Chapter 20
“Boss, the first army has captured Hammerfield Manor. It won’t be long before they unleash their full force on the Living District, annihilating us entirely. Fifty of their men are already roaming the streets, mercilessly killing everyone in their path. There are rumors that the civilians aren’t even spared. We must evacuate while there’s still a chance.” Trevor the Hand stood in a dimly lit doorway, his forehead creased with worry. “What’s the plan, Boss?”
Barron Hammerfield stood at a window in the warehouse office, overlooking the district with his arms crossed behind his back. Small candles flickered in the room, doing little to dispel the darkness, which was only partially obscured by the bright moon illuminating the streets below. Down there, the hired men frantically reinforced their defenses, protecting the warehouse they had claimed as their base. Distant screams echoed through the night, confirming the veracity of those whispers.
“The plan, my old friend, is unfolding exactly as I had foreseen. Each pawn is executing their role flawlessly, leading us toward the culmination of our efforts. The Commander of the First Army currently resides in my home, and he will soon witness the true authority of this settlement. Do not be concerned, Trevor, we will depart shortly.” He turned to face him with a reassuring smile before continuing, “We will leave soon.”
Trevor gazed at his longest friend and employer, utterly bewildered. The man standing before him, adorned in glittering red and white attire, wielding a jewel-encrusted weapon, smiled like a cat as his men fell and his legacy crumbled. The Baron had always been straightforward with his political machinations, knowing it was the only way to protect him from consequences if he failed. But he had never failed. Lately, he had become increasingly secretive, even to Trevor. Something felt amiss, and he sensed there was more to this than usual.
“Where are you going? For over a week, we’ve searched the Living district for the twins and the noblemen without success. We’ve subjugated our own people while searching for you and your artifact. I’ve never questioned your motives, knowing they had Holmberg’s best interest at heart. But now, we have the First Army in our home, hunting us, and you mean to tell me that wasn’t the true objective? They’ve completely sealed off Holmberg from the outside. I need to know your plan so I can protect you and ensure your safety.”
He took a deep, frustrated breath and stepped closer to the doorway, away from the window. “As much as I desire to find them to retrieve what is mine, no, that wasn’t the primary reason. But it did serve a purpose. I’d like to share a story with you, if you’ll allow me.”
Trevor nodded, and the man began to recount a tale from his youth.
“When I was young, my father sat me down and imparted a piece of wisdom that has remained with me ever since. It has become my guiding principle, my mantra, if you will. He told me that when waging a war of the mind, compartmentalization is crucial. Never reveal the entire plan to anyone. Always maintain a hidden element, completely disconnected from the main body, and always, always…”
The building trembled violently beneath them, interrupting the man’s story.
”Know your enemy.”
Trevor crouched low, shielding his eyes from the falling dust. He glanced up just as the window the baron had moved moments ago was violently sucked outwards, shattering into a million pieces and taking a significant chunk of the wall with it. A red, glowing fog crept through the gaping hole. Trevor rushed over to witness the night sky transformed into a crimson canvas. He scanned the skyline and spotted a floating glyph, swirling above the shattered remains of the baron’s mansion, pulsating slowly and drawing in the surrounding area like the rhythmic beat of a drum. Horror washed over him as he turned to his friend.
Baron Hammerfield offered him a composed smile before speaking, “Come with me, my friend, and you will witness the culmination of our relentless pursuit.”
The air above the Baron’s mansion was thick with ash and dust. Everything within a hundred-yard radius of the epicenter had been completely obliterated. The devastating pulses annihilated storehouses, guard towers, and entire sections of the walls. After the deadly glyph’s energy dissipated ten minutes later, an eerie silence descended upon the grounds.
The First Army soldiers outside the blast zone stood at attention, their calls for reinforcements and search parties echoing through the air. As they rallied, a deep blue light began to emanate from the center of the rubble, causing everyone to freeze. Some instinctively fled, fearing another war glyph had been activated, while others held their ground, bracing for an impending attack. Gradually, new lights emerged from the debris, causing the ground to tremble once more. As the quake reached its climax, two hundred shielded soldiers rose from the wreckage, floating effortlessly into the air like steam rising from a boiling pot. Once they were all airborne, a final figure emerged, its arms raised high. The soldiers erupted in cheers as the Commander descended, setting his men down.
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Captain Pyrehorn, the second-in-command of the First Army, clasped Commander Velot on the shoulder. “Excellent work, Commander Velot,” he said. “Many lives would have been lost if you hadn’t been so vigilant and quick to respond with your warding shield. It seems everyone is accounted for as well.”
Commander Velot surveyed the rubble, his eyes closed. His brilliant white armor, lined with black glowing in the moonlight, reached behind him. He pulled his six-foot-long great axe from his back. As soon as he did, the black crest of the Crown on his breastplate began to glow the same deep blue as his shield. This was a skill taught to all commanders of the Crown’s armies, allowing them to gauge the number of soldiers remaining in their company. It was a valuable skill on the battlefield to keep track of losses.
Opening his eyes, Commander Velot turned to his captain. “No, I lost two men,” he said. “They were beyond my reach, and I didn’t react fast enough. Their bodies lie to the west, where the third watchtower fell. Have men retrieve their bodies and ensure their families receive a full pension upon our return to the capital.”
Captain Pyrehorn nodded to three men standing at his side and they took off.
Commander Velot replaced his midnight black great axe on his back and used a skill to amplify his voice as he turned to his men. “Baron Hammerfield is attempting to flee,” he said. “He believes he can escape the grasp of the mighty First Army. Search every large, two-story building in the area as quickly as possible. Warehouses, homes, taverns, barns—I don’t care if it’s a goddamned nursery—I want it searched immediately. Keep your mana senses heightened and extended for more traps. We lost two of our own today, and I won’t lose more. Find that bastard.”
“Huah!” Every soldier shouted in unison, saluting with a gauntleted fist to the chest before taking off.
Commander Velot looked out over the settlement with conviction. “I’m coming for you, cousin,” he said.
Trevor descended the staircase to the warehouse’s basement, following Baron Hammerfield. The man remained silent for several minutes, the sounds of battle assaulting his ears with the dying screams and clashing steel reverberating off the cavernous room. A wholesale slaughter raged outside the walls.
Upon reaching the barricaded entrance to the basement, the Baron paused to wait for Trevor to catch up. A smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he passed through the barricade, which shimmered and shifted under his feet.
“Illusion glyph? Why?” he asked as he continued on to the other side. Trevor ignited his mage light and followed him without a response.
As they descended the dark, narrow stairwell, it opened into another vast, dimly lit room filled with dusty shelves. A peculiar scent filled the air, a blend of sweetness and oniony notes reminiscent of rotted wine and flesh. The shelves were stacked high with dark bottles, devoid of any labeling, and covered in dust that kicked up as they passed. They traversed approximately thirty yards of shelving before reaching the end.
There, they discovered a seven-foot-wide hole carved into the floor, surrounded by damp earth piled high. The Baron climbed the mound and descended into the hole without uttering a word. Trevor sprinted to the edge, revealing a ten-foot drop beneath the foundation where the tunnel vanished into a downward slope.
With no other choice, Trevor leaped down, landing gracefully on the loose earth. He turned to the man standing beside him, “Continue on. I’ll only be a moment.”
“Doesn’t seem I have a choice now,” he thought as he ventured deeper into the damp tunnel. Just five steps in, Earth mana filled the air, and he spun around to witness the tunnel’s mouth slowly closing as the Baron began casting an earth manipulation spell. Once the tunnel was entirely sealed, he finally uttered, “I did not choose this location randomly,” as he passed by him. “While I possessed the artifact, it revealed several visions. Visions of formidable monsters with immense power capable of overpowering even the mightiest of gods. Monsters that even the gods feared. There existed a time long forgotten when the gods united to confront such a creature, and despite their combined strength, they barely managed to defeat it. The artifact showed me how to harness this power for myself.”
“Why would you turn the settlement into a war zone if you already had this location?”
The Baron partially turned to face him while continuing down the roughly dug-out tunnel, “Sometimes, in the pursuit of power, sacrifices are necessary for progress. Now, no more questions. You will witness for yourself soon enough.”
They walked silently for several miles underground, each step resembling the last. With all the twists and turns, it was impossible to discern their direction except downward. An hour later, the tunnel began to open upward, revealing a thirty-foot-tall and equally wide cavern. A whimpering sound emanated from the left, prompting him to investigate. What he discovered horrified him even more than the explosion earlier.
Before him lay nearly a hundred men and women chained to the walls, the stench of death assaulting his senses. He heaved the contents of his stomach over the ground as he retreated from the rotting flesh.
“What on earth have you done!” he yelled in disbelief as he stumbled away.
“What was necessary,” the man’s voice echoed from the opposite side of the cavern.
Trevor turned to the sound of the voice and witnessed bright purple glyphs forming a doorway before Baron Hammerfield.
“To open the pathway into the ancient tunnels, a sacrifice of souls was required. Only there could I access the pedestal room for the blessing of the deity I sought to attain new heights of power. Follow me, my friend, and together, we shall rule the continent.” With that, he stepped into the doorway and vanished into the inky blackness.