15 Volume 1 (RE) Chapter 15: Operation Westwind Part 5; Death to Traitors

AU: I am attending a summer Seminar for potential colleges. Not going to be active but have this massive 7000+ word chapter.

Inside the palace Joseph was seething. None of his siblings or aides could even approach him without getting hit with something he threw at them.

Two generals were already in the infirmary with gashes on their foreheads.

Elizabeth, who was the first princess, braved the danger and tried to approach her younger brother.

"Brother, please calm down. Not all is lost."

Joseph got up. His eyes were bloodshot and a maniacal look overtook him.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN NOT ALL IS LOST???"

Elizabeth choked and tried to speak.

From the door Jade Wallace gathered three guards to subdue Joseph if needed.

Joseph paced his desk which was near the doorway to his lavish study. A beautiful dark brown desk garnished with golden trims was repeatedly slammed by his fist. Being a sheltered child growing up his hits had little effect on great wood.

Strewn across the dark brown desk were maps and reports sent in from the army corps. Just two days ago their newly raised force was annihilated by the invading forces.

Of the 600000 men sent to the frontlines more than half were defeated leaving only one full corps left to defend the remaining parts of the Kingdom with several wounded contingents which could be a reserve.

Joseph grimaced as he remembered the 12 priceless heroes which were summoned. Only 5 of the 12 were left. To make matters worse only three were able to do combat since the other two were out of commission due to combat injuries.

The most recent defeats crippled the chain of command within the Epruilan Army as many seasoned officers and commanders were lost in the fighting. They had recalled retired officers as well for the four corps of newly raised soldiers. They too were mostly dead.

Morale was at an all time low. Joseph had narrowly escaped full panic before raising the 4 corps earlier when the invasion first began but now he had no way to control the fears of the public.

Just yesterday Joseph received news of insurrections developing in western and southern provinces.

These were territories which were added to the Kingdom in many previous wars. The latest being a war of conquest against a western Kingdom 30 years ago. This was the same war which the Master Marshal fought in.

Elizabeth knew that as first princess she was expected to calm her brother down but it was hard to reason with him in his enraged state.

"Brother if…"

"DO NOT CALL ME YOUR BROTHER? I AM YOUR KING!"

Elizabeth looked on with horror as Joseph slammed his fist into his desk. Joseph's eyes were budging and veins popped up around his clenched fists and forehead. His blonde hair was in a mess from clawing.

Then he stopped moving and a creepy smile stretched across his face.

"Maybe, maybe not all is lost. I still have my connections. Yes, I have connections to them."

Joseph got up from his desk and began to pace in front of his window.

He could see civilians protesting against the Junta due to their failure to repel the enemy. Word had gotten out about their catastrophic defeat despite his efforts to contain the spread of information.

"Dear sister, you are not married right?"

Elizabeth flinched. She had a sinking suspicion to where this conversation would go.

"Yes my King. The previous crown prince and king did not arrange my marriage."

"You are 24 years of age right? Shouldn't you have found a husband yet?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes and looked at the ground. She was a oracle. This meant that she could observe random parts of the future under the correct circumstances. Her natural born ability made her infertile so she had such a hard time finding a spouse. Even if she was first in line and a royal, if she couldn't produce offspring she was deemed as useless.

"Yes my King. I have not found a partner."

"Would you like one?"

Elizabeth looked up at Joseph's crazed smile.

"You can't be thinking about…"

His persistent smile told her otherwise.

"No, I can't go there."

"You will go there."

Joseph started to approach Elizabeth and to his desk. He pulled a letter stamped with a green seal of a gargoyles' head.

Elizabeth recognized this seal.

"No, please don't send me there."

"When was it your choice? You never had that option, ever."

Jade from the doorway gasped. She ushered the guards away so they wouldn't see the letter. That green seal was infamous, it was the seal of a demon noble. The gold trim on the letter meant it was from a high ranking demon noble.

"He is going to sacrifice Elizabeth."

Jade whispered this to herself as she watched the horror show.

Joseph then snapped twice and five robed individuals dropped from the ceiling.

They grabbed Elizabeth and knocked her to the floor to restrain her arms and legs.

"Wait brother! Please don't send me there!"

"I've told you before. I am not your brother, I am your king which makes me your god!"

Elizabeth was struggling against the masked individuals. They held her in place as she kicked and tried to break free.

"3rd princess, I know you are at the door."

Jade gasped and peeked from behind the doorway. Joseph was glaring at her.

Elizabeth was using her eyes to beg Jade to help her.

Jade bit her lip and clenched her hands. She struggled to decide whether or not to help her sister or not. She stepped out from behind the doorway.

"Since you know of this, seize her too."

Jade fell back onto her behind in shock.

Several of the masked individuals began to approach her.

"My king, the 3rd princess is essential for keeping the heroes in line. We cannot afford to sell her off."

One of the masked individuals whispered this to Joseph.

He growled and then collected his composure. Joseph raised his right hand to stop his agents.

"Jade sister, you will not speak of what transpired in this room. Is that understood?"

This was Jade's exit ticket without any consequences.

"Y——es. Yes brother I understand."

Jade couldn't meet Elizabeth's eyes. Her face burned with shame.

Jade glanced once up at Elizabeth who stopped asking for help. Since Jade was also entangled in this mess Elizabeth decided not to fight.

Elizabeth understood that she was the older sister and that dragging her younger sister into her problems was not proper.

Jade made eye contact with Elizabeth. Elizabeth nodded.

Jade quickly bowed and promised not to leak the events. Then she quickly ran down the hallway to her room.

Jade retreated to her personal room for the rest of the day. Her face was down on her bed. Her room was dyed a light blue with yellow furniture and blinds. Several stuffed animals of monsters and mythical creatures lined the walls.

Jade was crying into her pillow. The events from earlier frightened her deeply.

A sharp knock came from her bedroom door. It opened and a maid wearing round glasses entered. She was pushing a cart with covered plates of food.

"Lady Jade, you must eat. It's not healthy to skip meals."

Jade looked up to her personal maid chiding her as she prepared a table to set the food onto.

Jade from her bed looked at the round lid of the main dish and lifted it revealing a chicken salad coated with a special sauce.

"I figured you didn't want anything too heavy."

The maid was clearly catching on to Jade's mood. Jade also sensed this and changed her attitude.

"Yes thank you Lucy."

Jade smiled brightly and Lucy turned to stifle a choke.

Jade laughed at this while Lucy struggled to regain her composure.

Lucy then brought the table over to Jade's bedside and revealed all of the other smaller dishes. A glass of wine was poured for her as well.

Even though Jade was under the legal drinking age of the the world Wilhelm hailed from in this one she could drink at the young age of 14. It was normal, even in upper class society. Drinking was rather a way to socialize with other elites of the same age group and commonly accepted as normal from a young age.

She took a sip of the wine and began to eat while Lucy held a napkin to help her.

After finishing about half of the salad Jade put her fork down.

"Lucy, go shut the door."

Lucy batted an eye but did as she was told.

After she had closed the door Jade motioned her to lean closer.

"Yes my lady."

"Promise me not to tell anyone about what I am about to tell you."

"Of course."

Lucy raised her left hand and held her pinky out. A soft purple glow ebbed.

"I swear to never tell a soul about what I am about to hear."

Jade was surprised that Lucy would initiate a binding-oath on her own accord. She smiled, Jade knew she could trust Lucy.

"I need you to contact the invaders."

Lucy listened without a trace of emotion. It was clear that she did not expect this kind of request.

After Jade finished her request Lucy took the opportunity to ask a few questions of her own.

"My lady, why would you make such a surprising request?"

Jade looked around nervously. She never knew when she was being watched.

"Lucy, come sit here."

Lucy obliged.

"Hug me."

"Yes my lady."

Lucy buried Jade within her arms. Her larger stature covered the entirety of Jade's body.

"I saw something which scared me. I know what I am asking is treasonous but I can't stay here. I need to seek asylum and the invaders are the only other option. Brother told me that sister Adriana and brother Andrew are leading them."

Lucy kept embracing Jade while listening. It made sense why Jade wanted to seek the invaders.

Lucy has heard rumors about the new king. Not many good ones.

She also heard several rumors about Jade's other siblings.

The most concerning to her was a rumor that princess Adriana joined hands with the invaders in a legal alliance-marriage. This would incite rebellions all across the Kingdom.

If true the entire country would quickly become unsafe for Jade.

"Okay my lady, I will find a way to contact them as quickly as possible."

Jade smiled and hugged Lucy back.

Lucy was caught off guard by this action but softened her gaze.

In her mind the only thing that existed was Jade. Even if it meant being a traitor she would follow her lady.

The next day Lucy performed her usual routine.

She got up early to get ready for the day. The sun had not risen but this did not stop her. Her small room contained a small bed, a dresser, small desk and her closet.

A bowl of water sat in one corner where Lucy could wash up a bit. She splashed water on her face and washed her hands.

Using a rag she dried herself.

In her closet were her single nice set of clothes, three maid outfits and a casual outfit.

She dressed in her maid outfit quickly and went out of her room into a hallway where other servants and maids were beginning to emerge from their rooms.

"Good morning Lucy."

A groggy face emerged from the room next to Lucy's.

"Hello Zack, good morning."

The male servant named Zack rubbed his eyes and yawned.

From down the hallway a bell rang.

Everyone looked towards the sound. A large lady wearing a purple dress was ringing a hand bell.

"Good morning everyone! Head to the communal hall for breakfast!"

"Yes supervisor!"

Every person in the hallway chimed this.

They all then walked to the end of the hallway where the supervisor stood and entered into a communal room.

The room was inside the servant's house which was connected to the main palace but not a part of the overall palace. They still were behind the palace walls.

Two tables were set up in the communal hall, one for the commoners and the other for the nobles.

Servants in the palace were divided by social class. The noble's class was further divided between ranking nobles.

While commoners served in heavy labor positions the nobles who were sent to the palace to act as servants handled other work like paperwork, serving royalty and handling important matters.

Of the 300 servants only 30 were of noble lineages. Lucy was one of these nobles.

Her father was a baron of an estate in the lowlands. He owned several mining locations including a fire liquid mine and iron mine.

He was rather wealthy and had many children. Lucy was his 5th child and third female child. Her eldest sister was married to a count and another sister was in the Kingdom's elite university in the capital.

She was rather neglected and assigned to be a servant in the palace to improve her social image.

As Lucy sat down at the noble table she watched Zack and the majority of other servants sit at the commoner table.

Their supervisor stood in the middle of both tables on their long sides and rang her bell again.

"Okay everyone settle down. We will recite our code then eat."

Commoner servants who worked in the kitchens were walking around with a simple breakfast which was retrieved from the kitchen. They would eat later.

Except for the separate tables the mess was very similar for breakfast. Even for the nobles.

The simple breakfast was quickly consumed as the servants all ate breakfast together in the same room. Very little was said as everyone wanted to quickly eat.

The supervisor was wearing a watch on her left arm and watching the time.

After about 8 minutes she began to ring her bell excessively.

"Okay everyone! Breakfast is over! Head to your assigned positions!"

All of the servants got up and took their dirty dishes to the kitchen where the kitchen staff were collecting the dishes and washing them.

Lucy walked out of the hall with three other maids. They were all assigned to princess Jade Wallace.

While they walked in silence Lucy could not stop thinking about what the princess had asked of her the previous day.

She also wanted to figure out if the princess had told anyone else.

"Hey, did the princess ask a private question to any of you?"

Lucy turned around to the other three maids. Two of them kept walking ignoring Lucy while the other sneered at Lucy.

Lucy watched them walk off while she stopped in the hallway which led to Jade's quarters.

Based off the reaction Lucy assumes that nobody else knew about Jade's request.

Lucy then ran to catch up to the other maids.

When Lucy arrived to Jade's quarters the other three maids were already waking Jade up.

"Lucy, go draw a bath."

One of the maids who ignored Lucy earlier order her to do this.

"Yes Stephanie."

Lucy drew the bath and prepared hot water. She line the tub with rose petals and scented candles which she knew were Jade's favorite.

As she was finishing Lucy watched Stephanie enter the bathroom and close the door.

"Um, is there a problem?"

"Lucy, come here."

Lucy obliged nervously as they were the only two in the bathroom.

"Please do not ask personal questions about royalty. You know the rumors. The army was defeated, we might have to flee the capital. I don't want anything to happen to you because you opened your mouth."

Lucy nodded slowly.

"I know who your father is. You know I am of higher rank, please take my advice to heart."

"Yes Stephanie."

Stephanie smiled and left the bathroom.

After she left Lucy returned to her duty.

Then the bathroom door reopened and Jade walked in in her bathrobes.

"Good morning my lady."

"Good morning Lucy.

Lucy then started to undress Jade and helped her into the tub.

Jade sank until her chest was just hovering in the water.

Jade closed her eyes and allowed Lucy to massage shampoo into her hair.

"Did you figure anything out Lucy?"

"No, my lady. However I heard rumors that the invaders have deafeated our army led my the heroes."

"Yes, my knight told me this morning that I might have to be evacuated north."

Jade stopped talking as Lucy poured water on her head to wash out the shampoo.

After the suds have left her hair Jade lifted her now damp hair from her face.

"Lucy, do you think we can sneak out while the capital is evacuated to reach the invaders?"

Lucy thought about it as she began to scrub Jade's arms with a washcloth.

"I think it's possible. However I would need to get money to bribe several guards."

"Done. I can get you money. What else do you need?"

"I need your knight to get a carriage and meet us at the exit of the hidden passage."

"You can't mean the one meant for the king right?"

"Yes I do."

Jade quieted as Lucy began to wash her back.

"Okay, lets do it."

"We would need to wait for a partially cloudy night."

"Okay."

Three days later

Minas, Esmeralda

Under a waning crescent moon two hooded figures ran through the palace courtyard to reach a hidden alleyway between a tower and a barn.

Above the figures on the ramparts of the palace walls were armed guards patrolling with torches.

Inside the barn a single guard was standing in front of a pile of hay. Several pens lined the walls containing horses.

The hooded figures sneakily entered the barn from the side where the wood was rotting.

They dug their way through hay to the open barn.

The figures greeted the guard who regarded them without emotion.

The taller of the figures handed the guard a pouch full of something.

He poured its contents onto his left palm and nodded his head.

The guard then walked to the barn door and boarded it with a log.

The two figures then walked into the horse pen belonging to the king. In the far corner was a hay pile. Removing the hay revealed a hidden trapdoor.

The larger figure lifted the trapdoor for the smaller one. They both slipped into the darkness.

Outside the palace near an aqueduct in an alleyway the left wall shuddered.

A small square was pushed out of the way and the two figures crawled out of the space.

The hole was covered again with the stone.

The smaller figure patted its pants to get rid of dust.

The two held hands as they emerged into the streets. They were greeted by total darkness. A curfew was enacted and enforced by the city guards.

Elements of the regular army were in the capital after their crippling defeat days earlier. Remnants of defeated armies were trickling back slowly using the southern gate.

Carriages which carried the wounded were entering and exiting frequently.

Using this fact they redevoused with a carriage pulled by a knight.

"My lady, I have arrived as you instructed."

"Thank you Harold."

"But my lady, why are you leaving the capital from the wrong direction?"

The smaller hooded figure lifted her hood to reveal Jade Wallace.

The other one revealed herself as Lucy.

Harold the knight was fully dressed in his equipment and had packed adequate supplies. These supplies were stored in wooden crates in the back and rolled in cloth to prevent rain from damaging the goods.

His long golden hair was tucked under a stylish helmet which only exposed his eyes and mouth.

"Sir Harold, we need to reach the invaders' lines. I am not safe here in the capital."

"My lady, does King Joseph know?"

"No."

"So it's treason?"

"Yes."

Harold turned and looked forward towards the southern gate.

"I understand my lady. I will commit treason with you."

"Thank you Harold."

Lucy opened the carriage door and helped the 13 year old Jade into the cabin.

"Baroness Lucy!"

"Yes Sir Harold?"

"Here, take this."

Harold pulled a black object from his belt and threw it to Lucy. She caught it.

Lucy peered down to a small pistol which was larger than her hand.

"Wait, what is this?"

Lucy gripped the gun and looked at its back. A small hole in the rear of the gun which is covered with a lock.

Harold pointed to two bullets strapped to the grip.

"It's a cartridge pistol, take one of those cartridges and instert it into the hole in the back. You have to lock the lock afterwards or it won't shoot."

"Okay! But I never used a gun before!"

"It's fine, these are very easy to use."

Lucy bowed her head and thanked Harold. He grinned and turned back to the reins of his two horses which pulled the carriage.

Lucy got inside and sat next to Jade. Her right hand gripped the trigger of the unloaded gun tightly.

Harold has given her a weapon to protect Jade, this meant that she was expected to die protecting her lady.

But Lucy didn't mind, dying defending a princess of her homeland wasn't the worst way to end life.

"Ya!"

Harold whipped the horses which began to move. The carriage slowly approached the gate which had a sizable guard attachment in front of it.

As the carriage approached Harold could see several other knights on horseback patrolling in front of the gate.

Harold cursed silently, he knew these men. He was performing treason, he would need to fight his comrades worse comes to worse.

Harold prayed silently as the gate drew nearer.

"Halt! None shall pass these gates under order of the King!"

One of the guards brandished his poleaxe and waved to stop the carriage.

The knights who were patrolling were alerted to the guard and too approached the gate.

"State Name, rank and business."

The knight closest to the carriage wore a blue sunflower emblem on his chest plate. This differed from Harold's yellow rose emblem.

"Wait, is that you Sir Harold?"

"Yes Lysander. I need to pass these gates urgently."

Lysander glanced at the carriage, the colors of the royal palace were illuminated from his torch.

Harold could see Lysander gulp. He knew that Lysander was conflicted because two conflicting authorities were demanding opposite things.

"What's the hold up? Leave immediately!"

The guard with the poleaxe started to get impatient and advanced on the carriage.

"Halt soldier, I am speaking to a high ranking knight."

"What? Oh okay."

The guard stepped back and allowed Lysander to speak to Harold.

Lysander's partner Conrad trotted over on his horse.

"Who is this?"

"Ah, Sir Conrad. I am conflicted, the royal order was not to allow anyone to pass yet a member of the royal family is trying to pass."

Conrad looked at the yellow rose emblem on the carriage and shrugged.

"If a royalty is breaking then rules, there is a reason. Let them pass."

"Alright, I trust you."

Harold nodded in agreement.

"Allow us to escort you through."

"Many thanks."

The two knights and the carriage began to approach the gate.

The guard from earlier was whispering furiously into the ear of another man. He was dressed in noble clothing and had a curled moustache beneath his nose.

"Wait, stop."

The carriage and the knight escort stopped.

Harold cursed quietly under his helm.

Lysander's horse then began to move towards the noble, soft clicking of its horseshoes echoed against the cobblestone road.

"Baron Weiss, what appears to be the problem?"

Lysander looked down at the short noble. His brown hair curled at the sides of his head. He could see his green outfit under the flow of the torches.

"What do you mean 'what appears to be the problem?' You know that King Wallace had announced that none shall pass through the southern gates. Do you?"

"Yes I am aware."

"Good, then why would you attempt to escort one of the royal family through the gate when I specifically said that it was the order from our King?!"

The baron became agitated and pointed accusingly at Lysander.

"Pardon me Baron Weiss but I have royal orders to bypass these orders."

Lysander knee that he was twisting the words. There was no royal order and this was highly ambiguous not mentioning if it was the king of his kin who made the order.

He watched the baron stroke his beard contemplating whether or not this applied to the situation.

"No, you still cannot pass."

Lysander nodded and trotted over to Conrad. They exchanged words and then Conrad leaned over to Harold and repeated the words.

"No, we cannot pass."

"Bullshit, I have the princess with me."

"I know, but why are you leaving through the southern gate? I know it's not my business but there are other gates."

Harold stalled. How could be reveal his and his master's treason to another royal knight? Impossible, he could not.

"I am sorry Sir Conrad but please do not pursue us."

"Excuse me?"

Harold then slugged Conrad across the face with his gloves hand. The impact rang out as metal clashed with metal.

Conrad fell from his horse onto the cobblestones.

Lysander yelped in surprise but Harold had already unsheathed his sword and swung it at him.

He barely had time to block the strike with his arms as the sword slammed into Lysander.

The blow knocked him off his horse who buckled.

Harold grabbed the reins of the carriage with his left hand and whipped the horses.

"Yah!"

The horses thundered forward towards the southern gate.

The baron who was next to the carriage when Harold assaulted the other knights fell back in shock.

It was only when the carriage was almost at the gates did he try to shout for the guards to act.

"Stop them now!"

However he was too late. The horses on the carriage raced through the open gate which was filled with wagons of wounded men.

Although it was tight the carriage managed to weave its way through.

On the ramparts of the city wall several stationed guards fired crossbows to no avail.

The carriage raced down the road and towards the open horizon.

Harold kept whipping the horses to go faster. He wanted to put as much distance between himself and the capital.

However after running for a while the horses began to tire. Harold was forced to stop.

While pulling the reins Harold calmed the horses down enough to stop. The horses then calmly trotted off the road and into a valley.

The valley ran with a small river in its middle. Harold judges this to be a good place to stop.

He stopped the horses and jumped off the front of the carriage.

He knocked on the carriage door.

"Open it."

Harold opened the door to reveal Jade clutching tightly into the maid Lucy.

"Excuse me my lady, we are at a river to stop."

Jade slowly let go of Lucy. She patted her dress and got up.

Harold extended his left hand to help Jade down from the carriage.

Then he did the same with Lucy.

Harold then closed the carriage door behind the two ladies and watched them stretch their limbs.

The sky was still dark but an orange haze of morning was rising from the horizon.

The river had a bridge crossing it several dozen meters from where the carriage sat behind the tree line. From the bridge and accompanying road you could not see the carriage.

"Sir Harold, will we be able to wash in the river?"

Harold looked at his lady. She was barely at his waist in height.

"I think it is safe, however you cannot bathe during sunlight. We risk being caught."

"I understand."

Jade wandered to Lucy who was taking a wooden chest off the back of the carriage.

She set it down next to a fallen tree and took out clothes.

"Lucy, why are the clothes so… peasant-like?"

"My lady, we cannot risk being discovered. This is a disguise for you."

Jade glanced at the simple brown dress and white under garments.

"Okay, fine."

Jade began to undress with the help of Lucy. Harold walked to the tree line to watch for anybody.

Jade and Lucy wadded into the river, the current cold in the morning dew. Despite the coldness they washed.

"Ah! The water is too cold!"

"My lady, we cannot have luxuries like warm water while on the run."

"I know but, gah!"

The two washed each other's hair and bodies with soap stolen from the palace.

Harold was not as young as you might think. He was in his mid-30s which was quite the length of time considering that he spent a good deal of his life fighting in the fields.

Before he was a knight he had fought in the disastrous Orcic Expedition which saw hundreds of soldiers die in the treacherous mountains to the far north on the borders of the Emirate of Perseus.

His actions in saving comrades and diligently obeying orders even though many were suicidal caught the eyes of the Crown. They wanted obedient and seasoned soldiers to guard their royalty, people who respected the order yet were highly skilled.

His lack of interest in women growing up made him an excellent candidate to be princess Jade's personal knight.

When the civil war broke out Harold found himself on the Junta's side. He didn't know how princess Jade got herself aligned with the Junta but he respected her decisions.

Although he is not directly affiliated with the Junta, he couldn't help but criticize Jade's actions. Not only did she run away from the palace but she did so with treasonous intentions! Harold truly couldn't understand her.

However Harold was still her personal knight, he had to protect her wishes no matter how absurd. This was the way.

While lost in thought Harold didn't hear the soft sounds of steps.

The sudden snap of a twig behind him alerted Harold.

"Who goes there?"

He spun around gazing into the dark woods, sword ripped from his sheath.

Harold continued to eye the darkness while glancing at the two ladies bathing in the river.

From the shadows which were cast from the trees emerged around 10 masked individuals. All of them spotted blue coats of arms on their black capes.

"Oh shit."

Harold cursed quietly. He recognized this group. They were the royal agents, a group of highly skilled and trained agents capable of infiltration, assassination, intelligence and counter-intelligence operations.

One of the agents stepped forward form the darkness. A half mask covered his eyes only while a bandanna covered his mouth.

The male agent drew a short sword as the other agents around him unsheathe various weapons.

"Kill him."

The male agent pointed his sword at Harold. Three agents from behind him in the shadows rushed forward with daggers in both hands.

Harold stepped back to distance himself from the short-ranged attackers. He swung his sword vertically at the lead belillergent agent.

The agent crossed her daggers to block the strike which she did. Her fellow agent to her right bypassed the interlocked blades and thrusted his dagger into the right side of Harold.

The dagger sparked against his armor but it alarmed him how outnumbered he was.

Kicking the agent who tried to stab him he then swung left to intercept the third agent who jumped and stuck with both daggers.

In a coordinated fight Harold kept backing up while defending against the most dangerous attacks, usually ones to the face and vitals.

The trio of agents pushed Harold back to a drop which forms the small embankment which the river settles inside of.

Harold risked a glance towards the ladies in the river.

Princess Jade and Lucy were fully dressed but surrounded by 5 agents.

Lucy was holding them at bay with her pistol while Jade cowered begins her leg.

Back to the river and surrounded by agents Lucy screamed towards Harold.

"Sir Harold! Help me!"

Harold had no time to respond as more blows struck him from his opponents.

One of the agents threw both daggers at Harold. The daggers bounced off his armor but had a blunt effect on him.

Now unarmed the agent grabbed Harold's right arm which held his sword and tightened his grip.

"Ah fuck! Get off!"

Harold struggled to remove the agent while the other two started beating Harold's armor with fists and daggers.

Seeing the success of their comrades the other agents began to approach the incapacitated Harold.

One agent who had a large build lifted a large hammer. The daggers had minimal effect on Harold's armor so a blunt weapon necessary.

Harold struggled to free himself. He thrashed violently and roared. However he was hopelessly outnumbered, even as a veteran.

The group of agents now started to assail the unarmed Harold until finally he stopped struggling.

A final blow from the hammer echoed. The hammer was lifted from the shattered head of what was once Harold.

The agents stopped to rest.

Just the a sharp crack echoed from the river. This was followed with another and then a third.

Faint screams came from the river and then splashing of water.

It was not long until the sounds silenced.

The agents which killed Harold walked around and gathered their equipment. Several were bandaging themselves.

The lead male was digging through Harold's equipment.

He pulled a map and a compass with a good deal of coins. However this was about all he could find.

The agent sighed.

From behind the agent a female agent appeared.

"Sir Dominik, we killed the maid and the target."

"Good work, however I don't understand why we would need to assassinate the 3rd princess."

"Sir, with all due respect that is beyond our rank to ask."

"I know agent."

The group of royal agents turned to leave but a distant rumbling startled them.

Sir Dominik raised his left hand to signal the group to stop their movements.

"You, call the other agents, the ones at the river. Gather them by the bridge."

"Yes sir."

The agent then ran off and jumped into the nearest tree branch which could support his weight.

The other agents then made their way to the road which linked to their side of the river. The bridge which spanned the river was a simple wood and stone. Usually it would have decent traffic going across it since it was part of the roads systems which directly led to the capital.

Due to the southern invasion and the crippling defeat of the armies of the heroes it was left unused.

The only reason this bridge was not destroyed was because retreating elements of the armies of the heroes were still trickling back.

However this sound was unlike any magical weapon possessed by the Junta.

Since this was a group of elite agents they had access to more high clearance information. One of these bits was scouting reports done by some of the rare surviving scouts. Worryingly so many scouts were discovered even when magic was used.

This bit mentioned that the enemy armies were traveling down one of the four main roads which led to the capital from the south.

This road was one of them.

Dominik cursed. The enemy had advanced much faster than they expected them to. Just a day ago the reports estimated that they were more than 100 km from the capital. This bridge was only 20 km from the capital.

"This is not good. The enemy is much faster than we would ever expect. You two, get to the capital as fast as possible. Get reinforcements here now, we will hold the bridge."

Dominik pointed to two smaller agents. They were much faster than the other agents and capable of wind magic which boosts their speed.

"Go."

"Sir!"

The two agents turned and raced off. Leaves blew everywhere as they used their wind magic to propel themselves to move faster.

Dominik turned back to the bridge.

"Split into two groups. We will ambush the enemy here at this bridge and hold it."

"Sir!"

"I will blow up the bridge, wait for me to destroy it before we attack."

The group was soon joined with the river group. They had suffered some casualties in the fight against the maid.

In total 11 agents were ready to fight. Five on one side of the road in the trees and the other five in the bushes on the other side.

Dominik would need to be under the bridge. He began to lay explosive magic which used explosive properties to cause damage.

He would need several minutes to fully cast it though.

Just as Dominik slid under the bridge to start casting, a large armored cannon appeared over a hill which the road covered.

This armored cannon was followed by another and another.

Dominik soon realized that he was facing a huge enemy unit.

The armored cannons stopped at the bridge. A smaller armored machine stopped next to the lead enemy armored cannon.

Two doors open in its rear and soldiers dressed in grey uniforms piled out. 10 in total.

Holding guns they started walking towards the bridge to inspect it.

Under the bridge Dominik abandoned his magical spell and slipped into the river. It's cold water washed over him as he casts air magic to help him breathe longer.

He lay still on the bed of the river, fighting its current.

Around him black boots appeared and disappeared as the enemy soldiers stepped past him.

They remained for a few moments before crossing the river entirely.

Dominik only surfaced when he was sure that the soldiers had past him.

He emerged from the river and crawled back to his magic circle.

Water and dirt stuck to his armor and uniforms making him irritated from rubbing.

Be returned to casting his magic as he heard sounds of the enemy machines crossing the bridge from above.

Sweat dropped from his forehead as he worked.

Many times he flintched from a stone or two falling from the bridge into the river.

After much anxiety he finished the spell.

"There we go."

Then he used his right index finisher and traced a final connection line.

"Done."

Then he channeled magic into his finger and the magic circle lit up with a reddish orange hue.

Quickly he jumped back into the river just as the magic circle detonated.

The explosion collapsed the bridge with several machines still crossing it.

These machines rained around Dominik as he lay in the water.

The sounds of the metal hitting the river was masked with the shouts of falling soldiers.

"Now!"

From around the road on the side with the ambush agents emerged from the foliage and engaged with the enemy soldiers who were stunned by the explosion earlier.

Shouts and sounds of combat raged up on the road.

A boom of a cannon retorted as one of the armored cannons which crossed the bridge before the explosion fired its main gun.

The machines and soldiers on the other side of the river quickly moved to support their comrades trapped on the other side.

From the side of the river with the main enemy force, a roar started. Dozens of engines pumped power into their drives and powered down the river bank into the water.

Machines and men wadded into the semi-shallow river to the other side.

Dominik saw this as he was killing injured enemies which had fell into the river during the explosion.

He quickly finished off a young enemy soldier with a stab of his sword into his chest cavity and hid behind a flipped armored cannon.

The monster of a machine was taller than he was and sported many guns and one larger gun.

He couldn't help but to marvel at the complex structure of this beast.

The trapped enemies kept fighting the ambushers but these ones were tougher than the Kingdom's forces they faced before.

Bullets didn't kill instantly as they wore stronger armor made from more rare metals.

Also they cast defensive magic which slowed the speed of bullets, lowering their penetration capabilities.

However the sheer numbers of the enemies caused many casualties amongst the agents.

Dominik found himself stuck between two enemy forces, the trapped one and the reinforcing one. He opted to go and fight the trapped force in order to cause as many casualties as possible.

He started to wade to the river bank but was spotted.

Two enemies pointed rifles and fired them at him but missed.

Dominik continued to wade to shore and once he got there he kept running to the ambush.

Once he got there he jumped into the fray.

His agents were already at half-strength as their armor and magic's defenses did not apply to the heavy guns of the armored cannons.

Several of the smaller machines were burning. The ground was strewn with the fallen and parts of the bridge and machines.

Dominik lunged at the back of a soldier carrying a large gun.

His sword jutted into his back, the soldier dropped his gun.

The falling body of their comrade alerted four enemies who turned to look at Dominik.

One of them who held a strange gun with no stock and a vertical metal stick shouted something in another language.

The other two pointed their guns at Dominik.

From behind him more shouts as more enemies poured from the river onto the river bank.

They were surrounded.

Dominik was a distance away from the men who pointed guns at him but he opted to fight on.

"AHHHH!"

He lifted his sword and charged the three soldiers.

Their guns blazed to life and Dominik's body was riddled with bullet holes.

Many bullets sparked and ricocheted but the soldiers behind him also were shooting him in the back.

After many hits he finally fell face forward into the dirt.

All around him the rest of his agents were mopped up.

From his face down position Dominik observed his agents getting gunned down. A male agent holding a double axe rushed past his body. With a loud smack the butt of a rifle connected with the agent's head.

The agent fell next to Dominik. They locked eyes.

"Sir Dominik, we are being overrun..."

Just then an enemy stabbed down with a bayonet into the exposed neck of the agent.

Dominik cursed and struggled to move but his wounds were too great.

Dominik using his last breath uttered an oath;

"Glory to the Kingdom."