“Sir, they are waiting for you in the war room.”
Gerard grunted in assent, waving the Hero’s squire off. The lad nodded and kept going, likely on some assignment from his mentor.
Having watched his growth from the sidelines in the past months, Gerard could say that the Hero had chosen well. Oliver was a spirited and dedicated young man who put in the hours and was Blessed in return. Had the kid been a bit older, he would have snapped him up for the 105th, but Leonard got there first.
“Continue rummaging through this place; there should still be some boxes in the back with relevant information,” He ordered to one of his men, who saluted before leaving.
Walking briskly, he made his way upstairs, where Alpar's new ruling council was convening.
I suppose that makes me one of them. At least the Hero won’t make us stand waiting for him like Duke Hetnia that one time he deigned coming here.
Gerard was not the kind of man to enjoy pomp and pageantry. He understood there was a reason behind it, but he would have preferred if the nobles let him do his job as a soldier rather than show him off like a shiny toy.
Now, that wasn’t a problem anymore. If the rebellion succeeded, even in some minor way, he would be able to dedicate his time to matters of import. If it didn’t succeed, he’d be dead.
image [https://i.postimg.cc/D0YDXQ5F/persimmon0-experienced-veteran-knight-short-hair-powerfully-bui-8d9cc5a5-0e1b-4da6-8550-2650e3215f39.png]
Entering the lush room, Gerard noticed the unnaturally clean area, which, paired with the smell of blood, made it clear that the judge had met a gruesome end.
Not that I ever liked him. He was a right bastard and would have worsened once his grip on the town was solidified. Good riddance.
Where once had been a desk now stood a large table, likely pulled from storage. Several chairs had been placed around it, with most being occupied. All of the Hero’s confidants were present, each likely having been assigned duties relative to their competence.
“Lady, Sirs.” Gerard greeted quietly, taking one of the last two free seats, which put him next to the old hobgoblin woman who cared for the slums.
She turned to give him a look, which somehow was enough to make him feel like a misbehaving child, before turning away with a huff.
“You’ll have to forgive Lia, Sir Gerard. For her standards, that was a positively glowing first meeting.” The other knight in full armor at the table told him with a half-smile.
Gerard grunted, not feeling the need to make conversation. Luckily, the other man respected his unspoken wish because he shut up.
Gareth Doomspear was a name everyone in Alpar knew. He had led much of the “informal” army against the Void, and his tragic story had pulled at many heartstrings. All soldiers considered his subsequent fall into despair a waste of a good knight, so seeing him back in good spirits was encouraging. It seemed like the Hero had once again worked his magic.
The man of the hour was busy reading through a wad of documents but took the time to nod to Gerard in greeting, which he returned.
Seeing him look so serious took Gerard back to the days of fighting the Incursion. The man had personally led his Party and two Corps to relieve the siege of Alpar, freeing the 105th from what was quickly becoming certain death, and had used the town as a base to launch several successful attacks on the enemy.
Gerard had seen him defeat a Void Scourge by himself, one of the most powerful monsters spawned from the primordial hunger. It had happened quickly and efficiently, as if a creature capable of taking on the entire Corp was nothing but a child to be swatted away.
That was the moment he had known things would be alright. Blood would be spilled, and many would die, but they’d win in the end.
That same trust led him to join the man in his rebellion. Most military commanders would have rejected the possibility of conquering anything of import with just the forces available to Alpar as absurd. Still, something told Gerard the Hero would do it. And he trusted his instincts.
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A minute later, a beautiful woman stepped into the office. Her dark locks caught the fading sunlight perfectly, and her eyes sparkled like amethysts. Gerard stood to greet her and averted his gaze, fixating on a spot just above her eyebrow. He wouldn’t make a fool of himself.
The door closed behind her with a solid thunk, and she waved a hand over it, casting half a dozen spells in the time it would have taken him to draw his sword. Once satisfied with the security measures, she walked over to the table and set a stack of papers before the Hero.
“Here’s the accounting of all the assets we seized from the slave masters and my recommendation for their redistribution.” She said with a husky tone, as if she hadn’t just completed a job that would have taken several high-ranking bureaucrats a week in a mere afternoon.
“Thank you, Amelia. I’ll start working on it as soon as we are done here.” Leonard replied, gesturing to the open seat.
She followed the suggestion and sat beside Gerard, gracing him with a small smile.
“My lady.” He murmured, still keeping his attention away from her features.
Luckily, he was saved from making a fool of himself as the Hero stood up and walked to a pile of documents set on a small table to the side. He grabbed a roll of parchment and returned to his seat, working to open it from the silk knot that kept it closed.
He unrolled it, revealing a map of Hetnia, the duchy they resided in.
Marked on it in red were Alpar, close to the south-easternmost point, and Thelma, which sat fifty miles to the west.
In yellow were the province's two main cities, Treon, close to the border with Garva, sitting on the mouth of the Great Slitherer, and Hassel to the north, at the end of the Darkwood.
“From what we were able to learn from Eichelbaum before he croaked, Thelma has been aware of the likelihood of a rebellion for a couple of days, though only today did he send the confirmation.” With his eyes focused on the map and wearing his armor, the Hero once again resembled the force of nature that he was rather than the mortal man he had hidden himself as.
“The distance between Thelma and Alpar is fifty miles. If they left after receiving confirmation, we should still have some time before their scouts get here, much less the main army. If they left after the first message, they should be upon us.” Sir Gareth commented, rubbing his chin.
Everyone turned to Gerard for his opinion, being the man with the most experience with the local area. “In normal conditions, they should be able to march here in one and a half days, but considering the poor maintenance of the roads, the lack of supplies everyone in Hetnia suffers from, and the fact that the Void has killed all their elite squads while the rest of the soldiers rested behind the wards, I doubt they started marching as soon as they got the order. We should expect them to arrive between twenty-four and forty-eight hours.”
The Hero gestured to Lady Amelia, who nodded, “I already sent the fastest scouts there. We should have better information in a few hours, but the fact that they haven’t already returned means the army isn’t even halfway here. And I know they weren’t intercepted.”
Once again, the woman showed just how terrifying she was. As a Spirit Summoner, she was a mage with exotic powers that exceeded the average caster's dreams. Having reached the Fourth Blessing at a young age, Gerard couldn’t even imagine what she was truly capable of. It was a very good thing she was on their side.
“My people in Thelma have reported significant movement, but as of yesterday night’s check, the garrison hadn’t left yet.” A croaking voice interrupted. Gerard turned to look at the old hobgoblin, who sported a fanged grin.
“I have several old students working in Thelma. I’ll receive their daily report in a couple of hours, so we’ll know for sure, but I doubt they’ll be here before twenty-four hours.”
The Hero smiled, turning to Gerard. “What do our defenses look like? Assume you have a whole day to prepare before they arrive.”
Gerard took a moment to ponder. The 105th was originally made of five hundred soldiers, but the war had reduced their numbers to three hundred and thirty. Recruitment of the refugees had brought them back to four hundred - the minimum required to operate a functional Corp - but the new soldiers weren’t on par with the originals.
Adding the adventurers, ex-slaves and assorted veterans from other Corps that had been left around Alpar as their battalions disintegrated fighting the Void, the people that could be trusted to hold a formation when confronted with the enemy were less than a thousand.
“Assuming a whole day to prepare, we should be able to hold a few drills with the adventurers and veterans to check their preparedness. If they all are good to go, you’ll have a thousand soldiers capable of holding their own against Thelma’s. If you conscript all those who have physical Blessings, which would mostly be slaves, we could reach two thousand, but I don’t think it’s a good idea. They might break when faced with the enemy.” Raising levies wasn’t done if not in the harshest of circumstances. It was considered an outdated method everywhere these days, and the only modern force Gerard knew still did it was Mukabar in the Far East. But then again, it was said that people there lived as packed as sardines, so the accounts might not be accurate.
“As far as I know, we have about forty mages, but only twelve who can contribute to the fighting, though I have no idea how many might reside in the slums, as they have worked hard to stay away from the garrison.” He continued. All in all, it was a pretty good situation. Thelma’s soldiers would be better equipped and with more ammunition, owing to the town being larger and richer than Alpar. It had also suffered less during the Incursion. But the raw numbers were in their favor, as Gerard couldn’t see the Lord-Mayor of Thelma ordering all his forces to leave. It would leave him too open.
“Ultimately, it depends on how much of Thelma’s resources we have to fight. If they send everything they have, we might have to turtle down and lower their numbers with alternative methods. If, as I suspect, it’s only the 104th coming our way, we can win the fight in the open field.” He concluded.
“The Temple has decided to dedicate our resources to the defense of Alpar. The three Paladins sent from the Capital also swore oaths to fight for the cause and will be serving as healers and protectors of the injured.” Vicar Damien, who had been silently watching all this time, finally intervened.
The man was much sneakier than one would expect of a priest in the boonies and had the whole congregation wrapped around his finger. That he had managed to convince what should have been enemies to fight for them didn’t surprise Gerard, especially after he had been served them on a silver platter by the Hero.
Their leader turned to the two women of the council, who shared a look. Eventually, the old Alchemist sighed, “There are about sixty casters in the slums, though only twenty Journeymen I’d trust in a fight.”
That was significantly more than Gerard had expected. Twenty mages at their Second Blessing was enough to take over the whole town. No wonder the slums had not starved despite the lack of help from the local powers.
The Hero clasped his hands, staring at the map in concentration. “Very well, that’s enough to start. I want all the mages who cannot fight but want to contribute to cast [Shape Earth] or [Shape Stone] if they can and begin setting up defenses alongside the entirety of the town, slums included. Gerard, ensure that those who want to fight are capable enough. Amelia and Lia, I expect reports of any change in the enemy movements. Damien, organize your priests so they will have full mana in a day, but allow them to keep healing those who need it in the meantime. I’ll think of a place to put the paladins. Gareth, organize the auxiliaries with Gerard. By this time tomorrow, I expect us to be ready.”
Gerard stood up and saluted. He had his orders.