Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Don’t be afraid. As long as we escape to the land of the orcs, we’ll be saved.”
“Mother, what happened? I don’t want to live in the filthy country of the orcs. Why are we going there?”
A carriage that was protected by a few knights was crossing the Red River plains, headed on its way to the orc lands. A slightly pudgy mother was holding her younger son, while her older son lifted the curtain to peer outside from time to time.
During the journey, there had been several close calls, but nothing had gone drastically wrong yet. Although the Church of Light had set up numerous barriers, through some of her husband’s connections and friends, the little family had managed to leave the Crete Empire.
They were so very close now, for as soon as they crossed the Red River plains, they would be safe. Once they arrived there, people from the Kingdom of Menkaure would come to receive them.
A squad of knights clad in shining armor crossed through a Crete Empire frontier town, following the carriage tracks. They had already gone for two days without rest, each person switching between horses in order to keep heading onward. The horses were understandably exhausted and reaching their limits.
“Quick, quick, they’re not far now. We must capture them before they reach the land of the orcs!”
The stallions puffed out hot breaths, speeding up after being whipped across the channel by the knights. They sped out past the town on the road, the guards of the local city not daring to stop them after seeing the insignia on the horses and the knights. Instead, all of the guards simply stood stick straight, staring at the knights as they headed off into the distance.
Following the Red River across the rolling plains, they finally saw a line of carriages that was fleeing along the horizon. All of the Church of Light scouts, who had been chasing them for two days, displayed expressions of frenzied delight.
The escaping carriages also saw the pursuers on the horizon, causing them to also begin pushing their steeds in order to gain some distance. The mother in the carriage crawled out with her younger son and screamed for her older son, Pazak.
“Pazak remember… run! Cross that line over there into the land of the orcs! Take Allen and run!”
Yi Wensi’s wife quickly thrust a package into the chest of her younger sun and passed him to Pazak. Pazak, who was covered in armor, looked at his mother as he caught Allen.
“What about you?”
His mother was impatient and wildly pushed at Pazak to go. “There is no time! I can’t escape, so you two must go on ahead. Use the package as a treasure to exchange for your safety. Remember to give it to the King of Menkaure. Do not trust anyone else. Quick, go now. Don’t worry about me, and take care of your brother!”
Pazak saw the pursuers hot on their tails, as they were almost right upon them. He hardened his heart and hugged Allen, who was howling with tears. He then pulled the reins, hurtling towards the border of the Kingdom of Menkaure.
By the time the Knights of Light had arrived, there were only a few servants, who had been left behind to buy time. As the cavalry stormed ahead, they drew their swords to attack the servants. Blood flew through the air as the servants collapsed, one by one. Defenseless, they had been completely annihilated.
The knights opened the carriage drapes to find the corpse of a woman. “This is the wife of Yi Wensi. The Holy Sword is not here. It must have been taken away by the other two.”
“If we go any further, we will be in the borders of the Kingdom of Menkaure. That would trigger a war between humanity and the orcs. Should we continue?”
All of the scouts looked at their leader, waiting for his command. The captain made a gesture. “Continue, no matter what. We must get the Holy Sword back.”
Pazak’s horse had already crossed into the Kingdom of Menkaure. A huge stone tablet was erected at the border, marking his entrance into their official lands. At first, he thought he was safe. However, he did not expect that the pursuers would actually ignore the possibility of provoking a war between the orcs and humanity, and cross straight into Menkaure in pursuit of him.
“Shuu—”
A sharp arrow cut through the wind and crossed over a hundred meters at once, goring straight through Pazak’s shoulder and hitting his horse. Pazak fell to the ground with his horse, due to the momentum from the sudden halt.
The pursuers closed the distance swiftly. Pazak struggled to stand up and dragged his brother into a run. Yet, this was futile, as humans could run faster than horses, especially the specially raised warhorses of the Knights of Light.
The scout soldiers drew their blades and focused all of their attentions on the escapees. Just like hawks that were circling over rabbits, all of their eyes glittered with a cold killing intent.
Yet, at this time, on the slope ahead, a commotion erupted. A leopard man soldier had appeared on the slope, followed by the appearance of more and more cavalry. Ahead, they formed a long, dense line, with even more soldiers lined up behind that.
The soldiers leading the horses on the mountain shouted. “Stop, human soldiers! This is the territory of the Kingdom of Menkaure. You humans do not belong here.”
It was as if Pazak saw his salvation! He sprinted towards the hill and pulled out a badge, shouting, “I am a friend of Menkaure, a member of the Yi Wensi family of the Crete Empire.”
The leopard-man, who was clad in chainmail armor and was leading the soldiers, looked at Pazak and nodded. The cavalry parted the line, allowing the two brothers to head to the back in a gesture of goodwill and acceptance.
The faces of the scouts of the Knights of Light were ashen. All of them recognized the identity of these troops as being the Hurricane Knights of the Kingdom of Menkaure. As the elites of the entire Kingdom of Menkaure, it was definitely no coincidence that they were there. They were here to welcome the escapees.
The leader of the scouts stepped forward. He could not speak Sofawk, so he spoke to them in the human language of Phinks. “Soldiers of Menkaure, we are members of the Church of Light’s Knights of Light. As you know, the people you are protecting are traitors of the Church of Light. They have stolen a treasure of the Church of Light. Your actions are the same as a declaration of war against the Church of Light.”
The head of the Hurricane Knights didn’t think that, after trespassing into Menkaure, the Knights of Light would mock him. It was already a humiliation that he had not ordered his troops to wipe them out. The Knights of Light were completely looking down on him now.
The captain raised his head and bared his fangs, then shouted out a thundering angry roar. “Get lost or die here!”
The leader of the scouts gripped his longsword hard as his veins popped out. All ten of the proud Knights of Light behind him were also infuriated. Yet, they only had a bit over ten people, while the opponents had an entire squadron with hundreds of troops. Their side stood no chance of winning.
The scout leader swept a cold gaze over the orc cavalry. “You will pay for your folly.”
“We’re heading back!”