Zach’s scream made Jeyne jump. Her eyes found her father’s

“Father is that…” Jeyne's trembling voice couldn’t finish her words. The scream that she never expected came out of the blues and seeped fear into her fragile heart.

“Report!” Orland said. He turned towards the front, and Halrim was quick on the uptake.

“He had fallen, milord,” Halrim said. The only thing he could see under the faint moonlight was the swarm of horn-ant congregating where Zach was last seen standing.

“Then on me!” Orland roared. He commanded his men and they followed without question. Under the constant duress of the night, these men had grown accustomed to following Orland’s order and by now they could roughly move in unison. The thought of dying was a good motivator for them to act as one.

Soon, they were close enough to where Zach was last sighted. A gap opened at the front and Orland came out charging along with a few brave men. Their battle cries echoed, and their steel cut through the thin exoskeleton of these giant horn-ants. Orland rammed his shield against one of the giant horn-ants and slashed another to his side. He kicked one by the thorax and there he saw the unconscious man being bitten by the mandibles of the numerous horn-ants. Orland saw the movement of Zach’s chest and it was enough for the Lord of Shieldford to grab Zach by the ankle.

“Cover me!” Orland shouted. He dragged Zach across the ground while the others guarded them against the pouncing ants. Some were knocked down. While some were pierced by the sharp horns. Orland flung the unconscious Zach through the gap and he immediately went for the others. He smashed and slashed. Rallying his brave men to help the injured.

“Milord!” one of the brave men shouted. Orland caught on and by the nick of time, he raised his shield high. A loud smack brought his feet off the ground, hurling him close to the gap in an instant. The brave men who were already at the gap dragged Orland back into the safety of the turtle shell formation, and once more the gap was closed.

Their short and frantic rescue was a success. But not without casualties, half of them were badly injured with bones sticking out of their skins. The strength of those pouncing ants was not something to be trifled with, and the low levels of these men who were around level one to two were making it more challenging going up against this swarm.

Cries of pain echoed under the shields. There were loud enough compared to the constant knocks from the horn-ants outside, telling of how bad it went down in that few seconds outside. It was reality for them all, that out there, they were goners.

Orland sat on the ground as his hand grasped the cloth above his chest. That sudden hit did a number on him, but not as bad as the rest of his men. In hindsight, he was pretty lucky.

“Father, are you hurt?” Jeyne came and asked. Her eyes were on the verge of crying just from seeing her father get a little bit hurt.

“Let me heal you,” Jeyne said.

“No,” Orland rejected.

“Heal that damn Reacher first,” Orland said. But Jeyne didn’t seem like she wanted to budge. A first an act of disobedience from his daughter, and it was all for the sake of love for her father.

“I’m fine, my daughter,” Orland said. “Now do as I said.”

Finally, Jeyne relented. She went to the unconscious Zach and noticed the bite wounds that riddled his body with blood seeping out and pooling underneath. Thankfully, Orland was quick on his feet and avoided the worst-case scenario of Zach being eaten. Her light engulfed the unconscious man on the ground as the wounds began to mend together. After a considerable amount of time, the glow from her skill receded. She inspected Zach and for now, he was stable enough. The wounds were closed and he no longer bled. Jeyne was perceptive enough to know that others needed the light of her skill.

“Father, now it’s your turn,” Jeyne said. Returning back to her father’s side.

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“As I said, I’m fine,” Orland said. “Heal the rest first, their conditions are worse than mine.”

“No,” Jeyne said. She denied with a strong voice. Pulling a shocked face on Orland. “My heart cannot calm not until I heal you, my dear father.”

“Huh,” Orland sighed. “Go on then, and be quick about it. The rest of them need you.”

Jeyne smiled, and she focused on healing her father. After that she worked her magic around the rest of those brave men, prioritizing the most critically injured. Her light healed them, and it was like a miracle to these men as their bones returned back under the cover of their skins as if they were not broken at all.

Unfortunately, her mana ran out and half of them had to endure their injuries for a while until her mana recovered. Thankfully, they were not as badly injured as the ones who had bones poking through their skins.

“Excuse me for asking, milord, but what now?” Halrim asked. While his hands busied holding up the shield.

“We pray and wait,” Orland said. “Hope that the heaven has mercy on that unconscious man.” His gaze fell on Zach as he thought deeply about what he should do if the situation turned worse.

Half an hour passed, and Zach’s unmoving body began to writhe. The slight movement was caught by Orland’s and Jeyne’s eyes, and Jeyne was quick to rush beside Zach.

“He’s beginning to awake, father,” Jeyne said, smiling. Her dainty hands grasped tightly over Zach’s warm hand. Over the last half an hour, her eyes never left the sight of Zach.

Orland nodded, drawing closer to where Zach lay. Jeyne called his name with the sweetest voice as if they were in the bedroom and not encircled by a swarm of horn-ants.

Zach groaned as his eyelids slowly opened. His vision was a blur as the grogginess really hit him hard. It felt like he had woken up after a bad hangover. His mind was still clouded and yet he felt a subtle warmness against the cheeks of his face. Soon, his mind began to catch up with the present. He recalled that last memory before blacking out, and immediately his torso propped up in a jolt. Scaring the shit out of Jeyne as she yelped a bit in surprise.

“What happened?” his eyes landed on Orland who was in front of him.

“You almost got eaten,” Orland said.

That explanation alone was enough for Zach to understand. This man, who was Lord of Shieldford had risked his own life, saving Zach from getting sent to the grave.

“I’m eternally in your debt, Lord Shieldford,” Zach said. If he wasn’t a Gardwin and a noble, he would have recited the oath to the Shieldford house right at this instant. But alas, he could not. Now he felt bad not telling the truth about who he was to these kind people. But he refrained from doing so. Who knows what would happen if he let his identity be revealed as one thing he learned living in Brittania, feuds between houses were not simple things.

“And to my daughter, and the men around you,” Orland said.

“Yes, of course,” Zach said. He staggeringly stood up. Meeting each and every one's eyes, relaying his eternal gratefulness. Then his gaze landed on the sole healer. “I, Zach Reacher will never forget the kindness shown upon me, and I swear, whenever you need my aid, I will come running no matter the circumstances.”

“Good,” Orland said. “You’re a man of honor, Zach Reacher, and it would be quite a loss if we let those ants have their fill. So? What exactly happened? From what little I’ve witnessed on how you fight, you shouldn’t have been done by those monstrous ants.”

“A momentary lapse of concentration, my lord,” Zach said. “It seems I’ve been overestimating myself too much.”

“In what way? It’s hard to find fault for someone as good as you,” Orland replied.

“I bit more than what I can chew. I thought I can push myself more despite the tiredness that starting to affect me, and here I am. Almost die by being eaten,” Zach said. He wasn’t lying as his story could be interpreted by others in some other way.

“Do not fret, young one,” Orland said. “A great man realized their own mistakes, and fix them. From what I see, this is a chance for you to grow stronger than ever.” Words full of wisdom and as expected from someone that led the House of Shieldford. “Be glad you have the chance. Unlike those who perish who could not.”

Zach nodded, and again, thanking the Lord of Shieldford. He thought he would put the Shieldford house in debt to him, but now it seemed the situation had been reversed.

Zach grabbed his sword once more. Feeling the hard grip on his skin. Despite almost meeting death, he had to go out again.

“Sir Reacher,” Jeyne’s voice drew his gaze. “Can you not stay and rest for a while? It only had been a while since you had woken up.”

“I would love to do so, my lady. But for your sake, your father, and the rest of these kind people, I must be out there,” Zach said.

“Are you sure about this?” Orland asked. Even he preferred Zach to rest for a while.

“The Land of Safe is close, but the swarm is never ending,” Zach said. “Unless I cut their numbers down, reaching there would be hard to do.”

They traded gazes. From one strong man to another.

“Don’t push yourself too hard, Reacher. Just know we have your back, especially my daughter,” Orland said.

“Glad to know,” Zach said, smiling.

Then he was off. Throwing himself back into the chaos of ants. One thing for sure, he would not attempt any more of the cantrip, seeing what happened previously. For now, he put that testing on hold and focused first on returning back to the fort.

Under the moonlight that shone clearer, Zach’s blade sang the song of death to these horn-ants, and the reaper descended on them.