“Did you actually want to visit this place because of the drinks?” Nadia asked as she, Crow and Rayner approached the Black Dagger.

“In part,” the viceroy replied vaguely. He didn’t want to tell her about Evelyn before they got inside the building. Knowing his half-sister, she would just pester him for more information, wanting to learn more about the tavern keeper he was going out of his way to visit near the border. Although he didn’t think she would be rude to the older woman, he was already out of his comfort zone by showing up to Silverpool in a full nobleman ensemble. He preferred to be the one to tell Evelyn about everything that had happened in his life recently without any input or questions from the princess. It would be easier to slip away from her if she didn’t know about his old acquaintance in advance.

Stepping inside the tavern, he was greeted by the hum of voices and the scent of musty wood and liquor. Almost immediately after, he felt a twinge of discomfort. The peasant patrons in the room were already beginning to glance his way and whisper as they took notice. Most of the people in Silverpool knew him to some degree, so he would have been more shocked if they hadn’t recognized him. Their baffled stares made him draw a steeling breath, acclimating to the fact that word of his appearance would spread through the outer villages like wildfire. He just tried not to dwell on the rumors that he knew would travel along with the news that he was passing through in the company of decorated knights. Hopefully the things he planned to say to the keeper would help to offset the worst of the gossip at least a little.

Catching sight of the very person he was looking for across the tavern, he turned back to Naida and Rayner, “You two should go and get a table for us. I’ll join you in a moment.”

“What are you going to do?” Naida frowned.

“I just need to talk to someone alone,” he answered.

“Why?” the princess pressed.

“Don’t be nosy,” he rolled his eyes, prodding her in the side. “It doesn’t have anything to do with you if that’s what you’re concerned about. I’ll meet you both at a table when I’m done.”

Naida was quiet for a moment as she seemed to contemplate pushing her luck again, but ultimately decided against it. “Okay,” she sighed exaggeratedly. “Just don’t keep us waiting too long or else Otto might come looking for us, and I don’t think he’ll leave you to talk to your friend alone.”

“I’ll make it as quick as I can,” he assured her.

While the knights took a seat at a nearby table, the former thief made his way through the center of the room towards Evelyn, who didn’t seem to have noticed him as she gave directions to one of the serving wenches. His heart raced with a mixture of eagerness and apprehension, and he reached up to tap her on the shoulder, bracing himself for whatever her reaction might be as she turned around.

--

Penelope’s reply that Crow was in Silverpool cleared up nothing for Hazel. She took on a puzzled expression as Alistair questioned the knight about it, equally confused by the revelation. However, as she went on, the herbalist gathered that quite a lot had happened since the last time they’d received word from the new viceroy. All of it was good news too. Like the rest of the villagers, she and the two thieves had been longing to see the war finally end, so if it was really happening soon, she was relieved. She could see that Rikki was focusing on a different part of the message though.

Glancing her way, Hazel noticed the female thief’s shoulder fall slightly when Penelope relayed that Crow was on his way to Younis. She could guess that she was disappointed that he hadn’t stopped by to see them in person rather than sending the lieutenant in his place. Subtly, she reached out to give Rikki’s hand a squeeze in silent reassurance. She hoped the heartbroken woman would move on soon, since it was apparent that she could never have the man her heart pined for.

Turning back to Penelope, she was about to thank her for sharing the news with them when the lieutenant added that Crow had sent her to give them the location of a meeting point to see them. That brightened both of the thieves up considerably. “Fallen tree?” she echoed curiously.

“He has to mean that big one in the middle of the woods to the west,” Alistair’s eyes widened. “You know the one I’m talking about, right, Rikki?”

“Yeah,” she nodded, seeming dazed. “It’s impossible to miss it.”

Hazel’s eyes danced between the two of them. She wasn’t sure what they were referring to, but as long as they knew where the meeting point was, that was all that mattered. “Well, thank you for coming all this way to tell us,” she said to Penelope. “We’ve all been hoping for a chance to see him again.” In the next moment, another thought crossed her mind, and she added: “Are you hungry? I just made stew for everyone, and we should have enough to feed one extra mouth if you need something to eat after coming all the way here.”

While Crow’s words had been cryptic to her, it seemed that he had been right in assuming that his old companions would know what he was talking about. Penelope was glad too. The last thing she wanted was to relay a message that no one understood. Her gaze flickered between the two thieves as the spoke of the fallen tree before looking back over to Hazel as she thanked the knight for delivering the message. Penelope dipped her head to the herbalist with a small smile. Though Hazel’s words were kind, she couldn’t help but feel a faint sting for being the one to take him away from them in the first place. Even though it seemed none of them harbored any grudge towards her for it. “Of course. It was the least I could do.” she said with a shrug.

As Hazel offered her something to eat, Penelope hesitated. Her immediate answer would have been yes merely based on the hunger from the long trip to reach them. However, upon second thought, she realized that it was likely for the best that she didn’t accept Hazel’s offer. Though it was kind, Penelope silently recalled that the herbalist was pregnant. The last thing she wanted to do was take food away from the mother to be. Besides, her battalion would have plenty of food to spare so it felt wrong to take it from the small group that had to keep themselves sustained. Plus she wanted to reach her battalion before the sun fully set.

“Thank you for the offer but I’m actually on my way back to my battalion right now.” Penelope explained with a grateful smile. “I want to try and reach the camp before it gets too dark. Plus I wouldn’t want to delay your own trip. Crow has a rather strict baron with him so I’m sure he’ll only have tonight to meet you all before they continue on into Younis in the morning.” She gave a small shrug and glanced over her shoulders. Her camp wasn’t terribly far so she didn’t doubt that she could make it there in time before the sun fully set. There would be plenty to do and catch up on when she did arrive too.

A breath escaped her at the thought and she looked back to the trio standing in front of her. “In fact, I should be taking my leave. Message aside, it was good to see you all again. I hope you have an easy trip to wherever that tree is.” she said with a smile.

“Crow, is that you?” Evelyn stared at him with squinted eyes as she took in the sight of his uniform. He shifted his weight awkwardly. Now was the moment when he would find out if one of the few people he respected in the world would approve or be disappointed in the decision he’d made to become Albin’s viceroy.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?” he smiled at her sheepishly.

“Considering your usual patterns, it doesn’t surprise me,” a glimmer of amusement entered the tavern keeper’s eyes as she looked him over. “I have to ask, though. What on earth are you wearing?”

He swallowed. “That’s, err, sort of why I’m here,” he started slowly. “A lot’s changed since the last time I was in Silverpool…” And he filled her in on everything that had happened over the last few months. First, he told her about Jaxon and how he had allied himself with the knights to stop the murderous thief from handing the war to Younis; he explained that during the last fight, he’d been almost fatally wounded and had to recover in the battalion’s camp; then he relayed how a knight from the inner kingdom had sought him out to bring him back to the castle, where he met with the king of Brerra and was offered the position of viceroy. By the end, he confessed that he’d taken the deal and fell quiet as he studied the old woman’s face in wait to hear her thoughts on it all.

At first Evelyn said nothing while she processed the heap of news he’d just dropped on her. Then, she shook her head slowly. “Who would have thought our resident thief would be taken in by the king himself?” she mused with an incredulous chuckle. “You really do know how to get everything you want, don’t you, you rascal?”

“I wouldn’t say this is something I’ve always dreamed of having,” he smiled back at her, relieved that she didn’t seem disgusted with him for choosing noble life. “The offer came out of nowhere too.”

“Did it really?” Evelyn’s expression turned into a knowing one.

He furrowed his brows, “What do you mean?”

“Last year, when that courier gave me a letter to hold onto for you, I may have snooped,” the tavern keeper revealed with a sly wink.

“Evelyn!” Crow gawked at her, shocked that she’d invaded his privacy. “How much did you know?”

“Enough to realize that I’ve been giving free drinks to royalty for years without getting anything in return,” she huffed with mock irritableness and then rested a hand on his shoulder when he rolled his eyes at her. “I didn’t know the exact terms of the offer the king was planning to give you, but I’m glad it all worked out for the best, Crow.”

“If you knew all along, then why didn’t you say anything?” he asked with a frown.

“It wasn’t my place,” Evelyn answered simply. “Whether or not you opened that letter was your decision. Confronting your father was your choice to make as well. I didn’t want to influence you one way or the other.”

“So… you’re not disappointed that I chose to take the title?”

“Not at all. I’m sure you’re going to make a great viceroy. I must admit that I’m a little confused as to why you took the title if you didn’t want it though.”

“Penelope,” Crow summed the answer up in one word. “Do you remember her? The woman I was with a little over two years ago… She’s actually a knight, and now that I’m a nobleman, we’re finally going to be married.”

“Ah, of course,” she smirked amusedly. “I’d almost forgotten what a romantic you’ve turned into.”

“Shut up,” he snorted, turning slightly red.

The tavern keeper chuckled again, “I’m happy for you. It’s about time you got that girl you’ve been after for so long. I assume I won’t be able to make it to the wedding if it’s set to happen in the inner kingdom, but I wish the two of you a long and happy marriage.”

“Thank you,” he said appreciatively, warmed by her support.

“Now then,” a cunning look took over Evelyn’s aging features as she looked past his shoulder. “Why don’t you have a seat with those knights you brought with you and I’ll fetch you all something to drink? Noble travelers always bring in lots of money.”

--

Hazel shrugged when Penelope turned down her offer to share their stew, “Suit yourself.” They did have enough to feed an extra person, but she didn’t want to pressure the knight to stay if she was trying to get back to her battalion. Besides, she was right that they would need to leave quickly after they ate in order to make sure they had as much time with Crow as possible before he crossed the border. She was sure they were going to have plenty of catching up to do.

“It’s hard to imagine Crow with a baron,” Alistair mused with a shudder. “I’ll have to make sure he hasn’t changed too much when we see him later!”

“He’s probably surrounded with barons now, dumbass,” Hazel rolled her eyes. Secretly, though, she was a little curious to find out if the thief they all knew and loved had changed since he’d moved into the castle. Power had a way of corrupting people, so it would give her some peace of mind to see that he was the same man he’d been when he’d left. Turning back to Penelope, she returned the lieutenant’s smile, “It was good to see you too. Be safe on your way back. The war isn’t over yet.”

“And tell Olivia I miss her when you get back,” Alistair chimed in.

Penelope nodded her head as Hazel advised her to be safe on her ride back. She was just about to turn to leave when Alistair also cut in to send her off with a message to Olivia. The knight had suspected that the two were still meeting so she found his words a little amusing as they confirmed it. “I’ll be sure to relay that to her.” she chuckled with a small nod. Turning away from the group, she headed out of the mouth of the cave and back to her horse. As she mounted the stead, she felt a small hint of anxiousness about finally returning to her battalion. A lot had changed since she had last left it, not to mention that she also had no idea what it’s current state would be when she arrived.

Guess I’ll find out soon enough. She thought with a tense exhale. Giving her horse a sharp kick, she took off in the direction of where her camp was located.

——————————

The ride there wasn’t very long. She passed through Myrefall and traveled through the forest until it opened up to reveal the base. From afar, it appeared to be the same camp that she had left and for that she was grateful. There was no thrill in returning to the warfront but she was eager to see how the ones she had left behind were faring during their near month apart. Not to mention that she came bearing rather good news. With any luck, this camp would soon be taken down with the war’s end. Keeping that thought in mind, a small smile crossed her lips and she continued her way to the front.

Almost immediately the guards stationed there were caught off guard by her unannounced return. A couple mumbled their welcomes to her and she dipped her head to them in return. She had no doubt news of her return would travel quickly that night, likely over the knights finishing supper. She hopped off her horse and handed the reigns over to one of the guards. Though she could have handled putting away the beast on her own, she needed to speak to Mia before word reached the baroness’ ear by the morning. Penelope thanked the guard and then began to make her way towards the tent.

As she walked, she took in the sights of the camp, eying for any familiar faces as talk began to break out from her return. Since it was nearly dark though, it seemed most were having dinner already or retiring for the night. The one thing she did get from the sight around her was that the camp had hardly changed, which likely meant that things on the warfront were no different than before. It was both a good and bad thing so she chose not to dwell on it for long. Luckily, she didn’t have to as a familiar, feminine voice called out from behind her.

“Penelope?!” Turning her head, her gaze rested upon Olivia. The female knight stood a short distance away with wide eyes, seeming stunned to suddenly see her friend that had appeared without prior notice. Her shock gave away to a grin and the other female knight hurried over to catch up with Penelope. “What the hell are you doing here?” Olivia asked as she gave her friend a quick embrace.

“Returning to the warfront of course.” Penelope smirked as she hugged her back. Taking a step back from Olivia, she was glad to see that her friend appeared to be in good health.

Olivia rolled her eyes. “You know that’s not what I mean. The last time you wrote, you said you were throwing some huge party to end the war! Why are you back already? Did it not go well? Oh and how’s that viceroy of yours?” She shook her head and grinned. “Gods I have so many questions! You better start answering them!”

Penelope gave a small laugh. “I figured you would but I have to go see Mia first. As much as you want answers, I’m afraid someone out ranking you wants them as well.” she explained with a smirk. It was refreshing to see Olivia again and she was eager to share everything with her as well as find out how everyone on the warfront had been doing but she would have to wait. A quiet rumble from her stomach gave the knight an idea. “How about this, grab me a plate of whatever they’re serving for supper and I’ll meet you at my tent right after I’m done speaking with Mia, ok?”

Olivia let out a disappointed sigh before nodding her head. “You drive a hard bargain Vermillion but alright.” she said with a smirk. “If your talking price is food then I’ll pay it. I’ll meet you back at your tent in a bit then.”

“I’ll see you there.” Penelope grinned. She was just about to turn away when she recalled Alistair’s words. “By the way, Alistair said that he misses you.” she added, smirking mischievously as the statement caught Olivia off guard. After all the teasing and mischief that the female knight had put her through in the past, it was nice to have a good bit of leverage to get back at her with. “We’re definitely talking about that later too!” Penelope called over her shoulder as she hurried off to Mia’s tent before Olivia could say anymore.

Stepping up to the front flap of the tent, Penelope tentatively poked her head inside. “Mia?” she called out. Her gaze soon landed on the baroness who was sitting at the small wooden table in her room. As Mia looked up, her expression gave way into one of surprise. Penelope casted her a small smile and stepped into the tent. “Sorry I didn’t send any letter ahead of time… Things move fast at the castle and well, I’m back.” she explained with a sheepish smile.

“So you are.” Mia said with a hint of amusement in her expression. The low light of the lantern on her desk managed to shine just enough for the glimmer to be caught on the baroness’ face. Mia shifted to stand up, stepping over to her lieutenant to place a hand on her shoulder. “I’m glad to have you back Penelope but I must ask, why the early arrival? You still had another month to try and convince the king before I required for you to return.”

Penelope couldn’t help but let a smile take over her lips. “I know. That’s actually why I returned. The king is currently sending the viceroy to Younis to negotiate for peace as we speak.” She paused before adding. “I actually traveled out with him until we reached Wellspring.”

Mia’s eyes widened slightly before she broke out into a proud grin. “I see. That’s good news.. As I’m sure you’re aware, very little has changed out here since you left.” The baroness’ grinned died down and she let out a sigh. “A stalemate, still as tiring as it was the day you left. Well, with any luck, this war will be over shortly and peacefully though. I certainly look for to it.” Mia shrugged her shoulders and took a step back from Penelope to walk back over to her table, her gaze thoughtful as she looked down at the pages.

It seemed that the warfront was just as Penelope expected it to be. Unchanging and still as grave as before. She just hoped that would help in convincing the barons to act defensively until peace could be reached. The lieutenant shifted a bit as she looked to her baroness for more information but Mia had fallen quiet. However, her dark gaze silently spoke of how much was going through her mind. “Did.. Did you want to go over anything else before I retire for the night?” Penelope asked raising an eyebrow.

Mia finally looked back over to her lieutenant and paused before shaking her head. “No, we can catch you up tomorrow after you’ve gotten some rest.” she assured. The baroness pursed her lips together in a pause before adding, “But Penelope, I have to ask since you said you left with him again… Regarding our new viceroy, did you know prior to your father showing up that he would get that title?”

Penelope blinked in surprise at the question. She expected some questions about Crow becoming viceroy but she hadn’t expected it to be so soon. “I didn’t… It came as a shock to me as well.”

Mia studied her for a moment and then frowned. “Penelope, I must ask… what exactly is or was your relationship with him? I’ve ignored it for far too long and I’d like to know, considering it sounds like you’re still hanging around the criminal turned noble.”

The knight let out a small breath, more at Mia’s words about Crow than her actual questioning. After all, Penelope knew that it was only a matter of time before the baroness found out that her lieutenant was now being courted by the very man that used to steal from their battalion. The knight had no intention of lying any more now that her and Crow had taken the proper steps to officially court as nobles. “Well, since you’re asking, I’ll have you know that I’m being courted by him now.” she said, meeting her baroness’ gaze as she tried to gage her reaction. When Mia said nothing, Penelope took it upon herself to give her more information. “Gavin and I broke it off a while ago. You know that he took that sword for me so I’m guessing you can connect the dots there… I just happened to get lucky that the king wanted to give him the position of viceroy and I swear I had no hand in that.”

Penelope shifted her feet. While she held no guilt over her choice to be with Crow, the silence from Mia was nerve wracking. “My father gave us his blessing even.” she met Mia’s gaze with a stern expression. “Mia, I may have been involved with him but I swear I never did anything that would have hurt my battalion nor my kingdom. I won’t apologize for being with him—I have no regrets there—but I do apologize for having to go behind your back.”

After another pause of silence, Mia finally acknowledged her words with a small nod. Her feelings were impossible to read though. The baroness’ gaze gave away nothing but mild shock. “Ok.” she replied in an all too simple tone.

“O-Ok?” Penelope echoed with confusion. She was expecting a little more than just a casual ‘ok’ in response to everything she had just said.

“Yes.” Mia said slowly moving to turn away from Penelope to look at the papers on the table she had been eying before the lieutenant walked in. “Thank you for reporting to me first, Penelope. You are dismissed now. Go get some rest.” she instructed the knight with a small wave.

Penelope blinked, unsure how to take Mia’s reaction. Usually most people had a more opinionated reaction when she admitted to being involved with Crow—and more often than not their reactions were one of disapproval rather than excitement. However, her own baroness made her feel damn near foolish for even admitting to it. “Ah, right. Thank you, Mia.” she stuttered with a respectful dip of her head. Penelope turned and headed out of the tent, all the while pondering what to make of Mia’s lacking reaction.

For the rest of the evening, Crow avoided facing Otto by drinking with Naida and Rayner at the Black Dagger. Knowing that he was going to be sneaking out of the inn to visit his old companions later that night, he limited himself to one honey mead, though his sister managed to convince the uptight lieutenant to indulge in a second mug with her. For the most part, the baron’s son kept to himself, so conversation with limited to the two siblings. Evelyn dropped by every now and then when she wasn’t busy taking care of other patrons, but the rest of the villagers in the tavern kept their distance. It was hard to tell if they were unnerved by the sight of nobles in their territory or if they didn’t know how to approach the former thief now that it was apparent that something major had changed in his life. Either way, no one besides the tavern keeper dared to approach him while he was there.

After a while, their fun was put to an end when Otto sent Percival to retrieve them. The knight seemed uncomfortable being given the role of chaperone, but he followed through with his orders, reminding them that they needed to return to the inn to eat dinner before food was no longer served. The threat of missing a meal was enough motivation to convince Crow to get moving, so he said his goodbyes to Evelyn and dragged his drunk sister with him to the other building alongside Rayner and Percy, where they met up with Otto and Preston for supper. Naturally, the baron took the first opportunity to reprimand them for loitering at the tavern for over an hour—and for letting the princess have too much to drink—but the viceroy brushed him off as soon as their food arrived, distracted immediately by the delicious-smelling meat and vegetables on his plate.

After the meal was over, they continued on their way to their room which, thankfully, was the proper size for once. It seemed like the travelers going to and from the warfront had no need to visit a village that was closer to the border than most of the battalions were. It was good news for him, because it would be easier for him to slip out of the room unnoticed if he wasn’t sharing a bed with another man. Percival seemed like a heavy sleeper, but he couldn’t be certain that the knight wouldn’t wake up if he got up in the middle of the night to leave. Even the stealthiest of thieves couldn’t prevent the creaking of an aged bed or the shift of a mattress when his weight was removed from it. Since this room had six beds—Otto had even paid for a sleeping space for Preston, likely because he foresaw that the viceroy would protest if he hadn’t—he could just snag a spot close to the door, so he could get away without disturbing anyone else.

With a plan in mind, he followed the group into the room as they filed through the narrow doorway one by one. As soon as he was inside, he turned toward the closest beds to the exit, only to pause when he saw that Otto and Rayner had already claimed them. The space was arranged with three beds against the left and right walls, so it would have been easier for them to make their way towards the back of the room and fill in that way. He narrowed his eyes slightly, certain they’d chosen those spots intentionally. Ever since Penelope had left, it seemed like the baron was determined to make sure he couldn’t run away. The watchful behavior reminded him of the way William had acted when he’d traveled to Younis the first time. Only now, it was even more vexing since he was no longer a criminal being transported by guards.

“Is there a problem, Lockton?” Otto asked, taking notice of his lingering stare. The baron was observing him with an unreadable expression, as if he was keeping an eye on a ward whom he didn’t trust to behave.

Crow scoffed and kept walking to one of the beds in the center of the room that had yet to be claimed. “You know exactly what you’re doing,” he said simply as he began removing his outer layer of clothes. There was no way for him to object to the baron’s sleeping arrangements without coming across as suspicious, so he didn’t bother. Laying down near the door would have given him easy access to the hallway, but he was skilled enough to slip out even if he had to walk a couple extra meters. His plans were still in motion, so he limited himself to making it clear that he was aware of the tricks Otto had been pulling recently to keep him in line.

“I don’t know what you mean,” the baron said, obviously playing dumb.

Of course he isn’t going to admit he’s treating me like I’m still a thief, Crow rolled his eyes. “Yes, you do,” he argued stubbornly, tossing his cloak over the footboard of his bed without meeting the older man’s gaze. He didn’t have to see the baron to know that he was probably pretending to be clueless about his own actions. He was also sure that his moody behavior was attracting the attention of the others, and he didn’t want to cause a scene the same night he was actually trying to sneak away from the group. “I’m not going to discuss it with you,” he warned Otto causally. “Just understand that I know what you’re doing, and I don’t appreciate it. That’s all.”

“You don’t appreciate being protected?” Otto crossed his arms, apparently unwilling to drop the subject. “I don’t know why it matters to you, but Rayner and I are sleeping by the door so that we’ll be in the middle if we’re discovered and attacked.”

“Discovered by who?” Crow asked, finally looking up after he’d removed his boots. Well aware that the others didn’t know about the mercenary he’d seen in Bellmare, so he was genuinely curious who Otto was afraid of being attacked by. “The Younisians don’t know we’re coming, so we won’t have to worry about being received poorly until we run into one of their battalions.”

Surprisingly, Otto faltered at the question. His eyes flicked to the other knights, who were also looking at him expectantly, before he cleared his throat. “Criminals, of course,” he stated firmly. “It’s common knowledge that these villages are riddled with them. It’s likely that we could be targeted while we’re staying here because we stand out, so I would feel more comfortable knowing you’re in the center of the room, where it’s safer.”

Bullshit, Crow shook his head, not buying the excuse for one second. The fact that the baron had wavered meant that he’d been scrambling to think of a believable lie. He was certain that Otto was trying to keep him from running away, even though he had no intention of abandoning his assignment. All he was going to do was see his companions for a little while and come back. There was no harm. “Whatever helps you sleep at night,” he drawled in unbridled disbelief, swinging his legs onto his bed and pulling the blanket over himself. There was no reason to keep fighting about it. The sooner everyone fell asleep, the sooner he could leave to visit the other thieves. For now, the smartest move was for him to let it go, so the rest of the group would wind down to sleep.

Hoping they would soon, he closed his eyes in wait for his chance to get away.

--

Crow wasn’t sure how much time passed, but it wasn’t too long after the lights went out that the sound of gentle snoring permeated the room. He shifted carefully on his mattress, opening his eyes to make sure that the knights were all unconscious. Naida was tossing and turning on her bed at the back of the room, but her breathing was heavy enough that he could tell she was dreaming. Preston and Percival both laid still, while Rayner and Otto seemed to be the sources of the snores. He smiled to himself as he silently crawled out of his own bed and bent down to put on his boots, working quickly to lace them up and then slipping on his cloak.

Once he was ready to go, he threw the hood over his head and crept toward the door with featherlight footsteps. He was just about to reach for the handle when he heard a voice hiss: “Collin.”

Bristling at the unexpected whisper, the former thief whirled around and groaned inwardly when he saw the dim glint of open eyes in the darkness. “Go back to sleep,” he murmured under his breath to Percival, who must not have been asleep like the others were. In retrospect, he supposed he should have known to wait until he heard the burly knight snoring like the other men. He hadn’t been a quiet sleeper the last few nights they’d been on the road.

“Where are you going?” Percy asked softly, disregarding the advice by sitting up on his bed. The mattress groaned beneath his shifting weight, and Crow grimaced, glancing furtively at Otto’s still face in the hopes that the sound wouldn’t rouse him.

“It doesn’t matter,” he hissed, his heartbeat quickening slightly with urgency. “Stop moving before you wake anyone else up… I’ll be back later.”

“You’re not going to see Penelope, are you?” Percival asked, taking a shot in the dark.

“What?” Crow frowned. “No, she went back to her battalion. I won’t be seeing her again until we get back from Younis.”

“Then where are you going?” the knight asked again.

The viceroy tipped his head back slightly in exasperation. “I just have something I need to do while I’m here,” he answered vaguely. “I’ll probably be gone for most of the night. Don’t wait up.”

Percy studied him for a moment longer before he stood up as quietly as he could manage. “You shouldn’t go alone,” he said decidedly, putting on his boots.

“Gods, don’t follow me,” Crow groaned again.

“If something happens to you, it will ruin the whole mission,” the knight argued with a shake of his head. “You either let me accompany you as your guard, or you’ll have to stay here.”

“When did you get so bossy?” the former thief muttered, irritated that the other man had managed to back him into a corner. He could tell that if he didn’t agree to Percival’s terms, the knight would wake up Otto, and any chance he had of seeing his companions would disappear. The stakes were too high.

“When the king told me it was my job to keep you safe,” Percy replied, pulling his long hair out of his face into a low ponytail with a piece of twine. He slipped his cloak on and stepped over to the door. “Besides that… I wanted to ask you something.”

“Oh?” Crow blinked, mildly surprised that the taciturn man had an ulterior motive.

Percival nodded. He glanced at Otto’s sleeping form before taking the doorknob in his hand and pulling it open with a gesture for the viceroy to pass through first. Once they had both stepped into the corridor and put some distance between themselves and the others, he finally spoke again. “Do you think Baron Theroulde has been acting strangely?” he asked, meeting Crow’s gaze with a concerned expression.

The former thief raised his brows, caught off guard by the inquiry. He and Percy had been getting along decently for a while, but he hadn’t thought that a born and bred nobleman would ever care about his opinion on something like this—especially when the question he’d just asked could have gotten him into trouble. He was almost flattered that the knight wanted his input at all. “It’s because he doesn’t trust me,” he replied with a shrug. “I’ve been a criminal my whole life until about a month ago. Like a lot of the other people in the inner kingdom, he can’t look past the fact that I used to have a bounty on my head. That’s why he’d been so strict, I’m sure.”

“I don’t think so,” Percy said slowly, further surprising the viceroy with his disagreement.

“What do you mean?” Crow pressed.

“Well,” the knight rested a hand on the hilt of his sword. “It’s just the way he behaves sometimes. I may be off my mark, but there’s just something… jumpy about him. I didn’t notice it until the night you had your… erm, your dream. It was almost like we’d caught him red-handed when he came back into the room. I’ve been paying closer attention to him since then, and every once in a while, he says things that don’t sound right.”

Crow chewed on his lip thoughtfully as the other man spoke. Truth be told, he hadn’t noticed any of the “things” the knight was talking about. He’d always considered himself to be observant, but he wondered if Percival was right, and there was something about the baron that he was missing. “What do you think he’s hiding?” he asked, curious to hear the guard’s opinion.

“I don’t know… maybe nothing,” Percival exhaled deeply, seeming conflicted. “I don’t want to believe he’s hiding anything. He had an impeccable reputation at the castle, and I felt honored to work alongside him when I was told he would be joining us. Now that I know you haven’t noticed anything unusual about him, I think I may be seeing things that aren’t there too.”

“But that’s not necessarily true,” Crow objected. “I’ve been trying to avoid him more often than not, so I wasn’t watching him as closely as you have been. Now that I know you think there’s something fishy about him, I’ll start paying closer attention as well.”

Percival nodded, “I just wanted to make sure someone else was aware of it. If he truly is hiding something, it’s better for us to be alert.”

“It is,” the viceroy agreed. “Thank you for telling me.”

“Of course,” the knight said politely.

With the conversation out of the way, they hastened their pace as they walked toward the forest. Crow was still perplexed about the mystery of what the baron was potentially keeping from them, but as they drew closer to the meeting point, his concerns were outweighed by his excitement to see his old companions again after they had been apart for an entire month. He couldn’t wait to see them and find out what they had been doing since they’d last crossed paths.

Mia’s reaction had thrown the knight for a loop. After all that had transpired, Penelope expected to at least be slightly reprimanded by her superior but instead, Mia seemed to just simply brush it off. Perhaps it’s because he’s viceroy now.. She thought. Though he was her suitor now, she didn’t believe his position would give her any immunity. Or, maybe it had? Mia was a loyal baroness to the king so it was likely that played a key role in her lack of reaction. The baroness likely felt like her hands were tied in the matter and saw little reason to object to Penelope’s actions since it was all in the past. Satisfied with the conclusion she had come to, Penelope focused her gaze ahead as she returned to where her old tent was.

Soon coming upon it, she stepped inside. It seemed she had been right in assuming that the tent would remain untouched in her absence. As she walked in, she was surprised to find not only Olivia but Gavin as well. Olivia was quick to note her surprise and grinned mischievously at her friend. “I crossed paths with him on the way to get your dinner.” she explained with a shrug before nodding to the plate of food that was on the knight’s bed. “There’s the food I promised you but it’s probably a bit cold by now.”

The knight rolled her eyes. Gavin’s presence was likely just a way to keep her from asking about how her relationship with Alistair was going. She’d just have to make a mental note to pester her about it the next time they had a moment alone. “That’s fine, honestly I’m starving so I couldn’t careless about it’s temperature.” Penelope said dismissively before looking over to Gavin with a small smile. “I’m glad she ran into you. It’s good to see you again.”

“Likewise.” Gavin said with a small nod. He eyed her with a hint of curiosity. “Although, I have to ask, what’s with the sudden reappearance?”

“Right..” She mused with a knowing smirk. Penelope stepped over to take a seat o the edge of her bed, picking up her food in the process. Settling in, she focused her gaze on her two friends and grinned. “I’m back because the king has officially decided to negotiate for peace with Younis.”

“I’m guessing that party you were throwing went over well then.” Olivia grinned, leaning back on the palms of her hands.

“That’s great news.” Gavin said with a quiet sigh of relief. “I can’t wait for this to be over.”

Penelope nodded her head in agreement as she stuffed a spoonful of food into her mouth. As Olivia had warned, the meat and vegetables had gone cold from the wait. The knight didn’t mind much though as most of the flavor still remained and she was more focused on filling her stomach up than savoring it.

“Sooooo, when’s the king sending out the new viceroy?” Olivia asked curiously.

“That’s actually the reason why I showed up unannounced.” Penelope explained with a small shrug. “Crow’s on his way to Younis right now. I traveled with him until we reached Wellspring.”

Gavin looked over at her with thinly veiled shock. “I’m surprised that he’s sending him out so soon… I suppose that’s good though. The sooner the war is over the better.” he mused. Despite his words, a faint flash of uncertainty crossed his expression. His look made the knight raise her brow at him questioningly. He shifted a bit and then let out a reluctant sigh. “If he can pull it off. I mean, he’s only been viceroy for around a month now.”

“Oh come on Gavin!” Olivia laughed with a smirk. “This is Crow we’re talking about. He may be new to his position but this also the same man that somehow got you to stop pursuing the woman you were courting and somehow, you even seem to like him now.” she added with a small sneer. Her words earned her a flustered glare from the male knight sitting besides her while Penelope pinched the bridge of her nose. She may have just returned from the castle but it seemed Olivia was ready as always to stir the pot.

“That has nothing to do with what we’re talking about.” Gavin grumbled.

“Teasing aside, she does have a point.” Penelope said with a half smile. “I think he’ll do fine. He may be new to the position but he’s got enough tricks up his sleeve that I don’t think that’ll be an issue.”

Gavin paused before giving a small nod of his head. “I suppose.”

“Speaking of our favorite former thief, how’s that going between you two?” Olivia asked without even a second thought. “I know you said Naida had started trying to pair you two together. Gods I wish I could have been for that.” She added with a snicker.

Penelope rolled her eyes at Olivia’s teasing words. “And I thank the gods every day that you weren’t.” she snorted. Nadia’s troublesome actions had been taxing on their own. If Olivia had been part of that mix as well, the knight had no doubt that the two would have gotten caught in even worse situations or discovered through whatever mischief Olivia would had caused in the process. The female knight took a pause to answer the first question. Though the topic would have come up one way or another, she couldn’t help but feel a faint bubble of awkwardness towards announcing to her recently ex-suitor that she was now formerly being courted by the man she had left him for.

“Naida won’t be a problem anymore though.” Penelope began with a fond smile. “Before we left the castle, we got permission to begin courting.”

“Well that’s disappointing for me. I was hoping I could still bother you with Naida when I got back.” Olivia clicked her tongue before breaking out into a grin. “Good for you guys though. I’m actually surprised your father agreed to it. I never thought he’d willingly give his daughter up to a former thief.”

“Regardless, congratulations.” Gavin mumbled with a faint smile. Surprisingly, the smile didn’t seem forced which made the female knight smile a little broader in return. It was a hopeful sign to her that their time apart had allowed Gavin to come to begin to let go of his feelings for her.

“Thanks. It’s certainly nice not to have to sneak around for once.” Penelope mused with a smirk as she finished off the last bite of her food. She set the plate aside and looked to her friends with a hint of curiosity. “So, what’s the warfront been like since I’ve been gone. I know you said there was a battle not too long ago in your letters.”

“Well…” Gavin began, exchanging a glance with Olivia. The two knights began to go into more detail about their recent experiences at the warfront. Gavin and Tomas had been successful at keeping Layth from dismantling the rule she had installed to keep the villagers safe. Apparently the loss was not something Layth handled with grace of course and Gavin had noticed that in their more recent battle that Layth had chosen to completely disregard the rule. While it had Mia fuming, Layth found protection from Edward as the baron refused to see fault in his lieutenant.

It seemed that all was normal amongst her camp despite Layth being in a foul mood. Penelope knew she’d have to brace herself when it came time to face her brother at the next meeting. Gavin even offered a word of warning since the lieutenant had even badgered him for information on their time spent working together. While everyone else in the camp seemed to be moving on from the shock of Crow’s sudden rise to power, it sounded like Layth was still very much stuck.

Other than that, the latest battle had gone better than the last one they had written to her about. The battalion had a fast recovery and was able to use that to their advantage when it came to the battle. That was good to hear, especially since she had plans to persuade the barons into acting defensively until a resolution was reached. A firm victory would work in her favor much more than a heavy loss.

After a bit of catching up, the knight began to grow weary as it got later and later. Though she enjoyed this time spent with her friends, the long trip to reach the camp had her spent. With her belly full and having a comfortable place to lay her head right under her, it was becoming increasingly difficult to keep her eyes open as Olivia went on about how she had spent some of her time teasing other comrades about Crow’s new position. Luckily for her, Gavin seemed to pick up on her weariness.

“Olivia, we should probably get going. It’s getting late.” He pointed out, nudging the female knight’s side.

Olivia blinked and then smirked as she caught on to the tired gaze of Penelope. “Yeah, you’re right. Someone’s falling asleep on us.”

“I wish I could argue.” Penelope snickered before letting out the yawn she had been suppressing. Now that she was caught, there was little reason to hide her sleepiness. “But I’m exhausted.”

“Well get some sleep and good luck with facing the rest of the camp tomorrow. Especially your brother.” Olivia smirked as she rose to her feet to leave.

“I’ll see you at our meeting tomorrow.” Gavin said with a small dip of his head. “Goodnight Penelope.”

“Goodnight you guys.” Penelope said with a small wave as she watched her two friends exit the tent. With them gone, she stretched and took a moment to slip out of her armor before laying back on her bedroll. Though the beds at the inn were softer, she couldn’t help but find herself sinking comfortably into the pad. Before falling asleep, she carefully took the necklace off and set it gently down besides her. Her deep green eyes studied the pendant with a hint of fondness before she turned away from it and closed her weary eyes. It didn’t take long for the knight to drift off into a peaceful sleep.

Once they were far enough away from Silverpool that the dim glow of candlelight had faded beyond the trees, Percival asked Crow again where he was going, and the viceroy finally caved. He admitted that he used to be part of a small band of criminals before he’d come to the inner kingdom and that he’d secretly arranged to meet with them before he crossed the border. Naturally, Percy seemed perturbed by the fact that they were on their way to rendezvous with thieves in the dead of night, but to Crow’s surprise, he didn’t try to change his mind. Instead, the knight assured him that even though he didn’t like it, he trusted his judgment and wouldn’t say anything to the others when they returned. He was turning out to be very different than the image the former peasant had had of him when they’d first met.

Crow remembered that when he’d initially talked to Wayne, Robyn and Percy, the latter had been more sympathetic to the people of the outer villages during the war. However, he hadn’t thought that the nobleman would put his faith in a man who used to be a wanted criminal. Tonight, Percival had not only asked for his input about an important concern of his, but he was also willingly trudging through the foliage at his side to meet with people that, for all he knew, could be dangerous. He was quickly proving to be someone that the viceroy felt like he could trust on the trip to Younis and even in the inner kingdom when they returned. He was glad that he’d convinced his father to let him come, even though he didn’t have as much experience as the knights Albin had originally selected. He much preferred to have someone watching his back whom he knew wouldn’t stab it when he turned around.

The two walked for a long time before they eventually neared the fallen tree that Crow had designated as the meeting point, and he slowed his pace to a stop. Beside him, Percy halted as well. “Is this the place?” the knight asked, to which the former thief immediately lifted a finger to his lips to hush him.

“It’s just up ahead,” he whispered in return. Shifting his weight, he added, “I stopped because I wanted to ask you to wait here for me to come back.”

“You don’t want me to come with you the rest of the way?” Percival frowned, though he lowered his voice obligingly.

“It’s better if you don’t,” Crow answered honestly. “I let you come with me this far, but I arranged this meeting to speak with them openly, and they aren’t going to talk if I have a chaperone. If it makes you feel better, you can keep an eye on the area to make sure there’s no one suspicious around though.” He nudged the knight’s arm. “You did say you were here to make sure I’m safe.”

Percival contemplated it. “Are you sure these criminals won’t hurt you if you’re alone?”

“I trust them with my life,” he nodded.

The knight thought for a moment longer before he sighed, “Fine. I’ll wait for you here.”

“Thank you,” Crow smiled appreciatively. “I’ll be back soon.”

Percy grunted in response, and the viceroy made his deeper into the woods alone until he located the fallen tree. At the sight of it, he smiled again, feeling a surge of eagerness bubble up in his chest as he made out three silhouettes standing around the log. He’d expected the thieves to beat him there, since he’d had to wait for his guards to fall asleep before he could sneak out, but he was still excited to see them. And it seemed like they were excited to see him too.

As soon as he stepped into the clearing, he heard an energetic voice cry out his name.

“Crow!” Rikki squealed, leading the charge as she, Alistair and Hazel rushed over to greet him with open arms.

He met them with equal enthusiasm, grinning broadly even though they practically smothered him in their tight embraces. Attempting to wrap his arms around them too, he felt a swell of fondness for the thieves he’d left behind when he’d moved to the citadel. “I missed you all,” he said, foregoing formalities as the words slipped out of his mouth. They didn’t have time for polite exchanges anyway.

“I can’t believe you’re really here,” Rikki shook her head in disbelief. He could feel her trembling as she pressed herself against his torso. Out of the trio, she seemed to have missed him the most. Or at least, her reaction to seeing him again was the most emotional.

“Yeah, we thought you were going to be too busy to visit us,” Alistair agreed, equally as constricting at the viceroy’s side.

“Alright, you two, we should give him some space,” Hazel said, stepping back first and shooting him a wink. “He’s important now, so we can’t suffocate him.”

“Thanks,” Crow rolled his eyes at her snide comment, though he was a little relieved when they gave him room to breathe again.

Once they had put a little distance between them, Alistair whistled. “Wow, you even look like a nobleman now,” he observed, looking over the viceroy’s ensemble with round eyes. “I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen fabric that expensive. How much do you think it’s worth?”

“I try not to think about it,” Crow admitted a bit sheepishly.

“Who knew you would clean up so nicely too?” Hazel gibed with a smirk. “What did they do to convince you to groom yourself, scamp?”

“They said that if I didn’t do what they wanted, they’d come after you instead,” he said dryly. “You should be grateful. I took one for the team.”

“Forgive me if I withhold my thanks,” she replied, though the smile didn’t leave her lips.

“What do you think of… well, everything?” Rikki asked tentatively. She wore a curious expression, but he could see a hint of concern in her eyes. He guessed she was still holding out a little hope that he would change his mind about the decision he’d made and come back to them.

Offering her a soft smile, he replied truthfully, “It’s a lot to handle, but the pros still outweigh the cons.” Walking with them over to the fallen tree, he went on to tell them about everything that had been going on since he’d left them a month ago. They knew a few of the details because of the letters he’d sent to them, but there was quite a bit that they hadn’t heard. He told them about his training, about the things he’d had to learn about assimilating into noble life and the lessons he’d had with his father and with John. He also talked about his family, how Naida was the only one who had openly accepted him. Subjects of the other affairs at the castle came up as well, including the time the Fischbachs had tried to frame him, the trip he’d taken to Bellmare with Penelope, and the party she had thrown to convince the other nobles to sign her petition. Of course, he also told them that they were officially courting and planning to get married now that he had her father’s blessing. Lastly, he explained that he was in the outer villages because Albin had agreed to negotiate with the Younisian king about ending the war, and he was the representative assigned to make the treaty.

By the time he was done talking, a brief quiet fell over the group while his companions took in the news. “At least it sounds like you never have to worry about a dull day at the castle,” Alistair shook his head incredulously. “I can’t believe so much has happened in just one month.”

“Me either,” Crow exhaled. “But it’s mostly good things. I never expected this to be easy, and now, Penelope and I can finally be together. I’m happy even though we’ll probably have a few more bumps in the road to get past.”

“I’m happy to hear it,” Hazel said supportively. “And I’m happy to hear that you’re already being given opportunities to make a difference. It’s what I was hoping would happen when you told me you were going to be taking this title.”

“It does feel good,” Crow mused. “I’ve never had the power to end a war before. I’m still getting used to the fact that I’m not a thief anymore too. I still flinch whenever I see knights.” He chuckled amusedly. “One of the men I’ve gotten to know at the castle invited me into the barracks outside the castle once, but I couldn’t do it because I still feel like they’re going to pin me to the ground and throw me in a cell.”

“I’m sure you’ll adjust to it soon,” Hazel assured him.

“Maybe,” he shrugged and then smiled at her with interest. “But enough about me. I want to know what the three of you have been up to since I left. Now that I have to at least pretend like I’m an upstanding citizen in this kingdom, I have to live vicariously through all of you.”

The thieves laughed at his joke and proceeded to take turns filling him in on their lives in the outer villages. For the most part, things hadn’t changed. Rikki and Alistair had backed off from the war a bit to focus on making sure they had everything they needed to get through the winter season while Hazel had been gathering herbs before the first snowfall to make and distribute poultices for the people of Myrefall. Once they had finished catching up with each other, they sat for a little while longer, simply chatting and enjoying each other’s company. For a moment, Crow felt like he’d been transported back in time. He and the other thieves rediscovered their rhythm so easily that it almost seemed like they hadn’t been apart for a whole month. It made him nostalgic for the past, but he knew he could never go back. As much as he missed his companions, he had something—or someone—better waiting for him when he returned to the inner kingdom.

So, even though he would have stayed all night if he could, the viceroy eventually forced himself to get up and say his goodbyes.

He embraced each one of the thieves in turn, all of whom were visibly disappointed about parting ways again. “I promise I’ll come back to visit the second I have another chance,” he swore as he wrapped Rikki in a firm hug and then stepped back to look at all of them.

“We’ll hold you to it,” Hazel nodded.

“Yeah,” Alistair agreed with a grin. “You and I still have to have that next wrestling match, and I’m not letting you off the hook.”

“Well, I’m not letting you chicken out either,” he grinned back at his old friend.

“Don’t go away for too long, okay?” Rikki frowned. “I miss seeing your face around here.”

“I’ll do my best,” he promised her. “In the meantime, you had all better stay safe, so I can see every one of you the next time I come back.”

“You don’t have to worry about us,” Hazel quipped. “Now that you’ve moved away, there’s no one around to drag us into any dangerous endeavors.”

“Ha ha,” he rolled his eyes.

After saying a few more parting words, he turned around to head back to Silverpool, while they made their way off to their hideout near Myrefall. As he walked through the woods, he found Percival who was, true to his word, standing almost exactly where the viceroy had left him. The knight was studying the starry sky until he heard the former thief’s soft footsteps in the dried grass. “How did it go?” he asked, turning his head to meet the other man’s gaze.

“Good,” Crow replied, stifling a yawn. He’d been so caught up in talking to his old companions that he hadn’t realized how much time had passed. Belatedly, he felt a twinge of guilt for making the knight wait for so long. “Sorry for keeping you out this late,” he apologized as the noble quietly fell in step at his side. “I wasn’t paying attention to the time.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” Percy shook his head. “I was the one who decided to come with you. You had every right to take as long as you needed.”

How is someone this accommodating a knight? Crow thought, baffled by his guard’s congeniality. Percival was certainly the warmest person he’d met since he’d moved into the inner kingdom. “Well, thanks for waiting anyway,” he insisted.

“Of course,” he replied curtly.

Both tired from the late night, Crow and Percy headed back to Silverpool in silence, ready to return to their beds to get what little sleep they could before they left for the border the next morning.

It was the best sleep she had gotten in the last two days. Although, that wasn’t saying much considering the past nights had been worse than normal due to the hard floor and Naida’s less than kind sleeping habits. Regardless, Penelope woke up feeling a little more energized than before. As she rose from her bedroll, she stretched out her limbs and then began to put on her armor once more. The knight made sure to slip the necklace on as well. Crow may not have been around to see it but she had every intention to keep her word to him about wearing every day they were apart.

Just as the pendant settled against her, a harsh voice sounded from right outside her tent. “Penelope? I heard you were back.” The female knight bit back a groan as she recognized the voice almost immediately. It was Layth. Good thing I slept decently last night if I have to deal with this first thing… She thought dryly. She had been hoping that her brother would start pestering her until the meeting but it seemed that she wouldn’t be so lucky that morning. Letting out a breath, she straightened her appearance and the pulled back the flap of her tent to step outside. Immediately, her gaze fell onto Layth, who was standing rather rigidly with his arms crossed over his chest.

Penelope bit back a sigh and instead met his gaze evenly. “You heard correct.. Did you need something from me, Layth?” she asked with a hint of exasperation in her tone. It wasn’t hard for her to guess what he had come to badger her about after the warning she had received from Gavin.

“Yes. I need to know what the hell is going on?” Layth growled, narrowing his gaze on her. “You and father leave with a rotten thief and then next thing I know, that bastard is the viceroy.”

“So?” she said raising an eyebrow at him. “It’s not like father or I gave him the position.”

Layth clenched his jaw. “That’s not what I’m accusing you of you dolt. I used to think you were a traitor for working with him but now I suspect that you knew something prior.” He explained shaking his head. “I want to know, did father send you some word about what was going on before? That’s why you were so insistent on healing that cur isn’t it?”

It seemed that Gavin hadn’t been lying when he had said that Layth was still investigating what had happened. Crow’s rise to viceroy clearly had her brother both agitated as well as floundering for answers. His perfect world of who was in power and who was below them had been turned upside down. After all his insults and trouble that he had caused, it was difficult for the female knight to feel any sympathy for him though. Perhaps this would help him see that social status didn’t deem one person more important than the other.“While that might make me look better, I’m afraid that didn’t happen. Father never sent me anything. I just helped him because he helped me.” she explained with a shrug.

“Bull shit.” he snorted in clear disbelief. “Who in their right mind would help the enemy otherwise?”

“I had my reasons.” Penelope said airily. “Besides, he wasn’t the enemy. Those other thieves were.” She shrugged her shoulders and turned to leave. While Layth would one day soon learn about her relationship with the former thief, putting it off felt like the better option in that moment. If he was upset now, she could only imagine his reaction once she announced that she was being courted by the very man he loathed so much. Hopefully her return and lack of answers would allow him to simmer down before she let that come to light. “Anyways, I’m getting breakfast before the meeting begins so if you have anything more to say you’re going to have to do it over a hot bowl of porridge.” she said decisively.

For a moment, the male knight seemed to debate joining her as he shifted his weight. In the next instant though he decided against it and shook his head. “I’ll see you at the meeting.” he grumbled before turning to stalk off.

Penelope followed him with her gaze for a moment before continuing on her way to get food. She was glad that he was willing to relent for now. It was her first day back at the camp and the last thing she wanted to do was spend it defending herself against an all too furious brother. Picking up a bowl from the cooks, she grabbed her meal and moved to take up a seat alone near one of the fire pits. She was just beginning to indulge in her breakfast when she was soon joined by Olivia, who came hurrying over to join her friend. “Gods it’s nice to have you back.” Olivia said with a sigh as she plopped down on the left of Penelope. “I’ve been stuck with only Gavin for a month and you know how dull that gets!”

“Well you’ve got me around for at least two weeks.” Penelope said with a small chuckle. Her green eyes drifted over to her friend and mischievous smirk crossed her lips. “Besides, it can’t be all that dull. You’re still seeing Alistair aren’t you?”

Olivia blinked and then rolled her eyes as she caught on to what Penelope was doing. “You know it’s rude to pry about private affairs.” she huffed.

“Says the woman that constantly badgered me about my own.” Penelope snorted.

“Yes but we’re talking about you not me.” Olivia grinned.

The female knight rolled her eyes at her friend and gave her a soft shove. “Doesn’t matter. I want to know how things have been between you and Alistair. Sounds like he’s real smitten with you.” Penelope said with a suggestive nudge.

Olivia pursed her lips, giving an annoyed look before finally sighing in defeat. “Yeah well… As I’m sure you’ve deduced we’re still seeing each other. Only occasionally though. In fact, it’s been a while due to the past couple battles. I’m hoping we can see each other before the next one though.” she admitted with a faint frown. Her tone was uncharacteristically serious as she spoke about the thief. It made Penelope give a knowing smirk. Olivia caught her expression and gave a small huff despite the light pink twinge that was developing on her cheeks. “Oh knock it off with that look. He’s just fun to be around. A lot less dull than the company you’ve left me with at least.”

“You know I don’t buy that for a second, right?” Penelope laughed before taking another bite of her food.

“Unfortunately, yes.” Olivia said, making a face at her friend. She then shrugged her shoulders. “You can keep pestering me about it but my answer isn’t changing.”

“We’ll see.” Penelope snickered.

Olivia opened her mouth to argue further but her attention was drawn away as someone approached them. The two female knights turned away from each other to see Gavin walking up. He them a small nod in greeting before stopping in front of them. “Morning.” he said before shifting his gaze onto Penelope. “Sorry if I’m interrupting. I just came so we could go to the meeting together.”

Penelope blinked and nodded her head. “Right, we should get going. I’ll see you later Olivia.” she said as she rose up to her feet. As the two parted ways from the other female knight, Penelope fell in step besides Gavin as they made their way towards the large tent at the center of camp. A silence fell between the two that made Penelope feel a bit awkward. It was the first time the two had been stuck alone since they had pretended to still be courting. She was glad that it looked like Gavin was intent on remaining as her friend but she couldn’t help but wonder where he was at emotionally now. The lieutenant glanced towards him, tempted to bring up the topic but also worried that it might undo any progress they had made. Deciding to keep her thoughts to herself, she focused her gaze ahead as the two arrived at the large tent.

As Gavin held back the flap for her, she stepped inside and looked to see that everyone else had already gathered. The barons were in their usual spots. Layth turned his head to send her a distrustful glare before looking away. Tomas shot her a warm smile. “Welcome back Penelope.” he greeted with a small nod.

“Welcome back indeed.” Edward grumbled, narrowing his gaze on her. “Why did you not send us a letter before you returned?”

“Things happened so fast at the castle I didn’t get the chance to.” Penelope responded with a small shrug.

Mia casted a glance at Edward before looking back to her lieutenant. “Regardless, we’re happy to have you back.” she assured with a hint of underlying sternness to her voice. Clearing her throat, the baroness glance around at the others gathered and gave a small smile. “Now that we’re all here, let us pick up where we last left off…”

Fortunately for Crow and Percival, the rest of the group was still out cold by the time they finally got back to the inn in Silverpool. Unfortunately, when they returned, the sky was already beginning to lighten ever so slightly, preluding the come of the dawn. The viceroy crept back into his bed to get what sleep he could and dozed off fairly quickly after his long night, but it didn’t feel nearly long enough before he was disturbed by the sound of shuffling in the room. As usual, Otto and Rayner were awake bright and early and had begun putting their armor back on to continue on their way to Younis.

He groaned irritably and buried his head underneath his pillow, wishing they would be more considerate of those in the tiny space that didn’t want to jump out of bed at the first hint of sunlight. The only other person making a move to get up was Preston, and he suspected that was only because the servant was afraid of getting on the baron’s bad side by resting when he was expected to be working. Naida was still sprawled out on her mattress, still asleep and unfazed by the jostling of armor, while he and Percy merely stirred at the sound, both reluctant to leave the comfort of their soft, warm beds before they absolutely had to.

Meanwhile, Otto was merciless in his efforts to rouse them.

“Come on, you three,” he barked, causing Naida to jolt awake with the loudness of his voice. “We’re off to the border today. There’s no time to waste lying around.”

“Why are we rushing?” Crow griped into his pillow, obstinately drawing his knees in as he curled up on his mattress. “There isn’t an inn at the border. We’ve no reason to hurry there since we aren’t competing with anyone else for a room.”

“And you think it’s better to cross into enemy territory after dark?” Otto challenged, only to falter when Crow looked up at him with narrowed eyes. He seemed to realize belatedly that even though the former thief was inexperienced, he still outranked him. Clearing his throat, he stumbled to rectify the situation, “It is our duty to keep you safe, Collin. By crossing into Younis before dusk, we’re far less likely to come across as hostile to any nearby battalions. They’ll be able to see our uniforms as well and know that we aren’t part of Brerra’s armed forces, so our appearance will invite questioning rather than a blind ambush.”

Crow studied him contemplatively. It was a sensible enough explanation that he couldn’t see any reason not to trust his word, but Percival’s observation still stuck out in the back of his mind. He was going to start paying closer attention to the things that came out of Otto’s mouth, so he could question the man if something seemed suspicious. If the baron really was operating on something behind their backs, he wasn’t going to let him get away with it without any pushback.

For now, though, he was still half asleep and didn’t have the presence of mind to pick a fight. So, grumbling his reluctant submission, he sat up and rubbed his eyes, trying to summon the strength to pull himself together. On the other side of the room, he could see that Percival wasn’t any better off. The knight seemed to have been motivated to get up by Otto’s theory about arriving in Younis before dark, but he looked a mess. His long hair was hopelessly tangled, and he had dark circles under his eyes that the viceroy guessed matched his own. Theroulde either didn’t notice his exhaustion or didn’t care, because as soon as he was on his feet, he turned around to give him an order.

“Granger, once your armor is on, go with Lockton’s attendant to gather the horses,” he instructed curtly.

“Yes sir,” Percy bobbed his head in a bow and bent down to gather the metal plates he’d left in a neat stack at the foot of the bed.

Watching the exchange, Crow waited for Otto to look away and then shot the knight a sympathetic look. It may have been Percival’s choice to accompany him in the middle of the night, but he still felt bad seeing the older man boss him around as soon as he crawled out of bed in the morning.

Percy took notice of his expression and shrugged silently as he layered his body with his gold-trimmed armor.
“It’s too early for this,” Naida whined as she slid off her mattress and picked up her armor that she’d stowed away more haphazardly than Percival’s. She was blinking against the light more than usual, looking a bit hungover after all the drinks she’d finished the evening before. “Are we going to be getting up at sunrise every day of this trip?”

“If all goes according to plan,” Otto replied in his usual no-nonsense manner.

Privately, Crow wondered why it mattered to him so much that they left early in the morning every day. To him, it was the same if they left early and arrived at their destination in the afternoon or slept in and arrived in the evening. This time, the baron had the necessity of not startling the Younisians on his side, but what about after? Once the knights on the other side of the border knew they were there, it seemed inconsequential if they left early or late. He couldn’t think of a reason why it was important unless it had anything to do with Percival’s guess that the baron was working on something else while they were traveling to the Younisian castle.

Maybe he’s trying to orchestrate something to take credit for the success of this parley? He pondered as he put on his surcoat. He couldn’t think of a way that Otto could pull the metaphorical rug out from under his feet, but the baron was clearly more experienced than he was when it came to assignments like this one. If there was a way for him to come out of it looking like a hero, chances were that he, as a former peasant and criminal, wouldn’t instinctively know what it was.

Deciding there was no point in fretting over it for now—even if he tried to question the older man, he knew Otto would just deny all accusations—he got ready to leave and walked with Naida and the Therouldes out to the front of the building once they were finished putting on their armor and gathering any belongings they had brought into the room. Not long after, they were rejoined by Preston and Percival, who had prepared the horses and brought them over from the stables.

Crow took Baine from his attendant and climbed up onto the stallion’s back, where he waited for the others until they were all off the ground. As usual, Otto and Rayner walked their steeds over to the front of the group, while Percival took up the rear. The baron twisted at the waist to peer over his shoulder, checking that everyone was in place before he nodded to himself, “Right then. Let’s keep moving.”

Stifling a yawn, Crow drove Baine forward with a squeeze of his heels, trying not let the horse’s steady gait lull him back to sleep. It was going to be a long ride that day, and he hoped they reached the border quickly, so he could make up for the sleep he’d lost when he’d visited his old companions. Passing out on his stallion’s back and falling to the ground seemed like it would be unpleasant.

“You’re tired too?”

He stiffened and turned his head at the sound of Naida’s question. His half-sister was eyeing him with a knowing expression, marked by the beginnings of a smile that she was apparently too weary to pull. “I’m hungover. What’s your excuse?” she asked, guiding her horse to stride a little closer to his.

“I’m fine—” he attempted to lie, though his body chose to betray him in that moment by forcing the yawn he’d just been trying to suppress. Unable to fight it off a second time, he brought a hand to his mouth as he took in air and then swore under his breath as the princess snickered at his side.

“Wow, you’re really tired,” she teased him between giggles. “Were you up late or something?”

“I just didn’t sleep as well as I could have,” he shrugged, trying to play it off in spite of the slight flush that crept over his skin. Usually he was a better liar, so he was chagrined that the oblivious princess had caught onto him so easily. “I’ll be fine. I just need to get better rest tonight.”

Naida studied him skeptically, “Are you sure? You look like—”

“Princess,” Percival suddenly called from behind them. “Why don’t you ride back here with me for a while? I’ll teach you about wild game trails you can spot from horseback.”

“Really?” Naida swiveled in her saddle. “Father never let me hunt before.” Swept up in the prospect of learning, she fell back to accompany the other knight, abandoning her interrogation of the viceroy for the time being.

Crow glanced back at Percy, who merely nodded at him wordlessly before he pointed out a small, worn path in the trees to the princess. Knowing that the taciturn man wasn’t the type to converse with someone so casually, the former thief appreciated his quickness to intervene. Out of everyone in the group, the other man was rapidly rising in the ranks of those he could trust. Currently, Preston was still at the top, since they’d had weeks to adjust to each other, and the servant had helped him before. However, he’d thought his sister would be the person he confided in after that. Contrary to his expectations, the royal was more concerned with keeping herself entertained on the journey, so Percival, the knight he knew far less, had turned into a more reliable confidante.

So, saved from having to explain himself to Naida for now, Crow focused on keeping himself awake for the ride and talked idly with Preston, doing his best to distract himself from his weariness while they rode onward to the border.

As the meeting ensued, Penelope was left to play catch up while the others talked about upcoming battle plans. It wasn’t surprising since Gavin hadn’t been able to fully catch her up the night before. What did shock her was when the barons decided on when the next attack would be launched. From what she knew, it hadn’t been long since the last one so when Mia and the others agreed on launching into another battle in three days, she was caught off guard. The knight shifted uneasily, glancing around at the other lieutenants that were seated near her. Layth ’s expression was hard to read aside from the determination that lined it. Tomas and Gavin, however, looked less than thrilled but refused to say anything against the matter.

It also didn’t give her a lot of time to push the barons to act defensively rather than offensively. Penelope wanted to convince them sooner rather than later but she had been hoping to at least settle in a bit more before she purposed her plan. Unfortunately it seemed she wouldn’t get the luxury to prepare a bit more.

“So it’s settled?” Mia asked.

“Actually,” Penelope spoke up with a small frown. “there’s a plan I’d like to propose before the battle plans go through.”

“And what could you possibly have to say?” Edward asked narrowing his gaze on her. “You just returned to the battle front.”

“I’m aware.” Penelope muttered before sitting up straighter. “But I know more about the king’s plans for this war. As Mia informed you earlier, the viceroy is currently traveling to Younis to speak with their king about finding a peaceful end to this war.” While the barons didn’t flinch at her words, Layth visibly clenched his jaw, clearly still bother by the information. Penelope continued after her words were met with a brief silence from Edward and the other barons. “Therefore, we should be aligning our plans to match with the king’s. Since he is opting to try and reach a peaceful solution, our actions on the battlefield now should reflect that.”

Edward narrowed his eyes at her with unrestrained suspicion. “Exactly what are you suggesting, lieutenant?” he questioned with an edge to his voice. It seemed he already had the answer to his own question.

“I’m suggesting we act only defensively when it comes to battles.” Penelope stated with a shrug. After facing the king and rallying so many high ranking nobles behind her, she found that Edward’s harsh looks had even less effect on her than before. “We shouldn’t be striking Younis while our kingdom is trying to negotiate peace.”

“You’re mad.” Edward snorted. “Peace is not guaranteed! We’re still at war here. Acting defensively would just make us weak.”

Mia glanced at Edward and pursed her lips together before turning her gaze back onto Penelope. “I understand where you are coming from Penelope, but I worry about how that will effect our supplies as well as our people. Acting only defensively means that we are sacrificing potential wins over Younis. I’m not sure this is the best route for us to take even if it does align with the king’s plans.” the baroness said with a conflicted tone.

Around her it seem that overall, the idea wasn’t well received. Bennett looked at her skeptically, Layth had his arms crossed with a scowl on his face, and even Tomas shifted uneasily in his seat. The only form of support Penelope was able to find as she glanced around the tent was Gavin, who met her gaze with a small nod of approval. Penelope let out a small sigh. It also didn’t help that she wasn’t overly prepared but the knight was still determined to convince them.

“I know you’re hesitant but in the long run this is what is best for us.” Penelope pushed on. “If we don’t start battles that means we can conserve both people and supplies. It’ll be easier to be defensive than you may think, even if we are sacrificing potential victories in order to do so.” The female knight shifted her gaze between the barons before resting it upon her disgruntled uncle. “It won’t weaken us, nor will we come off as weak so long as we are able to continuously push back their advances.”

“It’s still absurd!” Layth finally snapped. “The man sent by the king is a criminal that belongs in the gallows. This war stands no chance of ending peacefully.”

“Exactly.” Edward grunted. “You may have convinced the king but that lowly cur is far from a proper viceroy.”

Penelope clenched her teeth at the harsh words of her family members. Of course, they still only saw Crow as a criminal and nothing more. That was made very apparent by her brother but she had been hoping the favor showed to him by the king would keep her uncle from using such an argument against her. She started to open her mouth to defend the new viceroy when Mia jumped back into the conversation with a confused gaze that flickered between Layth and Edward.

“I’m surprised you two are talking so hostilely about the new viceroy. I thought you would have started to accept him at the very least considering the situation.” Mia mused.

Edward’s irritation dimmed slightly as he raised an eyebrow at the baroness. “What? What situation?”
Mia slowly slid her gaze between Edward and Penelope before settling on Edward once again. The look made Penelope tense with realization at what the baroness was referring to. For a brief moment, the female lieutenant could almost swear that her baroness’ lip curled slightly into a smirk. “Why Edward, I’m talking about the fact that Penelope is being courted by the new viceroy.” the baroness stated with simplicity as she looked at the other baron.

It was another piece of information that Penelope had been hoping to slowly release to Edward and Layth within her time at the warfront. She knew there was no way to make them fully pleased about the situation but she had been hoping to at least establish that Crow was more than the criminal they were so quick to label him as. Of course, now there would be no chance to do that. She braced herself for their responses. While she may have been hoping to make break the news a little easier, she wasn’t about to deny or feel guilt over the courtship.

“Excuse me?” Edward growled, slowly growing flustered over the new information.

“It’s true.” Penelope said evenly. “I was going to tell you at a better time but the viceroy, Collin, is courting me for marriage.”

“What the hell?!” Layth snapped. “There’s no way father would approve this! You’re a disgrace.”

Penelope rolled her eyes. “I assure you, we got his blessing before the courtship began.”

“Of course he did.” Edward muttered under his breath.

Layth clenched his jaw, seeming ready to say more when some cleared their throat. Penelope flickered her gaze over to the source of the noise, her eyes landing upon Tomas who was sitting rather rigidly. The older lieutenant gave a sheepish smile and glanced at everyone aside from the squabbling Vermillions. “Sorry to interrupt but this seems like a private matter. Perhaps the rest of us should step out and we can reconvene tomorrow for a decision about battle plans?” he suggested.

“Yes, that sounds like a good idea.” Mia agreed with a firm nod. The baroness rose to her feet and looked over at the Vermillions. “We’ll leave the tent to you then.”

“Thank you.” Edward muttered ambigiously. A tense silence fell over the three as they waited for the others to exit the tent. Penelope let out a breath and tried to ignore the harsh glare that Layth was giving her. Instead, she glanced away to see watch Bennett and Gavin exit, the latter giving her a faint, halfhearted smile. Now alone with her two family members, she turned look over at Edward as she readied to defend herself.

“You’re a damn traitor.” Layth growled immediately.

Penelope shot a glare at her brother. “I am not. I’ve been nothing but loyal to this battalion.”

“You worked with a criminal and now you’re going to marry him! You’re far from a loyal knight when you’re clearly entangled with the enemy.” Layth retorted. “You should have your titled stripped from you before you bring any more dishonor to this fa—“

“Layth, enough.” Edward finally spoke up again with a stern tone.
Penelope blinked in unbridled surprised as her uncle cut her brother off before her could finishing chiding her. Layth even seemed confused but the male knight reluctantly closed his mouth and looked to his baron. Unsure what to expect, Penelope did the same, readying to defend herself and Crow against whatever Edward or Layth had to say. Their words and threats carried no weight to her anymore now that Crow was a noble alongside her.

“Penelope,” Edward began with a breath. “I wish you would have informed me about this development sooner. I apologize for the harsh words earlier, I was still bitter over the past but clearly we need to move on from that and accept our new viceroy just as the king has. With that said, congratulations on your courtship.”

She watched in momentary shock as her uncle smiled at her. Of all the reactions she predicted to see from him, this was not one of them. Besides her, Layth looked even more dumbstruck by the words that had left Edward’s lips. Her brother’s eyes were wide and his mouth slightly agape as he fumbled for words to respond to this unexpected development. While Layth was flabbergasted, Penelope broke from her shock as she noticed the hint of slyness that laid in her uncle’s smile. He was playing at some angle.

“Uncle, you can’t be serious… This man is no more than a cleaned up criminal. He’s no viceroy!” Layth stated with disbelief.

“Layth, the king has assigned him the very high rank of viceroy. Do you really believe the king would be so foolish as to do so without good reason?” Edward pointed out.

“I’m certainly starting to…” Layth grunted. “A horrible mistake was made by someone.”

Edward sent a sharp glare at his lieutenant. “Foolish talk like that will only hurt our battalion and our family… It would serve you well to take a page out of your sister’s book and trust our king.”

Ah, that’s why he’s so accepting of this development…Penelope thought as she watched the exchanged between her brother and uncle. Edward must have calculated the social benefits to having a family member married to the viceroy. It would certainly explain why he was taking her side over Layth’s. Not that he’ll ever see any benefits from me..she added dryly. Whether he truly believed she was only courting Crow for political gain or not, the knight had no intention of letting her uncle of all people try to use her or Crow for a power grab.

Turning back to Penelope, Edward gave a supportive nod to her. “I believe there’s no need to discuss this further.” he spoke, as he snuck a glance of warning towards Layth. While Edward was quick to compromise his ideals in favor of using this development to his advantage, his nephew wasn’t. Layth tightened his jaw in further frustration at the look his uncle sent him before shooting a glare at Penelope. Their uncle didn’t bother to reprimand him again though and continued on with a pleased tone of voice. “As I said before, congratulations on your courtship. You’re both free to leave now.”

Penelope eyed him a moment before dipping her head. “Thank you.” she mumbled. Though she might have figured out his motives, it was still strange to have her uncle treating her in a relatively positive manner. After years of him viewing her poorly, the change was sudden and sharp no matter what the reason behind it. It made her all the more eager to leave his presence. The female knight rose to her feet and stepped out of the tent, a motion behind her told her that Layth had done the same. Stepping out of the tent, she walked on with the intent to find one of her friends before supper but didn’t get all too far when someone suddenly grabbed her arm, pulling her to an unexpected stop. Penelope stumbled and whirled her head around to face Layth, who’s face contorted with anger.

“Listen, I don’t care what uncle or father think about this courtship. They’re wrong about this and I won’t stand to watch you drag our family name through the mud.” Layth growled lowly before she had a chance to speak.

Yanking her arm out of his grip, Penelope rolled her eyes at his words. “And how are you going to do that, Layth?” she asked dryly. “You can’t go to uncle nor father. The man I’m courting outranks you and to top it off, I hold the same rank you do. You don’t have the power.”

Layth hesitated for a brief moment before shaking his head. “I don’t care! Do you not remember what that bastard did? He almost killed me and he stabbed you in the shoulder or did you forget about him being the enemy when you two got entangled?”

“I didn’t forget. But that situation wouldn’t have occurred if you hadn’t almost killed a child.” Penelope snapped back. She was already frustrated with how Layth reacted to the news but him bringing up the past to try to prove Crow was an enemy only sparked the flame further. “Besides that, I think you almost beating him to death makes you two even. Or can you not let that go because he was going to beat you?”

“Cur.” Layth spat first instead of answering her. “That has nothing to do with it. The point is he is the enemy and one way or another, you and the rest of the kingdom are going to learn that. So I suggest you learn it first.”

Penelope narrowed her eyes at his tone of warning. “Unlikely.” she stated with a hint of coldness to her voice. Before Layth could say anymore, the knight turned away from him and stepped fast to leave her agitated brother behind.

The ride to Younis felt longer than usual to Crow as he battled the fatigue of staying up for most of the previous night. As always, Otto was determined to push them onward despite the occasional pleas to stop for a break from Naida, Crow and Percival. The princess whined that the lengthy rides were starting to make her legs sore, and she needed to rest so that she wouldn’t turn to jelly if she needed to fight someone on the ground. The viceroy chose the excuse that he was hungry, and the knight tried to reticently suggest that if the group was tired, they were better off slowing their pace rather than rushing.

Otto was unwavering in his decision to usher them across the border though and reminded them that if they arrived too late, the Younisians wouldn’t be able to see their uniforms in the dark and might mistake them for enemies. The most they managed to squeeze out of him was one quick stop for lunch, during which Crow scarfed down a fairly large meal and promptly took a nap against a tree while the others finished their food at a more human pace. He couldn’t say for sure, but he was fairly certain Percival had intentionally eaten his lunch slower than usual to give him a few extra minutes of sleep before they kept moving.

By the time they reached the Younisian side of the border, the sun had almost touched the western horizon and the former thief had almost slipped from his saddle at least two times. The procession stopped in a clearing among the winter-bare olive trees, and Crow climbed wearily down from Baine’s tall back, touching down a little clumsily when his feet hit the dry grass. Right away, Preston appeared at his side to lead his horse over to the edge of the small meadow, where a couple of the others were already grazing.

“Thank the gods that’s over,” Naida groaned as she dropped from her stallion’s back nearby. “Maybe we should take a day to just rest tomorrow? I’m sure the Younisian king will still negotiate with us if we show up a little later.”

“I doubt the Younisians will appreciate us loitering at their border though, my lady,” Percival said pragmatically. “Even if we’re here to parley, we’re still foreigners in their land. They’ll most likely escort us to their capital in the morning.”

“But they don’t know we’re here,” Naida frowned, leaning from side to side as she stretched her back and legs. “We haven’t seen any Younisian knights since we left Brerra. We could just… not tell them.”

“Being discovered in the middle of the night by knights who want to run you through with their swords is an awful way of waking up,” Crow yawned, traipsing over to join them. “It would be better for us to let them know we’re here before they have time to get the wrong idea.” He gestured at the woods to their right. “Their camp is just that way. It won’t take long to tell their baron.”

“How do you know where their camp is?” Naida crossed her arms.

“Because I’ve been there,” he replied vaguely.

“Okay,” she waved her hand. “Then why don’t you be the one to tell them we’re here?”

“I can’t,” Crow rolled his eyes.

“Why not?”

“Why do you think?”

Naida blinked, falling quiet for a moment as she seemed to process the question. Beside her, Percy grimaced, clearly putting two and two together faster than the princess. After a pause, she opened her mouth in a voiceless ‘oh’ and came to the conclusion on her own: “Because you stole from them.”

“That I did,” he nodded and lifted his hands in a hapless shrug. “Being a thief made more enemies than it did friends. If I walked over there by myself unannounced, they would probably think I’m trying to trick them.”

“Which is why I’ll be the one to inform them that we are here,” Otto said suddenly. The other three turned to him and Rayner as they approached. The baron had his hands clasped loosely behind his back and looked at each of them in turn. “I will go to the Younisian camp while the rest of you set up tents for the night and prepare supper. This way, we can all get some sleep sooner rather than later… I noticed we weren’t all as well-rested as we could have been today.”

Naida shrank slightly at his implied accusation, while Crow and Percival exchanged a subtle glance. The viceroy wasn’t concerned about being reprimanded by the older knight though. His thoughts had wandered back to Percy’s warning the night before about how Theroulde had been acting strange. While an offer to speak with the Younisians wasn’t out-of-place by itself, he was reluctant to trust anything Otto said now that he was paying closer attention to him.

Deciding to test the waters a bit, he asked gently, “Why don’t you bring Percy with you when you go? The Younisians aren’t expecting any of us, so it’ll be safer if there are two of you.”

“I’d be happy to join,” Percival agreed with a faint nod in the viceroy’s direction, understanding what he was trying to do.

“That’s quite alright. I will go alone,” Otto insisted calmly. “I used to accompany King Mannering on assignments like this when he was still viceroy, so I know how to approach the other knights peacefully. I’ll just let them know where we’re camping and be back here to pitch my own tent and join you all for supper.”

I suppose he does have experience, Crow thought with a contemplative frown. Once again, Theroulde had posed a believable enough excuse that he couldn’t tell if it was a lie. He also didn’t have a good reason to demand that the baron bring someone else with him. Not wanting the older man to know he suspected anything, he reluctantly nodded, “Fine.”

Otto nodded in return and walked off into the trees, drawing his travel cloak further around his shoulders to stave off the cold. Crow watched him go with a cagey expression. As much as he wracked his brain, he couldn’t think of a shady reason why the baron would want to speak with the Younisians alone. It seemed like he really had just gone away because he was the more well-equipped person among them to speak with the native knights. However, that didn’t mean the viceroy couldn’t take advantage of his absence.

“Hey, Rayner,” he said, turning toward the lieutenant. “Collect some firewood for us to use for supper, would you? The rest of us can finish setting up the camp on our own.”

The younger Theroulde bowed his head curtly in silent acquiescence and headed into the woods to do as he was asked.

As soon as he was gone, Crow caught Naida by the collar—she had turned away to set up her tent—and beckoned Preston to stop watering the horses and join them too. While both of the Therouldes were gone, it was possibly their only chance to speak privately, so he wanted both his sister and attendant to be present.

“What are you—” Naida started to protest, but the former thief shushed her quickly.

“Keep your voice down,” he hissed, glancing over her shoulder to make sure he didn’t see any figures through the trees. Otto was on his way to the Younisian camp, but Rayner could still be within earshot if they spoke too loudly. He didn’t trust either of them.

“What’s going on, Collin?” Preston asked in a quiet tone when he stepped over to their crudely formed circle. Both the servant and princess stared at him confusedly, waiting for answers.

Crow turned to Percival and nudged him in the side, “Go on; tell them what you told me. If you’re right about this, all of us should be prepared.”

“Be prepared for what?” Naida furrowed her brows.

Percival shifted his weight uncomfortably. “I’m still not entirely sure I’m right though… I don’t want to slander his name if it turns out I was reading into things—”

“The last time I went on a mission for a king, I almost died twice because we weren’t careful enough,” Crow shook his head. “I’m not making the same mistakes I did two years ago. Tell them. If you’re wrong, we can move on like nothing happened. If you’re right, your warning could save us from whatever else might soon be happening.”

Percy studied him solemnly for a moment and then exhaled resignedly, turning back to the others as he confessed: “I suspect that Baron Theroulde has been acting strangely… I don’t know why or if his behavior is even related to our journey into Younis, but there’s just something off about him. I don’t feel like he’s being honest with us, and I think it would be a good idea for us to take his word with a grain of salt until we find out more.”

“What makes you say that?” Naida asked in surprise.

“A couple nights ago, Percy and I woke up before dawn and might have caught him in the middle of something,” Crow replied for the knight, not wanting the subject of his nightmares to come up in front of his sister. “He wasn’t expecting anyone to be awake and seemed to be unprepared to explain why he’d left the inn.”

“He told us he went out to the privy, but the way he said it was peculiar,” Percival agreed.

“Hm,” Preston grunted thoughtfully. “Actually… I’ve thought he’s been a little off too.” When the three nobles turned to him at once, he blanched. “I just didn’t want to say anything because I thought you’d think I was overreacting to the way he’s been ordering me around.”

“Well, now you’re not the only one,” Crow said to Percy. In the next moment, he heard the sound of a twig snapping beneath a boot, and he glanced into the trees again. “One of them is coming back. Just keep an eye on both of the Therouldes… Rayner is Otto’s son, so he might be in on it too.”

The others nodded their agreement and quickly dispersed to set up their camp for the night. When Rayner returned, Crow worked with him to get a fire started while Preston prepared ingredients to make a soup and the other knights pitched tents. Not long after their dinner had been placed over the pit to cook, Otto reappeared from the woods. The baron joined them wordlessly by the fire, watching the embers burn while Crow and Naida struck up a casual conversation. The viceroy glanced at him every once in a while, but Theroulde never did anything suspicious, so eventually, he relaxed and decided that if Otto really was up to something, he wasn’t working on it at that moment.

After they finished their meals, Crow’s exhaustion from the long day struck him with full force, and he retired to his tent to make up for the sleep he’d lost before. He dressed down to his underclothes and collapsed on his pad, pulling his heavy wool blanket up to his forehead to keep warm. For a few minutes, his thoughts wandered to Penelope with a pang of longing as he wondered how she was doing since she’d gotten back to her camp. He missed having her nearby, but that was just another reason to hurry to the Younisian castle and come back to Brerra as soon as possible. He couldn’t wait to come home to the woman who would soon be his wife.

With a slow exhale and a faint smile on his lip, the former thief closed his eyes and drifted off with warm memories of the knight at the forefront of his mind, pulling him into pleasant dreams.

With the expected resistance from Layth over with for the time being, Penelope trotted off to locate her friends before it got too late in the evening. The barons’ reactions to her proposal hadn’t gone over well and she wanted to use the majority of the night to plan out how she would convince them at the next meeting. With even Mia on the fence about her idea, the lieutenant knew it likely wouldn’t be easy but she was determined to try for the sake of both ending the war peacefully as well as the outer villages. If her battalion was able to only be on defense then there would be fewer battles and if they kept the Younisians from advancing, it would give the nearby villages a small break from all the warfare. The female knight let out a small sigh at the thought of the villagers that were suffering at the hands of a war that was completely out of their control.

“Uh oh, looks like someone’s down. Edward and Layth responded that badly, huh?” came a low whistle of sympathy.

Coming out of her thoughts, Penelope lifted her gaze to see Olivia stand by Gavin with her eyebrow raised in question as she studied her friend’s face. Gavin also eyed her with similar concern, likely assuming the worst based on the initial reactions he had seen during their meeting. It made the lieutenant flash a reassuring smirk.

“Not at all! In fact, Edward congratulated me on my courtship.” Penelope informed them with amusement lighting her visage. “Turns out his need to secure power for the family outweighs his need to send Crow to the gallows.”

“Well that’s quite a turn around.” Olivia snickered. “Who would have thought Edward of all people would make things easy.”

Gavin gave a curt nod of agreement before his gaze wandered back over to Penelope. “And what about Layth? Is he following your uncle’s lead on this?”

The lieutenant’s amusement faded. “I wish my brother would make things so simple but unfortunately, he’s still out for blood. He was less than thrilled and I suspect he’ll continue to be that way regardless of what anyone else says or does.” she admitted with a small shrug.

“At least he can’t do anything about it. Now come on, let’s go grab some supper. I’m starving!” Olivia smiled before quickly turning on her feet to lead the small group off towards the dining area. With the other two both ready for a meal as well, Penelope fell in behind her friend as she strode besides Gavin. A brief silence fell over the group as they focused on getting their meals. Once they retrieved their plates, they made their way over to one of the small fire pits. The weather was still chilly and having spent most of her recent late evenings in either the castle or inns, Penelope found herself a little less prepared for handling the cold out on the warfront. As she settled down in front of the fire with the others a long sigh of satisfaction escaped her. The dancing flames were strong despite not being particularly large and easily heated the surrounding area. It was an excellent opposite to the crisp evening breeze.

“So… I’m rising in rank.” Gavin announced unceremoniously as he poked at his food. “Bennet’s been looking for a lieutenant for sometime now and decided on me after seeing how I performed during your time away, Penelope.”

Penelope blinked in surprise at the news and smiled at her friend. “Gavin that’s great! I suppose I’ll be seeing you in the tent from now on then, right?”

“I believe so.” The male knight nodded.

“Well, well lose a courtship, gain a rank, congratulations.” Olivia grinned.

Gavin shot her an annoyed look and gave a soft snort. “Yes, I wouldn’t want to be a low ranking guard for the rest of my career.”

“It’s a lifestyle few can understand.” Olivia shrugged.

Penelope took a bite from her food and eyed Olivia with a hint of curiosity. “You’re not going to try and move up?”

“Why would I? Climbing the career tree would just mean taking on more responsibility.” Olivia smirked. “Besides, I have plans to reap the benefits of being higher up without the work.”

Gavin rolled his eyes and eyed Olivia with a look of doubt. “Oh really? And exactly what is your plan?”

“Become good friends with all the high ranking nobles of course!” the female knight snickered and threw an arm around Penelope’s shoulders. “I’ve already got a princess, viceroy and the soon to be wife of the viceroy on my side. I suppose I could squeeze in room for another lieutenant though.”

Penelope gave a small laugh as she watched the exchange between the two and shook her head at Olivia’s antics. The trio continued to enjoy their meal together, talking idly as the evening went on. Eventually, Penelope finished up her meal and parted from her friends to retire to her tent. Stepping through the flap, she stretched her arms and took off her armor as she prepared to settle in for the night. Her first day back on the warfront hadn’t been completely terrible but the rocky part of the day still wore on the knight’s mind. Namely the poor reaction to her suggestion to only act defensively.

The lieutenant let out a troubled sigh as she flopped down onto her mat. The barons had plans for another battle coming up rather soon which left her with very little time to prepare. I have to convince them tomorrow…she thought with a small frown. Feeling the still cold of the winter night beginning to nip at her, she turned over to bundle herself up in her blanket. As she warmed up, Penelope continued to dwell on the thought of what she needed to say in order to convince the barons but was slowly lulled to sleep by the coziness that came from fending off the cold. Before long, she had fallen into a rather deep sleep, one laced with wild dreams caused by her stressed mind.

It was nearly dawn when Crow was roused from his slumber by the sound of soft footsteps in the grass. He opened his eyes and sat up with a weary frown, slightly disoriented after waking up from a deeper-than-usual sleep. At first, he assumed it must have been morning and that the others were getting up to start tearing down their camp. However, there was no morning sunlight coming in through the slit in the front of his tent, and Otto had never forced them to get on the road while it was still dark. The belated realization sent off alarm bells in his head, and he tensed. Whoever was walking around their camp now wasn’t supposed to be there.

With no weapon close by to protect himself, the former thief crept over to the opening in his tent and peered through the gap to see if he could get a look at the late-night visitors. His heartbeat quickened in his chest as he caught sight of two silhouettes sneaking around the clearing and whispering to each other in hushed voices. In their hands were drawn swords. Whoever they were, they obviously weren’t friendly, and his breath caught in his throat as he jumped to the worry that the men were mercenaries. He still remembered vividly the cloaked man he’d seen in Bellmare, and he couldn’t think of anyone else who would want to attack them in the middle of the night. If these two had come to kill them in their sleep they had to be hired killers.

He crouched tensely by the edge of his tent, watching as the silhouettes stopped near the center of the camp to continue speaking in hushed tones. He needed to think of a way to wake the others up without getting himself killed first. Since Otto had told the Younisians about them, they group had decided against having anyone keep watch for the night. It had seemed safe enough for all of them to get as much rest as they could as long as the native knights were already patrolling the area—

At the thought, he furrowed his brows, noticing something else about the men in their camp: They were wearing full suits of armor. He studied them a little more closely, confused by the detail. As far as he knew, mercenaries didn’t wear armor. It almost looked like they were Younisians, but if they were, then why were they walking around with their weapons drawn? Theroulde had told them where their camp was, so they should have known that they weren’t a threat to their battalion. He wasn’t sure what was going on, but now that he felt more confident that he was looking at a pair of knights, he decided it was safe enough to ask them, himself.

Reaching for the parcel that contained the sealed letter from his father, he climbed to his feet and brushed past the flap of his tent to confront the men. They turned toward him at the sound of his rustling, and he waved the parchment with a tired yawn, “Anyone care to explain to me why two knights are in our camp this early in the—Hey, what the hell?” He startled and compulsively held up his hands as the knights advanced toward him with their blades trained on his chest. The men wore glowers on their faces until a flicker of recognition crossed through their eyes.

“Oh, it’s just the thief,” one of them said dryly, though he didn’t lower his sword.

“What are you doing, lurking in our territory in the dead of night?” the other asked sharply.

“Relax, I’m not here to steal from you,” Crow assured them. Gingerly, he tried to push one of the blades away from his chest with a finger, but the knight who was holding it didn’t budge. It seemed that Otto had left out the rather important detail that he was now Albin’s ambassador. He fought the urge to wrinkle his nose, annoyed that he’d been left with the task of filling them in while they thought he was an enemy. “I have proof,” he added, flashing the parchment again. “Here, look. The king of Brerra promoted me. I’m with the nobles who came here to parley with the king of Younis.”

“Parley?” One of the knights echoed, exchanging a glance with his comrade. He snatched the letter unceremoniously from the viceroy’s hand and reviewed the contents. “This does look like the Brerratic king’s seal,” he mused, sounding almost disappointed that the letter was authentic.

“Yes, but how do you know he didn’t steal it?” the other pointed out, eyeing the former thief with distrust.

“If I was lying, then why would a baron vouch for me?” Crow countered, giving the sword against his chest another irritable shove. “I’m King Albin’s viceroy, and the knights who are with me are my bodyguards.”

To his surprise, the Younisians barked a laugh. “What knights?” the first one asked tauntingly. “All I see here is a camp full of lying bandits.”

“Theroulde didn’t tell you where we were camping?” Crow stared at them confusedly.

Neither of the knights bothered to answer his question. Instead, one signaled something to the other, and they stepped forward to grab him by the wrists. “Nice try, thief,” one sneered as they apprehended him. “You’re not going to be stealing anything else from our battalion now that we caught you trespassing in Younis.”

“I’m not trespassing!” Crow snarled, struggling against their iron grips. “I was sent here by the king of Brerra; I’m not here to take anything from your battalion. Let me go!” He winced as the knights pinned his arms roughly behind his back, his mind racing as he tried to grasp what was going on. Even if the Younisians doubted him, it should have been obvious that there was at least some truth to his claims because he was traveling with Brerratic knights. However, it almost sounded like the two men hadn’t been aware that he or the others were there to begin with. He wondered if they were from a different camp than the one Otto had visited. Of course, it was just his luck that knights from a different battalion would be the ones to stumble into their campsite.

The sounds of their struggling was enough to attract more attention though, and in the next few seconds, Percival and Rayner had climbed out of their tents to see what was going on. The former caught sight of the Younisians trying to arrest the viceroy and blanched, jogging over to intervene before they took him away. “What’s going on here?” he asked and then faltered when one of the knights turned his sword on him.

“You thieves keep getting dumber and dumber,” the Younisian scoffed. “Back off, or I’ll run you through right here.”

“Thieves?” Percival blinked and turned to Crow for clarity.

“These idiots,” the viceroy growled, shooting the knights a scathing look, “think we’re a camp of bandits.”

“What?” Percy knitted his brows and looked at the others again. “There’s been a misunderstanding. We were sent here by King Albin to negotiate with your king to end the war. My name is Percival Granger, and this is Lieutenant Theroulde.” He gestured at Rayner, who had stepped over as well. “Baron Theroulde and Princess Mannering are with us as well. Otto should have told you we were here last evening… You did receive word that we made camp here, right?”

“We heard no such thing,” one of the Younisians insisted, though he looked a little less certain than before. Even though the people of the northwestern kingdom spoke a different dialect, they could hear the formal inflections in Percival’s voice that denoted his status as a nobleman. Because of his upbringing in the inner kingdom, he was more convincing than the peasant-turned-viceroy they had apprehended.

“He’s telling the truth,” Rayner pitched in with a frown. “We were assigned to escort Collin to see your king, and we have more than enough evidence to prove it to you.” With a wave of his hand, he beckoned the knights to follow him to the pile of saddlebags, where he revealed the scrolls and other papers they had brought along for the parley. While he was showing off the negotiation resources, Naida shuffled out of her tent to join them too, and Preston stood off to the side, watching from a distance. The overwhelming proof that they were indeed nobles from the inner kingdom finally convinced the Younisians to let Crow go—albeit reluctantly—and return to their own camp to spread word to the other knights that there were traveling dignitaries in their land.

As they walked away, Crow followed them with his gaze, rubbing his sore wrists. The knights were headed back to the same camp that Otto had claimed that he’d visited just hours ago. He narrowed his eyes. Something wasn’t right. “Where’s Otto?” he turned to Percival, who had stepped over to stand by his side. “I want to know why it seems like the Younisians had no idea we were here.”

Percy met his gaze with a troubled expression, “I… don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?” Crow growled. As they spoke, the others slowly started tuning into the conversation as well. “He should be in his tent.”

Percival grimaced at the frustration in the viceroy’s voice, shifting his weight uncomfortably. “That’s the thing… While Rayner was showing the Younisians proof of why we’re here, I went to his tent to ask him what was going on because I assumed he might know, but… it was empty. His mat was still warm, so I think he slipped out while we were distracted by those two knights… He’s gone, Collin.”

Crow stared at him, stunned. He was certain now that Otto must not have spoken to the Younisians at all when he’d left their camp earlier, but he didn’t understand what the baron was doing. Had he been ashamed of getting caught in his lie, or had he been using the other knights as a cover for something else? Perplexed by the turn of events, he raked his fingers through his dark hair. “He can’t have gone far… We should search the area,” he said slowly, trying to piece together a plan even though he still felt blind. All this time, he’d been worried about mercenaries, but it was starting to look like he’d been oblivious to a much closer cause for concern.

“Wait, I still don’t understand though,” Naida shook her head. “Why did Otto leave?”

“We don’t know either,” Crow exhaled. “But we don’t have time to stand here and puzzle over it. We need to find him before he puts too much distance between us. We’ll get our answers then.”

“I agree,” Percy nodded solemnly. “It’s clear now that he’s hiding something, and if he’s a danger to Collin or to our assignment, we need to stop him.”

“And,” Crow glanced at Rayner, who was listening to the conversation with a dumbfounded expression. All the color had drained from his face, and his lips were slightly parted as if he wanted to say something, but didn’t have the words. “Tie him up,” the viceroy ordered. “If he’s in on it too, we can’t have him running around freely.”

“What?” Rayner broke free from his trance, taking a step back from them. “I-I don’t know what’s going on, I swear! I’m sure my father has a good explanation for this too… He wouldn’t abandon us without a cause. He’ll be back soon enough, and then he can tell us, himself…”

“I’m sorry,” Percy offered him a sympathetic look as he stepped over to the lieutenant and took hold of his arm. “Even if you aren’t part of this, we can’t take any chances.” He led the other man over to a tree, still protesting, and bound him to it with a chain that had been stowed away in one of the saddlebags.

Once that was taken care of, the remaining four quickly bridled two horses and split up into teams to hunt down the missing baron. Naida and Preston mounted one horse together and took off to search the west side of the camp while Crow and Percival took the knight’s stallion to sweep the east side. Otto’s steed had been left behind, so they hoped to catch him fleeing the area on foot. Acutely aware that each passing minute dimmed their chances of catching Theroulde, they rode as fast as they could through the woods to find him before he could get away.

It was surprising how easy it was to fall into old routines. Despite it only being her second day back with her battalion, Penelope found herself quickly adjusting back into her life on the battlefront. Waking up that morning it almost felt like she had never even left. The only thing that told of change was a small sense of loneliness. She was already missing the luxury of being able to see Crow nearly every day, even if it wasn’t for longer than one meal. Luckily the lieutenant had plenty of work to keep herself busy.

After getting ready to face the day, she headed out and grabbed a bite of breakfast alone. She hadn’t spotted either Gavin nor Olivia so she decided to sit by herself. As she sat quietly munching on her bread, she became more aware of the glares aimed at her from a few of her nearby comrades. It wasn’t difficult to guess why. Penelope raised her head to narrow her eyes on a specific group of three that kept shooting distasteful looks her way, only turning away to whisper amongst themselves. Gossip spread through the camp like wildfire and Penelope had no doubt that word about her new courtship had gotten out based upon the looks she was receiving.

The knight rolled her eyes and focused back on her meal, attempting to ignore the looks. Their glares were harsher than the ones she had received at the castle but she supposed part of her could understand why. The battalion had been hit multiple times by the thieves and even if it wasn’t to the same scale as the raid Jaxon had pulled, it was clearly enough to leave long lasting grudges. Not to mention that being so far from the castle lessened the influence that the king’s decision carried. It would take much more time for them to fully accept the new viceroy as well as their lieutenant who—in their eyes—had turned traitor.

“I hope you’re ignoring them.” came a calm voice that was clearly sympathetic.

Penelope blinked and turned her head to see Tomas stepping over to her with a half smile. “I’m sure they’ll get over it eventually. All that’s happening is just shocking.” he said with a small shrug.

The female knight hesitated before letting out a long sigh. “I know. It’s just going to be a real pain until they do.” she responded. Penelope paused and eyed Tomas, suddenly finding herself curious about his opinion on the matter of her courtship. Mia had been too difficult to read but her values often aligned with those of her older lieutenant’s. “And what are your thoughts on my courtship?”

Tomas blinked and then gave an amused smile. “My thoughts are that it is none of my business.”

Penelope smirked a little, finding that she appreciated that mentality. “Alright, I can respect that.” she chuckled then paused with a small frown as she thought about her baroness. While she cared little about what the general public may have thought about her, she did care about her higher up’s opinion. Mia’s hesitancy to side with her at the meeting the day prior quickly popped up into her mind. Perhaps that had stemmed from newly founded distrust. “I just hope Mia feels similarly.”

“I’m sure she does. Mia’s a fair person and you haven’t committed treason, despite what some others may think.” Tomas mused with a pointed glance towards the gossiping knights. He shook his head in disapproval before turning back to her. “Speaking of her, we should probably head to the tent. It’s almost time for the meeting.”

Penelope supposed the older lieutenant was right. Besides, Mia had never been outwardly upset about her relationship with the new viceroy so the knight could only hope that meant she either accepting of it or at the very least, ignoring it. She nodded her head with an appreciative smile and got up to join Tomas as they made their way towards the large tent at the middle of camp.

The two lieutenants had lapsed into a short silence until Tomas awkwardly cleared his throat. “By the way Penelope…. if it’s not too much to ask, I’d highly appreciate it if you’d not let your new suitor find out it was me who suggested cutting off his hands back when he was our prisoner.” he said with a small cringe. “Or if he already knows, send him my apologies.”

Penelope blinked in surprise. With all that had gone on, she had nearly forgotten about how close Crow had come to losing his hands and that the idea had stemmed from Tomas of all people. She might have held a grudge towards the lieutenant if he hadn’t ultimately turned on his own suggestion to support Mia with working with the thieves instead. With no harm done, she smirked amusedly at his words and nodded her head. “I’ll be sure to keep your secret.” she assured with a small chuckle.

Tomas let out a subtle breath of relief and nodded his head before leading the two into the tent. Inside, the three barons and Gavin had already gathered. Penelope moved to take up a seat besides Gavin and turned her head as the tent flap shifted again as Layth pushed through. Her brother shot her a cold glare as he moved to sit on her other side. Expecting nothing less from her brother after their conversation the other day, Penelope turned her head away from him to focus on Mia as the baroness spoke up.

“Now that everyone’s hear, let’s pick up where we left off.” Mia spoke clearly, her gaze shifting onto Penelope. “I have taken your suggestion into further consideration, Penelope, and I think it would be worth it to act defensively for the sake of ending this war peacefully. But I worry the toll it will have on our people. To act only defensively will be taxing. It will allow Younis to hit us much like they would a training dummy. I’m still not certain I can sign off on this idea.”

Penelope frowned slightly and shifted in her seat. She opened her mouth to argue but wasn’t able to say her piece before Edward spoke up.

“Our troops are strong and we must act to support the king’s decision.” Edward grunted. Despite speaking in favor of the idea, the look on his face was bitter. He glanced towards her before looking back to Mia. “We can handle it.”

“Why should we? The king never said we had to stop attacking. This peace isn’t even guaranteed! Especially with our current ‘viceroy’.” Layth jumped in with a narrowed gaze.

Edward turned on his lieutenant with a warning glare. “His lacking experience is why we must show support at the warfront. The king may not have ordered it but surely he would approve of it.”

Penelope glanced between the two Vermillion’s with a flabbergasted gaze. She pulled her eyes away from them to exchange a glance with Gavin who looked equally surprised by her uncle’s words against Layth. It was a stark change from the man who had been so rigidly against her proposal only a day prior. The meeting had only begun but it was already proving to be far more interesting than she could have planned as Edward suddenly shifted to side with her.

Crow and Percival searched every inch of the forest that they could cover while the sun crested over the horizon, but there was no sign of the missing baron anywhere. Both exhausted from two nights in a row of poor sleep and discouraged by the cold trail, the knight eventually brought their horse to a stop and sighed. “Maybe Naida and your attendant had better luck,” he suggested, peering over his shoulder with a frown. “It’s possible that Theroulde went the other direction when he escaped.”

Behind him, Crow leaned back on his hands and stifled a yawn. “Either way, we should head back to the camp. If we haven’t found him so far, I doubt anything will change if we keep looking.” He glanced at the trees around them in one last halfhearted search for the man, though he knew he wouldn’t see him anywhere. Otto was either long gone by now or had already been caught by his half-sister. He hoped the latter was true, but deep down, he suspected that the baron had managed to slip away from them.

He still couldn’t figure out why Otto had run though. As Percy turned his horse to go back to their campsite, the viceroy furrowed his brows, trying futilely to think of a reason why he would have been acting so strangely. Theroulde was a close friend of his father’s, so he would have thought that out of all of the knights, he’d have the most reason to ensure the success of their mission. For a while, he’d suspected that the baron had planned to usurp the assignment from him somehow to take all the credit for himself, but even that didn’t make sense anymore. If he had wanted to return to Brerra as the champion of peace who’d ended the war, that would have required going all the way to the Younisian castle. Instead, Otto had purposefully neglected to tell the Younisians that they were in the area and had run away when they were barely on the other side of the border.

I’m missing something, he thought with a frustrated shake of his head. Whatever is going on, Otto’s one step ahead of us. He must know something we don’t. And perhaps Rayner knew too. He found it hard to believe that the baron would take off and leave his son behind so carelessly. If the lieutenant was in on his father’s schemes, they were going to have to wring out as much information as they could from him.

When Crow and Percival returned to the camp, they were disappointed to find that Naida and Preston had gotten there ahead of them, empty-handed. “So, you two didn’t find him either, huh?” Naida asked, propping a hand on her hip.

“The snake got away,” Crow shrugged and slid down from the horse’s back to amble over to the others.

“Damn,” Naida frowned. “How did he do that anyway? He was on foot, and we were on mounts. We should have caught up to him even if he had a head start. It’s almost like he just… disappeared.”

“I have no idea,” the viceroy shook his head. “But that doesn’t matter. He’s gone, and as much as I hate to say it, I think we should keep moving… We have no idea what he’s planning, but he’s clearly not on our side. We need to get to the castle to get this stupid meeting over with.”

“Do you think he would do something to hinder us?” Preston asked concernedly.

“Who knows?” Crow exhaled, walking over to his tent while the others headed over to theirs to pack up the camp. “Maybe he just bolted because he didn’t want to face us after we found out he didn’t tell the Younisians we were here, but my gut tells me we shouldn’t stay in one place for too long.”

“And what about him?” Percival asked with a tilt of his head toward Rayner, who was still bound to the tree where they’d left him.

“I already told you, I don’t know what my father is doing,” Rayner shifted uncomfortably against the tree trunk. “And I don’t think we should be packing up right now. For gods’ sakes, my father isn’t an enemy! If we leave now, we’re going to leave him behind. He has no supplies of his own, so we should wait here until he returns!”

“If he really isn’t an enemy, he’ll catch up,” Crow replied unsympathetically. “I, for one, am not taking any chances, so he’ll just have to meet us at the castle.” And along the way, they could question the lieutenant further about what Otto was doing. Rayner seemed genuinely clueless to it all, but even if he truly didn’t know what the baron was up to, there was a chance that he could have overheard something important. At this point, he was hoping to hear anything at all that he could use to catch up on Theroulde’s movements.

He and the other nobles tore down their camp, put on their uniforms and readied their horses to continue on toward the Younisian castle. Just as they tied Rayner’s horse to Percival’s—the lieutenant’s hands had been bound with rope since they’d lost trust in him—they noticed movement in the nearby trees though. The two Younisian knights who had stumbled upon their camp earlier had returned on horses of their own.

“Is there something we can do for you?” Percy asked, stepping over to them amiably. Now that the Brerratic group had put on their regalia, they looked like true nobles, and there was no question that they were who they said they were.

The other knights brought their steeds to a stop at the edge of the clearing. “We’re here to escort you to the castle,” the one on the left answered. “My name is Edwin, and this is Osbert.”

“We’re pleased to meet with you under better circumstances,” Percival bowed his head politely. “Or, well… as good as those circumstances can be.” He glanced over his shoulder at their rag-tag group, comprised of one riderless horse and one carrying a man with bound hands.

“Yes, and we’re sorry we accused you of trespassing,” Edwin nodded in return. “We weren’t aware that thief had actually been given a title by your king.” As he spoke, his eyes drifted to Crow, who shrugged.

“I’m just as surprised as you are,” the former thief quipped, lifting himself onto his horse’s back.

Edwin grunted, “Anyway, whenever you’re all ready to leave, we’ll bring you to see our king.”

“We should be about ready now,” Percival said, glancing at the others for confirmation. Naida, Crow and Preston were all atop their mounts, and Rayner was secured firmly to his. The knight climbed on top of his horse as well, and once they were all prepared, the Younisians took the lead, directing them northwest through the trees toward their capital city.

Crow followed along toward the middle of the pack as usual, flanked on each side by Percy and Naida while Preston lagged at the back with Rayner. As they rode onward, Otto remained present in the back of his mind, and he watched the trees around them, wondering if they would indeed meet up with him at the castle or if the baron was working on something else while they headed further into Younis to negotiate for peace with the native monarch. He let out his breath in a low sigh, hoping Rayner was right about his father not being an enemy. They didn’t need anything else to worry about on top of their existing assignment.

The rest of the meeting was interesting to say the least. With her uncle suddenly offering unwavering support, Penelope found convincing the other two barons much easier. Mia eventually came to agree with her, while Bennet seemed to blindly follow the lead of the older barons. All in all, things seemed to be going in her favor now that Edward saw value in her. Off-handedly, it made her wonder how far his loosely founded and power hungry loyalty would go. After all, her uncle had been her strongest opposition in the past when suggesting plans and ideas to the barons. The lieutenant could only hope that this new development would mean her remaining time on the war front would go smoothly.

"Alright, it's settled then. We'll only act defensively until further notice." Mia announced once the barons had all come to agreement.

"This is absurd.." Layth growled under his breath. One glance at the lieutenant and could easily tell he was fuming over the decision as his face was scrunched into an furious expression and his gaze was ice cold. Still, with so many voices against himself, he didn't protest any further.

"For now, you four will be tasked with organizing scouts and making sure our battalion remains on alert. We may be playing defensive but that's no excuse to get sloppy or let our guard down." Edward grunted.

"Of course. Consider it taken care of." Tomas said with a firm nod.

As the meeting was dismissed, the lieutenants gathered outside the tent to discuss the tasks at hand. In the end, Tomas and Gavin went on to take over organizing the scouts and left the two siblings to make sure the battalion remained battle ready. Penelope crossed her arms over her chest as she watched Tomas and Gavin walk off before slowly turning her head to face her brother. The female knight let out a sigh, far from thrilled to be stuck working with her irritable brother.

"So... I'm thinking we could start by taking note of our weapon and armor inventory. Playing defense is going to rough on the metal since Younis will likely be encouraged to strike more often." Penelope suggested.

"No. We'll start with gathering some of our knights for a sparring session. Thanks to your oh so wonderful idea, they're going to need to be kept sharp and battle ready at all times." Layth growled, his tone making it clear that he didn't want any arguments.

Penelope narrowed her eyes at her brother but didn't fight against his decision and merely gave a curt nod. Though making their comrades go through sparring more regularly wasn't at the top of her list, his idea wasn't completely terrible and it wasn't something worth fighting him about. "Fine by me." she muttered. Layth didn't say anything and just gave a faint nod before stiffly turning to lead the way off to the camp's sparring grounds. Letting him have his way, the female lieutenant fell in behind her brother.

---

The rest of the day went by relatively smoothly. Despite having to work with a bitter half brother, the two lieutenants managed to keep their focus on overseeing the sparring sessions. For the most part at least. Layth occasionally belittled her whenever the opportunity presented itself and Penelope found it difficult to always keep her tongue restrained so she did lash out to defend herself a couple times. Once the sparring session ended, Penelope wasted no time in separating from her brother, both due to his foul attitude as well as her own hunger that had built up over the course of the day.

Penelope grabbed a plate of food and sat down near one of the fires, letting out a breath of relief as she was finally able to relax after the long day. Uncommitedly, she glanced around to see if she could spot Olivia or Gavin before ultimately giving up. It seemed that she would be enjoy supper alone that evening. The lieutenant let her thoughts wander as she thought over what actions to take next now that the barons had approved her idea. Though she wanted to make sure the war ended peacefully, she still had to make sure her battalion remained prepared for the attacks from Younis. As she sat in thought, she ate her meal, letting her mind roam over possible strategies as well as what she could work on in the coming days.

Eventually, the knight finished her meal and decided it was time to retire to her bed. Stepping into her tent, she took off her armour and settled in for the night. It was long after she laid down that she fell into a rather deep sleep.

The rest of that day and the two that followed went by without a hitch. Crow and the rest of the nobles never did see Otto again, but they covered quite a bit of ground with the Younisians that led them through their kingdom. To the former thief, it was a welcomed change of pace. He had grown accustomed to always watching his own back and keeping his guard up wherever her went, since he’d lived most of his life being pursued by knights and bounty hunters. While his old habit of keeping watch over his surroundings didn’t die, he felt much more relaxed than usual and enjoyed being able to travel in plain sight along a main road instead of sneaking through the shadows.

He also liked being back in Younis for the first time in years. Well, more specifically, further into the northern kingdom than just the border. The path they took was the same one that he had traveled along with Penelope, William and Abraxas the first time when he’d been sent to retrieve the king’s staff. Being back again brought up a flood of memories and mixed emotions inside of him from that trip, especially when they passed through the town where they had met Hartley.

So much had changed since then and as he looked around at the buildings and markets and people, it almost felt like the first visit had been a distant fever dream. Back then, he had still been an arrogant, bitter thief with a crush on one of his guards. Now, he had shot up the social ladder to the highest title in Brerra outside the royal family and was actively courting the woman who had once been assigned to keep him from running away. The speed of it all was dizzying, but he had to attribute some of the positive changes to the land they were riding through now. If it hadn’t been for the people they had met and the things that had happened to them in Younis, who knew what would have become of him and Penelope? He was thankful for the northern kingdom and the ways that he’d left it as a changed man.

Aside from the viceroy’s nostalgia, the three days they traveled with the Younisian knights were productive. They covered long stretches of road at a time, motivated both by their eagerness to get to the castle and the lingering worry that Otto would come back to finish whatever he had been scheming behind their backs before. Even Naida had stopped complaining about their speed, although Crow suspected her change of attitude was due to the fact that she’d taken an obvious interest in Edwin. Throughout the ride, she chatted happily with the Younisian man, exchanging questions and talking about their apparent shared interest in a game that the former thief had never heard of before. He doubted their father would allow her to be with a low-ranking knight from another kingdom, since Albin seemed to care a lot about protecting his oldest daughter, but he didn’t want to dash her hopes, so he kept his theory to himself.

When they weren’t on their horses, the group spent their nights at the local inns. As planned, they asked Rayner whatever they could think of about their missing baron as soon as they were behind closed doors. It seemed to everyone that Otto was long gone, but Crow refused to take any chances after he’d made the mistake of being optimistic in the past. Unfortunately, the lieutenant didn’t have anything useful to tell them and only grew more frustrated the more they interrogated him about his father. He was genuinely clueless about the whole thing and eventually stopped talking to the others out of spite on the third night of questions. With a curt demand to just go to sleep, he took up the bed in the furthest corner of the room and buried himself in the blankets, and the rest of the nobles finally gave up on getting anything more out of him.

The next morning started out the same as usual. Crow and his company rose early after a full night of sleep, got breakfast at the tavern below the inn, and set out on the road with Edwin and Osbert. He directed Baine to fall in line toward the middle of the group and brought a hand up to smother a yawn as they headed toward the next town. He’d been getting better sleep over the past few nights, but it was still exhausting to travel almost nonstop every day, and his weariness was catching up to him from the lengthy rides.

“At least we only have about three more days left of travel before we make it to the castle,” Percival said at his side, noticing the viceroy’s tiredness and offering him a sympathetic look.

“Thank the gods for that,” Crow groaned. “My legs and back are killing me. How do you knights do this all the time?”

“Most of us grew up riding horses,” he shrugged. “You adjust to it.”

“No, I don’t think I will,” the former thief decided with a wrinkle of his nose.

A tame chuckle escaped from the knight’s throat, and they lapsed into silence again. As the procession went onward, Crow let his eyes wander idly over the surrounding trees. They had moved on from the last town and now found themselves in a small section of forest that buffered the next populated area up ahead. A cool breeze wafted by, and he drew his travel cloak more securely around his shoulders to stave off the cold. The further north they rode, the further the temper dropped, and he couldn’t wait to get to the Younisian king’s castle to escape from the winter weather for a while. Hopefully there would be—

“Look out!”

The sudden bark of Percival’s voice sent a jolt up Crow’s spine, and he yanked on his reins just as an arrow whizzed past his nose. Had he not directed Baine to slow down, it would have gone straight through his head. Heart pounding, he turned toward Percy as the knight drew his sword from its scabbard. “There are men in the trees!” Percival yelled, uncharacteristically animated as he took charge of the situation.

The rest of the group shook themselves awake and readied their weapons as well, turning to face the threat just as a group of men in cloaks rushed towards them with blades and bows. They’d fallen right into an ambush.

The following days went by fast enough for the knight. Most of her time now consisted of assigning scouts and overseeing sparring sessions with other lieutenants. It was easy for the most part. The only challenge she usually faced were a few lower ranking knights that had clearly lost respect for her and of course, Layth. With the other knights knowing better than to challenge the higher ranking lieutenant, Layth was easily the most difficult one to deal with. While Penelope tried to avoid working with him, their jobs unfortunately pushed them together more often than either sibling would have liked. Over the course of the two days, the siblings were usually at each other's throats whenever working together.

Luckily Penelope got a break on the third day when she volunteered to accompany Olivia on a scouting mission. The two friends walked through the forest near the bordering chatting idly to pass time. The weather was rather cold that day so both had adorn themselves with heavier cloaks to fight off the winter breeze. Olivia hugged her arms to herself as they walked, narrowing her gaze slightly as a cold wind blew through.

"Gods I hope this wind doesn't mean it's going to snow again soon... You weren't here when it did a couple weeks ago but it made things miserable." Olivia complained with a frown.

"Hopefully it won't. I can't imagine what it must have been like. Especially when we only have the tents for shelter... Still, at least we're set in supplies for such weather. I noticed they supplies everyone with heavier blankets." Penelope said with a soft sigh.

"I suppose. More so than that I just hope Younis doesn't decide to attack right before such weather. I'm all for your plans Penelope but that'll be a rough time regardless if we're just defending." Olivia complained as she glanced over at Penelope. She shot her a small, teasing smirk. "You've been at the castle for so long you'll probably be the least prepared for it."

Penelope rolled her eyes. "I'll be prepared enough... Anyways, I'm sure we'll be safe from Younis for a while. After all, it seems like they had a lot to recover from what I heard and since they aren't aware of our plans to only act defensively, I doubt they'll be quick to attack us right now."

"True en—" Olivia began to say until a distinct footstep caught both of their attentions. Olivia exchanged an glance with Penelope before both of them drew their swords. Penelope eyed the direction the noise had come in before moving towards it with her sword at the ready. Almost as soon as she stepped closer towards the cluster of nearby trees, a figure jumped out of hiding and bolted away. Her eyes widened as she recognized it to be a knight with the colors of Younis. "A Younisian scout!" she shouted in alarm before taking off after him. With how close he had been to them, the lieutenant knew there was a chance the knight had overheard their conversation and might report back to his baron about the Brerratic battalion's new battle plans. While it was inevitable for Younis to realize that Brerra was only behaving defensively, Penelope wanted to make sure they wouldn't realize it for at least a couple battles. If they put it together too quickly, there was a high chance they would figure out a way to use it to their advantage even faster.

With that in mind, Penelope hurried after the knight, weaving through the trees of the forest. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Olivia closely following on her right. As the Younisian knight took a sharp turn to try and lose the pair, the lieutenant did the same, keeping him in her sights. The enemy scout clearly lacked the skill of running from an enemy as the pair gained ground on him. After being around Crow and picking up a thing or two, even Penelope could tell that much by the way the knight barely changed directions to escape or look for cover. Gaining ground on him, she gave a quick signal to Olivia to flank his right while she rounded out towards the left.

The scout noticed Olivia's movement first and quickly veered left to avoid her, which allowed Penelope to cut him off. As the lieutenant reached the scout, she glared at him and raised her sword, expecting a fight. However, the scout didn't even bother to draw his own weapon, instead raising his hands in surrender with a fearful look in his eyes. "S-Sorry! Please don't kill me! I-I didn't mean... Well I guess I did but I wasn't planning on spying! I was just patrolling! Honest!" he rambled taking a step back from the lieutenant.

As he spoke, Penelope lowered her sword slightly but still kept it drawn on him. Now that she wasn't in the heat of the chase, she realized how small this particular knight was. He was shorter than her with a rather round and childish face, likely a couple years younger then herself. And clearly inexperienced... She thought with a small sigh. Just as she finally got a clear look of him, the scout seemed to just register what his pursuer looked like as well.

"Woah wait.. You're a lieutenant aren't you? And you're a woman? That's so—" He began but paused cutting himself off, awkwardly clearing his throat. "Ah.. never mind.. look I promise I won't cause you any trouble if you just let me go."

"Man, Younisians are weird." Olivia suddenly piped in, eying the boy with interest as she stepped up behind him with her sword drawn. A small frown crossed the female knight's face before she glanced towards Penelope. "Soooo... What's the plan here?"

Penelope frowned and eyed the Younisian before taking a small step towards him. "Unfortunately we can't just let you go. I know what you heard and we can't let that get back to your battalion just yet." she said with a shake of her head. "But I won't kill you either. We'll just have to take you prisoner for now."

"What?" he frowned.

Penelope raised her blade to the scout's throat, making him flinch. Though the knight wouldn't kill him in cold blood—regardless if he was from the enemy kingdom it seemed cruel and he had just been at the wrong place at the wrong time—she didn't want to let her guard down around him just yet. After all, he still had his weapons on him. Taking him prisoner wasn't ideal either but it seemed to be the safest option they had. Killing him was cruel but letting him go could potentially put her whole battalion at risk, taking him prisoner seemed to be decent middle ground. She just hoped that the barons would feel the same. "Olivia, take his weapons and pat him down." she instructed to her friend.

Olivia nodded and stepped forward to remove the scout's sword as she sheathed her own. The female knight then patted him down as well, giving a strange pause and glancing towards Penelope, before she finished by taking away a dagger that he had in his boot. Olivia stepped back and turned to Penelope. "Looks like that's it." she assured her friend.

"Good. Let's get moving then. Put your arms behind your back and keep them there." Penelope instructed the scout who gave a timid nod before doing so. The female lieutenant lowered her sword and moved to take up the left side of the Younisian, pressing a firm hand to his back to guide him forward. Olivia fell in behind the pair as they began to make their way back to the rest of the battalion, carrying the weapons that she had confiscated from him.

“Collin, Preston, move!” Percival shouted urgently, swinging his blade to parry the blow of the nearest attacker. In a matter of seconds, they had been surrounded by six men on horseback. The ambushers had been hiding in the trees until they passed through, and if not for Percy’s quick reflexes, might have felled at least a few of their members before they’d had a chance to react.

Crow jerked on his reins, swearing under his breath as he craned his neck to look over his shoulder. He wasn’t used to fighting or fleeing from on top of a horse, and even though he was better at controlling Baine now than he had been a few weeks ago, his heart still pounded anxiously as he surveyed the situation. They were outnumbered in fighters. His attendant didn’t know how to use a blade, and he was still in training, so he wasn’t confident enough to take on an experienced swordsman without the usual tricks that helped him when he faced knights on the ground. That was why his father had sent along an entourage of bodyguards, but even as he watched, he could see that they weren’t faring well either.

Percival was struggling to hold his own against two of the men who took shots at himself or the viceroy, and already, he was clutching at his thigh with his free hand, having taken a wound to the leg. Naida was wide-eyed as she fended off another cloaked enemy, doing slightly better than the male knight but steadily being overpowered by her opponent. Rayner had yet to be the target of any members of the sextet but still couldn’t land any blows when he charged at them. And their Younisian escorts were being worn down as well in a three-on-two skirmish. They were losing quickly, and Crow felt his respiration quicken as he backed his stallion away from the battle.

Being attacked on the road to the Younisian castle had been a possibility, but they had thought that the Younisian knights were the ones who would have targeted them. With two escorts from the other kingdom, they had let their guards down and only kept a lookout for Otto. Crow’s eyes danced over the clashing blades and bodies as he realized too late how ill-equipped they were. The men who had sprung out at them were big, reminding him distinctively of the mercenaries he and Penelope had stumbled upon before. But, if they were men who had been hired by the same person, he didn’t understand why they were here now. They’d already gotten away with the Younisian staff two years ago. What more could they want?

“Collin, this way,” Preston suddenly hissed at his side, giving Baine’s rein a sharp tug and then turning his own horse toward an opening at their right. Without waiting, the attendant spurred his steed and took off away from the road at a canter, but the former thief hesitated. Even though he wasn’t the most useful fighter and the battle was looking frighteningly one-sided, it felt wrong to just abandon the others. Had he been traveling with knights he didn’t know well, he would have fled the scene without a second thought, but Naida was his half-sister and Percival was the closest thing he had to a friend in the inner kingdom. He couldn’t bring himself to run when they were in danger.

So, he turned back to the rest and swallowed hard, reaching for the dagger he’d brought along with him. He didn’t have a suitable weapon for this kind of brawl either, but maybe if he spotted an opening, he could—

“Collin!” Percival’s voice jarred Crow from his scheming, and he startled, looking up to find that the knight was staring back at him with a wild urgency in his eyes. “What are you doing? Get out of here!” the knight snapped and then followed up hurriedly when the viceroy parted his lips to protest. “Go! Head for the town and get help!”

“But…” Crow grimaced. He didn’t want to leave the others, but the knight was right. They needed reinforcement quickly. He didn’t know if he could find more knights fast enough, but he had to try. It was the only option, so he turned his horse once more and braced himself to ride for the town. However, before he could drive his heels into Baine’s sides, he froze as he caught sight of something that stole his breath away. There was a seventh man on a black stallion in the trees: the same mercenary he’d seen in Bellmare when he’d made his trip with Penelope… and he was holding a notched bow.

In a flash, his survival instinct kicked in, and the viceroy dove from his horse’s back just as the mercenary released his arrow. The projectile flew past his shoulder, and he inhaled sharply as he hit the ground hard on his side. The air fled from his lungs, but he didn’t have time to lay down and recover from the blow. He scrambled to his feet and staggered away from Baine, who had reared up on his hind legs in fright when his rider had launched himself off his back. Distantly, Crow could hear someone shouting his name, but he barely registered it as he watched the mercenary reach over his shoulder and ready a second arrow from his quiver.

With no time to think, he sprinted for the nearest tree and dove at the last second, narrowly dodging the next projectile as he hit the ground and rolled behind the trunk. In the same moment, he heard Naida let out a bellow as she shifted her attention from the swordsman she’d been fighting to the mercenary archer. “Naida, wait—!” Crow tried to call after her, but the warning died on his tongue when he saw the man draw a sword from beneath his cloak. Before he could say or do anything to stop it, he stared in horror as the mercenary lashed out and caught the princess in the side between two plates of armor. She let out a pained cry and doubled over in her saddle, grasping at the injury as her horse galloped deeper into the trees in confusion.

No. Crow went white. Time seemed to slow down, and he froze, unable to bring himself to move his feet as his sister disappeared from sight. Standing where he was, he watched dazedly as the fight raged on. Percival managed to cut down one of the mercenaries he’d been facing and then challenged the man on the black horse next with more success. While they exchanged blows, the Younisians weren’t quite so fortunate. Another mercenary dealt a gruesome blow to Osbert, who slumped over in his saddle before an injured Edwin killed his assailant and then promptly fell on the sword of another mercenary. With three knights down, it was looking like the mercenaries were going to win, and the viceroy felt a chill shoot up his spine, abruptly aware of the sound of hoofbeats approaching him from behind.

He whirled around and pressed his back against the trunk of the tree. In his distraction, he hadn’t even noticed that one of the mercenaries had slipped away from the others to come after him. He didn’t have enough time to react, and he turned his head away, squeezing his eyes shut as he braced himself for the sword’s bite. Instead though, the man who’d been charging at him let out a screech and fell from his saddle with two arrows protruding from his chest and skull, and Crow stared at his body in surprise. None of his bodyguards wielded a bow.

Apparently the Younisians did though.

“The men in cloaks! Get them!” an unfamiliar, accented voice roared. The ground shook as a stream of four knights on horseback charged through the trees with blades and bows levied high. They raced toward the mercenaries, who recoiled and shouted to each other in their language before turning to face the new arrivals. As they crossed swords, Crow quickly put more distance between himself and the brawling, taking shelter behind another tree. Everything was happening so fast that he could barely keep up. He was still dazed after watching his half-sister take a gash to the side—he still didn’t know what had happened to her after that—and every time he started to get his feet under him in the fight, he was thrown off again by another change. He had no idea where the Younisians had come from, but they were fresh-faced and skilled enough to force back the mercenaries, so he decided to leave them to it. There was no sense in getting involved when they had things under control.

Instead, he leaned back against the tree trunk to catch his breath, keeping watch over his surroundings to make sure none of their enemies snuck up on him again. He wasn’t going to let them corner him twice. Sorely, he rubbed his side with one hand, his green eyes roving over the trees. For the most part, the forest seemed clear, but as he turned his head to his left, he faltered, catching sight of something else that he hadn’t expected: A figure was standing in the distance, watching the skirmish with a clenched jaw and a calculating expression. Otto.

“Hey!” Crow snapped, blurting out the exclamation before he could stop himself. The baron jumped and glanced at him, then immediately spun around and took off at sprint, trying to get away. The viceroy wasn’t going to let him off that easily though.

“Oh no you don’t…” he growled. Without hesitation, he took chase, running away from the battle to catch their missing nobleman. After his suspicious behavior and unexpected appearance when they had been attacked by mercenaries, he was determined to get some answers.

The three knights trudged through the forest back towards the Brerratic battalion. Penelope keep the conversation between herself and Olivia short. This Younisian scout had already overheard more than enough, the last thing she wanted to do was leave an opening for either herself or her friend to give him even more information on their battalion. Occasionally, the female knight’s gaze would wander over to the young Younsian boy. He was quiet and clearly fearful. He made no efforts to jump into their conversation and instead kept to himself. Penelope caught him eying the surrounding forest a couple times but the look in his gaze suggested that he was looking for possible help rather than an escape route.

As the three came upon the camp, their captive quickly became tense, nervously eying the guards they passed by. Penelope let out a small breath as she noticed a few of her comrades shooting harsh glares towards the Younisian and muttering hateful words as the group passed by.

“I… I’m not going to be executed right? I really meant it when I said I wouldn’t cause you guys any trouble.” the young boy whispered to his two captors, glancing between them.

“This is just a precaution. I’ll make certain that you’re able to leave this camp unharmed.” Penelope assured, feeling a sting of sympathy for the younger knight.

“Hopefully your brother doesn’t get in the way of that.” Olivia mused with a nod towards the large tent at the center of camp. By the time the trio had neared it, talk of their return had spread like wildfire through the camp and now the barons along with their lieutenants— minus Tomas who was likely out of camp on his own patrol—stood right outside the meeting place. Mia eyed her lieutenant with a questioning gaze while the other two barons narrowed their eyes on the Younisian captive. And of course, there was Layth, who kept his venomous gaze focused solely on Penelope.

Penelope dipped her head to the barons. “Olivia and I encountered this scout on our patrol. I believe that he overheard some sensitive information so I brought him back to camp with us to ensure that that information does not get back to the Younisian barons.”

“You should have just run your sword through him if you were that concerned.” Layth grumbled.

“We’re trying to end this war peacefully. Not continue the bloodshed.” The female knight met her brother’s gaze with an equally cold glare. Layth had been getting on her nerves more than usual as of late and the constant clashing testing her patience. As the two siblings glared each other down, neither was willing to back down. It was only when Mia spoke up that finally made them turn away from each other once more.

“Since he is here now, we must make plans on how to accommodate this new prisoner. Penelope, bring him into the tent with us for now. And Olivia, fetch some chain cuffs.” Mia order before turning and gesturing for the others to follow her inside.

Penelope exchanged a glance with her friend before Olivia stepped away to do as ordered. The female lieutenant let out a small sigh and motioned for the Younisian to go ahead of her. She trailed into the tent after him and pulled up Tomas’ currently vacant seat for their new prisoner while she sat down in her regular one besides him. To her other side, she noticed Gavin glance over at them for a brief moment before looking to the barons once more.

“Now then, I assume we’re all on the same page that we will be keeping this Younisian as a prisoner for the time being correct?” Mia asked, namely glancing towards Edward.

Edward had his lips pressed into a thin line but with one quick glance at Penelope, he nodded his head. “We are.” he replied with a small huff.

Bennet offered no opposition, merely nodding his head as well. With everyone in agreement—aside from Layth, who had his jaw clenched in visible frustration—Mia moved on with the meeting. “Good. Since we are hoping for a peaceful end to this war, I want it seen to that… I’m sorry but what is your name?” she paused looking over at the Younisian, who seemed to shrink slightly under her gaze.

“It’s…Rory ma’am.” he answered.

“A pleasure to meet you Rory. My name’s Mia.” The baroness nodded approvingly. Turning back to the others, she continued. “Right then, I want it seen to that Rory is given a proper stay here even though he is a prisoner. A proper tent and meals. Of course, he’ll have to be chained and have a guard posted outside his quarters at all times.”

Layth balled his hands into fists. “Must we provide so much? He’s a prisoner and we need to be mindful of our supplies.” he argued. 

“He’s human and deserves to be treated as such until he can be released back to his battalion.” Penelope scoffed in return. She met her brother’s gaze with a glare. “Surely we have enough supplies to accommodate one prisoner for a short time.”

Layth parted his lips, clearly intending on arguing with his sister. However, before he could say anything, Edward chimed in gruffly. “Of course we do. There’s no need for this argument to carry on any further.” he grunted, shooting a warning glare towards his nephew. Penelope looked over at her uncle just in time to see him give a subtle nod in the direction of Rory. It seemed that, despite her uncle’s usual cruelness, he was in agreement with Mia for the sake of making sure that the Younisian wouldn’t think they were low on supplies. It wasn’t hard to guess that the last thing Edward wanted was for his battalion to come off as weak to enemy knight.

Penelope relaxed slightly, glad she wouldn’t have to further defend giving the young knight respectable care. Despite her calming down, tension was still radiating from her brother. One glance towards Layth was enough for the female lieutenant to see he was fuming from being shut down by his own baron once again, an occurrence that was happening more and more often. While Edward’s newfound agreeableness made things easier for her during meetings, it was clearly having a rather negative effect on her brother, who now found himself overwhelmingly outnumbered.

Before the conversation could continue and drawing Penelope from her thoughts, the flap of the tent shifted and Olivia stepped inside with a pair of cuffs. The other female knight dipped her head respectfully before stepping over to Rory, who frowned at the sight but with one quick glance around the room, offered no protest to the chain cuffs and held out his wrists willingly.

“Ah Olivia, excellent timing. Things were just wrapping up here.” Mia said with a small smile. The baroness swept her gaze over the others before continuing, “Now then, since our decision with dealing with this prisoner have been settled, Gavin I’d like you to go ahead and see to it that a tent is prepared for our new guest. Penelope you can aid Olivia with escorting Rory here and scheduling guards.”

Edward nodded approvingly before he turned to his lieutenant. “Layth, while it’s still light out, you should take out a patrol to survey the area. Make sure there aren’t any other Younisians hanging around.”

“Understood.” Layth muttered, clearly unable to keep a hint of bitterness out of his voice.

“Excellent, then I believe we can end things here. You are all dismissed.” Mia announced.

Penelope moved to stand up and waited for Olivia to finish putting the cuffs on before trailing after her friend and the prisoner. Layth fell in behind her on his way out and the knight could feel his cold gaze before he even opened his mouth.

“So sister, going to go charm another enemy?” He taunted bitterly. “Disgrace the family name a little more?”

An all too familiar anger bubbled inside Penelope as she turned to face her brother as they stepped out of the tent. “Screw you Layth.” she growled in return. “You’re just bitter uncle’s actually siding with me right now.”

Layth clenched his fists at his sides. “You’ve got everyone fooled that’s for sure. You and that bastard thief of yours. It’s only a matter of time until this all backfires on you and hurts the rest of us.” he snapped in return. He paused and then sneered at her. “He may be playing the part of a nobleman right now but his fate has and always will be to hang from the gallows like any other dirty criminal.”

A flash of fury burned through the knight. She had been putting up with Layth’s constant antagonizing and finally her patience had run thin with his cold words. Her hand gripped the hilt of her sword but she managed to stop herself from drawing it on her half brother. Instead, Penelope took a threatening step towards him, pushing herself into his space as she met his gaze with a fiery look. Caught off guard, Layth’s bitter look gave way to one of brief surprise. While the two argued and spat hateful words at each other, neither had, at least of recent, gotten physical in their aggression.

“Bastard, I’m sick of you and this constant attacking. I’ve been hoping that you would eventually calm down a bit but since you refuse to, I’m challenging you to a duel to end these petty fights once and for all.” Penelope snapped.

“And exactly what comes from winning?” Layth grunted, narrowing his eyes at his sister.

“Loser admits they were wrong and this argument about my courtship ceases.” Penelope responded, narrowing her eyes in return.

Layth smirked victoriously, looking as though he believed himself to have already won. “I accept your challenge on the condition that when I win, I get to have you admit that I was right about your courtship in front of your oh-so dear thief when he returns.”

“Fine… but only if when I win, you congratulate us on our courtship when he returns then.” Penelope rebutted.

Her brother’s face wrinkled in disgust at the idea but Layth didn’t deny her request. Likely because he was so confident in winning. “Works for me.” he agreed, stretching his hand out to her. A smug look crossed his face. “How does tomorrow morning sound?”

“Sounds like a good time for me too kick your ass.” Penelope snorted, finding herself annoyed by how overly confident he was. Though it had been a while since the two had last even spared, the female knight was confident in her skills as a swordsman. At the very least, she’d make sure he wouldn’t secure any easy win, if he won at all.
“Oh! And I can be the referee!” An excited Olivia pipped in.

Having been so focused on challenging her brother, Penelope had momentarily forgotten about Olivia and Rory, nor had she noticed that their tiff had gathered a small crowd of onlookers who were curious about the two clashing siblings. Realizing she had made a scene, the knight felt her face heat up in slight embarassment and she stepped away from her brother to join Olivia.

“No way you’re refereeing. Like I’d trust my sister’s friend to oversee such a thing.” Layth growled.

“I’ll do it then.” Mia, whom had been one of the onlookers, offered. She eyed Layth. “I know Penelope is my lieutenant but I can promise I’ll be fair in my judgments.”

Layth hesitated. Penelope glanced between her brother and baroness. It wasn’t difficult for her to assume that he wasn’t fond of Mia overseeing the event but since she was a powerful baroness, it would be hard to deny her offer. It seemed her power outweighed his hesitation as Layth gave a reluctant nod. “I have no objections to that… I assume you don’t either?” he grumbled looking over at the female lieutenant, who shook her head.

“Excellent. I’ll see you both on the training grounds tomorrow morning then.” Mia said with a polite smile. She excused herself and walked on leaving the others behind.

“We should get going too. Gavin went ahead of us already to get the tent ready for Rory here.” Olivia pointed out.

“Right. Let’s go then.” Penelope agreed. She shared one last cold look with her brother before turning to accompany Olivia and the Younisian knight, still tense from the moment of anger that had led her to challenging her brother to a duel.