28 Lef

- "Start from the beginning... what happened in the mine?" – Said the King

Riou told the king the same story he have told Eileen and Therese, that he luckily found a portal and ended up far away with news of a mage named Callas and information that confirmed the fact that the council was working with Argos to weaken Allard.

Both knights puffed and moved around irritated by the story, clearly doubting the boy's words. Both looked at Ursula who was there, hoping she'd stop that nonsense. But she remained silent, strangely neither agreeing nor rejecting the boy's story.

The King expression on the other hand, was deadly serious. The king was one of the few that really knew what happened over the days the boy spent in the castle. The fact that Riou helped extensively to save the king's and the queen's life was not spread out, but was kept in mind by the king along with Max's words about that boy.

Those words had an even deeper meaning now that the king was able to put the boy's feats in a better perspective. He made a troubled expression and looked to Ursula.

- "What do you know of this mage named Callas?" he asked

Ursula pondered for a moment - "The Undying, was the name given to a mage that used to live in Iris before learning the dark arts. It is said that he became proficient at Argos' Death magic and even was able to complete the first Dark Ritual to extend his life… his stories are from a century ago, and nothing was heard about him since. Nowadays it's just an old story, told by some of the teachers in the academy" She answered.

- "I see" Said the king turning to the knights -"Rottcher, he's from your city, do you have any information about it?"

The fat bearded man shook his head – "Callas the Undying is a children's story my lord, mothers on Iris tell it to their children to scare them into proper behavior. If they are naughty the evil mage will take them away to eat them… the boy clearly heard it somewhere and is trying to use it to diverge our attention from his… miraculous feats your highness"

The king took a few moments to think - "Miraculous or not, the fact that they have powerful people backing their plan was more than proven on their attack, so we must consider every possibility to not be taken by surprise again" Said the king angered.

- "Is it that unusual for these orcs and goblins to attack like this?" Asked Riou looking at Ursula.

- "Yes, they all live in different villages inside the forest to the north of Brigantium, for so many of them to orderly gather together and march towards the city is a clear sign that a powerful hand is behind them" Confirmed Ursula.

The king took a more comfortable position on his chair – "This conference has gone long enough… while we discuss, the fact that the enemy approaches the city won't change" he paused for a moment - "Ursula and Rodrick, you shall go immediately to Brigantium to warn and reinforce our forces there, consider that powerful enemy mages are behind this assault and act accordingly, it's better to act cautiously in these times. We must prevent unnecessary losses as this move is clearly intended to further weaken our military force."

Both bowed respectfully acknowledging the order.

- "Go now, everyone is dismissed… All but you Riou, I wish a word with you"

The knights didn't liked the preferential treatment that the boy received over and over again. Maybe this was what caused Rodrick to show his cards today, imagined Riou. And that fact told him that the King also didn't trust them enough to discuss his secrets with them, or they would certainly be much more careful around him by now.

"This is interesting, and explains a lot about the positions they took against me" thought the boy.

Once all were gone the king stood up and called Riou to approach him – "Walk with me" he said slowly moving to the exit that lead to the royal wing.

• "Do you know why I turned a blind eye to your tantrums so far?" asked the king normally while walking to the end of the room.

Riou smiled – "Probably for the same reason you prevented most of the information about me to be disclosed… I mean, by the knights reaction I can tell they didn't believe I was really part of the incursion, much less have entered the mine, you probably asked Bhalrom and Ursula to keep it quiet as well" Riou said calmly while looking forward, then continuing – "Max probably said something… and now, you don't know what to think of me"

The king also smiled – "You are too clever… that's why you were so quiet during the dispute with Askjell? You expected me to intervene on your favor in the end? You knew I wouldn't let anything happen"

Riou smiled as well – "I knew you still had to keep appearances for the nobles and the knights, I can tell they are already on edge because of me, so I was curious to how you would handle the situation"

The king made a serious expression – "That's why you kept quiet and didn't defend yourself? Even so, it makes no sense boy, what were you planning?"

Riou smiled – "My bet was on challenging the noble in the throne room" said the boy to the king – "But it seemed that they could even get away from that, sadly, your society really thinks too little of the common people." He said in a serious tone.

The king contemplated those words for a few moments, he understood its meaning but still could not comprehend why the boy acted so calm. So he continued in the hope of getting an answer.

They kept walking towards the Royal Wing of the castle.

- "I remember what you said to me, about the castle's low defense on the cliff side, the prediction of enemies targeting Allard and the Norse relationship" Said the king to the boy

- "Not only that, you miraculously helped the castle from an attack with sword skill alone. Despite your age, you proved most wise, especially by sparing my son's life. You were recognized by the first army, Bhalrom and even Eileen who hates teachers. Even Ursula took your side today" the king took another brief pause – "Not only them, but the great Magus Maximilian himself vowed in your favor" The king seemed to be talking mostly to himself at some moments, but clearly wanted to depict the image he had about Riou to him.

• "On usual circumstances I'd have made a hero of you from the beginning, if you were not so young and shrouded in mystery… and perhaps none of this would have happened" The king looked at the boy – "But something tells me you prefer the anonymity, or you'd have been all over the 4 winds sprouting your accomplishments and demanding renown and rewards. The fact you didn't, implies you have your own agenda"

Thinking back now, Riou realized his mistake, he was so concerned that it slipped through the cracks and the king caught on it. It really was as he said, Riou didn't really mind it. It was never his goal to be known or to be considered a hero. But their society was based on such exposures, the need to show off accomplishments. The prince and Askjell's personality made much more sense now to Riou. And with it, the reason he was perceived as a fraud.

The king sighed – "If it weren't for Max's trust, Bhalrom and Ursula's word I'd have trouble believing it myself… you survived that damn mine and even brought back Ursula from a certain death. Don't get me wrong, she is powerful, but there is so much a mage can do on closed quarters." A brief pause before he continued

- "I must admit that when I heard Askjell complaint that someone attacked him, I knew you were back, but the moment I saw you entering the throne room that really took me by surprise, you were completely unharmed."

They both arrived in the studies room on the top floor of the castle.

- "I will not ask any more about the events of today… if you wanted you'd have told me by now" said the king sitting down in the chair in front of the chess board.

Riou followed silently agreeing. He sat down in front of him

The king smirked – "As you said, I've been trying all this time to understand you, your agenda here if you will." The king looked at the boy with inquisitive eyes and continued – "You don't want riches, nor renown. You could even have married a princess and become royalty, you could have requested lands, slaves and titles and yet, you chose a damn bathhouse." He said letting out a small laugh with hints of anger – "Nothing seems to stimulate you" The king looked incisively at the boy trying to conclude his thoughts – "As if…" the king paused and froze in place, his eyes squinted as he looked sideways at the boy

Riou didn't know how to respond to that – "As if?" he asked curious to the king's conclusion.

The king was still searching for answers in his mind, as if putting a puzzle together in his head, until he finally seemed to get a realization. His eyes widened and in the sequence became clouded by doubt for a few moments.

The king seemed taken aback and stood up to prepare a drink. – "I was… just thinking out loud…" Finally said dismissively, clearly changing the subject he continued.

• "Did you know Allard was founded by Arthur Strongheart, over a thousand years ago? He was a hero chosen by the element. With his power he united the people, created allegiance with the north and ended a war with the beastmen. Everything you see today came from his reign, our customs and traditions. Unfortunately few of what happened at those times were recorded, most of it came to be only many years later from the legends that were told from generation to generation." Said the king getting back to his chair and handing Riou a cup of what seemed to be a liqueur beverage with strong scent of wood and flowers.

Riou listened to his story unsure to where the king was going with it.

He sipped on the drink and continued – "As you might have noticed, he was my ancestor, the name Strongheart have been the ruler of Allard since then."

• "So as you can see, I'm particularly interested in his legend. It is said that he was wise as a sage, holding magical powers equivalent to the best Mages of that era, while at the same time being an unbeatable swordsman." The king took another sip – "But you know how legends go, they tend to grow and stray away from the truth every time they are told again" The king took another sip.

• "But the curious part, and the one that I'm still trying to figure out is how he appeared in history, because what we have gathered about it right now is that he simple appeared amidst the war. There are no reference of him of his family on previous periods, but like I said, it may have been due to the turbulent times" The king paused once again, this time he drank it all in one go.

• "From about the same time, Brine's legend came to be, when the element herself emerged from the Lake of Tears. She appeared with a man in her arms. The legend says she brought him to the land, gently laying him on the ground, the phenomenon was watched by a few women that where visiting the lake. Their story goes with the elemental mother saying that the man didn't belong to the spirit world. So the benevolent mother brought him back to the realm of the living. And so the first priestesses of Brine were born, a temple in her honor was built at the place she appeared and to this day they vow to help the sick and injured."

The king paused and put the cup to the side on top of board.

Riou leaned in interested where the conversation was going.

"Could this man be from other world? But his story is so different than what I've been through" thought the boy

• "I have reasons to believe that it was Arthur… actually it was Maximilian who came up with the theory, he has lots of old documents that confirm the timing. He even tried to access the temple's library to see if they had records of the fact." Said the king observing the boy's reaction.

"Is the king trying to say that this Arthur really came from another world? Why bring this up so suddenly? Did he notice something about me? But this spirit world, I've heard about it before, it does not seem right, it has no relation to that crazy forest, or Max would have told me already. So why did he bring this up so suddenly? Unless… he is suspicious of me somehow" thoughts rushed Riou's mind

- "Why are you telling me this?" asked Riou intrigued what caused the king to bring this up.

• "You seemed the kind of person that'd like this kind of story" said the king with a smirk as the queen appeared at the door.

Elrick gestured for her to enter. Riou noticing the king wished to talk to her, got up from the chair and slightly bowed to the king. He began to calmly leave the room when the king said to him:

• "Give Max my regards… tell him I'm looking forward for our next meeting. I believe we have much to discuss" Smiled the king.

"Damn this old fox, I must watch out around him" thought the boy.

Riou smiled and without turning towards him he answered the king – "Be wary of the yellow banner, he is not with the enemy but it's being used by them" Riou continued walking and by passing by the queen he gently bowed his head towards her, finally leaving the room.

The king nodded as if that was not something new for him, as if he had already been warned about it.

The King and the queen were alone in the studies and she approached her husband.

• "What was that all about Elrick? Did they find Max?" asked the queen surprised by the conversation

Elrick shook his head denying that he was found with a smirk on his face.

The queen squinted her eyes – "Then why did you say that? It sounded like the boy was leaving to meet him" she questioned

• "I believe he is, leaving for Thanes to be more precise" replied the king – "And that's precisely why I think he didn't defend himself today, he was already planning on leaving, have you heard about it already? About what happened in the audience earlier?"

• "Yes, Ursula told me. But that makes no sense Elrick, he'd be arrested if convicted, how would he be able to leave?"

The king smiled – "I believe he didn't think such thing would prevent him from leaving, if so he wished I mean" he said calmly to the puzzled queen. But her thoughts jumped elsewhere.

She quickly thought of her daughter, if she was aware of the fact the boy was leaving.

• "And Eileen?" Asked the queen preoccupied.

The king thought for a moment – "I don't think she knows yet, or I think she'd be here already" He said taking a moment to ponder – "But she can follow him if she wishes, I do not oppose it anymore" he complemented calmly.

The queen got suspicious – "What changed? What have you discussed with him?"

• "I just realized something… Max tried to warn me but I was not paying attention at that time. The boy has proven himself to be strong, strong enough for Max to depend on him. And you know how that old man is hard to please"

The queen nodded on that remark, the old man was indeed difficult to impress. But she couldn't help but to be intrigued by the sudden change on her husband attitude.

But before she questioned further, suddenly the queen remembered why she had come talk to him. –"We have guests. Therese is on Allard and came to the castle to pay her respects to the king."

The king Elrick nodded, strangely unimpressed. The queen frowned by his reaction, such news usually brought surprise. It was a very rare event to have the great Lioness as a guest – "I will ask the guards to summon her" he said calmly to his wife complete dismay. She wondered what could possibly have happened that could cast such a shadow on the Lioness herself.

-----------------------------------------------

Riou went for the training hall where he knew he would find Eileen. He passed by the bath house location, but it was still under construction, it still lacked some of the metalworking and the pipes to get the water up, but most of the walls and roof were already done. Riou estimated it would take only the pipes and the heater for it to be finished… his regret was to not be able to enjoy it before leaving.

"Perhaps next time" he thought looking at it and finally going to the training hall.

She was there training some movements with the Rapier, very similar to the ones she used in the duel earlier. Riou entered quietly and walked towards the longsword she left leaned on a pillar.

He picked it up and looked at the blade one more time.

Eileen stopped and looked towards him, noticing she stopped, he approached her.

• "Congratulations on the duel, you were great on both attack and defense. He had no chance of winning." Said Riou sheathing the sword in a calm tone.

He scratched his head thinking on how to say his next words to the princess

• "I will be gone for a while. I don't know when I will be able to return here. So I will be taking this back" He said showing the longsword – "There is someone desperately looking for one of these".

Eileen looked surprised – "Why are you leaving? Wouldn't you stay until you found Maximilian?" she asked trying to make sense of the sudden news she received.

Riou nodded – "I think I know where he is, so I will go after him"

• "Won't you wait until the conflict in Brigantium ends? It might be dangerous to travel during the conflict" She questioned trying to get him to stay a while longer.

• "I'm afraid I can't wait for it to be resolved" he quickly replied

Eileen seemed to be still processing the fact he was leaving, but even so, she nodded acknowledging his resolve. She sheathed the Rapier and handed it to the boy.

Riou looked at it for a moment. – "You know, keep it, think of it as a graduation gift, I'm no teacher and we already covered most of what I could show you. The next step is up to you" He said gesturing for her to keep it with a smile on his face.

She was unsure if she should accept it. It was a remarkable sword made of a legendary metal, to receive it like that seemed wrong to the princess.

But she looked at his genuine smile and realized "That's how he is… he doesn't really care if it's a valuable item or just a small symbol" she thought recognizing how strange his behavior was when compared to the nobles she knew.

The gift made her happy, but still was not enough to stir away the sense of sadness and loss she was feeling. Riou did not spent a whole lot of time in the castle, but the conversations and the time they spent together were one of the best she had in a long time. The thought that she'd be alone once again was rushing through her mind.

Moved by this thoughts and a sense that they were not on best terms she felt the need to talk to him before he was gone.

• "I'm sorry if I was harsh earlier… I'm not used for someone fighting in my place." She said a little embarrassed

Riou smiled – "Then we are even, you fought in my place as well didn't you?"

She smiled back while squinting her eyes – "The circumstances were a bit different don't you think? You were threatened to death, so if I had not intervened…" she said with certainty in her tone

• "True, while you were threatened by marriage" he said pondering and weighting both sentences – "Hmm, now that you put it like that, I have to agree with you, your sentence was way worse than mine." he said jokingly

The princess laughed heartedly by that remark

Riou smiled seeing her laugh –"But I know you just wanted to wipe the floor with him first… you were afraid that there wouldn't be anything left of him to kill after another fight with me"

She was still recovering from the laugh before answering – "You may be right, I really wanted to show him and everyone that he was not a challenge to me"

Riou nodded and became more serious – "See? I knew it." He paused for a moment –"And sorry again if I got myself in the middle of your thing… I don't know what got in me and I get it why you wanted to be the one to win"

She nodded and smiled slowly entering a more serious and almost sad mood – "So, you are leaving today?"

• "Yeah, I will stop by the tavern and then will be on my way." He replied

• "What about Therese and Leona… they said you would help them"

Riou showed the sword in his hand and the one in his belt – "I will leave this with Syldis for them, I have the feeling they won't leave me alone until we can produce more of this damn metal… but I don't know how long it will take for us to be able to do so. So, with this I think they will be able to go their own way" He said smiling once again "And hopefully leave me alone, I can't shake the feeling they are too troublesome to deal with" he thought to himself.

• "Well… I will be going then" Riou said ackwardly turning around and going towards the door.

Eileen watched Riou leaving when a strong resolve emerged from within her.

• "You still owe me a duel! A real one once I'm strong enough" She yelled

Riou turned his head while walking towards the door, a smile could be seen in his face as he nodded slightly and waved his right hand to the princess.

The resolve quickly transformed into fear, the feeling of being alone hit her hard once again as she couldn't shake off the sensation that he'd be gone forever. On impulse she quickly followed after him outside on another attempt to talk him down, to wait a few days so she could discuss it with her father on an attempt to persuade him to allow her to go as well.

The thought to live the free life of an adventurer really pleased her, and travel with Riou was becoming her aim since he'd became her master. But once she got outside the training hall, he was already gone once again – "How does he do that!?" she asked herself looking around.

------------------------------------------------------ Studies Room moments later

Eileen entered the room as she saw her parents talking to Therese about the Beast lord in the plains. Noticing how Eileen seemed distressed, it quickly caught their attention.

• "Eileen… it's not polite to barge in while we have guests" Said Hanna

• "I'm sorry mother, but I believe Therese will want to hear this as well" Said Eileen to the surprise of both of her parents

• "Do you know Therese?" Asked the king puzzled

Therese nodded – "We met today and talked for a while" she said to the impressed King and Queen.

Eileen seemed restless and quickly addressed the matter, she looked at Therese – "Riou is leaving, he already went to the tavern, he said he'd left the swords for you there."

Therese eyes widened as she began to move - "Forgive me King Elrick, but I must not let him get a head start."

The king smiled and nodded acknowledging it. Therese bowed and left the room in a hurry while Eileen turned to her father, but before she could say anything the king spoke – "He is going to make a stop in Brigantium, then he will be going to Thanes, tell them to search in the Flying Dragon Inn once arriving in the north capital" He said looking at his surprised daughter, he sighed and continued with a single word – "Go" to her complete astonishment.

She looked at her mother who smiled and nodded as well. Eileen smiled brightly and immediately left after Therese.

Hanna looked at Elrick – "Are you sure about this?" asked the concerned mother

He nodded – "Even the famous Lioness is following that boy. She is in safer hands than inside the castle walls. Perhaps, some experience on the outside world will do well for her"

The queen remembering on of their talk questioned – "Now who is throwing her at him?"

------------------------------------------------------- Drinking Bear Tavern

Eileen, Therese and Leona, who met the two leaving the castle, was carrying a bag full of yellow fruits. They quickly arrived at the Drinking Bear Tavern and without losing time they went for Syldis.

When the big woman saw the three she made a concerned expression and approached them – "Did you come to get the swords? But If you are searching for him, he already left for the castle" Said the big woman.

• "How long?" Asked Therese promptly

• "It's been awhile already, he said he was in a hurry" Answered Syldis

Leona put the bag down– "Do you know where he is going?" She asked.

Therese looked at Eileen who answered her question – "My father told me he is going to Brigantium and then Thanes" Said the princess to Syldis surprise

• "Why would he do that?" Questioned Syldis surprised – "A young and defenseless boy like that has no business in a war, if I knew he was not going to the castle I'd never let him leave!" She said furious.

Eileen looked at Leona and Therese puzzled, Therese just shook her hand towards the princess advising her to leave it at that. Leona complemented – "Perhaps he is in a hurry to find the enemy army before it gets to the city?" Syldis by hearing that had to hold herself, she couldn't understand why he liked danger that much.

• "Did he say anything else?" Asked Therese

Syldis nodded and went behind the counter. She pulled 2 long swords and handed them to Therese. They recognized them immediately. One was the sword he took with Eileen and the other was the one he carried with him.

• "He said that he was sorry but he didn't know how long it would take to create the metal again, and knowing how bad you wanted it, he left the swords for you in my care" Said Syldis.

Therese looked at the swords in awe, and then looked at Leona for a moment. The wolf girl looked expectantly waiting for Therese to speak, she knew her master well.

Therese looked at Eileen and her eyes flared showing her vertical pupils – "That's why I said I couldn't take my eyes of him, I knew he'd vanish" She seemed mad at the boy that had left her behind. Her pride seemed to have suffered a heavy blow, the mighty lioness was not used to be discarded so dismissively. She took a moment to calm down thinking on his action before continuing.

• "How can he give away legendary swords to someone he just met?" Said Therese still a bit angered – "I've spent my whole life in search of this metal, how can he regard it so little over and over again, how can he give it away so easily?" asked the warrior with doubt in her eyes unable to understand.

Eileen intervened – "That's the way he is… did you know he had a chance to request from my brother anything, do you know what he chose?" Said Eileen trying to explain her view of Riou's personality.

Therese puzzled as it seemed a trick question – "Usually in this position one would choose lands and titles" she guessed

Eileen smiled and shook her head – "He asked for a bath house in the castle" she said casually for Therese and Leona astonishment while Syldis stood there hearing it and constantly nodding, agreeing with the princess.

Therese seemed a bit more convinced – "What a strange man he is" she said looking at the swords

Eileen smiled – "Very strange to say the least"

Syldis still concerned added to the conversation

• "And you don't know the half of it… he even insisted to pay on top of Max's request to rent his room indefinitely so no one would use it until he is back" she said approaching Leona's bag curiously

Therese with suspicion asked – "Did he leave anything in the room?"

• "Just some clothes and a broken crystal… nothing important" she said looking inside the bag – "Are you going to tame some wild animal? Why so many soothing fruits?"

Leona looked at the big woman and answered directly – "It was for Riou, in case he was with the youngsters fever"

Syldis face became bright red – "Humans don't have it, you don't need to worry about that Leona, humans don't lose control of their actions like beast men do" she said taking the bag from her.

Leona shrugged – "Are you sure? I thought they also had it" she said looking at Therese who seemed unsure as well. Human customs clearly weren't their specialty.

Eileen stepped up and asked Therese, she was curious to what would be her answer – "So? Will you go after him or continue on your way now that you have the swords?" Leona and Syldis looked at her as well with expectation.

Eileen, Leona and Therese noticed that Syldis seemed desperately wanting for Therese to say yes.

Therese took one of the swords and fixed it on her belt after handing the other to Leona.

• "I asked the boy for metal to make great swords, I didn't need longs swords. I say he is still bound on his promise, especially now for leaving without telling us." Therese said looking to Syldis with a slight nod, the big woman seemed relieved and very satisfied. She knew Therese could use the swords or melt once again its metal. So for her the fact was that Therese still wanted to follow him, was to protect him, and that pleased her.

So to Syldis complete relief remained still one subject left, and turned to the princess as a frown appeared in her face.

• "But why are you going Eileen? The life of an adventurer is not an easy one, especially for a princess" Said the big woman concerned

The princess nodded – "I know, but still I want to try it. Besides, he still owes me a duel"

Seeing Syldis would still try to argue, Therese waved her hand signaling from behind the princess for her to drop it.

Therese soon after intervene in their conversation

• "Let's go, we gave too much of a head start for him already." Said Therese pointing towards the door telling them to move out.

Once Eileen took distance Therese approached Syldis ear – "I think she wants to woo him, that's why she is going" Said Therese smirking to her who was taken by surprise, she didn't expect Therese to say such thing.

But the big woman ended up smiling to the warrior – "Thank you for going after him, please keep him safe… both of them" She complemented looking at Eileen.

Therese respectfully close her eyes and bowed her head slightly before turning around and leaving the tavern after the other two.

Syldis watched them leaving the tavern.

• "At least the princess and the boy will be in good hands" – Said the owner of the tavern in relief.

The trio decided to go for the stables near the gates at the south to get horses to speed their travel to Brigantium, it would be a couple days of travel on fast horses, and they intended to catch up with Riou on the way, they would press on in an attempt to reach him before he got to the city.

---------------------------------------------------- Riou perspective

Riou asked Syldis for a hooded cape and a piece of cloth along with some food he said was for a night snack on the castle. Despite his wishes to solve the problem within Brigantium, he didn't really know what would be happening when he arrived there, so in case that the battle was already happening and there was a need for him to appear in front of the soldiers, he thought to use the hood, cape and cloth to cover his identity. Syldis brought the common dark green tone cape and a white cloth along with some dried meat.

He didn't talk much with the big woman as he was eager to leave. But even so he left her with some money he got from the king, he wanted to help the owner of the tavern and at the same time try to prevent anyone from stealing his crystal in the room. And knowing that Syldis would oppose his actions on going to war, he kept quiet to where he was going, and let her think he was going back to the castle.

He didn't know how long the trip to Brigantium would take but he intended to speed it up, instead of going with a caravan or by horse he already had decided to use his mana to travel, it would be a good experience.

Leaving the tavern he quickly left the city as well, Riou put on the cloak covering his head and back, folding the cloth in a triangular shape, wrapping it around his neck covering his nose and mouth. Only his eyes were out.

Riou judged that his physical abilities would take him faster to the city than his flying skills, which still needed a lot of refinement and he had no time to loose.

Applying his mana to his body he reinforced his muscles and legs to withstand the effort and begun to run east following the road, he noticed that his speed was absurd if compared to a horse, so he tried to maintain it constant while avoiding overdoing it since he didn't know if there could be any aftereffects.

The moon was not full, but shined enough to light the path on the road. No one was in sight while a figure rushed without opposition or prying eyes on his way to the city of Brigantium.

--------------------------------------- The Trio perspective

Eileen, Therese and Leona traveled quickly by horse on the same road Riou would have taken, they only stopped for the horses to rest, and otherwise they pushed forward in an attempt to reach Riou.

But for their surprise that didn't happened

• "Do you think he went by another way? We should have found him by now." Said Leona to the other two.

• "No, this is the best way… the only reason to not have found him is that he went on a similar speed maintaining the head start distance. If we don't get to him on the road eventually. We will do so in the city." Answered Therese.

• "Do you think his hurry is to arrive before the enemy army does?" Asked Eileen

Therese nodded.

- "But why? Does he think he can turn the tide of war on his own?" questioned the princess

Therese smiled – "I'm certain he does think that way"

The princess seemed confused and tried to make sense of those words.

The travel went on for a while, the days and nights made no difference as they slept and ate when they had a chance to recover the horses. Eventually on a beautiful morning they finally sighted in the city of Brigantium far in the distance. The horses were tired and so their pace were slow, they had arrived but had not found Riou. All that separated them from the city was a small grove that the road went through and then the plains that surrounded the city.

The wind was blowing while they were crossing the woods, the road continued well cared and on a straight path towards the city that could be seen in the distance between the trees. They could clearly see the sun reflected on the white walls of the city that grew bigger as they approached. Therese and Leona seemed awfully quiet for some reason, so Eileen preoccupied asked about the conflict

• "The enemy should approach by the north of the city, from the forest. So does it mean we are safe approaching from the southwest of the city?"

Therese carefully turned towards the princess. Her voice came out as a whisper - "Scouts of the orc army, 3 to our right, 2 on our left. Look slowly and be ready"

Eileen quickly but cautiously searched her sides… but nothing could be seen at a first glance. She forced her attention until she finally noticed quick movements between the trees, something was expertly moving without notice. They seemed to be approaching the group and preparing to attack once close enough.

Eileen reached for the rapier and prepared to withdraw it at any sign of the attack.

A moment later, 5 green individuals jumped from the bushes on the road, they were not very tall, but definitely were very bulky, big muscular arms and legs with a proportional big torso, the few that had hair had only a small dark ponytail on the back of the head, while the rest of it was completely bald. They had big underjaws that hided big tusks underneath. They wore fangs and bone collars while having only a small rag of leather around their waist to cover themselves.

"Orcs" Thought Eileen surprised, was the first time seeing such creatures.

They carried thick dented swords that looked like machetes. As soon as they appeared they rushed to surround the three to prevent them from escaping. 2 on the front 1 on each side and 1 back.

Before Eileen could respond she noticed that Therese didn't react. Finding it strange she immediately looked at Leona who was already engaging the enemies.

As soon as they appeared Leona in a single movement drew her two handed sword while jumping off the horse forward, just to end falling burying her sword in the skull of the enemy in front, and without losing momentum in an horizontal arc swing, decapitating the other one beside it before it could react.

The other 3 Orcs became enraged and rushed towards her ignoring the other two.

Leona holding the sword with a single hand stood up turning towards them. She swung her sword once to the first that approached on her right, the horizontal swing was wide and gave the orc plenty of time to bring his sword to block it.

But he had miscalculated it, the strength of the blow was so intense that he was unable to hold it, his own weapon did not break but was instantly pushed against him, lodging itself deeply in his head and chest. As the two handed sword continued its path as if unopposed, the complete swing was so strong that it was able to send the dead orc flying and hitting a nearby tree.

Strange enough Eileen could tell that she was doing such powerful movements effortless, the weapon seemed lightly handled by her as if its weight was nothing.

Leona after recovering from the swing rushed forward to intercept the other 2 incoming orcs.

She brought her sword up her head, the orcs seeing that stopped in place waiting an attempt to dodge her next attack, Leona twisting her wrists made the sword turn from her back to the front, which increased the distance it had to make to reach the enemies, giving her a stronger swing. The movement ended up in a diagonal attack with her right arm holding the sword extended. She aimed to get both of the orcs simultaneously.

But this time the swing was too fast for them to react. Before they could even move they were cut cleanly such was the speed and strength of her arm. They were dead before they hit the ground.

- "If they have scouts this far away, the main army is not far behind" Said Therese looking to the city.

Eileen looked at Leona in awe – "I always heard about the absurd physical prowess of the beast men… but seeing it at first hand, the stories do you no justice. Now I can see how a single person can change the war"

Leona smiled while cleaning her sword with a quick swing downwards – "This is nothing, I used almost no mana, you should see Therese when she is serious"

Eileen looked at them both with newfound respect. – "I envy you, Riou told me about physical reinforcement through mana, but I'm still unable to do it"

Therese's ear twitched and she turned towards Eileen – "He tried to teach you?"

Eileen nodded.

The lioness seemed extremely interested – "Tell me exactly what he told you so far about it"

As they continued their way to the city, Eileen began to explain his teachings. That she should concentrate the mana in the body, how he told to infuse the mana in the muscles.

Therese and Leona listened with attention and when she finished Leona looked at Therese puzzled.

• "Is that right?" Asked Leona to the pondering Therese.

• "I don't know… nothing of that makes any sense to me" finally answered the blond warrior.

Eileen looked unsure – "Well, that's what he told me"

• "Maybe that's why you was not able to learn it, maybe his ways only work for him… but don't worry, we can show you how we do it, perhaps it will help you understand" Answered Therese. –"But meanwhile let's get to the city, the war will began soon." She commented.

----------------------------------------- Riou Perspective

Riou quickly regretted his choice. It sure was a fast way to get to the city, but the aftereffects were tired muscles, sweaty clothes and a very smelly body. He had to stop once in a while to relax his legs after many hours of running. He thought many times to try to fly and even tried some attempts, but all he could come around was using air magic to hover on the air. Unfortunately it was not nearly as fast as running.

Luckily enough, he was so fast that he reached the city in almost a day after leaving. The road was empty, probably all the merchants feared the imminent battle and put a hold on their travels between the city and the capital.

The city had high white walls, but was definitely not as big as the capital, with a third of its size Riou noticed it seemed more agricultural oriented. While the capital was more commercial focus. Brigantium had lots of livestock and grain farms around its walls. On the center of the city Riou could see the castle's towers. Not too far from the city on the foot of a nearby hill, he noticed a mine entrance.

The city seemed self-sufficient, so Riou concluded that the difference in power balance might reside in political pressure and the fact this was the farthest city from the capital.

It would get dark soon, as he saw no sign of any trouble around the city, he planned to find an inn to rest and clean himself. Tomorrow he would began his investigation towards the forest in the north to locate the enemy army whereabouts.

Inside the city he noticed it was much simpler than the capital, the masonry were similar but less polished. The roads were also made of stones, but wider, probably to allow carts and carriages of supplies to run through easier. Very little commerce, most of the habitants seemed to be farmers, miners or soldiers, very few had stores up to sell and buy, Riou estimated that most of the products were sold at the capital.

"That's why they are aiming this city, to cut off the food supplies… they should value more this city resources" thought Riou.

The sun was about to set when he found what seemed to be an inn or a tavern, he could not read the sign but the noise and movement inside told him it was such an establishment. It had the image of a Board with its back on the ground showing its tusks.

As he entered Riou quickly put his hood up and the white cloth to cover his face, the tavern was full of soldiers of the First Army. Riou cautiously approached the counter without bringing attention to him. A men with a white apron was there to receive him – "Welcome to the Laughing Boar" he said politely

Riou pulled his coin pouch on the counter, it was not nearly as filled as when he received it, but had enough to show off plenty of wealth. The men on the counter widened his eyes as if he had hit a jackpot, Riou took a few gold coins and dropped on the counter – "A room, bathtub, warm meal and a lot of drinking water" Said the boy to the men who asked no questions

• "By all means my lord!" he said clapping his hands. Suddenly a woman also wearing an apron came from behind him – "Please take the young master to our best room, the one with the bathtub. Master, please make yourself comfortable as soon as the meal is ready we will bring it over"

Riou was impressed by the 5 star treatment. "I think they don't receive many guests, so they try to impress the few that come"

• "Thank you" Said Riou following the woman to the room.

It was a big room with a big bed, couple of chairs around a table and an exclusive bathtub on the corner that for his surprise could fit an adult inside.

"I like this place, by far the best room I've been, and this city may lack political power, but clearly is prosper" he thought impressed.

The woman said before leaving – "I will request water for the bath, and will bring your dinner as soon as possible. Please make yourself comfortable"

Riou stretched his arms and legs and put his dagger and 2 shorts words on a table. "Finally some relaxing time… as the city is calm, I think I have a day or two before the enemy arrives… tomorrow I will search for them." He thought to himself while waited for the water and food to arrive.