Chapter 74

---Next Day---

Arriving in Riverwood just after dawn, having walked non-stop through the night, as we entered the settlement the locals came out to see what was happening. Surprised to see a large group of people arrive without notice, the locals began to whisper wild theories to one another about what was going on. Rushing out of the blacksmith's shop, three familiar looking faces pushed their way to the front of the crowd to see Tullius. 

"General Tullius, sir, it is a relief to see you alive and well!", Hadvar said, saluting the general, "I was afraid that only three of us managed to escape."

Rushing to Hadvar's side, the torturer and his assistant saluted the general as well. Happy to see that more of his men had escaped the dragon attack, his brow furrowed as a realization came to him.

"I understand how the two of you escaped unscathed, but what about you, Hadvar? Where did you disappear to in the chaos?", the general asked, with a solid poker face.

"Sir, I was helping with the evacuation till I spotted Ulfric and his men trying to escape amidst the chaos. I made the decision to abandon my post and gave chase into the tunnels beneath Helgen. These two men joined me in the pursuit till a tunnel collapsed allowed the Stormcloaks to escape us.", Hadvar said, bowing his head, "I am fully prepared to accept the consequences of my actions!"

Looking at the other two soldiers, both nodded their heads in confirmation. Sensing no falsehoods in Hadvar's retelling of events, Tullius instructed him to lift his head. Assuring him that no punishments would be handed out, in light of circumstances, he simply told Hadvar not to abandon his post in the future. Swearing to never do so again, the general nodded his head in satisfaction.

"Legate Rikka, prepare to set out immediately.", the general ordered, looking at his second in command, "We need to return to Solitude as quickly as possible!"

"Wait a moment, so Helgen really was razed to the ground by a dragon attack?!", Alvor asked, walking up to his nephew and General Tullius, "If that is true, we need guards to help protect Riverwood!"

"Yes, it is true, Helgen was burned to the ground in a dragon attack last night. I would leave a few men behind to guard Riverwood, but the local Jarl has refused our aid thus far. Please speak to him about sending guards to protect your village, and to help rehome the survivors of the attack. If he needs any assistance, he can contact us in Solitude.", Tullius answered, before turning to me, "I have said it several times already, but I am truly thankful for your support up till now. Please drop by our headquarters in Solitude to receive your compensation. The Empire always pays its debts."

Assuring him that we would drop by in the coming months, Tullius nodded his before joining up with his men. Double timing it out of Riverwood, the Imperial soldiers soon disappeared as they rounded a cliff side. Letting out a deflated sigh, Alvor took it upon himself to break the news to the other locals. While the local men began to plan out who would go to alert the Jarl, the survivors hobbled over to the Sleeping Giant Inn for food and beds. Thanking us for saving them, as they walked by, all of us wished them luck on their future journey.

"Well, now that our escort quest is over, what should we do?", I asked, looking up at the mountains to the west, "I was thinking about heading up to that barrow for some exploration, but we can also call it a day here if you want."

Looking up at the massive mountain, it took them a second to notice the barely visible stone structure within the mist. Looking at one another for a moment, their big grin told me exactly what they were going to pick.

"Dungeon exploration!", Roxanne said, her tail wagging energetically, "I want to see what the dungeons on this world are like!"

"I am with Roxanne on this. We might find some relics related to dragons!", Lucoa remarked.

Agreeing with the two of them, the other women were excited to see what treasures were hidden inside the barrow. Turning to the bridge that led out of the village, the Riverwood Trader's sign caught my eye. Remembering that Lucan and Camilla had a few beginner spell tomes, I wanted to pick them up before leaving town. Walking over the store, Lucan left his spot among the men to greet us.

"Oh, uh, welcome to the Riverwood Trader!", the merchant said, trying to hide his concern about a potential dragon attack, "How can I help you?"

"I was hoping to purchase magic tomes from you, if you had any in stock.", I replied.

"I think we have a few behind the counter, Camilla, can you show them what I have in stock? I am speaking with the men about who should go speak to the Jarl.", he said, looking over at his sister.

"Sure Lucan…I would be more than happy to help them with OUR store…", Camilla remarked, with scowl.

"Oh do not start with me!", Lucan huffed, rejoining the conversation with the other men.

Unlocking the door for us, Camilla ushered us in with a warm smile. Thanking her as we entered the store, my fiancées began to browse the few shelves while I approached the counter. Stepping behind the counter, Camilla pulled out the few dusty tomes they had and quickly wiped them off with a rag.

"I apologize, we do not get many mages through here, so our offerings are quite slim.", she said, leaning over the counter, "So…are all of you Adventurers?"

"Bounty hunters and mercenaries.", Deirdre replied, as she moved beside me to look at the unusual books, "Victor, do you mind if we purchase all of their books?"

"That is fine, go ahead.", I said, looking at where the Golden Claw should have been, 'Oh right, the thief that stole the claw is currently trapped inside the barrow.'

Remembering the details of the side quest, a few other details began to return to my mind. Wondering how the Word Wall would affect Lucoa and I, our dungeon dive today was shaping up to be an exciting endeavor.

"Did something used to sit here? I can see faint scratch marks on the counter.", I said, motioning to the spot.

"Yes, someone broke in a few days ago and stole a family heirloom. It was an ornate, golden dragon claw about this size.", Camilla remarked, gesturing with her hands, "Our grandfather found it while exploring the barrow in his youth. He was not sure what it was for, but he was certain it led to treasure room somewhere inside the barrow."

Piquing her interest, Lucoa walked over to hear more about it. Describing its appearance and the carvings it had on its palm, she looked at me with a big grin.

"Are you heading up to the barrow?", Camilla inquired, clearly interested in joining us.

"Yes, we are heading that way once we are done here.", Deirdre answered, "How much are the books?"

"Eighty gold.", Camillia replied, pushing her chest out toward me, "Could I maybe convince you to let me come along? I have always wanted to be an adventurer like my grandfather, but Lucan will not let me. The two of us are all that is left in our family line so he thinks the two of us should be more focused on finding partners than galivanting around."

"I cannot imagine you have many suitors here…", Mylene remarked, as the other women joined us at the counter.

"There are two men interested in me, but both want me to only birth their children and be a homemaker.", Camilla complained, with an exhausted expression, "Since they have not gotten an answer out of me, they have gone to my brother for permission. Lucan, for all his faults, has been nice enough to stay out of it for my sake. If nothing changes soon though…that may end up changing."

Denying her request, as we would likely call it after clearing the Bleak Falls Barrow, I slid her a few small gold bars that I assumed would cover the tab. Accepting them without batting an eye, Camilla refused to give up on the matter. Offering to show us the path to the barrow, I agreed to her request to save us all some time. Rushing over to the door, Camilla flung it open without considering someone might be on the other side. Slamming it right into Lucan's face, her brother let out a scream as he stumbled backward.

"Damn it, Camilla, how many times must I tell you to be careful!", Lucan groaned, as we stepped out of the store.

"I am going to show our customers the path that leads up to the barrow.", Camilla said, with a smug smile, "I will be back shortly."

"By the eight, did you force your selfish wishes onto my customers?!", Lucan shouted, completely forgetting about the throbbing pain, "Why will you not give up on that blasted dream of yours? Neither of us are getting any younger, we should both be married now and starting our own families. Instead we are stuck sharing a house with one another!"

Disregarding everything that Lucan told her, Camilla began telling us about Riverwood as she began walking down the road. Giving up on the argument, Lucan stormed inside grumbling to himself that he would speak to her later about it. Leading us out of the village and up to a dirt pathway, Camilla explained that the path would lead us straight to the barrow.

"While I am sure all of you can handle it, watch out for bandits and wolves on your way up. No one goes up there anymore, so all manner of troublesome things has taken over.", she warned us.

"Thank you for the warning.", I said, already knowing what to expect.

"I am certain whoever stole the claw probably went to the barrow to find the hidden treasure. If you find the claw and bring it back, we will be sure to properly compensate you for all your efforts.", Camilla stated, before leaning close to my ear, "I would not mind being your eighth wife, you strong hunk."

Quickly retiring to the village, I looked back at her with annoyance. While I did marry her on several playthroughs of Skyrim, I had no desire to do it in real life. Aela and Serana were the only two women in this world I was interested in. If we happened upon them during our journey for Elder Scrolls, Magic Tomes, and Stalhrim, I would certainly pursue them to the best of my abilities.