Duke Castezin poured over the documents and reports relating to Ayla before tossing them onto his desk. Within his dimly lit office three people stood. A butler with a weathered face and greying handlebar moustache. To his right there was a chipper-looking maid with freckles and long red hair bound into a braid that slung over her shoulder from the back. To his left, a more serious-looking woman with jet hair tied up in a tight, professional bun. The dimly lit office sat on the second floor with two large windows on either side of his centrally located, dark-wood desk.
“Thank you, Pavel. This is very thorough, as usual.” The Duke said graciously.
“I am honoured, Your Grace.” Pavel crossed his right arm over his midsection with an open palm and bowed.
“Contained within that report is everything that I have been able to gather on short notice. My contacts will continue to follow leads and dredge up information. No stone left unturned.” The butler, Pavel, spoke first in a gravelly tone.
Almos shut his eyes and began to think out loud. “Her application was notarized in the capital with the referral just two days after the deaths of her family. The manner of death is listed as being a monster-related casualty.” The Duke leaned back in his chair, letting his head hang over the back.
“Chantelle, what do you think?”
The maid to Pavel’s left, Chantelle, straightened her posture. Her hands were folded behind her back in a military pose. “There is no reason for someone like her to be here without a well-stated reason. Guarding the frontier of the Empire is the most basic kind of answer that someone can give if they don’t have any real motivation. No family, no friends, no connections to Castezin at all.”
Pavel added to that assessment with his own. “The highest probability is that she was sent as a spy by the Crown Prince.”
“It seems fairly obvious that she is a spy, but there is something quite funny about the referral that gives me pause.” The Duke explained, placing a finger down on the letter in question, he moved his hand to separate it from the collected pages of the report. Pavel and the two maids exchanged curious looks without any one of them hazarding a guess. The Duke picked up the referral, reading over it again with an amused smirk.
“It is a good referral, but it is written from the perspective of someone that believes they will be the beneficiary of Dame Ayla's service. This is a referral that would typically be a perfect endorsement of someone joining the Imperial Knights; It invokes the quality of Knight Ayla as already being on par with the notable Imperial Knights of various eras in history and highlights the service she has already performed to the Imperial Family.”
Pavel furrowed his wrinkled brow. “I... did not pick out that aspect of the referral, Your Grace.”
The Duke placed it back onto his desk and slid it into place within the collection of papers. “As I said. It is almost not even worth mentioning since this is still a referral that could get Dame Ayla a position anywhere in the Empire. Just 'funny.' With a referral from the Imperial Family the possibility that she is sent to spy on me can not be ignored. Chantelle, observe her.”
“Of course.” Chantelle saluted in the same fashion a Knight would before turning and leaving.
“What is the current state of my image in the Capital, Pavel? I have barely made a peep in the political scene.” Castezin sighed.
“The only thing I could imagine, Your Grace, is that rumour of Your Grace looking quite similar to the previous Duke to an 'uncanny' degree.” The butler waved his hand flippantly as he said it, as if waving away the nasty rumour itself.
“That is so... Annoying.” The Duke rested his chin on his palm and tapped his lip with one finger. With his other finger he slid out a short page concerning her involvement with the Crown Prince. It was very short.
“Extend the search to the Crown Prince as well. I am thinking that we need to pay more attention to him now.”
“It is done.” Pavel nodded.
The Duke turned to the other maid who had as of yet remained silent. “Jasmine. How dangerous is she in your opinion?”
Jasmine stared back with wide eyes. “Very, Your Grace. I’d need to work with at least one other person if you want me to do the job. Probably Eldrich or Priest.”
The Duke smiled. “So I was right. Very good, then. Coordinate with Chantelle and remain on call with your choice in partner in the event that something needs to be done.”
Ayla made sure to wake up well before the time of the patrol so that she could be prepared. She donned the uniform of Castezin while staring into the small vanity mirror in her room. Behind her, the room was reflected. It was a quaint little dorm-style room with a bed, a night stand, the vanity she was using and a dresser with enough space for as many sets of clothes as she should need in her line of work.
`The accommodations of the Duchy are good. I expected to join a more traditional barracks like in the Academy, but the Knights each have a room to ourselves. I guess we wouldn't be as plentiful here as in the capital.` She straightened her uniform and adjusted her hair before binding it into a ponytail.
`This style of uniform.` A thick black suit with silver threading, buttons and emblems. Over the chest Knights wore a metal cuirass with fur lining and there was even a black cloak with even more comfortable fur lining the upper portion on the inside. She also had thick, yet flexible gloves that covered her wrist; they could button into the inner sleeve of her jacket to make the set even warmer. The fabric was not of pure Soma Material, but she could tell that there was enough woven in to make it good enough to stop the Knight from being slashed and pierced with a normal weapon, or a pair of claws. It was exceptional equipment, to say the least. She remembered from the other day that even the rank-and-file soldier had fur-lined equipment that would be effective at stopping one good blow from the average monster.
`The Duchy’s army was difficult to fight when it came time to take the territory. They were well equipped for cold weather and we lost many to attrition and sickness. We blamed it on Demonic and Vampiric influence to raise morale, but the truth was they were simply better prepared to fight in their land. Rast in particular was a Knight-Captain on par with any Order’s Commander due to the gifts he was given as a thrall. He doesn’t at all look weak now, however. I guess he was a ‘monster’ before he was a monster.`
She stared at herself for a moment to check for imperfections that would be picked apart by a strict superior. There was nothing. In addition, she noticed the black uniform complimented her jet-black hair and her Irises, which were a thick halo of speckled silver tones circling her pitch-black pupils. The tone of her eyes was the source of her name; Ayla, meaning Aura of the Moon. The last thing she considered adding to complete her uniform was her holy symbol.
A holy symbol in most cases was a common artefact that offered token protection against the entity that was Night. Hers was shaped into a large, flat ring in silver; one symbol of Sol’s church. Each graduate was given a common artefact and each was inscribed with a prayer tailored to the Knight it was given to. She dropped it on top of the nightstand on second thought, intending to leave it behind. It felt satisfying to leave the symbol as it was required to wear at all times by the Holy Knight order were she to go that route again. It was an item stained by her past life. As she was about to open the door and leave she stopped, a nagging feeling crawling over her.
`It’s still a symbol of Sol.` Sol, whom she attributed to her regression. Ayla grabbed the symbol and stuffed it into the pocket of her uniform, compromising by not wearing it. She attached her sword to her hip and exited the Barracks.
Two Knights and a party of five soldiers greeted her. She lifted a brow, surprised to see one Knight in particular.
“Sir Miller?” Ayla offered both of them the northern salute she witnessed. The two Knights returned it in a more casual manner that taught her that it was not as strict among those of the same rank, or at the very least among those present. She eyed the soldiers and noticed them being fairly lacking for men on duty, as well. They were in formation but not at attention despite her sharing the role of their superior.
“I thought you were sleeping in.”
“I thought about you having to wake up at the crack of dawn after arriving so late and couldn't exactly leave you alone with these dolts.” Miller scrambled to explain away his presence there. She sensed a light tone among the men, even as Miller chided them by calling them dolts.
“Ayla nodded. She looked at the other Knight. He was a tired-looking man with light stubble and bronze hair. He looked annoyed to be up so early. Ayla could see that he was older, but could not be Miller’s senior by more than a handful of years.
“Dame Ayla, this is Sir Samson.” Miller exhaled wearily. Another man that did not want to be up so early, clearly. Yet he was still here. Miller pointed to the soldiers present and added their names quickly in order. “Hadley, Mayson, Grayson, Mark and Tallow.” Miller looked pleased to be done with the introduction the moment Ayla nodded to the soldiers.
“Now that introductions are out of the way, let's talk a bit more casually with each-other. Please.”
Ayla held out her hand. Samson closed his hand around her like a vice, as if he was testing her. She recognized the hazing ritual and utilised just a bit of her Soma Energy to do the same to him..
“Sssk!” He made a sharp sucking noise through his clenched teeth and withdrew his hand, ringing it out. He straightened out his posture,smiling. Ayla felt a little bad for hurting his hand. She thought back and noted that he was not trying particularly hard to squeeze her hand, she just took it that way. He still took it in good humour.
“Quite the Dame. I guess Miller wasn't lying.”
“Why would I lie?” Miller side-eyed Samson.
“Isn't it obvious?” Samson returned the side-eye. He nodded his head loosely at Ayla as he said it.
“I apologise for testing you, Ayla.” He offered formally. She returned it humbly and the exchange ended like that. Samson turned and walked to his horse, mounting it expertly in one motion.
Ayla briefly assessed. `They’re both about average. Not strong, not weak. But, the average training level for fundamental skills seems to be high. That tracks with my experience from my past life.`
She was sizing them up so intently that she did not even absorb the fact that Miller was blushing at Samson's subtle motion. He laughed it off and pointed out:
“Ayla, I brought your horse from the stables. Thought you would end up sleeping in later but you came out pretty early. Sorry if I overstepped. I guess they discipline you guys well in the Capital.”
She glanced over, seeing that her horse was saddled and fed for a day's work. “Thanks, Miller. I appreciate it, so no need to apologise.” She quickly changed the subject away from the capital to the matter at hand.
“How do these patrols work?”
Miller smiled widely at her response to his small gesture and began to explain. “Each patrol has three Knights and a party of five soldiers. This group we have here makes up a Unit. The Unit remains consistent with the same members unless someone leaves, transfers or…” He shook his head.
“Anyway, there’re lots of Units with various routes through the territory. This one we volunteered for is Samson’s ‘Castezin Route.’ It technically starts in the Manor since we’re stationed here, but officially it starts in the Town of Castezin, follows along the main road, then takes us back the way we came to end in the Town. Most routes take a full half-day to complete but this one has the earliest start and the latest end.”
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Ayla felt strange asking, but it was on her mind and she had to get an idea of the state of Castezin at this time to adjust her expectations. “What’s the Soma level of the average Knight here?”
Miller looked surprised. “Most Knights here are working on finishing their Alignment Path. I know Knight-Captain Rast has a full Alignment and Soma-Skin with Shape. Knight-Lieutenant Eldrich has full Alignment and Aura.” It was jargon to the soldiers, or anyone without their same training. The Alignment Path was essentially the completeness of their power and potential in the otherworldly physical force that was Soma. Aura was a manipulation of an otherworldly force that was more than physical. Shape was the culmination of a standard Knight’s control over Aura.
“I see...” She tried to think.
`The average Knight having incomplete Soma Alignment means it’s about what I thought. They’re weak. Castezin does have a very sizable force of Knights, however. If they can be mobilised the strength isn’t weaker than in most other territories. Rast having Shape means he’s a Named Knight. I never considered he’d be this strong this soon. Soma-Skin as well means that his body is basically covered in natural armour.` In the Empire, being a Knight with Aura that has developed into a Shape qualifies one immediately for named status based on that Shape’s qualities. Those Knights existed at various levels and within various hierarchies, but one thing was true. Shape elevated a Knight to dangerous levels. Ayla moved on to a different, but related topic.
“Do you think the Duke is a capable person?”
“The Duke? Well, yeah, His Grace is extremely capable. You saw it for yourself. He excelled at swordsmanship from a young age and I’ve never heard about him failing or reaching his limits in any regard.” Miller remarked.
She perked up. “From a young age? You've seen him when he was young?”
“Not personally, but I know people who served him when he was just the Heir. Why?” Miller looked confused by the question. Ayla smiled, choosing not to explain herself. It was even more confirmation that the Duke was not actually a monster from the start.
“What type of Soma have you developed, Ayla?” Samson asked curiously.
“Nerve Aligned. Fully complete. My Aura Heart is rooted and I am focusing on strengthening that more before I do anything else.” She explained. The Aura Heart was a concept developed to allow Knights to utilise Aura without the pitfalls of becoming a full Aurar. The heart would not have the versatility in Shaping Aura the way an Aurar could, but the utilisation of raw aura to enhance attacks and defend was standard in all martial training on the continent. With an Aura heart there was even the eventual capability of forming the Aura into a single Shape.
Samson held his head in shock. The man cringed and seemed distraught. “What? Nerve Aligned? And a full one at that?” She nodded. Ayla understood his shock. The main method of developing Soma was to begin at a point in the body and expand it along pathways related to that part. Most Soma users were Bone or Heart Aligned as those pathways were very simple to follow with just hard work and time. Nerve alignment began in the brain and developed along the nerve pathways. It took hard work, consciousness of one's body and quite a bit of endurance due to one unfortunate facet of the Nerve Alignment method.
“You endured a lot of pain, huh?”
Miller mounted his own spotted gray horse and pointed. “We should get going. There’s no chance we get back before dark, but earlier is better.” He was surprised when he noticed Ayla becoming relieved.
“Usually recruits get upset to hear we have such a long, early-to-late route.”
“I was worried. I didn't see the purpose in an early morning route that only patrolled during the day, but now that I know that it’ll be getting dark on our return I can see some merit.”
“Jeeze... exhausting. The nightly patrol begins as ours ends and consists instead of a party of Knights. Besides, not all problems involve monsters. Knights are for the populace at the end of the day, right?” He offered brightly.
“How do I join that one instead?” Ayla asked in a flat tone.
Miller’s shoulders slumped. “Rast selects those people personally, so it's up to him.”
“I see. His Grace came out with Rast yesterday. Is that normal?”
“He came out because there were two sisters that were reported to have been infected by their community. One Werewolf is dangerous enough so he joined the patrol with Rast to make sure nobody got hurt. The Duke seems cold but he cares a lot about his own people. Even the common soldiers. You were probably happy about not being sent to a barracks but even Soldiers get good pay and warm clothes here.” It sounded like Miller was bragging.
“I see.” Ayla tightened the grip on her reins and urged her horse forward by digging her heels into his side. As she rode she lowered her head, casting glances to Miller and Samson out of the corner of her eye. She snuck a look back at the soldiers, as well.
'Samson, Miller... Everywhere I look I see faces I murdered in my past life. It turns out the Duke really cared about his people, as well. I promised to help the people I hurt; does that mean I have a responsibility to these guys, specifically?'
The Town of Castezin was far more lively during the day than when Ayla arrived at night. Along the main road people from surrounding villages and other fiefs within the Duchy had come to exchange goods. The popular products to bring in were fur, herbs and meats.
“What’s the population here?” Ayla asked.
“The Town of Castezin has about 2,300 people. All of the Duchy has roughly 30,000 when you take all the villages and the Marches into account.” Miller seemed happy to inform her of the mundane information. Ayla was surprised he knew so much.
“You know a lot, Miller.” He smiled proudly at the compliment. Ayla exhaled wearily, hands tightening around the reins.
'Ten years from now, if things go the way they did in my last life that number will be reduced to a fraction.' She lifted her head and idly observed children playing along the side of the streets.It was something she usually saw in places outside of the capital, but did not understand.
`It seems like I had an odd upbringing. Most children are given the ability to live rather carefree lives. I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or not.` As she was scanning the surroundings she noticed up ahead that an old woman was having difficulty unloading flour from a cart. She looked to Miller, then Samson.
`Are they the type of people that’d be upset at being held up, or endeared to some minor charity? This could be a quick way to make them like me.` She adopted a friendly smile and probed their attitude by asking pointedly:
“How much leeway do we have to complete the patrol?”
Miller chuckled lightly. “Hehe. We got time. If you're suggesting we stop for a bite to-” He watched her gallop ahead and stop in front of the cart.
Ayla dismounted and asked the old woman politely. “May I help you?”
The woman seemed to be fretting over the fact that Ayla, a Knight of the Duke on patrol, was offering to unload sacks of flour. She tried to wave Ayla away while still remaining humble.
“N-nonsense! You all do en-” The woman sighed as Ayla lifted one onto her shoulder, then another under her arm. She continued at that pace until the cart was cleared completely. With Ayla's strength it only took a minute and barely any effort. As she was moving the cargo she would cast subtle glances back to make sure the reaction of the soldiers and Knights was right. The old woman took Ayla’s hand gratefully in both of hers.
Ayla inspected the woman’s face. 'Gratitude. I don’t remember killing this one, at least. But she would have surely died due to our efforts. I did this for my own benefit, but can something like this be enough for this one person?` She wondered.
`All I did was move some flour but she looks at me like I moved a mountain for her.`
“Let me get you something!” The old woman said enthusiastically. Miller and Samson stood by trading amused smiles. The soldiers on the other hand were the ones that seemed truly blown away by her behaviour.
“Please don't offer me any gifts.” Ayla called out after the old woman.
She heard a resolute repetition of. “Nonsense!” From within the bakery. Ayla could vaguely make out the woman scrambling around inside.
Ayla sighed, rolling her shoulder a little to loosen up after the heavy lifting. “Are you tired?” Samson asked.
“No.” She shook her head.
“Are you a workhorse?” Miller wondered out loud. Ayla did not answer except to smile.
`Seems to have worked.` She thought.
The old woman came out with a basket of freshly baked bread covered by a cloth. “Please take this. Don't share too much with those men that just sat there and watched.” She wagged her finger while grinning ear to ear to show that she was not actually upset with them. Ayla stuffed a roll into her mouth and gave the old woman a thumbs up. She mounted her horse and waved back as the woman saw them off.
“Come to think of it, Ayla, I had to skip my normal breakfast to come out this early.” Miller hinted, scratching the back of his head.
“I think all this is for me.” She stated flatly.
“Ah...” Miller gave up easily as Ayla shoved a roll into his hands. She was not even looking his way while offering it. She tossed one to Samson as well.
“Ayla!” Miller was feeling tearful as he bit into the fresh bread.
“It’s so good…” He offered happily.
“It’s no big deal. Help next time.” She said, not really caring one way or another since it was just an act..
“My back's sore from carrying flour on my own.”
“She's not a workhorse!” Samson slapped his forehead in feigned amazement.
“I guess we found out.” Miller joked.
Ayla handed the basket back to the soldiers marching behind them without thinking. All she really had in mind was that she had no intention of carrying the thing and worrying about where to put it or how to throw it away..
“Pass it around and share.” She ordered. The head man that took the basket nodded.
“You trying to win a popularity contest?” Samson asked, looking at her inquisitively.
Ayla gulped. It seemed like Samson saw through it to some extent, or he was annoyed by the display. She made a note to think of him as being more clever than she originally thought and precisely answered the question to keep him off of her trail.
“I never thought of it like that. I just wanted to help. As for giving most of it away, I already ate and there was a lot of bread .”
“Pfft.” Samson stifled a laugh. He offered Ayla a knowing smile.
“Is that right?”
“That's right.” Ayla stated coldly.
Samson shrugged. “We all got our reasons for what we do.”