“Nothing unusual about helping people you were killing just months ago. It’s all just business as usual for us sellswords, you know? It’s why we usually never really hold that much hard feelings even against our enemies. For all we know they might be paying our salaries in a month or three.” - Gerda Bronzebottom, half-goblin mercenary.

“We’re from the Free Lances, here on the behest of the Duke of Algenverr, His Grace Nestor Ambroglio da Nunez, to render aid,” said Erycea a week later when she and the mercenaries temporarily placed under her leadership arrived at Kolitschei city. They were met by Duke Orsla Banitu of Kolitschei himself upon their arrival, the old Duke looking every bit his six decades of age on the present day.

Erycea had seen the old Duke before, during the time when the Free Lances still served and Posuin and when she – and her platoon – were still newcomers to the company. At the time the old man looked more hale and energetic despite his age, but the vicissitudes of life seemed to have ground him down of late, and now he just looked like a tired old man.

“I remember you. You were already part of your father’s company back then, weren’t you?” asked the old Duke as he squinted and took a better look at Erycea. To be fair, she was not surprised that he noticed, given how Reinhardt’s breed of therian was exceedingly rare in Alcidea. In fact, she wouldn’t be surprised if they were the only two of their kind in the Northern Continent. “I suppose time flies quickly. You’ve grown.”

“Thank you, Your Grace,” replied Erycea in a neutral way as the company’s relationship with the Duke of Kolitschei couldn’t be said to be the best. After all, the last time they met the Free Lances broke the Kolitschei formation during the Battle of Nedja Plains and directly led to Kolitschei’s defeat. “Anything we should be aware of about these invaders?”

“They’re pushing us back from the borders. At the moment the frontlines are around a week’s travel west of here,” said the old Duke with a sigh. “I know that young Nunez must have his own considerations, but if you can, please relay a message to him for me. Tell him that if he doesn’t hurry, we won’t be able to work together against these invaders because there wouldn’t be enough of us left.”

“That can be arranged, certainly,” said Erycea with a nod. “If Your Grace is willing to pen a formal letter, we can arrange to have it sent to Algenverr within two days at the most.”

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“Oh? That is welcome, yes. Wait here for a bit… No, Gremaldi! Fetch me a parchment and writing implements!” said the old Duke as he turned to one of his subordinates. Said subordinate immediately turned back and rode into the city, only to return within fifteen minutes with a small carriage following behind him. The carriage had a small desk on it, where an inkwell and several quills were set.

The old Duke quickly moved over to the carriage and wrote a letter on a piece of parchment right then and there. As soon as the ink dried, the Duke handed the parchment over to a servant who rolled it neatly and then sealed the roll with a piece of malleable wax. The Duke then stamped the wax using his signet ring to show that it was a letter that truly originated from himself.

Said servant then handed the rolled and sealed parchment over to Erycea, who in turn passed it to Hannah. Hannah chose one of her platoon members to deliver the parchment, who stored the parchment in their personal storage artifact and then took flight, their broad wings beating in the air as they quickly ascended and flew towards the east.

“Karave should be back within four to five days at most, likely with a reply,” said Hannah as she watched her junior fly away.

“Well, you heard her, Your Grace, so please do us the favor of not shooting him down when he comes back to deliver the reply,” Erycea said to the Duke with a slight chuckle. “After he did that, just tell him that we went further west. He should be able to find us on his own, so you won’t need to worry about him getting lost.”

“I see, I will make sure my men are informed to expect him around then,” said the old Duke. “I pray that you and yours could bring a change to this battle, young Edelstein, because otherwise it is looking rather bleak for us at the moment.”

“Just on our own, we might not be able to do much for the time being, but we’ll do what we can,” promised Erycea. Her group's mission was primarily reconnaissance, but if they saw a chance to hurt the enemy without excessive risk to themselves, they would take it without hesitation. “I’m sure my Father and Duke Nunez would be able to come up with something from whatever we can find out about the enemy, though.”

“I wish you luck, then, and godspeed,” said the old Duke with a sigh.

After the brief interlude, Erycea’s group continued their march west. They had not stopped to rest at Kolitschei city, and instead continued their march since there were still several hours to go until sunset. After they marched west of the city for a couple days, they moved from the main roads towards the untamed forests near the road, as a precaution in case the invaders had progressed further than expected.

On the morning of the sixth day of their march from Kolitschei city, Karave caught up with the group and returned after delivering a reply to Duke Banitu. Near the noon of that same day, Avila from Hannah’s platoon reported that she could see some fighting happening in the distance. The group itself was still a good day’s travel away from there, though.

It was not until the next day that some of Egil’s scouts saw where the battle took place around an old fortification where the Kolitscheian defenders did what they could to hold on against the horde of foreign invaders.