4 Unpleasant Premonition
Oliphym understand what she wants to say but truthfully, he hasn't thought this far.
"Do you have any places in mind that you could go? I would advise avoiding places with alot of eyes, but atleast safe. We cannot move as how we are now, as it will be suspicious." he said, keeping his advice. He thought it is best that he leaves it to the natives. His only concern was to avoid accidents.
Staying means a possibility of encountering the bandits again. Separating isn't a good idea, especially in this lands with beasts. Staying in groups is best but moving to populated places is just inviting trouble, with the carriage that they are using and the clothing that they have. It will give away that they are meant as slaves to be smuggled.
A girl volunteered to hold the map as the others gathered around and discussed it.
It appears that they have already established, or nominated who'll be deciding things on the other's behalf.
Amanda seems to be the default leader. From his perspective, some other women are fighting-capable so he thought it'll be among them.
But he had least expectations that it'll be someone like Amanda, who seemed just an ordinary girl with no special backgrounds.
But Oliphym doesn't want to judge the appearance's flaw when its about capabilities. As long as they can do it, it doesn't matter who it was.
Ever since he swallowed that seed, although he really have no idea what it was, he was able to comprehend and understand words, whether it be verbal, or written on the map.
"Near bodies of water, travellers or beast may gather. I believe any remote villages should do. We should prioritize getting out of this place, erasing your traces, and then afterwards, settle."
"I have a place in mind. It'll be 3 days travel. West south-west from here. Ahead of this path, the road will branch downhill along the river. We take this path and it'll directly lead us to it. Although it is not as remote as others, atleast near enough to settle and erase our traces." Canna said as she pointed at the map tracing the path they'll take.
"Let's move. The sooner the better." another girl replied, with no one objecting.
-
The group of 30, with 8 being little girls and Oliphym being the 31st, moved at a walking pace.
He still pondered if 3 days included today, or if it will start tomorrow. Silly question. Before night fell, these girls have already set up camp by the gentle river. It appeared shallow due to the noise it makea. Still, its the most clean water Oliphym has ever seen.
Its also the first he saw a night sky with more than 1 moon, and another planet that was at a distance.
The camp was illuminated by small campfires. Honestly when he saw them set-up the tents and the camp, he was amazed how skillful they were. He still helped gather dried woods for campfire to not embarrass himself.
With how cautious he was, he told them to not make a bright campfire. Some that will be on lookout later after meal have to sleep the earliest, and they can eat after they woke up.
Canna was abit surprised but she took the advise and implemented it, with no one objecting.
For himself, luckily he know how to feed himself during the camp, and most luckily, the fruit, herbs, and trees were something he also recognize were similar to where he came from.
Seeing them prepare food for themselves from the stocked rations like earlier, he decided to stroll to pick fruits from the trees he spotted earlier when he was gathering braches.
He could cook, he could truly cook. But there were no ingredients among the rations but dried meats, fruits, and some tasty vegetables. There were no oils nor kitchenware to use aside from a small pot and smaller pots to contain water.
As soon as he ate, he decided to sleep early before the rest of the camp has finished eating, with the intention of joining the nightwatch later.
He slept with no trouble at all despite the sudden change in the environment.
As for the rest, they didn't mind him. Some were still evasive, but after careful thought, they still feel abit of gratitude towards him. Amanda and Canna became the center of the camp as they manage the rest of the girls and women. Children were prioritize with best beddings to occupy in the camp while the big sisters dutifully watch over them.
All of them took the chance to bath themselves by the river. Oliphym being tactful, went out of their sight. Although he still took a peek once or twice.
That night passed without incident. When Oliphym woke up late night he discovered only 5 women were awake and on the lookout. They also noticed him and observed him. In the end, all he did was take care of his business and helped them guard.
He stayed up until morning while he encountered 2 more shifts of girls looking out, swapping places with others while others returned to sleep.
Oliphym is confident with his eyes and feelings, especially towards dangers and gazes directed at him. His sense of premonition is also better compared to normal people, as it was his assets, or more like, talents.
As three days go by, he was able to mend his status along with the rest, accepting him as their benefactor, getting to know Amanda and the rest better.
The girl that gave him that suspicious seed didn't had a name, so in the end, with careful thought, she named her Jianne, which she accepted with a simple nod.
How simple.
Fortunately, the 3 days went by without any accidents, althought not really an accident-
"-..it took place right of the third day.." he sighs deeply.
"Did you say something?" Canna asked, he stood near him.
He shook his head with a wry smile as he looked ahead of him.
Ahead of the group is the village Canna spoke about.
What was out of their expectations was, it was empty.
Oliphym, along with some armed women who are light on their feet, left and sneaked into the village to figure out what was happening.
Empty was an incorrect word. Valuables and some foods are left in some residences. It is more accurate to say that there was no one.
The rest of the group moved into the village to temporarily settle-in.
"Amanda, small groups of three. See if there's anything beyond the periphery of the village. Tell the other's to not go to far and tell you if they encountered anything. Oliphym and I will look into the village chief's residence." Canna said as she points out at an empty residence that abit wider compared to the rest of the houses.
Amanda took this advise as she told the others to scout the surroundings while she and the others looked after the children.
Canna and Oliphym, along with some 3 other women went into the chief's residence.
After seeing it, Oliphym thought that it was more like a small hall since the living room was spacious. There was rows of chairs and a long table.
He took note of this as he then went alone around the village and to his surprise, wherever he go, he could see obvious prints on the ground, not the normal, but heavy ones that sink to the ground slightly, indicating peopleb who treaded this path has something heavy.
He also saw fences near the outskirt and to his notice, he saw cattles, sheeps, and small number of other livestock still here.
If it was bandits, they would take everything away with nothing left behind and burn the village to the ground. Although he is not sure which country this village belongs to, it definitely something related to this as there is hardly anything has been broken for traces of violence.
After thoroughly looking, they still failed to see anyone. In the end they all gathered in the former chief's residence to discuss, leaving the 3 carriages out.
"Some people took the villagers away." is Amanda's conclusion as she faced the rest of the group.
"Is it those bandits again?" another girl asked.
"Its possible. The villagers seemed to have moved out suddenly. Although there are some traces of force, or being rushed." Canna answered.
"... I agree on that but let me add. Some livestock were left near the outskirts of the village. Most of the doors were closed when we arrived. There are massive traces of heavy footprints left on the ground. Mostly horses on the main road, but you can also see heavy footprints througout the place. There was no mess made almost everywhere but few. I don't know if you noticed, but although there are still some valuables or belongings, none of us saw any bloodstain or any traces of violence. I would have an assumption that it may be a huge armed group with authority that forced these people to move out." Oliphym said as he carefully pointed out.
Everyone in the room listened to him, and these made the rest of the women ponder. This also aligned with the things they saw but overlooked.
"..An Army?" Amanda asked as she looked at Oliphym.
"Most likely." he nodded in response.
"But the only reason I can think of when it involved an army would be war. What do you think?" another girl asked.
"..With sense of urgency, we must leave this place soon and get everything we need and we can. We aren't sure if this place is being watched or if this place will be dragged in conflict." with these assumptions they brought up, his feeling became disturbed with unplesant premonition as Oliphym spoke these words.
Everyone in the room nodded in agreement as they immediately parted ways while Oliphym himself went house to house to see if there's anything the group could use.
-
Kingdom Of Entity Royal Capital
In the castle's study room, it is densely populated with shelves filled with books. Although the space is abit small, the ceilling is 10-12 meters high and its very furnitured and decorated, worthy of the person's status who uses this room, Queen Sydney Entity .
Although its called Kingdom, its more of a matriarchal monarchy or in simple terms, its women who rules in the society and take official positions, or where the lineage of the family follows the female side.
Queen Sydney is can be considered a young elf with her pale green hair blended with blond color.
A/N: Forums had many references but lets follow the 1 elven year:10 human years ratio.
Her beauty reflects her bearing and competence, earning respect among her peers and those that serve her since she inherited her mother's throne more than 20 years ago.
Queen Sydney is also the best in the field of warfare and magic, as she also leads the research in magic development of her realm.
She can be considered peerless, and even if she did have some flaws, only her close friends would notice to cover it for her.
The entire kingdom's government are all managed by her family and relative thus, allowing her also to have direct surveillance and management with ease in her Queendom.
At this time, Queen Sydney is sitting by her study table filled with scattered papers and opened scrolls, going through them smoothly. Not far from her is an open book and a feather pen that seemed to write on its own, with its ink seemed magical that never run out.
On the couch not far from her is her half-sister who is younger than her. She also has sharp ears like Sydney, but aside from that, she also has curled horns. She sleeps comfortably on the couch, hugging a fluffy pillow that looks like a sheep wool, although one could also notice an open book on the small table in front of her and piles more next to it.
It appears that reading and research are inherent in their line.
Her name is Emiily Entity, second princess of the kingdom.
It wasn't a little later until a gentle knock was heard on the study room's door.
"Your Majesty, it is your servant Azmaria." a young woman's voice was heard.
"Come in." hearing this familiar voice, Sydney summoned her in her study room.
What she discovered in her possession was a scroll, and she recognized what it meant.
"Your majesty, Lord General from the Northern Fortress brings you urgent news." Azmaria said as she presents the scroll towards Sydney.
She nodded as she took and retrieved the scroll before she gently opened it to read its content.
It didn't take long before her expression started to have a slight change and her eyes slightly narrowed until she finished reading the content.
She once closed the close with her eyes closed and within three breaths she opened them and slowly stood up.
"Send out a summon. I want every General and Commander in the Capital in the war hall in two incense time."
"It shall be done immediately, your majesty." Azmaria bows as before she immediately leaves the room and gently closes the door behind her.
