Unexpected Advance

Viviane rose to the sound of clashing blades.

She shot up from her bed, her senses becoming alert immediately as the fog of sleep quickly scattered from her mind. Moving rapidly, Viviane threw off her covers and thrust herself outside the tent, wincing slightly as a flash of golden sunlight blinded her momentarily.

Shielding her eyes from the glare, Viviane’s gaze flickered through the camp at an unprecedented pace, attempting to locate the source of conflict as quickly as she could, only for her search to cease upon a rather confusing sight.

“W-What’s going on...?” Viviane blinked, rubbing her eyes in disbelief.

The sound of combat was not the result of a surprise attack mounted by the witchspawn, but rather the product of Medrauta sparring against several knights. Though their fight was situated rather far from Viviane’s tent, the clamor of their clashing echoed loudly and carried easily through the air in a way that was more than enough to wake the noblewoman from her sleep.

Realizing that there was no threat, the adrenaline in Viviane’s body rapidly abandoned her, replaced by the grogginess that came with just waking up. Her vision swam, and she held a hand to her head, placing the other against the pole that held up her tent. She groaned, her tense muscles relaxing as she collapsed onto the sleeping bag behind her.

Ugh... This certainly sucks. Viviane sighed, laying on her back for a few moments before propping herself up once more. She squinted as a ray of sunlight streamed through the tent flap she’d left open, allowing a few curious soldiers to peer at her as they passed by. It didn't matter. She was dressed, after all.

Once she had collected herself and smoothed her messy hair, Viviane stepped out of the tent, remembering to close the flap this time before making her way toward the clearing where her knight was still engaging in combat. The fact that her knight was sparring despite the witchspawn threat was confusing, but there were a lot more questionable things going on through the camp as she surveyed her surroundings.

For one, everyone seemed relaxed. Lackadaisical, almost. The other, and more significant, change that she noticed was how many of the tents had been rolled up and much of the soldiers’ equipment had been transferred to wagons. It was almost as if they were preparing to march.

Are we retreating...? Or advancing? Viviane frowned. If they were so readily preparing to move, then she was certain it must be the former. After all, advancing deeper into the territory of nearly infinite unkillable monsters was the equivalent of suicide, but if they truly were planning to retreat, then Viviane only grew more confused.

It was easy to sense panic in a retreating force. As disciplined as an army might be, it was human nature to feel fear when attempting to escape from a powerful foe. Yet, Viviane couldn’t feel an ounce of panic in the troops. Of course, there was still the fear that resulted from being forced into prolonged combat, but there was no panic. No rush, unlike what normally happened when an army decided to pull back.

“Vivi!” Medrauta grinned as she caught Viviane’s eyes in her own, disengaging from the senior knight she was sparring with. “Good timing! I was just about to swap out with Eris!”

“Swap out with Eris...?” Viviane frowned, still utterly confused.

Based on the position of the sun, it was nearly noon. Far past the time where the shield wall should’ve been set up, yet Eris sat quietly across from the knights, sharpening her daggers with nonchalance. Seeing Medrauta disengaged with the knights, she hopped off the fallen log she was sitting on and joined them instead.

It was a sight that Viviane simply couldn’t comprehend, especially after spending the past two days in the command tent drafting defensive strategies with the officers. Even in the case of a retreat, the shield wall was indispensable.

“Yeah. I suppose you wouldn’t know about it seeing as you just woke up,” Medrauta nodded, a grin on her face. “We’ll be advancing closer to the shield tower today, so people’re just makin’ sure we’re all ready to go and won’t overextend. The supply unit and reinforcements from the duchy are supposed to be meeting up with us soon, anyway.”

“Advancing...?” Viviane stared at Medrauta, utterly flabbergasted. “What do you mean ‘advancing’? And where’s the shield wall? The witchspawn should be attacking us by now, right?!”

“Normally, yeah. But it seems like they’ve stopped in a mountain pass that guards the way to the shield tower. In fact, I’m willing to bet they’ve been there since yesterday which is probably why we couldn’t spot the behemoth. Pretty hard to see something that didn’t show up at all, y’know?”

“They... stopped? But why?” Viviane asked, the situation becoming more and more perplexing by the second. “Did Amelia take direct command of her forces?”

“The scouts left around an hour ago, so we’re still waiting on their report, but I don’t think so. After all, Amelia’s got that knight in black armor, yeah?”

Viviane nodded. “The Walpurgisknight.”

“That’s the one. He’s probably commanding the forces in her stead. That aside, why’d you sleep in so late? It’s not like you.” Medrauta said, a touch of concern in her voice.

She was glad that Viviane was getting a bit more rest given the hectic schedule demanded by warfare, but the way she’d stayed asleep for so long even after Medrauta had attempted to wake her on several occasions remained slightly worrying. In fact, the knight had even checked Viviane’s heartbeat on one of those attempts just to make sure she was alright.

Viviane hesitated, unsure of how to explain the reason behind her extended slumber. It wasn’t as if she didn’t trust Medrauta, but rather she didn’t trust herself. Her experiences in the Lake were largely fuzzy, and the harder she tried to recall them, the more muddled the memories became.

“I’m not sure how to explain, honestly.” Viviane stopped again, casting a glance at their surroundings. “But perhaps we should talk about this in a more private location.”

“More secrets?” Medrauta said jokingly. “First it was Lady Scarlet, and now it’s you. Just what are you noblewomen hiding all the time, huh?”

Viviane shook her head in mock admonishment, the ghost of a smile touching her lips as she took Medrauta’s hand, gently leading her knight to the side. They walked several paces away from the camp until they reached a spot nestled within a tight cluster of trees, perfect for hiding away from any curious soldiers who ended up wandering their way.

“It’s the thing I talked about last time,” Viviane began. “You remember right? The Lake?”

“Yeah, I remember. You didn’t explain it very clearly, but I suppose we were a bit short on time back then. You said there was something else there, right? Gah, what was it again...?”

“Not something. Someone.” Viviane clarified. “Their name is Emrys, and they look like you, just... as a child, I guess.”

A frown creased Medrauta’s brow as she heard the name. The last time they spoke of the Lake, Viviane had neglected to mention Emrys’ name, but Medrauta found it familiar for some reason. Though she couldn’t quite place it and hearing it hadn’t given her any surprise headaches,

“Yeah, I remember that part. So that’s why you were asleep for so long? ‘Cause you were in the Lake again?”

Viviane nodded. “Yes. Emrys taught me quite a bit about the Lake itself. How to build my foundation within and how to use its power more efficiently. It’s just that everything is kind of fuzzy right now...”

“Y’mean you don’t remember anything or what?”

“No, it’s just... It’s hard to explain. It’s like seeing through those glass windows they have at cathedrals. You can see outlines, shapes, color. But it’s all blurred and jumbled. I can still recall how to properly wield and strengthen the power of the Lake, but the details... Everything Emrys and I spoke about is just... hazy, I guess?”

Medrauta nodded. She knew that feeling all too well, especially having just experienced it upon hearing Emrys’ name. “Don’t worry about it too much, Vivi. I think I’ve got a bit more experience than you in that department.”

Viviane laughed. “Yes, I suppose that’s true. Ah! There is one thing I do remember, though! Emrys taught me how to project the power of the Lake through my Crest, so please look forward to that! I imagine our battles will become a lot easier from now on!”

“Let’s hope so, Vivi. But there is still one thing that worries me slightly...”

“Hm?”

“This ‘Emrys’ you mentioned... I don’t know what it is, but her name sounds somewhat familiar. And the fact that you say she looks like me is weird too. You think you could, uh, ask a bit about that the next time you see ‘em?”

“Of course,” Viviane said. “I just hope I’ll be able to remember it after waking up next time.”

Medrauta grinned, reaching forward and placing a hand on Viviane’s cheek. “I’m pretty experienced with memory loss, so maybe we can work on that together tonight?”

A scarlet blush crept into Viviane’s cheeks slowly as she realized what her knight was implying, causing her to avert her gaze ever so slightly. “M-Medrauta! It’ll be a bit too dangerous for that, won’t it? Besides, the camp’s pretty tightly packed...”

“Ah, yeah. You’re right.” Medrauta sighed, the disappointment evident in her voice. “Speaking of ‘packed’, it’s time we headed back. The troops should be ready to move soon.”

“Let’s hurry then.” Viviane said.

The two of them made their way out of the woods, Medrauta reaching over gently to pick off a few fallen leaves that had found themselves in Viviane’s hair as they negotiated their way through the foliage. They passed by Eris and the knights who were still sparring, making their way to their tent and disassembling it quickly.

While it was a simple task that only required one pair of hands, the two found a moment of solace and intimacy in it, exchanging frequent glances and gentle smiles as if a newlywed couple. It didn’t take them long to finish packing though, loading the rolled up equipment onto one of the wagons shortly after. A quick glance around what was left of the camp told them it was almost time to begin their advance.

“Now that I think about it, I’m not sure if this is a wise idea.” Medrauta remarked as she swung easily onto the saddle of her mount.

“Pushing forward?” Viviane asked. “I agree, and I think Lady Scarlet would too. The mountain pass will be narrow and difficult to break through, especially with the behemoth there, but...”

“But?” Medrauta prompted.

“We have you. And you have me.”

“Hah! You’re right about that, Vivi!” Medrauta grinned. She urged her horse forward ahead of the soldiers who had formed up in an orderly fashion behind them, paving the road to victory.