"What are we gonna say to them when we get there?"
"Lie and say that only the 4 of us survived the dead, but we can always be truthful."
Dennis can only look at him in concern. For the past 2 months, the little scouting group he joined in has been diminished through out the time. Many of them have left to rejoin their families, or they have claimed fealty and loyalty to the Necromancer. Some might as well turned to Vault and report to him of what happened since then. Although odd, he is relieved. Two months is a long time, and the fact that a group hasn't captured them yet is a good thing.
The only issue now is a place to stay for them, or play a part in this war. They have mostly left the dark mage- or Dark Lord- deal with this on his own, and they've been stuck in an impasse.
To clear his thoughts, he looked out to the greenery, seeing the broad trees amongst the pale yellow road. He doesn't have to worry about bandit attacks since most of them have fled due to the looming threat of the Necromancer. Much less gazing upon the sight of of dead men that wander amongst the living.
"Tch... Ever since he declared war on those mercenaries, they've been popping up everywhere. From where they drowned, and from where they lay in shallow graves." An elf in the group grumbled.
"At least they're not after us." Bronn quipped. "Tell me, elf. What's your name?"
"Torien." She quickly replied.
"Torien? That's a nice name." He chuckles as he tosses her an apple. "Eat up."
The elf only gave him an incredulous look, but she relents and took a bite out of it. Her ears also perked up as she hears the sound of rushing waters. It didn't take long for the group to reach the grand sight of a cave, accompanied by the pleasant rushing waters by the river right next to it.
Bronn whistled at the sight of it. "What a pretty cave we got here." He quipped.
He isn't wrong at all. The green moss decorated it nicely, the flowers that litter across the bed of tall grass, and even the sight of brown and orange mushrooms added something to this pretty looking sight.
"Let's take a break here." He said as he got of his horse. "It'll be a while until we reach Ken, and I doubt Dwarves will be kind enough to lend us their Kärs."
"Kärs?" Torien asked, her pretty head tilted over to the side.
"They reinvented carts and carriages. You don't need a horse anymore, you can just hop right in after filling up the engines. Whatever the fuck that is."
Dennis snickered to himself as he dismounted with the others. Although, he is interested if they have come close to such a thing. After all, magic is strong here. He wouldn't be surprised if that was involved. Now that he thought about it... what else has magic achieved when it came to their progress?
"I'll write about that when the time comes..." He mutters to himself as he starts rummaging through a bag and pulled out a slab of bacon and Chicken.
"While you're at it, fetch us a bottle of wine. Y'know, the one with blue bottle and a black cork?"
"We have Red wine, Bronn. Are you sure you want that one?"
The sellsword only shook his head. "Give me the blue one. I like the way how it fizzes up, and by the gods, it's taste was good."
With a shrug, he grabs the wine and hands it to him. Now that he thinks about... he starts staring at the bacon and chicken. With a chopper, he cuts off a piece of the bacon and chops it into sizable bits, and for the chicken, he tore off the breasts and chopped the thighs and quarters them.
"What are you doing?!"
"Cooking something! I think you're all gonna like it!"
"But you're ruining the meat!"
"Yeah yeah. While I'm at it, go start us a fire. We're gonna need it."
Bronn can only look at him incredulously as his jaw hangs loosely. Nonetheless, he complied. Muttering as he gathers up the twigs, dead leaves, and dead logs.
He arranged all of it into a nice clean pile. "The ants better be worth it." He quipped to himself as he saw the Elven Archer shoot it with a flaming arrow.
"OK, all I need are mushrooms and I-" He flinches as he sees Two large mushroom caps fall upon, and he looks at the person's feet, slowly craning his head to the top.
To his relief, it's just one of the party members, one of the girls. Now that he thinks about it, she could've been one of the original members, one that he forgot as he looked over them before.
He found it odd too. She was fairly tall, and well built. Wearing a skinned bear pelt for a cape, the armor that adorned her chest, the muscles she has on her biceps, and with the war paint that decorates her face. He realizes that she is a warrior woman, but from where though? This world's version of the Scottish Highlanders, or Bear Island? Whichever it is, he felt ashamed for for getting about her.
She knelt down, stabbing the broadsword she has down at the ground and pulls out a knife.
"What are you...?" He said as he watches her scrape off the gills, and starts hacking it up.
He can only sigh to himself as he tends to the pot, thinking about how life goes on and everything, but that's only scratching the surface. Deep down, he feels something eating away at him. He doesn't even know if its because of confliction, or guilt.
Guilt because he feels like out of everyone in this group, he's staying out of the war, letting the people in this continent suffer at the hands of those bastards.
He feels conflicted. Conflicted because he wants to play a part, but should he? He doesn't live in this world, and it's not like everyone here is begging him to save them all.
Thinking about this predicament only made him sigh in order to bring himself out of it. He can't bring himself to space out again, and that's the last thing he needed. He did that once, and it's all because of that book.
Memories surged through his head as he remembered those dreadful memories... how he remembered walking through those dreadful floors in the museum he once worked at in his world... how he saw that dreadful eye and ruined his mi-
"Oi! Snap out of it!"
The foreigner tensed up after hearing those words. Frantically, he snapped his eyes around as if he was searching for a predator, waiting to snatch him up.
Bronn only sighed and gave him a pat on the shoulder. "War is never easy, boy. Sure, I get payed to be in wars and all, but even I know how brutal it can be. Just don't pay attention to the screams and pay attention to the fat sacks of gold you'll get!"
Dennis only rolled his eyes at the last part, but it was enough to calm him down at least. He relinquished the tight hold he had on the pot, and went back on preparing whatever dish he's gonna come up with.
Time has passed ever since they took refuge in the cave. Hours felt like minutes, but it was comfortable as they enjoyed the dish the foreigner came.
"The moment I saw you pouring down the wine inside the pot, I knew there was something wrong with you!" Bronn laughed. "What do you call this anyway?"
"Coq au Vin." Dennis simply replied, rolling his eyes as he heard him snicker from those words.
The Elf only sighed as she just ignored the mercenary, sharpening the short sword she carries around on her waist with a rock she picked up by the river.
Dennis only sighed to himself when he looked at the other party members. Two of them never being sociable in the slightest, and he can't blame them. Seeing the dire state around the Kingdom, especially with how the law now works, a part of him laughs at the fact that although these people were smart enough to topple the scales to ensure such chaos, it was a waste! A Sex Empire, run by a mercenary with no right to rule. A part of him feels sorrow that this is how things work now.
He can't wrap his head around this entire predicament. Sure, he was no politician by any means, but even the lowest gutter rat can tell that this will all fail in due time.
He kept on thinking as he stared out to the darkening sky, deep in thought, but that train came to a halt as he ended up noticing the warrior woman staring at him.
"It can either be that she likes you, or maybe she just wants you stop staring at the sky like a fool." Bronn quipped as he walks over, clear that he feels rather tipsy with the way how we walked, yet he was glad he's still sober enough to carry a conversation. "Anything on your mind?"
"Yes, actually." He said simply, turning around to look at the sellsword. "Remember Tywin Lionsmane?"
"Him and that fookin' family? Of course I do, along with the betrayal that happened there. What about them?"
"They betrayed the dogs when he came around. That's how the blood bath went after all. Black Dogs litter the field, and how they rose. One thing I'm wondering is something rather simple... how many more houses will betray them?"
For once in his life, he found his face turn into a frown. A genuine frown. Sure, there were times where he isn't smiling, but he can argue that this could be a time where he truly is upset. Judging by the looks with the others, even they are willing to give their own two cents on that matter.
"Many more will come, boy." Bronn said calmly, eyes turning somber as he carries on. "Many of them will. Look around, this isn't within one castle, one land, it is the entire continent. Sure, some bastards wanted this, but still. The common folk are being raided, there own fucking people! This is just nothing more but a joke!"
"It's true." The elf chirped up. "It's a miracle how these people are able to stay in control. Is there even a Lord that even protested with an army?"
"I agree." The War Maiden joined in. "The dead waging war against the living could be the one key to restore this land."
"The dead finally marches... I guess Kazuma was right about those things. The war between Celestine and Olga. Wars are often brutal, but at least people died in glory... here... it's a mockery. It's poetic justice, y'know. The dead rising up to punish the ones who made this great land a cesspit."
Dennis chuckled along with the lot of them. Then the sellsword gave him a confused look.
"Kazuma? You know his name?"
"Yeah, I asked him." Dennis curtly replied. The awkward atmosphere turning even worse as the seconds go by. "I thought you know as well... How did you get the bottles of wine then? I was taking a piss and talking to the man before I joined up."
Silence fell upon them, and the atmosphere turned into an oppressive, suffocating one. One by one as Dennis looked, he saw the elf... cracking...? He could've sworn that's the case, seeing her shaking and showing off a perturbed expression.
"Torien..." He said slowly. "Where did you get the wine bottles?"
The elf looked away, but it didn't take long for her to succumb to the pressure as she suddenly tossed her hands to the air, flailing them around as her face flushed red.
"We stole them, okay?! I nabbed it from the cellars and hid them in the baskets!"
The elf whined as the foreigner pinched the bridge of his nose, but he let it slide. It's only two wine bottles after all, and there's more things to worry about.
Morning came the next day, and they packed up the sleeping bags they used, cleaned the bowls and the pots, sharpened their weapons and head out once again.
"How long is it gonna take us to reach Ken?"
"Probably in a couple of hours at this point, but we still need to be careful. Bandits may be gone, but Volt is still out there, and it's only a matter of time until he decides to do something about."
With those words, everyone pressed on. Dennis feels relieved for the fact that the undead hasn't attacked them at all, and he thanks the necromancer for indirectly giving them a safe voyage, and he used the time to look at the faces of the undead.
Big and small, Dennis felt pity, awe, and respect for the undead as he saw both old and new. Pity when he saw the dead peasants and children. He regarded the dead with respect as he saw the battle hardened faces of the soldiers that fought in battles in wars before this, and probably way before the war between the two beings. Lasty, he was in awe. Awestruck for he saw numerous creatures that old age claimed, or war. He saw orcs, he saw dwarves, trolls, and even gigantic lizards that once roamed the land.
"Sightseeing, boy?" The sellsword pointed out. "Try not to smell them."
"It kinda gets boring after a while."
"It won't be when we get there. Just hold on tight, and be careful on the road."
He nodded at those words, but after he took a swig of water from the flask on the side of his hip. He'll drink the booze when they're off the trail.
"Can you tell me about those two whores that you have at the back?"
Dennis bit back a sigh. If there's one saying he can use to describe this event, is this old saying: "It's hard to win an argument against a smart person, but it's impossible to win against an idiot." That perfectly describes this predicament.
Long story short: They were lucky that they made it to Ken when the sun was setting down, but it came with a cost as they're now dealing with guards at the gate. Unfortunately, these were Black Dogs. Bronn has already negotiated with them in regards to the right of passage, explaining to them that they were the first group that went out to scour the Necromancer, and lied about how everyone else died, but they were lucky. Now the hard part is them trying to get in without leaving behind two.
That's right, they wouldn't stop asking for them, they even went as far as to go and demand that the two females are to be given as payment in order to get in. Negotiations almost became a hostile affair of how insistent these two men are.
"Guess it's now or nothing..." He mutters to himself as he had his steed march up to the guardsmen, and cleared his throat. "These bitches are mine."
He gave them a challenging look as they turned around to look at him, and it's quite clear with the looks plastered on their faces, they're not taking that with a grain of salt.
"Why should we believe that?!" One of them barked out, already pulling out his sword with his teeth baring down.
"You can stop with the act, I'm not gonna give these whores to someone as lowly like the both of you, but it just so happens I changed my mind." He retorted, maintaining a rather arrogant tone on his voice before he continued. "I'm planning to give these bitches to Volt for a good price!"
He can already feel the boring gazes by his party members, but this might as well be the best way to go at it. He'll explain everything once he gets inside a decent Inn, and after buying them all mugs of ale.
"Volt will even let you have them for a while too. Think about it; being granted a High Born Elf to warm your bed, squealing like a whore as you rut her cunt and smack her perky elven ass. Or..." He said as he looks over to the warrior woman. "You can have your fun with her."
He shrank at the glare she gave him, but he did not show it. If this fails, it'll end with his throat slit and the girls raped, and he doesn't want that.
"What makes you think I'll have fun with her?"
"Break her into bedslave. She is more than a handful. I humiliated her after she came to us and declared that all of our belongings shall go to her, and in single combat, I won. I humiliated her as I pushed my dick inside her ass, but that did little to my chagrin, so that's why I want to punish her."
"I don't know, she looks willing if you ask me." The smarter one pointed out as he rubbed his chin. "Are you sure that actually happened?"
Dennis quickly choked on his words and quickly racks his brain to find a perfect excuse. Even looking at some of his teammates with desperate eyes, but the warrior woman answered his prayers by growling at the two men.
"You're an idiot for thinking I'd bow do easily to a man!" She roared. "I'll take you on in your pathetic game! if you think you can break me into a breeding bitch, go ahead!"
The Two guards glared at her as the other ones just looked in concern. Ultimately, they let her in, they let them all in. The foreigner breathed out a sigh of relief.
"You better be sure we get a turn on her."
"If you do your jobs well, Volt might... Especially after I tell that to him."
They grinned at him before letting him continue, and now Dennis prays that's one promise he doesn't have to fulfill.