Legend of the Arch Magus- The Expansion

by Michael John Sisa

  “Aleeexaandeer!” he roared, making the entire hall tremble. His adjutants flinched and avoided his glare.

  This was probably the fifth time Alexander, the Mercenary Guild Master, toppled the beastmen’s advance towards the Kingdom of Lukas. As the leader of the Third Legion, all blame towards these defeats fell on Urkawi. He even received a warning from the Beast King, stating that if he failed to capture the Eastern Region of the Kingdom of Lukas, he would be stripped off his title as the Commander of the Third Legion. There were only six months left until the deadline.

  Urkawi slapped the parchment on to the table, creating numerous cracks on it. “Phantomim.”

  “Commander.” One of the adjutants, a leopard beastman, stepped forward.

  “The assassins we sent to kill Alexander?”

  Phantomim almost swallowed upon seeing the glare from Urkawi. “W-We’ve lost contact with them, Sir.”

  A suppressed growled escaped out of Urkawi’s lips. “Why are you reporting this only now? If the assassins were discovered this fast, then it’ll be easy to conclude that they’ve seen through our plans. No wonder our army’s unable to advance in the Valley of Witches!”

  “Because you’ve told us to handle the assassination by ourse—”

  “—Enough!” Urkawi spat. “Damn it! If only that damn Alexander didn’t exist! That shrewd human’s been winning battles left and right despite the huge difference in our numbers!”

  It was a well-known fact within the Third Legion that Alexander have no more than two thousand men under his command right now. And using such a small army, they were able to block the attacks from the Legion which numbered more than fifteen thousand. This was clearly no small feat. All of the officials of the Legion wanted nothing but the death of that Mercenary Guild Master.

  Since several months ago, the Third Legion have been the laughing stock of the armies within the United Grakas alliance, and the military officials could do nothing but swallow down the ridicules thrown at them left and right.

  “Commander Urkawi.” A small voice spoke. It was a beastman from the rabbit tribe. “If you’ll permit this humble servant to speak.”

  Urkawi furrowed his brows. This was his first time seeing this beastman. The Rabbit Tribe was known to be the weakest among the seventeen tribes.

  Seeing the scrutinizing expression of the commander, the rabbit beastman bowed his head. “Ah, I haven’t introduced myself yet. Please do forgive me.” He smiled, showing two large teeth. His large eyes glimmered. “I go by the name of Fior, a member of the Rabbit Tribe. I was promoted to the position of assistant adjutant three days ago by the Beast King himself.”

  By the Beast King himself? That was an outrageous claim.

  “I’ve never heard of this,” said Urkawi. Seeing the expressions of the other officials, they too have never seen nor heard of this person before. “So, a greenhorn? You must be finding us funny and incompetent, knowing that we’re unable to win against a mere human despite the huge difference in numbers.”

  The voice of Urkawi was grim, taunting. Any other beastman would have trembled by now after hearing it. But surprisingly, Fior remained unbaffled. He shook his head. “Not at all. I must say that the Third Legion did well during the attack on the Valley of Witches. After all, the humans used the Silver Moles to their advantage during that fight. To have come out of that battle without so much deaths speaks loads of your competency, Commander.”

  Urkawi did not know if this rabbit beastman was simply flattering him. “Silver Moles? You mean those monsters that hole themselves deep within the ground all seasons long?”

  “Yes, exactly.” Fior bobbed his head.

  Urkawi’s eyes slowly widened. Everything made sense now. The numerous pitfalls. The earth suddenly opening up and swallowing their warriors. The massive landslides. Those phenomenon were on a grand scale that they’ve never thought that it was done by the humans. After all, there was no magic capable of creating catastrophes of such level. But if the Silver Moles, monsters that naturally lived in the ground, became involved, it would be a different matter entirely. Urkawi heard that those monsters were capable of digging through the ground as though swimming through water.

  “Silver Moles,” said one of the adjutants. “But how did they tame those monsters? And those things live underground. It’s really rare to even encounter them.”

  Judging by the story of Fior, the humans have used several of those monsters, probably over a hundred in total.

  “They probably have a monster tamer on their side. Just like you’ve said, encountering the silver moles are rare, but a monster tamer needs only one of them to get several others. Once he got his hands on a single one, it’ll be easy to find the rest.” The conjecture of Fior made sense. “I suggest that we assume that they have indeed gained control of the silver moles, which explains the reason why they chose to hole themselves up in the Valley of Witches. It’s basically a fortress, after all. And if they are to combine the ability of those monsters to alter the terrain, then that place will become impregnable.”

  The head of Urkawi throbbed upon hearing this. “So, you’re saying that it’ll be near impossible for the Third Legion to capture that pivotal place – is that it?”

  Fior shook his head. “No. What I’m saying is that it’ll be foolish to directly attack that fortress.”

  One of the military officials angrily spat out, “This damn rabbit! So you’re telling us that we’ve been doing it wrong all this time, huh? This arrogan—”

  Urkawi waved a hand, signaling the official to stop. He turned to Fior. “Since you’re telling us this, surely, you have an alternative? A solution to this deadlock.”

  “Of course.” Fior’s voice was filled with confidence. He walked towards the map spread out on the table. “Currently, this is where our army is.” He slid his fingers up and pointed at an x mark. “This is where the humans are.”

  “We know that.” One of the officials remarked.

  Fior brushed the ridicule aside. “Commander, forgive my insolence, but what is the true goal of this Legion?”

  There was silence. Urkawi eventually spoke. “To capture the Eastern Region of the Lukas Kingdom.”

  “Exactly,” said Fior. “Defeating Alexander is secondary. Although losing the Valley of Witches is a terrible blow, it’s not like there’s no other way around this. I suggest this alternative.” His finger slid towards the east and stopped near the area marked with numerous trees. “The humans call this place the Endless Forest. It’s so massive that it’s basically a natural wall that protected the north-east part of the entire Kingdom. Based on the information I’ve gathered, there is a small town here situated near the Rile River.”

  The military officers still have no idea what Fior was trying to say. The rabbit beastman diligently continued explaining to them. “There’s a hidden path here where our army can cross through. Basically, we’ll be giving up the Valley of Witches, make a small garrison over here in this area to protect our escape route, and capture this small town. It’ll take several weeks, probably even a month to cross over, but once we’ve captured this town, we can simply convert it into a stronghold without the humans knowing. It’s an isolated town, after all.”

  Looking at the map, the area where the town was located was a strategic location almost comparable to the Valley of Witches. It was protected by the Endless Forest at the rear and was only several days away from the Lion City. If they managed to successfully convert it into a stronghold, they would be able to focus all of their forces towards the front, with such a large forest serving as shield in their backs.

  “But if that damn Alexander notices our plans…” said one of the officials.

  “It doesn’t matter.” Fior smiled shrewdly. He pointed at an area in the map, specifically at the path towards the town. “If they choose to stop our army from building the fortress, the garrison over here can simply attack the Valley of Witches. He’ll be stuck in protecting it. Knowing the humans, they�
��ll definitely choose the Valley over the small town. It’s an obvious decision, after all.”

  Urwaki was silent for a moment, his mind filled with various thoughts. By far, this was an ingenious plan. He could not believe that such a brilliant tactician was unknown until now. He could see why the Beast King personally promoted this rabbit.

  “Did the Beast King send you to this camp for this?” Urkawi had to ask.

  Fior smiled and nodded.

  “Very well, we will go with this plan.” He turned to Fior. “How much warriors should we send to this side?”

  “Four thousand warriors for the garrison, ten thousand warriors for the town,” said Fior. “Just to be safe, leave a thousand warriors near the Valley of Witches. It’ll keep those humans from poking around as we make our march.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  After traversing the wilderness, Valak and his group finally arrived at their destination. Normally, the journey takes only two days, three at most by cart. But with so many emaciated villagers on their side, they had no choice but travel slowly, all the while slowly making the villagers regain their strength by feeding them. Thankfully, the young noble from before gave them enough meat and rations to last the journey.

  “That’s Blackstone Town, huh?” said Valak. From here, they could make out the numerous houses haphazardly built in different directions. There were no walls, no watchtowers. It gave off the impression that it had never been attacked by monsters before.

  “Hey, is this really fine?” said one of the villagers. “There’s almost a hundred of us here. I doubt this small town will be able to accommodate such number.”

  This was also among the worries of Valak. Although the young noble told them that he was the ruler of this domain, they were doubtful if they would be welcomed by the citizens. After all, he and his fellow villagers were nothing but additional mouths to feed.

  “I heard that there’s a forest near here,” said Valak. “If these guys don’t want us, we can simply build a new village at that place.”

  His statement calmed the uneasiness within the hearts of the villagers. They have numerous excellent hunters with them, after all. As long as a Calamity Level Monster like the Basilisk did not appear, they would be able to survive all throughout any season.

  “What’s that?” A villager pointed at three figures blocking the road.

  Valak and his group halted. Each of the three figures were clad with a black, hooded cloak. From the gaps of their clothes, their armors glistened from the rays of the sun. Valak momentarily locked eyes with one of them and he felt his hairs stand on their edges.

  These guys were dangerous. He was not even sure if they were human. His instinct screamed at him that they should not take any more steps from here.

  The other villagers could probably feel it too, as silence befell everyone.

  “Each of these guys are probably as strong as Anandra,” said Valak. His intuition was usually correct in times like these. His statement stirred the villagers. He said to the soldier accompanying them, “Judging by your expression, this is also your first time seeing those guys too.”

  The soldier nodded. “There’s no way the soldiers in town’ll be able to afford those armors.”

  Valak creased his brows. “I see.” He raised his voice. “We’re here under the orders of the noble ruling over this place! We’re refugees! We mean no harm in our coming here!”

  His voice echoed for a moment. The three figures remained still.

  “Maybe they’ll believe us if they see the letter,” said the village Elder. He walked towards the cloaked figures. And upon taking his third step, the three pulled out the swords on their waists, creating mellifluous unsheathing sounds.

  Valak felt their murderous intents. This was dangerous. His instinct told him that even if they all attacked together, they would not be able to win against the three.

  Holding their swords, the three started walking towards the villagers. Valak and the abled men immediately pulled out their bows and daggers. Women and children went towards the back.

  “Damn it,” snarled Valak. “What are these guys? Knights?” He shouted, “Aren’t you listening?! We’re not here to fight!”

  Just right when the three armored figures were about to attack, the pocket of the soldier accompanying them glowed. A soft buzzing sound was heard. Everyone looked at the direction where the sound came from.

  The soldier took out the palm-sized tablet in his pocket. It was the thing given to him by the Young Master before they parted ways before.

  Upon seeing the tablet, the three armored figures froze. Moments lingered and they sheathed their weapons. They turned around and ran away from sight. Valak and the rest of the group were dumbfounded of the sudden turn of events.

  “What the hell was that?” mumbled Valak. He said to the soldier, “They seem to have reacted to that stone.”

  By now, the tablet lost its glow. The soldier continued holding it, as though it was a talisman to ward away those dangerous beings. “The Young Master told me that this thing’s a pass. So, he meant it like that…”

  The soldier finally understood a little bit of what the Young Master tried to convey. Had he not brought the tablet with them, these refugees would have been slaughtered by now – him included. He shivered at the thought. But who were those armored men? Each of them were huge, probably more than two meters in height. He was sure that none of the soldiers were like that.

  “Elder, the Young Master gave you a letter for Sir Gaston, right?” said the soldier.

  The Elder nodded. “Yes.”

  “Then let’s go straight to the Mansion.”

  The group entered the town. Contrary to their expectations, the town was not decrepit at all. The streets were cobbled, just like those seen in large cities. Even if it rained, it wouldn’t be too muddy. Although small, the people living in this place blazed with life. They refugees expected the citizens of Blackstone Town to be skinny and famished, but reality gave a different picture.

  The residents of Blackstone Town walked with purpose, their gaits firm and lively. Some children played on the streets, while the adults pulled carts filled with woods and stones. They saw dozens of men wearing leather armors running while carrying their spears.

  “Soldiers?” mumbled Valak.

  Normally, a town as small as this would not have such number of soldiers. The local lord would frequently have only a handful of people to protect him, about a dozen guards at most. Furthermore, each of those soldiers were wearing full leather armor, coupled with spears and short swords.

  “Halt!” shouted one of the soldiers. Immediately, the men holding spears stopped in their tracks and rigidly stood.

  The one that shouted the orders approached Valak and his group.

  “I am Qarat, Captain of the Blackstone Soldiers,” he said. “Name yourselves.”

  The Elder stepped forward. “Greetings, Sir. We are from the Mahelpa Village west of here.”

  “Mahelpa?” said the soldier. He obviously never heard of it.

  The Elder started explaining the circumstances, the events that eventually led them to this place.

  After listening to the story, the soldier rubbed his chin and nodded. “I see. The seal on the letter’s indeed from the Marcus Family.” He turned to the soldier that accompanied the refugees. “The Young Master? How’s he?”

  “We parted ways near the plains. He’s probably at the Lion City now.”

  “Is that so?” said Qarat. He pondered for a moment. “The Young Master is wise. He probably has his reasons for allowing this group to come here.” He pointed at a street. “The Mansion’s just beyond that one. Turn left after that wooden cabin then keep walking. Sir Gaston usually goes out to check the farms by noon. If you hurry, you’ll still be able to meet him.”

  The Elder lightly bowed his head. “We are grateful, Captain.”

  Qarat embarrassingly scratched his cheeks. “Then… the soldiers are waiting for me.”


  After Qarat returned, the soldiers once again started running while holding spears in their hands. It was a beautiful sight, seeing numerous men wearing uniform clothes running during broad daylight.

  “Last year, a merchant that passed through our village told me that this is a ghost town,” said the Elder. He shook his head, as though dismissing the thought.

  It was evident that the merchant was wrong.

  Chapter Thirty

  Two days passed since the refugees entered the town. After meeting with Gaston, it had been decided that their group would stay at the Eastern Border, near the construction site. Since the Young Master specifically stated that they should provide homes to the wounded and emaciated, several complete houses were given to the newcomers. This eventually led to several local residents of Blackstone Town looking at them with contempt. Soon, friction started forming between the two groups.

  Anthony hummed as he pulled the empty wooden wheelbarrow. His gait was filled with purpose. Ever since the Mine in the Endless Forest was discovered, he started helping out with various mundane tasks like cleaning the mining equipment and delivering food.

  Today, his task was to deliver food to the miners. He stopped by the Mansion and filled the cart with rations. It mostly consisted of commoner’s wheat, several dried jerkies, and fish. Even now, Anthony was still amazed that the Lord of the town kept opening the granaries for the citizens. Sometimes, Anthony worried that food would run out soon, but he was proven wrong everyday whenever he came to restock for rations.

  I heard that the Young Master’s developing the northern farm lands. I heard one of the villagers say that we’ll be able to sustain ourselves this year after the harvest.

  “Big Brother’s right. The Young Master’s changed,” hummed Anthony. “He’s really a wise and benevolent Lord to this town.”

  Several months ago, majority of the citizens of Blackstone Town despised the Young Master. He did many atrocious misdeeds and assaulted several villagers. But now, those that hated him numbered only in the few. Though still a child, Anthony was sure of this. He saved the starving and freezing locals, after all.