This chapter is a wrap-up to the fight from the last one and Keel meeting yet another familiar face during her reunion with Raphtalia. Things are about to get much worse in more ways than one.
:P
Big thanks to Qinlongfei for beta reading this chapter and giving important feedback on certain scenes.
With that said, let's get this chapter started!
Chapter 52: Broken Hearts
Raphtalia blinked a few times to make sure that her eyes wasn't playing a trick on her.
She blinked a couple more times and nope, it wasn't a trick. Keel was still there standing over her, dressed in the armor of a bandit and wielding a bloodied blade. It just served to make Raphtalia come to a horrifying conclusion.
Keel was alive...Keel was alive.
Raphtalia couldn't believe it, they were sure Keel was dead. She was sure Keel was dead.
She still remembered the day that they went to Lute Mine to find Keel, which was barely even a month ago but it feels like years have passed since that day. The day Raphtalia saw the bodies of people that were torn in half, eaten alive and missing their heads. People who had been slaughtered by those monstrous hounds and ripped apart in the process. The same one that had killed Keel. Raphtalia still remembers how she cried on that day after learning Keel had died. The sorrow she felt at losing the last living friend she had in this world. The last person from her previous life before she lost it all to the Wave.
Yet Keel was standing before her, very much alive and looking at her in surprise.
" R-Raphtalia, is that you? I thought you were dead..." Keel said, her face slack with shock at seeing her again.
" I thought you were dead too Keel, how are you alive? How..." Raphtalia had so many questions in her head to the point where she could feel a headache coming from the shock of emotions and confusion. How was Keel alive? How did she survive? And most importantly...
" Keel...why are you with the bandits?" Raphtalia put the pieces together rather quickly, as she saw that Keel was fighting on the side of the bandits with the way she was charging with that group just now.
" Its not like that Raphtalia, its..." Keel was clearly just as confused and shocked about the whole situation as she was. Keel's eyes narrowed at her missing arm." Oh my god, what happened to your arm!?"
Raphtalia flinched at the reminder of her missing limb, she was about to explain but the sound of fighting, screaming and metal clashing reminded the two of them that they were in the middle of a big fight. " Look we'll talk about this later, but right now you need to come with me!"
Raphtalia was too overwhelmed by everything she was feeling to resist as Keel quickly grabbed her by the arm and lifted her up from the ground. She would have thanked her friend, if Keel didn't start dragging her away.
" No! Keel wait! I need to-"
" GET AWAY FROM HER!" Raphtalia heard a shout of anger, as she turned her head in time to see a woman dressed in light metal armor and wearing a purple cloak charging towards them.
Big sister Mein ran towards them with a scary amount of speed, looking more like an angry bull that had been angered as she charged at them. She slashed and sent out fire spells at anybody who got in her way. Raphtalia watched as big sis Mein decapitated a cat man who had attempted to cut her with a handaxe, before grabbing the weapon, and wielding it in her other free hand.
" DIE!" Big sister shouted in a voice of pure anger as she threw the handaxe directly at Keel!
" Holy shit!" Keel cursed in shock as the axe barreled at her direction, big sis had thrown the weapon so fast and with no hesitation that Raphtalia was certain that it was going to hit Keel square in the head-
But before the axe could hit Keel in the head, she disappeared in a ball of grey light and Raphtalia could feel her friend's grip on her arm go as well. The axe ended up hitting nothing but air and ended up impacting onto the dirt. Raphtalia at first was confused by what had happened to Keel, before she saw her friend reappear on the ground just a few feet away from her.
Raphtalia's eyes widened at the sudden display, before she realized that she recognized what Keel had just done. It was the same kind of strange power that big sister Mein has and one that she also has through her Arcane Bond.
Keel has Blink!
" RAPHTALIA!" Big sis Mein shouted as she ran over to her, worry and anger etched onto her face that it made Raphtalia jump in surprise. But she calmed down when she felt Mein gently put her hands on her shoulder, seeming to check her for injuries." Are you okay!? Did you get hurt or anything?!"
"I-I'm fine, but Keel is-" Raphtalia stopped as she realized Keel had recovered and had raised her sword to strike down Mein. She barely screamed in time and pointed at her friend. " LOOK OUT!"
Big sister Mein's head notched up as she realized what Raphtalia was pointing at, as she turned around with her sword raised in a slashing arc that deflected Keel's attempt to kill her. Mein didn't stop there as she stood up and delivered a quick kick to Keel's chest that made her friend let out a cry of pain as she was sent stumbling back, but she quickly regained her footing as she looked at Mein with a murderous look in her eye.
" Stay behind me Raphtalia!" Big sister Mein shouted as she held her sword up as well to defend. Raphtalia felt fear slip into her heart as she realized that both people she cared about were trying to kill each other.
" WAIT! Please don't fight! Keel please don't do this!" Raphtalia tried to plead with her friend, who didn't seem the least bit listening to what she was saying.
But big sis Mein seemed to listen." Keel? Raphtalia, what are you talking...about..." Mein's voice trailed off as she got a good look at Keel, and Raphtalia could see her face turning into one of shock. Raphtalia couldn't blame her, she had the same exact face when she saw Keel.
It was like Mein had seen a ghost. One they all thought was dead.
" Keel? Is that you?" Mein said in a low tone but the shock was clear in her voice.
" Oh, you remember me. I'm touched." Keel replied in a sarcastic tone, her tone dripping with venom and hate." But you...I remember you, you're that bitch who was with that Shield Slaver who bought me and Raphtalia for dirt cheap."
" How did you survive? We went to the Lute mine to look for you but..." Big sister Mein is clearly overwhelmed by everything, as she remembers what happened that day at the mine.
" Lute Mine? I heard that place was destroyed after I left it..." Keel's eyes flash with anger, as she gripped her sword even tighter than before." Did you kill all those people?! Those children!? Are you one who took Raphtalia's arm!?"
" No! It didn't happen like that, it-"
" I'll kill you! I'll take your head as a trophy for my boss!"
" Keel wait!" Raphtalia shouted but it was too late.
Keel let out a war cry as she charged at Mein with her blade raised high, but the red haired agent didn't move from her spot, remaining perfectly still as she held her sword up. Keel attempted to slash at Mein with her sword, but Mein easily parried the sword away from her throat before giving a hard punch to Keel's face while her blade was parried. The punch that sent her recoiling back in pain and Raphtalia could see Keel's nose bleed from the single punch.
" Please don't hurt her!" Raphtalia pleaded with Mein not to hurt Keel too badly. She knows that what she's asking for is unreasonable given the circumstances but Keel is still her friend!
Mein slightly turned her head back to Raphtalia for a moment." Don't worry Raphtalia, I won't kill or hurt Keel...much."
Raphtalia didn't feel much better at those words, but she couldn't say anymore as Keel charged once again with renewed vigor and Mein raised her blade to defend.
Her friend kept trying to slash and stab with anger fueling her every movement, but it was in vain as Mein blocked her strikes with precision and care, it was obvious who was stronger in this fight. Big sister Mein was over level 50 and Raphtalia didn't know what level Keel was since they last saw each other, but she doubts that its even close to Mein's level, but it wasn't just the difference in levels that made Mein able so easy to defend against Keel without counterattacking. It was her skill with the sword that allowed her to do it. Raphtalia didn't know much about sword fighting, but she could clearly see the difference in not just power but skill between her friend and Mein.
Keel's swings were fast but wild and uncontrolled, while every block and movement that Mein made felt controlled and done with grace. It reminded Raphtalia of the time big sister Sadeena beat up some people who had been drinking wildly and bothering her, granted she was also drunk but still.
Raphtalia tried to plead with her friend but it was obvious Keel wasn't listening to her, as she tried to slash at Mein again and again, but the red haired swordswoman just kept blocking and parrying the attacks. This just seemed to make Keel even angrier and encouraged her even more.
" Stop this Keel, you're outmatched " Mein shouted as she delivered another kick in Keel's stomach that made Raphtalia flinch.
Keel grit her teeth in anger as she gave Mein a death glare." How about this!?" Keel held out her left hand as an almost magical like grey smoke started to come from it, and within a second she disappeared into a ball of grey light. A second later, she reappeared at Mein's side with her blade raised for a side slash.
Mein was caught off guard by this and just barely managed to block the attack by holding her sword sideways to parry it, stumbling back a few steps and Keel had a vicious smirk on her face.
" Ah! Got you-Holy shit!" Keel's taunt was cut off when Mein sent a small fireball towards her. Raphtalia could see the fireball harmlessly impact onto the ground and set some of the nearby grass alight, but it became immediately clear Mein was not trying to set Keel on fire as she clashed at Keel with her sword.
" Cute trick, I've seen and done better." Mein replied with sarcasm in her voice as she pushed Keel back with her sword.
Mein was starting to fight more offensively, making feint attacks at Keel to stop her from using Blink. Every time Keel held out her hand or tried to get some distance between herself and Mein to use Blink, she was too busy blocking strikes from Mein. Raphtalia didn't have much practice with the 'gift' given to her from Mein, but Raphtalia could tell that Keel wasn't very skilled with the power itself to use it effectively in combat.
After maybe 2 or 3 minutes of fighting, Mein finally ended it by slashing at Keel's sword before delivering a punch and a swipe at her legs that sent her tumbling to the ground.
" Its over Keel! Do not make me destroy you!" Mein shouted as she pointed her sword at Keel's throat.
Despite having a sword pointed at her throat, Keel still looked up at Mein defiantly and with anger in her eyes." Fuck you! I'll never stop fighting against you slave driving bastards!" Keel suddenly smirked despite the position she was in." Thankfully, I don't have to anymore. We were just the distraction. Look!" Keel raised a hand to point up at the sky.
Raphtalia turned around to watch as what looked like a bright red light went up into the sky.
" FALL BACK! EVERYBODY FALL BACK NOW!" A loud voice yelled out over the sounds of fighting and screams, at that moment and Raphtalia turned to see the bandits throw something onto the ground that resulted in loud booms and smoke to erupt from them.
Keel took this opportunity to push the blade away from her throat and kick Mein in the gut, while quickly getting to her feet.
" Shit! Keel!" Mein cursed as she was kicked back.
" Keel wait! Don't go!" Raphtalia cried out to her friend, but it was no use as Keel blinked away into the smoke.
Keel was gone again.
Mein's POV
Shit! Shit! Shit!
Mein mentally cursed in her head at just how fucked the situation got, not only did they get surprised attacked by the bandits but Keel got away! She was about to run into the smoke to go after Keel and the rest of the bandits before they regroup. But she felt a small hand grab her gloved one and Mein looked down to see Raphtalia holding her hand to stop her from running after Keel.
" Raphtalia! What are you-" Mein stopped herself mid shout as she saw the desperate look in her eyes.
" P-P-Please don't go after Keel!" Raphtalia begged her and the princess could hear the fear in her voice.
Is Raphtalia afraid that I'm going to kill Keel?
It took the agent of the Outsider a moment to look herself over, blood on her armor, sword slick with the blood of dozens of bandits she had personally slain without a second thought. Hell, she had thrown a handaxe aimed directly at Keel's head and if it wasn't for his new trick, then she would have nailed him right in the head and killed him instantly. She wouldn't be surprised if Raphtalia was afraid of her killing Keel and was trying to stop her from pursuing them further.
Mein turned back to the dissipating smoke and could see that it was too late. Keel was gone along with the rest of his new bandit buddies. So there was no point chasing after them now, not when she has bigger concerns to worry about at the moment.
" Shit..." Mein cursed under her breath as she put her bloodied sword back in her sheath as she focused on Raphtalia." Are you okay Raphtalia? Were you injured or anything?" Mein gently asked, as she knelled down to her level to try appear as non-scary as possible.
" Yes, I mean no! I don't know, just Keel..." Raphtalia let out a few sputters and Mein could see that the poor girl was visibly shaking from everything she had just witnessed and seen here, along with the revelation about Keel.
" Hey, hey, its okay Raphtalia. I'm here." Mein said as she gently put her hands on Raphtalia's shoulders.
" Keel...Keel is..." Raphtalia muttered with a mixture of sadness, worry and fear in her tone.
" I know Raphtalia, I know..." Mein said as she tried to comfort the girl, but she was still reigning in her own emotions.
Keel was alive...okay, Keel was alive.
The other slave they had purchased along with Raphtalia from Beloukas, the hard-headed dog boy who was far too indignant for his position in a heroes party, the one who had run away with Raphtalia and left a rather insulting note to them. The one they thought had been torn apart by the Wave Hound down in Lute Mine was actually alive this whole time and was now working with the bandits.
No, that's not correct, Keel is a bandit. That was an undeniable truth.
Mein recalls back to her information she had gotten from that bandit recruiter Mia back in the slums of the Castletown. She remembered how Mia told her that the Lute Mine had been converted into a secret bandit recruitment operation and that was how she located Keel. She had never told Naofumi or the others the truth about the mine, as they all thought it was some kind of secret slave liberation ring. She saw no reason to it besides informing Naofumi about her night activities.
Looking back on it, maybe she should have told them the truth. It would have made this blow hurt much less. The look of dread and sadness on Raphtalia's face makes Mein wonder if this her fault somehow.
She can't even imagine how Raphtalia is feeling right now. The last person from her former life in Port Harp she thought was dead, was actually alive and working as a bandit. Mein didn't get to know Keel that well before they thought he was dead, but Raphtalia clearly isn't taking any of this well.
" W-What's going to happen to Keel?" Raphtalia quietly asked, which made Mein stop for a moment to consider it.
That was a very good question. One that Mein did not have any good answers for.
It was undeniable at this point that Keel is a bandit, working under the Hound Lord or at least in one of the bandit groups he controls. From the time that has passed, Keel has likely committed a number of crimes under the Hound Lord, the only fate that awaits him is swift execution via the gallows or by the executioner's axe. Mein seriously doubts they can do much to shield him from the law, considering he was literally part of the group that attacked the Schnee Mine here.
Then again Porter's group were also pretty much bandits, granted much more sympathetic in the motive for why they committed their crimes but still. Porter had also told them that they had never had to go as far as kill anybody and they only ever took 1 bag worth of gold from the people they robbed, so that would afford them some level of leniency. Keel on the other hand has likely been part of a large network of bandit groups that have been terrorizing the northern lands, hell even with Naofumi's status as a hero wouldn't be enough to shield Keel from punishment. Outsider knows, the Church might even take this opportunity to further demonize him for having a former slave that later became a bandit.
Goddamnit, even if I reveal myself as the Princess of Melromarc, it wouldn't do much to change Keel's fate. Royal or hero protection can only extend so far and Keel was never a member of our party long enough for that to apply.
" They-They are going to kill her, aren't they?" Raphtalia's panicked voice brought Mein back and the little girl seemed to take her silence for the worst possible scenario. The one that was sadly the most accurate depiction of what was going to happen to Keel. Raphtalia suddenly grabbed Mein by her cloak with her only remaining hand and Mein could see the tears well up in her eyes as she spoke. " P-Please don't let them kill her Mein! Please! I can't lose Keel too! I can't! "
" Its going to be alright Raphtalia, its going to be alright..." Without a second thought, Mein pulled Raphtalia into a hug and let the girl cry into her shoulder. She could feel her cloak get soggy from the tears, but she didn't care. Raphtalia needed her now and she said whatever she could to try and make it better. " We'll...we'll figure something out. Keel won't die."
Mein knows fully well that she's bullshitting Raphtalia, but she can't bring herself to tell Raphtalia the reality of the situation regarding Keel. They were in direct opposition of each other now and there was no good way this was going to end. Best case scenario, they can argue for imprisonment on Keel's behalf which isn't a much better sentence by Mein's own standards, it was still better than having Raphtalia lose another person close to her.
They stayed like that for a few minutes, Mein just letting Raphtalia cry into her shoulder at the horrible realization that somebody she knew was now a bandit. Eventually Mein pulled away, she could see that there were a few tear trails on her face but at least Raphtalia was no longer shaking in fear at the possibility of what was going to happen to Keel.
" Do you feel better now Raphtalia?" Mein asked gently, trying not to push too hard.
" No..." Raphtalia muttered as she let out a few sniffles and tears that Mein helped wipe away.
" Let's just keep the matter of Keel between us, okay?" Mein said quietly and Raphtalia simply nodded in agreement. The princess turned heretic needed some time herself to figure out what to do.
Mein was honestly still concerned over Raphtalia, but had to divide her attention with the aftermath of the battle. Mein looked around the now demolished Schnee mining camp, multiple men down both bandits and friendlies alike, and the wounded crying out for help. She could see Naofumi using a healing spell on one of the Seatto knights and Porter carrying two injured men by himself despite his somewhat short stature. But what caught her eye the most was the sight of Eclair assisting some of her men who were injured in the fight with the help of two of her most trusted knights.
" I need a medic over here!" The heiress turned Lady Seatto gave clear orders to her men. Despite the fact that Eclair herself looked roughed up with blood and grime on her armor, she still managed to keep a cool head under pressure. A sign that Eclair was trained well by her father to stay calm under the circumstances as her men followed her orders without question.
Mein noticed the Schnee heiress approach the Lady Seatto with Ruby and Yang at her side, so Mein decided she should go join the conversation since she's also curious.
" Come on Raphtalia, let's go." Mein said gently as she held Raphtalia's hand and walked closer to the group to hear them.
Eclair noticed the merchant heiress approach and once she made sure that her men were alright, she stood up straight to greet Weiss and held an appropriate posture for nobility. She would have looked better in a dress as opposed to knight armor, but still works.
" Lady Seatto, I presume? I humbly thank you for your assistance and coming to our rescue." The Schnee heiress did a courteous bow, and Mein could tell that the heiress was being genuine with it. At least the Schnee knows proper gratitude and respect, considering her family's reputation comes from them being slave driving cutthroat merchants.
" No thanks are needed Miss Schnee, I am just glad we got here in time." Eclair replied humbly, still looking somewhat ragged after the battle.
While the two of them talked for a bit, Mein took the time to survey the damage to the mining camp. Many of the tents were still smoking despite the fire having been put out by, there were several people wounded that were currently being attended by some of the Seatto Knights that were still standing. She could see quite a number of Porter's people sobbing over the bodies of their fallen friends and family members
But one thing that caught her eye most was who was not among them.
" Weiss, where the hell is Lord Reichnott?" Mein immediately said as she realized that the lord was not here among them.
Eclair looked bewildered at her sudden realization, as she realized as well that the Northern Lord was not with them. " She's right. Where is Uncl- I mean, Lord Reichnott?" The Lady Seatto slipped from her professional mask for a moment as she made a mistake
" Calm down Lady Seatto, Lord Reichnott is fine." Weiss said in a calming tone to Eclair. " When we were under attack by the bandits and surrounded, Lord Reichnott also made a break for it with his men when we broke through the bandits encirclement. He said he would try to get back to his lands and send reinforcements if Ruby couldn't get to Silver Keep sooner. I'm sure by now he's already made it to safety."
Eclair let out a breath of relief at that knowledge but Mein wasn't so sure about it, as she thought back to the end of the battle just now. They had been flanked by surprise bandit reinforcements that took them all by surprise, but then all of a sudden they decide to turn tail and run? It didn't add up to Mein, and she racked her brain trying to figure out why.
The flare...
The bandits didn't retreat until that flare went up, they were winning the fight by that point. Bandits would never retreat if they had the upper hand against an opponent, they would have no reason to retreat unless...
" Unless we weren't the main target." Mein finished her thought vocally, getting everybody's attention.
" What did you say?" Aslatiel asked in confusion.
" What if this mine wasn't the main target? Those bandits only fled when that signal flare went up so what if the bandits were intentionally targeting somebody else while our attention was stuck here?" Mein explained her train of thought to everybody. Eclair and some of the other's faces turning white at the realization of what the bandits were really playing at.
" The only person they would go after is..." Lucatiel trailed off, not wanting to finish that sentence but everybody understood what she was saying.
Eclair's eyes widened as she came to the same realization and Mein noticed her breath heighten a bit. "Men! Form into circles! Bring out the healthy birds and move out!"
What?
Mein's confusion didn't live long when Aslatiel repeated Eclair's order, with more clarity this time. "Men! Secure the perimeter of the mine, protect the wounded. And gather only the filorial's that weren't injured in battle for us!" The demi-human knight somehow being able to understand Eclair's confusing orders makes her wonder about their closeness, but she pushed that aside for now.
" U-Um, alright I'll get what remains of my men to help secure the perimeter." Weiss said, caught off guard by the breach in professionalism and etiquette that Eclair sorta just ignored her as she spoke to her men.
The princess turned heretic could see that Eclair's hands were subtly shaking, it wasn't incredibly noticeable unless you were paying attention. Her posture was tense and her speech had a slight stutter to it. The Lady Seatto could not maintain her dignified movement with her posture because she was very worried and scared for Lord Reichnott.
But Mein already knew that flare could only have meant one thing.
Reichnott's POV
Reichnott did not consider himself a man of war. He was still young when the Great War happened and ended. His father was the one who lived through the Great War and when he passed a few years after the war ended, he took over the mantle as the head of House Reichnott. So he himself never had to go through the experience of wartime or have any real combat skill of his own.
He had no delusions about any of that that, but perhaps it has never been more clear until now with him fleeing away with what remained of his men from the scene of a great battle.
He had originally went to a meeting at one of the Schnee Mining Camps in his territories to meet with Miss Schnee to talk about buying some of their ore to make weapons and armor for his men. Honestly, Reichnott was hoping to barter somehow with the Schnee Heiress for the ores as his own coffers were starting to be depleted from all the endured bandit attacks recently. But all those worries were quickly gone as they were suddenly attacked by a large group of bandits.
Before then, Reichnott had never experienced a bandit raid. His main territory was too well-guarded for any bandit group to even think of launching a raid against it. He knew about such raids in passing. But before then, they had always just been reports on his desk and he felt genuine sympathy for the people who were terrorized by these vandals.
But actually being there, under the attack from the bandits and surrounded was nothing short of one of the most terrifying experiences he had ever felt in his life.
They had originally thought they could repel the bandits, with the combined forces of his men, the Schnee Guards and some of the mine workers helping. But the bandits proved much stronger than they thought, as they surrounded the camp and slowly pushed inside. Reichnott had never felt so scared in his life as he tried to command his men, but honestly Miss Schnee and a man named Porter did a better job of it. But as their numbers dwindled with each passing minute, they all knew they would not last long without help.
Which was why when Miss Schnee told him to make a break for it when they broke through the bandit's line, he did not argue for even a second.
At the present moment, he and what remained of his men were riding on filorial's to reach the safety of his lands as fast as possible. They had come to the mining camp in his personal carriage, but they had to abandon it for speed. Reichnott knew they were not moving at the fastest possible speed, as he was not the most skilled rider except for the basics he knew. The rest of his men were also slowed down because of this unfortunately.
He tried to tell himself that it would be more efficient if he got reinforcements for the Schnee Mining Camp than staying to fight pointlessly against the bandits, but he knew deep down that he was just kidding himself.
Miss Schnee had just given him a more convenient excuse to run away. Something he had already been thinking long before the idea of breaking through the bandit's line came to Porter.
He knew well that people whispered behind his back in court, about how he is just a stooge for the Queen and follows her every whim. How the only reason he is an 'ally' of the Queen is because he is a glorified bootlicker like House Consevatie. A naive weak willed man who can do nothing but follow the orders of his superiors and will turn tail and run at the first sign of real trouble.
It seems that he has proven those gossipers right. Reichnott would correct that mistake soon.
" When we get back to my lands, we must immediately send reinforcements to the camp!" Reichnott shouted to one of his captain's as they rode, a demi-cat by the name of Karol.
" Understood sir!" Karol shouted back.
" We're not that far from the County, we should reach there soo-AAAHHHH!"
Reichnott watched as one of his men that was riding in the front suddenly topple forward with his filorial, sending him crashing down into the dirt. It wasn't just him that was sent tumbling over, all those who had riding at high speed in front were crashing as well for some unknown reason.
" STOP THE FILORIALS!" He heard Karol's voice but he was too slow to register it, as he didn't start pulling on the reigns of his filorial until he was already close to where his men had toppled over with their filorials. His filorial was suddenly jerked forward and sent tumbling into the dirt with him. Reichnott let out a cry of pain as he rolled on the rough ground until he came to a complete stop.
" Ahhhhh...god..." Reichnott groaned in pain, as his whole body ached from the sudden crash and he felt hurt in too many places to name. Reichnott felt a pain in his head like the world itself was spinning around. He reached up to touch his head and could feel a liquid coming down, as he saw that it was blood.
" My lord! Are you okay?" Karol was immediately at his side and helping him. He managed to sit up properly with her assistance and finally get a good look at what had happened. He could see that several of those that had crashed did not come out any better than he did. The filorials had twisted necks in bent positions, their riders did not fare much better. With some of his men bleeding from the head or having twisted necks of their own from the sheer impact. Only a few seemed to be wounded like him.
" I-I-I think I'm fine, AH!" Reichnott tried to stand up with Karol's help only to immediately fall back onto the dirt. He felt a sharp pain in his leg and made a very good guess that it was likely broken in the crash.
" Don't move too much, you'll just injure yourself further." Karol advised, as she looked around." Shit! We're too exposed out here, we need to move."
Reichnott could see that only a few of his men including Karol had managed to stop their steeds in time before crash...which he now sees the cause behind their crash: A strong rope tied to two opposing trees.
A rope? But why would there be-
" Zweit Lightning Bolt!" A loud voice called out from the treeline and Reichnott watched as a bolt of lightning hit one of his guards, turning his skin black and making his body emit smoke.
" BANDIT ATTACK!" Karol shouted." Get in defensive positions now!" Karol shouted at their men, but they were too disorganized and spread out as arrows started firing from the trees. Reichnott tried to lift himself up as best he could, but the sharp pain in his left leg prevented him from standing up straight. So he had to settle for pushing himself up into a sitting position as his men scrambled to protect him.
His men scrambled to get into defensive positions but they were too exposed and were constantly under fire from the trees. He could only watch as arrows pierced several of his men accurately in the head before falling to the ground.
" They are coming from the treeline! We need to get out of here now!" Reichnott heard one of his men yell before he got stabbed by a bandit that had come out of the bushes. The bandits were no longer simply shooting arrows at them, but they were now coming out of the bushes to attack them. Not only did his men needed to watch out for arrows, they now needed to engage in close quarters combat.
Reichnott could feel his breath quicken as his eyes darted around in panic at everything that was going, his men being slaughtered with each passing second and he could feel the walls closing in on him.
In the midst of his panic, he witnessed something he never would have believed if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes.
Reichnott watched as a bandit appear suddenly in a puff of smoke in front of one of his men, before decapitating him with a sword and disappearing again. He could see several other jumping out of the cover of the trees and performing the same feats that defy comprehension and reality itself. He turned to see many other bandits were doing the same, quickly cutting or stabbing his men before disappearing in a puff of smoke.
" Form up into a circle around Lord Reichnott! Protect him!" Karol shouted at what few of his men remained. Some did follow her order and formed a protective circle around him, blocking his view of what was going on. But that meant he could hear the dying screams of his men as they were slowly whittled down one by one. The protective circle around him also meant that his men couldn't counterattack, only defend him.
" Hey, hey! WHAT THE FUCK!" Reichnott heard one of his men that was in the circle protecting him shout, before some kind of green force pulled him away from the formation and into the bushes.
" Jenkins!" Karol shouted as she tried to grab him, but it was too late as Jenkins was already too far into the bushes. And they all heard his dying screams as he was torn apart.
" Oh god, oh god, oh god help us..." Reichnott muttered as his breath got faster and faster, it felt like he couldn't breath. What in Chief's god name did he do to deserve this? He just wanted to see his daughter and manage his land as best he could. Why did this have to happen?
" Shit! We're going to get picked off at this rate. Cover me! I'm going to get Lord Reichnott to the filorial's!" Karol turned around and held out her hand." Come on sir, we're getting you out of here. We're going to be okay."
" Y-Yes! Of course, we are." Reichnott said with a bit of forced optimism.
He was just about to reach for her hand when he saw something that would haunt him forever: A single crossbow bolt hit Carol square in the side of the neck and caused blood to pour out. The bolt hitting her neck caused some of the blood to spill on Reichnott's face that made him recoil in shock. Karol stumbled back from the hit as she tried to stop the blood loss, but it was too late.
" Uurk!" Karol grasped her throat as the blood poured out and she choked on her blood, falling to the ground in a convulsing manner.
" KAROL!" Reichnott shouted as he watched her struggle, before eventually going limp. He was about to call out for his men to help Karol, but as he turned around and watched as his last remaining men fall to the bandits.
The Lord looked around at the dead bodies of all his men, laid broken and bloodied on the ground. He could see several bandits emerging from the treeline all armed with weapons and deadly looks.
Reichnott felt his heart sink as he realized that he was all alone.
" Well, lookie here! A northern lord graces us with his presence, let's give him a round of applause boys!" A raccoon man with a wicked grin walked up to him and it made his heart sink even further.
" N-No! Wait please! I-AH!" Reichnott tried to plead but was cut off by a punch to the face by a cat woman.
" Shut the fuck up and get up, you piece of shit!"
Reichnott felt himself being lifted up by strong arms despite his continuous cries about his broken leg causing him pain. He's fairly certain they don't particularly care.
" Get on your knees, my lord" A mocking voice said as Reichnott was forced to his knees by a hard kick. The northern lord let out a breath as he saw that he was surrounded by the bandits who were all looking at him with a mixture of contempt and hate.
But as he heard the sound of footsteps approach him from the front and Reichnott looked up, he could practically feel fear slip into his heart.
The man was dressed in a metal breastplate, boots and gauntlets that looked to be made out of fine quality metals. He wielded what looked to be a shortsword on his side. But what made him look distinct was the black cloak with the hood pulled up...
And what looked to be a mask that resembled that of a dog painted white covering his face. The slits of the mask where the eyes should be were so dark that Reichnott couldn't even see the man's eyes.
This was the Hound Lord.
" So...Lord Reichnott, its nice to finally put a face to the man I've been wanting to meet for quite some time." The Hound Lord spoke but Reichnott noticed that there was something seriously wrong with his voice. It sounded altered, changed and garbled to the point it was unrecognizable. " Do you know who I am?"
" Y-Yes. The Hound Lord." Reichnott voice was laced in fear that he could not hide.
" Excellent. So we don't need to waste time on ceremony." The Hound Lord clapped his hands together." Normally, we would make this a private conversation back at our base but sadly we're short on time and need to wrap this up quickly. Come on, let's get it done people."
Reichnott's fear jumped up to a 100 as he realized what was about to happen, and his panic ridden mind desperately tried to find anything he could say to stop this.
" W-W-Why are you doing this? I just want to help you people." Reichnott sputtered out of panic than anything else.
But that was enough to make the Hound Lord stop and turn every bandit surrounding him dead quiet. It was at that moment, he knew that he had said the wrong thing.
" Did you see seriously just say that you help people like us? You, a human noble who did nothing to earn his fortune outside being lucky enough to be born into a rich family. How could you know anything about what demi-humans and beastmen suffer in this damn country?!" The Hound Lord shouted and it made Reichnott legitimately shrink in fear of him.
" I-I-I may not know the full plights of demi-humans, but I do try to help them as best I can. Me, Lord Seatto and the Queen all believe in-"
" So what? You think just because you treat some demi's living on your land with basic decency and give them jobs shining your boots or cleaning your mansion, that makes you any different from everybody else? Give me a fucking break!" The Hound Lord cut him off before Reichnott even finished speaking. " Outsider above, I hate prententious nobles like you almost as much as I hate actual slave driving nobles. At least those pieces of human garbage are honest and upfront about it. People like you pretend doing a few good deeds to the real downtrodden in this country makes you saints, while still having the money to stuff your faces with cakes and wine!"
" And really, what have you and your Queen Slut done anything to help demi's in this country? There are still dozens of slaves in this country, some even used openly by scumbags like Rabier and what has your darling Queen Slut done?" The Hound Lord spoke with pure hate and anger in his tone.
Reichnott tried to think of a defense, something that he or his Queen had done to better the lives of demi-humans in this country. Yet when he searched his memory, he found that he could not remember any policy, action or decision made by the Queen to make the lives of demi-humans better. Even the now destroyed Port Harp was only achieved through the wealth of the Hirata family which was now destroyed with the Wave.
" That's what I thought." The Hound Lord said when Reichnott didn't say anything. " Get rid of him and let's get the fuck out of here." The Hound Lord turned away, seemingly done with this conversation.
And Reichnott knew that meant he was done too as he felt hands grab him and start pulling him away.
" NO! PLEASE DON'T DO THIS! I BEG YOU! I HAVE A DAUGHTER!" Reichnott pleaded as he was dragged into the forest.
The dog man dragging him gave him a blank look." Nice plea...not going to save you though."
" You know nothing of suffering, but you will."
Reichnott tried to think of his daughter, but he couldn't as his final moments were filled with his own screams.
Mein's POV
" My lady! Please slow down!" Lucatiel called out to the speeding Lady Seatto at the front.
Mein almost wants to tell the Silver Hand to save her breath, because she already knows that Eclair is running on a fear and panic rush. The realization that Lord Reichnott may be the bandits main target took them all by surprise, and Eclair was restless the entire time they were preparing a rescue party. Mein was certain she was half-thinking on going off alone to rescue the northern lord. Thankfully, her most trusted knights stopped her from going on a suicide run and quickly organized a rescue party. Sadly, they only had a small number of their steeds left and they couldn't take them all. So they could only leave with a small force to save Lord Reichnott.
She had personally volunteered to go with Eclair along with Lucatiel, Aslatiel, a few uninjured Silver Hand knights and even Porter who volunteered to come with as thanks for saving his group. Her reason for going with the rescue party was because if this was another trap, she couldn't afford to lose Eclair...
And partly because she already knows what they will find. She just didn't have the heart to crush Eclair's hope that there was still a chance to save Lord Reichnott.
Naofumi volunteered to come with them which was sweet of him. Unfortunately with several men down and the possibility that this could be just another trick from the bandits to divide their forces, the princess turned heretic told Naofumi to stay with the rest of the group at the mining camp and help tend to the wounded. He was just about the only person there with healing magic that could help them, so following them would be counterproductive and too risky if the bandits decided to attack the camp again. Mein didn't feel much better about leaving Raphtalia either considering what she just went through with Keel, but she felt that it was safer leaving her with Naofumi than taking her into another possible ambush.
Mein was currently riding on a filorial borrowed from one of the wounded Silver Hand's, she honestly would have preferred to take her darling Jun but she knew that he wouldn't have the stamina or speed to keep up with the other filorial's as loathe as she is to admit. Especially with the Lady Seatto riding her filorial like she's in the Zeltoble racing tournament and losing.
They kept riding at breakneck pace, the wind on Mein's face as they rode and the sound of their filorial's feet running across the ground resounding throughout the forest. It didn't take them long to catch up with Reichnott's escort group that tried to make a break from the Schnee Mine...or what was left of it.
The rescue force slowed down their filorials down as they approached a grim sight on the road. Dead filorials laid on the ground, blood spattered on the soil everywhere but there was a distinct lack of bodies. It wasn't a pretty sight despite the lack of corpses as they approached and Mein caught the whiff of death in the air.
" No...it can't be, we can't be too late." Mein could heard Eclair mutter under her breath. Her heart goes out to the Lady Seatto, she knew that House Seatto was close to House Reichnott as one of their most loyal bannerman, but she wasn't sure what kind of relationship Eclair herself had with Lord Reichnott. But from this reaction alone, it was clear that they were close.
They all disembarked their steeds to get a better look at the sight at the site of battle, there were dozens of arrows embedded into the ground indicating a fight had taken place here. But what had happened exactly was still unclear.
" Everybody fan out! Search for survivors or anything that can tell us what happened here." Aslatiel shouted orders at his men.
Mein kept a close eye on the treeline to watch out for a possible ambush, but so far she hadn't seen anything that indicated a possible attack. Was this the main target then? She couldn't be sure, these bandits were far more intelligent than they previously thought if they were capable of this trickery. But that raised the other question for why they would care to go after Lord Reichnott in the first place. Bandits prized pillaging and raiding more than anything, going after a noble does nothing for them besides earn them bragging rights and a higher bounty on their heads that any smart bandit would avoid.
The Silver Hand's fanned out and searched the area, looking for any clues that could lead to them finding out what happened here. Porter was giving the area a thorough sweep to figure out what happened here. Mein didn't doubt his abilities in the least, since Porter was a former Captain of the Faubley Rangers. An impressive rank considering Thomas only ever made Second Lieutenant in his unit.
" Uncle Reichnott! Where are you! Come out, its me Eclair!" The Lady Seatto certainly didn't care much for subtlety as she shouted to try and get the attention of the non-present Reichnott. Mein could practically hear the desperation and fear in Eclair's voice as she shouted for her family friend to come out of whatever secret hiding hole he was in. But there was no response, except for the silence of the aftermath of slaughter.
Instead Mein took the time to examine the site of what looked like a battle took place. The filorial's Reichnott and his men were riding looked like they had taken a hard tumble on something. The filorial's all had broken necks and bloodied faces indicating a crash of some kind. From there, it seemed like Reichnott's men were picked off one by one through arrow fire from the trees and close quarter combatants.
The princess turned heretic pressed her hand against the blood stained soil...there was so much of it. Too much of it to have been from just the filorial's. Reichnott's entire escort must have been slaughtered. They didn't stand a chance as they were overwhelmed and cut down without mercy.
But what happened to Lord Reichnott himself? Mein had a grim feeling it was nothing good.
" Hey! I got a blood trail over here!" Porter called out, having found a lead.
" What? Where!" Eclair was instantly on Porter and Mein quickly followed to see what the old ranger had found.
" Over here. I got a blood trail that seems to lead into the forest." Porter explained and Mein turned to see the horrified look on Eclair's face.
" That...that must Uncle Reichnott! He must have gotten injured during the battle and fled the scene!" Eclair said with fear in her voice, made even more obvious by the stutter. Eclair turned to her head." Asla! Get the medical pack, Uncle Reichnott is injured!"
Aslatiel didn't say anything as he quickly fetched a medical kit off one of the filorials and Eclair led the Silver Hands into the forest to save Lord Reichnott, following the blood trail that would them to him.
But Mein shared a look with Porter as they both noticed that there was too much blood for it to belong to one person, but neither said anything as they followed after Eclair.
The group entered the forest, following the trail of blood but that just raised more questions in her mind. Why did the bandits bother taking the bodies of Reichnott's escort? From the large trail of blood it was clear that it wasn't just one body that was taken but multiple, so why?
Mein had no time to ask such questions as they went deeper into the forest.
They continued down into the forest, keeping an eye out for any possible threats either from bandits or monsters that could roaming around. Mein kept a hand on her sword just in case as they followed the blood trail, the trees around them getting taller the further they travelled, the shadows casted over them and making the trees more akin to giants watching over them with malice than anything.
The forest shadows made Mein feel tense as she watched for any possible threat, like a wave of bandits ready to ambush at any moment from the top of the trees. The dead silence of the forest didn't help either as the only thing that she could hear was the occasional breeze and the sounds of their own footsteps as they moved through the forest, following the blood trail.
There was a lot of blood trails, far too much for one person to have shed without dying. Mein having a bad feeling in her stomach as they kept following the trail.
Eventually their group stopped and Mein could see that the trail had stopped for some reason.
" That's weird, the blood trail stops here...but where are the bodies?" Lucatiel asked out loud to the rest of the group.
Until Mein heard the sound of a drip. It was subtle and hard to hear, but with some of her enhancements making her hearing more acute she managed to pick it up.
" Oh my god..." Porter muttered as he looked up at the trees and Mein followed his gaze.
And Mein saw something that she never thought she would ever see in person.
Lord Reichnott was hanged by his neck to a branch, his body completely naked and striped of his clothing, so that even in death he could not even keep his dignity. But that wasn't all, he had his limbs hacked off, leaving only his torso. His face looked like it had been clawed and she could swear that he was missing one of his eyes. He wasn't the only body that was strung up either.
Several other bodies were hung up alongside Reichnott, Mein easily guessed them to be members of his guardsmen. They all gave their lives valiantly in defense of their lord that was ultimately in vain.
Mein had seen plenty of gore and death in her life...but this was just plain sadistic cruelty.
The worst part about all this? Mein recognized this tactic. It was one of the more infamous fear tactics used by Faubley Rangers. The tactic involved stringing the bodies of your enemies up in order to serve as both a distraction and a demoralization tactic.
They called it the Hanging Necks maneuver. It was something of favorite tactic used by some of the more brutal companies of the Ranger Corps.
The same tactic Thomas was taught...and what he taught her at some point.
" AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
A loud howl of pure anguish and sadness makes Mein and the rest of the group turn their heads to its source. Eclair stares up at the dead body of Lord Reichnott as she screams in horror until her throat goes sore and Mein could see her legs physically shake.
Without fully thinking it through, Mein was already at Eclair's side to try and keep her stable. " Eclair, Eclair! Its okay, its okay..." Mein held Eclair from falling completely onto the ground, before she knew it, she felt Eclair's hands grab onto hers as she struggled to stand. Mein embraced Eclair to comfort her from the death of her uncle.
It was a dark day for the Northern Lords.
The Hound Lord had won this battle.
I realize upon reading this chapter that this one was actually a double-whammy in the sense that it revealed that not only Keel became a bandit working under the Hound Lord, but also Reichnott's death all in one. It honestly amazes me how I keep stumbling into situations like this completely by accident and dumb luck.
XD
In all seriousness, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Raphtalia's reaction to Keel's reveal that she's still alive and Mein comforting her was my favorite scene to write, since it shows that Mein is capable of kindness...and immense cruelty.
So Reichnott has officially kicked the bucket...I'll be honest with you all, I didn't really plan Reichnott's death when I first started this story. It was more of a sudden idea that came to me while writing this chapter and a reaction to the scenario the characters found themselves. And just to be clear, I didn't kill Reichnott off because I hate him simply by extension through Queenie( I really don't feel much of anything for him at all, if I'm being frank), but more so because I genuinely can't really think of anything to do with him in this story going forward. So I killed him off to give the Hound Lord a solid win over the northern lords in this arc.
I actually intended for Reichnott's death to show off how scary and sadistic the Hound Lord's group can be towards nobles...but I realize it probably doesn't really feel like much of a victory when their opponent was just an untrained peaceful lord and a small escort, huh? Hope you all liked the fight scene anyway though.
And of course, Eclair's breakdown in this chapter was another unplanned occurrence but I hope it landed well. That was a hard one to write, but I hope you all enjoyed it.
Like I said before, things are about to get much worse for everybody involved so I hope you're all excited for it!
With that said, I will see you all in the next one.
Angel Out.