Chapter 160: Chapter 1
“If the coalition army continues its advance north,” said Ruth, “they will join forces with the Baltonian Royal Army near the Pamela Plateau. With Balto’s army also advancing eastward, we should be able to corner the monsters as long as everything goes according to plan.”
Hearing the good news, Maxi smiled despite her exhaustion. Ruth had taken to relaying the details of the war to Maxi after each of the Grand Duke’s meetings.
“It shouldn’t take more than two or three batches of provisions till the end of the war.”
Hearing Ruth’s confidence in a complete victory, Maxi’s heart felt lighter. If Ruth, a skeptic to the bone, believed they could win, it must mean that the coalition army had fortune’s favor.
As she stirred a boiling pot, Maxi began calculating with her mental abacus. One would have to ride for a day and a half without rest to reach the Pamela Plateau from Eth Lene. Considering the mobility of the infantry, the round trip would likely take three to four days at most. Since the army had taken fifteen days’ worth of provisions, sending a further two or three batches would mean that this war would be over in less than a month and a half.
“Your remedy is spilling over.”
Ruth’s voice snapped Maxi out of her thoughts. She quickly removed the pot from the brazier and set it beside her.
The infirmary was full of injured men who had arrived in the night. Even though the remaining mages were doing their best to heal the wounded, they could not restore all of them to full health in merely a couple of days.
For this reason, they treated the patients according to the severity of their wounds. It was left to the female clerics to keep these thirty or so men alive until the mages could see to them.
Maxi rubbed her tired eyes as she transferred the detoxicant into a small vial. Ruth regarded her for a moment before furrowing his brow.
“Are you getting enough rest, my lady?” he asked, running a scrupulous gaze over her. “You look pale. You are eating properly, aren’t you?”
“I-I do eat whenever I get the chance,” Maxi mumbled, avoiding his eyes.
In truth, she had not had a proper meal since Riftan’s departure. Anxiety dampened her appetite, and forcing bread down her throat only made her stomach churn. After studying her gaunt face, Ruth let out a small sigh.
“I think your nerves have grown overly sensitive lately, my lady. You won’t be able to hold out long in that state. We don’t know when this war is going to end, so you must take better care of yourself.”
“I... I am aware of that.”
“I don’t think you are.”
Ruth took the vial and ladle from her and called for the squires standing guard at the tent’s entrance.
“You should get some sleep, my lady. Rovar, Livakion, please escort her ladyship to her tent.”
“Th-That won’t be necessary! I can’t be the only one resting... while everyone else is working, so-”
“Didn’t you heal three people today with magic?”
She had, in fact, healed five people. Ruth was unaware of the additional two because she had done it while he had gone to see Duke Aren. Maxi pressed her lips together, and Ruth glared at her before adamantly pointing to the entrance.
“It is customary for one to rest after magic use. Try to rest for half a day.”
“But, Ruth... you tend to the patients... and you’re looking for a way to break S-Sir Hebaron’s curse. If anyone needs rest, it’s-”
“You need not worry about my health, my lady. I’m already caring for it like a precious jewel.”
He scowled as though he found her stubbornness annoying.
“You, however, are neglecting yourself. You would indeed be an inconvenience if you were to drag dozens of servants with you everywhere, refusing to lift a finger, but overworking yourself like a slave is no different. I sometimes find it hard to believe you are a daughter of the House of Croyso.”
Stung by his words, Maxi awkwardly turned away from him. “I-I understand. I will rest, as you wish.”
“Please do not allow her ladyship out of the tent for the rest of the day,” Ruth instructed Ulyseon.
After throwing Ruth a glare, Maxi made her way back to Riftan’s tent. She doubted she would be able to rest. Yet, as if putting her assumption to shame, her eyes grew heavy the moment she lay her head on the pillow. She rubbed her throbbing temples for a while before lying on her side and pulling the thin blanket over her head.
She must have fallen deep asleep, as the next thing she knew, someone was shaking her awake. It took a moment for her to come to her senses. Just how long had she been asleep? Maxi was blinking vacantly when Ulyseon’s urgent voice penetrated her foggy thoughts.
“My lady! You must get up! We have to get away from here at once.”
“W-What?” Maxi asked, looking up at the squire in surprise.
Ulyseon urged her into a sitting position. “There is no time to explain. We must hurry!”
Maxi hurriedly got out of bed and followed him out of the tent. At that moment, a loud noise pierced her ears.
Her eyes widening, Maxi looked toward the commotion. Armed knights were fighting what appeared to be large lumps of black mud near the southern gate.
Screams rang all around them as panicked people ran about the camp in confusion. Maxi instinctively took a step back. Had the world shifted during the short time she had been asleep?
“What on e-earth is happening? Why are there monsters inside the castle?”
“Curses! Ghouls sprang up from the ground. The monsters must have created a mass of undead and buried them here,” Ulyseon shouted angrily as he pulled Maxi’s arm.
Maxi’s eyes grew even wider. “B-But when-”
“I’ll explain later, my lady. We must get you to safety first.”
He sprinted through the cluster of tents, and Maxi scampered behind him, panting. Just then, a hand shot up from the ground and grabbed her ankle.
Terrified, Maxi screamed her lungs out. The damp, icy hand with protruding black bones latched onto her and yanked at her leg.
Maxi screamed and frantically tried to kick free. As the ghoul clawed its way out of the ground, Ulyseon cut off its arm. The severed hand, however, remained latched to Maxi’s ankle.
Her body racking with sobs, she pried off the dismembered hand with shaking fingers and flung it away. It was such a terrible sensation that she thought no amount of washing would rid her of the feeling.
Ulyseon drew her close behind him as she frantically wiped at where the ghoul had touched her skin.
“Stay close, my lady!”
Only then did she realize that more than one ghoul was crawling from the ground. Ulyseon swung his sword at the half-rotten corpses sluggishly digging themselves out of the earth.
A bluish glint flashed from his sword, and in an instant, he had lopped off three ghoul heads. Maxi watched in horror as the ghouls fumbled over the ground in search of their severed skulls.
Ulyseon yanked her arm. “This way, my lady! It should be safer atop the ramparts.”
Other than sprinting behind the squire, there was nothing else she could do. Ulyseon cut down the ghouls as they ran, and they were out of the chaos before they knew it.
He led her up the ramparts and said, “The undead keep springing up, but you should be safe up here, my lady. If any of them climb the stairs, I will slay them at once.”
Barely managing to reach the watchtower, Maxi rested her hand on the battlement as she tried to catch her breath. Though she felt dizzy, being on the wall gave her an unobstructed view of the unfolding chaos below.
About half of the barracks had collapsed, and agitated horses ran amok about the camp. Armed knights yelled as they stabbed the emerging ghouls with long spears. It was a scene from hell.
...
“W-What about... the others?”
“Mage Ruth is over there, my lady. You mustn’t worry. Ghouls are not that powerful. There are many accomplished knights here as well as high priests, so it shouldn’t take long to exterminate them.”
Maxi was barely listening as she frantically scanned the commotion. What of Hebaron and Garrow? And what about Idsilla and the other female clerics? Would they all be safe amid such pandemonium?
She was frantically searching the camp for a familiar face when a loud explosion reverberated behind her.
Maxi whirled around. The magical devices had been activated, and double barriers shot up in front of the ramparts. Beyond them, an army of trolls clad in black armor marched toward the city. Ulyseon let out a suppressed groan.
“How in the devil...?”
After briefly covering his face with his hand in shock, the squire swiftly picked up the long kopel propped in the corner of the watchtower. Sticking his head over the battlement, Ulyseon blew into it. The sonorous blare rang out over the camp – an alarm signaling an external invasion. Maxi felt her hair stand on end.
“Don’t be scared, my lady. I will protect you at all costs.”
Maxi was unable to comprehend his words. The young man’s determined voice was like smoke to her ears. The sudden uproar was beyond her ability to cope. Maxi clutched her forehead as she tried in vain to regain her sense of reality.
Ghouls causing mayhem within the city. An army of trolls converging on the city walls.
She was trapped in a nightmare.
...
Didn’t the coalition army drive all the trolls north? And just how long have those ghouls been buried here?
She suddenly came to a bone-chilling realization. Ulyseon had said that it was the monsters that created the undead. That could only mean that they had buried the ghouls during their initial capture of Eth Lene Castle.
Was their retreat from the city a ruse to get the coalition army into Eth Lene? If that was the case, why now? Why did they not ambush the city while the knights were still here?
The monsters might have simply been after the provisions. The city currently held enough food to sustain an army of fifteen thousand men for a month and a half. If the monsters were to take all of it, even the coalition army would not be able to last.
Maxi hugged her shoulders as a chill ran through her. At that moment, she heard Garrow’s voice calling from below the wall.
“Uly! We’ve lured the ghouls to one spot! Bring her ladyship down now!”
Peering over the edge, Maxi saw five or so soldiers gathered at the foot of the stairs. Ulyseon led her by the arm once more as they dashed down the stone steps.
When Maxi finally managed to stagger back to ground level on trembling legs, Garrow and the soldiers promptly encircled her.
“The female clerics and patients have been evacuated to the north end of the camp. You should also take shelter until everything settles, my lady.”
Supporting her with a hand, Garrow briskly strode on. Maxi hastily tried to keep up. As they passed through the dizzying commotion, Maxi saw knights with spire-shaped lances and soldiers carrying spears ten kevettes tall.
Keeping the formation, they drove the ghouls to a single spot. It was reassuring to see their side fall into ranks with such cool precision despite the abruptness of the ambush.
If they could defend the walls until the coalition army’s return, they could protect the provisions as well as the lives of everyone in the city.
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