“This is it, the next world to gain more titles.” Ishmael stood in front of the team, they were at the kingdom’s edge, at the castle gate that led to the next land.

Evelin stood with them, her arms crossed with a smile.

“We hope you enjoyed the amenities we had. Oh, and a little request from us.” She walked closer to them.

“Please bring the bandit leader helmets, each of the three has a unique helmet that I know all too well, do it and there’s an extra tip to your labor. Especially the brigand king’s helmet and medal pouches.” She grinned.

A wind chime rang out once again.

With the rats gone, 2 titles restored, and the favor of the three royals, it was time for the splendor seekers to set out for the next realm. They bested the hordes and beast of the forest, but can they brave the foes of the merciless flat lands? Only time will tell.

Side quest added:

Take the helmets of the three party leaders: [X]

Seems like an easy task.

“Oh, if you find any loot from the dead bandits, you can keep it. Not like the nobles will be pissed about it, they can always get more of their lost things back.” Once done, she pointed at one of the guards standing at the top of the castle wall. He ran out of view, and a minute after, the gate began to slowly rise, shining the bright morning light at their faces.

“Best of luck! I eagerly await the good news you will all surely bring.” The team got on top of Pip, Evelin waved them off as they embarked on their next adventure, to a new land.

Bright yellow light and a strong heat on their skin greeted them the moment they stepped out.

A land of desert. There seemed to be no end to it in sight from where Kayd could see. In front of them, a rock pathway that led forward. In the distance, Kayd could see specks of black, some large some small, some close, some farther in distance.

“Desert…” Ikari muttered.

“A place ripe for attrition and morale drop, it is paramount we know these problems now before they hinder our efforts as time goes on,” Quellin spoke up, turning to everyone with that same dead-eyed expression on his face, but Kayd could feel some small emotion in his voice but decided to ignore it.

He took a moment to take in the dry arid air mixed in with whiffs of city odor, it felt calming. Far better than the forest musk he constantly inhaled, not to mention the rat blood. Kayd felt sick just by thinking of it.

“So, Captain Ishmael, where to first?” Ishmael laughed.

“Onwards of course!” She was enthusiastic, perhaps relieved to be out of that forest as well.

“Forward Pip! To the land of sand and plunder!” Pip raised its claws and charged forward, running onward towards their goal. Behind them, the gate and walls of Stone’s Edge became smaller, slowly fading out of sight.

“Ever been to a desert before?” Kayd asked Ikari, looking around with the same amazement as earlier.

“Never! I was always stuck in the forest. Here i thought it would remain that way!” Her eyes gleamed like a child seeing something new for the first time, she reached out her hand, feeling the heat hit her arm.

Lia, Quellin, and Mian’s teammate stood opposite to them, looking far out at the infinite field of sand with no signs of life at all. They were less interested in the scenery and moreso on other things.

“What about you? Traversed these places before?” Ikari asked.

“Yeah, a few times to explore and handle some targets, it was scorching hot but it made me savor water and the cold far more…Brings back good memories…” He smiled at the thought, reminiscing more on his fond memories, and also on Master Carwel.

Looking down, Kayd noticed that rather than a stone path leading them, Pip was following wagon tracks left on the sand, presumably used by dozens of wagons in the past that it left its mark there.

—--

Pip came to a full stop after minutes of continuous movement. Pip slowly moved its body downward until it touched the sand below.

Outside, Kayd saw one of the specks of black from earlier, it was a caravan. Wagons of crates and boxes burned, their contents ripped out of them with some on the ground next to it. Everyone jumped out to investigate while Ishmael grabbed a large cloth from Pip’s back.

“Barbaric…” Quellin commented with vitriol in his words. He walked closer to it, putting his hand on the charred wood.

“Insufficient security seems to be the cause of this,” He reported. Investigating further, the team found bodies of soldiers and merchants scattered around the caravan, their armor was stripped of them along with anything of value.

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Ikari grabbed an empty bottle from the sand, holding it to her face.

“Yup, bandits indeed. Handled a few before when they hurt some camps or attacked me. But sometimes i would steal scraps of food and drink from caravans they managed to pick off.”

“You did not aid the bandits in any way though, correct?” Quellin slowly turned his head to Ikari.

“Nope, not at at all. I am a drunk, a homeless, and not a people person, but i will never be a bandit.” Ikari replied, slightly frightened by Quellin looking at her.

Quellin continuedi investigating while Kayd and Ikari looked out at the sands, seeing more of these destroyed caravans in the distance.

“Looks like they own this desert, a whole bunch of caravans destroyed with no mercy.”

“I guess that’s how it is when things travel away from walled communities.” She replied.

“By the way, did i do anything rash last night? When i was…You know, drunk in the tavern.”

“Nothing much, apart from talking like a typical drunkard, you went with us to the bed and snuggled the pillow. Had to practically fight you and Lia to get a hold of it.” He chuckled, followed by Ikari laughing as well.

“Oi lads, get back on! This was just a breaktime to put the old cover on Pip before she gets cooked into seafood in this sun!” Looking back, Ishmael was waving her hand for everyone to head back inside. The entire top part of Pip’s body, even the wooden structure was covered by a long white cloth.

“Aww, that actually looks pretty cute.” Everyone got back on, out of the blistering heat and back to their journey.

—---

The further they went out, the more common the sight of burning caravans became.

“How many did they lose here?” Ikari gazed at the wreckages in front of her.

“Dozens, what is apparent is that all of them seem to have similar reason for being attacked, lack of security. And it seems whoever perpetraded them has made this routine.” Quellin sighed and put a hand to his face.

“In Ferrous Hands, convoys are given extreme security, from supply to trade, if they heard of even a single wagon having its wheel shot at. The punishment will be immense…” Kayd watched the sight with Quellin.

“They really have a thing for extreme discipline and punishment huh?” Kayd asked, “I read from books about the Hands and they are very…Unforgiving, no offense.”

“To ensure dominance and great strength. Cohesion, discipline, and martial prowess are of highest priority. Without all three, Ferrous Hands would be destroyed not only by the cold, but the rival factions near it.” He took off his helmet, letting the front face him.

“The duty of every man and woman is to serve and die for Ferrous Hands. All must be punished and rewarded accordingly, but still retain their discipline and duty to fight any threat.” Quellin responded, speaking quickly and precisely without a moment to pause and think on what else to say. Once finished, he donned the helmet again.

“Do you not have any recreational activity? I know those are important but some rest or hobbying would also help keep a warrior’s spirit up. I should know.” Quellin looked at Kayd, his gaze felt like two needles piercing his skin.

“No man or woman of Ferrous Hands is to pursue their own interests, not unless it’s for the express desire to benefit Ferrous Hands greatly. And the best way is either in food production or weapon and armor production.”

“So everyone in Ferrous Hands is a soldier, no farmer or baker?”

“That is for the city army to handle. I was part of the skirmishing army that handled outside threats and expansion along with convoy escort. It is not my place to know how the city guard conducts itself nor know how they operate the city, as long as it functions.” Kayd could feel the slight tinge of irritation in Quellin’s voice.

Seems like questioning it is another way for a Ferrous Hand to get chewed out, that or he doesn’t want to talk about it. Best to drop it now.

“Very well then.” Kayd slowly moved away.

Ishmael was at the front, looking out to see the wagon wheel marks ahead of them and any possible settlement or sign of bandits or merchants still alive.

“What do you know about this place, Captain?” Ishmael took a moment to think.

“Apart from the obvious sand, this place was once the artery of Stone Edge’s trading industry. Until those bandits showed up.” She took out her hatchet and began wiping it while continuing her story.

“When I was here it was the same deal, kill bandits then brigand. But if I learned anything from the rats we fought, there’s bound to be worse things in store for us…Or more than before. Best prepare yourself for that Kayd, especially since you’re one of my frontliners now.” She smiled.

“Don’t worry, unlike rats, I handled countless warriors and soldiers, criminal or not.”

“Well, that’s a bit concerning. But I look forward to seeing you fight, let’s see if you’re better than me here. Alright?” With a smile, she knocked her hatchet on Kayd’s sheathe.

Mian’s teammate stood at the back of the structure, silent and looking down at his weapon.

Mian and those guys were annoying and got themselves killed easily, but now they’re here with us. I’m shocked he managed to survived the last den without help.

“Doing well? Good job on surviving the den.” Kayd leaned on the wood, next to him.

“Yeah…Glad i survived…”

“Hey, I know you’re pretty banged up by what happened, and you’re kind of part of the team, just calm down and remember that you’re not in the forest anymore. Our threat is other people, not rats.” Kayd tried calming down with what he knew.

“Good thing, I have never been here before. I hope horde rats aren’t here either.” He replied.

“Yeah, I doubt they will.”

—---

Pip came to a screeching halt, and Ishmael turned to everyone.

“First settlement to help lads! Looks like a small new one they made. Our job is to help as many as possible and get some intel. Let’s go!” One by one, they jumped down and saw their destination.

A walled-off village made entirely of wood and tarp. The walls and gate entirely destroyed, the tents and any small building inside was crumbling and burning.

Kayd and the others quickly went to work, running into the settlement and finding anyone who survived.

Out of everyone, Lia was the most energetic in the effort. Even with her small stature she started dragging people away from burning rubble and bringing aid to them.

They piled up anyone they found to the center of the village. While Kayd was dragging out another one of the people, he looked down.

What the?

Unlike the fine or modest clothing of the residents, this man wore leather armor, rugged and visibly made by an amateur.

Wait, is that a bandit-

The man’s eyes opened and without missing a beat threw Kayd to the ground, quickly getting on top of him and raising his dagger.

Kayd grabbed the man’s hands quickly, stopping him from stabbing his chest, with a headbutt he knocked the man to his back.

He took out his sword and pierced the man’s chest first.

“You alright Kayd?” Everyone rushed to him, looking at the corpse and at him.

“Yeah, i’m fine. So that’s the bandits you talked about.”