Chapter 1
The party reached the road from Kanon to Valis two days later in the middle of the day. The highway was so steep that they had no choice but to take the mountain road.
At last, the party had reached the pass and was climbing down the other side. The road was rough, making walking difficult. It was so hot Slayn had lost even the energy to speak. The merciless summer sun beat down on them. From all around them, they could hear the high-pitched singing of cicadas.
“It’s going to get even hotter from here on out,” Slayn sighed, his face lost somewhere under his hood. He could barely summon the determination to keep walking in this heat.
“Yep, that’s what happens in the summer,” Wood grinned, glancing at Slayn from the corner of his eye.
“Wow, I had no idea,” said Slayn with annoyance.
“Ah,” said Deedlit, stopping all of a sudden. “I wonder if these are hoofprints. The road seems pretty broken up.” She knelt, checking the holes with one finger.
Parn stopped as well and watched her.
“Just as I thought, they’re hoofprints. It looks like quite a few horses rode through here. They came from Valis, so it’s possible that they’re part of Valis’ army.”
“Valis decided to stand and fight after all.” Eto nodded. “Not that I expected any differently, what with the enemy being the dark armies of Marmo.”
“Obviously. There’s no way King Fawn would let Beld’s atrocities go unpunished, not with the invincible Holy Knights at his back! Looks like Beld’s plans will fall to ruin,” said Parn happily.
Parn spoke as though it was already decided, but Slayn doubted that it would go that smoothly.
Slayn acknowledged the strength of Valis’ knights, but Marmo’s army counted many monsters of evil power. He especially feared the dark elves’ magic knights, whose power he had once had the displeasure to face. If Deedlit and Woodchuck had not been with him, Slayn would surely have been defeated. At that thought, a shiver ran down his spine, and in spite of the summer heat, he broke out in a cold sweat. His cotton underclothes clung unpleasantly to his skin.
This will be a long war, thought Slayn. He kept his thoughts to himself so as not to dampen the mood, but he was almost certain of his prediction.
The next day, their journey continued in much the same fashion. They left the hill road as the land flatted out, making walking easier. But they baked under the cloudless sky. Their order had not changed - Parn and Deedlit in front, followed by Ghim, then Wood and Eto, with Slayn in the rear. His breathing ragged, he was walking as fast as he could, in order not to hold the group back. As always, he carried his staff, and his face was hidden in his hood.
Before they realized it, they were surrounded by farmland. Perhaps they had even entered the realm of Valis. They even saw the occasional small house or large mansion, probably the residences of the local farmers and lords. But they stood empty. It seemed likely they had been evacuated in preparation for war.
“Yes, it looks like Valis is standing up to fight Marmo. Judging by the lack of soldiers, the front is probably farther to the east.”
“Would that mean Valis is winning?” Wood asked Eto.
“Yes, most likely,” Eto replied.
“Valis is winning for sure,” said Parn without bothering to turn his head.
That’s when they realized something was coming from ahead of them. The first to notice was Woodchuck.
“Something’s coming. Over there!” said Wood, narrowing his eyes and gazing into the distance.
The tension in the group instantly went up.
“Let’s just go on as if it’s nothing. If we do anything suspicious, they’ll notice.” Slayn’s voice came from behind them.
“True,” said Parn, narrowing his eyes to try to see the approaching group. They were kicking a lot of dust in the air. It looked like in addition to the horses, they had a wagon. It was hard to tell with the sunlight glaring in his eyes, but it looked like a merchant caravan. Or perhaps part of Valis’ supply train. The party moved forward at an even pace, trying to seem as calm as possible. But they found themselves walking silently. Anxious not to overlook anything, they were concentrated on observing the other group.
“Madame Karla, I see people ahead.” The nervous voice interrupted Karla’s concentration. She slowly pulled aside the shade covering the carriage’s window.
“What is it?”
One of the warriors guarding the carriage pulled his horse up alongside her.
“Yes, there is a group of several people approaching us on foot. They seemed to be armed, but one of them looks like a child.”
“A child? That’s odd. They must not be soldiers of Valis, then.”
“Probably not…”
“I see. Well, as long as they don’t make any false moves, let them be. But stay on your guard!”
As soon as she had given that order, Karla sat back in her seat. Only a little farther. With a sigh of relief, Karla turned to look at the young woman sitting next to her. The girl’s empty eyes stared blankly ahead. It was a soulless gaze. With a nod of satisfaction, Karla closed her eyes and thought of what she must do next.
“What do you think?” murmured Parn in Deedlit’s ear.
“I don’t know either, but they’re a strange lot. You could say the same thing about us, though.”
The little group of six really did seem like an odd combination. Parn smiled, but his smile soon vanished as he turned his attention to the oncoming group once again.
As the groups drew closer, both of them tensed more and more. Both of them were determined to figure the other group out. Both were prepared to strike at any moment, but the walkers stepped off the road to allow the other group to pass.
“It’s getting really hot out,” said Wood in greeting to the man at the head of the other group as he passed. Parn thought it might be too familiar of a greeting, but the other group seemed to relax.
“Must be hard traveling on foot, then,” replied the mountain man in a relaxed tone, a smile on his face.
“You got that right.” Wood replied once more, and then turned his gaze from the man. Please pass by quickly, he thought to himself.
The carriage passed by in a clatter of hooves.
Slayn nonchalantly glanced at the carriage. It was a very fine carriage, and he was dying of curiosity as to who might be riding in it. Squinting, he saw that there were two occupants, both women. Perhaps noticing what Slayn was doing, one of the horsemen pulled in front of the carriage, blocking Slayn’s view. Keeping an eye on Slayn, the man slowed down in order to stay between Slayn and a carriage until they were out of sight.
Looks like they don’t want us to know who’s in there. Thinking that strange, Slayn stopped and watched as the carriage pulled away.
“They scared me half to death!” Wood spit on the ground as the carriage pulled out of sight.
“What a weird bunch. Heading out towards the battlefield like that!” Parn seemed taken aback as he stepped back onto the road.
“It looked like there were two women in the carriage, but I couldn’t be sure.” Slayn was still looking in the direction of the carriage.
“Women? I should have looked too.” Joking, Wood seemed to be recovering from his fright. Deedlit, too, started walking again.
I wonder about the one who tried to stop me from seeing inside, though. Slayn cocked his head as he walked.
“Not again.” Just then, before they could say knife, Wood’s rough voice rang out.
“What happened?” Slayn had pulled as far back in his hood as he could, unable to hide from the sun, but he looked up reluctantly at the sound of Wood’s voice. He had meant to ask Wood a question, but as he looked up, he saw what Wood had meant.
Woodchuck was silently pointing down the road, where another cloud of dust filled the air. It was another mounted group, but to judge by the size of the cloud and the sound of the horses’ hooves, this one was moving at high speeds.
“Looks like knights of Valis this time,” said sharp-eyed Wood. “No one besides the knights of Valis would wear white armor and ride white horses like that.”
“Knights of Valis?!” Parn, who was walking in front, yelled this. He squinted and followed them with his eyes, trying to make them out through the dust.
Holy knights… conflicted feelings warred within him. The white horses caught his eye as they approached. They were beautiful. The knights rode like a white wind.
As Parn hurriedly stepped out of the way, he couldn’t decide how he felt about them. Some of it might be anger, perhaps, but beneath it ran a foundation of pure admiration.
With what dreams did my father don this white armor? Parn looked down at the old, beat-up armor he wore. It was no longer white — gray would have been closer. The shining silver part of the chest was the proof of his father’s dishonor. He remembered the words of Mort, who ran the general store in Zaxon, and the anger and shame he had felt when he heard them again.
How am I any different from those knights? Parn felt a mix of sadness and jealousy at the thought that he wore the same kind of armor as they did. Parn was lost in his emotions, which grew stronger as the knights drew closer.
“What’s wrong?” Deedlit’s worried voice whispered in his left ear. Parn felt for a moment that her beautiful voice had saved him.
“It’s nothing, Deed.” Parn looked at Deedlit with affection and pulled himself straight. With this resolute posture, he turned to face the approaching knights.
The knights slowed down and pulled their horses to a stop just in front of Parn. Slayn and Eto respectfully lowered their heads before the knights, but Parn did not.
“Where did you lot come from?”
One of the knights stepped forward to interrogate them.
“We’re travelers who came here through Alania. We fled the war in Kanon to seek refuge here.” Slayn spoke with his head still bowed.
“Yes, that’s right,” Wood immediately seconded him.
“Hmm, you say you came running here from Kanon?” said the knight, unconvinced, and scrutinized the group. “I understand, but we can’t afford to trust you so easily. Pardon me.”
With these words, the knight started chanting in a low voice. Slayn recognized it as a prayer to Pharis.
As expected from a holy knight! thought Slayn with admiration. These knights were skilled not only with swords, but with the magic of Pharis. Deciding that no matter what kind of spell it was, the magic of Pharis was harmless, Slayn made no move to stop him. But next to him Eto gave a cry of surprise and lifted his head, giving the knight an affronted glare.
“How very rude of you, using magic. My name is Eto. I have been formally ordained as a priest in the temple of Pharis in Alan. I don’t care what your mission is, you have no sense, using holy magic because of baseless suspicion!”
“Ah, I apologize for my rudeness. I had no idea you were a priest of Pharis. But because we must hurry in these times of danger, we have turned to Pharis’ power. We have no further questions for you, and you are free to go on your way. Please forgive our impoliteness. Farewell.”
The knight kicked his horse to start moving again.
“Would the reason for your hurry be a group guarding a carriage, by any chance?” Lifting his head, Slayn called out to the knight.
“What!” The knight reined in his horse. The horse reared up, neighing in protest.
“Oh, we just passed a strange group with a carriage, and we thought it suspicious. Who were they?”
“Don’t ask too many questions. It’s a matter of state, so I ask that you not speak of it to others.”
This time the rider took off, not listening to Slayn’s pleas to wait. The other riders took off after him like white lightning, and the dust raised by their passage floated in the summer breeze.
“What in the world was that about?” Parn had watched the riders off, but as they vanished in the distance, he turned to Slayn, who had pulled up his dark blue hood again.
“I’m curious too. Both about those knights’ actions and the strange appearance of the group with the carriage.”
“I wonder if we should go have a look.”
“I can’t decide that on my own, but if you want my advice, we’d do best to stay out of it.” Slayn said vehemently. Not that he felt like his words would make a difference. Knowing Parn, he would reject them.
“I wonder. That knight said it was an affair of state. If that has something to do with the carriage, then…” Parn was lost in thought, his arms crossed.
“Well, if Parn’s thinking, that means it’s decided. We’re going to have to retrace our steps under this blazing sun.” Hoisting his luggage onto his back, Ghim turned and slowly started walking.
“Ugh, what a mess.” Woodchuck followed him, before looking back at Parn. “What are you doing? You know you’ll go even if we try to stop you. Don’t waste your time on thinking.”
“They’re right, you know,” said Deedlit, breaking into a half jog and stretching her hand out to Parn. “Let’s go. It’s not like you to worry.”
“Stop teasing,” Parn complained with a straight face, but his body automatically started moving. “I think and worry just as much as the next guy!”
“That’s the first I’ve heard of it!” Wood laughed loudly.
“We’d better hurry if we don’t want to lose sight of them,” said Slayn, his expression strained. It was beginning to look like a forced march.
“If only we had horses too.” Deedlit, at the head of the group, looked back as she said this. Her hair caught the sunlight, glowing with a rainbow of colors as it drifted gently through the air.
“What’s that sound?” Deedlit suddenly stopped and put both hands to her pointed ears.
“What’s wrong, Deed?” Parn looked around and checked that nothing had changed before asking.
“Shh! Quiet. I can hear a noise coming from over there. So don’t let your armor make any sound.”
Parn quickly came to a stop. He even held his breath, trying to make no sound whatsoever. The other four, walking behind them, stopped walking as soon as they noticed what was going on, doing their best not to distract Deedlit.
Elves were famous for their sharp ears. It was said that they could even hear the sounds tiny creatures made as they scurried over the leaves in the forest.
“Looks like I was right. They’re fighting. I can hear people screaming and metal hitting metal.”
“Those knights are fighting! We’ve got to hurry!” Hearing Deedlit’s words, Parn broke into a panicked run. “They must be fighting the group with the carriage. Even if they’re outnumbered, I doubt they would lose against mercenaries.”
“You can’t say that for sure. We’re still going to rush to their aid, right?”
“Of course.”
“Let’s hope we don’t get in their way.” Deedlit let out a sarcastic laugh and easily ran on ahead of Parn. Not only was she naturally quick on her feet, she was wearing lighter armor than Parn’s, so she could more than keep up with him.
Even though Parn was encumbered by his heavy armor, there was no way Wood or Slayn could overtake him. Even more so for Ghim, whose short legs gave him a serious handicap.
“Don’t just take off running like that!” cried Eto, out of breath.
“The Holy Knights are fighting!”
“I think we should go find out what’s going on,” said Slayn, panting.
Deedlit felt like she could run for hours, but the lead she had on the others had grown, so she waited for them to catch up, stretching her legs. She had run quite a distance, and she could hear the sounds of the fight much more clearly than before. If she squinted, she could just barely see several shadows moving along the highway.
“That must be it.” Deedlit stared at the shadows.
Just then, a red light flared up with a boom. The sound was as loud as an avalanche. Deedlit shrieked and covered her ears, her acute sense of hearing rendering the noise all the more painful.
“What’s this noise? And I saw a red light over there!” yelled Parn. He had caught up at last. He put his hand on Deedlit’s shoulder as she cowered and covered her ears. All the while, he gazed down the road, as though not wanting to miss anything.
“I heard it too.” Slayn approached at last. “And I saw the light. Though it would be more accurate to call it a fire - make no mistake, those were magical flames.”
“Magic? But who cast it? The fighters escorting that carriage, or the knights of Valis?” asked Deedlit in Slayn’s direction, casually covering Parn’s hand on her shoulder with her own.
“There’s no way to know. All we know is that we didn’t cast it ourselves. That fire magic we just saw is considered taboo by the Academy of Sages. The masters only teach it to those they judge ready. I didn’t see any faces I knew from the Academy in either group, though it’s possible they were using a disguise. And mages dislike carrying swords as a rule. Though I don’t know whether that goes for Wagnard of Marmo as well.”
“Was it him? Was he riding in the carriage?” said Parn, excited.
“There were just two women in that carriage. Is Wagnard a woman?” Wood spread his hands and shrugged.
“Wait, it seems like the battle is over. I can’t hear fighting anymore.” Deedlit stood, still holding Parn’s hand.
“What? Then who won?”
“Don’t ask stupid questions. There’s no way to know just from the sound. But if you hold on a second, I’ll ask the wind.”
“Wind? Sylph, you mean? In that case, I’ll use my far-seeing spell. That’s the surest method.”
“If you know that kind of useful magic, you should have used it from the beginning, instead of trying to make yourself look good now,” said Wood with annoyance.
“You said it,” Ghim voiced his agreement with Wood’s complaints.
“I can’t afford to use magic in minor matters,” said Slayn. He slowed his breathing and began to chant in the ancient tongue.
Chapter 1
The party reached the road from Kanon to Valis two days later in the middle of the day. The highway was so steep that they had no choice but to take the mountain road.
At last, the party had reached the pass and was climbing down the other side. The road was rough, making walking difficult. It was so hot Slayn had lost even the energy to speak. The merciless summer sun beat down on them. From all around them, they could hear the high-pitched singing of cicadas.
“It’s going to get even hotter from here on out,” Slayn sighed, his face lost somewhere under his hood. He could barely summon the determination to keep walking in this heat.
“Yep, that’s what happens in the summer,” Wood grinned, glancing at Slayn from the corner of his eye.
“Wow, I had no idea,” said Slayn with annoyance.
“Ah,” said Deedlit, stopping all of a sudden. “I wonder if these are hoofprints. The road seems pretty broken up.” She knelt, checking the holes with one finger.
Parn stopped as well and watched her.
“Just as I thought, they’re hoofprints. It looks like quite a few horses rode through here. They came from Valis, so it’s possible that they’re part of Valis’ army.”
“Valis decided to stand and fight after all.” Eto nodded. “Not that I expected any differently, what with the enemy being the dark armies of Marmo.”
“Obviously. There’s no way King Fawn would let Beld’s atrocities go unpunished, not with the invincible Holy Knights at his back! Looks like Beld’s plans will fall to ruin,” said Parn happily.
Parn spoke as though it was already decided, but Slayn doubted that it would go that smoothly.
Slayn acknowledged the strength of Valis’ knights, but Marmo’s army counted many monsters of evil power. He especially feared the dark elves’ magic knights, whose power he had once had the displeasure to face. If Deedlit and Woodchuck had not been with him, Slayn would surely have been defeated. At that thought, a shiver ran down his spine, and in spite of the summer heat, he broke out in a cold sweat. His cotton underclothes clung unpleasantly to his skin.
This will be a long war, thought Slayn. He kept his thoughts to himself so as not to dampen the mood, but he was almost certain of his prediction.
The next day, their journey continued in much the same fashion. They left the hill road as the land flatted out, making walking easier. But they baked under the cloudless sky. Their order had not changed - Parn and Deedlit in front, followed by Ghim, then Wood and Eto, with Slayn in the rear. His breathing ragged, he was walking as fast as he could, in order not to hold the group back. As always, he carried his staff, and his face was hidden in his hood.
Before they realized it, they were surrounded by farmland. Perhaps they had even entered the realm of Valis. They even saw the occasional small house or large mansion, probably the residences of the local farmers and lords. But they stood empty. It seemed likely they had been evacuated in preparation for war.
“Yes, it looks like Valis is standing up to fight Marmo. Judging by the lack of soldiers, the front is probably farther to the east.”
“Would that mean Valis is winning?” Wood asked Eto.
“Yes, most likely,” Eto replied.
“Valis is winning for sure,” said Parn without bothering to turn his head.
That’s when they realized something was coming from ahead of them. The first to notice was Woodchuck.
“Something’s coming. Over there!” said Wood, narrowing his eyes and gazing into the distance.
The tension in the group instantly went up.
“Let’s just go on as if it’s nothing. If we do anything suspicious, they’ll notice.” Slayn’s voice came from behind them.
“True,” said Parn, narrowing his eyes to try to see the approaching group. They were kicking a lot of dust in the air. It looked like in addition to the horses, they had a wagon. It was hard to tell with the sunlight glaring in his eyes, but it looked like a merchant caravan. Or perhaps part of Valis’ supply train. The party moved forward at an even pace, trying to seem as calm as possible. But they found themselves walking silently. Anxious not to overlook anything, they were concentrated on observing the other group.
“Madame Karla, I see people ahead.” The nervous voice interrupted Karla’s concentration. She slowly pulled aside the shade covering the carriage’s window.
“What is it?”
One of the warriors guarding the carriage pulled his horse up alongside her.
“Yes, there is a group of several people approaching us on foot. They seemed to be armed, but one of them looks like a child.”
“A child? That’s odd. They must not be soldiers of Valis, then.”
“Probably not…”
“I see. Well, as long as they don’t make any false moves, let them be. But stay on your guard!”
As soon as she had given that order, Karla sat back in her seat. Only a little farther. With a sigh of relief, Karla turned to look at the young woman sitting next to her. The girl’s empty eyes stared blankly ahead. It was a soulless gaze. With a nod of satisfaction, Karla closed her eyes and thought of what she must do next.
“What do you think?” murmured Parn in Deedlit’s ear.
“I don’t know either, but they’re a strange lot. You could say the same thing about us, though.”
The little group of six really did seem like an odd combination. Parn smiled, but his smile soon vanished as he turned his attention to the oncoming group once again.
As the groups drew closer, both of them tensed more and more. Both of them were determined to figure the other group out. Both were prepared to strike at any moment, but the walkers stepped off the road to allow the other group to pass.
“It’s getting really hot out,” said Wood in greeting to the man at the head of the other group as he passed. Parn thought it might be too familiar of a greeting, but the other group seemed to relax.
“Must be hard traveling on foot, then,” replied the mountain man in a relaxed tone, a smile on his face.
“You got that right.” Wood replied once more, and then turned his gaze from the man. Please pass by quickly, he thought to himself.
The carriage passed by in a clatter of hooves.
Slayn nonchalantly glanced at the carriage. It was a very fine carriage, and he was dying of curiosity as to who might be riding in it. Squinting, he saw that there were two occupants, both women. Perhaps noticing what Slayn was doing, one of the horsemen pulled in front of the carriage, blocking Slayn’s view. Keeping an eye on Slayn, the man slowed down in order to stay between Slayn and a carriage until they were out of sight.
Looks like they don’t want us to know who’s in there. Thinking that strange, Slayn stopped and watched as the carriage pulled away.
“They scared me half to death!” Wood spit on the ground as the carriage pulled out of sight.
“What a weird bunch. Heading out towards the battlefield like that!” Parn seemed taken aback as he stepped back onto the road.
“It looked like there were two women in the carriage, but I couldn’t be sure.” Slayn was still looking in the direction of the carriage.
“Women? I should have looked too.” Joking, Wood seemed to be recovering from his fright. Deedlit, too, started walking again.
I wonder about the one who tried to stop me from seeing inside, though. Slayn cocked his head as he walked.
“Not again.” Just then, before they could say knife, Wood’s rough voice rang out.
“What happened?” Slayn had pulled as far back in his hood as he could, unable to hide from the sun, but he looked up reluctantly at the sound of Wood’s voice. He had meant to ask Wood a question, but as he looked up, he saw what Wood had meant.
Woodchuck was silently pointing down the road, where another cloud of dust filled the air. It was another mounted group, but to judge by the size of the cloud and the sound of the horses’ hooves, this one was moving at high speeds.
“Looks like knights of Valis this time,” said sharp-eyed Wood. “No one besides the knights of Valis would wear white armor and ride white horses like that.”
“Knights of Valis?!” Parn, who was walking in front, yelled this. He squinted and followed them with his eyes, trying to make them out through the dust.
Holy knights… conflicted feelings warred within him. The white horses caught his eye as they approached. They were beautiful. The knights rode like a white wind.
As Parn hurriedly stepped out of the way, he couldn’t decide how he felt about them. Some of it might be anger, perhaps, but beneath it ran a foundation of pure admiration.
With what dreams did my father don this white armor? Parn looked down at the old, beat-up armor he wore. It was no longer white — gray would have been closer. The shining silver part of the chest was the proof of his father’s dishonor. He remembered the words of Mort, who ran the general store in Zaxon, and the anger and shame he had felt when he heard them again.
How am I any different from those knights? Parn felt a mix of sadness and jealousy at the thought that he wore the same kind of armor as they did. Parn was lost in his emotions, which grew stronger as the knights drew closer.
“What’s wrong?” Deedlit’s worried voice whispered in his left ear. Parn felt for a moment that her beautiful voice had saved him.
“It’s nothing, Deed.” Parn looked at Deedlit with affection and pulled himself straight. With this resolute posture, he turned to face the approaching knights.
The knights slowed down and pulled their horses to a stop just in front of Parn. Slayn and Eto respectfully lowered their heads before the knights, but Parn did not.
“Where did you lot come from?”
One of the knights stepped forward to interrogate them.
“We’re travelers who came here through Alania. We fled the war in Kanon to seek refuge here.” Slayn spoke with his head still bowed.
“Yes, that’s right,” Wood immediately seconded him.
“Hmm, you say you came running here from Kanon?” said the knight, unconvinced, and scrutinized the group. “I understand, but we can’t afford to trust you so easily. Pardon me.”
With these words, the knight started chanting in a low voice. Slayn recognized it as a prayer to Pharis.
As expected from a holy knight! thought Slayn with admiration. These knights were skilled not only with swords, but with the magic of Pharis. Deciding that no matter what kind of spell it was, the magic of Pharis was harmless, Slayn made no move to stop him. But next to him Eto gave a cry of surprise and lifted his head, giving the knight an affronted glare.
“How very rude of you, using magic. My name is Eto. I have been formally ordained as a priest in the temple of Pharis in Alan. I don’t care what your mission is, you have no sense, using holy magic because of baseless suspicion!”
“Ah, I apologize for my rudeness. I had no idea you were a priest of Pharis. But because we must hurry in these times of danger, we have turned to Pharis’ power. We have no further questions for you, and you are free to go on your way. Please forgive our impoliteness. Farewell.”
The knight kicked his horse to start moving again.
“Would the reason for your hurry be a group guarding a carriage, by any chance?” Lifting his head, Slayn called out to the knight.
“What!” The knight reined in his horse. The horse reared up, neighing in protest.
“Oh, we just passed a strange group with a carriage, and we thought it suspicious. Who were they?”
“Don’t ask too many questions. It’s a matter of state, so I ask that you not speak of it to others.”
This time the rider took off, not listening to Slayn’s pleas to wait. The other riders took off after him like white lightning, and the dust raised by their passage floated in the summer breeze.
“What in the world was that about?” Parn had watched the riders off, but as they vanished in the distance, he turned to Slayn, who had pulled up his dark blue hood again.
“I’m curious too. Both about those knights’ actions and the strange appearance of the group with the carriage.”
“I wonder if we should go have a look.”
“I can’t decide that on my own, but if you want my advice, we’d do best to stay out of it.” Slayn said vehemently. Not that he felt like his words would make a difference. Knowing Parn, he would reject them.
“I wonder. That knight said it was an affair of state. If that has something to do with the carriage, then…” Parn was lost in thought, his arms crossed.
“Well, if Parn’s thinking, that means it’s decided. We’re going to have to retrace our steps under this blazing sun.” Hoisting his luggage onto his back, Ghim turned and slowly started walking.
“Ugh, what a mess.” Woodchuck followed him, before looking back at Parn. “What are you doing? You know you’ll go even if we try to stop you. Don’t waste your time on thinking.”
“They’re right, you know,” said Deedlit, breaking into a half jog and stretching her hand out to Parn. “Let’s go. It’s not like you to worry.”
“Stop teasing,” Parn complained with a straight face, but his body automatically started moving. “I think and worry just as much as the next guy!”
“That’s the first I’ve heard of it!” Wood laughed loudly.
“We’d better hurry if we don’t want to lose sight of them,” said Slayn, his expression strained. It was beginning to look like a forced march.
“If only we had horses too.” Deedlit, at the head of the group, looked back as she said this. Her hair caught the sunlight, glowing with a rainbow of colors as it drifted gently through the air.
“What’s that sound?” Deedlit suddenly stopped and put both hands to her pointed ears.
“What’s wrong, Deed?” Parn looked around and checked that nothing had changed before asking.
“Shh! Quiet. I can hear a noise coming from over there. So don’t let your armor make any sound.”
Parn quickly came to a stop. He even held his breath, trying to make no sound whatsoever. The other four, walking behind them, stopped walking as soon as they noticed what was going on, doing their best not to distract Deedlit.
Elves were famous for their sharp ears. It was said that they could even hear the sounds tiny creatures made as they scurried over the leaves in the forest.
“Looks like I was right. They’re fighting. I can hear people screaming and metal hitting metal.”
“Those knights are fighting! We’ve got to hurry!” Hearing Deedlit’s words, Parn broke into a panicked run. “They must be fighting the group with the carriage. Even if they’re outnumbered, I doubt they would lose against mercenaries.”
“You can’t say that for sure. We’re still going to rush to their aid, right?”
“Of course.”
“Let’s hope we don’t get in their way.” Deedlit let out a sarcastic laugh and easily ran on ahead of Parn. Not only was she naturally quick on her feet, she was wearing lighter armor than Parn’s, so she could more than keep up with him.
Even though Parn was encumbered by his heavy armor, there was no way Wood or Slayn could overtake him. Even more so for Ghim, whose short legs gave him a serious handicap.
“Don’t just take off running like that!” cried Eto, out of breath.
“The Holy Knights are fighting!”
“I think we should go find out what’s going on,” said Slayn, panting.
Deedlit felt like she could run for hours, but the lead she had on the others had grown, so she waited for them to catch up, stretching her legs. She had run quite a distance, and she could hear the sounds of the fight much more clearly than before. If she squinted, she could just barely see several shadows moving along the highway.
“That must be it.” Deedlit stared at the shadows.
Just then, a red light flared up with a boom. The sound was as loud as an avalanche. Deedlit shrieked and covered her ears, her acute sense of hearing rendering the noise all the more painful.
“What’s this noise? And I saw a red light over there!” yelled Parn. He had caught up at last. He put his hand on Deedlit’s shoulder as she cowered and covered her ears. All the while, he gazed down the road, as though not wanting to miss anything.
“I heard it too.” Slayn approached at last. “And I saw the light. Though it would be more accurate to call it a fire - make no mistake, those were magical flames.”
“Magic? But who cast it? The fighters escorting that carriage, or the knights of Valis?” asked Deedlit in Slayn’s direction, casually covering Parn’s hand on her shoulder with her own.
“There’s no way to know. All we know is that we didn’t cast it ourselves. That fire magic we just saw is considered taboo by the Academy of Sages. The masters only teach it to those they judge ready. I didn’t see any faces I knew from the Academy in either group, though it’s possible they were using a disguise. And mages dislike carrying swords as a rule. Though I don’t know whether that goes for Wagnard of Marmo as well.”
“Was it him? Was he riding in the carriage?” said Parn, excited.
“There were just two women in that carriage. Is Wagnard a woman?” Wood spread his hands and shrugged.
“Wait, it seems like the battle is over. I can’t hear fighting anymore.” Deedlit stood, still holding Parn’s hand.
“What? Then who won?”
“Don’t ask stupid questions. There’s no way to know just from the sound. But if you hold on a second, I’ll ask the wind.”
“Wind? Sylph, you mean? In that case, I’ll use my far-seeing spell. That’s the surest method.”
“If you know that kind of useful magic, you should have used it from the beginning, instead of trying to make yourself look good now,” said Wood with annoyance.
“You said it,” Ghim voiced his agreement with Wood’s complaints.
“I can’t afford to use magic in minor matters,” said Slayn. He slowed his breathing and began to chant in the ancient tongue.
