After Papaste leaves, Mbatu—left behind by Henwell, already senses what Henwell wants to ask.

  After a long silence, Mbatu speaks up. “Sir, where should I start?”

  Henwell taps the table with his finger. “Let’s start with the desert dwellers. What’s their retionship with you people on the desert’s edge?”

  Seeing Mbatu’s shocked expression, Henwell chuckles softly. “Heh… Is it that hard to guess? Those desert dwellers living among the ruins have some unique customs and dialects, which your border tribes have inherited.”

  ”Also, from what I know, your tribes at the desert’s edge have decent income. Every household saves enough money to move somewhere with a better environment.”

  ”Yet, I’m certain very few of you ever leave your homend, or the desert itself. Desert dwellers are notoriously unfriendly, fiercely xenophobic, except they show some tolerance toward you. I want to know, were you expelled from the desert? Or did you leave willingly?”

  Mbatu hesitates a moment, then shakes his head softly. “I don’t know, but I suspect we were expelled. Every year, we select caravans to send into the desert, where desert dwellers either raid them or trade with those carrying essential goods but cking the strength to plunder.”

  ”The reason I think we were expelled is that every adult male in our tribe must enter the desert at least once a year. If they don’t, the desert curse within them causes them to wither and die, becoming part of the Withered Legion.”

  Henwell nods thoughtfully. “If that’s true, then expulsion seems very likely.”

  Henwell agrees with this theory mainly because of the curse on Mbatu.

  If desert dwellers sent trusted members outside the desert to carry out tasks, they wouldn’t need to control them with curses.

  Only those expelled for mistakes are controlled this way, to prevent escape or refusal to perform desert dwellers’ orders.

  Henwell then asks, “So what’s the connection between the desert dwellers and the members of the Lightchaser Fleet?”

  Mbatu shakes his head. “I’m not sure. But the Lightchaser Fleet can command all the desert dweller tribes. That kind of thing rarely happens. In my desert dweller tribe, it’s never occurred. It might be a superior-subordinate retionship, or maybe there’s an even higher-level tribe controlling everything. In any case, these are things I can’t access.”

  Henwell thinks for a moment. “Why are they called the Lightchaser Fleet? Are they chasing light? Shouldn’t the desert dwellers be more advanced than them?”

  Mbatu gives an answer that surprises Henwell. “They’re not chasing the light, they’re driving it away. Legend says we once had a kingdom called the Holy Sun Dynasty. Back then, the sun was our totem. But ter, the sun was taken by other gods. The sunlight that once nourished all life became deadly.”

  ”The empire’s core members had to avoid sunlight to survive, so the Lightchaser Fleet was formed. These fleets are responsible for driving away the current sunlight, connecting the underground imperial forces, and they’re the ancestors of today’s tribes.”

  Henwell raises an eyebrow. “But didn’t you say you didn’t understand the retionship between the two?”

  Mbatu looks troubled. “Sir, I really don’t know. This is just a legend passed down by word of mouth. No one knows if it’s true. Our tribe lives on the desert’s edge, and Lightchasers never pass through here, let alone make contact. As for us exiles, we hardly understand internal tribal matters. I can’t be sure if any of this is true.”

  Henwell doesn’t bme him and continues, “Then what about the Withered Legion and the desert curse?”

  Mbatu removes his coat, revealing a sun-shaped mark on his back.

  “Sir, this is the desert’s curse, or you could call it a brand. Having this mark means you’re marked by the Scorching Sand Sea. You’ll be controlled by it your whole life, allowed to travel no more than two days’ ride from its edge.”

  ”If you go beyond that, your body loses moisture rapidly. The farther you are from the desert, the worse it gets. Only by returning near the desert’s edge can you ease the symptoms.”

  ”Those wounded by the Withered Legion suffer the same fate. Even though you suppressed the curse’s power, they can’t stray far from the desert’s edge. Over time, they might even develop the desert’s mark themselves.”

  ”Everyone marked by the Sand Sea is devoured by it after death, slowly becoming part of the Withered Legion. Even in death, their body and soul belong to the Sand Sea and must guard it.”

  At this, a trace of sadness and despair crosses Mbatu’s face.

  Henwell asks one st question, “If these wounded die far from the desert, how do they still become part of the Withered Legion?”

  Mbatu shrugs. “I don’t know. But soon after burial, their bodies gradually turn to sand. Maybe their souls and flesh are taken by the Sand Sea through some special means.”

  Henwell doesn’t press further; he can tell Mbatu’s knowledge is limited.

  Mbatu’s uncle, the old guide, probably had more information, but unfortunately, he died in the Bck Storm.

  Still, Henwell isn’t discouraged. With Mbatu as a lead, he’ll have chances to uncover more in the future.

  The next day, Henwell warns all the surviving caravan members to keep silent about their encounters with the Lightchaser Fleet and the Withered Legion in the desert.

  As for the caravan’s losses, they can be attributed to other disasters.

  The desert’s dangers aren’t limited to those, whether sudden sandstorms or simple disorientation, any can cause heavy casualties.

  Bandits lurking on the desert’s edge and deadly quicksand zones add to the threats.

  It’s not unusual for a caravan to be wiped out entirely, let alone have survivors.

  Mbatu, carrying a hefty sum in commission, returns to the desert.

  The other survivors scatter two days ter, each going their own way.

  Henwell, traveling in the same direction as Papaste, continues on for a while.

  There’s still plenty of time, over a month before the Midsummer Festival and the height of summer.

  Henwell pns to visit Holy Lake City; this country is another key point in his upcoming pns.

  After his wedding, he will have few chances to travel alone, making this a rare opportunity to gain firsthand insight into various regions.