Mas Bagus

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

Gathered in a worn-out quiver with an adjustable sling, the arrow looked alien. Its fletching was three spongy fins with textures like cured leather, glued onto a shaft composed of equally strange material. On a closer look, the shaft looked like it was crafted from very smooth ebony, but lighter and less stiff. At the end of the shaft was an unbarbed diamond-shaped steel arrowhead, and that was the only part of Jazdia's arrow that looked ordinary.

As the elf held the arrow by its nock, a stream of energy wrapped its shaft and spread forward, forming a purplish flame on the metal arrowhead and turning it into amethyst-like crystalline. Jazdia's eyes glowed in a similar luster as she did the same to three more arrows.

She placed the arrows on the table, separated from the other, unenchanted arrows on her left side. In front of her was Chounan's map, and with a graphite stylus, she marked three warehouses with crosses; one in the south, one near the Guild's HQ, and the last one was the warehouse near the harbor. While The other two were marked with circles. Both were situated in a venue with a considerable distance from the HQ.

"When they realize someone is sabotaging their warehouses, the bulk of their security will be directed to the unharmed warehouses to prevent more damage. If it goes as planned, it will take a while for them to return to the HQ even if they got a wind of our infiltration."

"Mr. Chounan can I entrust you with this task?" Jazdia presented the four arrows on the table and to the bewilderment of her companions, she revealed: "Those are explosive arrows."

She eyed them and spared some time to savor their panicked expression, considering it as some sort of payback. "Relax. I instructed those arrows to be fully cooked in 8 hours from now. And even if those things are still with us after 8 hours mark, they will not go off as long as I am still here.

She turned to Chounan again. "The plan is simple, fire those arrows on the marked warehouses and report back here once the task is completed. Be quick and don't get caught. I heard you are a fine archer and can ride swiftly. I am counting on you."

"I hope you are not forgetting that the HQ is heavily guarded no matter what." said Kaito, explaining that the HQ also has a magical seal blocking its door to the basement. Kaito's story about those dragons feels rather surreal somehow. Anyway, with the plan laid out, it was obvious they would not sneak into the place in the dead of the night.

"With so many security details, it would be impossible to not go loud on this operation, and that would beget another problem. Geralt may escape when he realized his place has been compromised. that would make things unnecessarily complicated indeed."

Another silence fell until Kaito came up with a very absurd idea.

"We’ll be needing a serious business proposal. I heard some whispers that the Black Serpents are looking for high-end slaves. You know, people with specialty skills or dashingly good looks, like an elven beauty.”

He smiled, and that one smile so wicked Jazdia considered enhancing another arrow and stuck it in his behind as a punishment. No, she wasn't the one doing it. No matter how sensible the plan seemed to be, her pride was too huge to be tarnished like that she would rather close the place down and never come back to Kindeance, ever again, dead prince be damned!

She breathed rapidly, before regaining her composure. "let's not overcomplicate things. We blast their door open and get the man. I don't care if we will have the entire basement caved in!"

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

"Please put the table's order on my tab and give us a meal for dinner and as much as bottle of sake."

The bartender Lucas froze for a brief second upon hearing that. He eyed the host, Jazdia, and obviously, there was confusion between all parties until the elf shooked her head and suggested that he might take the tip.

"Good sir, there is no need... to compensate." said the bartender embarrassingly. If you look at Jazdia, you can see her face souring a bit. "Milady had arranged the accommodation for her esteemed companions, please don't trouble yourself with the arrears and enjoy our service to the fullest."

Deliberately trying to avoid more banter and confusion, he turned to Kaito. "Mister Kaito, you are known to us. But still, what can I get you?"

“Well, I can think of a few ways. but…Jaz always demands of me that I am on my utmost best behavior when I’m here so I’ll just have to settle for the chicken and fried tofu again. And don’t listen to this angry lady over here, she has no idea how great your hot leaf juice tastes.”

"Iced leaf juice." Lucas insistently corrected as if the mistake of guessing the serving temperature bothered him more than a blatant transgression referring tea as leaf juice, but then, he was a jovial man again. "An iced tea, a bottle of saké, fried tofu, and dinner for two. As soon as may be!"

***

“Wow, that swimsuit looks good on you, Jazdia.” The fox chirped. “I never expected you to be into such stuff. I guess you have a wild side after all.”

The compliment was as genuine as it gets, but the timing couldn't be any worse. She tried to evade this when Rosenving daughter brought it up but, now... not so much anymore.
Sipping audibly, Jazdia gulped down more of the chamomile tea that it was advisable to drink in one sip. She should have known she won't be getting away from this

"There is nothing daring or wild about wearing swimwear." Jazdia was more embarrassed when she realized her voice was getting squeaky. Clearing her throat, she tried to deepen her tone.
"It was one of our marketing team's bizarre ideas. Making photoshoots sessions for every stakeholder's daughters as models and having the result printed on a special calendar. Now, don't look at me like that. I was just doing my part as the owner of the company. I can arrange such session for Yvonne Rosenving if she wished so."

The noblewoman almost spurted her whiskey. "No way!"

There were jokes and hearty banter between the two, and it would be a while until they can discuss the more important matter. But Jazdia let them have their laughs. After all, they were on a break right now, and might as well use the time to lighten the mood after this long day.

“So, about The black Serpent guild. Kaito began. Friendly bunch of people, except when you want to get a share of the spice trade. Then you end up six feet under. They practically own the streets of Rascade. Most shops, traders and artisans pay them protection money. If you don’t, you will get in trouble. They walk a fine line between enforcing their rule and attracting too much attention from the guards.”

"Hmmm... I didn't think I'm going to cross swords again with this type of Syndicate." this was Chounan now who spoke "Not just they run spices, they also run other filthy businesses around here in Kinderance. Slavery and Smuggling.

He then described his findings about their warehouses and his method to spy on them. Quite a fascinating story and Jazdia would be having a hard time believing his story until he pulled a map.

"I'm sure Kaito-san will know the rest of it." he concluded.

“Indeed. I think they have around 500 members in and around Rascade. Many of them get recruited from orphanages at a young age or where homeless kids. The guild offers them protection, purpose and a family like bond. They let them start out with running small errands, pickpocketing and later on enforcing their rule on the markets. Some others were recruited at later ages because they offer specific skills. The organization is strictly hierarchical. Their top brass are called dragons. There are 3 dragons, each has their own area of responsibility.”

And the top dragon was now a man called Gerrald Grey. White-haired, with a unique snake tattoo; The tail end starts at his left hand and the head of the serpent was at his right hand. Jazdia tried to remember this.
Needless to say, they needed to get into their HQ to capture the man.

"It will be like storming a fortress. 500 people and we don't have any reinforcement, no thanks to Mr. Delving." Jazdia forked the last piece of vanilla spekkoek before continuing. "We need a distraction. A big one, something that can lighten the security in their HQ. And I think I have an idea."

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

"Food and cold drink, for starter. What you got?"

The bartender eyed one of the thermoses on the counter and smiled with subtle pride. "That will be our specialty, fresh iced lemon te--"

The noblewoman's nose wrinkled. "Do I look like a waif to you? None of those pompous leaf juice! I'm talking alcohol, yeah? What's in those kegs, huh?"

The bartender sighed. Already two people rejected his carefully blended iced tea today, and one of the rejections came from a tea drinker herself. In resignation, he just shrugged. If this lady didn’t like tea, that wasn’t his’s lookout.

"That would be corn whiskey—-fresh batch made last month. For the food, we have deep-fried chicken in batter."

"Sold!" The noblewoman smacked her hand on the wooden surface, disturbing Jazdia who sat on the other side of the table.

As the bartender skipped to fetch the order, Jazdia beckoned Kaito and Chounan to sit at the same table. She had finished one letter and had it compactly rolled into a small tube. Leaving them for a while, she saddled that tiny burden on a pigeon's back and walked toward the door.

"Rata forod meglin pad óurqu, noro lim meldë!"

Just to make sure, she had shown the bird the mug sketches of Cedar before letting the flying critter fly to the northern horizon.
Then she returned to the table. Might sound presumptuous, but the elf looked far more relaxed now. Maybe because of the tea.

Without preamble, she began. "Before I... my company took over this establishment, we conducted some research regarding potential competitors and other disruptive entities. One of these entities is The Black Serpent Guild. But our intel on them was sufficient for business purposes only."

There was a long pause.

"All we know about them is they are a prominent spices importer on the black market. Keito, Mr. Chounan, as someone who understands the street of Rascade, I would like to hear your input on this matter."

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

Jazdia watched the man depart with mixed feelings but then decided not to make more fuss of it. Well, wasn't that just nice? That constable left, nobody got hurt and they both can preserve their pride. The only lamentable things about this state of affairs were Jazdia swatted hand and their access to investigate the site had been cut off.

She tied the ribbons and left, thinking about how Fredricus would deal with the incoming storm.

***

Nobody knew what Jazdia was thinking right now, not even herself. As they walked down the street of Rascade, the elf remained quiet, and her companions too until someone broke the ice by informing them that he will go for an errand. The Chounan guy did it again, asking to do questionable deeds at the worst possible time. It was apparent that Jazdia started to question the cohesion of her group.

"What a prick. That Delving." gruffed Yvonne, both seemed to ignore Chounan who already excused himself to God knows where.

"Oh, you know him? I guess such feud is indeed common amongst every house across this continent."

"Yeah. Not too well though, and it's been eight years." She shrugged. "The man wasn't incompetent or anything, but he's at best above average in just about anything he put his hands on. The Delving name carried him far though, and he ain't shy about flaunting it. From what I've seen, he's practically unchanged."

Yvonne hardly needed to remind Jazdia of that. Their brief investigation alone had revealed a sheer incompetency so blatant it looked very unnatural. The other half of the explanation suggested that it could be the case, however; a prominent house means great political bargaining power and support, something that Fredricus couldn't afford to lose. And Jazdia knew a man like him would not think twice to pander a noble oaf by giving him a strategic position. And that decision had almost proven to be his undoing five days ago.

Jazdia patted her shoulder. In order to give them a sense of progress, and encouragement Jazdia couldn't help but be technical with her words. "What happened back there was indeed regrettable, but let's not get sidetracked. We got what we needed, that Black Serpent sounds like a solid lead."

The elf looked at the red sundown at the west and wondered how was the investigation going on Matilda's side. She hoped they have reached Hdur as planned. It was such a shame that she, as the one who planned the rendezvous couldn't keep her word and be there as scheduled.

Their stroll from the Memorial park to the city boulevard, again, was uneventful, to say the least. Jazdia brought them to a place called Angel’s Share. A large, three-story building, with extravagant decorations that made it look like a bordello. There was a sign on its door that read Closed, but the lower windows showed lights behind thick curtains.

As they hesitated to get inside, a spacious common room greeted them, with a hearth, long tables, and the smell of ripe cheese, beers, wines, and fresh loaves that makes it feel homelike... or tavern-like? Upon closer inspection (if one could bother). the inn looked well-maintained and seemed to be designed with the utmost sense of hygiene in mind. The floor was tightly nailed, the tables were stainless, and the bar, Instead of wooden, its surface layered with granite tiles, ensuring no detritus or any kind of filthy scraps unfit to be mentioned resided. Jazdia told them beforehand that this inn underwent a partial facelift to make it more presentable and up to the standard she had back in Helvetia.

“Good afternoon, Miss Jazdia! The meeting went well I assume?”

At the counter was a handsome young man that seemed to be in his early twenties. He wore a dull evening shirt with a black tailcoat and had his face adorned with gold-framed glasses. Behind him were large cabinets with the usual assortments of kegs, flasks, and clean mugs shelved neatly. Among other things were a dozen or so bottles of wines that seemed to be added just recently, and a full-sized calendar nailed at the beam. The artwork for September presented a certain elven blondie clad in questionable two-piece swimwear posing with an irritated expression.

The elf immediately had herself seated. "Afternoon, Lucas. It was, yeah, as expected from Fredricus's court." Jazdia looked around before placing her bag on the table. "No angry mob stormed this place in my absence I assume?"

The bartender shook his head, smiling as he headed into the kitchen. When returned, he brought with him a tray laden with kettle and other crookeries. "I saw no patrons, let alone undesirable characters walking through our door today, milady."

The tea was served in a blue porcelain cup, followed by a slice of freshly baked Helvetian-style spekkoek not long after. Jazdia then asked for a pen and paper and requested Lucas to prepare a pair of homing pigeons.

After providing all of her requests and the elf began to compose her letters, the bartender faced Jazdia's newfound companions and humbly asked. “How can I be of service?”

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

Jazdia felt the sores building in her hand. If it was an idle insult, she would have tolerated it, but the man attacked her fair and square and trampled on the legal bindings that were supposed to be as sacred as the law itself. If she was her younger self, she would have reached for Maugrim in instant.

But while still contemplating whether she should let it ride or slice the man's neck open, That oriental knight suddenly made provocative actions, spewing threats, trying to assert dominance. The Constable reacted immediately, followed by his men.

Then it was the small lady's turn, intervening by sending one guard flying with a kick and jostling the others like a rag doll.
However, the escalation halted with an uneasy stalemate when the Rosenving noble secured the Samurai boy and had him standing up again, retreating from the impending brawl, but certainly not running from it.

Jazdia casually pushed aside one of the pointing spears and made her way to pick up her document back. Glared at the two troublemakers, she commanded; "Stay where you are."

Then she faced the constable, letting out a long breath before speaking.

"Now you have it, the show of force. Congratulations! Are you ready to be sensible now?"

But the Constable's wrath remained unhinged. He eyed his men, and Jazdia could feel the point of their pikes following behind her.

"Do you think I am playing games here, you elf bitch?"

"Yes, and the bad one I am afraid. Trespassing, that's the only infraction you can convict us with, and you had the entire platoon making an arrest before we could finish explaining ourselves. Ignorantia iuris nocet, your negligence of the correct procedure could cost you. Are you willing to take that bet?"

The constable tensed, but then reined his temper. "Look at how pathetic you are speaking about the law while you beguiling my men to get what you want."

"Can you prove it?!" scoffed the elf, then she turned around. "Can you all?"

"No, they can't. And here you are hell-bent on arresting us as if your life depended on it. You can try, Constable." she raised her voice so all soldiers could hear it too. "You all can try! But know this, we will not go quietly, we will cripple you and maybe kill some of you if we have to. And the worst thing that could happen to us is several days in your dungeon and a slap on the wrist. You are now assaulting those who work with your king. What is your defense?"

She retreated. A blade of one of the pikes touched her shoulder, but both the elf and the soldiers stood unwavering.

"What is your defense, Soldiers? Your captain is a noble gentleman. But you lot are not. Your captain will be fine. But you will be the one who takes the brunt of his unprofessional misdemeanor, in addition to suffering the aftermath of this hostile encounter. You saw what is sealed on that paper, and God is my witness you stand between fulfilling your duty as your captain commanded, or hindering the task given by His Highness. Make your choice!

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

"These guards are not ready... yet... Their postures are weak and shaking. Even less trained Mechean surely fill vacant spots here."

"As Milady's suggestion, go send a runner if you are not satisfied enough."

Few recognized that mask, but their number was insignificant compared to those who feared the wrath of the Delving.

The Constable had his mouth agaped slightly, both in anger and bewilderment. Though he could find the gist of whatever this Ex-Knight Cavalry was saying, he still heard it as a slightly clear gibberish. An impudent one. One that does not respect his authority. In a fit of newfound anger, he brandished his pike and thwacked the Ex-Knight Cavalry at the back of his knee, immediately ending his dramatic posturings and forcing him to kneel. And soon it was apparent that the soldier was not trembling in fear, but instead waiting for an order, and they just got one.

Two soldiers joined the fray, then one more, probably annoyed by the warrior's condescending remark, or they wanted to prove him wrong, all working in unison to pin Chounan to the ground and had him cuffed. The contract escaped the Samurai's grip and stretched out again on the grass.

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

He listened, but not to understand. To him, their words were discordant noises, rambled by criminals either to rat out their partner-in-crime or to vaunt their innocence. Be it a plea, confession, or reason, he ignored it all as he toss them into the Rascade dungeon. And today, he expected it to not be any different.

But the first person to speak had brought a certain irregularity, and it started to get on his nerve. How dare they come to this place, deceived his men, and then stated, right in front of his face that they hold the information he was unworthy to hear?
His anger reached its peak when a certain former noblewoman spoke up and reinforce what the first trespasser said. Even more so when she brought up the name Matilda. Too long that she-orc had been the thorn in his side. So what? His Highness trusted her and now she acted like she owned Rascade.

"Be silent!" he rebuked, harsh and efficient. "I am not here to bandy words with an ungrateful daughter who ran away. How is Rosenving now? Did you crawl back to His Majesty's feet asking for His favor while your family begged for table scraps?"

Yvonne strode a pace forward, but suddenly Jazdia's clutched her by the shoulder, and she halted, glancing at the elf with clear disdain.

"Greetings, Constable Delving. I wholeheartedly acknowledged that the timing was less than ideal. But my friend was right, we are here on Fredricus' order." Jazdia opened her bag and reached for a transparent tube, which contained a piece of document, neatly rolled and tied with a red ribbon. She unknotted the ribbon and presented the paper so he can read it himself.

But the man furiously struck the elf's palm, causing the contract to be released from her grip and flutter away before landing on the grass.

The captain whirled at Keito, before continuing his admonishment loudly.

"Listen here, you cheap idiots! I asked a question, plain and simple and all of you made a fucking song and dance about it! I don't care who ordered you. I ask a fuckin question and you fuckin answer. Now is there any of you, in this sorry group who can answer, in plain Common? Please? Thank you!?"

As he speaks, a dozen of guards had made their position around them. All were armed, and they only waited for the Constable's order.

"Or maybe I should just haul all of you to Rascade Dungeon myself!"

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

"Distance isn't an issue, I know men that could pull trick shots with longbows. They just need an elevated vantage points... I'd put archers on top of the mausoleum if I have the time, but otherwise they'll just need to scramble on top of the tombstones."

"I don't think they were on the top of the mausoleum. But you are right. One archer stayed near its door, shooting at Fred effortlessly because nobody was there to guard it. One archer moved closer to ensure his arrow hit the mark, which wasn't served him well in the end. Four flankers came from the crowd, providing distraction and an element of surprise. It should had been a sound plan if someone didn't lose their nerve and throw the smoke, messing up the archer's aim. When they realized that Matilda and her lackeys were unmatched in melee combat and the King himself was no pushover, they retreated before the smoke dispersed and nobody at that time had any inkling on how and to where they escaped."

Jazdia wiped the sweat from her forehead. "Nobody huh?" She tried to bypass the runic warding again and could only see a little bit more of that door. Apparently, it was the classic Tretagorian locking mechanism where the door can only be opened by the key with identical runes. Now here was the neat part; it can be opened from the inside with a lever. An old-age design in case the beloved ones resurrected on the seventh day like ancient messiahs, or simply to minimize accidental entombment...

"So somebody was waiting for them behind the door, and the challenge code was 'By the Blessing of the Ouroboros! We have reclaimed what is ours!'"

Meanwhile at the front gate, an officer could be seen reprimanding his subordinate.


"You fool! There is no such thing as Helvetian Daily Horn!" lashed a blonde man wearing a decorated cuirass and iron gauntlets. His voice thundered like an old god described in an ancient manuscript, and rightfully so as a captain with power over his men. Tall and imposing, every aspect of his action bespoke absolute authority the guard in front of him looked like a child playing a tin man, and when his eyes fixed on the group, they glowed in immeasurable ire.

"I will see you at the brig!" he raised his index finger at that poor guard then stormed off.

His stompings on the paved path did very little to hide his exasperation with the situation, but the man tried to appear professional; His posture was straight, and his face showed no unnecessary emotion save the tranquil rage in his eyes. When Jazdia faced the man, he asked sternly:

"Good afternoon. May I insist you to explain your business in our sacred ground?"

Watch out, this sounded like a question that could earn you a one-way trip to Rascade dungeon if answered incorrectly.

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

"All right, move aside you two!"

Jazdia winced, trying to hide her frustration as she leaned forward and rustle the hedge. She didn't even use her power to find what they were supposed to be looking for.

Buried inside the hedgerows was a fletched shaft almost broken in two pieces. Its head telescoped inward, damaged to the point it was more like a piece of blunt metal, a sign of a heavy impact. Jazdia looked at the surrounding elevation and pictured where the archer was supposed to be. If the first archer was an amateur. The other one seemed to be more... professional?

"This arrow was fired from a full-sized long bow and gained full momentum before hitting Matilda's shield." mused the elf, muttering the conjecture to anyone who was willing to listen. "It could only be done with sufficient range. Was that from the rampart on the left side? Or the terrace near the mausoleum? One thing for sure though, It was not something you can shot in the crowd."

Before anyone could answer that, Kaito rejoined them.

”Miss Yazdia, got a minute or are you busy?”

Surprisingly Jazdia did not correct the mispronunciation of her name, something she usually took very seriously. "Not at all. What did they tell you?"

”Who wrote the official report? There are a lot of differences between what the guards told me and what was written down. It’s pretty suspicious in my opinion. We might have to look into that a bit further.” Spoke Kaito in a more serious tone. He paused a bit before he continued to speak. “The little pipsqueak guard over there had some interesting quotes about what the assassins shouted. Apparently one of them yelled death to the Marauder-king. Do you think that the Mecheans are blaming Fredericus for the shit his grandpa pulled? Or does the beloved king of Kindeance has some dark secrets?”

"Not as dark as those Tretagor monarchs during their heyday, but Kindeance was a militaristic country a century ago. The usual rape, pillage, and burn were one of their modus operandi. One hundred years was quite a long time for a country to change its ways, but not long enough to mend the scars, and sometimes it festers and I think that's how..."

After what seemed to be a full minute of troubling thoughts, she continued.

I don't know who wrote that. Could be Fredricus's spymaster. It was very common for a report to be written anonymously. Suspicious? Not really at the first glance since that kind of documentation usually redacts a number of crucial detail for political reasons." And that was why CSA was so good at their job, they didn't have to deal with such hogwashery on daily basis.

"Still though, if the missing details are in a very abnormal number, there might be a schemer." Jazdia chuckled. "Classic. But I don't think Fred was that stupid to let potential usurpers any closer to his neck. So, tell me the glaring differences you've found so far."

Kaito then explained about the casualties being redacted from the report, and Fredricus's involvement was somewhat embellished. The usual stuff. The part about Meche and the origin of those assailants was interesting, to say the least. So someone was trying to stir up the hearts of the people. For the better or for the worse.

"What else can you tell me?"

”The guard mentioned that someone shouted ‘By the Blessing of the Ouroboros! We have reclaimed what is ours!' after the smoke went up and just before a blinding flash that made the last assassins disappear into thin air."

"Another omitted details huh..."

"Yes, It seems that the Black Serpant guild might be playing some role in this.”

The theory that someone inside his circle was betraying him sounded even more plausible now. Jazdia approached the mausoleum, trying to see what secret it contained, but her eyes failed her.

"Warding runes?" he scoffed, finding it ironic how ancient runes, one of the subjects she despised so much during her college days was proven relevant to not only ward off evil spirits but also be able to repel her power. "I Guess Serensiel was evil after all."

So she diverted her attention around the space that was supposed to be the mausoleum's interior and found there was a passage down there, almost ruined and caved, but definitely still passable. Suddenly everything seemed to make more sense.

"After the failed attempt, they threw the smoke to cover their escape... or someone messed up and throw it prematurely, causing the other assassins to abandon their mission and retreat."

"So that was how they escaped. Pretty clever huh?"

She scanned again, this time around the twelve monuments. Whoever buried down there had been reduced to ashes, leaving empty stone caskets and other funerary goods. There was no hidden passage from any of those graves, so that left mausoleum as the prime access, and although she could not examine the interior, she concluded that the passage was linked to it somehow.

"Where did that tunnel lead to? Unfortunately, it was beyond the range of my empowered sight."
"How did they gain access to the catacombs? It was unimaginable to leave such an important building unlocked."
"Did they steal the key? No... Fredricus would have called a manhunt, secrecy be damned."

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

One of the guards snorted. "Nay, twasn't me. They put me on the south gate that day."

He beckoned to the younger guards next to him, who, in Keito's judgment had a rather unassuming look; he was no taller than him, with a physique so average he looked like an armored scarecrow. He wore a non-standard oversized helmet with a loose visor, causing it to fall and covered his face as he walked.

"Aye, right away sir."

And without further ado, he testified. "I was in charge of keepin' the crowd off the fence sir, it wasn't that much that day, so we had it easy, twas always easy. His majesty was on his way to give a speech and we had a few wee crowds inside the fences as well, part of the holy congregation, but surely there were ordinary folks as well. The ceremony always opens for the public."

He tapped his helmet and corrected his visor. "So we ain't suspected a thing that day, until we saw three men jumped from the crowd, brandishing sword and dagger. Death to the marauder king! they cried. I's a good soldier so I rushed into the fray, swords in me hand."

"So what about the crowds?" Asked Keito. "Weren't you supposed to keep them out?"

"Yes. But folks scattered about as soon as the swords started clanging' and bolts and whatnot flyin'. I was the closest with the Majesty and besides, I've got friends in the back. The only thing on me mind was bringing His Majesty to safety.

"And killing His Majesty's pursuer?"

"If I could, but alas when I got there, the three Mecheans were dead, one killed by His Majesty's sword, and Madame Matilda was busy pummelling the archer. There was an explosion, and yellow smoke afterward. We were confused, but Madame Matilda got His Majesty escorted back to the Palace immediately. Then when I swung me sword against empty air I heard someone shouting: By the Blessing of the Ouroboros! We have reclaimed what is ours! and after that, there was a blinding flash and those basterds were gone in thin air."

"I see. How many of them that was escaped?"

The guard paused. He straightened his posture and then spoke with a defensive pride.

"Damn if I know, sir, If they ran through the fence we could'a seen 'em. Or if they climb the monastery, our watchers would ave shoot em. The smoke was thick and putrid a dragon could’ve taken a stroll there and I might not’a see it. They say it was two. And there were like, four dead bodies not including our lads which I recalled was three, taking arrows to protect His Majesty. Bless their souls dyin' in a great service like that. Please write that in your pamphlet or whatever."

"I quickly joined the other guards, thinking we might av missed them passing through the fence, so we scoured Rascade to every blade of grass, and twas to no avail. Some of my superiors were disciplined afte that futile search and a few more were demoted. Now here we are, guarding this place as a reminder and punishment."

The guard sighed, waiting for Mister Geito to finish his scribbles before giving a closing statement.

"That's all I know, sir. You can ask others the same questions and get the same answers. Not a great story if ye ask me."