City of Defy

“You were ambushed?”

“Yes, but they were weak. There weren’t even any Intermediate level combatants.”

“When was this?”

“It happened about a week’s journey from the city.”

“You traveled on horseback, right?”

“Yes.”

This confirmation caused both knight captains to frown.

“What’s wrong?”

Mateo noticed the growing concern from the two and couldn’t help but question the issue.

“A week’s travel away on a horse would be outside their usual area of operation. However, as you said the team that ambushed you was too weak to be a threat.”

“Maybe they weren’t there for us but to dissuade normal travelers?”

“Meaning their intention is to isolate the city from the rest of the kingdom.”

The implication behind this sentence caused the two Knight Captains to separate from the group and hold their own private conversation. Once the cart arrived the two hurried the knights with a sense of urgency to load the corpses and then immediately set off.

Fortunately, apart from the injured knights who were loaded onto another cart, everyone else had already recovered from their exhaustion. With the urgency of the Knight Captains, the group was able to reach the city in half the time that Anthony had estimated it would take before the attack.

The group was able to enter the city through a side entrance, completely ignoring the long line that had formed at the main entrance. The students had looked upon the gathering in front of the castle gates with curiosity.

A nearby knight caught their gaze and gave them an explanation.

“With the demon attacks that devastated several villages, villagers from other settlements fled and came to seek refuge.”

“Why not just let them in?”

Kyle voiced their thoughts as he looked upon the refugees with pity.

“For safety reasons, we can’t be sure that those who are trying to enter aren’t part of the Serpent's Blade. We also only have so much housing and food too. If we can’t provide shelter or food then some people end up resorting to crime.”

“Isn’t it dangerous to just leave them outside?”

“Being this close to the city at least assures them some modicum of safety. Neither the bandits nor demons would dare to approach the city walls.”

“The same thing was said when we were ambushed though.”

“While the attack was unusual, there is a big difference between the two. If it was previously said that such actions were too dangerous for the demons and bandits, then my statement is that such actions would not accomplish anything.”

“What he means is that if any demons or bandits dare to do anything at our very doorstep, then they would be immediately annihilated. Let alone causing any damage, they would be wiped out before they could even reach the vicinity.”

The group looked over as Anthony made his way to the group.

“But what if they do?”

“If they dare to do such actions, then it means they have a force that allows them to make such decisions. In that case, being behind the walls might not be much safer. However, the likelihood of such a case happening is very minimal. For the demons to lead such an assault would only happen if the front lines fall. As for the Bandits, there’s no value in a full on assault. Most likely, they would face complete annihilation. Even if they were to win, the losses would far outweigh the gains.”

Mateo could hear the confidence in the man’s words. Mateo couldn't help but wonder if the man would be so assured of his words if he foresaw the combined assault of both the demons and bandits.

“Enough of this conversation, it’s time for us to separate. Delphine and I have to go report to the Count, all of you on the other hand will follow the Knights to the garrison and rest up.”

“Do you not need us to make a report?”

“”Who here would dare to do such a thing? You all report directly to the kingdom. Most likely you will only have to do such things upon your return to the palace.”

With a quick farewell the party of students found themselves led into the garrison by knights. Once they reached their destination the party itself separated. Glenn was taken to the infirmary with Noah following him. Helen and Alicia decided to follow the Knight Captains words and get some rest. Kyle on the other hand went off to see if there was anything he could help with.

Only Mateo was left.

He couldn't help but wonder what his next action should be. Tilch hadn’t asked him to seek out information or do anything to sabotage the city.

His thoughts were interrupted though as he caught sight of someone wandering around inside the Garrison. He walked over and called out to the familiar face.

“Blair.”

“Hmm? Mateo! You're here too?”

“My party just arrived. We had some nasty encounters and ended up having to seek shelter here.”

“Bandits?”

“You too?”

“I swear, multiple times even. Every village we visited had bandits looting the place. Even after getting rid of them we still faced several ambushes. After facing several ambushes and being utterly exhausted after several sleepless nights we came to the city.”

“Fortunately for us, we met up with a company of knights when we were ambushed at the second village. Afterwards we raided their hideout. The biggest issue though was the demon ambush.”

“Demons?”

“Yeah. Did you not encounter any?”

“Just the bandits. What happened?”

“We were ambushed by a bunch of demons being led by three Demon Lieutenants. First they split our group in half, then they kidnapped me using earth magic.”

“Oh my god, are you ok?”

“Not entirely. They crushed my leg.”

Her eyes went wide as she looked down.

“Are you sure you should be standing?”

“Walking is not really an issue after getting some healing from Noah. Fighting might be another issue though. Thankfully I use a bow though.”

“What about your party? Are they ok?”

“They ended up facing off against one of the Demon Lieutenants and a bunch of demons. Glenn got injured in the shoulder by a knife thrown by the Demon Lieutenant. While the injury isn’t too bad, he did get infected with demonic energy. The rest are in better condition. The biggest losses were on the knights' side. Several of them lost their lives while the Knight Captain’s missing an arm now.”

“Seeing how you all made it here, I’m guessing you defeated the demons?”

“If only. No, reinforcements came.”

“Oh, who was it?”

“Knight Captain Delphine and the knights under her.”

“Oh, I’ve met her.”

“Your thoughts?”

“I’ve only interacted with her a couple of times, but each time she came across as the no nonsense kind of person.”

“That’s the feeling I got from her too.”

“What about the Knight Captain you were traveling with?”

“Anthony? He’s pretty easy to get along with. His men seemed to trust him too. He got along well with those under him while we were traveling, eating and chatting alongside them.”

“I kind of thought the people of this world would strictly follow hierarchy.”

“That’s probably a more common sight in the fiefdoms of the old noble houses. Speaking of which, have you met the Count yet?”

“He came and introduced himself once when we first arrived. He thanked us for coming to their aid and told us to seek him if we need any help. He’ll probably visit again to do the same with your party.”

“Where is your party by the way?”

“In the city.”

“Anything special?”

“While it might not compare to the capital city, there are still some specialties you can find here.”

“Like?”

“Maybe because it’s near the front lines, there’s a larger emphasis on combat here. So you’ll see a bunch more blacksmiths here. There’s also a bunch of mercenaries here.”

“How are they?”

“By that are you asking if they are a rough bunch? If so, kind of.”

“Kind of?”

“Everyone’s kind of on edge so fights are likely to break out, but public security and even other mercenaries are quick to de-escalate. You have to remember, though, that I am an archwizard, so they show me due respect”

“Have your party members had any conflict?”

“Once at the tavern with some drunk. Again, the conflict was defused before it came to blows.”

“Learn anything at the tavern?”

“The front lines are really heated right now. It seems like the Lich made an appearance.”