Volume 6 Chapter 8 March
It had been a week since Al was hired as a servant. Under the relentless sun, the knight group of Viscount Lester, led by Baron Oliver, left Roland Village, the southernmost settlement in the frontier city of Lester. They had been traveling for about 3 hours, moving south along the muddy wasteland by Holden River.
Everyone continued to march in silence, enduring the heat. Among the group, there were Naresh and others in metal armor riding horses, and nearby, Al walked in his usual leather armor, looking like an adventurer without the tabard that showed he was a servant.
*Toot──toot!*
Suddenly, the sound of a trumpet echoed. It was the signal to stop marching.
"Hmm, not again. This is the third time."
"Indeed, we just resumed marching about ten minutes ago..."
Naresh and his guardian, Lord Radyard, stopped their horses and looked around. Next to them, Lord Radyard's son, Sigmund, stretched up on his horse to see ahead.
Al quietly cast the 'Floating Eye' spell in a low voice. A transparent eye appeared above his head and floated lightly into the air. The line of knights was long, and Naresh and Al were near the back.
About halfway through the line, there were around ten wagons protected by adventurers, with knights and servants in front of them. At the very front, the servants were aiming crossbows forward. In front of them, there was a large rock, and behind it, about ten lizardmen were hiding.
"It seems we've encountered about ten lizardmen."
Al quietly told Naresh using the 'Illusion' spell to share what he saw. The knights marched like the caravan did around the pioneer village where Al had been before. In the center of the group, a magician was using the 'Floating Eye' spell to keep watch. This time, it wasn't Eric; it was Wald reporting to the knight commander, Baron Oliver. Al had done something similar for Naresh in the past.
This time, Al decided to talk to Naresh and use spells carefully. He did not want to get involved in the competition among the magicians in the Viscount family.
Naresh thought it was a missed chance not to show off his skills, but Al wanted to avoid trouble. Al proposed that Naresh should take the lead and receive the rewards instead. Both Naresh and his employer, Lord Radyard, agreed to this.
There was also another issue about their clothing. The knight commander, Baron Oliver, did not like the idea of having servants near the knights during battles. So, Baron Oliver and Naresh agreed that they should wear outfits like adventurers instead of servants.
Hearing the illusion of Al's voice, Naresh nodded lightly. There was no need for knights to deal with something as simple as lizardmen. Naresh gently stroked the neck of his beloved horse.
"Enemies are ahead. We will probably stop for about 30 minutes. This is the territory of the Barbarians. Stay alert, wipe your sweat, and replenish your water."
Naresh gave instructions to his followers and got off his horse. Lord Radyard nodded in agreement, knowing that stopping the march for no reason would hurt the troops' spirits. Naresh understood this too. Meanwhile, Al watched from the side, using the 'Floating Eye' spell to keep an eye on things.
*Toot──, Toot!*
As Naresh expected, about 30 minutes later, the sound of the trumpet signaling the march to resume was heard.
"Alright, let's go!"
Naresh and the knights got back on their horses. Al canceled the 'Floating Eye' spell because it required a lot of focus. It was too hard to control the floating eye while walking quickly next to a horse.
"Al, are you okay? You can ride in the carriage with Craig and the others if you want."
From atop his horse, Naresh asked Al with concern, but Al shook his head lightly.
"Don't worry about me... uh, there's no need to worry. The other attendants are walking too... and I've been hiking in the mountains since I was young, so I'm confident in my stamina... Besides, if I stay too far away, I won't be able to see the results of our training."
Last week, Al and Naresh practiced together to become a better team, alongside their regular training. They even asked Eric to help them learn the 'Floating Eye' spell at night. This time, Naresh wanted to fight a stronger enemy, not just the usual Barbarians. They believed, as knights, they could win, but neither had faced these tougher foes before. They decided to get ready for whatever challenges lay ahead.
"That's true, but... Listening to the way Al talks, I feel a sense of distance and I miss him."
Al still sometimes struggled, but he was starting to remember the way of speaking he learned from Craig when he was young. However, Naresh felt quite uncomfortable with how much Al had changed from his previous way of speaking.
"That's something we can't help. We've started moving forward. Let's go."
The carriage in front of Naresh and the others began to move. Lord Radyard was giving orders to his attendants, and the procession started to advance.
"Let's go. At this pace, we'll probably raid the Barbarians' settlement tomorrow, but don't let your guard down."
Nearby knights and attendants responded loudly to Naresh's command.
* * *
"The march is quite slow. Why are they attacking us like this..."
At the front of the marching line, Naresh and Al saw Baron Oliver, the leader of the knights. He was riding with his deputy, Lady Felicia, a female knight, and they both looked frustrated.
"That's right. Normally, Barbarians don't come toward the knights. I don't know the reason, but at this rate, it seems impossible to carry out the dawn raid."
"What about food and supplies?"
In response to Baron Oliver's concern, Lady Felicia replied in a gentle tone that they had plenty of food, but if they kept fighting like this, they might start to worry about the crossbow bolts.
"Are we using that many?"
"We've faced three attacks already. For now, we have enough supplies, but we don't know how many more attacks will come. I'm worried about morale. The people carrying the supplies and the adventurers guarding them are unhappy with all the stops we have to make."
Felicia's words made Baron Oliver lightly tap his saddle in annoyance.
"How is Sir Naresh at the rear?"
"It seems he is keeping the morale up well, even though it's his first battle. Lord Radyard is with him, so we can feel reassured."
"Hmm, so Sir Naresh has the talent to lead an army as well..."
Baron Oliver took a deep breath and looked ahead again.
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