B4 Chapter 475: Runewrights, pt. 2
byThe governor’s manor, it seemed, was far more than just what was visible above ground. While its foundations were built into a slight rise that gave the large stone building a view of the surrounding city, they descended far deeper than that.
This section of the governor’s compound seemed old. While the stone was the same aged brick, it lacked the veneer of modernity. There were no tapestries or wooden panelling — only foundation sturdy enough that it looked like it might survive a dragon attack.
Kaius was surprised that they didn’t butt up against the old catacombs that he had descended through on his way to the Imperial ruins. Hells, maybe they did. The stone looked similar enough.
Yet despite the clear rarity of its use, ahead of him the chamberlain walked with purpose, taking corners and unlocking doors like he had memorised the entire floor plan.
So good was the man’s knowledge that it had taken them a bare five minutes to get from their secluded balcony overlooking the packed courtyard where the governor had made his speech — cutting through the buildings, servants’ halls, out a back entrance into the governor’s manor, and then finally down.
Some of that, of course, was their fleet pace. The chamberlain all but jogged. Although Kaius found himself barely having to break a casual stroll to keep up with the man. The benefits of more than a dozen honours and a hundred levels, he supposed.
“Which formation? What are we working with? And who else will be helping to check on it?” Kaius said. “I am something of a combat specialist, and while my raw abilities are good, I hope that you have others that I may lean on for their technical expertise.”
The chamberlain didn’t break stride, taking a hard right to cross into another hall lit by only the dim luminance of occasional ward-lights. They were dull things, clearly designed for infrequent maintenance rather than comfort and brightness.
“As much as I wish to say that we tout some of the grand artifice fortifying the cities of the Dukedoms and Mystral, that is not the case. While the Frents and Deadacre as a whole have never exactly been poor, we are undoubtedly provincial and small. The formation is a simple thing — fortifying the walls, and helping to spread impacts if something attempts to breach them or the gates. I know little more than that. It’s as old as the walls themselves. There is only aged documentation to help.”
The chamberlain’s voice had a clipped edge to it. Kaius could understand the stress, considering the current circumstances. Fyfen was clearly a man of planning and documentation; organising the defence of a siege and any possible civilian measures to secure the populace must have been working him to the bone.
“And the other runewrights?” Kaius asked.
“Three Steels. Masters of their craft — or at least the closest to that you’ll find in a city like this. They are old and proud, but they have all done trusted work for me and the governor before.”
“They have familiarity with the formation, then?”
The chamberlain audibly winced.
“Not directly. The formation has not been serviced in a hundred and fifty years, when Deadacre and Grandbrook were suffering at the hands of the bandit lord Ralton and his constant raids. Even with the current circumstances, our resources have been stretched thin, and nobody seriously considered that the city might be invaded — not like this. We were fools, it seemed.”
Kaius shook his head. If Fyfen was a fool for not anticipating an invading army of beasts, then they all were. Sure, the strange migration had seemed suspect — but until Dross had brought word, it had seemed outlandish to think that beasts had been enslaved to a malicious will for the purpose of invasion. Hells, they’d first seen the beasts moving away from the city, and when they’d suspected Stangspine, that had seemed like further confirmation that the city was not a target.
Regardless, if neither he nor the other runewrights were already familiar with the formation, the job was much more difficult.
Fyfen seemed to anticipate his misgivings. “What documents we have have been provided to the other runewrights, and they seem confident. Apparently its construction is relatively standard for civil work, and they are all familiar with the script.”
“That’s something at least,” Kaius murmured.
Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.
Still, over a century without maintenance, things would have decayed. Depending on the scale of the formation, the other runewrights might just need his help after all. Feeling out the mana flows over so much space was taxing. He hoped that, with his help, they would be able to get it done in time.
Falling back into silence, doors flooded past the two of them, each seemingly identical to the last. Without his keen memory, Kaius was sure he would have long since gotten lost. While Sergeant’s Insight wasn’t totally useless in aiding navigation, it was far less directed towards that ability than Explorer’s Toolkit had been in that regard — a worthy sacrifice for just how much better it had gotten at keeping him and his team safe.
Eventually, the hallways changed slightly. They were more cramped, reinforced by steel brackets. Wooden doors became barred, and Fyfen was soon rifling through his key ring for three keys to unlock each instead of one.
Their final barrier was a solid steel thing, heavily inscribed — a script Kaius recognised, though he didn’t know it personally. Roswainian.




0 Comments