"Cathina!"
She looked around frantically trying to find the source of the call. It came from the Knight, who was just as surprised as her.
'Wife? Really?' – thought the Knight.
'He's mad, I could never tell with this guy.'
"I know this is sudden, but I really needed you to come. I was not sure you would come if I actually just said I needed your help. Actually, I didn't think you would come anyway. Or does this mean you actually have a wife, if so I'm…"
The Knight interrupted her to clarify, "No I don't!"
Cathina is an ice mage. She is one of the adventures that were settled with the Knight on the quest to evacuate the dragon. They did nothing, that was because Red Scorch had decided to go all out. If the Knight did not teleport them away using its army, they would be dead.
'What she is doing all the way in the woods of Elleria.'
The Knight was in no way up to wasting its time with the likes of adventurers, especially if it's not a quest from the guild. So, it turned around about to leave when she grabbed the cold steel. If the Knight teleported now, she would have been dragged along.
"How did you even know I was here?"
She looked away, still as shy as ever, but some unknown sense of urgency had made her more outgoing.
"Well, that's not hard, you leave a clear trail. First, I heard rumours about a size shifting Knight – you did change size when fighting the dragon. I also hear he's adorned in dark spine-chilling armour. I was willing to bet that only one knight fits that description. When I heard you weren't in the palace I panicked and said I'm your wife when asked."
'She seems like a different person. She mentioned that she saw my battle, she might have seen the void, I might have to make sure of that later.'
"Sure, I'll hear you out. Where are your party members though?"
Her face fell in, as she mumbled, "they aren't…"
"What did you say?"
"Nothing."
The Knight heard her though, it's just the rest of the sentence was not even vocal words, but that did not matter, because of the [Gift of Speech], the pendant made from Folisha's soul, it still communicated the meaning. More accurate to say, even the growls of monsters are translated, then what are the mumbles of an adventurer.
She said, "They aren't my party mates..."
'Something must have happened. That matters not though, I still have to find out whether or not she saw the void, I was using concealment, but I have to be sure.'
"How were you able see through the clouds and smoke?"
"Huh?"
"You said you've seen me change size, that's how you knew it was me. So, you must have seen me change size when I fought the dragon, right?"
"Not really, I didn't see the fight, there was some kind of black thing, even beyond the smoke, even Redd's perception could not see in it, which was strange because he had an assassins' eyes."
"Then how do you know of my size change?"
"Well, I went there to help cool the lava pools left by your battle, a quest for an ice mage, and in them were massive footprints. They weren't a giants, I recognised them to match yours, since I had seen them when we walked up the mountain."
"So, what was Redds reaction to the blocked sight?"
"He had a strange look, but otherwise he had the same ragged look."
'So, she didn't see, neither did that failed squire – Leif. I think I will go with her, at least until I can find Redd, I need to know what he saw, and who he told. But still I don't see why I should put my plans on hold, I'll just help her later, she's already waited for a week, what's a week or a month more?'
"Sadly, I don't think I'll be helping you, just go ask the police, the soldiers, or even the guards in Elleria. Why not just put out a request to the guild? You do know better that to waste a knight's time."
The Knight then removed her hand, which she promptly put back and froze it onto the Knights hand.
"Wait! I can't ask anyone else.' – Even still the Knight did not care, but she continued.
'And I also knew you would refuse, so I did some investigating and found out you're looking for a sword, right? Well, you see, I have this friend; they owe me a huge favour and are also able to make the most legendary swords. Usually, they stopped making them ages ago, but I'm sure they will be willing to make an exception it for me."
"Let go!"
She then removed the ice and let go. The Knight then turned around and said;
"In any case you're wrong, I am not looking for a sword, I am looking for my sword."
She then tried to grab the Knight again but didn't… instead she spoke.
"Please, even if she can't replace your sword, I know she might know something about your sword. There's no family like theirs, that knows more about swords."
"Boss! What are the chances she's telling the truth, better yet, what if this person doesn't even know about your sword. So far, even in the archives of the knights, you haven't heard any mentions of it. Even with the clearance of a knight bachelor. Then you would have wasted all that time on a pointless lead. No matter how you dice it, this lead is just too unreliable to use any resources on it."
'You're right Mugaw. Sure, the knights' resources are more reliable, but what if the clearance it will take is that of a grand master, then that itself takes too much time. Lastly, I want to go back to the void, and helping her will not only give me a chance to find my sword, even if the chance is slim, but it will also help…'
The Knight looked down at her, it was a towering four metres, and she a little below average at two metres.
"Sure. I'll hear you out. Keep in mind that, I am still not agreeing to anything yet."
Her face lit up. There were these dark circles under her eyes, which the Knight had found strange, even last they met. It should be hard to get them for someone as strong as her. But at this moment, they seemed to fade as she smiled.
She grabbed the Knights hand with both her hands and said, "Thank you."
"Just tell me already, what it is that you need a knight Bachelor's help with."
She looked down and started gathering her thoughts, she had almost forgotten why she came.
'He said yes, well, not exactly, but close enough.'
"Can we first move elsewhere."
"If this is going to take time, it'll have to wait for a bit, at least until night. I am still on duty, and I have been excused from them for too long. I will come back at nightfall."
"Okay, but how will you…"
The Knight had instantly teleported away to its post, finally doing its duty as a knight Bachelor.
"…find me."
***
"So, has the sixth squadron finished checking on the state of the caverns."
"Yessir. They have reported that no large caveats have formed beneath the woods. The immergence of a dungeon through underground tunnels is cleared. The nearby dungeon that had housed the darkness that vanished is still inactive. And no new or strange activities on the eastern side as well."
"Tell them to survey the inside of the trees, unlikely, but necessary."
"Yes, Bachelor sir."
That was Commander Arion, he is in charge of the Knights survey squadron, also known as the sixth squadron. His company is formidable, but their skill set in the army as a whole is to be able to track the darkness activity. This also comes with a set of skills to check for new unidentified irregularities. Every brigade has one. The Knights duty is to lead the commanders, who in turn lead their squadrons.
"Eighth squadron reporting sir, no issues in our usual petrol route."
"Good, then retire for the Knight and make sure that squadron two is out for their night patrol. Also, Dasand, can you check on squadron one, tell Callen to prepare for a march to the southern side two days from now."
"Of course, but may I ask why sir?"
The Knight then looked on the lower branches, squadron six was climbing back up, to take refuge in the rooms provided in the town on the tree adjacent the palace. It had been damaged during the queen's fight, but after a month, the place was as good as new.
"Two days from now, the paladins are returning from their training, and by then I might be summoned. I was going to head there myself, since squadron fourteen asked for assistance with the patrols, they think something is wrong."
Dasand had this confused look. "Then why not send the sixth squadron?"
"As you know, the sixth squadron is strong, but they can be vulnerable to sudden attacks from the darkness during surveying, I need the first squadron to secure the site first.
They will make sure that if there is some problem with the darkness, it can get reported quickly. And if they need help to defend the place, sending three squadrons is better than two, especially in these new times of the void."
"What if the emergence is larger?"
"Then join them, if it puts you at ease."
He smirked a little, "Yessir."
"Don't forget to tell your squadron it was your idea. Dismissed."
The Knight might not take the knightly rules too seriously, but it sure knows how to follow protocol. It had spent a whole year in the dungeon learning it.
Reminder – meet up with Ice mage Cathina.
'Thank you, Whisper.'
The Knight first checked up on the status of things and seeing that things were all up to code, it decided to leave. It had already left an army member, Sirus, to track her. Once the Knight teleported to her, Sirus left to continue its assigned mission.
She almost stumbled and fell when she noticed the Knight appear out of nowhere.
"You found me."
"Let's not waste too much time."
She then incanted a spell, that set up a transparent barrier. The Knight recognised this barrier; it was similar to the one casted by Keiper – the Lord of Spells. The barrier itself was weaker, but it had more layers. It was less about hiding and protecting, and more about privacy. It was inefficient but impressive to say the least.
"I just casted a privacy spell. Now, we can talk freely. I need you to help me free my brother."
"What? Explain."
She pulled out a book. "At first, I joined the adventurer's guild because I needed values for my brother. After some time, I realised that I wasn't cut out to be an adventurer, but the guild needed an ice mage to fight the dragons."
"How so?"
She started pacing around. "I am sure you don't know this, but ice mages are rare. This is because we can learn the frost power, which is directly opposing the dragon known as Red Scorch. As we said last time, their scales make the most indestructible armour, and thus the opportunity to harvest them was indispensable."
The Knight remembered just how hard it was to make a dent in them.
"I wanted to quit and find another way of making value points. That's when they noticed me – and influenced the guild to not let me quit. When I tried to run or report, they kidnapped my brother. And to keep an eye on me, they put Lief and the savage 'Gold' in charge of looking after me and training me. Even I wonder why such a skilled assassin was with us, they were just my jailers."
The Knight scowled, helmet wise, "Why such drastic measures?"
She became as shy voiced and low as ever, just as the Knight remembered her. "In me is the blood of the hero Arulli. Of which even the guild could not ignore."