.
"The largest western border city of Emberroot."
Then he kept his gaze directly on Seraphina.
"The Rootwarden will see you and personally conduct the interrogation. He will decide whether you are allowed to stay, imprisoned, or expelled from our territory."
Seris’s frown deepened. Her hand was still on her sword’s hilt. She didn’t like being told what to do.
"And if we don’t want to come with you?" Seraphina also said.