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Of Arms and Arcane: Chapter 199
🕑 Added 2025-02-27 13:42:00 +0000 UTC~Valorhelm Dominion’s 3rd Legion HQ, In no man's land between the Valorhelm Dominion and Argus Kingdom~
Prince Avontus Valorhelm, the sixth prince of the Valorhelm Dominion, sipped wine in the company of Priest Advan, who was served tea by his acolytes. Both of them were waiting for their forces to return from the assault on the fort with news of victory.
They were mid-conversation on the finer points of philosophy when the simple wooden gates to their temporary camp opened. This allowed in what remained of the Dominion troops, along with nine warriors in mismatched armor.
Soon, General Vash was kneeling down before his prince while the nine warriors stood before Priest Advan.
“Report, General. The fact that you are here yourself and not a messenger to fetch me to the fort means you have failed to capture the fort. Despite the gifts from our friends.” the prince said while emphasizing ‘friends’ while giving the side eye to the priest.
“Apologies, My Lord.” General Vash said while facing the ground and reported on what his observers saw before the wood golems plugged the breached gates.
After listening to the report, the anger that had once been in the prince’s eyes was replaced by worry and slight incredulity. ‘Our knights with Divine Armaments were sweeping through their lines, only to be stopped by golems of a level that crushed those knights like bugs and wiped out swathes of my troops? What is something like that doing here? I only ever heard of things like that guarding capitals or major cities or strategically being deployed in large-scale conflicts.’
While the general was reporting, the priest was listening intently. While the prince was thinking, the priest addressed his men: “Paladins, is this true? Did you face these golems? I noticed one of your battle brothers is missing. What happened to him?”
The oldest among the paladins in disguise spoke up. “The general speaks true, brother. The golems were most fearsome. We had to avoid them when carrying out our retrieval of the Divine Armaments. We managed to retrieve six of them, but the other four wielders of Divine Armaments died further inside the fort. By the time we retrieved the few easy ones, the enemy was wise to our targets and concentrated on us, forcing us to retreat. Brother Kronos, Andos, and Daeros went after the swords further inside the fort but were repelled by enemy mage squads. Bother Kronos was killed by an enemy knight.”
The priest nodded while gesturing his religion’s holy sign, and the rest of the priest’s group nearby followed his example.
“Then what of the swords left at the fort? What if the enemy turns these weapons against us?” the prince asked.
The priest shook his head. “It is of little consequence. And there is no chance of those blades being turned against you. When those men died, the power in those swords died with them. They were bound as one.” the priest explained. “We retrieved as many as we could for research and precaution's sake.”
“That is good to hear.” Said a man draped in a hooded cloak as black as night, the hood hiding his face as the cloak hid the rest of his body. The only thing distinct about his appearance was a golden chain around his neck that had a golden eye medallion.
This hooded man standing before them is a Dominion’s Eye, one of a select few who report directly to the king of the Valorhelm Dominion and enact his will. Not even the prince could order them around.
The sudden appearance of the man shocked everyone and put every experienced combatant on edge. Someone who could manipulate their aura to such an extent that they could move unnoticed in their midst was not one to be taken lightly by any stretch of the imagination.
Just as the priest was stepping away and the paladins of the Zagraf Theocracy were about to draw their swords, Prince Avontus quickly got down on one knee and asked, “What is my father’s will?”
This stopped the Zagraf Theocracy delegation as the Dominion’s Eye looked down upon the prince. “I have heard the reports and see firsthand the power of the Divine Armaments.” he then turned to the priest and said, “The king thanks you for your service and will get in touch with your people soon.”
The priest was uncertain about what was happening, but seeing that the prince recognized the man and was showing respect to him, or at least to the person behind him, the priest decided to go with the flow. He gave a polite nod before asking, “So I take it that this concludes our business?”
The Dominion’s Eye nodded, and the priest decided that this was his cue to get his people away from this dangerous man.
When the Zagraf Theocracy delegation left, the prince turned to the Dominion’s Eye and said, “Eye, if my father would grant me more men, I am sure we can take the fort. All I need is one more chance to-” The prince said this but was cut off by the Dominion’s Eye raising his hand.
“That is not necessary. Now that your part has been played, I can reveal to you that the fort was never meant to be taken. This was all just a weapon’s test.” he then gestured into the distance where many forts along the border were. “Your group is one among many that are testing different weapons of the Theocracy. In exchange, they will provide us with said weapons when the time comes. Although the resistance at this fort was unexpected, we got the results that we came for. For now, your job is done, and your father has called you home.”
When the Dominion’s Eye was finished with what he had to say, he walked out of the tent, blended in with the darkness, and was gone.
***
I woke up the next day with my body aching everywhere, but it was an improvement from yesterday. However, as I took in a breath of morning air, the same could not be said about how I smelled.
After freshening up and getting into some new clothes, I felt my stomach protest in hunger. So, I made my way to the mess hall for some food. On my way there, more than a few men who saw me in the hallway seemed to greet me more respectfully than they did since I got here.
At first, I was wondering what stick got shoved up their asses, but I then remembered what happened yesterday. I had blown my cover, and it did not take a genius for the men to put two and two together. If news of me being the Fort Commander’s son got to half of the fort yesterday, I could be damned sure that the whole fort knows by today. The only silver lining I can see is that not everyone can put my face to a name yet, but I am sure that will change in the days to come.
After a big breakfast, I went to find Dad in his office, but he was not there. When I asked around, I was informed that he was in the dungeon overseeing the interrogation. So I made my way to see him. I wonder what info they got out of the survivors so far.
