Chapter 28: Act 20 – The Persuader
Brensen sat down reluctantly, glancing at Brendel and convinced that the guy was lying. He and Brendel were in the same militia during their time at Ankeze. Although they hadn’t seen each other during the period in Bruglas, he had a general idea of each other’s experiences.
As the son of a miller, even if his grandfather was a knight from the November War and his mother had a bit of noble blood, what extraordinary experiences could he possibly have? After that, he was transferred to the security team, and this kid was supposedly following in his father’s footsteps, only to somehow end up in Buche for a year.
It was clear that a year wouldn’t have given him much exposure, but if this kid wanted to lie, he really ought to consider whether he could fool Marden. Brensen turned to glance at his captain; their old captain, while having a bad temper and being stubborn, was very sharp and could see through typical lies in just a few words.
After all, soldiers who survived the entire November War were not simple people.
After Brensen sat down, another young member of the security team, sensing the awkward atmosphere, began to elaborate on Brensen’s previous comments. He detailed some aspects of the skirmishes they had faced from the day until the afternoon. Occasionally, others around would nod in agreement or chime in with a comment, with only Brensen and the old captain remaining silent.
Brendel knew from their description who they had encountered. The army that had followed them from Buche was likely led by the necromancer Rothko. In the game, Rothko was a very gifted undead sorcerer, and this nickname had been given to him by players. His specialty was necromancy — the summoned undead were easier to transform into necromancers — and thus his army had a characteristic of rapidly replenishing its numbers. Although they were not strong in assault, they were patient, cunning, and adept at using cannon fodder to wear down the enemy and grind down morale.
At this time, Rothko was probably still just an apprentice undead sorcerer. Brendel guessed that his rank in the attack formation of Tagus would not exceed that of a squad leader. In fact, his guess was pretty close; he just couldn’t imagine that he and Rothko had already seen each other from a distance — on that night they escaped from Buche.
As for the other army, he didn’t need to guess. Historically, it was Cabais who decimated Qing Village. This skeleton was not famous in historical Madara, but he was an experienced character; by this time, he should have already been one of the main commanders in Tagus.
That said, Rothko’s squad size should have exceeded two hundred, with at least twenty necromancers. On Cabais’s side, as a main force, he should have concentrated at least one-fifth of the forces on Tagus’s left flank. With such a large army, it was unlikely that there would only be skeletal soldiers; there might well be Black Knights and Pale Riders among their ranks.
Fortunately, the Undead Army had to block a few key routes within the forest, so their forces could not concentrate in one place. Today, the refugees likely encountered only half a squad of Rothko and one squad from Cabais, otherwise it wouldn’t have been so easy to retreat unscathed.
Of course, Brendel couldn’t say such detailed things; otherwise, the source of the information would be highly problematic. Previously, he could attribute it to some legends, anecdotes, or stories, but being clear about the enemy’s troop arrangement was too far-fetched. There was indeed a skill in being a prophet.
He decided to return to the previous topic, pausing briefly before saying, “I don’t know if you have heard of the place called Anser; it is the stronghold of the undead sorcerers. In fact, Madara is divided into three factions: one is the vampires, and the other is the undead sorcerers. I won’t explain these two; you must have heard of the legends about them. As for the last faction, they are also a power that wields significant strength; we call them the Dark Lords. In their past lives, they were bandits, robbers, knights of the sanctuary who committed crimes, nobles expelled from the human world, or wandering undead. They adhere to the Dark Code and are the traditional rulers of Madara.”
“Interesting, but that’s just a story,” a security team member replied.
“No, just imagine if someone managed to unite these three factions; then Madara would resurrect from the dark. Coincidentally, there is a prophecy regarding this.”
“But you previously said that this kingdom has never truly been unified.”
“That was in the past, but this opportunity is already close at hand.”
“But what does that have to do with us?”
“Of course, it does. Have you heard the legend of the Mercury Staff?” Brendel suddenly changed the subject.
“Isn’t that the one mentioned in the prophecy, claiming that whoever possesses it will unify the dark world?” A member of the security team asked.
Brendel nodded. “Its full name is ‘Loki’s Mercury Staff.’ Let me tell you who Loki is. He was a genius undead sorcerer who almost achieved that great feat of unifying Madara during his lifetime. However, he fell short, and the whereabouts of that staff became a mystery, leaving behind a legend that whoever obtains it will become the king of the dark world again.”
“However, since this spring, someone has reportedly witnessed the Mercury Staff appearing in Anser.”
“Wait,” Brensen’s expression changed: “Is that rumor from a few months ago true?”
“Months ago?”
“Ah, I remember! It seems that a merchant brought news from there, saying someone opened a certain great door with a strange staff.”
“The Door of Sighs,” Brendel added. “That is Loki’s treasury, and also where his throne is located—”
The old captain’s brow furrowed deeply: “Kid, although I don’t understand the intrigues among these big shots, are you implying that there are significant changes within Madara? That would be splendid; this at least means that Madara must come prepared this time. Although I’m not clear on their motives, it certainly won’t be a small-scale raid, an invasion? That sounds a bit absurd, but it doesn’t seem impossible—”
His calloused hands rested on his knees, very close to his sword: “Brensen, do you know this young man?”
Brensen was taken aback; he knew that if he expressed doubt at this moment, while the captain wouldn’t immediately stab the kid through, he could very well be arrested and left with no defense.
He couldn’t help but cast a dark glance at Brendel, not bothering to hide the derision in his eyes. But after thinking it over, he didn’t choose that route: “I know him, and I do believe he is lying. Yet my reason tells me that this person has no reason to deceive us—”
“What if he has been bought off by Madara?” Marden asked again.
“I’ve considered that possibility, but given his and Freya’s experiences, if Madara’s commanders could arrange things so intricately, then I suppose my loss wouldn’t be in vain.”
“Very good, young Brensen,” Marden patted his assistant’s shoulder.
Eh?
Not only Marden, but even Brendel couldn’t help but glance at this young vice captain of the security team; it seemed this guy also had some redeeming qualities. Of course, the impression of being unpleasant couldn’t be changed, and his narrow-mindedness would hold him back from achieving greatness. He criticized the other from a god-like perspective, and if Brensen knew Brendel’s thoughts at this moment, he would certainly regret saying anything fair earlier.
However, in fact, it made no difference whether Brensen denied or defamed it. Brendel had his ways to convince Marden. As someone with foresight for the future, he had elevated himself to a higher level.
Only, that would inevitably require more effort in persuasion and might leave him with incriminating evidence.
“Alright, back to the main point,” Marden said. “Kid, do you believe Madara’s target is Ridenburg?”
“In the Golan-Elsen region, Erluin can rely on only the defense line of the Formir Fortress. And Ridenburg protects the flank of that defense line, so Madara’s target can only be Ridenburg.” Brendel nodded.
Marden couldn’t help but rub his nose, muttering: “Then since Madara is determined, the one who had us in their clutches before must be quite a significant figure, right? What the hell; why do we have to take on such a pile of misfortune!”
“I’m also not clear on the specifics,” Brendel thought it was strange: “But based on your descriptions, the army that followed you should be one led by an undead sorcerer, while the later one might be an army of the Dark Lords—”
“The army of the undead sorcerers is organized based on necromancers, which is quite easy to identify. Based on your descriptions, it should have a scale of about half a squad. As for the Dark Lords, their organization is somewhat chaotic, but based on the forces reserved from Qing Village, it should be at least more than two squads.”
“About right.” Marden nodded.
But he didn’t realize that Brendel had halved the number, yet even halving it still made everyone feel a little anxious. With an undead army of that size, how could they, with over thirty security team members taking care of a group of the old, weak, women, and children, possibly break through?
The old captain sighed: “Well, Brendel. Since you came to tell us this, can I assume that you already have some ideas in mind? I’ll be frank: if the situation is as you say, I have no confidence in leading these people out.”
This made Freya gasp softly.
But Brendel nodded: “I have a plan.”
All eyes turned to him, even Brensen’s gaze, though tinged with distrust, still had an air of surprise.
This made Brendel feel somewhat tense. After all, he had only just gained a bit of confidence, and being scrutinized like this made the young man feel a sudden surge of pressure. He suddenly realized that every word he was about to say could relate to the lives of many people, and thought that perhaps he should be more cautious.
He couldn’t help but remind himself inwardly to stay calm and not forget anything.
“Everyone can head north and cross the Knife River.” He answered.
“Knife River?”
“That place, why?”
Brendel hesitated for a moment; how could he explain clearly why historically ‘White Knight’ Eberton and ‘Corpse Demon’ Weyton would take close to two days to reach this place to encircle?
……
(PS. Sorry, it’s late. The next chapter may be delayed as well.)
