"We need to talk." The prince of Donia had a serious look on his face, one that made Eliron sigh tiredly.
He could see where this was going from a mile away. After watching his battle against the grand mage, the ever patriotic prince was likely trying to recruit him to join the war effort.
"Let’s go inside, we can talk after eating." The least he could do was hear him out, rejecting him outright would be unfair.
He was also interested in knowing how the war was progressing. If the plot had deviated in any way that would favour their side, then maybe he would consider joining it to reduce the casualties.
But it was very unlikely....
After Artie had her bath, they all returned to the dining area of the tavern, where they were served a hearty al.
Unlike their ti in Kingsbridge, they had picked a more lofty inn. It was not fancy enough to be called a luxury inn, but it was decent, and so was their food.
Just as they finished eating, Ash walked into the room looking as though he had been run over by a train.
He was covered in dust, his hair was ssy and his clothes were torn in several places, yet, the well built knight had a wide, almost goofy grin on his face as he clutched a number of manuals to his chest.
"It seems your outing was very eventful." It was nearly evening, and yet, this was the ti he was coming back.
Ash imdiately straightened when he saw Eliron. "My lord!" He noticed the two masked individuals next to him, but decided to ignore them for now.
"Indeed, the skills of this city are pretty advanced." He smiled, his fingers unconsciously brushing the manuals.
"It looks like a lot happened with you all as well?" His eyes settled on Alex, his vision narrowing with suspicion.
"Indeed." Eliron nodded slightly. But it is a long story. Let us head up, there is a lot to discuss..."
When they got up stairs, Ash was given a very concise summary of what had happened in his absence. But even that alone was enough to make him fu with rage.
He even went as far as blaming himself for not being present. Apparently, he believed his lord should never have to lift a finger, not while he was around at least.
His loyalty was admirable. And hopefully, he would soon be able to back up his words with action.
But for now, there were far too many things he needed to learn.
"Alright, what is it you wanted to discuss?" Eliron asked. He was sitting on his bed, Yennefer already fast asleep by his side, while Alexander was standing in front of the group.
Since they were indoors, he took off his mask and stuffed it in his pocket.
"First of all, thank you for taking out your ti to speak with , Lord Eliron. I am sure you must be very busy."
Alexander knew that although his title was that of a lord, in reality, Eliron was more like a king. The only reason he could even speak to him so easily was because of the current state of Artaris.
Alexander cleared his throat, his facial expression turning firm. "You must have heard about it by now. The kingdom of Donia is currently in a war with the undead. We have been fighting them for far longer, but it was nothing like this..."
"A few undead would often show up at the border city of Stonewall. But over ti, they kept increasing, up until we had to mount a defence against them."
He paused for a few seconds, his expression turning grave.
"Today, the border city of Strongwall is no more. Our ancient walls have been overrun by scores of the undead."
Eliron heard Ash suck in a sharp breath as he listened to the news.
He also noticed that Ciera, the woman that seed to be his assistant, seed a little more solemn after he ntioned it.
’Everything is progressing just like it did in the story...’ Eliron thought.
The border city was the first to fall, and then the n that had once guarded the kingdom of Donia picked up arms, joining the army of the dead.
"I understand, the situation of your kingdom seems quite grave." Eliron waved his hand to the side. "And what is being done to curtail it?"
Alexander seed to straighten a bit. He brought out a golden orb from his pocket and raised it up, letting go of the item.
Instead of falling off the air, it just hung there, slowly rotating. And then out of it, a holographic map of Donia appeared.
The prince pointed at a spot painted red. "This is the progression of the undead legion."
He traced his hands through what seed to be a major road. "As you can see, they have devoured every city on their path, it is only a matter of ti until we at the capital are hit."
From what Eliron could see on the map, it looked like so cities had basically been abandoned by the kingdom.
As sad as it was, it was expected during war. Evacuating them on ti was basically impossible, not when a tireless army was chasing after you.
"This will be where we will mount our defence." Alexander pointed at a certain point on the map, his eyebrows creasing.
"It is an abandoned castle that used to be a defensive point, castle..."
’Kasket.’ Eliron called the na in his mind just at the sa ti Alexander said it.
"...Kasket. Our goal is to end the March here, or at least cut down their population by 50%."
’That isn’t going to happen.’
Eliron recalled the exact scene from the novel, Alexander covered in blood, the whispers of the undead, embers, and Ciera taking her final breath in his arms.
Castle Kasket would fall, that was the future that awaited them.
But Alexander knew this. He knew better than anyone that this battle was destined for failure. Perhaps, that was why he had co to him.
"This is all very interesting, Prince Alexander. But I fail to see how it is of any importance to ."
Alexander swallowed, then glanced at Ciera as though to get reassurance, before he spoke.
"Lord Eliron. I would like to implore you. Please, join us in our war against the undead!"
Eliron could feel Ash’s stare on him. He was first loyal to Artaris, but above all, he was a good man, he was likely against leaving them without help.
But on his other side, Artie had a stoic look on her face, completely unmoved by his sentint.
She was more cold hearted, and as such she was able to see things clearly.
Although there were rits to helping Donia, the drawbacks were far greater. They were not going against just anyone’s army...
This was the army of the dead, a legion created by the lord of the dead, one of the twelve titans.
It was not a walk in the park, neither was it a decision to be made lightly. If the story was to be aberrated, and the lord of death was to show up...
Not even Eliron would leave with his head.
With all these in mind, Eliron heaved a breath and replied calmly...
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