If she was operating entirely on her sense of duty up until this point, Norani now was motivated by personal reasons. The sooner everyone was gathered together in the Atlas Pillar, the sooner she could receive even clearer answers about her only remaining blood relative. Though the three individuals in the Pillar couldn't see her doing it, they knew she was communicating with the avatars she had sent out previously, making them quicken their pace.
Arthur took the mic back from Luca, "Now that we have successfully managed to contact you, we will end our transmission here. We will see you in the Atlas Pillar." Halad then shut off the microphone, ending the one-way conversation. The human king sighed, "This is already difficult... Is there anything we can do while we wait for them to arrive, Halad?"
[This is an operational headquarters, not a lounge... That said, there are a few things that you can do in the meantime. Since you're not like the time-hopping Dragonborn lad, it's best you study the language of the Ancient Elves. This is handy not only for operating this headquarters but for conversing with natural speakers as well. You can also look back at some of the old data from the last great war for references on the various demons.] Like a frustrated but conscientious secretary, the AI gave the human sovereign some suggestions on what to do. Of course, he gave him a slightly backhanded compliment when mentioning Luca's understanding of Ancient Elven language, which was promptly ignored.
The young Dragonborn headed back over to the holographic map station and started using his limited know-how to leave various 'bookmarks' on the map for later reference. Arthur, with Halad's help, had located various vocabulary and introductory tomes on the Ancient Elven language and casually sat on the floor nearby to read out of not wanting to bother the AI over a chair. Occasionally, the king would inquire as to what he was marking.
"The first marking I've made is Skyhaven Fortress, for obvious reasons. Though it isn't on any maps in the various nations, it is a critical location and thus should be added in the future. If I remember correctly, the sealed passage to the Snow Elf homeland is hidden near where the expedition collapsed. That's where I'll place the second marking. This way, Nesine and Lady Dreamwalker can locate the expeditionary members' bodies and belongings and give them a proper burial as heroes. While they did not achieve anything, they bravely set out on a mission that was already believed to be a lost cause in hopes of finding any aid."
"I'll make the third a subset of three individual markings. Each one will reference the hidden villages of the Divine Beast Clans, which aren't too far apart from each other but are enough to be separated on a map. They're all located around the same major landmark, the ruined stronghold built into a mountainside where a small army waited and survived for three months without outside contact for aid, even while besieged by demons, Caerbannau, which is where the group marking will be placed. Although it is ruined now, it is an excellent location, and it would be a good idea to refortify the stronghold. If I remember correctly, there's an underground river with a small lake just under the mountain it's built into. A lucky discovery back when the stronghold was only a mine."
"I'll be putting another group marking at the mountain pass of Asgwrn cefn y Ddraig, which is very important since it's the only way to enter the Dragon Clan's territory without flying. On our side of the mountains, it begins at Cawell Asen ar y Dde, which is the first marking, then the second marking is at the highest point of the pass, Llinyn y Cefn. The third and final marking of the group is at the end of the pass on the other side of the mountains, at Cawell Asen ar y Chwith. This is important to remember as, other than the hidden entrance of Hylaneas, this is the closest path to any nearby support, however little that may be."
Arthur grumbled as he listened to the latter part of Luca's third explanation, "Based on my understanding, no more than a dozen men have ever gone through that pass and been seen again. Of those that did, even fewer lived long after they returned due to their experiences, specifically related to frostbite and pneumonia after days in the extreme cold. I can only remember two off the top of my head that managed to survive all of that. One was my father, and no, I still don't know how or why. Blast that old man, wiping everyone's memories of him. The other was the last, and so far only, bearer of the Dragonlord's Armaments."
Halad spoke for the first time in a while at the mention of these items, [Ah, those artifacts. Even with my vast database's collection, that is one of the more unique ones. It's one of only three known successful attempts at creating artifacts as a set rather than individual pieces, along with the Raiments of Yggdrasil and the Everlong Sentinel's Apparatus. All of the items were made using parts of a fallen Dragon King's body, from bones and scales to sinew and blood. Though he never spread any word of it and kept it secret out of respect for the Dragon Clan, that man was quite a legend. No matter how far I look back, there are only a handful of mortals that can best a dragon in single combat, let alone that man, who even managed to come out victorious from a deathmatch with a Dragon King. Dragon Kings are the current highest, and strongest, members of the clan, so for a mortal to kill such a being in single combat is unprecedented.]
This perked up everyone's ears, as nobody had known this story, as Halad had just mentioned. Out of respect for his opponent and the Dragon Clan as a whole, the only known mortal dragonslayer never spoke a word of his achievement. The only individuals with the knowledge were Halad and the elder members of the Dragon Clan.