Celkeish marked the eastern border of the independent lands. Beyond it lay the lands of Olentor, Linara’s destination. Rather than a single town they grew larger over time until it blossomed into a full city, Celkeish formed from a line of small villages, the resulting city taking the form of a long line. From a military standpoint, it was a nightmare. There were a few wooden walls here and there, but the growth of the population had outpaced the construction projects, leaving the meager fortifications as dividers for the stretches of buildings.

“We’ll rest here for a bit, and then start the last leg of our journey.” Linara said, staring across the grassy plain at the city. A simple dirt road curved towards the sprawling monument of humanity’s ability to grow, flanked by fenced fields filled with horses, cows, sheep, and goats.

“What is Olentor like?” Sal asked.

Linara took a moment to contemplate how to best describe it for her student. “I was last there several years ago, but it is a small and well organized kingdom. A lot of little towns interconnected, all working together. The main city at the center of it is bigger than Bavmont, but not as big as that,” She pointed at Celkeish, “with a castle at the center. There’s a lot of horses.”

“You’d think horses would come from a big place with a lot of open land.”

It made sense, and Linara smiled. “The famous horses of Olentor you are thinking of are a very small part of a much larger culture. Of every one hundred horses in Olentor, there is one of the royal family’s personal stock.”

After a bit of silence, Sal asked, “How many is that, total?”

“A bit less than two hundred, at any given time.”

“There’s nearly twenty thousand horses in the kingdom? And it’s small?”

“For every horse, there are about seven people.”

Sal went silent again, doing the math in her head. “A hundred and seventy thousand?”

Reaching over, Linara ruffled the girl’s hair. “Should be around that number. Though, since they’ve now allied with Wellant, things may have changed.” Smaller buildings surrounded them as they reached the outskirts of Celkeish.

Before the two could get very far into the city, four men stepped out, blocking their path. All of them were wearing identical hooded, dark-blue coats, with a black stripe wrapping around at chest height. Two of them hand the fronts unbuttoned, revealing scaled armor underneath.

Linara stuck out her arm, holding Sal back. “What’s this about?”

“Mandated ‘spection.” The closest one said. “See you’ve got weapons and armor. Wonderin’ where yer headin’. Thas’ all.”

Narrowing her eyes, Linara faced the man. He didn’t quite equal her in height, despite being the tallest of the four. “On what authority?”

“Lord Felden.”

“Who?” Linara asked. She had never heard of a Lord Felden, much less any sort of nobility in Celkeish. Cities in the independent lands were rarely ruled by bloodline.

“Lord Felden the First! Lord of Celkeish! By his decree, no armed individuals may enter the city without being questioned. All the mercenaries were heading south for the war. What’s got you going in the opposite direction?”

“I am a Knight of Olentor and I am returning there. This is my squire.”

She felt Sal stiffen, and the lead man looked back at his comrades, the three of them wearing concerned looks. Officially, Linara had never been a true knight, but during her time in the palace she was given equal, if not better, treatment.

“M-milady.” The speaker said, giving her an awkward and entirely unneeded half-bow. “Someone of your esteem must pay a visit to Lord Felden. He will surely want to speak with you.”

“I’m very eager to return to Olentor. We were looking for a place to stay the night before heading out tomorrow.”

Another look backwards. “S-surely you can wait an extra day. It’s likely that Lord Felden would allow you to stay in one of his guest rooms. Much better than some random Inn. Please.”

“Very well.”

Moving south, their destination quickly became clear. A large mansion stood above the surrounding buildings, ornate towers in the four corners making the structure look more like a castle, though the delicate-looking wood front contradicted that. There were more uniformed guards patrolling the streets as the group of six got closer.

At the gate, one of the men escorting Linara and Sal stopped to talk with someone on the other side, and they were let through. A short walk through an oddly plain garden later, and the two were instructed to wait in the ornate foyer. Vibrant rugs covered the floor, and the walls were covered with paintings of elaborate landscapes. Linara approached one of these, peering intently at a depiction of mountains meeting the sea.

“It’s pretty.” Sal said, standing beside her.

Home. Linara didn’t say the word. It was hidden from view, but the painting showed the location of Aesuthal, the southernmost Hatharen stronghold. Who had painted this, and when? Did they know what was there, or did they only care about the landscape?

“Does that interest you?”

Turning to the voice, Linara found herself looking down at a well-dressed, balding man. His dark blue, double-breasted shirt was the same shade as the stripe on the guard’s coats. “Lord Felden, I presume.” Linara said, meeting his eyes. He barely came up to her chest, being only a few fingers taller than Sal. His thin build and proper posture gave him a bit of a dignified aura despite his size.

“Indeed. If my knowledge of the current history of the region is correct, you are Linara. Though I do not know your companion.” He smiled widely, awkwardly tilting his head downward while still looking up at her before turning to Sal.

“That’s Sal of Bavmont, a squire I took on recently.”

“After winning the tournament, yes? I heard it was quite the show, for the locals. A bit beneath someone of your history, though.” Turn back to her, he winked.

“A better test of my abilities than most.”

Nodding, Felden put on a more serious expression. “I would like to discuss business with you. I am embarrassed to admit that I did not expect you to stop here, so I do not have a proper offer to give you, but that simply leaves more room for discussion.

“I’m just passing through, not looking for business.”

“Please, come to my office, we can sit down and have a talk. Please at least hear me out before turning me down. I promise I have a lot to offer you.”

Keeping her displeasure off her face, Linara nodded. “Fine.”

Calling the room Felden led the two of them to an office seemed misleading. While there was a desk and chair in the corner, the main area of the room was dominated by two lush couches and two armchairs arranged in a rectangle. Taking a seat at one of the chairs, Felden gestured at the couch opposite it. Sal quickly sat down, Linara hesitating a moment before following suit. The girl was nervous and not following her lead. Linara would have to talk to her about that, later.

“I do not mean to belittle whatever your current plans are, but if you give me three, even just two weeks of your time, I can compensate you many times the usual amount. Would a delay of that much be within your plans?” Felden leaned forward, an eager smile on his face, though his body was slightly stiff with underlying tension. Linara looked him over, taking note of this, and gave him a slight frown in return. “You still haven’t told me what exactly you want from me.”

His eyebrows shot upwards, and his smile grew wider still. “Ah! Of course. I was hoping for your expertise in training. You trained the palace guards in Olentor, if I remember correctly. I need that, for my men. They have the equipment but lack the proper training.”

“I assisted in the training of a few dozen.” Linara replied flatly. “From what I saw, you have far more than that, and are looking at a much bigger area to defend. This whole city? Why? What’s going on here? I didn’t think there was nobility here. Who are you?”

“Well, um.” Her barrage of questions killed his smile. Felden sat back in his seat, bringing his hand to his chin. “I would have you give training to the ten men that I selected to be leaders. They would take it to their squads. I have a structure set up already.” Shifting his posture, he sat up straight. “You are correct, I am a self-proclaimed lord. I have pooled resources and I want to not only take charge of this city, but start organizing the Independent Lands as a whole. If there is a war in the southwest, the victor could turn their attention northward. To stop armies the size of Ettsgrad or Celngi, the Independent Lands would have to make a military alliance with Wellant and Olentor. The problem, of course, is that there is no military in the independent lands. I want to change that. If I can bring order to Celkeish, that is a start. I might be able to convince the rules of the other cities to do something similar, and start forming some sort of-“

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

“Felden.” Linara cut in, bringing the man to a stop. His demeanor had fallen, his former dignity giving way to nervous rambling. “You are making a lot of plans. Do you even have control of Celkeish? This city, to my knowledge, has never had a proper single ruler. It has always been divided. Elected mayors, gangs, wealthy merchants, or self-styled lords like you taking charge of different parts. How much of the populace supports you? Who are your rivals? You are getting ahead of yourself.”

For a moment, he was silent, an intense expression on his face. Suddenly, he rose to his feet, pacing. “Two thirds of the city is behind me. I’ve spoken with families, individuals, and local leaders of various districts. The southern tip of the city appears lawless, but there is an organization that keeps it that way, hiring assassins to kill anyone who steps up. I have carefully avoided that area.”

“Idiot.”

His face went pale as he looked at her. “The bigger picture is-“

“It’s useless and you know that. All your greater plans are useless. What do you want me to do? Train your captains, guard you, eliminate this organization?”

“You are a bodyguard and a master instructor.” He said. “If Ferene had shown up instead of you, it would be different, but she left for Ettsgrad shortly after being seen in the independent lands again.”

Hearing the name caused Linara to freeze, focusing intently on Felden. “You know about Ferene? She went to Ettsgrad? Why?”

A quick look of confusion, and then Felden recovered his earlier composure. Sitting back, he smiled at Linara. “I have an information network. Ferene has long been an interest of mine. After another round of slaughtering outlaws, she vanished for several weeks, only to be briefly spotted going south. What her business is in Ettsgrad is anyone’s guess.”

Linara had tracked down Ferene based on rumors. If she could do that, someone with proper informants would have far more information on the girl. If she had gone north and vanished for as long as Felden claimed, Linara had no doubt that Ferene found Yonthal. Any number of things could have happened there, but the girl avoided the worst if she made it out alive. The duration of her stay suggested it had gone well, to some degree.

“I will discuss your offer with my squire.” Linara said suddenly, rising to her feet. Sal quickly stood up beside her, the girl’s lips pressed tightly together, her eyes locked on Linara.

Felden also stood up, smiling warmly. “Of course. You may stay here while you consider.”

Outside his office, Felden instructed a servant to show them to the guest rooms. The lavish suite of two bedrooms, a common room, and a study were almost as good as the rooms Linara borrowed back in Cefgras. After taking off her armor, Linara heavily fell onto one of the couches in the central room, stretching out and letting out a sigh.

“So, um…You’re a knight?”

Sal stood nearby, still fully dressed, awkwardly holding her hands in front of her.

“I was close enough, if not a little above them.” Linara said, waving a hand.

“And I’m a squire now?”

“If we consider me a knight, and I’m training you, does that make you a knight in training? You do carry gear and supplies for me. It’s also close enough. Take your armor off and relax, Sal. These revelations don’t change our relationship.”

The girl did as Linara said, sitting on the edge of the other couch, wearing only a thin undershirt and her trousers. “Why are we going to Olentor, Linara?”

“Why do you ask?”

“We were going to discuss taking up Felden on his offer, weren’t we? You never told me why we are going there. Or what is there for us.”

Taking a deep breath, Linara stared at the ceiling. “I’m in love with the king.” She said after some consideration. “He’s married, obviously. Has at least two children, last I heard. I ran away from him because I was scared. Scared of seeing him with someone else. After facing monsters from nightmares and beating some of the best warriors in the land, I was scared to look at the man I love being married to another woman. That’s the truth of me, Sal.”

Keeping her gaze directed upwards, Linara could not see Sal’s expression as silence filled the room. Eventually, she heard a small laugh from her. “You were jealous of me. That’s why you got upset at me before.”

“Yes.”

Footsteps, then a hand on her shoulders. Sal urged her up, to make a space so she could sit beside Linara. “So why are you going back? To prove to yourself that you can look at him? That’s it?”

“I want to check in on him, and the others. I was there for years, and made friends. Guy called Rilren, captain of the royal guard. You’d like him. Handsome, might be a little old for you, though. Great fighter, one of the best. He could have won the tournament back in Bavmont, if he was there. There’s also Vendel. He came and visited me, pointed out my flaws. Good man. Too good for his position. Then there’s Henry, the armorer, and his wife Carlin. Honest people, both are great cooks. Calin always says that Henry’s food tastes like iron, but nobody agrees with her.”

“Just the four?”

“I spent a lot of time with Senral. He was only the prince back then.”

Sal grinned. “Of course. So, you aren’t really in a rush, are you?” Linara shook her head. “Let’s take the time to stay here. I want to see you put others through what you’ve done to me.”

Laughing, Linara smiled at Sal, sadness fading. “You think I’m done with you already?” The girl’s eyes went wide, faking shock. “I can make the next part of your training helping me train these idiots. They are surely idiots, too.”

“Of course, Linara.”

After eating breakfast the next morning, Linara sought out Felden and told him that she’d agree to his terms, and train his men for no more than three weeks. The two discussed pay for a bit before splitting up, Linara collecting Sal and returning to their rooms.

Shortly after, a servant knocked on the door. Linara and Sal were led, fully armored, to a large underground chamber where Felden’s selected ten were waiting.

“Line up.” Linara told them after instructing Sal to wait near the entrance. “Let me have a look at you.”

As they formed a line and stood at attention, Linara watched each one carefully. They all seemed to have enough basic training to know what to do, and none were obviously ill-suited to fighting. She immediately wanted to guess they were lone mercenaries or former soldiers, rather than rabble Felden collected from the city.

“Henrick.” She said, noting a slightly shorter man with black hair, bright green eyes, and a slightly twisted nose. “Good to see you again.”

The former guardsman’s eyes went wide, and he nodded in response. “You remember me, milady?”

“Yes. Step forward.” Smiling, she guided him out of line, then turned him around to face the others. “Henrick here was a palace guard in Olentor for six years. I instructed him during that time. I know his history. The rest of you are going to tell me your own stories.”

The nine of them each gave a brief history of their experience. Four were mercenaries, and three were soldiers that served in the south. The last two were more interesting. The oldest, a man in his forties, was a retired knight from Wellant. He had taken on the leading role in this group. Velent, the final of the nine, had married the older man’s younger sister and became his apprentice.

“Alright. Jakop and Gisli, step over here.” She called out the knight and the most experienced of the soldiers from the south, leaving the other six in line. “Which of you three do you think has the best chance of beating me?” She asked, smiling at them.

Henrick immediately shook his head. Jakop and Gisli saw this and exchanged a look between each other, before Jakop spoke up. “I’d like to give it a shot.”

“Too bad, you won’t get the chance just yet.” Linara told him. “Sal, here’s your first opponent.” The girl trotted over as all ten of Felden’s men watched her. Standing next to Linara, she looked up at her teacher. “You and Jakop will have a sparring session. Do you think you can beat a knight from Wellant?”

“I don’t know.” Sal said, looking over at her opponent, frowning.

Smiling, Linara patted her on the head. “Good. Lesson five: never underestimate an opponent you don’t know, and if you do, make sure you don’t get killed for it. Everyone else, make some space!” She turned and barked orders, stepping back to leave the two combatants alone.

Taking a deep breath, Sal drew her sword, the rings on the back rattling, drawing stares from the men. Jakop had a shield and a longsword. The two faced each other and bowed on Linara’s orders before starting.

Sal approached slowly, showing caution and a lack of confidence. Jakop took a commanding step forward, towering over the girl as he brought his sword down at her. The blow carried a lot of power - the man was fully prepared to split Sal’s head open if she didn’t block properly. The girl did, placing a hand of the back of her blade as she intercepted the strike. Pushing her opponent’s blade away, Sal stepped back, standing up in her one-legged stance. Jakop frowned, approaching more cautiously before throwing out an experimental thrust.

With her hand, Sal slapped the flat of Jakop’s sword, dropping her raised foot and bringing her sword down at where his head would be, if he were the same height as her, in a perfect recreation of his earlier strike. The knight blocked with his shield, the sound of Sal’s rings resonating through the room.

Surprised by either the power or the ferocity of the attack, Jakop stepped back, looking at Sal warily, changing his stance. Linara smiled, knowing the knight’s thought process. He recognized Sal was competent and not an easily dismissed opponent, but didn’t know her full capabilities. Young fighters were often unbalanced, having devoted a lot of time to developing proficiency in certain areas. If he could figure out what Sal was lacking, he could defeat her easily, but if he let her utilize her strengths he could end up losing.

Out of the three she selected, the knight probably had the best chance of beating Sal. Henrick could do it, but he was too used to fighting in a group. Adapting to a one on one fight wasn’t his strong suit. She didn’t know about the mercenary, she doubted that he had more experience in this kind of situation than Jakop.

Rising his shield, Jakop swung it at Sal, challenging her to react to the fact he had two potential weapons. The girl stepped back, just barely avoiding being struck, and was able to block the following sword strike with her own blade, once more placing her free hand on the back of his sword. This time, however, when she pushed his blade away from her, she pushed it towards him, stepping into a gap created. Jakop’s arms were suddenly in the wrong places, and Sal shot a kick at his shin. He stumbled backwards, eyes wide. Sal followed, poking with the same light thrust he had used on her earlier. Recovering, he swatted the jab aside, but Sal was already moving, copying Grathen’s fake feint at the shoulder. Jakop made the same mistake that Linara had, and the result was also identical. Her curved sword failed to pierce the knight’s pauldron, making a skittering sound as it slid off the metal.

“Stop!” Linara called, and both combatants stepped away from each other. “Do any of you think you can beat this girl?” She asked once the rest of them had gathered again. There were a few looks shared between them, some of them shaking their heads, but a few stated that they wanted to try. “How would you beat her?” Linara asked the four had spoken out.

The mercenary she had called up before was one of them. Gisli pointed at Sal. “She’s short, and her weapon doesn’t have a lot of range. On top of that, it isn’t good against armor. Overpower her directly, trusting my armor to protect me.”

“Stupid, but brave. How did you avoid getting killed until now, thinking like that?”

Gisli laughed. “I only think like that when I can afford to.”

Smiling, Linara looked over the ten of them. She wasn’t sure they needed her instruction, but she’d do what she had agreed to. They needed training to be leaders, and Linara knew she wasn’t that.