Graviel, a handsome young man with fiery red hair and an impressive stature, led the way along the path on a horse. Following closely behind him were his fellow acolytes — Dorian, Jared, and Elara — on three other horses. Trailing further back was a long, serpentine formation of hundreds of men clad in battle gear. These were the mercenaries hired from the surrounding cities, as well as some reinforcements sent by their families. A genuinely formidable force that could take down a sizeable town or even a small city.
The route from the City of Brightmoon to the Thornwood Forest was unpaved and narrow, measuring less than three meters across. Trees flanked the road on both sides, their branches interlocking above. The air was thick with the scent of damp earth, and the rustling of leaves underfoot echoed in the otherwise silent forest along with the noise of gear clanking.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, signs of fatigue began to show among the men. Despite their exhaustion, they silently marched on, not daring to voice their discomfort.
“Sir, we’ve been marchin’ almost non-stop for two days… I’m concerned the mercenaries might not be able to keep up much longer,” reported a muscular, middle-aged man with a thick beard. From his bearing, it was evident that the man was a veteran warrior, as seen in the battle scars marking his face and the pair of large axes slung across his back.
There were more than two hundred people in this army. Each carried a heavy load of supplies and weapons, except for Graviel and his inner circle. Even for these seasoned mercenaries who were accustomed to tough and perilous jobs, the relentless two-day march with almost no breaks took a toll on their bodies.
“Hm?” Graviel raised an eyebrow. Others wouldn’t have dared to speak so openly to him, but Rowan was no ordinary soldier. He was a powerful Ki-Warrior, a Ki Master.
A Ki Master held a rank equivalent to that of an Elemental Adept Magus. While Magi typically had the upper hand in battles, owing to their versatile spells and supernatural means, Ki Masters’ strength lay in their raw physical power, though Magi didn’t find themselves lacking in this part either. Still, for a third-stage Initiate Attunement acolyte like Graviel, defeating a Ki Master without resorting to his strongest trump cards would be very hard.
“Rowan, you dare question Mister Graviel’s decision?” Jared interjected in an annoyed tone and did his usual act of pleasing Graviel.
“I dare not, sir,” Rowan replied quickly, lowering his gaze and going silent.
Rather than showing annoyance, Graviel smirked and turned his attention forward. “There’s a village about a kilometer from here. We’ll let the men rest there. They can do as they please — pillage, steal, whatever — for a day. I don’t care what happens to the village, as long as it isn’t completely destroyed. After the break, we march into the forest.”
“Understood,” Rowan responded while trying to hide the arc that was building on his twisted face. The nearby mercenaries following behind were worse at hiding their gleeful and thrilled expressions.
Graviel internally scoffed at this. Typical barbarians. Offer them the slightest chance for plunder, and they would leap at it without a second thought. However, a high morale will make it easier for me to use them as expendable pawns in battle and to discard them when they’ve served their purpose.
While the village lay within the jurisdiction of the Brightmoon Viscounty, its remote location made it a negligible concern for the ruling lord. Though, Viscount Brightmoon was known for being more generous and attentive than most. Excessive destruction, like burning the entire village down, might attract unwanted attention, even to a remote village. Nonetheless, he was sure of one thing: The viscount’s reign wouldn’t be for long.
A calculating glint flashed in his eyes as a thought of using his family to overthrow the Brightmoon House and seize control of the region appeared in his mind. After all, the pocket dimension contained immeasurable resources and treasures; he didn’t want anyone else to meddle with his affair and possibly jeopardize his claim to these riches.
Graviel silently cast a discreet glance toward Dorian and Jared and coldly thought in his heart, Maybe I should dispose of these two if push comes to shove and present them to “the Cult” as a sacrifice to be a token of my loyalty. Yes, along with the control over the pocket dimension and its resources, I could ascend rapidly within their ranks, becoming more than just a mere pawn.
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In his heart, the reason he did all this wasn’t simply to gain immense power and greater authority. No. There was a deeper, more personal “something” — a goal that had become his life’s ambition since he chose this path. Without this driving force, he would never have allied himself with such dark powers. As an heir to a prestigious Magus family, he was prideful, even bordering arrogant — a trait he was well aware of.
Lost in these thoughts, he noticed Elara’s facial expression. She had been unusually silent since the assassination on that dupe, Victor, and now, her restlessness seemed to have intensified for whatever reason. This woman. If she refuses to stand by my side, then…
Interrupting his contemplation, a scout approached with a report. “Sir, there’s a village ahead. No sign of anomalies or enemy forces.”
Acknowledging the scout’s report, Graviel turned to Rowan. “Good, proceed as instructed.”
“Yes.” Rowan brandished his two axes and sauntered forward. Ahead lay a village, surrounded by sprawling fields of wheat and diverse green vegetables.
Without issuing any specific commands, Graviel let Rowan address the mercenaries. “We’ll be stayin’ in this village ‘til tomorrow mornin’!” Rowan announced loudly. “Brothers, traversin’ the forest has been harsh. So, you’ve been given the freedom to do as ya please to this village — BUT no massacrin’ the residents unless met with resistance, and don’t burn down the village! Understood?!”
The mercenaries responded in unison, their voices filled with excitement at the prospect of unrestrained plunder without having to do anything. For them, this was an unexpected boon, almost like a dream come true.
Shortly after, under the leadership of Rowan, a Ki Master, the army charged toward the village. The approach of such a large force did not go unnoticed by the villagers, who hastily armed themselves in a futile attempt at resistance. However, as soon as a part of the resistance group was slaughtered, the old village head quickly stepped forward upon knowing the overwhelming might they were up against. Still, despite the willingness of the village head to cooperate, all sorts of crimes and atrocities were committed throughout the village, much to the distress of its inhabitants.
“Graviel… Do you truly believe that letting them do this is right?” Elara finally broke her silence, voicing her reservations about their course of action.
Jared reacted sharply to her question by glaring at her. “Elara!”
“Oh? We won’t kill these villagers so long as they don’t resist.” Graviel glanced around to ensure that no one was eavesdropping and continued, “These men need an outlet before we march into battle. Or what, are you suddenly concerned about the welfare of these mortals?” His eyes narrowed slightly as he regarded her.
“No. I just—”
“Enough,” Graviel cut her off, his tone sharp, then softened slightly. “Remember, after this whole thing, our families — yours and mine — will unite through our marriage. This alliance is crucial, especially for your family.”
What he cared about the most was the knowledge and the expertise of the Montana family — an Alchemist family — to help him advance on the Magus path. Only then would his goal be achieved.
“Yes…” she answered meekly.
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High above, several of Victor’s spectral puppets hovered, discreetly observing the unfolding events from hundreds of meters away. Naturally, he was fully aware of what was transpiring below, as he had been checking on the village almost daily in the past few days. However, he refrained from taking any action. Not because he was unwilling to help, but because he sensed danger from the scarred man leading the assault. Graviel and his cronies were also watching from a distance, and there might be other hidden protectors lurking in the background.
“It’s feasible for me to confront that man and possibly eliminate him, but to face him and two hundred seasoned mercenaries at the same time… Yeah, that’s seeking death,” Victor muttered, ending his thought with a resigned sigh.
An Elemental Adept Magus could indeed match the prowess of a thousand-armed men and even defeat them. While the fact might be true, such victories typically relied on guerrilla tactics. A Magus would fly in the air to do aerial assaults by unleashing magic spells until they were exhausted before retreating, repeating this up until the opposing forces were routed or decimated.
Even though he could have evacuated the villagers in advance, that wasn’t really an option. After all, he didn’t know where to take them since he couldn’t bring them to the academy and risk revealing his secret. Besides, the Thornwood Forest was dangerous; evacuating them there would be like escaping the wolf’s den, only to enter the tiger’s mouth.
Still…
As he witnessed the tragic scene in the village, Victor’s fists clenched tightly and slammed at the desk, knocking away the vellum and the ink and pen on it.
They were doing all sorts of horrible and immoral acts imaginable without a single moral scruple. Had he only been Victor from the Asteriscus Magus family, this wouldn’t have bothered him as much, but now he wasn’t.
Sensing his turmoil, Lizbeth flew to his cheek and started caressing him. “Master…”
Her presence helped him regain his composure and see the silver lining. I need to stay calm and think this through…
The greatest advantage Victor had on hand was his enemies’ ignorance of his survival and his ascension to an official Magus. He shouldn’t waste this element of surprise without a well-thought-out plan.
With an army of immortal players at his beck and call and all the advantages at his disposal, it wouldn’t be impossible to exterminate them in one fell swoop. All that was required was careful orchestration, ensuring that every element of his plan was executed flawlessly, and being the last one to laugh.
“Liz, mind helping me devise the most devious of plans?” Victor’s mouth had long since turned into a grin as he said this.