After returning to the palace, Flarka summoned all the commanders in his grief. As he waited for everyone to gather, he turned to Kierra.

"He woke up early in the morning, but since then he has just been sitting. He hasn't done anything," Kierra replied. There was no trace left of Kierra's state from the previous evening. Dressed impeccably in a pressed black shirt and black pants, he stood right by Flarka's side, showing no expression, as usual. After briefly examining his friend, Flarka remarked, "He must realize he was right and is waiting for us to come to him."

"Frankly, I haven't found the answer to that question either. There's also the matter of prophecy. Summon the seers!" Kierra commanded.
Two soldiers quickly departed from the Throne Room to carry out the order. Shortly after, two elderly, short-statured men entered the room. These seers were revered sages who gazed at the sky for their emperors, observed the fire, slept for days to interpret their dreams, and informed their kings about these interpretations. Their positions in the Kingdom of Lacra were highly sacred, and all the kings had valued their words until now. What left Flarka so hesitant were the words spoken by these elderly seers. When a seer gave advice, it could not be openly disregarded. Flarka instructed the seers to wait for a while and indicated the seats they should take. Before long, the other commanders also appeared in the presence of the king and took their designated places. Kierra stood right behind Flarka, as usual. Once everyone was settled in their positions, Flarka began to speak.

"General Rhadam, General Marek, Admiral Jhadol, Vizier, and my advisor Keraika... Welcome, all of you. Today, Master Zeis and Master Meis will accompany us. Master, would you please restate the prophecy you witnessed?" Flarka directly looked at Zeis. The old man stood up slowly, preparing to speak. At that moment, Flavia entered the room and made eye contact with Flarka. Flarka gestured for her to come to his side and then turned back to Zeis. Flavia hurriedly took her place with a happy expression on her face. Zeis began to speak:

"My king, I had my first dream on the day you went on your hunt. There was a city engulfed in flames. The dream was nothing but fire and chaos. It was so terrifying that I could feel the heat of the flames even in my dream. On the second day of your hunt, I saw a black silhouette in my dream. It was wandering among dead trees. The forest was dead. There was no sign of life around. On the following day, that dark silhouette turned its face towards me, but I couldn't see anything. Its face was just emptiness. I understood everything through the dream I had on the fourth day. I started the dream again, following the silhouette. The forest was slowly coming alive, and when I looked in the direction it was heading, I saw your entourage. For a moment, I thought the silhouette intended to harm you, but then it raised its hand, and a deep blue bird landed on it. The bird's color was radiant. That's when I realized that this silhouette represented something good. On the fifth day, I understood the urgency of the situation. My dreams took me back to the city engulfed in flames, and in the middle of the city stood a giant serpent. The black silhouette was there too, and its back was filled with people fleeing the burning city. As soon as I woke up, I grasped the urgency of the situation, and I entrusted Vizier Keraika with the task of delivering the urgent message to you, hoping we hadn't arrived too late."

After Zeis finished speaking and sat back down, there was absolute silence among the group. Marek was the first to speak: "I didn't understand anything. So, why aren't we killing this man?" "Master, could you explain in a simpler and clearer way?" Flarka said in a weary tone. This time, Meis stood up. Master Zeis seemed exhausted from speaking for a long time. Furthermore, he felt quite embarrassed when he realized that Flarka himself didn't understand anything.
"Sir, in prophecies, the sighting of one of the four elements represents mythical creatures. In our dream, there is a city engulfed in flames and a serpent standing in the middle of the city. Considering a city being consumed by flames, we can assume that a dragon will attack one of our cities. Most likely, it will be a fire dragon that launches the attack. The complicated part is the person you encountered in the forest. It contradicts the message of the dream. Dark colors represent death, scarcity, illness, hunger, and other disasters. Light colors, on the other hand, represent goodness, health, and abundance. The brighter a symbol appears in the prophecies, the stronger the prophecy is. So, as you can understand, the silhouette we saw in the forest represents both death and health. It embodies both evil and goodness. The bright bird perched on his arm as he approached your group indicates his goodwill towards you. However, you possess the ability to perceive the evil it carries within. Therefore, we thought you could kill him. Someone appeared before us who could resist the dragon's attack and save the people in that city. Destiny presented us with both destruction and salvation at the same time, my king."

After Master Meis finished speaking, he quietly returned to his seat. It seemed that the group would need some time to digest what they had heard. Rhadam was the first to speak:
"Master Meis, are you saying that the fire dragon will attack our country?" Rhadam's voice trembled with fear.
"Yes, I'm afraid so."
"Well, have you seen any remnants, silhouettes, or clues related to the city where the attack will take place?"
"No, prophecies don't work that way. Most of the time, prophecies are not so clearly visible, even, Mr. General. You can often understand prophecies fully when they come true," Master Zeis replied.
"For decades, not a single dragon has been seen. There hasn't been a trace of a dragon anywhere in the world. And now you're saying that suddenly dragons have decided to appear and initiate it from our country?" he asked. Rhadam had still not fully processed what he heard, his face turning pale like chalk, unable to accept what was being told.
"You are not in a position to question prophecies or us, General!" Master Meis retorted.
Rhadam's fear turned into sudden anger at this response. With an irritated expression, he looked at the seers and then at Flarka before falling silent. Marek spoke in a thoughtful tone: "Our kingdom has a total of 18 cities. Some of them are protected by large walls, while others have lower defenses and are located in harder-to-reach areas. We have never fought a dragon before. How can we defend all the cities at the same time? Fear spreads among the people like a disease. Fear is more dangerous than many contagious illnesses. How will we know when and where each city will be attacked?"
Marek's question remained unanswered in the gathering. No one, not even the seers, knew the answer to this question. It was impossible to protect all the cities simultaneously against an attack whose timing and method were unknown. A sense of pessimism enveloped the entire hall. Marek continued speaking:
"Well, what role will this stranger play in the attack?" he asked Master Zeis.
"He will undoubtedly help us. But how much help he can provide, that remains uncertain."
Flarka started speaking while rubbing his forehead:
"Keraika, is there anything unusual in the reports? Let's review the status of the cities again. Perhaps we missed some details." "I have already examined the reports, sir. There is an unusual situation in Tulos City, where a snake-like disease has emerged. It has also spread to Raft City. We suspect that the disease is transmitted by rats. Sehm and Raft cities share the same river. We have put these three cities under quarantine to prevent the possibility of the disease spreading through the river, but the situation is becoming increasingly serious. We haven't found a cure yet."
Flarka stood up and spread a map on the table. After moving his fingers between Tulos, Raft, and Sehm cities, he began to speak: "These three cities are quite far from the region where the Skarts have caused trouble in the past. However, this is also the area with the lowest security. It would be beneficial to focus on this region." "But sir, that region has the highest natural defenses. It is surrounded by forests on one side, mountains on the other, and its back is against the ocean. The southern slopes of the forest are known to be inhabited by the wildest animals. It is said that mystical events constantly occur in the mountains. Most people are afraid to even approach there," Marek pointed out a valid point. However, Flarka had a different perspective.
"Well, do the Skarts fear the mystical events in the mountains or the wild animals?"
This unexpected question also remained unanswered. Flarka continued speaking:
"Let me change my question. Does a dragon care about events that happen in a mountain or forest that it can fly over? Moreover, we haven't seen the slightest attempt from the Skarts in eight years. Our southern borders are experiencing a period of calm and inactivity like never before. Eight years is more than enough time to discover new paths. From this moment on, we will take risks and accept that the dragon will attack this region."
After finishing his sentence, Flarka looked around for a while. The group had still not fully absorbed what they had heard, and they hadn't fully realized the danger they were in. He continued speaking:

"In order for us to focus our attention on the south, we must ensure the security of our northern borders. Admiral Jhadol, have there been any recent attacks from the Northerners?"
Admiral Jhadol stood up and walked towards the table, placing the reports he had in his hand on the table. Jhadol commanded the navy of the Lacra Empire. The Lacra kingdom had coastlines on two different oceans, but the need for a navy had never been significant. That's because until recently, these oceans were considered to be the edge of the world.

People were not entirely wrong in thinking that way. A significant portion of the Buzul Ocean remained frozen for a certain period of the year. During the limited time when the ice melted, sailors couldn't reach any landmasses on their short voyages. The Gri Ocean, on the other hand, got its name from its turbidity. It always had strong currents and large waves. Adventurers who set out to cross the Gri Ocean in the past were all disappointed: they couldn't see beneath the water, so they couldn't detect the creatures within or determine the location and size of an attack in time, and each one of them ended up at the bottom of the sea. Those who relied on the attack crashed into rocks in the sea due to violent waves and sank. Over time, everyone learned that they couldn't overcome that sea, and for a long time, no one attempted to cross it.
Therefore, the imperial navy had never been able to develop significantly and had no other task than ensuring the security of the coastal regions. Over time, the navy's role had reduced to merely protecting fishing boats. This caused the navy to lose its importance, and Admiral Jhadol's position was occasionally criticized and belittled. However, Jhadol never responded to these criticisms. It was as if he didn't hear them or had no knowledge of the rumors surrounding him. That is, until one day a ship arrived from the Gri Sea. Three more ships followed suit, seeking permission to land on the coast.

The incoming ships had raised a white flag, and the flags they carried were unseen before. Since these people from the north had raised the white flag, they needed permission to approach, but they couldn't be allowed to enter the city. Therefore, a cove deep within the forest was indicated, and the ships were permitted to dock in that area. The sailors who disembarked from the ship were robust and appeared quite strong, but they had no visible weapons. They seemed to be merchant vessels. After examining the situation, the coastal chief sent an urgent message to Admiral Jhadol, allowing the foreigners to come ashore. The Admiral had accompanied the king to the region. The merchants who disembarked from the ships delivered a letter from Sargan, the Great King of the North, in which the king expressed his desire for his kingdom to be less secluded from the outside world and thus wanted to establish a trade agreement. After examining the goods brought by the merchants, the king accepted the agreement upon realizing the variety and quality of the clothing and food.

As a result, the mystery of the Grey Sea was unraveled, and ships capable of withstanding that sea were produced. For the first time in history, the Lacra kingdomcrossed the Grey Sea and reached the island on the opposite shore. Additionally, they established stations on islands close to their maritime borders, strengthening the security of their northern boundaries. This revitalized the dying navy and elevated it to a stronger level than ever before by producing ships resilient to the oceans.