10Chapter X: Plots Uncovered, Part II
The city prison of Adenow, a dank, dark underground facility designed to house the scum of the earth like any prison, be it ordinary muggers, burglars and murderers, or those guilty of breaking the law enforced by the City Guard. In the past it was decrepit and dilapidated from lack of proper maintenance, full of man-made potholes dug carefully by intelligent prisoners who, under the noses of a previously lazy and lax prison guard, managed to escape to freedom through the tunnels they dug.
When Erhart began earning tidy profits from his sugar farm, the prison was one of the first of many dilapidated facilities he invested his money into; the tunnels were filled in, the prison was cleaned and renovated, and the prison guard completely transformed and properly disciplined. Now, the prison was structurally sound and well-maintained, and the prison guards diligently performed their duty - at least, as diligently as prison guards can be - of keeping the peace and watching the prisoners to ensure their compliance with prison law, so that they hatch no escape plans or cause any trouble.
The stone walls, ceiling and floors, once damp and covered in moss, were now spick and span, and covered in a layer of plaster that gave the walls a cleaner, neater look, free of any holes and flaws in the stonework that otherwise were prone to leakages from melting snow. The jail doors and bars, once rusted over in a ghastly brownish colour, were now replaced with new ones, made of a superior-quality steel coated with a special grease coating that protected them from rusting, devised by none other than the child genius Erhart.
And where the prison conditions were once unbearable for even the hardiest of criminals, now each cell was properly and routinely cleaned, each equipped with two clean - if albeit cheap - linen beds, toilets and a set of tables and chairs. Were anyone to analyse the furnishing of said prison cells, they would remark that such conditions were far better than what even a royal palace's prison had to offer.
In the deeper parts of the prison, however, was a row of specially-designated rooms armed with the proper arsenal of tools one would require to perform a lengthy interrogation; shackles, flogging posts, hot metal brands, whips, and scalpels, it was a dreamland for the most sadistic of torturers, and the bane of any prisoner who abhorred being subject to sadistic torture.
Up until now, these facilities have not seen use since the prison's renovation, but with the capture of Nikolaus and what little of his band survived, at least one of them was now housing the captured mercenary captain, now bound to a chair with metal chains restraining his ankles and hands. The captain sported a nasty bruise on his face, courtesy of a powerful punch from Kiryu.
As he awoke, a bucket of cold water was splashed against his face, serving to jolt him awake. As his eyes opened, he found himself bound, restrained and surrounded by armed guards, their swords pointed at him in a gesture that promised death should he attempt to retaliate.
My head... hurts like hell, Thought Nikolaus as he awoke, If I remember correctly, I was fighting that white-haired monster of a woman bare-handed, and then out went the lights, so where am I now?
Footsteps reached his ears, and he turned around to find himself face-to-face with a young boy, no older than ten, his face adopting a mask of harmlessness, though in his eyes, he sensed a tinge of madness and bloodthirsty glee within those dark blue windows of his, belying his bloodthirsty nature.
"I see you're awake," Said the boy, "Enjoy your nap?"
The boy's joke was not lost on him, and Nikolaus said, "Can't say I didn't; best nap I ever had, if I might say."
"Is that so?" Said the boy.
Footsteps could be heard echoing from the dimly-lit corridor, and they neared his position with every second. The door to his cell opened, and in strolled the familiar face of the white-haired brawler that Nikolaus had fought earlier, along with three other faces - one to a woman dressed in tacky clothing, one to a shaman, and one to a fair-faced man whose complexion was as fair as a woman's.
What caught his eye was the suit of armour that the white-haired woman wore; the armour's make was distinctly familiar, though it was artless in design and plain-looking, the only ornamentation being the silver trimming on the armour plates, but from what his eyes could gleam, there was the smallest of engravings on the breastplate, which resembled Orsi alphabet for 'B'. What surprised him even more was the humongous pelt of brown fur she wore as a surcoat on her shoulders; whatever beast it came from must have been twice the size of a Human being.
So she's wearing a suit of armour made by Bianca, of all people. Been years since I contracted her to forge my special hammer before I left for Alsace, Thought Nikolaus, And how the hell did she get her hands on such a huge pelt of fur? Judging by the scars on her face, she'd probably had to have encountered a massive bear of sorts, but whether or not she actually killed such a beast is beyond my knowledge. Well, unless I ask her, of course.
"Are you capable of talking?" Asked Kiryu.
"I am, thank you very much," Said Nikolaus, "I'm guessing you want to ask me about my employer?"
"Damn straight," Said Kiryu, "Who hired you and ordered your attack on Adenow, and why?"
"Fairly simple, really; it's the Duke of Eastmere, Robert Stone," Said Nikolaus, "He hired me and my men to stage an attack on the estate of a Baroness Adalwolfa, for what reason I don't know about."
Erhart raised an eyebrow at that, saying, "You're awfully eager to spill out information like that. Mind if I ask why?"
Nikolaus gave a snort of derision at that, saying, "I and my boys were forced into carrying out his orders. We're a penal battalion, if you will, and I have no intention of dying for a man like Robert; he's guilty of all sorts of crimes, from tax embezzling, to extortion, and even having an affair with a mistress."
His interrogators nodded at that, and Erhart asked, "So you never held any loyalty towards him?"
Nikolaus scoffed.
"As if you can hold loyalty to such a despicable man," Said Nikolaus, "Anyway, you'll want to know this; bastard's camped a fair distance from Adenow, on a hill that borders Alsacian territory, and he's brought a personal army of over a thousand, all well-armed and professionally trained. You'll need an army to storm his position if you want to drive him out for good."
"But how do we know you're telling the truth and not feeding us lies?" Asked Belarion, "For all we know, you may only be showing us what emotions you want us to see, your apparent disgust for Robert being one thing."
"Never been one t'trust mercenaries n' all, definitely not you," Said Wilhelm, "If anything, y'seem more like a snake, one ready t'bite me n' poison me in m'sleep."
"Perhaps so, but right now, I've got nothing to gain from deceiving you," Said Nikolaus, "Neither do I have anything to gain from spilling the beans."
Motioning for one of the guards to release Nikolaus' hands and taking out a map and laying it out in front of Nikolaus, Erhart asked, "Where's the camp?"
Nikolaus pointed to the depiction of a lone hill, standing next to a densely forested area that stood inches from the border between Orso and Alsace, and Erhart knew just what hill he referred to.
"That's a fairly remote area, and no one's been here before, as far as I'm concerned," Said Erhart, "Hardly any patrols pass by there as well, perfect place to hide a large army like that."
Kiryu then said, "Since we know where he is now, that's where we attack. It's time the bastard's dealt with."
Erhart then said to the guards, "Guards, take him away and put him in a cell. We'll deal with him and the others later."
"Yes, my Lord!" They chorused, and they took Nikolaus away, leaving the interrogation chamber.
"I'll go get some additional mercenary help; won't do if these Alsacians see a noble lord's private army attacking them," Said Kiryu.
"Good idea," Said Erhart, "We'll meet about two leagues away from the camp, just a little close to the ravine."
IIOII
Granted, it wasn't difficult finding the man I was looking for, since he was in the place I expected him to be, though whether or not he'll accept my job offer is another matter, since that decision's gonna have to be left for him to make, though I'm hoping very much he'll accept it.
Pushing open the doors to the Stout Mountaineer, I found the place lively and bustling with activity and random banter, and scanning the premises for my target, I found him eating his meal with two others dressed in well-maintained Winter Steel armour, probably high-ranking lieutenants of the Chargers. Ignoring the glances some of the tavern's patrons gave my way, I quickly walked towards Morgan as he drank from a tankard, and having seen me approach, he greeted, "Ah, Kiryu! What a pleasant surprise to see you here. Have you come looking for me?"
The two other armoured people, one man and one woman, turned to look at the newcomer who gained the Lord Marshall's attention, and they glared at her for a minute - in the face of which I did not flinch.
"As a matter of fact, yes," I said, "I've come to enlist the aid of the Iron Bear's Chargers for a job I'd like you to take."
Raising an eyebrow at that, Morgan asked, "And what kind of job would that be?"
Without any fear or hesitance, I bluntly stated, "Attacking and dispersing an invading army from Alsace."
Morgan did not say anything for a few moments, and his lieutenants looked as if they were raring for a brawl in response to my request.
They seemed visibly surprised, however, when Morgan motioned for them to stop, and he said to me, "An Alsacian army, you say? And I'm guessing it's for whoever asked you to do this?"
"You could tell?" I said.
"It seemed really obvious," Said Morgan, "That, and you don't look the type to contract mercenary help. Take a seat, if you will, and explain your reasons behind contracting the services of my mercenary band; this won't take long, I assure you."
"I'm afraid I don't have the luxury of time," I said, "If we don't act now, that invading army will just move on to cause more damage, and I prefer we deal with them as soon as possible. I'm sorry if I sound impolite, but I really need your answer right now."
"Hey," Said one of the lieutenants, "You don't get to talk to our Lord Marshall like that, bitch."
Morgan, however, said to them, "You can stop there."
"But-"
Ignoring the lieutenant's protests, Morgan said to me, "Tell you what, Kiryu, I'll go and take your offer. In exchange, however, I want you to explain to me the circumstances behind your contracting my help along the way. Is that fine?"
"Aye, it is," I said, "And thank you."
Morgan then said to his lieutenants, "Gather up our boys; we'll march to where this woman's guiding us to for our new job."
"Y-Yes, sir," Said the lieutenants, and they quickly ran off to do their job.
"Now then," Said Morgan, "Where's the bastard noble that dares invade this country?"
IIOII
It wasn't long after that the entirety of the Chargers were gathered outside the gates of Adenow, with their Lord Marshall and his lieutenants at the head of the army. Judging by an overall headcount, there were no fewer than five hundred - less than half the number of Robert's army, but if the Chargers are as talented and skilled as they claim, according to rumour, the number difference won't matter much.
They seem every bit like a disciplined army, all soldiers standing rigidly in formation and heads being held high, each holding their weapons and maintaining their pose with practiced ease. Their armour and weaponry looked well-maintained and polished, devoid of any visible rust or grime or notches, and their fur cloaks did a marvelous job of keeping them warm in the cold winter, as indicated by the lack of uncontrollable shivering among the soldiers.
Their faces showed nothing but confidence and stoicism, a clear demonstration of the high morale and steely discipline instilled into their minds. Have to say, Morgan did a good job of training his crew. I otherwise expected a motley crew of undisciplined two-bit thugs, but this is better than I hoped for.
Mounted on a horse, I quickly rode up towards Morgan, who said, "Ah, good. You're here. I've gathered every last of my Chargers as you requested."
"Thanks for that," I said, "And as promised, I'll explain the circumstances while leading you to where my beneficiary's waiting for us; he's waiting for the help I promised him, after all."
"Lead the way, then," Gestured Morgan, and together we marched towards the campsite, where Erhart and the others will have already gathered, waiting for us.
I hope we can get this over with soon, though. There's no telling what may happen should Robert decide to hightail this to whoever higher-ups he's answering to.
And so we marched with eagerness towards the designated meeting point, the men eagerly anticipating the joy of the battle to come, and of the glory they'd be obtaining in the process. Already I could hear many brag about their supposedly superior skill to others, that they would proudly distinguish themselves and bring honour to the name of the Iron Bear's chargers.
And along the way, I upheld my end of the bargain, exchanging words with Morgan on the subject of Erhart's need for eliminating Robert's army without the use of the city guard or any soldiers of his family's private army. I also explained to him the reason for Erhart's wealth, primarily his sugar trade and the use of a sugar farm, though I was careful to omit facts on how much sugar was produced and from what; there's some cards I'd rather keep close at hand and not reveal too early.
"So unless my hearing's wrong, this Robert is invading this county for the purpose of disrupting the sugar trade of this Erhart von Einstein? And that you just repelled an attack by a group of three hundred ill-trained and ill-equipped men?"
"That's right, Morgan. Erhart's also worried that if Robert decides to proceed with an actual invasion, some of the civilians - especially those working at his farm - might be caught in the crossfire. More imperatively, he can't allow word of his sugar farm's location or operation to be leaked, or it'll cause a whole slew of problems for him."
"I suppose I can now understand the need for this secrecy. Do tell me, though, is this Robert actually aware of the sugar farm itself?"
"If I had to haphazard a guess, no. We just interrogated the captain of the penal battalion we captured, and he said only that Robert ordered an attack on Adenow for no apparent reason, so I'm guessing Robert's in the dark about our actual source of sugar."
And not long after, we arrived at the meeting site, where I already saw Erhart, Wilhelm, Belarion, Olga and her goons, all waiting for us outside of a single tent as they waved towards us, beckoning our attention.
The tent itself seemed rather sturdy, its flaps secured to the ground though ropes tied to heavy rocks in case of strong winds. Speaking of which, the winds had started picking up, and I could already feel the cold winds stinging my face.
"Good to see you have made it, and with the aid you promised," Said Erhart, "Though I didn't expect you to get this many people. By the way, who's their leader?"
"That would be me, good sir," Said Morgan as he dismounted from his horse, "I'm Lord Marshall Morgan Wolfgang, leader of the Iron Bear's Chargers. You may call me Eisenbär, if wish."
"Eisenbär? As in, the Eisenbär?" Asked Erhart, seemingly in disbelief.
"The one and only," Said Morgan, a slight smirk crossing his lips, "Are you that surprised that I and my Chargers are here?"
"Yes, actually," Said Erhart, who turned to face me, "You really exceeded my expectations, Kiryu; I didn't expect the entirety of the Iron Bear's Chargers to be here, much less the Iron Bear himself."
"She did help me with an errant ex-Charger of mine, I'm merely returning the favour," Said Morgan, who gave a glance at Olga, the woman turning to face away.
"In any case, shall we head inside the tent? We can discuss our next course of action there," Said Erhart, beckoning towards the tent.
"Then let us do so," Said Morgan.
IIOII
We were all gathered in the tent, around a table that held a map outlining the geography of Orso with two circles, one denoting our position, the other showing that of Robert's army. On the map were small tokens, representing the military assets that both armies possessed, with those representing Robert's army clustered on a hill, and those representing the Chargers arranged on our location.
And currently, about a quarter of our tokens were positioned in the nearby forest, which bordered the hill Robert's army camped on. The other three quarters were positioned next to the hill, as if they were poised for a frontal assault on the fortified position.
"So what we shall do here is deliberately mount a direct assault on the hill, and that will serve to draw his attention," Said Belarion, "And when he does take the bait, we'll take the chance to extend and close our ranks around Robert's men, enclosing his entourage in a pocket from which he cannot escape."
"And while that's happening, a quarter will circle around through the nearby forest and charge into the campsite," Said Erhart, "After which, they will plant our flags around it."
"A sure way to sap the enemy's morale, should it succeed," Noted Morgan, "I trust you've studied the enemy general's character?"
"Belarion? Wilhelm?" I asked the two.
"Aye," Nodded Wilhelm, "I went an' did a little scryin' spell on Robert's campsite, and believe me, bloody armleuchter's cocky as fuck. I saw a few o' his men protested 'gainst the attack, n' he jus' shot 'em down like they were total angeber! Not only that, he thinks jus' a thousand men's 'nough to make this job's easy as pie! Fucking cock-sucking cock of a noble..."
"I get your point, Wilhelm, we all do," I said, slightly exasperated, "Anyway, given that the general's that simple-minded, he'll definitely take the bait, hook, line and sinker."
"But we also need to make sure no one can escape and spill any word of this," Said Morgan, "If it does, there's no telling what the possible ramifications might be."
"It's fine, really," Said Olga, "Erhart's mom's goin' out on patrol, and wit' her patrollin' the border, ain't no one's gonna escape, unless they happen t'somehow bypass her and her entourage."
"Pardon the sudden question, but who is Erhart's mother, exactly?" Asked Belarion, "Is she particularly feared in these parts?"
"Yeah, I've been meaning to ask you this too, Erhart," I said to him, "Just who is she, exactly?"
"Well... suffice to say, she's known as the Savage Lioness," Said Erhart sheepishly, "Most who hear her title-"
"Wait, the Savage Lioness? The Savage Lioness Adalwolfa von Einstein?" Asked Morgan.
"That's what I said, Lord Marshall," Said Erhart.
Morgan said nothing for a moment, his eyes wide as saucers in that moment as his mind processed that tidbit of information. Seriously, just who is the Savage Lioness?
Then I saw Morgan break into a slight chuckle, then a few bouts of giggling, and now full-blown laughter, as if this whole subject's a damn joke to him. Is there something going on that I should know? Particularly regarding the identity of Erhart's mom?
Having calmed down, Morgan then said to Erhart, "To think your mother was Adalwolfa of all people. How the world is such a small place..."
"Excuse me, but just who is this Savage Lioness, really?" I asked, "Is there something I should know about her?"
"Um, long story short, she's a formidable ex-mercenary whose name instill's fear in the hearts of many, mercenary, knight and soldier alike," Explained Erhart, "Rumour has it that she was trained by a formidable mercenary decades ago, whose strength was unparalleled and unmatched by many across Orso, and that she inherited his strength. Some also say she is capable of besting an entire battalion's worth of knights with her brute strength and skill in the axe alone, though I think the last part's exaggerated slightly."
Only slightly, eh? Seems there's more to her than I thought. Guess I'll need to broaden my knowledge of the underworld soon enough, particularly regarding mercenaries.
"So I'm guessing that's the plan, then?" Said Belarion, bringing the conversation back on track, "But who will lead the ambushing force, though?"
"I'll do it," Volunteered Olga, "Me 'n my boys can lead the small force through the forest and jump 'em bastards 'fore they get the chance to croak. We're familiar wit' the forest's terrain, we can guide them Chargers through."
"Then it's settled," I said, "Time to teach an arrogant Duke a lesson in humility."