“Halt.”

The commanding voice of a knight sounded, causing the sound of footsteps to stop in the halls. Six people froze in their tracks, unsure of how to respond to the statement. In the ensuing silence that followed, punctuated by the clinking of the knight’s metal boots, one could hear six hearts pounding furiously.

“Oh, the patrolling team? Who is it that you got there?” The nameless Hondurian royal knight pointed his finger at Beast with a suspicious stare. Naturally, Beast who could not wear anything that is not an artifact would not be able to disguise himself as one of the soldiers of Honduria. What he could do on the other hand, is to be himself.

“Sir, we captured a foreigner causing trouble near the back entrance. It seems that he knocked out guard Wingu and sneaked inside.” Shadun bowed his head as he reported. As if on cue, Mealgar and Lugwen roughly flipped Beast around to show that his hands were being tightly bound, causing Beast to give them both a glare. It was meant to be a glare of annoyance, but the rest interpreted it as an act to play along.

Perhaps they were being far too engrossed in their role.

“A foreigner?” The knight muttered.

Foreigner, out-worlders, travelers, they all refer to the same thing – players.

“Yes, a foreigner. He appears to be from Caerheim and sneaked into the Pass using a stealth skill. We found him before he could do anymore damage.”

“Good work. Keep your eyes out for his companions. Foreigners rarely work alone.” The knight commended, his wariness disappearing into a warm smile.

“Thank you sir, we will take our leave.”

The shuffling of feet sounded again as the group began to move, relief written all over their faces. The knight however, paused in his position for a moment to think.

“Stop.”

For a second time that night, Beast and company almost jumped out of their skins.

“Where are you taking him? The dungeons are not that way.”

Crap.

A shaking Shadun hastily tried to explain it away. “We… we are bringing him to our lord so that we can interrogate him for his companions’ location. Our lord can also decide on the intruder’s punishment on the spot.”

“I am not telling, not even in the face of your stupid lord!” Beast shouted in defiance. He figured that since he was already in the role of a prisoner, he might as well act the part.

“Gag him.”

At the knight’s order, Aveye immediately fished out a piece of cloth from somewhere and unceremoniously bounded Beast in the mouth. The incoherent protests he made at the treatment only served to make the act more real. Beast swore that the feminine boy gave him a devious smile before turning away, making him break out in cold sweat. This person… is dangerous.

Meanwhile, it might have been the innate charisma of the bard class but the knight somehow accepted their terribly flimsy explanation.

“Go, but do not trouble the lord for too long. He is still resting in the study on the highest floor from his trip from Honduria.”

Beast blinked. It might have just been a throwaway comment, but did the knight just give away the location of the second prince? From the expressions on the others’ faces, it looked like they were not expecting this windfall as well. Thanking the knight for the information, they took their leave to the second floor.

Beast of course, was still gagged. It took some continuous eye-shifting and blinking before they finally realized what he wanted.

“Pwahh.” He sighed after Aveye removed the cloth. “Aveye you are having too much fun with this.”

“Sorry, Beast-kun~”

After letting Beast catch his breath, the archer gagged him again. “Urgh.”

The rest of the journey was uneventful. They passed by several patrol groups that did not even question their purpose or destination, giving Beast a poor view of the Hondurian forces. Were they not supposed to be the elites? How was it that they could be this lax? Or was it pure complacency?

Even the guards that stood outside their goal gave passage when they said they were bringing the prisoner to the prince. Perhaps it was the old saying of ‘Act confident enough and others would think you are entitled to do so.” He did not know. All he knew was that the oaken double doors that were currently before them would lead them to the second prince of Honduria. Pushing them open, they passed into a large study of lush carpet and elegant furniture, of which was occupied by a lone man.

Beast eyed Riwana, who returned with a negative shake of her head. Only then did he proceed. After that one time he was surprised by Trigent’s retainers, he had been wary of hidden presences in rooms that appeared to have only one person.

Duplent Ashwald was penning something down on parchment when the group entered. Blonde hair and piercing blue eyes, he looked almost like Trigent, only a little older with the wrinkles that adorned his handsome face. Without missing a beat, he called out from his seat.

“Yes? What is it?”

“My lord, we have captured a foreigner-“

“I did not ask for him.” It seemed that the older Ashwald is more authoritative than the younger one. “Who told you to come up here?”

“One of the knights, my lord.” Shadun smoothly answered.

“Who? It must be Eago…” The only reason why they have not been busted through and through was because there was no such thing as instant communication in the medieval age. Spells exists, but they take time to cast while whispering only works for players.

“Take him away. I do not wish to bother myself with such paltry things.”

Duplent’s attention was on his parchment, so he did not realize Lugwen bearing closer and closer ever so slightly. By the time he did, it was already far too late.

Drawing his sword, Lugwen placed the blade by Duplent’s neck. “I am sorry, but we can’t do that.” The deadly edge glinted under the light.

“You know what will happen if you were to shout for help.”

To his credit, the prince did not flinch even after having cold steel pressed onto his skin. He kept writing as though confident that the people before him would not even dare to wish him harm, as though they were nothing more but negligible beings.

“Yes. What is it?” It was the exact same sentence he said when they first entered. This time, Duplent was addressing them as outsiders. By then, Beast had been freed from his bonds, leaving him free to speak again for the party.

“We wish to negotiate, Prince Duplent.”

“Negotiate?”

“Prince Trigent sent us to reach a peace settlement with you, Your Highness.”

“You were sent by Trigent? Pahahahahaha!” At one moment, he was laughing like he was told the greatest joke in the world and the next, he was completely somber. “Get out.”

The coldness of his words cut through the air.

“There will be no negotiations. I will raze Loyderidge to the ground. Kill me, and my father will do it in my stead.”

The severity of the prince’s declaration hung on them, exerting a pressure of its own. Nevertheless, they already expected something like this to happen.

“Ho ho, even with this?” Mealgar drew out the Seal of the Lord from his pocket. At once, Duplent’s eyes widened in shock. That calm dignified demeanor that he held all but dissipated and desire showed in his face. They finally had his attention.

“… I am open to negotiations.”

The moment the green light is given, Mealgar went into business straight away. It was his role as the court historian anyway, not to fight but to speak.

“Prince Duplent, as per orders by Lord Trigent of Caerheim, we beseech you to withdraw all existing Honduria forces from Caerheim and designate Vanguard Pass as a demilitarized zone. In exchange, we will offer the Seal of the Lord and the assurance of your life. The damage and losses suffered by both sides shall be borne respectively.”

It was a well-crafted sentence, one that should cover the bases they need for the mission to succeed.

“So all I need to do to get the seal and my life is to simply withdraw?” He snorted, seeming to find the prospect ridiculous. “And if I refuse?”

“Then-“

Mealgar moved to protest, but Beast stopped him. With a nod that said to let him take over, Beast responded. “Your highness can propose other terms. This is a negotiation after all.” He gave a wry smile, knowing full well of the irony of the situation.

“You do know that once I shout, I can have my guards take that from you.”

“And that sword would cut your neck. But you would not, not when your goal is to sit on the throne of Honduria. You would not risk your life when you can obtain what you came for with a simple command.”

“Should I die, Caerheim will not be allowed to exist.”

“Which is why it would be best if your highness would accept the offer, to save us all the trouble that would otherwise be brought about.” Beast paused for dramatic effect. “You losing your life, and us losing our kingdom. I am but a foreigner, Your Highness. I care not about Caerheim in the slightest.”

“W-what are you saying?”

“You little…”

That sentence caused no small amount of indignation in the three NPCs that followed them, but Beast ignored them to keep his concentration on Duplent. With one wave of his hand, he quietened them.

There was a period of silence as both sides stared into each other, searching for the truth in their words. It was an unspoken dare, to see who had more at stake and who is willing to risk everything to get their way. Finally, the prince broke his gaze and looked away, pained. Beast knew that he had won the mental battle.

“Does Your Highness have any other conditions?”

Duplent’s tone was bitter. “No need. I will accept the terms. ”

There were looks of surprise on the NPCs’ faces.

“Then I will have court historian Mealgar draft up the agreement…”

“No, I will do it myself.”

Setting aside the original document he was working on, the second prince of Honduria procured a new parchment and started writing down the terms and conditions of the treaty.

“Trigent… you bastard.” He rasped as he scribbled, a mad gleam barely visible in his blue eyes. “You took away what should have been mine for so many years, and now you simply give it back. I came here to defeat you, to crush you… and yet, I won’t even get my revenge…”

He had written so hard that the quill pen was almost bent out of shape and the words were etched with sharp, unforgiving edges. Beast was a little worried for the man’s sanity but he knew better than to disturb him. He might have not known what had happened between the princes, but he needed the treaty for his quest’s success.

Minutes passed, and the treaty was done.

“There.” Duplent hissed while Mealgar took the official document from him, checking its contents for accuracy before passing him the Seal of the Lord in return. Normally, he would have second thoughts about giving up the Seal this easily, but Beast did not bat an eyelid; he had already catalogued the artifact and its effect long ago.

“Now can I have the sword off my neck?”

“If you would give the order immediately and let us leave.” Beast mildly said, motioning for Lugwen to keep his stance. He was not foolish enough to give Duplent a chance to maneuver out of the agreement, and would even use him as a hostage to secure a safe exit if necessary.

“Very well. Guards!” Duplent called out, knowing that he had no choice but to honor his promise. In that moment before his men were summoned, Duplent nodded his head at Beast with an unreadable expression.

“What is your name, youngster?”

“Beast.”

“Beast...” It was all he said as the prince turned away, leaving the Lore Keeper confused and a little afraid. That action could mean anything from nothing to blacklisting him for future bans into Honduria the next time he sat on his throne.

Maybe he had gone a little too far when handling the next successor in-line to be a country’s king.

“GUARDS! What is taking you idiots so long?”

As in on cue, the door to the hallway opened, not to the faces of avid soldiers ready to carry out their lord’s orders, but to the splattering of blood and the ominous thud of two corpses across the doorway. Their faces were immediately recognizable; they were the two who were supposed to stand guard outside. From the opened door, the sound of battle could clearly be heard.

Beast was dumbfounded at the development, but he was doubly surprised when four other soldiers also bearing the mark of Honduria crossed over the bodies into the study with their swords poised to strike. Did he just manage to find himself embroiled in the middle of a coup in progress?

“Beast.” Duplent uttered, breaking him out of his stupor. “I am assured of my life, yes?”

This sly fox of a man…

“Yes.” The treaty must be maintained.

“Then protect me.”

Even though he did not wish to oblige, Beast had no other choice. If Duplent were to die at this crucial moment then all their efforts would have been in vain. It was with this thought that he rushed forward to engage one of the incoming soldiers.

“Lugwen, Riwana, Shadun, take an enemy each! Mealgar, Aveye stay behind to protect Duplent. Take pot shots if you see any.”

Turning to face his own foe, Beast ducked just in time to avoid a horizontal swing from the soldier’s blade. In retaliation, he returned a straight punch into the man’s abdomen, knocking the wind out of him with a painful gasp. That was all he needed to pounce onto the soldier and bring him to the ground from the impact.

From there on, it was simply a continuous landing of punches onto the soldier’s face. Even if the soldier’s level was higher than his, there was nothing he could do if his movement were to be neutralized by another person’s weight on his chest. Beast knew as much, and even if the man was strong enough to throw him off, the former made sure there was no breathing room for him to catch back his senses to do so.

Every blow Beast landed struck off a portion of the NPC’s health, until the latter finally took his last breath. It was about that time that the rest were done with their opponents. Shadun’s enemy was beaten black and blue, Lugwen’s was impaled cleanly on the end of the royal guard’s sword and Riwana’s foe was badly burnt beyond recognition.

For the moment, the coast was clear.

“So… what in the world is happening?” Beast glanced expectantly at Duplent Ashwald. After all that had happened, he wanted an answer.

The man in question was looking at everything with a cold calculated gaze. “Quarent…”

“Who?”

“Quarent, my brother and the fourth prince of Honduria.” The prince paused for a moment to let it sink in. “There is no time to explain. You need to get me to the eastern exit of Vanguard Pass as soon as possible. I have planted trusted agents there just in case this sort of backstabbing treachery might happen.”

“What?” Flat. What. Beast was sure he was not the only one who said that.

It was starting to make logical sense. So that was why it had been far too easy to navigate the keep. If he were to assume that Quarent already had his men scattered among the Hondurian army, it would be easy enough to make a deliberate oversight to allow them to reach Duplent’s chambers. An order from a position of command to ignore them would simply suffice.

That knight they encountered, he even straight up told them where Duplent was in the guise of a casual slip of the tongue. Then after making the ‘audience’ successful, they only began to move after ascertaining that a particular object of import was the focus of the meeting – the Seal of the Lord.

In other words, it was an internal conflict between the princes of Honduria.

Was this a natural progression of the joint operation? Or had it been there ever since the entire invasion started? Beast felt as though he had been doused in cold water. This level of politics was beyond him. To be honest, whoever became the crown prince was none of his business, but while he could technically abandon Duplent and open negotiations with the fourth prince, it would only end in failure. The only bargaining that they had – the Seal – would have already been in Quarent’s hands.

“Follow us.” Beast urged.

In the hallways, Hondurian soldiers were clashing with other Hondurian soldiers in a chaotic tandem of battle, making it nigh impossible to tell friends from foe. Their attention was solely focused on killing each other, so much that they did not even notice when Beast and company sneaked past. It was just well, for their main objective was not to fight but to sequester the prince away to safety. Unnecessary fights would only increase the risks of Duplent dying and Duplent dying would most likely mean their quest failing.

Rounding the corner of the stairs to the third floor, they ran into the nameless knight from before leading a platoon of soldiers. From their posture and blood-lusted demeanor upon seeing Duplent, there was no doubt in Beast’s mind that he was working for the other side.

“Ah. My prince. You have come.” A lightning fast strike lashed out with the aim of taking Duplent’s head, only to be parried by a well-timed positioning of Lugwen’s blade.

“Eago. You traitor!” Duplent hissed. Beast had to grab the man to prevent him from going forward to strangle the knight.

As the other grunts lapsed into battle stance, another group of soldiers rushed out of the corner down the hallway and started to engage the other faction. Within moments, the originally peaceful corridor had turned into a battleground of dancing swords and shields.

“There is our lord! Protect our lord!”

“Kill the betrayers!”

“Seize the prince!” Eago yelled out to his own squad as he surged forth, but found himself blocked by the armored body of Lugwen.

“Take the prince out of here! I will take care of this dishonorable disgrace to knights!”

Beast needed no telling twice. With a turn of his cloak, he led the prince down to the ground floor and then down where they originally entered from. The door to the rear courtyard was unceremoniously kicked open, the path to the back entrance hastily trodden, but what greeted them beyond there was not freedom. Lying in wait, an entire regiment of soldiers flashed their weapons the moment Duplent showed his face.

“Oh crap.”

Scores of arrows flew through the air.

“Fiery wrath surges. Volcanic ash rumbles. The wreath of flames scars the land and the living! Lava Wall!”

At once, the air before them burst into intense burning fire, swallowing most of the incoming arrow projectiles before they could reach their targets. Riwana clasped her hand together on her staff before she began to mutter another spell. Seeing that there was a mage in the group, the soldiers began to charge forward knowing that they have to prevent the spells from being cast. When it seemed that Riwana would easily be overwhelmed by sheer numbers, one person placed himself at the forefront, bravely warding off enemies from reaching the court magician. He was Shadun.

“Go! We will take care of this!”

“But…”

“The plan. Follow it!” Shadun yelled as he smashed his lute against an encroaching enemy. The spell completed, generating column of fire in the midst of enemy formation and bringing about cries of torment.

“Don’t die!”

“Meh, I can just respawn.”

As they escaped towards another direction, Beast could faintly hear Shadun’s voice becoming softer and softer. “How can you see into my eye, like open doors leading you down…”

The only people left with him were Aveye and Mealgar.

Eastern exit… Eastern exit… They have to get to the eastern exit. Which path should he take? If the plan had been set in progress, they would have to try and wrap everything up in a maximum of ten minutes. It was unavoidable that Beast was starting to panic, especially when he did not really know the layout of Vanguard Pass that well.

“This way! I know the safe house where my men are at.” Duplent shouted, solving the problem nicely.

The trio followed the prince’s lead down the streets of Vanguard Pass. The situation outside was no different from that of the keep. Several times, they had to duck into winding alleys or reroute around due to existing skirmishes happening in their path.

Once, a soldier was foolish enough to appear in their way.

“You-”

A javelin pierced through his abdomen and a blue fist collided with his face before he could even finish his sentence. Regardless of affiliation, Beast pummeled the man into unconsciousness before continuing on his way. Aveye was no slouch either. Several times, an approaching soldier would have already been weakened by a continuous barrage of arrows from the archer before Beast reached him for an easy beat down.

No mercy. Every enemy soldier they met, he smashed them all.

Exactly six minutes and twenty-three seconds later, they found themselves running down an alleyway. Emerging from there, the safe-house they were gunning for would be right across the street. They would deliver Duplent and the seal into the hands of his trusted men, and then their mission would be accomplished. The narrow slit at the end of the road beckoned at them under the moonlight, urging them to make haste.

Just as their goals were within reach, a voice sounded.

“Hey.” The image of man and an animal crossed into view, blocking the exit. It was the merchant and his alpaca steed. “Nice moon, isn’t it?”

“You?” Beast warily skidded to a stop, quickly followed by the rest of the party.

“I have a name you know.” The merchant smiled as he and the alpaca entered the side-road. Beast instinctively took a step backwards.

“Mealgar, take Duplent and run back where we came from.”

“Oh that won’t be happening.”

Behind them, a pretty cat woman of the beastman race blocked their retreat. With fluffy ears and a swishing black tail, she was dressed in overalls and short pants and held a gigantic hammer in both hands. Ordinary hammers were usually metallic, but said hammer was entirely made of a translucent white crystal reminiscence of the ones buried under Lanos. Even from the distance, Beast could see the weapon giving off a faint glow of magic. Artifact! It flashed across his mind.

Even so, what was more worrying was that there was a red name above the catgirl’s head.

Olurin.

Where had he seen that before?

It was…

It was the name of the crafter of Fyrzen’s ring!

Dread filled Beast’s heart as he connected the dots. This could not be happening.

The merchant before him frowned in disapproval. “Sheesh. You revealed your name too early Olurin. Where is the drama in that?”

“…”

“Ah well… might as well.” Another red name flashed over the merchant’s head.

“Greetings. I am Alpyrius. This is Alpy. And we will be killing you gently.”

Author's Notes:

Dun dun dun.