Sir George was waiting on the hillside just south of the mountain range with a squad of men, half of them human, the other half dwarves. They were hoping to see the flare from Percy.

Sir George was lost in thought of everything that has happened today while he was on leave.

'I've never seen my Lord so shaken and angered. I wish I could have been more of a help. I should have watched Lady Rya.' Sir George said as he was thinking about what he would say to the prince.

"Look! The flare!" One of the men yelled as they saw the light coming out of the woods.

"Come! Percy needs our aid!" Sir George said as he started moving forward.

The rest of the men followed suit as they marched through the forest to where Percy was with Dalia, Nieren, and a Merc they captured.

"Glad to see you're still alive, boy. What did you find out?" Sir George asked with a smile as he looked at the Mercenary.

"We were able to ambush four Black Rose Mercenaries. We had no choice but to kill three of them. And we wouldn't have caught this one if it wasn't for Nieren." Percy said with a grin.

"Aye. You three did well. Let's bring this one to our Lord. I'm sure he'll get the information we need. If not, well, he's going to die." Sir George said with a smirk as he led the group toward the camp.

***

As they reached the camp they saw that most of Baron Zellin's soldiers had already gathered around Prince Quinus.

Quinus was talking with the Baron and Hajdah.

"So you were able to get 700 men together in two hours? That's amazing. I was able to get six of our mages from the guild, your majesty." Hajdah asked with a hint of excitement in his voice.

"I wish I could bring more men, but I fear that the Black Roses might be watching. I have sent an emissary to Kishin. I hope he can gather the remaining force needed to save Rya." Prince Quinus said with a sigh as he stared out at the camp. Then Quin noticed Percy, Dalia, and Nieren had returned with Sir George.

"My Lord! We have a prisoner," Sir George said as he stepped back.

Prince Quinus walked up to the man tied with rope. He looks like a normal human wearing the Black Rose uniform.

Quinus looks at the man and then turns to Hajdah.

"What do you know about him?" Quinus asks as he stares at the man.

"He's a squad leader. You can tell by the insignia on his chest. Other than that, I don't think he's a well-known Mercenary outside of being a Black Rose mercenary." Hajdah answered with a shrug.

Quinus walks over to the man and looks him in the eyes. Quin's golden eyes seem like they're glowing in the middle of the night.

"Who are you?" Quinus asks.

"Tch! ..." Dan clicks his tongue and doesn't answer.

"What is your name?" Quinus asks again with impatience in his voice.

"I'm not talking, Toothless Li- *PUNCH!* AAARRGG!!" Dan shouts as he falls to the ground after getting punched by Sir George.

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"I don't know what compelled you to insult my Lord. But I will show you what happens when you keep disrespecting him." Sir George says as he pulls out his sword.

Dan is coughing before regaining his composure.

"You'll have to do better than that if you want info out of me," Dan growls.

Quinus takes a step forward and places his hand on the man's shoulder. His golden eye glows brightly with mana as he touches Dan causing a shockwave to pass through him. His body goes limp for a few seconds before the man returns to consciousness breathing heavily.

"Hah! Hah! W-What was that? Was that some sort of magic attack?" Dan coughs and gasps for air.

"I just discharged my mana through you as if you were my sword. So, I'll ask one more time, what is your name, merc?" Quinus says with cold anger in his voice.

'The prince has that much mana!? He's gone mad!' Dan panicked after feeling the most painful sensation he has ever felt in his life while the cells in his body were still screaming in pain.

"My name is Dan. I am a mercenary that fought under the command of Victor." Dan answers.

Quinus looked to Hajdah because he didn't know who Victor was.

"Um. Victor was one of Rudolf's lieutenants. I believe he died during the Royal betrayal from the Kingdom of Marn." Hajdah answered looking to Quinus.

"I don't care about that. We know that the Black Roses are hiding in the abandoned mine under Mount Galfrei. Tell me Dan, how many men are in the Black Rose Mercenaries?" Quinus asked.

"Umm, I think it's around 400. It may be more now since we've recruited a lot of new mercenaries in the past month." Dan gulped nervously.

Quinus looked at him while taking in the information.

"400 men strong. What is Rudolf planning on doing with Rya." Quinus demanded.

'Rya? Is that the name of the dark elf? He's come for her?' Dan looked up to see Quin's face. That's when Dan realized it. He's seen that type of face on a man before.

It was the same face that he saw when he saw some of his comrades raping a man's wife in front of his face. A calm face that masked the fury and rage that was boiling deep inside.

'Rudolf. We shouldn't have messed with this man. He's not as weak as we think he is!' Dan thought as he tried not to piss himself in front of everyone.

"I...I don't know. All I know is that Rudolf wishes to rule over Ironside and he was hoping the dark elf could be used to meet that goal." Dan said with worry.

"He dares to invade my city!" Zellin roared in anger.

"What makes him think that the King of Fiafyr would let the Black Roses rule over a city under my father's protection," Quinus growled with rage in his eyes.

"Because Rudolf has the backing of Duke Alaric. We were planning on helping him take the throne from you and your father." Dan replied with an expressionless face.

"So, my uncle still wishes to betray my father. He wishes to push me to be a killer. Fine! Once I get Rya back, I'll end my uncle's life for treason and end all the corruption in the land." Quinus gritted his teeth angrily.

"My Lord. You need to keep a calm mind. If you're clouded with anger, you might make a mistake. If you fall here you will never be able to protect yourself and your people from the duke. Keep a level head, your majesty." Hajdah warned.

Quinus slowly calmed down and stared at Dan.

"Right. Baron Zellin. Prepare your men for battle. I want to end the Black Roses by noon." Quinus ordered.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Zellin said with a salute.

"Sir George. Hajdah. I'll need you two by my side when the fighting begins." Quinus commanded.

"Of course, my prince," Hajdah said with a bow.

"You have my sword, my Lord." Sir George said with a smile.

"Percy. Lady Dalia. Lady Nieran. Go to the abandoned mine where Rya is being held. I'll need you to flank them if possible." Quinus ordered.

"As you wish, my lord," Percy said with a nod.

"Don't worry Beta. We'll get her back!" Dalia assured the prince.

"Yeah, we'll save Rya!" Nieren agreed.

With that said, everyone got up and started preparing for war.

Quinus then looked to Dan.

"So. Do you wish to live or die?" Quinus said with a menacing tone.

Dan gulped.

"I wish to retire from the Black Roses and leave the country," Dan said with a serious face.

"Let's hope I'm in a good mood to pass judgment upon you after the battle. Someone take him away." Quinus ordered.

A guard came forward and grabbed Dan.

"Come. It's time to go." Quinus said to Sir George and Hajdah.