The seconds passed, one after the other, as we waited for the group of demonic beasts to reach our position. Their roars filled the air, sending chills down everyone’s spines. The tension in the air grew tighter and tighter, until it felt like it would snap. The stench of wrongness coming from the scentwind didn’t help matters. Despite all this, no one showed any signs of nervousness or fear thanks to Knight Commander Bardin’s presence.
Less than a minute after the knight commander activated the scentwind, the sound of hundreds of demonic beasts running in our direction reached my ears. Soon, the others could hear it as well. It wasn’t long before the demonic beasts themselves came into view. There were hundreds of them, all rushing towards us like a tide of madness and corruption given physical form.
Among the horde were six large lumps of flesh, each one the size of a small house with skin as black as pitch. Countless limbs, mouths, and eyes protruded from the lumps of flesh, giving them a grotesque appearance. They looked like living nightmares. Proteans.
Despite their bulk, the Proteans moved fast, scuttling around on their multitude of limbs. Just the sight of them filled me with disgust. They exuded an aura of wrongness, more so than most other kinds of magic beasts. The Proteans looked like creatures that could not, and should not, exist.
When the horde of demonic beasts caught sight of us, their roars intensified and their speed increased. They were seconds away from reaching the palisade that surrounded this small village.
“Brace yourselves!” Knight Commander Bardin said.
The Coldsteel Knights gripped their spears and waited for the demonic beasts to reach their position. They didn’t have to wait long. When the horde hit the palisade, the wooden structure groaned under the weight of their fury but held. I had a feeling that if it hadn’t been for the blessing from the priest, the palisade would have broken then and there.
The moment the demonic beasts came within reach, the Coldsteel Knights sprang into action. They used their spears and their advantageous position to keep the demonic beasts at bay. A few of the creatures leapt over the palisade and tried to wreck havoc among the knights. However, the nearby knights just dropped their spears and drew their swords, before slaying them.
That was all the time I could spare observing the battle, before Knight Commander Bardin and I leapt into action ourselves. While the palisade would hold off the weaker demonic beasts, the same couldn’t be said for the Proteans. I watched as one of them reached the palisade, slamming its bulk into it, and almost shattered it right away. Knight Commander Bardin headed to deal with that one, while I rushed off to deal with a different Protean. By some unspoken agreement, we had decided to split up so we could kill the Proteans faster.
The one I targeted had almost reached the palisade. Rather than wait for that to happen, I decided to head out to meet it. I ran towards the palisade and leapt over it. In midair, I coated my sword and my body with my mana. I landed right in front of my chosen target’s path. Even before my feet touched the ground, the demonic beasts noticed me and swarmed me, but I dealt with them with ease.
Despite the seriousness of the situation, my heart sang with joy. This was my first battle where I fought without holding back my strength. It felt good, and a part of me wondered why I had been so afraid to reveal my true power before this. Yes, I would have attracted unwanted attention, but I could have found ways to mitigate that.
My bodyguards joined me soon after, forming up around me to keep the demonic beasts at bay. They worked well together, each one covering the others’ blindspots. This allowed me to focus all of my attention on the Protean. It looked even more disgusting up close. When it saw me land in front of it, the creature turned its attention away from the palisade and focused on me with its countless eyes.
The Protean rushed towards me, trying to envelope me with its bulk. It let out a sound of joy as it reached towards me with dozens of limbs. Some of them were human arms with hands at the end, while others were animal claws. I dodged to the side, slicing off several limbs as I did so. Black blood gushed from the wounds and splattered everywhere.
The Protean let out a howl of rage from its countless mouths, before it tried to charge me again. Once again, I dodged. However, I realized too late that I wasn’t its primary target. It had been a feint. To my horror, it went after Viktor. The Protean grabbed him with several of its limbs and dragged him towards one of its mouths. I attacked the Protean, cutting off the limbs holding Viktor, and freed him before the creature could swallow him.
Fury filled me. How dare this abomination lay its filthy hands on one of my people? Propelled by my rage, I charged the Protean. Playing it safe would only endanger my people. The sooner I killed it, and the others, the better. However, I didn’t lose myself to my anger. Despite my fury, I attacked the Protean in a calm and methodical manner. I sliced off limbs, gouged out eyes, and cut away chunks of the Protean’s body.
At first it let out enraged roars and tried to fight back. However, as I continued with my assault, its anger turned to fear. It realized that I wasn’t easy prey, and turned to flee. I refused to let it go. Every time it tried to escape, I stood in its path. As time passed, the Protean’s movements grew more and more sluggish. Its body grew smaller and smaller as I kept cutting away at it.
Before long, the creature swayed on its legs before falling to the ground with a heavy thud. I attacked it a few more times after that, just in case it was playing dead. After I was satisfied, I turned my attention to the rest of the battle.
The demonic beasts had breached the palisade in several locations. The yells and roars filled the air as the knights clashed with the creatures. It looked like Knight Commander Bardin had already killed one Protean and was engaged with another one. Despite this, she continued to bark out orders, adapting to the changing tides of the battle.
Not to be outdone, I located the nearest Protean and charged right towards it. My bodyguards followed in my wake. Despite the close call earlier, Viktor kept his composure and continued fighting.
The Protean I ran towards had managed to break through the palisade and create a gap, through which demonic beasts streamed. However, the closest Coldsteel Knights were too focused on the Protean to deal with them, leaving the task to others.
Even as I watched, the Protean grabbed one of the knights and tried to swallow her whole. Her comrades tried to help her, but the Protean fended them off with its multitude of limbs. Despite her dire predicament, the knight continued to fight back.
I rushed forward and managed to cut off the limbs holding the knight just as the Protean shoved her into one of its many mouths. I slashed the Protean to create an opening, before I grabbed the knight and pulled her out. She was covered in foul-smelling saliva and black blood, and let out retching sounds. I deposited her onto the ground, before turning my attention to the Protean itself.
It let out a frustrated howl at having lost its prey and attacked me. Like with the first Protean, I attacked this one with surgical precision. Chunks of its flesh flew off as I hacked away at it. This one must have been smarter than the first, because it tried to flee almost right away instead of fighting back. It let out a fearful screech and turned to run.
I moved to get in its way, but then saw an odd looking bulge at the “back” of its body, near the bottom. The core! Without hesitation, I stabbed the core. The moment my sword pierced through, the Protean seized before flopping to the ground, dying a silent death.
“Lord Wulfe, look out!” Viktor yelled out.
I turned to find one of the remaining Proteans charging across the battlefield towards me. There were several Coldsteel Knights in its path. Most managed to get out of the way, but the Protean trampled the rest. I could only hope that their coldsteel armor, as well as the blessing from the priestess, managed to keep them safe.
I rushed towards the Protean and clashed with it. I dispatched this one the same way I dispatched the others, by cutting it down to size. Like the others, it tried to flee when it realized that it was outmatched, but I killed it before it escaped.
After I killed my third Protean, I looked around in time to see Knight Commander Bardin kill hers as well. They were all dead. However, the battle was far from over. I hefted my sword and turned my attention to the remaining demonic beasts.
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By the time we managed to kill the last demonic beast, sunset was a little over half an hour a way. Soon after Knight Commander Bardin and I killed the last Protean, the demonic beasts started to flee. Without the Proteans, this group was no match for the Coldsteel Knights. Unlike Mad Dogs, which were suicidal in their aggressiveness, most demonic beasts had strong survival instincts. They would flee when the odds turned against them. It took us some time to hunt down the ones that ran away. However, we couldn’t let them escape. Otherwise, they would endanger some other poor soul in another part of the Barrens.
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After we dealt with the last of the demonic beasts, Knight Commander Bardin sent a messenger to report our success to Grand Duke Kaltbrand. She then divided the remaining knights into two groups.
She assigned the first group of knights to purify the area. Given the number of demonic beast corpses in the area, it wouldn’t take long for a demon nest to form if we left them alone. The priest of the God of Darkness volunteered to help with the purification.
The second group of knights tended to the wounded. The priestess of the Goddess of Light volunteered to help them. While we had many casualties, most of those were injuries. With enough time, and some healing with divine power, they would recover. A few of those casualties, however, were deaths. I felt a pang in my heart when I heard this, and I was a relative stranger to the Coldsteel Knights. I could only imagine how their friends and loved ones felt. I prayed to the gods for their souls.
The village itself suffered little damage. Most of the battle had been limited to the palisade, which still stood despite everything. With some time and effort, it would be as good as new. The villagers would be able to return home soon.
Rather than stand around doing nothing, I decided to help with the purification. I knew it was unbecoming of someone of my (fake) status to perform such menial labor, but it felt wrong for me not to help. My years working as a mercenary had no doubt influenced me in this regard. While this earned me some strange looks from the Coldsteel Knights, no one said anything. My bodyguards just shrugged and helped out as well.
Helping with the purification gave me an opportunity to observe the priest as he worked his divine power. This was a rare opportunity for me, since I almost never worked with priests when I lived as a mercenary. I watched as the priest commanded the shadows to consume the demonic beast corpses and the demonic beast blood, erasing them all from existence. I was used to using holy water and holy oil, so this method of purification seemed odd but effective.
“Wulfe!” Knight Commander Bardin called out.
I turned to find her marching in my direction.
“Walk with me.” she said.
I nodded and joined her as she walked around the village, observing the Coldsteel Knights at work. My bodyguard followed us from a respectful distance.
“How did it feel to participate in your first hunt as part of House Kaltbrand?” she asked.
I took a moment before answering.
“In some ways, it was the same as when I worked as a mercenary, Teacher.” I said. “In many other ways, it was completely different. I’m used to working alone, so working in a group like this is a new experience for me.” I frowned. “I’ve also realized that while I am a superb swordsman, my skills as a commander are lacking.”
Knight Commander Bardin nodded.
“I thought as much.” she said. “Most mercenaries are lone wolves, so to speak, except for those who are a part of a mercenary company. Even then, the command structures for those companies tend to be loose.” She glanced at me. “I plan on having you participate in more of these hunts as part of your training, to help you gain experience commanding and leading soldiers. You’ll start small at first, with a single squad, before working your way up to commanding larger forces.”
I nodded. When I left the Barrens and joined either the Order of the Golden Rose or the Imperial Guard, having experience in commanding soldiers would serve me well.
“Still,” I said. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to match you as a military commander. Even when you were fighting a Protean, you still managed to keep an eye on the big picture and continued to give orders.” I frowned. “Meanwhile, I almost let one of my own bodyguards get eaten because I was too focused on myself and my own movements.”
Knight Commander Bardin snorted.
“Don’t sell yourself short.” she said. “I didn’t start out this way. It took me decades to reach my current level of experience. Besides, as the heir to House Kaltbrand, you won’t need to be the best military commander around. That’s what the knight commander of the Order of the Coldsteel Blade is for. You just need to know enough in order to make the right decisions when necessary.”
I almost pointed out that I wasn’t the actual heir to House Kaltbrand, but kept my mouth shut. There were too many people around, and Aura Experts had excellent hearing. I glanced over at Count Wirner. True to his word, he hadn’t participated in the battle. Instead, he just observed. However, now that the battle was over, he helped tend to the wounded. That didn’t stop him from keeping an eye on me. It was better to be safe than sorry.
“In fact, I also plan on having Teacher help with your successor lessons, at least when it comes to military matters.” Knight Commander Bardin continued. She tapped her temple. “While there are some things that you can only learn through experience, there is still plenty that you can learn from books. In this regard, Teacher is a much better, well, teacher than me.” She grimaced. “It’s the least he can do, considering the circumstances.”
I paused before responding. At first, I hadn’t planned on asking Knight Commander Bardin about her relationship with Count Wirner. However, my curiosity had reached a breaking point. Besides, the more I knew about the situation, the better I would be able to handle it.
“Teacher,” I said with some hesitation. “What exactly is the relationship between you and Count Wirner? I’ve seen for myself that you respect him as your teacher. Yet, you’re so cold and distant towards him as well.”
Knight Commander Bardin gave me a sharp look. I thought she would reprimand me for overstepping my bounds, and I opened my mouth to apologize, but then she sighed. A look of sorrow crossed her face. It only lasted for a moment, but I saw it.
“Not here.” she said. “There are too many prying ears.”
With that, Knight Commander Bardin led me to an area away from everyone else. The others were within sight, but out of earshot, including Count Wirner. Knight Commander Bardin then gave my bodyguards a meaningful look. They saluted her and walked out of earshot as well.
“If you don’t wish to tell me, you don’t have to, Teacher,” I said. “I apologize for overstepping my bounds. It was rude of me.”
Knight Commander Bardin shook her head.
“No,” she said. “I planned on telling you anyway. It is a part of our supposed family history. You have a right to know, if only so you can better fulfill your duties.”
She looked towards the setting sun, her eyes full of melancholy and wistfulness. The reds, oranges, and yellows of the setting sun emphasized her expression. I wasn’t a painter, but the image she portrayed in this moment would make for an excellent portrait.
“As you said, I have the greatest respect for Teacher.” Knight Commander Bardin said. “He is the reason why I became the warrior I am today. Thanks to his tutelage, I became an Aura Expert at a young age and an officer of the Order of the Coldsteel Blade.” Her expression hardened. “However, as a father, I found him lacking. Part of the reason why I worked so hard was to earn his approval. I thought that if I proved myself, he would accept and love me. Of course, it never worked.” Her expression turned bitter. “His love and approval were reserved for his legitimate children. Meanwhile, I was a reminder of the mistake he made in his moment of weakness. The best he could do was take me in as his disciple.”
That would explain the comment Count Wirner made about family tradition when I first met him. He took his illegitimate daughter as his disciple, and from what he saw, that said daughter had done the same with her own illegitimate son. What a twisted family history.
In fact, now that I thought about it, if I really were Grand Duke Kaltbrand’s son with Knight Commander Bardin, my family history would have been even more twisted. The late grand duchess was Knight Commander Bardin’s sister, meaning that she was also my aunt as well as my stepmother. My head hurt just thinking about it.
“After Johanna passed away,” Knight Commander Bardin said. “I realized that death comes for us all eventually. Rather than wasting my time chasing after Teacher’s approval, I was better off appreciating the people who already cared for me.” Sorrow shadowed her eyes. “Unfortunately, life didn’t turn out as I wanted and I ended up losing someone very dear to me after that, someone that I wanted to build a future with.”
Oh. I hadn’t realized that Knight Commander Bardin once had a lover. The loss of this person must have scarred her heart. Nobles married for many reasons. Producing an heir was one of those reasons. However, after losing her love, Knight Commander Bardin chose to remain unmarried and childless. That was why she was willing to take me in as her disciple and name me her heir. She was similar to Grand Duke Kaltbrand in this regard.
I thought over the sequence of events. If Knight Commander Bardin lost her lover after the late grand duchess’ death, then it would have occurred around the time I was born.
“Was this during the chaos from twenty years ago?” I asked. “When you became the knight commander of the Order of the Coldsteel Blade?”
Knight Commander Bardin hesitated, before nodding.
“Yes,” she said, her voice harsh. “Johanna’s death devastated Teacher, leaving him unable to fulfill his duties. When the demonic beasts attacked in overwhelming numbers, I stepped up to take his place. The Order of the Coldsteel Blade needed a knight commander and I was the best one qualified. Unfortunately, this meant that I wasn’t there to protect my… loved one. I sent him south to keep him safe, but demonic beasts attacked his escort and I lost him.” She let out a bitter laugh. “I became knight commander and earned a title, but I paid a dear price for it. For years, I blamed myself. If only I had been there to protect him, if only I had sent him south sooner instead of keeping him by my side, if only I had told Anselm. Maybe, just maybe, things would have turned out differently.”
What did the grand duke have to do with this? Perhaps Knight Commander Bardin had kept her lover a secret from His Grace? If so, that would explain why she sent her lover south instead of Kaltbrand Castle.
“I’m sorry for making you recall a painful memory.” I said.
Knight Commander Bardin shook her head.
“No, you have nothing to apologize for.” she said. “If anything, I’m the one who took us on this trip down memory lane. You only asked about Teacher.”
“Regardless, I am sorry.”
“Don’t be.” Knight Commander Bardin smiled. “Besides, it all worked out in the end.”
What did she mean by that? However, before I could ask, the knight commander clasped my shoulder.
“That’s enough talking.” she said. “We still have a lot of work today, and I want to make it back to Kaltbrand Castle before midnight.”
With that, she turned and headed back to the others. I watched her for a moment, before I shook my head and followed her.