“You’re here to lower the difference in the power gap between the two armies,” Regis noted with a sigh. “I’m willing to add my golems to your army, but I need the soldiers to stay behind in case the siege fails.”
“But if we fail, the demons will raze the kingdom either way. You won’t be able to stop their army with only seventy people.” Cedric argued.
“I don’t have to,” he shook his head as they reached the gates of Thornfell. “I made plans to lead my people to Menelrond if things go to shit.”
“You’re leaving?” Both mages looked at him surprised.
“If that’s the only way for them to survive then yes. I hope you understand.”
“I... yes. I do,” Cedric replied with a deep sigh. “It’s easier for you to lead away a few hundred than for us to evacuate thousands.”
“So that’s the local Landwaker,” the old spellcaster hummed as they arrived at Landwaker Square. “You are lucky to have an ‘uncommon’ tree in such a remote place.”
“It was a lot of effort to nurture it but it was more than worth it.” Regis said while letting out a sigh of relief as he thanked both Letty’s druidic spell and the upgraded barrier for hiding their Landwaker’s true nature from their visitor’s identifying skill.
“Why do you have a barrier around it?” Cedric asked, forcing the dark elf to repeat the same answer he said to anyone asking about it.
“Precautions,” he answered. “When we were helping East Fork, we found that their Landwaker got badly hurt by a demonic collaborator.”
“When we came here, we found the poisoned husk of the previous local Landwaker. It became quite obvious that despite their power, these trees are still quite susceptible to damage.” Quentin added.
“The first thing I did after we planted the new tree was to create a barrier around it. This way we can protect it from attackers and the kids who want to pick the unripe fruits.” The
“I see,” Cedric nodded in agreement. “History is indeed full of records mentioning how people tried to wage war for the Landwakers, or downright destroyed them to sabotage their enemies.”
“I see you also put the barrier around the local gateway as well. Another precaution?” Felix remarked.
“Only my companions and I possess a gateway talisman, but that doesn’t mean it’s not unreachable by other means.”
“So you’re guarding it in case someone managed to slip through.”
“This way even if someone manages to use it to get here, they would be trapped for a while, allowing us to surround them.”
“Clever,” the old spellcaster noted. “Still, I hope you will allow us to use it to return home. We are on a tight schedule after all.”
“You could have just asked us to deliver that scroll old man.” Khan butted in from the side, earning a slight head shake from Felix.
“Do not take it personally young friend, but that diagram is of great importance and value. It’s not something that I easily hand over to others. I had to make sure it got where it needed to be.”
“Whatever.” Khan shrugged as he and the rest of the mercenaries went on their way, most likely to refill their provisions.
“Regis,” the old spellcaster called out to the dark elf. “I know you are a skilled craftsman, but I still have to ask. How confident are you in building this new gateway in two days?”
“Well,” the loremaster hummed. “The physical body of the gateway is easy to create so it shouldn’t take more than half an hour. It’s the runic diagram that makes it challenging. I would have to stuff the gateway arch with hollow arcana stones to be used for power storage. The main runes would take half a day if not more to create and upgrade to the necessary level and at least the same amount of time is needed for the auxiliary runic diagrams linked to it.”
“So it is possible.” Cedric interpreted.
“It is but I’ll have to start working on it as soon as possible.”
“Good,” the grandmaster nodded with visible relief while holding out his own gateway talisman. “Let me share with you the imprint of the gateway you’ll have to reach out to.”
After the two touched their talismans together, Felix turned toward the gazebo that housed the local gateway.
“I wish I could have a look around to see what you have accomplished here, but many preparations have to be made on our end too, so we must be of as well.”
“Understandable,” Regis agreed as he opened up the barrier on the gateway. “Safe travel.”
After a slight nod, Felix and his fellow mages entered the gazebo, using the gateway to teleport away. As soon as they were gone, Quentin couldn’t stop himself from speaking his mind.
“They must be really desperate if the old man came himself,” the paladin remarked. “They’re trying to make it look like they have things under control, but I’ve seen plenty of leaders before to recognize desperation.”
“Can you blame them?” Regis asked back. “If the court could sabotage most of their war golems, they’d face significant losses unless they somehow managed to even the odds a bit. Even a man of old Felix’s status would be willing to make compromises if it meant a chance at victory.”
“Are you really going to lend those golems to them? They will most likely be destroyed you know.”
“Would you rather send a pile of enchanted stone to war or our people?”
“I guess you’re right. It’s better to lose a statue than a friend.”
“It might take some time and effort, but I can craft more if needed. If sacrificing those six golems means that they can get rid of the archdemon, then I’ll call that a good deal.”
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“Where do you plan to build this... mass transport gateway anyway?” The paladin inquired, making the loremaster stop for a moment to think things through.
“The barracks would be the safest place since it’s always guarded. I could build it at the far end of the training yard and erect the barrier around it the same way I did with the Landwaker and the gazebo. That way we could control who gets access to it or trap any invaders if needed.”
“Sounds like a plan. Do you need anything? Materials or... help?”
“No,” Regis replied, trying really hard to not question just how the others could ‘help’ without the necessary skills or knowledge. “I have some spare hollow arcana stones at the manor, but I might have to make some more. This thing is going to need a lot of power to use.”
“What numbers are we talking about? A hundred points of arcana? Two?”
“Maybe for opening the gate, but a channelled spell like this would require continuous arcana flow to keep going. I can’t say it for sure but if I’d have to make a guess, it would need at least fifty points per second to keep the gateway open.”
“Damn,” Quentin whistled. “How much can you channel right now?”
“Not enough,” Regis sighed. “I should be able to open up the gate but without help, I could only keep it going for maybe three seconds.”
“It’s that bad, huh?”
“It just means I have to prepare accordingly. The power cost can be offset with some extra hollow arcana stones added to the foundation of the archway.”
“All right,” Quentin nodded. “I’ll leave you to it then. I’m sure the others are also curious about our visitors so I will explain it to them while you’re working.”
“Sure thing.” The dark elf agreed as the paladin left.
After reaching the manor, he went over to his workshop and gathered the necessary materials before heading to the barracks. Creating the physical body of the gateway was already a simple task thanks to his earth magic and soon a seven-meter tall and four-meter wide archway rose from the ground at the back of the training yard.
He spent the next twenty minutes fusing the hollow arcana stones into the archway and creating a couple more stones to expand the gate's lifespan. When he was done with that, Regis took a short breather to prepare his mind for the arduous task of infusing the stone structure with the necessary runes.
Several hours passed by as he meticulously recreated the runic diagram Felix entrusted him with, the powerful magic finally taking shape. By the time the sun was about to vanish from the sky, he was finally he was done. Looking at the result of his work, the sight of a large stone archway greeted him that was covered in pale grey runes from top to bottom. Now I just need to reinforce it tomorrow. He thought to himself before stretching his limbs, his joints cracking and popping. The dark elf let out a sigh as he headed home.
“Welcome back, milord.” Euric greeted him as the two headed toward the dining room.
“Thanks, Euric. It’s good to be home,” Regis noted. “What’s for dinner?”
“Roasted pheasant with steak potatoes and assorted vegetables.”
“Sounds delicious. How were things while I was away?” The loremaster asked, earning a short reply.
“Nothing out of the ordinary happened. My daughter came home, incapable of talking about anything else but magic.”
“As usual.” Regis chuckled.
“You had no visitors besides Tristan, but he simply left a couple of scrolls in the library for you to read. He said it was a collection of reports on the various happenings of Thornfell.”
“Hopefully nothing too urgent. I had a tiresome day and tomorrow will be just as busy.”
“Ah,” Euric hummed. “I did hear that we had some esteemed grand magus visiting us earlier today.”
“Master Felix,” the dark elf said. “He’s the guild master of Atraune’s spellcasters’ guild. He came by personally to deliver something for me.”
“The leader of such status acting as a courier?” The butler looked at him surprised.
“It was an important piece he was unwilling to entrust to anyone else to deliver.”
“I take it this has something to do with the current unrest in Ecragurne, but you need not explain, sir. As long as it keeps our people safe, I do not need anything else to know about it.”
“I also hope that it can help our people. One way or another. But enough of such depressing talks. I’m starving.”
“I have the solution for that,” Dana the maid said as the two got near the table. “Dinner is ready.”
Everyone sat down while the maid placed the food on the long table, its looks and smell making them swallow their saliva. As usual, Dana's cooking skills were top-notch, allowing everyone to have a delicious meal and some light-hearted chatter before they would turn in for the night. Instead of heading towards the upper floor, Regis first entered the library to check out the scrolls Tristan left behind.
Most of them were reports about the preparations for the incoming harvest along with the usual financial records. Thornfell seemed to be doing well for itself, the town's coffers slowly filling up with the profits of their trades. It was welcome news for the dark elf and proof of their efforts. However, the strained atmosphere caused by the previous demon attack and the looming chance of yet another war left its mark on the town as well.
There were reports of civil unrest amongst the scrolls. Heated arguments at the market, and a slight brawl at the tavern. Those sorts of things. I guess this was to be expected He thought to himself as he read how the guards solved everything peacefully. With the last of the reports checked, Regis left the library and went upstairs for a bath before falling asleep in his room.
When morning came, the dark elf woke groggily and dressed before leaving the manor. The people of Thornfell were still mostly sleeping, only a few familiar faces could be seen walking about. Regis arrived at the barracks to find Grego and a couple of other guards already practicing in the training yard.
“Good morning everyone.” He greeted them while making his way toward the gateway arch.
“Morning,” Grego replied with the others nodding. “Should I dare to ask what that... thing over there is?”
“It’s a gateway meant to allow troops to move in large numbers.”
His answer made everyone stop as Grego looked at him worried.
“So... does that mean we are going to war again?”
“Not if I can help it,” the dark elf replied. “Master Felix asked me to lend them our golems for the upcoming royal shit show. I figured I’d rather send him a couple of statues than you guys.”
This time, his answer made the soldiers relax somewhat. Grego too let out a relieved sigh as he looked back at his fellow guardsmen.
“I’m glad to hear it. Make no mistake. These lads and lassies are the finest I’ve ever trained, but I still don’t want to see them anywhere near an army of demons.”
“Neither do I,” Regis agreed as he turned toward the gateway. “Well, keep up the good work. I’ll be over there, tinkering away at that thing.”
“You heard his lordship,” the guard captain chuckled. “Get back to work!”
The following half day went by uneventfully as the loremaster kept upgrading the runic diagram of the large stone archway until all of the arcane symbols glowed in a bright grass-green hue. Luckily, young Dana had come by a few hours before, bringing along a small basket with some food in it. A courtesy of her mother who was worried that Regis left the manor without having any breakfast. By the time he was done, the guards had finished their daily training and were away on patrol, but Quentin was there, silently watching him work from afar.