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93.6% Dragonborn Saga / Chapter 702: Season Unending

Chapter 702: Season Unending

A/n: Help me reach my Goal on P4treon & Join Discord! ➡️ https://linktr.ee/donovel ⬅️

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To the Jarls of the Holds of Skyrim, to the Representatives of the Imperial Authorities in Skyrim, and to all the Figures who are named on these missives; from the Monastery of High Hrothgar.

Sky Above, Voice Within.

At the behest of the Dragon of the North, Ysmir, the Dragonborn; we invite ye to the summit of the Snow-Throat beyond the seven thousand steps where Kynareth blew her blessed breath into Nirn. Answer our call for the sake of Skyrim's peace and the sacred blood of the innocents, Nords and non-Nords alike.

Speaking for the Greybeards, Master Arngeir.

***

That message found its way to the hands of all figures of authority in Skyrim. An official summon from the Greybeards, not carried by a common courier but rather by the Dragonborn himself. He, who roamed all Skyrim in a single night and visited every court with a missive in his hand, was declaring himself the Dragonborn and walking out as fast as he walked in.

From the Imperial Authority of Skyrim in Castle Dour, to the Blue Palace of Solitude, to Understone Keep in Markarth, to Dragonsreach in Whiterun, to the Palace of Kings in Windhelm, and to Mistveil Keep in Riften. Even to the Dare Dragon Company in Winterhold, to the Jarls of the minor holds of Falkreath, the Pale, and Hjaalmarch as well as their Imperial and Stormcloak competitors.

Unlike the Game, this meeting was to be on a much broader scale. Its plotter seemed to be planning for much more than just calling for a truce between the warring holds. Moreover, the signatures of the Dragonborn and the Greybeards that called out for this meeting were too grand to simply ignore.

As the news from Castle Dour and the Palace of Kings stated that both General Tullius and Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak have agreed to attend, all the competing Jarls and the minor Lords found themselves forming envoys and personal alliances in order to gain something in this coming grand event.

How will they benefit? How will they prevent their rivals from benefiting? And how will they cause losses to their rivals? One can't simply walk into High Hrothgar without too much preparation since there is no such thing as too much preparation.

But as the politicians were playing their games and preparing their ploys, others were simply packing for the infamous 7000-step journey. One can't win anything if one can't make it to High Hrothgar, to begin with.

On the grand meeting day when the spring of year 4E 202 was at its highest, the Lords of Skyrim started to climb the 7000 steps with their Thanes and Healers who could aid them on this pilgrimage. The road was dangerous as the snow was slowly melting on some of the steps but after the first thousand steps, the frigid winter atmosphere, which many were glad to part with at the last First Seed (March), returned with a strong bone-chilling mountain wind.

But that wasn't the end of it. Oblivion! That wasn't even the start just yet.

As the envoys were climbing the mountain, it was a custom not to pursue any animosities, especially prior to peace talks, and the customs were held highly by the nobles of Skyrim. That, however, didn't mean they couldn't start making some last-minute alliances and exchanges to hold more legitimacy while negotiating. That was the case until all had arrived at the Front Gates of High Hrothgar.

The first to arrive were the Jarls of Falkreath, the Rift, and Whiterun as the closest of the bunch. Lela Law-Giver of Riften was a Stormcloak supporter compared to the other two and since the fall of Maven Black-Briar, most of the Imperial influence in her hold disappeared and so she joined the former Jarl of Falkreath, Dengeir of Stuhn, to stare menacingly at Jarl Balgruuf of Whiterun and Jarl Siddgeir of Falkreath.

Jarl Balgruuf managed to distance himself from Jarl Siddgeir of Falkreath, who kept yapping endlessly like a brat about how he will dominate this peace-talk and ensure that the bad seeds shall be uprooted from the belly of Skyrim. Jarl Balgruuf joined the moderate Jarl Idgrod of Morthal and Jarl Igmund of Markarth.

All of those VIPs weren't allowed in High Hrothgar yet and had to construct two bonfires in two separate areas to display the opposing Imperial and Stormcloak camps.

Jarl Korir of Winterhold arrived later and was accompanied by the Chief Executive Officer of the Dare Company, Jon Dare.

Jon was rather silent and didn't greet anyone as he sped forward towards the monastery of High Hrothgar and placed a bag of supplies at the offering chest in front of it. This action caused all the other lords to turn at each other before hurrying up and doing the same.

After that, Jarl Skald of the Pale and Lady Brina Merilis showed up and they seemed to have argued their way up the mountain as the two were already heated up and looking for blood. After them came Vignar Grey-Mane leading Thongvar Silver-Blood and Sorli the Builder to join the Stormcloak camp brazenly.

Once that was that, Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak of Eastmarch showed up with his Commander-in-Chief, Galmar Stone-Fist, and stood tall in front of his rebel compatriots giving them a heated speech. Not long after him, General Tullius and Jarl Bryling of Haafingar appeared.

With the presence of Ulfric Stormcloak and General Tullius, the bickering mostly died down but many eyes were now focused on Jon Dare, for some reason.

As a Thane in various holds on the two sides of the Civil War, it's high time he showed some allegiance and stood at some camp but as always, Jon founded his own bonfire on a lone stone slab near a snowberry bush, where he kept picking the berries and tossing them up to catch them with his mouth.

But that didn't last long as Legate Rikke, who had accompanied General Tullius, spotted a familiar face coming up the road as a Breton woman and an elderly Nord man made an appearance and joined Jon's "neutral camp".

"Delphine? Delphine of Daggerfall? From the Blades?"

As Legate Rikke exclaimed at the sight of Delphine, the latter went ahead and nodded her way before walking up to Ulfric Stormcloak and thanking him for a personal favor.

The situation got a ton more interesting now that it went public that the old members of the Order of the Blades stood around Jon Dare. It wasn't a secret that his own father, Jonrad Firemane, was a member of the Blade and one of the most wanted ex-Blades at that, but Jonrad never involved himself in public life that much. With Jon being a taboo child and Hilda being the mother, the family was practically the most wanted family on the continent up until Jon rose to power.

Anyhow, the presence of those two ex-Blades made many wonder what Jon would do at this point. He broke too many Imperial laws to even care at this point but he only got away thanks to his connections and his ungodly lawyer skills. Harboring ex-Blade fugitives, however, goes directly against Imperial laws. It is no wonder that at this point, even Ulfric Stormcloak was interested in how Jon would lawyer his way out of this when the Imperials pressure him with his Blade friends.

Not that Jon would be bothered but it would be nice to witness his shenanigans once again.

Yet despite the fact that most of the attendees were already present, the gates of High Hrothgar remained shut. This was due to the fact that the Greybeards have stated that their doors shall open on full sunrise and by that exact time and not a second later, the twin gates of the monastery were open wide.

The Jarls and the Lords of Skyrim were now invited in, their escort and servants were to remain outside and only those with political importance were to come in. Ulfric and his commander Galmar, Tullius and his deputy Rikke, the Jarls and their opposers, the powerful Thanes such as Jon Dare and Thongvor Silver-Blood.

The ones who received them first were none other than the Disciples of the Greybeards then three Masters of the Greybeards themselves. Not even a greeting could be said since every Disciple and Master were gagging their mouths with strong cloth.

While the act itself was bizarre and unusual, those adept in the Voice of the Storm can kill anyone by a mere whisper. This act of gagging was simply for the safety of the guests and nothing more.

Ulfric Stormcloak was supposedly the individual most familiar with the place and as he walked in, he kept touching the cold and dark stone walls with real nostalgia and a look of sadness on his face. It only lasted a moment though and before anyone would capture it, he returned to his cool arrogance and usual demeanor.

Just as the welcome of the Greybeards was extended with their silence, the mysterious air was dropped with the voice of a man speaking.

"Welcome to High Hrothgar." A voice was heard yet with its elderly tone, a vigor that can only be heard from youth was heard.

By far, this was the healthiest voice anyone can ever imagine hearing. Those who master the Voice have this trait clear especially in the case of Jon Dare and Ulfric Stormcloak but the owner of that voice was way more adept than the two of them combined. One can't reach this level of skill unless one offers a lifetime of dedication just for the cause.

"Master…"

Just as Ulfric Stormcloak was about to greet that man, he was instantly interrupted.

"This way please." Master Arngeir spoke while offering way towards the chamber that was prepared for the conference.

This interruption caused Ulfric to pause in his place bitterly and lag a little bit for General Tullius to walk past him first along with his allies before Ulfric remained where he was standing and staring at Master Arngeir.

"My Lord." Vignar Gray-Mane spoke from behind Ulfric but the latter dismissed him with a wave of his hand.

"We go in." Ulfric said and followed not long after General Tullius and the Imperial faction.

After Ulfric came Jon Dare who walked in alone without bothering or being bothered with the Greybeard as they simply welcomed all. Still, it was high time for some uninvited and unwelcome guests.

At first, it was the two ex-Blades who followed Jon here, Delphine and Esbern. Master Arngeir seemed to be unaware of their identity at first but as soon as he saw the swords on their hips, an expression of unease appeared on his face.

"So. Arngeir, is it? You know why we're here. Are you going to let us in or not?" Delphine initiated the conversation with obvious hostility.

"You were not invited here." Master Arngeir replied with impatience and an equal amount of hostility, "You are not welcome."

"We have as much right to be at this council as all of you. More, actually, since we were the ones that put the Dragonborn on this path." Delphine retorted with a higher tone.

"Were you?" Master Arngeir replied with obvious scorn, "The hubris of the Blades truly knows no bounds."

Yet with the growing tension between Master Arngeir and Delphine, someone had to avert the tension away.

"Delphine, we're not here to rehearse old grudges. The matter at hand is urgent." Esbern spoke before turning to Master Arngeir, "Alduin must be stopped. You wouldn't have called this council if you didn't agree. We know a great deal about the situation and the threat that Alduin poses to us all. You need us here if you want this council to succeed."

Master Arngeir seemed upset for a little while but it only took a little while and he sighed heavily.

"Very well. You may enter."

Delphine and Esbern looked at one another before looking back at Master Arngeir and nodding towards him. However, just as they turned to walk in, they found that Jon Dare was looking at them and he wasn't pleased at all.

The relationship between the two ex-Blades and Jon wasn't very pleasant and they were aware of his identity but still held them under his thumb and controlled them to no end. While they joined the group of people who were still standing in anticipation around the conference table, the atmosphere started to grow stale because none of the Greybeards had joined them yet.

Moreover, they all expected the Dragonborn to be inside waiting for them but he hasn't arrived yet.

Out in the main hall of the monastery, the disciples all stood on stand-by for the Masters to give them a signal but the Masters were still waiting patiently as if they were just listening. While listening, the Masters showed a hint of anticipation and so the disciples closest to the Gates opened them one more time.

A figure walked in, unlike the familiar figure of the Dragonborn, this figure was lean and feminine.

An Elf, an Altmer to be exact, one that is wearing the robes of the Thalmor.

"And you are?" Master Arngeir asked.

"Elenwen, Head Ambassador of the Aldmeri Dominion to the Kingdom of Skyrim." The Altmer woman replied.

"You were not invited, Ambassador of the Aldmeri Dominion." Master Arngeir replied while keeping his tone in check.

"My presence here depended on our Imperial friends to be more cooperative at upholding the terms of the White-Gold Concordat. They ran off without informing the embassy and as a legal witness to the Empire's external affairs with Skyrim, I must attend all the official meetings held by General Tullius of the…"

"You Elves talk too much."

But just as Elenwen was rambling in her haughty Elven dialect, a strong and deep voice spoke from behind her.

She turned so fast with her heart almost jumping from her chest for her vision to be filled with the sight of a huge human.

He was hooded and cloaked, with the light coming from the outside being blocked by him, Elenwen wondered how this large brute managed to sneak on her. Moreover, he was armored to the boot and armed to the teeth with all sorts of swords, spears, bows, and staves dangling from his outfit.

What stood out, aside from the unique weapons he was carrying, was his dark ebony armor with the red Imperial Dragon insignia as well as his Nordic horned helm of dragon bones.

"Master Arngeir, let's allow her in." The man spoke.

Elenwen looked carefully between the Elderly Greybeard and the Nord Warrior trying to estimate her situation but before her wild thoughts would even get the chance to calm down, Master Arngeir spoke.

"You clearly know what you are doing, Dragonborn." Master Arngeir spoke and looked at Elenwen, "And I believe you can show yourself in. Now, I would like to have our gates shut before we have any more uninvited guests barging in."

The gates of High Hrothgar were closed and the meeting's quorum was in order.

In the conference chamber, there was a long table with four main directional seats that seemed to be essential to the place and symbolic to the four Masters of the Greybeards, and between them, there were eight extra seats that seemed to have been added very recently. Every main seat was surrounded by two extra seats for a total of twelve seats.

Each of the main seats corresponded to one of the cardinal directions but still, twelve of them were too few to allow all the attendants to sit. This means that some of those self-important figures will keep standing in the backlines.

This was the first test. Who is more important than who? While the Imperial side had its priorities in order, the Stormcloak side was a bit awkward. Ulfric always claimed to be fighting for Skyrim and once the fight is over, he'll step down when a new king is elected. He doesn't consider himself High King publicly but sure as Oblivion he does in his actions and speeches.

As Master Arngeir walked in with the Dragonborn after Ambassador Elenwen, the tension was sky high and somehow the seating was surely going to be a problem.

Still, the Host would have one main seat at the very least. That was the Northern seat where Master Arngeir stood.

As the Imperial and the Stormcloak sides were already at opposite ends, it was natural for them to take the Eastern and Western seats. Eastern for the Stormcloaks and Western for the Imperials.

As for the Southern seat, the Dragonborn claimed it before anyone else would step in.

Many seemed disagreeable with the actions of the Dragonborn. He is a young man and even without looking at his age, he is part of the faction that called out for the negotiations between the warring factions. By default, he should be sitting next to the host, the Greybeards' Master Arngeir.

Now in the four directions, stood all four major personalities. General Tullius at the west, Jarl Ulfric at the east, Master Arngeir at the north, and the Dragonborn at the south.

Jon Dare was the first to move and stood at the right of the Dragonborn. If the Dragonborn was to take a side, it would be natural for his main sponsor to appear next to him and claim a seat. As Jon Dare represents the Neutral Faction, it was clear that the three southern chairs would be neutral.

As for the Stormcloaks, Ulfric only had Galmar Stone-Fist to his left and didn't invite anyone to his right.

On the other hand, the Imperials were more brazen. General Tullius stood in front of the western seat and had Legate Rikke on his right and Jarl Bryling of Solitude on his left. Moreover, he seemed to have had a conversation with Elenwen of the Aldmeri Dominion and she took a seat at the side of Master Arngeir on the Northern side.

With the seat right next to him being taken, Master Arngeir didn't bother much but his attitude invited the ex-Blades Delphine and Esbern to do the same. Delphine took the seat on the other side of Master Arngeir and Esbern intruded at the Stormcloak faction's empty seat where Ulfric invited no one.

That was rude but it is no secret that these two were former members of the Blades, the fallen organization of secret operatives and Dragon Hunters.

Only one seat remained. The seat on the left of the Dragonborn, where it was considered to be the Neutral Faction. For that, only one man from the Imperial side dared to step in and take that seat.

Jarl Balgruuf the Greater.

No one could really tell what he was thinking but it seemed that, unlike the Stormcloaks who respectfully took two seats, the Imperials took five seats for General Tullius, Legate Rikke, Jarl Bryling, Ambassador Elenwen, and Jarl Balgruuf. Still, it felt that Jarl Balgruuf was leaning more to his right towards the Neutral Faction of Jon Dare and the Dragonborn.

While it all went like this, no one of the people present in this situation ever thought that if fate was to take its normal course, not this many people would be standing around the table to the point where the Greybeards Disciples had to move in some benches to make enough sitting space.

The one smiling was Jon. He set this whole thing up and just as all of those people sat down, it was bound to be chaos.

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next chapter

Chapter 703: The Truth is…

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It was the Dragonborn, Jon Dare, Ulfric Stormcloak, General Tullius, and Master Arngeir in addition to every Jarl and Jarl replacement from the game. In other words, the Ruling Class of Skyrim was now gathered.

"Now that everyone is here, please take a seat so that we can begin." Master Arngeir spoke inviting the people to start.

And they were all about to sit down and start their peace negotiations except that when everyone took a seat, Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak and his commander Galmar Stone-Fist kept standing.

"No!" Ulfric declared while looking at General Tullius, "You insult us by bringing her to this negotiation. Your chief Talos-hunter!"

He declared disagreeable with the presence of Ambassador Elenwen of the Aldmeri Dominion, the head of the Thalmor in Skyrim and the one who carried out many bloody inquisitions against the worshippers of Talos.

"That didn't take long." Legate Rikke muttered to herself while rolling her eyes.

"Hear, hear!" Galmar stood behind Ulfric and nodded to his words.

"Diplomatic as usual." Jarl Balgruuf sighed while shaking his head.

"I have every right to be at this negotiation." Meanwhile, the Elf in question spoke up to defend herself, "I need to ensure that nothing is agreed to here that violates the terms of the White-Gold Concordat."

"She's part of the Imperial delegation. You can't dictate who I bring to this council." General Tullius had to stand up against Ulfric.

"Please. If we have to negotiate the terms of the negotiation, we will never get anywhere." Master Arngeir pleaded with the two sides to calm down and then suggested a getaway method, "Perhaps this would be a good time to get the Dragonborn's input on this matter."

Just like that, all heads turned to the Dragonborn, the mysterious and silent warrior at the south of the negotiation table.

But the Dragonborn didn't speak and only turned to the man to his right, Jon Dare. It seemed he was pushing Jon forward to solve this.

"Jarl Ulfric." Jon Dare stood on his seat and met Ulfric eye to eye, "It may actually be a good thing for you to let her stay, for the whole negotiation at that."

Jon's opinion was to let Elenwen stay, a radical view from the man famed for massacring any Thalmor patrol he runs into.

"You, shut up! What gives you the right to talk when the Jarls are speaking?"

But out of literal buttfuck nowhere, a voice from the Imperial side made all eyes widen from shock and all heads turn to see who just cussed at Jon Dare.

It was none other than Jarl Siddgeir of Falkreath, someone known for his animosity with the Dare Company people.

"Jarl Siddgeir!" General Tullius was bothered a bit with that especially when it seemed that Jon was taking the Imperial side and letting Elenwen stay.

"Don't stop me, General. Is it not enough for Jarls like us to sit back at these creaking benches while a Thane is taking a seat at the big table? Shouldn't all the Jarls be provoked by such an outrage?" Siddgeir, however, couldn't read the glares of General Tullius and kept going after Jon.

"Aye!" But before anyone would react, one more voice seemed to agree with Jarl Siddgeir, "A young brat like the Dare boy shouldn't be sitting or speaking like that to his elders."

It was none other than the other head of the anti-Dare faction, Jarl Skald the Elder of Dawnstar, a Stormcloak through and through.

While Ulfric wasn't bothered by Skald's opinion, he seemed curious about what Jon Dare was really after.

"Heh!" While trying to keep it to herself, Ambassador Elenwen couldn't help but appear satisfied with the reaction to Jon's words.

"I see." On the other hand, Jon seemed to be nodding to the words he just heard, "I see that you all aren't happy with little old me being a voice of reason in this piss and barking contest, you old dogs of war."

Insults, that's where Nordic politics truly shine. Jon, however, wasn't done and seemed to be serving some good old homebrewed drama.

Jon's words were provoking but it was clear he was inviting them to make enemies with him. Opposing him is one thing, making enemies is a whole new thing and it is terrifying. Right now, the two Civil War sides are totally equal and equally matched. If one were to tip Jon Dare towards the other side, that would be dangerously stupid.

Jarl Siddgeir of Falkreath and Jarl Skald of Dawnstar were this type of stupid. They were the stupid ones that wouldn't shut up, however.

"Damn you, Jon Dare! You think we fear you like a lot of them?" Jarl Siddgeir spoke.

"Boy, you're overstepping your authority here." Jarl Skald added.

"That's enough!" But it was Jarl Ulfric who had to shout at them and turn to Jon Dare who was instigating trouble before the talk was about to start, "Thane Jon, you were saying something?"

Jon smiled slyly while winking at Jarl Skald the Elder who didn't seem appreciative of Jon's provocations.

"Yes, I was saying something before I was rudely interrupted… what was it about again?" Jon asked while acting all dramatically.

"About the Thalmor bitch." Jarl Ulfric spoke.

"Right, the Thalmor bitch." Jon clasped his hands, "I was saying that it would actually be beneficial for both sides to let her stay."

"And why is that?" Jarl Ulfric asked.

"That's obvious! Since we are here to make a truce, we need someone to equally hate more than each other and spit at once the talk becomes too boring." Jon said and turned to Elenwen with his wide grin, "That's why the Thalmor bitch is here."

For some reason, the faces of the entire Stormcloak faction eased up including that of Ulfric. He looked at Elenwen and realized that he hates her kind more than he hates the Imperials so if he thought straight about it, he found that Jon's reasoning was sound.

Curse at the Thalmor instead of cursing at the Imperials to achieve peace. That was oddly reasonable.

"Fine." Ulfric said and walked in front of his seat, "However, she is only here to observe. She has no right to speak in a Nordic council and her job doesn't go beyond kicking those Imperials' asses whenever they go out of their… concordat."

Jon nodded and turned to General Tullius in order to gain his approval.

"Smooth as ever, Ulfric." The General replied, "She won't utter a thing so sit down and don't waste more time."

With that out of the way, everyone was already sitting and gathered around the table in the order of the chairs they took. Jon was still being eyed badly by his political opponents and his enemies.

"Is there anyone here who would like to start the conference or make a demand?" Master Arngeir asked as the organizer of this meeting.

"Before we do that, I have something to say." Ulfric Stormcloak spoke.

"Here he goes again." General Tullius was annoyed out of his mind as he put down the tankard he was about to drink from and sat back while staring at Ulfric.

"Go on." Master Arngeir let Ulfric speak.

"By no means do I doubt the wisdom and the fairness of the Greybeards. I also thank them for taking us, men of violence and war, into their abode of peace and solitude. Rare are the events that lead the guardians of Skyrim to rise up and guide us Nords. They are the great monks of High Hrothgar whose senses transcend the falsehoods of magic and the images of illusions. With that out of the way, I want to ask the Dragonborn a question." Ulfric spoke and turned to the Dragonborn.

Seeing that he initiated his talk by saying that he trusts the wisdom of the Greybeards, it seemed that he was the one going after the Dragonborn before anything else. Such a move was almost as challenging to the Greybeards as if he was respecting them.

"You are Nord, I can see it. Obviously you were given this power by the Divines and you care for Skyrim and her children, why else would you fight the Dragons and their Cultists in a war of your own? Still, what I can't figure out is the reason why you are wearing this suit of armor. The one with the Imperial Dragon plated on it." Ulfric pointed out the Imperial crest on the Dragonborn's armor.

The Dragonborn was momentarily silent and looked down his own chest before gently feeling the Imperial Dragon crest on his armor.

"That armor is the Lord's Mail, the legendary suit of armor that was…" Jon Dare pointed out and started speaking but he was immediately interrupted.

"Thane Jon." Ulfric Stormcloak spoke in a tone that wasn't joking around, "I believe that you can leave the man to speak for himself. It is he who invited us here, not you. If the Dragonborn doesn't wish to exchange words with us, I believe there is no point in us even sitting here."

Not only was Ulfric giving that look to Jon, but all the Stormcloak Jarls were also not pleased with how Jon was handling things. Even General Tullius and the Imperial side seemed to be agreeing with Ulfric.

They won't stay if the Dragonborn doesn't speak.

"I see…" Jon nodded and smiled awkwardly, "I believe this prank has gone for much longer than it should have."

No one really understood what his words meant but in the next very second, the Dragonborn cleared his throat and spoke up.

"As you say, Jarl Ulfric." The Dragonborn sat more firmly towards the table and under his horned helm which he refused to take off, two blue eyes shone coldly.

To the left of the Dragonborn, Jarl Balgruuf the Greater let out a long tired sigh. He somehow foresaw the coming part of Jon's plan since in this room, only four people knew what was really going on.

"So, Dragonborn." Jarl Ulfric spoke, "Do I need to repeat the question?"

"No need." The Dragonborn replied with a little grin, "I simply wear something General Tullius has tossed in my way in order to reel me to his Imperial Camp. Funny enough, this legendary armor was cursed and I had to turn to Lady Alina of House Dare to lift its curse for me."

"So the Empire tried to inflict harm upon the Dragonborn?" Galmar Stone-Fist asked with rage filling his deep and rough voice, "So it's true. Those Imperial Dogs were afraid of a Dragonborn from Skyrim ascending the Imperial Throne."

"Way too smart for you, Galmar." Legate Rikke retorted, "Was it Ulfric who taught you that line?"

"Shut your trap, woman." Galmar replied and banged the table with his fist.

"Friends, please!" But the Dragonborn raised his arms aside to calm the two commanders down, "The Empire simply threw a bait for me so I can go to them and ask them if I can wear it. I am sure you all know the real story. Let's not beat around the bush and try to frame each other for mindless things. As usual, I plan to stay neutral in this discussion. My armor is just another thing I wear, nothing more."

Unlike what is widely known, the Dragonborn seemed to be quite the speaker. He can calm down two war dogs like Galmar and Rikke and still keep a light smile on his face.

"Just another thing you wear?" But the one who didn't let this one go was Jarl Siddgeir of Falkreath, "Why if it is not the treasure of the Imperial Legion. You should be thankful this protects your hide against Dragons."

"Indeed I am thankful." The Dragonborn replied, "Just like how I am thankful for Eorlund Grey-Mane who made me this Skyforge Sword and Wulfur who made me this Helm. But as I said, there are just things I wear and they won't be held leverage against me doing what is best for Skyrim and her children."

"Well said, Dragonborn." Jarl Ulfric nodded to the Dragonborn and seemed satisfied with the answer. He was even about to move on and start to talk peace with the Imperial now but it seemed that someone wasn't done talking.

"So to assure you all that I am partial, I am going to remove this armor off me, as well as that sword and that helm." The Dragonborn said.

Everyone present in the room felt off and all looked at him awkwardly.

"Dragonborn, there is no need to strip in such a place." Jarl Bryling spoke up.

"Oh, no worries. I am wearing a decent layer of clothes under it." The Dragonborn put his sword on the table in front of him and started undoing the straps of his armor suit.

"…"

It was a long awkward moment seeing a man stand up and take off his armor. He even asked Jon Dare and Jarl Balgruuf to help him with the straps tied at his back.

As he said, he remained in his normal clothing which he wore under the cuirass of the Lord's Mail. Once he was done, he put it next to the sword on the table and then sat back down.

Then it was time to remove the Helm.

As the Dragonborn was standing, Jon stood in front of him with his back to everyone else in the room. All Jon needed to do was to take off the helm for the Dragonborn and then step aside.

And he did just that.

He removed the Helm, took one step to the side, and stood behind the Dragonborn.

And it was silence that followed.

The Dragonborn that stood in front of them… or the one who was supposed to be the Dragonborn… that wasn't him.

"How the…" Legate Rikke had something to say but she wasn't sure where to begin.

"What is the meaning of this?" General Tullius, on the other hand, was already standing and glaring at the sight he saw.

There was also Jarl Bryling of Solitude who kept her brows furrowed while trying to comprehend the situation in front of them.

There was a familiar face on that of the Dragonborn, certainly it was not the one the three of them once saw in Solitude. It was a face that shouldn't be there.

Moreover, when Jon Dare turned around, his face… translucent. No, his entire body was getting translucent as if it was all made of animated crystal-like liquid.

"Thanks, Venus." The Dragonborn spoke and as he put his hand on the shoulder of the translucent body that was once Jon Dare, the body started to shrink and retreat to the Dragonborn's until it finally became a small thumb-sized crystal gem.

"What the fuck?" And as someone reacted that way, the entire room fell into an uproar.

"Sorcery! What sort of sorcery did we just see?" Another spoke.

"This lying wizard! I always told you he can't be trusted!" Jarl Siddgeir started pointing fingers immediately.

"Jon Dare was acting as the Dragonborn from the start. Talos knows if there was really a Dragonborn, to begin with." Even Jarl Skald started to shout some nonsense.

This uproar caused a feeling of unease to strike the key figures gathered around the negotiation table. The General was looking left and right and expecting something to come up and attack them and right opposite to him was Ulfric Stormcloak, who was calculating something in his head.

If one was calm in this situation, one would see that only a few people were also calm. Jarl Balgruuf the Greater, Delphine and Esbern of the Blades, and Master Arngeir. Those four were clearly aware of something. Ulfric Stormcloak was actually calm and caught on to the situation.

Jarl Balgruuf the Greater was one of the first recorded people to recognize the Dragonborn to be one. The Blades had a reputation of being Dragonborn fanatics across history, and Master Arngeir is an elder of the Greybeards who are interested in guiding the Dragonborn.

By default, the Greybeards should be aware of the true identity of the Dragonborn, the Blades should have done the impossible to contact him, and Jarl Balgruuf, who appointed the Dragonborn and Jon Dare as Thanes on the same day, should also be in on the secret.

"Damn!" All Ulfric could do was exclaim.

But Ulfric wasn't the only one who caught on to the situation. Ambassador Elenwen of the Aldmeri Dominion connected the dots together. She gathered a lot of information on the Greybeards and deduced that they are Master of the arcane art of the Voice as well as many forms of Spellcasting. In other words, the Greybeards are Master and Arch-Wizards.

"Jarl Ulfric has stated that the senses of the Greybeards transcend falsehood and illusions. When that man walked into the monastery after me, he was addressed as Dragonborn." Elenwen thought out loud but it was loud enough for some to hear her and recite what she just said.

The Greybeards greeted Jon Dare as Dragonborn!

Now that's something to disbelieve, something to fear, something to dread.

Jon Dare is not possibly the Dragonborn… or is he?

No way!

As if he needed more excuses to be more powerful.

That's just a hoax!

Everyone then turns to Master Arngeir so that he can tell them this is not true.

"Dragonborn." Master Arngeir spoke with a hint of impatience, "I hope you are not gathering this council so that you can do your big reveal."

"Apologies, Master Arngeir." Jon Dare the Dragonborn replied with a faint smile, "I simply realized that in order to gain the trust of those who are gathered here for peace, no more masks and false identities are needed. I should only offer them the truth."

Jon walked back to his seat and put the Helm of the Dragonborn between the Lord's Mail and the Skyforge Sword.

"And the truth is…" Jon halted his words and looked up with his lips almost twitching into a full grin, "I'm the Dragonborn."

——————————

A/n: Help me reach my Goal on P4treon & Join Discord! ➡️ https://linktr.ee/donovel ⬅️


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