The pair found a suitable place to leave the goblin’s corpse before returning to their camp. Nothing else of note happened throughout the night, so after eating and taking turns resting, the two were back on the road at dawn.
It didn’t take long for them to reach the village. It wasn’t their only stop for the day, so after refilling their waterskins, they continued riding. Nothing of note happened while they were on the road. Nothing jumped out to attack them, and other than one other person who seemed to be returning from town, they didn’t meet anyone else.
They spent this time getting to know each other better. Despite the significant age difference, the two needed to understand each other if they wanted to keep themselves safe on this journey. He also asked her if she knew the name of his new horse. Chase was his name. It was a good thing to know.
It wasn’t long before the town of Whaeldrake was in sight.
The third largest town in the region outside of Whitmore castle, Whaeldrake was a bustling mining town with rich coal and iron exports, singlehandedly providing these materials to most of the region.
The town had a population of over thirty thousand people. A sizeable portion of them had jobs directly related to the mining industry, while the rest held jobs that supported the growth and continued prosperity of the town.
Whaeldrake had a long and storied history. According to the records found in both the town hall and the library, the town was created after the founder’s carriage accidentally fell into a cave. He miraculously survived with only a few injuries, although both the horse and the carriage did not.
He stumbled upon a coal vein in his attempts to escape, and after he finally did, he returned with his family, a few friends, and some equipment then started mining. They spent days mining in that cave, with no signs of the coal running out. They bunkered down in the area, and the rest was history.
Seeing the town in front of them, the pair made one final push to safely enter the town’s borders before the sun could set. They were stopped at the gate by a group of wary guards.
With the rising tension in the area, the guards were on high alert for any strangers or odd situations. And two people showing up so close to night time, with one of them missing an arm, would definitely attract their attention.
After accessing that they weren’t a threat, the guards opened the gate and let them through.
“Phew, we can finally take a break,” Lynn sighed as she slumped in the saddle. The last push took a lot out of her and she was happy to rest. Riding all day was not something she thought she could get used to, and she didn’t know how she would get through the rest of this.
Lucien was also a bit tired. “We’ll find a place to spend the night then ride back out in the morning. Do you know anywhere good?”
Lynn shook her head. “I’ve only been here a few times with my father, and we slept in the barracks then.”
Lucien shrugged as the two rode deeper into town. “Then I guess we can only hope that the mayor will give us a place to spend the night.”
It took far longer for them to cross from the outskirts to the centre of town than it did to cross the entirety of Haderfield in Paul’s wagon. It took over twice as long as when Lucien crossed from one end of Locham to the other on foot, and that even included the land used for farming.
The town hall was far more like what Lucien imagined a town hall to be. While Haderfield’s mayor’s office was just the front part of a house done up to fit its needs, this was a proper, standalone building purpose-built for meetings and decision making.
It gave off an official kind of aura that was lacking in other places.
The mayor was alone in his office, writing something on a piece of paper when Lucien and Lynn showed up at the door of his office under the lead of his assistant. The mayor was a healthy middle-aged man. His hands were calloused. The hands of a labourer.
He worked in the mines when he was younger, long enough to shape his attitude and mentality, but not long enough to leave any serious health problems behind. He worked in construction after that, helping to build up the town physically before he was voted into the mayor’s office. He was a favourite among the miners and the workers of the town.
He had a full head of salt-and-pepper hair that was short and well-kept. His face had a few well defined wrinkles.
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He looked up from his work, looking at them with spirited eyes and a warm smile. “Welcome strangers, how can I help you today?”
“We’re here on a journey to Whitmore Castle. Locham was destroyed.” Lucien retold the story all over again, explaining what happened to the mayor and his assistant. Everyone listening paled, even Lynn, who had heard it before. It wasn’t something she would be able to get used to hearing.
As the story came to an end, the mayor slumped back in his chair, squeezing the bridge of his nose. He sighed, sounding far older than he did when he first spoke. “Thank you for telling me.” He looked out the window, noticing that it was dark out. “It’s getting late. Let my assistant take you somewhere to spend the night.”
Lucien bowed slightly to the mayor. “Thank you.”
The door closed as the two left the mayor’s office under the guide of the assistant. Now alone, the mayor wanted to get back to his work, but each time he looked down at the letter, his mind went back to the bleak images created by Lucien’s recount of what happened. Unable to focus, he got up and went for a walk to clear his head.
He found himself outside the house of one of his closest friends. The house was one of the best in town, and belonged to the owner of the largest mine in town, and the descendant of the town’s founder. He needed to talk with someone about everything that was on his mind.
~
Back with Lucien and Lynn, they had been led to a nearby inn, where the assistant paid for their rooms. Although they were tired from the day’s long ride into town, they wouldn’t give up the opportunity to have a warm meal. Seated at a corner table in the inn, they were able to have a meal that didn’t consist of hard bread, dried meat, or berries.
The last warm meal he had had was when he was on the road with Paul. And before that would have been prior to the attack on Locham. It was something he could appreciate after everything he had been through.
While both of them had some money with them, they didn’t want to spend too much, given that they still had a long way to go. Thankfully, the mayor’s assistant paid for their meals as well. He also took care of their horses, bringing them to a nearby stable to be cared for during the night.
The two sat there, enjoying their meals and the warm feeling the inn provided. Raucous laughter, the clinking of mugs, and the rolling of dice filled the air, making the place feel cozy. It brought back memories of his friend Arthur, and for a moment, the world went quiet and the food lost all taste.
His vision clouded as he soul was pulled back in time. It wasn’t until Lynn waved her hands in front of his face that he came back to himself. He retired to his room upstairs, leaving the meal half-finished and destined to go cold.
Lynn watched him go with worried eyes. She stuffed the last few bites of her food into her mouth and rushed to follow him upstairs. Standing at his door with her hand raised, she hesitated before returning to her own room. She knew that he didn’t need her right now.
Lying in her bed, she listened intently, trying to hear something from the other side of the wall. But, Lucien’s room was silent. Unable to sit there forever, she allowed herself to collapse onto the bed and drift off to sleep. Her mind thinking about what the future held in store for her.
~
In the morning, when it was still quiet and the day had just begun, Lynn heard a knock at the door that startled her awake.
“It’s about time for us to leave,” Lucien’s voice came from the other side of the door.
She was slightly reluctant to leave the cozy bed behind, but she knew that she had to get up if they wanted to make any progress today. She pushed the sheets away and scrambled out of bed and into her travelling clothes.
After collecting their horses from the stable, they travelled north up the main street. It would take a while for them to cross through the rest of the town, so they would inevitably have to spend the night on the road.
The next village was a over a day’s travel away, and they would reach it with just an hour or two to spare before the sun set. This meant that they would have a roof over their heads for another night.
Unfortunately, they wouldn’t be this lucky for the next portion of their journey.
Due to a vicious battle involving a terrifying monster a long time ago, a large stretch of land had become a barren landscape. Crops couldn’t grow, and the land was still aflame in the parts where the monster walked.
There were very few living creatures that called that place home. It was also directly on Lucien’s way to Whitmore Castle. Going through was the fastest route, significantly faster than if they were to go around.
Because of this, they would have to make sure they had enough supplies with them, for they wouldn’t be able to meet anyone else for a long time.
They collected as much dried and salted meat and other long-lasting foods as they could carry in their satchels as they travelled towards the northern outskirts of the town.
As they were travelling, they passed by a small ramshackle house that caught Lucien’s attention. Some of the surrounding buildings in the outskirts weren’t in the best condition, but this house was in a serious state of disrepair.
The windows were busted up and there was a large hole in the ceiling. The house was small, akin to the room Lucien slept in at the inn. It was also tilted slightly, a clear sign of a rushed and sloppy construction. A big gust of wind would send it crashing down.
But what really caught his attention was that there were two burly men standing at the door, bashing on it to the point that the whole house was shaking. The door creaked, as if it was about to pop off its hinges under the repeated blows. But before that could happen, the old and almost rotted wood that made up the door snapped, leaving a massive hole in the door to match the rest of the building.
The two men were about to barge into the house when the door opened from the inside. A middle-aged and haggard woman was staring at them with fear in her eyes. Her skin was pallid, and she didn’t have a bit of muscle or fat on her sickly stick thin body.
She was in even worse conditions than her home, like she already had one foot in the grave. She was so frail and weak that she needed to use a walking stick to stay standing, and even that was a struggle.
“Please sirs, I just need a bit more time.”