II

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Arc II Chapter 12

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16^th of Anima Lunar 753 AAC

 

“My Lord ...” Kasimir straightened his back, yet his liege ignored his calls. Lord Friedrich remained unmoved as his words fell on deaf ears. The scenery haunted his liege, numbing his sensed. Gone was his former confidence. Gone was his resolution. Like a dagger, pain stabbed Lord Friedrich's heart. The cruel and brutal harshness of reality struck without warning, as his time stopped, and his world froze.

 

Lord Friedrich didn't expect this outcome. Nobody did. Their death came as a surprise to everyone. They never arrived at Freyburg as scheduled. The carriage was ambushed and the escort of knights slaughtered like sheep. They never stood a chance against their attackers. This wasn't the handiwork of some foolhardy bandits. This ambush was planned, coordinated.

 

Kasimir's stoic façade didn't falter at the sigh of such carnage. His iron gaze never wavered. The attack was a despicable act targeting Lady Aurora. The assassins were targeting the House von Schwarz directly. “Lord Friedrich ...”

 

His liege didn't react.

 

“Lord Friedrich ... Lord Friedrich ...”

 

“I hear you, Kasimir.” Lord Friedrich's empty gaze bothered Kasimir. His soulless eyes lingered on the lifeless corpse of his fallen father that they were able to retrieve. His father died protecting Lady Aurora. Count Geralt fulfilled his duty to his last breath, yet his sacrifice proved in vain.

 

Lord Friedrich gritted his teeth. Rage, ire, grief moved his heart. Whoever was behind this, they would pay.

 

Kasimir pitied his liege. As his loyal retainer, he shared his pain. He served Lord Friedrich since his early childhood, as was expected from him, the son of a common baron. They both grew up alongside each other. They lived alongside each other. They fought alongside each other. They shared a common fate. Lord Friedrich would overcome the pain. Time would heal his wounds, but scars would forever remain.

 

“My condolences, My Lord. Unfortunately, I can't offer much beyond my sympathies.” Kasimir offered a slight bow. “I knew your father well. He was a good man.”

 

...

...

...

 

“...” Lord Friedrich didn't answer. His words didn't reach him.

 

...

...

...

 

Kasimir folded his hands behind his back, doing what he did best, he served. He served his liege with his soul, with his heart, with his rapier eager to heed his Lord's call. “Rest assured, Lord Friedrich, we will uncover the truth. We will find the ones responsible, and they will answer for their crimes.”

 

“We will see to it, Kasimir. We will see to it.” Friedrich clenched his fists. The rage, the anger, the hatred. His knuckles turned white. His father took a thrust though his chest.

 

The thrust struck deep, producing a gaping hole. The wound was clean, precise. Magic amplified the thrust. Physical force alone wasn't capable of this degree of penetration. Speed and strength didn't match conventional human strength. Traces of mana still lingered. The traces were faint, negligible, but their presence was undeniable. Lightning. Darkness. Fulmen. Umbra. Lightning with umbral aspect. The perpetrator was a lightning user, just like him, and a master of their element judging by their skill. This wasn't the work of a common ruffian. This was the work of a skilled swordsman, of a proficient mage, of a professional assassin.

 

The carnage, the merciless efficiency, the coordinated nature of the ambush, the execution, all the signs pointed towards assassins. They intercepted the carriage before it arrived at Freyburg. They chose the forest, an ideal choke point. They surrounded the escort and eliminated all opposition. Nobody was spared. Nobody survived.

 

Friedrich frowned. His face twisted with his desire for revenge blazing. “They will pay, Kasimir. They will most definitely pay. Whoever was behind this, I will get them, and I will get my revenge.” The hunt was on.

 

Kasimir nodded, while maintaining his decorum. His mask never slipped. “I concur, we will get them. Not today, not tomorrow, but the day will come.”

 

“You are right.” Friedrich regained his composure. Now wasn't the time to grieve. His duties as a knight didn't sleep. His mistress required his services even in death. “Did you find her corpse?”

 

Kasimir shook his head. “Negative. The men swept the area, but no signs of Lady Aurora. Her corpse is missing.”

 

Friedrich froze. That was impossible. “Her corpse is missing?”

 

Kasimir confirmed his fears, “It is. We have failed to locate her corpse. We assume the worst, but it seems that not all hope is lost. We can't dismiss the option yet that Lady Aurora might be still alive. The chances are marginal, but marginal is better than none, although I am doubtful. Their actions don't correspond to the modus operandi of kidnappers. Their methods are far too brutal, far too destructive. They rather point, convincingly so, towards assassins.”

 

Friedrich shared his assessment. Kasimir's analysis was spot on, yet he too clung to the last straw of hope. They didn't have much of a choice.

 

“Kasimir, call the men. Post some guards. Meanwhile, we return to Freyburg. We will request reinforcements and inform the church. The dead deserve a proper burial. The area must be cleansed and purified. We don't want this place to be haunted.” Some annoying miasma was the last thing they needed.

 

Kasimir straightened his back. “Yes, My Lord ...”

 

“Friedrich, Kasimir!” It was Vera who appeared from the woods. Her armour limited her movement through the thicket, but difficult terrain didn't stop a true knight, even when dismounted, and even when annoyed degraded to infantry. Infantry was the calling of commoners. “My men and I have stumbled across an interesting  find. You should give it a look.”

 

Friedrich studied Vera. Her words piqued his curiosity. “Vera, what did they find?”

 

Vera paused. “... Come, you need to see it for yourselves. You wouldn't believe me.”

 

They followed her lead. Fighting their way through the vegetation, they arrived at a clearing. The clearing didn't appear any special. It was a common clearing like untold others, but the first impression deceived. The atmosphere was different.  

 

Charred corpses littered the blackened ground, their lives claimed by the flames of fire. The grass, the trees, the earth, all was burnt, scorched by blazing heat. A explosion of immense potency devastated the area, transforming the once peaceful clearing into a smouldering graveyard.

 

Friedrich stared in silence. Judging by the residual mana, pyromancy was responsible for this sight. Fire was one of the most potent elements known to the art of magic. Destructive, domineering, powerful in nature, Ignis was a notorious element, an element primarily used for offensive spells, yet this degree of destruction exceeded even his expectations.

 

His gaze swept across the plane. A large scale area attack. High intensity. High mana concentration. High lethality. All hallmarks of not only a skilled, but also experienced practitioner of magic.

 

Friedrich knelt. His leather gloves touched the earth, rubbing the fallen ash between the fingers. The ash was still fresh. It was fine, powdery, untainted. The Duke must be informed about this. “So many questions. So few answers.” 

 

The day yielded nothing but mysteries. An ambushed carriage. A massacred escort. A murdered father. A missing girl. A scorched clearing. Nothing added up these days.

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