When Baldur heard about Moonglow River from Kavri, the Nord asked for a map and looked to where the river leads. As with every river in Eostia, it all led to the River Thane in Garan. He discovered that Moonglow River would pass by Castle Vallonton. The Nord asked the Duke of Calvet how close the river was to the castle and Arnoult told him that there was a small village settled on the river that was only a hundred meters from the castle.
A plan slowly formed on Baldur's mind before asking the Duke where the Discordians were last seen. The Duke replied that the enemy was a day away from Besanvin and that it was composed of mainly Orcs, Dark Elves and the remaining Beastmen. Confident that the Nord wasn't doing this to abandon them, Arnoult gave him permission to leave and enact his plan.
After gaining permission from the Duke, Baldur and his men set off for the river. Leaving his Mercenary-Commanders in charge of the company while he left to raid the lightly defended Castle Vallonton. Under the Duke's orders, Baldur and the Steelbreakers would be accompanied by a group of Knights composed of five Calvet Knights and five Templar Knights. Said group was led by Knight-Captain Isabelle who looked forward to working with the Nord once more.
It took them a couple of hours to reach Kavri's ship -which was a cog- and they immediately set sail for Castle Vallonton. With his own forces combined with Isabelle's and Kavri's, they numbered at about fifty three in total. Baldur deemed the numbers good enough for his plan.
They eventually arrived near the village by the river. A couple of Kavri's men took a rowboat and scouted the village before rowing back and reported that it was inhabited by Beastmen and their prisoners. If Baldur had to guess, it was the women that lived in the village. He held no doubts that the men and children were probably dead. The scouts also reported that security was lax. None of the Beastmen noticed them. Too busy fucking their prisoners inside the houses.
Baldur saw this as the perfect opportunity and told Kavri to head for the village and make landfall. It's been a long time since he conducted a raid by sea. Most of the raids he performed were at the coasts of the border of their enemies but the majority of battles the Shield Companions fought were on land.
Even before he joined the Vaegir army, Baldur was already well-versed in raiding. It was part of life in the harsh, frozen realm of Nordland. Since he was twelve, Baldur had been accompanying his father whenever the Konungur of Frostrike would head out to raid territories of rival Nords. Taking resources that Frostrike sorely needed as well as other valuables. Raiding Calradia was different, however.
Rather than simply raid the northern region of the continent for resources, the Nords of Norðurland would steal valuable treasures and artifacts -as well as important people like family members of Village Elders, blacksmiths, merchants and other prominent citizens- from the settlement they raided and would sell and ransom them back to their village for a price. Not too high but not too low either. Somewhere in between. They also offered the settlements they raided a deal they could not refuse. They would stop raiding them in return for a monthly tribute and would also protect their homes from being raided by other Nords like Sea Raiders. It had become a very profitable profession next to trading.
It was through these raids and the training he received from his father that he did exceptionally well when he joined the Vaegir army. His experience, skill and prowess earned him much respect from his fellow soldiers. Making him a formidable foe against the Vaegirs' enemies as well as a match against the Sea Raiders that terrorized the territories of both the Norðurlandaríki and Korolevstvo Vegirov.
Speaking of raids. Baldur waited as the ship drew closer to the village. His eyes focused solely on the village itself. Searching for any Beastmen that might see them. Behind him, his Steelbreakers were ready and eager. This had been their first raid in months since they left their homeland to join the Skjaldfélagar.
Within the borders of Feoh, the Feohmænd were divided into two distinct groups. Those who had fully embraced the Eostian culture and those who kept the Nordic tradition and identity alive. The latter were called Nordmænd while the former were called Eostmænd but outside of their homeland both were simply referred to as Feohmænd. One of the many traditions kept alive by the Nordmænd was raiding. Just like their ancestors, the Nordmænd made raiding a profitable profession.
When the first Nords arrived and settled in Eostia, Nordic Raiders or Vikings or Víkingar took to using the interconnected rivers across Eostia to raid the Principalities of Ur, Ken, Ansur, Rad and Thorn. Something their descendants continued to practice until they joined the Seven Shields Alliance. After becoming the Principality of Feoh, the Nordmænd turned their raiding eyes to Garan even before the Dark Queen took over and established the Kingdom of Discordia. During the Alliance's campaign in Garan, Feoh provided many Víkingar or Vikinger that terrorized the rivers of Garan. Many of them were already doing so in the first place but now they were being paid to raid the Discordians.
The Víkingar also braved the Forgotten Sea more than other Eostian merchants to trade with the Holy Aurelian Empire, Eldonian Sultanate and many more countries. They also offered their services as mercenaries to these said countries settled south of the Forgotten Sea. Some Víkingar, however, decided to remain and settle in the places they raided or were hired by. Spreading the Nordic culture to other countries. For example, the northern borders of the Principato di Ur have many settlements that had combined both the culture of the Principato di Ur and Nordic Feoh. They identified themselves as Uriano-Nordici and their history can be traced all the way back to the time of Sigmundr the Conqueror.
"This is close enough." Baldur announced.
As soon as the ship slowed to a stop near the shore, Baldur and his Steelbreakers jumped over the side of the ship and landed on the shallow water. They pushed to the shore before reaching land and quickly broke into a sprint towards the village. Leaving behind flabbergasted Calvet Knights, Dawn Templars and privateers.
Isabelle quickly snapped out of it and looked to the Half-Orc Captain.
"Drop anchor!"
"Tch. I give the orders around 'ere, girl. Not you!"
The Knight-Captain glared at the privateer but shook her head. Fighting over this was pointless. She looked back at Baldur and watched as the Nord and his men reached the village.
Meanwhile, said Nord bashed open the door of the first house he came upon and saw three Beastman violently raping a young woman. He didn't give them a chance to react and threw one of his throwing axes at the first Beastman before rushing the other two and swung his weapon down. Splitting the second Beastman's head open before removing his long axe from the now dead Beastman and grabbed the horn of the third Beastman. Baldur threw the Beastman to the ground and brought his boot down on the Beastman's crotch before bringing his long axe down on it's head.
The Nord made quick work of the three Beastmen and moved to retrieve his throwing axe from the dead Beastman but stopped when he felt a pair of lithe arms around him. He looked down as the woman that the Beastmen were previously violating looked up at him with lust-filled eyes. Grinding her naked body against his own as her right hand caressed his cheek while the other reached down to his crotch.
Baldur grabbed said hand before it could go any further and pushed the woman back but this didn't deter her and she threw herself at the Nord again but a hand to her forehead stopped her from latching onto him.
"Don't." He warned.
"Fuck me!" The woman yelled. Desperation clear in her voice "Fuck my little pussy with your dick! Fuck me!"
'I have no time for this.' Baldur thought. Annoyed.
Without hesitation, Baldur pushed the woman to the wall. Causing her to hit her head and crumple to the floor in an unconscious heap. The Nord shook his head before wordlessly retrieving his throwing axe from the Beastman's corpse and walked out of the house.
Outside, Baldur watched in satisfaction as his Steelbreakers fought and killed the Beastmen with ease. They were soon joined by Isabelle and her company as well as Kavri and ten of her crewmen. The rest having remained with the ship.
Their attack was unexpected as the Beastmen were informed by their Chief that the Eostians were holed up in Besanvin. The Beastmen had no reason to believe that any of their foes would attack the castle. Let alone the village. They knew that the Discordians and the majority of the remaining Beastmen and Chief Murzaog had marched to Besanvin and should have reached the town by now and because of this, they had expected to enjoy their prisoners in peace. This proved to be their undoing as the Beastmen were slaughtered left and right.
Off to the side, Isabelle grunted as she ripped her blade out of a Beastman and watched as it fell to it's knees. Baring her teeth at the beast, she kicked the Beastman hard in the chest. Sending it to the ground before leaving the beast to bleed to death.
The Knight-Captain turned away from the Beastman and walked over to the house that the Beastman had come from. The door to the house shattered afte the Beastman burst out of the house and ambushed her. She entered the small building and shuddered in disgust when she stepped on a white puddle on the floor. Her eyes fell on the two women lying on the floor before landing on the one lying on the bed. She knelt down by the two on the floor and saw that they were unconscious before moving on to the one on the bed.
As soon as she touched the woman's neck to check if she was alive, the woman's eyes snapped open and she lunged at the Dawn Templar. Taking her by surprise and causing her to fall to the floor. Before she could do anything, Isabelle felt a pair of lips pressed against her own while a soft hand slid down her abdomen.
Isabelle's eyes widened in shock and she moved to push the woman off but involuntarily let out a moan as the woman slid two fingers inside the Knight-Captain's womanhood after slipping her hand inside Isabelle's underwear. The Dawn Templar's resolve weakened as the woman's fingers quickened in their pace.
After a few minutes, the woman suddenly pulled back from the Knight-Captain. Leaving a string of saliva between their mouths as she took a breath but didn't stop from thrusting her fingers inside the Dawn Templar. It was only through sheer willpower that Isabelle managed to stop herself from losing her mind to lust and formed a fist before decking the woman across the cheek. Throwing her off and smashing her head against the bed. Knocking her out.
Isabelle backpedalled and took deep breaths to calm herself down. Her face flushed a deep red from what happened as well as shame. She was lucky she didn't lose herself but she almost did. Four of the woman's fingers had thrust in and out of her. Hitting all the right spots and if she had continued for a few more moments Isabelle might have completely lost herself to the pleasure and climaxed. She looked down at her underwear and grimaced upon seeing how wet it was.
The Knight-Captain shakily stood up and took a moment to steady herself before running out of the building. Hoping that it would dry off and that no one would notice. Unfortunately in her haste to leave, Isabelle had left behind her sword. Only realizing it too late when she encountered her next opponent.
Isabelle cursed and took out her dagger. Just her luck. Of all the Beastmen she had to encounter, it was a Minotaur. A naked one at that. The Minotaur licked it's lips upon seeing her and she realized it was staring directly at her still wet crotch. It's cock twitched and Isabelle glared at the Beastman in disgust.
"Just my luck." She grumbled.
Isabelle readied herself to face off against the Minotaur but before either of them could make the first move, the Beastman roared in pain before falling to one knee. The Minotaur glared over it's shoulder only to receive an axe head to it's temple. Killing it instantly.
Baldur released his grip on his long axe and took out his bearded axe and a throwing axe before throwing the latter at a fleeing Satyr and nailing the Beastman in the back of the head. He took out another throwing axe and ran towards the closest Beastman. He swung his bearded axe and buried it in a Pigman's gut before bringing his other axe down and split it's skull open.
The Nord removed his axe from the now dead Beastman and put away both axes before taking out his round shield and Nordic Sword then used the former to block a sickle meant for his head and used the latter to impale his attacker in the flank. He pushed the Beastman back and removed his sword from it's body before swinging his sword wide and sliced open the Boarman's throat. Blood spilling over his already bloodstained armor.
Baldur looked around and saw that the last of the Beastmen were taken care of. His Steelbreakers letting out triumphant war cries as they stood over the fallen forms od the Beastmen. Kavri and her men mercilessly cut down the Beastmen they faced with the former letting out a roar of victory. The Calvet Knights and the Dawn Templars joined in the cheers. Baldur, however, knew that he had to silence them lest they give away their presence to the Beastmen in the castle.
"That's enough." He called out "It's not over yet. Gather as much supplies as you can. Food, weapons, everything. Take them back to the ship. Take the women too but put them to sleep first. They'd jump you as soon as they see you. Stálbrjótar. You know the rules. No fucking. Move it."
The Steelbreakers heeded their Mercenary Lord's word and proceeded to do what he ordered them to do. Isabelle ordered her Knights and Dawn Templars to do the same while Kavri and her men joined the others in looting the village of anything of worth. The Knight-Captain decided to use her mantle to cover the fact that she was still wet and joined Baldur as the Nord stared at the castle in the distance. With the helmet and aventail obscuring the majority of his face, the only thing Isabelle was able to see were his bright blue eyes.
She could tell the Nord was thinking but she never really knew what goes on in Baldur's head. Oleg admitted that Baldur always found a way to surprise him even after fighting side-by-side with him for years. Sometimes he had the Nord figured out but then he would do something unexpected. It was hard to get a read on him. Even those closest to him still had trouble with that.
'What are you thinking, Baldur?'
(Line Break)
Once the spoils of their raid were all boarded in the ship, Baldur told the others to head back to Besanvin without him and the Steelbreakers. When Isabelle asked why, the Nord said that he and his men would be taking the castle. While they were hauling off the loot, Baldur scouted out the castle to the best of his ability. While he wasn't as good as Batu when it comes to scouting, he was good enough to estimate how many Beastmen were left to defend the castle and Baldur was confident that he and his men would be able to take it alone. The Knight-Captain, of course, thought this was insane and demanded that the others join them. Baldur declined and said that he would only be taking five with him while the remaining five stayed close to the gate and wait for the gates to open before assaulting the castle.
Kavri didn't care much about his plan as long as she can get back to Besanvin in time to face Gorim. Isabelle, on the other hand, tried to convince the Nord to allow them to join him but Baldur was adamant in only taking his Steelbreakers. But eventually, Baldur relented but it was only through Knight-Lieutenant Estelle's reasoning did he allow them to do so.
Baldur grunted and shook his head before focusing on the task at hand. That being scaling the wall using grapple hooks they procured from Kavri's supplies in her ship. For a price of course. The Nord and his Steelbreakers had waited until it was dark before scaling the least patrolled section of the castle's walls. They eventually reached the top of the wall and climbed over to the battlements.
After making sure that there was no patrol nearby, Baldur and his Steelbreakers silently made their way to where the gate controls were. Under the cover of darkness, the Nord and Nordmænd silently crept through the battlements. Taking out the Beastmen patrols in their way as quietly as they can. They realized that none of the Beastmen they killed were on alert. In fact, they seem lax. Just like the ones in the river village, the Beastmen defending this castle did not expect anyone to attack them. This gave Baldur and the Steelbreakers the element of surprise.
Upon feeling the Satyr cease struggling and limp beneath his hold, Baldur removed his seax from the Beastman's neck and quickly dumped the body over the battlements. Thankfully, none of the Beastmen had been alerted by the sound of the bodies slamming into the ground beyond the wall. Crouched low, he slowly made his way over to the gate controls which was placed inside the arrow tower left of the gate itself. He pushed open the door slowly and peeked inside to check if anyone was in there. His eyes landed on two Boarmen spit roasting a young girl, barely in her teens from the looks of it, who he assumed to be a member of the castle's staff.
Taking out his long axe and one of his throwing axes, Baldur took a deep breath before bursting into the tower. He hurled the throwing axe at the first Boarman and struck the Beastman directly on the temple. Before the other one could react, Baldur closed the distance and smashed the Boarman across the face with the knob of his long axe. Throwing it to the ground on all fours before Baldur quickly brought his weapon down and severed it's head from it's shoulder.
Baldur quickly checked if there was anyone left in the arrow tower before whistling to his men who quickly entered the arrow tower and gathered around the Nord. Taking care to keep their heads low to avoid anybody noticing their presence. The girl that the two Boarmen had been violating stared blankly at the wall and remained unmoving on the floor.
"Raise the portcullis." Baldur ordered "Open the gate."
Four of the Steelbreakers moved over to the gate controls and started raising the portcullis. Baldur and the remaining Steelbreakers kept watch just in case. Soon enough, the portcullis was raised entirely and the gates were opened. Signalling Isabelle and her Knights to charge into the castle. By the time the Beastmen were alerted of the attack, the Knights and Steelbreakers were already in the castle's courtyard. Killing any Beastmen they encountered as they made their way to the keep.
The doors to the keep burst open as the Beastmen inside rushed out in a stampede to meet the attackers in battle.
Baldur led the charge against the Beastmen and let out a war cry before swinging his Long Axe and beheading the first Beastman he encountered. His Steelbreakers roared as they charged past Baldur and into the Beastmen. Bashing their shields into the beasts before unleashing their fury and bloodlust at their enemy.
Before Baldur was somewhat 'tamed' in his fighting but tonight, Isabelle and her Knights bear witnessed as the Nord let himself go all out. He fought the beasts as if he was in a trance. Killing them left and right with ease. He didn't stop and swung his weapon wildly but unlike his opponents who did the same, Baldur struck them down with each swing. His entire body was covered head-to-toe with blood as well as his weapon.
The trail of bodies the Mercenary Lord of the Shield Companions left behind as well as his bloody appearance bothered the Knights unlike the Steelbreakers who appeared to be getting more and more violent and unhinged as they watched their leader cut down the Beastmen. Some even began to chant his name which was quickly followed by the rest of the Steelbreakers.
"Baldur! Baldur! Baldur! Baldur!"
Said Nord beheaded a Lesser Minotaur and picked up it's head by the horn before planting his boot on it's back and held out the severed head of the Lesser Minotaur towards the remaining Beastmen as they retreated back to the keep. He raised his bloodied long axe above his head and cried out at the Beastmen.
"Ég er Baldur Hausakljúfr og þið verðið öll veisla fyrir krákurnar!"
"Veisla fyrir krákurnar!"
The Steelbreakers echoed their leader before slamming their weapons on their shields and howling to the night. In an ironic twist, the Beastmen were intimidated by humans who acted like beasts. Cowering back to their keep as Baldur and the Stálbrjótar cried out 'Veisla fyrir krákurnar!' one last time before chasing after the fleeing Beastmen.
(Line Break)
While the night saw Castle Vallonton reclaimed by Baldur and Isabelle's forces, Kavri and her crew arrived in Besanvin the morning after just in time as the Discordians were spotted in the distance. The town's bells were rung and the defenders immediately ran inside to prepare Besanvin's defenses against the enemy. In the distance, a massive horde of Orcs -accompanied by groups of Beastmen- charged towards the town. Behind them, a contingent of Dark Rangers, Bow Masters, Sword Reavers and Dreadknights followed in a more orderly pace.
Three hundred meters from the town, the Orcs discovered the first of the many defenses the Eostians prepared for them. Large caltrops pierced through the soles of their boots and many of the Greenskins fell to the ground. Tripping over the other and slowing down the enemy's momentum but the Orcs pushed through. Uncaring for those who were injured, the Orcs left them behind in favor of continuing their advance. Unwilling to lose their momentum but as soon as they got past the field of caltrops, the Orcs were pelted with a volley of arrows from the Yumi Rōnins who were stationed at the battlements atop of the gate.
While a single arrow was not enough to stop an Orc, the volley's purpose was not to kill the Orcs but to slow them down. Give those manning the catapults time to aim their artillery pieces before hurling them at the Greenskins. Their ammunition, however, were not rocks or debris but rather pots filled with oil with a rag tied around the neck of the pot. The rags were set on fire before the incendiaries were hurled towards the Greenskins. The incendiaries would shatter upon impact and douse the Orc it struck with oil. The fire on the rags setting them aflame and those unfortunate enough to be splashed with the oil upon the pots' shattering. This also had the unintended consequence of setting the field on fire.
Despite dealing casualties upon the Orcs, the tide of Greenskins eventually reached the main gate. Funneling themselves through the only bridge over the moat and bringing with them a battering ram that was capped with the head of a Dire Wolf made from iron. A handful of Orcs, however, grew impatient and tried to break through the main gate with just their weapons. In response, the defenders released the raised portcullis and impaled the Greenskins underneath as well as preventing the Orcs from using their battering ram on the gate itself.
Meanwhile, the Dark Rangers and Bow Masters positioned themselves at the rear of the Orc ranks and shot their enchanted arrows at the soldiers atop the battlements. The former, however, were more accurate and precise than the latter. Managing to shoot through the arrow slits of the arrow towers. This caused the arrow towers to shift their focus on the Dark Rangers who were quick to move out of attack range. The same cannot be said for the Bow Masters who were unable to move away fast enough. The defenders inflicting heavy casualties upon their ranks.
With the portcullis lowered and making it harder for the Orcs to break the gate, the Discordians pulled back and settled for a prolonged siege as the sun set and the moon rose from the horizon. This gave the town's defenders room to breathe and recuperate as the Discordians began construction of a fortified camp far from artillery and missile range while also planning their next move.
Atop the battlements, Oleg watched the Discordians in the distance and grimaced. Why did it have to be now of all times did Baldur decide to start raiding? The company's morale was still high and many were confident that they would be able to hold out against the siege but some -i.e Jaune de Crevier- however, would be more confident in their chances if the Mercenary Lord of the Shield Companions was here himself.
The Vaegir shook his head and moved to leave but stopped when he saw a raven in the sky. He turned and held out his arm and the raven perched itself on his vambrace. Oleg saw the message tied to the raven's leg and removed it before the raven flew off his arm and perched itself on the top of a merlon. He unfurled the rolled up message and read it. A small smile formed on his lips before looking at the raven who flew up and perched itself on his shoulder.
"Baldur, you crazy bastard." He muttered to himself.
Oleg walked away from the battlements and left to inform Duke Arnoult of this new development. News of their Mercenary Lord taking Castle Vallonton with only his Steelbreakers and eleven Knights would surely elate the Duke and the Duchess as well as raise the company's spirits further.
Unbeknownst to the Vaegir and the rest of the town's defenders, a small group of Dark Rangers scaled the least defended section of the wall and infiltrated the town. Their mission? Eliminate the Mercenary-Captains of the Eostians' hired mercenaries as well as the Knight-Commander of the Dawn Templars and the Knight-Commander od the Calvet and Lavaud Knights. They were also tasked with setting fire to the food stores in an effort to starve the defenders and break them.
(Line Break)
Later that night, Oleg slept facing the wall. Leaving his back exposed to the assassin that slowly crept up towards his sleeping form or at least she thought she was. Unbeknownst to the Dark Ranger, the Vaegir had woken up the moment she opened the door and entered his room. His eyes were wide open and he was watching her shadow on the wall in front of him. Casted by the light from candle and helping him discern where the Dark Ranger was.
The Vaegir tightened the grip on the dagger underneath his pillow and watched as the shadow of the Dark Ranger stopped moving. The Dark Elf then unsheathed a dagger from her belt and slowly raised it high above her head before bringing the blade down towards the Vaegir's neck. Oleg quickly turned and deflected the Dark Ranger's blade with his dagger before quickly getting off the bed and stood to his full height.
The Dark Elf, meanwhile, created some distance between them the moment Oleg deflected her blade. She took out another dagger and lunged at the Vaegir who grabbed the blanket from the mattress and threw it towards her.
Just as Oleg had intended, the blanket caught the Dark Ranger unawares and covered her head. Stopping her in her tracks. He quickly threw a hard punch to her gut that dropped her to her knees as well as causing her to drop her blades before pulling the blanket off of her. The Vaegir grabbed her by the hair before rearing his fist back then decked his assailant across the face with enough force to throw her to the floor. He then grabbed her by the cloak and threw her across the room.
The Dark Ranger smashed hard into the wall and fell into a heap on the floor. She tried to crawl towards the door, her body screaming in pain and protest, but didn't get far as Oleg grabbed her by the back of the head and smashed her face into the floorboards. He repeated this action until the Dark Elf was limp and unconscious. He proceeded to search her body for any hidden weapons and found six of them before taking off his belt and used it to bind the Dark Ranger's wrist.
Once he was done, Oleg grabbed the Dark Elf by the ankle and started dragging her unconscious form out of the room. Grabbing his Nordic Sword and Kite Shield along the way. Outside, he was greeted by Bhaltair, Isolla, A'isha and Batu who shared the second floor of the inn with him and saw that they were armed. Upon seeing that he was unharmed, the Mercenary-Commanders relaxed and Olef told them to keep an eye out for anymore assassins before carrying the unconscious Dark Elf on his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and made his way downstairs.
Oleg exited the inn that half of the Shield Companions were occupying and made his way towards town hall with his prisoner. Normally, he would have just killed her but he knew that the Duke would want to interrogate this Dark Elf and get as much information as he can about their enemy before locking her up or have her executed.
On his way to the town hall, he passed by the church and the building the Dawn Templars were using as their temporary housing and saw that the Templars were gathered around the body of a Dark Ranger. A sword sticking out of the Dark Elf's chest.
'Looks like I'm not the only one that was attacked.' The Vaegir thought.
Oleg grunted and continued on towards the town hall. He passed by soldiers who were roused by the commotion while also discovering that the Mercenary-Captain of the Silver Hearts was dead and the Red Vixen's Mercenary-Captain was badly wounded. Some of the soldiers say she wouldn't last the night.
The Vaegir stopped in his tracks and grabbed a Peasant Militiaman who was about to walk past him by the arm.
"Are the food stores secure?"
"Uh, y-yes." The young man stuttered "The soldiers guarding it were attacked but they repelled the attackers when a couple of Knights passed by while patrolling. The food stores are safe."
Oleg hummed and let the young man go before leaving.
'At least we won't starve. That'll keep our morale stable for now but these assassinations would certainly shake some of the men's faiths about this siege. I'll have to tell the Duke about that. Maybe he'll be able to rally these men with speeches.'
(Line Break)
On the Count's chair at the end of the keep's great hall sat Baldur who watched as his Steelbreakers, the Dawn Templars and Calvet Knights ate dinner on the large table in the middle of the hall. After taking the castle and freeing the remaining castle staff, the company decided to rest and feast. Morale was high after the last of the Beastmen in the castle were killed. It was natural that they would celebrate their victory. Baldur, however, decided to take a bath first. It was the end of the week after all.
Once he was done, he returned to the great hall and joined the feast. Eating his share of the meal and drinking a single cup of wine. It was lucky that not all the food in the castle was consumed by the occupying Beastmen and the cellar was untouched. The surviving castle staff was allowed to leave or stay. Whichever they choose. Many stayed after Baldur informed them of the county's current situation and many were too afraid to leave lest they run into the Beastmen or the Discordians.
"You, uh, really made yourself comfortable there, huh?"
Baldur turned his head towards Isabelle as she approached him. A goblet of wine in her hand. Her eyes lingered to his chest before looking up at his eyes. The reason for her wandering eyes was because Baldur had the castle staff wash his clothes and clean his armor and weapons. Leaving him in nothing but his trousers and boots. Revealing his muscular but weathered body to those around him.
The Nord's torso and back was littered with scars while his arms and chest bore a myriad of tattoos. On his right shoulder was a tattoo of the Nordic Raven while on his left shoulder was the Valknut. On his left breast was the hammer of Thor, Mjǫllnir, while on the right was the symbol of the Skjöldung dynasty whom his father was a member of.
"Don't worry. I'm not here to take over the county. I'm just here to take a seat."
"Right."
Before she could say anything else, a raven flew into the hall through the hall's open doors and landed on the arm of the Count's chair. Baldur took the pair of messages tied to it's legs and read the contents. A grimace formed on his face after he finished reading both letters.
"The Siege of Besanvin has already begun." Baldur stated. Earning the attention of the entire table.
"What happened?" Isabelle inquired.
"The first day of the siege went well and the Discordians were repelled with minimal casualties but the same can't be said tonight. The Discordians tried to assassinate the Mercenary-Captains of the Silver Hearts, Red Vixens, Rōnins and Lavender Company as well as the Knight-Commander of the Dawn Templars, Calvet Knights and Lavaud Knights. The Silver Heart's Mercenary-Captain is dead and the Red Vixen's captain won't last the night. Oleg managed to capture one of the assassins before they could escape."
"What about the Knight-Commander?" Isabelle demanded. Fearing the life of her mother "Is she alright?"
"She's alive. Wounded but alive." Baldur answered. Earning a sigh of relief from the Knight-Captain. He then turned to address the rest of the table.
"The Duke ordered us to remain here. Repair and fortify the castle. The Duke and his forces would hold the Discordians in Besanvin until the Marshal of Ken arrives with reinforcements and when they do, they'll drive the Discordians into a route. The Discordian may either retreat back to Garan or retreat here. If that happens, we will be here to greet them with cold steel and fury."
Baldur stood up "We start fortifying the castle on first light. For now, we rest. We have a long day tomorrow."
AN: Translations
• Ég er Baldur Hausakljúfr og þið verðið öll veisla fyrir krákurnar! = I am Baldur Head-splitter and you will all be a feast for the crows!
• Veisla fyrir krákurnar! = Feast for the crows!