A Bountiful Harvest of Valyrian Steel (Please Read On)

"Sebastian, we've basically finished searching the west. Your group will search the northern ruins."

Sebastian took the purified water Lonzell handed him, gulped down a large mouthful, and nodded.

"Amos will set out after Sebastian returns. He'll search the southern part of the ruins."

"Understood."

Lonzell reinforced Sebastian's group with protective magic, making their armor emit a faint silver-and-red glow.

"Once Amos returns, Aslan, take the brothers to search the dragon corpse again. Valar, Rey, Lynn, Ago, Master Malach, and I will search the ruined tower at the center of the ruins. Everyone, be careful not to get hurt. The magical contamination here is too severe. Without the protection of your skin, I can't guarantee my magic will work."

Lonzell had long noticed that the ruins near where the dragon had fallen were actually several tall towers that had been struck by something, exploded, collapsed, and piled atop one another. Perhaps due to magical erosion, the once incredibly sturdy building materials had either fused together or become so brittle that they shattered at a touch.

When the Valyrian Freehold still existed, Dragonlords favored tower-shaped buildings. Dragons would hang from and climb those high towers, while Dragonlords conducted magical experiments, entertained guests, and schemed against one another within them.

Roofless spires could be said to be one of Valyria's defining symbols.

According to the notes and map Cleorius had left behind, Lonzell guessed that this was very likely the city once governed by his family—Vasor.

Valyria's city of forging. During the empire's golden age, when the Freehold stood at its height, this city produced countless divine weapons and buried countless slave corpses.

Because magic was deeply involved in the forging of Valyrian steel weapons, they far surpassed raw steel in both quality and resistance to magical erosion. Lonzell's plan was simple: if they found Valyrian steel items, they would take them, as many as they could. If they found none, they would see whether any raw steel had survived. Gold, silver, jewels, and the like were far less important. Of course, if there were any books that had escaped the Doom, he would immediately lead people to search for them.

Sebastian's group returned wearily as the black mist blanketing the sky deepened. They had lost one man—a luckless Silver Blood Army soldier had accidentally injured himself while excavating the ruins.

The deadly toxin instantly ignited his blood. Lonzell's protective magic failed to take effect, and the soldier was burned to ashes from the inside out in the blink of an eye.

But their haul was substantial. Sebastian and another young Silver Blood Army warrior, Haggon Tal, had found a collapsed manor.

Its former owner had long since turned to ash, buried along with the manor's former splendor beneath dust and smoke.

Still, it had left some good things behind for those who came after.

Such as a suit of Valyrian steel ringmail whose decorations had long vanished, though a little gold remained to attest to its former extravagance.

A Valyrian steel rapier adorned with moonstones and black diamonds.

And a moon-bladed axe that had lost its haft but still retained its original shape.

Following Lonzell's orders, Sebastian and Haggon Tal did not take the gold, silver, or jewels remaining in the ruins. They took only the armor, rapier, and battle axe.

Amos Fezer's group set out next. He brought the Unsullied with him and swore that he would return with more spoils than Sebastian.

The black mist covering the sky gradually faded.

Amos's group returned soon after. The sturdy youth was usually a man of few words, taciturn as a block of iron. But Lonzell knew he could trust him completely, just as he trusted his own blood brothers. Whatever that block of iron set his mind to, he would accomplish perfectly.

"My lord." Amos took the waterskin Valar handed him and gulped down the purified fresh water. Beside him, a Silver Blood Army soldier untied the bundle on his back.

With a clatter, a pile of Valyrian steel items spilled across the ground.

There was a flame sword shaped like a writhing serpent. Whether from magical erosion or coloring added during its forging, the blade was a strange grayish red, growing redder toward its center. It looked like a raging blaze.

Two Valyrian steel daggers that had lost their hilts. To avoid being cut by them, the Silver Blood Army soldiers had taken special precautions.

A massive two-handed greatsword, its crossguard of some unknown material carved with a blazing sun in various gemstones.

There were also several dusty Valyrian steel ornaments and a spearhead bristling with spikes, also made of Valyrian steel.

"Where did you find all that?" Sebastian, who was resting nearby, curiously came over.

Amos shook his head. He did not know what the place had once been. It might have been a blacksmith's shop, or perhaps a Dragonlord's laboratory or private residence. In any case, there had been many Valyrian steel items there, though sadly, many of them had been damaged.

After exchanging a few words, Aslan Longdell led the remaining men to search the dragon corpse. Lonzell also took his brothers toward the collapsed tower ruins.

"Lord Lonzell." Upon seeing the ruined tower, whose original shape could no longer be discerned, the red priest Malach suddenly raised both arms. "I can feel the Lord of Light calling to me. My lord, do you know? From the very beginning, my mentor and I were never like those ignorant fools." For some reason, Malach suddenly began muttering to himself.

Lonzell signaled for Valar and Rey not to disturb him, then continued excavating the ruins with Ago and Lynn, who had been silently working all along.

They strategically abandoned the places that had fused together. The brittle sections that shattered at a touch were the focus of their search.

"R'hllor, the Lord of Light, our one true god," Malach declared loudly. "To us, He is merely a symbol. What we truly believe in is what the Lord of Light represents: ice and fire, cold and heat, darkness and light. We believe in the supreme will behind them all. You are beloved by that will, so it generously guides you along the road to the future. The great savior Azor Ahai will one day be reborn in the Land of Smoke and Salt, draw Lightbringer, sever the Long Night, and bring eternal light. The ancient prophecy will surely be fulfilled, and you are an important force in making it happen." Malach's voice grew louder and louder.

Not even the cheers when Rey unearthed a Valyrian steel hand-and-a-half sword adorned with an enormous ruby, and Valar found a suit of Valyrian steel plate-and-chain armor decorated with dragon heads, could drown him out.

"His prophecy will surely come to pass, and you will surely walk the path He has shown you."

"Now, He has come to pay His reward."

Lonzell stared blankly at the shattered black stone before him.

Five petrified dragon eggs, each a different color and covered in scales, lay quietly in a bronze container encased in black stone.

Beside the bronze container lay a small bone horn, quiet as well, as though it were gazing at Lonzell.