Discover hidden stories at empire
Winter Stronghold!
Clip! Clop!
Asher rode into the stronghold, flanked by Moses and Simon. As they entered the city, all eyes turned to them, mostly because of Asher’s striking appearance and then to the sight of the armor they wore.
One glance and anyone could tell they were no ordinary travelers. Asher, their leader, had remarkable features, looked like a figure out of legend—his chiseled features and white hair gave him the air of a prince, and while the other man beside him also had white hair it wasn’t as white and it was longer than the leader’s. A black eyepatch covered one of his eyes and a massive axe was strapped to his back, an unmistakable symbol of prowess!
Simon, the third, looked far more ordinary—except to those who recognized him as a captain. So being a familiar face to many in the city, his presence alongside the other two fueled curiosity and speculations among the crowd.
“I see you’re back with your white-haired friends. How was the woods?!” a soldier called from atop the wall, his voice thick with mockery.
Laughter rippled through the guards, but Simon simply responded with a warm smile.
“It was quite refreshing, actually,” he replied.
The soldier scoffed and turned away with a dismissive shrug.
“I want to smash his head,” Moses muttered under his breath. Simon chuckled softly, but the amusement faded as they saw Asher’s steely gaze shifting to them, his piercing left eye silencing any more comments.
Moses gulped.
Without a word, Asher turned back to the path ahead and the trio continued toward the heart of the stronghold.
_____
High above, two figures looked at the trio from the balcony of the castle’s third floor.
Anderson and Naomi.
“The noble soldier has returned,” Anderson remarked with a sly smile.
“He survived,” Naomi said, her frown betraying a mix of surprise and displeasure.
“Well, he wasn’t supposed to die,” Anderson replied smoothly. “He is critical to our plans and I firmly believe that he would be able to execute it.”
Naomi turned to him, her expression skeptical. “Last time I checked, you were not the one blessed with the talent of foresight.”
Anderson’s smile remained unshaken. “No, but I am the master strategist of this stronghold. My strategies have kept us alive—and even given us a slight advantage—despite the overwhelming disadvantages we face at the hands of our enemies. You should be grateful you have me.”
Naomi scowled. “Your so-called strategies were all about using us. Without our power, you would be useless.”
Anderson maintained his gentlemanly smile and retorted calmly. “And without my strategy, you would all be dead.”
Seeing Naomi’s eyes blazing with anger, Anderson chuckled softly. “Shall we greet the noble soldier? At least we should welcome him since he’s fighting for us.”
A gleam flashed past Naomi’s eyes. “Alright.”
“No need for that,” a voice interrupted from behind, causing both of them to turn.
Upon turning, they saw Isaac casually leaning against the wall, his crossed arms.
“You…! How dare you eavesdrop on members of the council!” Anderson bristled, pointing an accusing finger at Isaac. “You abuse your strength!”
Isaac scoffed. “Lord Winter has summoned all the council members. We shall listen to the boy’s report.”
With that, Issac turned and walked away.
“Boy?” Naomi repeated, raising an eyebrow.
“That’s what he calls the noble soldier,” Anderson replied, his tone dismissive.
“If you call him a noble soldier and Isaac calls him boy, does that mean none of you knows his name?”
Anderson raised an eyebrow at Naomi’s question but shrugged it off with a wave of his hand and walked away.
“Lord Winter calls!”
…
Boom!
The double door swung open as two soldiers pushed them aside, and Asher walked into the council hall. The room fell silent, all eyes turning to him.
With a quick glance, Asher recognized the familiar faces and was a bit surprised to find an unfamiliar one: Naomi. Her black, curly hair framed a cold expression and she held a wooden staff with an elemental crystal fixed to the top.
Although she seemed to radiate authority, he couldn’t care less.
His attention shifted back to the old man seated at the head of the room—Lord Winter.
Before anyone could speak, Asher broke the silence. “I encountered another convoy yesterday. It was escorted by fifty Obsidian Order knights equipped with Legion.”
A collective intake of breaths followed his words. Anderson and Naomi gasped audibly, while Isaac’s gaze sharpened with intent.
“What happened next?” Lord Winter asked softly, his eyes as calm as ever.
“The Hundred killed them all,” Ahser said flatly. “I sent their leader back alive.”
“You did what?!” Naomi yelled as she shot to her feet. “Do you know how much we want to reduce the numbers of those things? And you just let go of one right in your grasp!”
“Calm yourself, Naomi,” Lord Winter interjected gently with the same soft elderly tone. “He has not done speaking.”
“I had to send their leader back because I wanted him to deliver the message that there is another human habitation out there hunting them down. If I had sent a knight, they might have killed him without hearing from him and it’s more plausible for a noble to survive than a rat knight. Besides…”
Asher turned to Naomi and met her glare head-on, a subtle smirk tugging at his lips.
“An Obsidian order knight would never run. It would fight to the death after its lord’s demise. Wasn’t that written by you, Fourth Council Head, Naomi?”
Naomi’s eyes twitched.
“Now that you have killed fifty Obsidian knights and they know of you. The next group will come better prepared.”
“I know that,’ Asher replied coolly. “I came to require rations—”
“We can’t recklessly supply rations a week after the first supply.” Anderson shook his head.
Asher puffed out. ‘This was bound to happen.’
“I have brought the salvageable parts of Legion, ripped off the bodies of the rat knights in exchange for rations.”
Isaac’s eyes lit up, same with Lord Winter.
‘He’s already thinking like a leader in charge of a different settlement. He has inadvertently cut us off!’ Naomi’s eyes narrowed into slits. ‘This cunning brat!’
She clenched her fists.
‘I can’t understand why the others don’t see this. Men as wise as them would never miss such an obvious play. Yet they all look… pleased?
Especially Isaac and Lord Winter.
‘What were they seeing that I am not?’
_____
After the meeting, Asher walked into his room only to discover a paper on his bed. He approached it and saw that it was a letter.
It read: Leave this stronghold while you still can or I will make sure you leave dead.
His eyes narrowed.
Just as he turned, a pre-prepared spell triggered and spewed forth a torrent of flames. The blast was potent enough to scorch the skin of a sacred-ranked knight, damaging them badly!
As the flames died down, one could see a wall of ice between the inferno and Asher, who was untouched by the heat. The ice reached the ceiling, forcing Asher to circle around it.
As he surveyed the room, he noted that nothing seemed to have burned by the flames.
Whoever had set the spell was undoubtedly a highly skilled mage.
But… the question was: why such animosity?