by Michael Sisa
“They broke the bridge, huh?” he mumbled. Before them was a broken bridge and an impossibly large ravine that reeked of the word bottomless. The Kingdom once sent an exploration team for it, but they never came back.
He bit his lips then issued an order to the soldier on his left. “Take another soldier with you and report this to the Kingdom.”
“Understood!” said the soldier.
“All troops! Follow me!” roared Commander Rajak.
Clouds of dust swirled upwards as almost a hundred mounted soldiers rode forth. They steered to their right, taking the longer path towards the forest. Behind them was the Great Ravine that protected the Kingdom for centuries.
“Muhasa,” said Commander Rajak.
A small, plump man answered, “Yes, General?”
“We cannot afford to rest. I need your magic,” said Commander Rajak.
Muhasa nodded. “Understood.”
Still riding his mount, he began waving his arms in the air. A few moments after, a small magic circle manifested itself. After it broke into particles of light, a small shockwave blew through the entire cavalry. The horses neighed, and their speed increased further.
After two days, they finally reached the edge of the forest. A large, sole path was seen between numerous trees and shrubberies. General Rajak immediately ordered scouts to survey the surroundings. According to the Red Code they had received, the bandits were the cause of the Third Division’s bane.
Ten minutes passed. A scout returned. For some reason, his face was grim and pale.
“C-Commander… hundreds of corpses ahead,” said the scout.
Rajak nodded. “Good work.” He said to the rest of the soldiers. “This area is infested with bandits. Do not risk it. Kill them on sight.”
After that, he led his men deeper into the forest, where they eventually saw numerous corpses littered on the ground. Upon seeing the insignia on their armors, the soldiers froze. There was no doubt about it. These men belonged to the infamous First Division.
Arrows pierced their flesh, and most of them were decapitated. Maggots crawled up their eyes.
Judging by the state of the corpses, Rajak was sure that a minimum of two days had passed since then.
“Search the area! There might be survivors! Be on guard! If you encounter bandits, make sure to fight them in groups! I do not need brave, heroic soldiers!” said Rajak.
The soldiers immediately dispersed to cover the area. Some tried to find survivors, while some looked out for bandits. Their Commander was famous for his cautious demeanor. He was known as someone that would not fight battles he would not win.
Despite being dubbed cowardly and unconventional, the soldiers held pride in being part of the infamous Red Griffin.
From atop his mount, Rajak stared at the innumerable corpses littered on the road. Whoever did it did not bother concealing the bodies. But judging by the severed heads, they made sure that everyone was dead.
“Muhasa,” said Rajak.
“Sir?” replied a bald, plump man.
“You’re capable of Alchemy, correct? I want you to find what kind of poison killed these men.”
Muhasa jumped down his mount. He stroked his flabby chin. “Poison, Sir?”
“Yes. This is the Great Forest. With such massive amount of corpses, there should have been scavengers around,” said Rajak. “But look around you. There is not a single one.”
Muhasa looked around. Indeed, it was just like his Commander had said.
Rajak added, “This area is supposedly home to Reavel Wolves. Weak creatures, but those carnivorous beasts won’t let a feast like this pass by. Peculiarly, though decapitated, the corpses are intact. A more appropriate scenario would be a missing limb or two. Even beasts refused to eat the corpses. Most probably, the bodies contain poison.”
“I see. As expected of the leader,” mumbled Muhasa. He began examining the bodies of the dead knights.
A soldier approached. “Sir, survivors.”
Rajak’s ears twitched. The soldier added, “A child… and the other one seems to be a priest.”
“Take me there,” said Rajak.
“Yes, Sir!”
Along with a handful of soldiers, Commander Rajak went towards the place where the survivors were found. Upon arrival, he saw two figures sitting under the shade of a tree.
A young man, probably in his early teens, and an unconscious female priest.
Chapter 20: Last Farewell
“How is it?” asked Rajak as he approached the group.
The soldiers that surrounded the survivors immediately saluted upon seeing him. One of them said, “Sir! We’ve searched the vicinity. So far, these two are the only survivors we’ve found!”
Rajak tapped his shoulder. He had always made sure to praise them for their hard work. It was free, after all.
“Good work,” said Rajak.
He stared at the two figures sitting underneath the shade of a tree. One was a civilian, a young man in his early teens. Commander Rajak had questions on what he was doing with the Third Division, but he knew that had to be left for later. The more important thing was the female priest beside him.
“De Sagun,” mumbled Rajak.
She was one of the five High Priestesses of the Order of Aquina. Rajak was sure. Thankfully, she seemed unharmed, judging by the lack of cuts and injuries. Her peaceful, sleeping face seemed surreal considering the fact that there were numerous rotting corpses nearby.
Not sure if he should immediately wake her up, Rajak decided to interrogate the young man beside her instead. He crouched and asked, “Kid, what happened here?”
For a moment, Rajak was taken aback by the glare that he received. The young man’s eyes looked at him as though he was nothing but an insignificant existence.
Rajak mentally shook his head. He asked again, “What happened here?”
Seconds passed, but he received no response. At the corner of his eyes, he saw some of his soldiers look at each other. Rajak sighed.
He stood up then closed his eyes for a moment. “My apologies. I have not introduced myself. I am Rajak Corvista, Commander of the Red Griffin. We have come here after receiving an emergency message from the First Division.”
To his relief, the young man replied, “The reinforcements, huh? Good enough. I have been yearning for sleep, but I deemed that I should at least wait for the so called human soldiers to arrive.”
Rajak still had no answer to his question. He asked again, “I know that you must have been traumatized, and you’re probably too tired of everything that happened thus far… but we need you to tell us what happened here.”
A chuckling sound from the young man was heard. “Kukuku! How stupid are you? Isn’t it obvious? Petty humans slaughtered each other. Despite their fleeting lives, these creatures chose to kill one another. How stupid.”
Rajak looked at his soldiers. They all knew that, and that was not what they intended to find out. He heard one of his soldiers say, “Isn’t that kid a bit too arrogant? We went to this place in hopes of saving the First Division, and he didn’t even bother saying his thanks.”
Rajak signaled for them to stop with their side comments. They had no time for trivialities. If the kid really was as rude as his soldiers said, then so be it. It was not something worth dwelling on about.
After a quick self-thought, he had decided not to ask further. He leaned closely to the unconscious female priest. He tapped her shoulders.
“De Sagun,” said Rajak. “Wake up.”
For a moment, Commander Rajak deliberated whether he should use more force to rouse her. But thankfully, she woke up after a few more taps on the shoulder.
She slowly opened her eyes then blinked thrice.
“De Sagun, how are you feeling?” said Rajak. “I’m sorry for waking you up, but we need to find out what happened here.”
It took a few moments before Faith was able to reply. She wore a dumbfounded expression, definitely confused of the current st
ate of things. Before she had lost consciousness, she was sure that she was inside the Mansion. But now, she suddenly found herself in the middle of a forest.
“R-Rajak? Why are you here?” She looked around and saw a handful of soldiers nearby. On her right, Jiablu was nonchalantly resting his body on the tree. “I see… the Red Griffin. The Kingdom really went all out to help us, huh?”
Commander Rajak sighed in relief. “It seems you’re fine. De Sagun, I need you to tell me what happened here.”
Faith flinched as her head throbbed. Horrendous memories began resurfacing. She bit her lips as she tried her best not to sob and wail. There was time for everything.
“Viper,” said Faith. The soldiers around them froze upon the mention of the name. “He leads the bandits in this forest. A few days ago… they… they attacked us and killed everyone.”
Commander Rajak pulled up his collar, half-covering his scorched jaw. He mumbled, “I see. Then, Lancelot—”
“Is probably dead,” said Faith. “When I last saw him, his body was pierced by numerous arrows. The poison in his body took over. The fight with the bandits was one-sided.”
Her body was quivering as everyone turned dead silent. To think that such a famous warrior would meet his end here, and by the hands of mere bandits. It was unthinkable. It was a grave news that would shake the Kingdom.
Commander Rajak had sparred with Lancelot a few times before, and he never won a single match against the famous Commander of the knights. He could only imagine how potent the poison was for a great warrior to be reduced to such state.
“Alecto. That damn Viper,” snarled Rajak. Losing Lancelot was a serious blow to the Kingdom. “We should have killed him long ago! Damn, cunning bastard!”
Despite what he said, Rajak knew that the Kingdom indeed tried to get rid of Viper a few times before. Unfortunately, he was a former Instructor of the Royal Guards. He knew the Capital like the back of his hand. Just cornering him proved impossible.
And taking into account his individual strength, they would need an elite punitive force, at the very least, to subdue him.
“It’s good that you survived,” said Rajak. He placed a hand on her head and ruffled her hair. “The little girl I used to play with before has become such a beautiful woman.”
“You know each other, Commander?” asked one of the soldiers.
Rajak nodded. “Yeah. We grew up in the same orphanage.” He asked Faith, “How is Cardinal Roschal?”
Faith furrowed his brows. “His health is getting worse. We’ve tried all kinds of medicine and even brought famous healers, but they can’t find the cause of his disease.”
Rajak had a worried look on his face. “I see. That old man… this is why I told him to retire already.”
A soldier approached their group. He whispered something to Rajak.
“I see,” nodded Rajak. After a moment of hesitation, he said to Faith, “De Sagun… we’ve found the body of your Commander.”
Faith’s pupils shrank. She blankly stared into space.
“Do you want to come with us?” said Rajak. After considering things, he knew that it was the best course of action. They cannot run away from reality for too long.
“Yes,” said Faith as she stood up. She gazed at Jiablu. This young man had been through numerous tragedies. First, he had seen his village burn down to crisp, and now this. She cannot help but feel pity from the bottom of her heart. “Jiablu, stay here. I promise, I’ll be back.”
Jiablu did not seem to care. He nodded once. “I am hungry, Priest. Make sure to bring food once you get back.”
There was a momentary glare from Rajak after that remark, but it immediately dissipated after a split second. Now was not the time for trivialities. The Commander reminded himself.
Faith and Rajak, together with a few soldiers, went towards the place where the body of Commander Lancelot was found. They grimaced when they found the corpse. It was already rotting, with dead maggots scattered all over.
“C-Commander Lancelot,” whispered Faith. Tears streamed down her eyes. Even in his death, Lancelot refused to let go of his sword. His corpse was tightly gripping it tight, not willing to let go.
Slowly, Faith’s sob turned into a wail. Sounds of anguish echoed amidst the silence of the forest. The soldiers nearby averted their gazes. They had seen how mutilated the corpse of Lancelot was. The head itself was severed from the body, and the eyes were taken out.
It seemed that before the famous warrior died, his body was tortured and played with by the bandits. It was an end unbefitting of a warrior, and the soldiers could do nothing but contain the wrath within their souls.
“Commander Rajak,” said Muhasa. The stubby man held out a small flask before him. “Kranite. It seems that the knights consumed a lot of those hallucinogens.”
“Kranite, huh?” said Rajak. There was a suppressed glare within his eyes. “I thought the Kingdom had burned down those things a few years ago.”
“Yes, they did. But it won’t come as a surprise if those bandits found another source,” said Muhasa. The blue concoction inside the flask was violently bubbling. “The concentration of Kranite inside the knights’ bodies is enough to kill a Reavel Wolf in seconds. No wonder they lost to mere bandits.”
“Back in the Mansion, I saw the warehouse where those drugs were kept. There’re loads of them, enough to supply the entire Kingdom,” said Faith. She wiped the snot and tears on her face.
“Mansion?” said Rajak.
Faith nodded. “I was abducted. I don’t know if it’s a stroke of luck, but I survived because of that. In the room where they locked me in, there’re stacks of boxes filled with Kranite.”
“Muhasa, I want you to make a report about this,” said Rajak. Muhasa nodded.
“A-Are you going to the Mansion?” asked Faith. If possible, she did not want to see any more deaths. Rajak’s reply made her sigh in relief.
“No,” said Rajak. He momentarily gazed at the mutilated corpse of Lancelot, then to Faith. “The Kingdom clearly told us to avoid conflict, if possible. I know how strong Viper is, and I’m sure there’ll be casualties if we come into conflict with him. For now, the rescue of survivors and survey of the area are top priority.”
There was a small pause. Rajak asked, “But there is something that isn’t clear to me. De Sagun, how did you escape from the Mansion?”
It was a question even Faith did not know how to answer, and it was clearly evident in her eyes. She shriveled, probably from the expecting look of Muhasa, or the piercing stare of Rajak, or maybe both.
“I-I don’t… I have no idea. Rajak, I’m sorry,” said Faith. “When I came here, I suddenly found myself before you guys. The last time I remembered, Jiablu rescued me from prison. I lost consciousness after that.”
“Jiablu?” said Rajak. He stared into the far distance, particularly at the direction where they first found the survivors. “You mean, that kid?”
Faith bobbed her head. “Yes.”
She immediately added, “Ah! But I mean... I’m not sure! I woke up and he was there! Someone must have helped him cut off the shackles. It’s impossible otherwise.”
There were inconsistencies within her story, but this was De Sagun. She had no reason to lie, Rajak knew.
What bothered Commander Rajak the most was this kid called Jiablu. He had met him before, and the young man reeked of the word condescending. His gaze was that of someone that treats another like dirt.
Anomalies and inconsistencies. They struck at the Commander, rendering him unable to come up with a definite conclusion.
Rajak sighed. His head started to throb. “For now, we’ll go back and inform the Kingdom about these things. It is utterly foolish to come at the enemy unprepared.” He said to the soldiers. “We’ll depart in fifteen minutes! Inform everyone!”
“Yes, Sir!”
Faith grabbed the hands of Rajak. “Wait! What about… the bodies?”
Rajak closed his eyes. He shook his he
ad. “I’m sorry, De Sagun. It’s impossible to take those back with us. Burying them will take too much time. We’ll be easy targets in this dense forest. The living takes precedence. I cannot risk the lives of my men. Those bodies… they’ll have to stay here.”
Faith let go of her grip. She stared at the dead body of her Commander for one last time. She had loved him, and she was sure that he knew. Lancelot already had a wife and kids, and so, Faith willingly bottled her feelings inside her heart.
She bowed her head low and whispered, “Those seven years… were… fun. I’ll forever treasure these memories in my heart. Thank you for everything, Lancelot — and good bye.”
Chapter 21: The Infernal Sword
After exiting the Great Forest, the group traversed through the Dry Valley, until they eventually arrived at the outskirts of the Kingdom. A sea of green and gold swayed along with the wind as they passed through the rice fields.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” whispered Faith.
Jiablu did not bother responding as he stared at the farmers they passed by along the way. Their tunics were filled with mud and sweat, but somehow, there was satisfaction within their eyes. They would sometimes wave their hands and salute, while some cheered as the famous Red Griffin passed through.
Hours quickly went by, and just before noon came, they had finally arrived at a city. There was a wall enclosing it, but judging by its size, it was probably meant to block illegal immigrants rather than monster attacks. The guards at the entrance immediately opened the gates the moment they saw the Red Griffin.
After entering the city, Rajak said, “De Sagun, you’re going to meet with the Cardinal, correct?”
Faith nodded. “Yes.” She looked at Jiablu. “I’ll be taking him there.”
Along their journey, Rajak had learned of Jiablu’s origins. The Commander was surprised when he found out the events that transpired during that time. Attacks from the Undead. The Goblin King invasion. And the fight with the Forest Bandits.
