For a full day, Ridder and Macken assigned tasks to the Guards and the militia. Everyone took this expedition seriously.
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was four in the morning on the twenty-first.
In the open grounds of the Outer Fortress, Ronin, Ridder, Macken, Elron, and the other Transcendents had all gathered, along with twenty-seven Guards and eighty militia members.
The castle servants were all present, handing out freshly baked bread to every person—some to eat then and there, and some to take for the road.
Once breakfast was over, everyone was fully equipped and ready to depart.
Ronin gazed at the soldiers assembled before him. Some carried Inferior Longswords, others held Ironwood Long Spears, and a few were armed with bone spears or even just wooden clubs. As for armor, they were lucky if they had an Ironwood Chest Guard; the vast majority of the men had no armor at all.
