33. A New Dawn

“Alright, gather around.” Luka gestured to the survivors of the group.

Everyone huddled around him to stare at the dirt drawing on the ground. Nathanial leaned in close, along with Fredrick and Richard by his side. The stone walls surrounding them hid their location decently enough that the Empire’s forces wouldn’t notice.

Vegetation climbed along the walls, and they covered the holes with rotting planks, just enough to hide their silhouettes. After a few hours of rest and alternating shifts, the men were confident that the Empire’s forces had stopped their pursuit.

The only thing that bothered Nathanial was why the pursuit had ended.

There were a few predictions, one being that they couldn’t locate their presence, but Nathanial and the others quickly shut it down. The Empire’s scouts and covert forces would easily track them down.

The only logical conclusion Nathanial could arrive at was that the Empire’s forces had weighed their odds and stopped their pursuit. He only needed to figure out why.

“So far, we’ve checked the routes we’ve taken, and there aren’t any signs of pursuit,” Luka said. “But the Empire has set up a defensive perimeter where the outer net was.”

“What could they possibly be doing?” Fredrick asked.

“If I had to take a wild guess, it’s probably to make sure their armies can siege without a worry,” Luka replied. “They stationed enough men to stop a small force from making a dent.”

“There’s that six-star knight as well.” Nathanial watched as Luka drew a wide line surrounding the encampment and the Empire’s two armies. “Because of John and the others, we’ve made it out, but what do we do now?”

“Assuming that the Empire’s forces haven’t been pushed back, then I’m guessing they made their way toward the dwarven borders to cut off the Seventh Army.” Luka stared at the men and drew a circle to represent Commander Carl’s forces. “From where we are to our allied forces, it should still be within our realm of control.”

“What makes you say that?” Nathanial asked.

“Because there should be other divisions of watchmen lurking within the depths of the forest.”

“Then that means… It’s the same for the area we escaped from.”

Luka nodded. “John was worried that once the Empire solidified its position, they would send more high-ranked aura users into their zone of control to weed out the rest of us. We tried to regroup with whoever we could find, but as you can see, that didn’t turn out so well.”

Nathanial stared at the makeshift drawing. Several squares were drawn, representing the Orders’ men, then dashed lines to represent logistic routes. The very routes guarded by the knights. Then, the supply depot that the patrolmen had discovered.

“We found you guys because of the explosion you created, but for watchmen, we hardly cause a commotion. If the others wanted to be found, then they would have. But odds are, they’re probably lying low and waiting for their opportunity.”

“The same as us…”

Nathanial looked at the scene unfold. To their knowledge, the Empire had broken through the Fifth Army. Either completely annihilating the force or routing them. But for such a thing to happen in a single night made no sense. Then they had pushed far beyond and wrapped east to isolate one Everheart army and perhaps the second.

“How did we not react in time?” Richard muttered, crossing his arms. “Our army has an assortment of knights, all on par with the Empire’s knight orders. Our commander is also a seven-star aura user. It’s not a force to be trifled with.”

“A single mistake… would have cost the Empire greatly,” Nathanial added. “And out of all the places for them to hit, they chose the center?” He shook his head. “It’s insanity.”

“Or is it?” Fredrick chimed in as everyone looked at him. He raised his brow. “Well, I mean, if you think about it from my perspective, right? What would make me or you run?”

Nathanial shrugged. “Probably someone stronger than me.”

“Correct, but let’s say a four-star aura user appeared, and Luka was by your side. Would. You. Still. Run?”

“I wouldn’t.”

“Yep, but for me… I can give you plenty of reasons. It could be a demon, a monster, or maybe even…” Fredrick gestured around, prompting one of them to answer.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

“A new weapon…” Richard replied.

Fredrick snapped his fingers. “Spot on. We have no clue what it is, but there is definitely something new out there.”

Luka fell deep into thought, holding his chin. “It seems like… decades of peace have caught our nation off guard.”

Silence engulfed the room of the ruined building they were in. No one uttered a word. The watchmen listening to the conversation had long realized the truth, with a few keeping a watchful gaze of the tree line while the remaining patrolmen couldn’t hide their disbelief.

Nathanial didn’t want to believe it, but had no choice but to accept the result.

“It has…” Nathanial’s quiet voice broke the silence. “Now we need to figure out what we’ll do next.”

Luka shook his head. “We lack information. As much as I want to leap into our next plan, it’ll be careless to move in broad daylight.”

“Then what do you suppose we do?”

“Wait. Wait long enough for us to gather more information, so we know what exactly we’re dealing with.”

Nathanial tightly clenched his fists, but soon nodded. There wasn’t a point in arguing, but after everything that happened, he couldn’t help but feel anger at himself.

If only I had done more… then how many lives would still be here?

He looked around the room, with the group slowly dispersing to get proper rest.

Fredrick stood beside him. “So… I take it you haven’t slept yet?”

“No… not really.”

“Good, in that case, we can take turns.” Fredrick pointed to himself with his thumb and grinned. “I already napped.”

Nathanial blinked twice before narrowing his eyes. “How…?”

“I just accepted the fact that if I died in my sleep, then it just wasn’t meant to be.”

He stared at his friend at a loss for words, but quickly accepted it without questioning him. “Alright, just wake me up if something happens.”

Nathanial walked over to one of the few remaining walls still standing. He leaned on the cold stone surface with his armor scraping against the rigid brick as he plopped down.

His body ached, but he didn’t care. After everything that had happened, he was far too tired and was glad to finally sleep, knowing that the Empire’s forces weren’t after them.

Yet as he shut his eyes and slowly drifted off, he heard a gentle ding echo in his ears.