Chapter 204 - Translation

Chapter 204: No Time to Rest “Uggh, fighting in caves is the worst ,” Adalgrim said with relief as he led the group out of the mine. “Does this sort of thing happen often? Fighting in caves, I mean,” Leon asked. “Not so much as to be expected, but certainly enough for me to know that I hate it with a burning passion!” Adalgrim responded. “Uhh, no pun intended…” The rest of the group walked out of the mine, and all seemed to share Adalgrim’s sentiment; their faces brightened with joy as soon as the shadows of the mine were firmly behind them. None, however, were as happy as Anzu to be out of that dark and confined space, as the griffin displayed when he ran outside jumping and rolling around in the grass. “Shit,” Leon muttered as he watched Anzu celebrate. “He’s going to need a serious bath when we get home,” Alix observed. “I know,” Leon replied with a weary sigh. Since Anzu generally didn’t appreciate being approached, let alone touched, by anyone except Leon, it would then fall to him to make sure the griffin was clean when they returned to the Horns. Anzu tolerated Alix enough that she could help out a little, but it would still fall to Leon to do most of the work. “I have to say, seeing a tamed griffin is exceedingly rare,” Adalgrim said while the rest of the group got a few minutes of rest. “I’m a little jealous.” “It was luck that brought him to me,” Leon said. “His mother abandoned him, probably for being an albino and a runt, and she left him almost absurdly close to me. He wasn’t old enough to have opened his eyes yet, so that gave me the opportunity to imprint on him.” “That is lucky,” Adalgrim replied with a smile of appreciation. “He’s going to be one hell of a war mount when he gets bigger, I can tell. Griffins are fast, strong, and one of the fiercest beasts in the entire Kingdom.” “Have you ever fought one before?” Alix inquired. “I have,” Adalgrim answered, not bothered at all with Alix’s question despite her lower rank and status. “About ten years ago, just before I ascended to the fifth-tier, I and my commander were sent out to find a man-eating griffin about fifty miles north of here.” “I assume you managed to kill it,” Leon guessed, to which Adalgrim nodded with an expression of pride. “How did you keep it from flying away?” “My commander was a wind mage. We tracked it for two weeks, and when we caught up to it, we ambushed it while it was sleeping. My commander shredded the beast’s wings with a few wind blades. Despite these injuries, it still killed more than half of our squad before we ended its life. Griffins are strong beasts and have immense natural talents for wind and lightning magic. As I said, they’re strong and fast, and their abilities with magic only make that even truer.” “That reminds me,” Leon said as he glanced back at the mine, “why didn’t you use your ice magic from the very beginning of that fight? It seems to me like you could’ve ended that vampire before he had a chance to fight back…” “Oh… that…” Adalgrim murmured with a bashful look. “I… Well, with one of the Prince’s own men watching, I suppose I wanted to show what my squad could do… I didn’t want to end the battle so quickly that it made the rest of my squad look superfluous…” “I see…” Leon muttered, failing to hide the hint of disapproval in his voice. “Why don’t we head back to the village and report our success?” Adalgrim suggested, trying to divert attention away from his embarrassment. “If we hurry, we can even make it back to the Horns by nightfall.” The prospect of sleeping in their own beds got the tired squad back on their feet and moving back to the village. In fact, they reached their destination in less than an hour, they were so motivated. Then, after informing a grateful mayor of their success and handing over the dead villagers for cremation, the squad jumped on their horses and started making their way back to the Horns. Since this was his first time performing the job expected of all the Bull King’s knights, Leon still had a couple questions for which he needed answers. To that end, not long after leaving the village, Leon spurred his horse forward to ride next to Adalgrim. Normally, no one was to ride next to the leader of a Legion party, as it was expected that only the leader would take the lead position, but since Leon was the same tier as Adalgrim and served a Prince, no one batted an eye. “Sir Adalgrim,” Leon began. “Please, call me Grim,” the older knight replied with a good-natured smile. “Most knights are pretty informal with each other after they’ve been in battle together, no reason we can’t be as well, right? Besides, I know my name’s kind of a mouthful…” “In that case, please just call me Leon,” the younger knight responded, bringing a smile to Adalgrim’s face. “So, what do you need, Leon?” Grim asked. “Out of curiosity, how routine was this? Is this what I can expect if Prince Trajan were to send me out again?” “Well, I suppose it went pretty well, all things considered. There are always a few complications in these kinds of missions that you need to watch out for, chief among them is whether or not the vampire sticks around after its first couple of victims,” Adalgrim explained. Leon listened intently, trying to soak up all that he could so that he wouldn’t be caught off-guard in the future. “And is it often that you arrive only to find the beast is already gone?” Leon asked. “I’ve been sent out to investigate more than two dozen vampire attacks, and I’d say in about half of those cases, the creature fled before my party could arrive. This hunt was actually pretty straightforward in that regard. In my experience, vamps will observe their target settlement for a few days, single out enough people who seem like easy prey, then seize as many as they can in a single night. The smart ones then hide as best as they can, and the really smart ones take their captives and get the hell out of there as fast as their demon-worshipping asses can manage.” “How about other monsters?” Leon eagerly asked. He had been hoping to test himself during this mission to see how far he had come in his training with the Prince, but in the end, he hadn’t actually done much. From the slightly dissatisfied look Alix had behind him, he could tell she felt the same. Anzu, meanwhile, just happily ran alongside Leon’s horse seemingly without a care in the world. “Like I said before, I was sent after a griffin once,” Grim said. “There were also a few werewolves I was called in for, and quite a few other less exotic animals that were harassing people out in the countryside.” “And how often are you sent out?” Leon continued, causing Grim to chuckle in amusement. “Usually once or twice a week, depending on what I was sent out for last. I think my squad and I are looking at a good week off after dealing with a vampire… If we were sent after something like a third-tier bear or a wolf pack led by a relatively strong alpha, then we could be sent back out within a few days.” “Interesting…” Leon muttered as he lost himself in thought. The job wasn’t always exciting, mostly just hunting beasts and monsters who had grown too strong for local militia and Legion patrols to deal with. And, as Grim continued to elaborate on, going after smaller and less significant beasts was the norm; vampires and werewolves made up only a fraction of what a knight in the Bull Kingdom would have to deal with to keep the peace. The two knights continued to speak for several hours about the duties they perform, though it was mostly just Leon asking more in-depth questions and Grim answering to the best of his ability. By the time they started drawing near the Horns, it had grown dark and they were still talking. So enthralled were they in their conversation, in fact, that they didn’t notice the soft glow in the distance until Alix spoke up. “Um… Sirs, look at that!” she said in alarm once they drew close enough to be sure of what the glow was. Leon, startled by Alix’s loud outburst, glanced over at what she was pointing at: the city of Ariminium that the Southern Horn watched over. Much of the city was obscured in smoke, but they could still see the source: one of the southern districts of the city was burning. “That district is home to Ariminium’s mage guilds!” Grim said with a slight degree of panic. “Let’s get back quickly!” Leon responded, to which Grim nodded. The entire squad spurred their horses onward; there were seven miles between them and the post houses by the Northern Horn, and it would take them about half an hour to arrive. Once they reached the stables, Grim shouted at his squire to take care of the paperwork to sign the horses back in, then he turned to Leon and said, “We need to check in with our bosses!” “Right!” Leon shouted back. The orange glow of the fire raging in the city illuminated the entire overcast sky, and even from down on the plains they could hear the shouting and alarms coming from the Horns. “Let’s go!” Leon said to Alix, and they and Anzu sprinted up the ramp. Those manning the gatehouses had to stop them to check their ID’s, but with the current emergency, they didn’t make Leon’s small group wait, rushing them past to make way for the other soldiers who were coming down the ramp. “Where should we go?” Alix asked. “The keep, to check in with the Prince,” Leon responded. “What if he’s not there?” she replied. “I’m sure he’ll be there coordinating the response for whatever started that fire,” Leon said. They ran through as much of the Northern Horn as they could, but there were many baileys separated by walls and more gatehouses to get past; it took them almost another hour to finally enter the Southern Horn. “There’s something definitely wrong here,” Leon observed as they wound their way through the baileys of the Southern Horn. He could hear the sounds of armed and armored soldiers preparing for something, and the glow of the burning city hadn’t diminished. “If this were a normal fire, then it would’ve been taken care of by now,” Alix added, noticing the same thing Leon had. Their observations didn’t make them stop; rather, they sped up, reaching the keep fifteen minutes after arriving at the Southern Horn. There, they found the Prince standing in the main bailey surrounded by Legates and Tribunes, while hundreds of soldiers quietly waited in formation. Noticing them arrive, Trajan shouted, “Sir Leon! Get over here!” Leon hurried forward with Anzu at his side, while Alix went to wait with the other squires. “Your Highness,” Leon said, bowing slightly to the Prince. His manner was sloppy, and under normal circumstances would’ve elicited a few disapproving looks from the nobler Tribunes and Legates, but now was not a time to focus on etiquette, and no one paid him any mind. “You got here just in time,” the Prince said with a deadly serious attitude, “we need everyone we can get. One of the five major mage guilds in the city has rebelled.” “They rebelled ?!” Leon asked in shock. “ Here of all places?!” “We’re still getting to the bottom of why but dealing with the situation at hand is more important,” Trajan said, waving his hand to a map of the city on a temporary table set up just for this meeting. The delta of the Tyrrhenian River formed a number of large islands, and Ariminium sprawled out over all of them. This meant that much of the city was separated by branches of the river that flowed into the Gulf, and even these islands were filled with small canals. “The Bluefire Guild has seized control of the entire guild district,” Trajan explained, pointing to one of the largest of the southern islands. “We’ve contained them there, but it’s going to take a large push to get past the barricades they’ve erected on the bridges and enter the district.” “Your Highness, what about using the navy?” Minerva, the sixth-tier Legate and second-in-command of the Bull’s Horns, asked. Leon, looking around at the suggestion of using ships, noticed that the Legate in charge of the fleet stationed at the Horns was conspicuously absent. “Legate Merovic has indicated to me that he’s not going to move without a direct order from the Consul of the Gulf,” Trajan said with a furious look. “When we regain control of the guild district, I swear I’m going to have a long conversation with that man about desertion and dereliction of duty!” Leon looked back at the map. If the navy wasn’t going to help them get to the burning island, then that left one option: forcing their way through the three bridges that connected the island to its neighbors. He sighed, but inside he felt a sense of exhilaration. He wasn’t able to test himself against Amon’s vampire, but this would be the perfect time to see how much his skills had improved over the past year of training. !

**Chapitre 204 : Pas le temps de se reposer** « **Ugh** , combattre dans des grottes, c’est **la pire des choses** », soupira Adalgrim en guidant le groupe hors de la mine, visiblement soulagé. « Est-ce courant, ce genre de situation ? Les affrontements dans des grottes, je veux dire », demanda Leon, curieux. « Pas assez pour s’y préparer systématiquement, mais suffisamment pour que je sache que je les **déteste** avec une passion ardante ! » rétorqua Adalgrim. « Euh… sans mauvais jeu de mots intentionnel… » Le reste de l’escouade émergea à son tour de la mine, partageant ouvertement l’avis d’Adalgrim ; leurs visages s’illuminèrent dès qu’ils laissèrent derrière eux l’obscurité minérale. Mais personne ne manifesta autant de joie qu’Anzu en quittant cet espace oppressant. Le griffon bondit aussitôt dans l’herbe fraîche et se roula avec délice, libérant un cri rauque. « **Putain** », murmura Leon en observant les cabrioles de sa monture. « Il va falloir lui donner un **bain approfondi** au retour », fit remarquer Alix, l’œil critique. « Je sais », soupira Leon, accablé. Comme Anzu tolérait à peine qu’on l’approche – et encore moins qu’on le touche –, hormis lui, la corvée d’hygiène lui incomberait entièrement. Alix pourrait certes aider marginalement, mais l’essentiel du travail reviendrait au jeune chevalier. « Voir un griffon domestiqué relève de l’exceptionnel », commenta Adalgrim tandis que le groupe se reposait quelques instants. « Je vous avoue une certaine jalousie. » « Le hasard seul me l’a offert », expliqua Leon. « Sa mère l’a abandonné, probablement à cause de son albinisme et sa faible constitution. Elle l’a déposé étrangement près de moi. Il n’avait pas encore ouvert les yeux, ce qui m’a permis de m’imprégner dans son esprit. » « Voilà une **chance inouïe** », répondit Adalgrim, admiratif. « Ce sera une **monture de guerre redoutable** en grandissant, j’en suis convaincu. Les griffons allient vitesse, puissance et comptent parmi les prédateurs les plus redoutables du Royaume. » « Vous en avez déjà affronté un ? » s’enquit Alix, intéressée. « En effet », acquiesça Adalgrim sans relever le statut inférieur de la jeune femme. « Il y a dix ans, juste avant d’accéder au cinquième tier, mon commandant et moi avions été envoyés traquer un griffon anthropophage à cinquante kilomètres au nord d’ici. » « Je suppose que vous en êtes venus à bout », avança Leon, ce qui lui valut un hochement de fierté. « Comment l’avez-vous empêché de prendre les airs ? » « Mon commandant maîtrisait les vents. Après deux semaines de traque, nous l’avons surpris endormi. Il a lacéré ses ailes avec des lames aériennes. Malgré ses blessures, il a décimé la moitié de l’escouade avant que nous ne l’achevions. » Adalgrim marqua une pause théâtrale avant d’ajouter : « Ces créatures possèdent une affinité naturelle pour les arcanes du vent et de la foudre. Leur puissance physique n’en est que décuplée. » « Cela me rappelle… », fit Leon en jetant un regard vers la mine, « pourquoi n’avez-vous pas usé de votre magie glaciale dès l’abord ? Vous auriez pu neutraliser ce vampire avant qu’il ne réagisse… » « Oh… cela… », marmonna Adalgrim, soudain mal à l’aise. « Avec un émissaire princier parmi nous… J’ai souhaité montrer les capacités de mon unité. En finir trop vite aurait rendu leur présence superflue… » « Je comprends… », grommela Leon, incapable de masquer une certaine désapprobation. « Si nous regagnions le village pour annoncer notre succès ? » proposa Adalgrim, cherchant à détourner la conversation. « En pressant le pas, nous pourrions même rentrer aux Cornes avant la nuit. » La perspective de retrouver leurs lits insuffla une nouvelle énergie au groupe épuisé. Ils atteignirent le village en moins d’une heure, motivés comme jamais. Après avoir informé le maire reconnaissant et remis les dépouilles pour crémation, l’escouade enfourcha ses montures et prit la route du retour. Cette mission étant sa première officielle en tant que chevalier du Roi Taureau, Leon brûlait de questions. Peu après avoir quitté le village, il éperonna sa monture pour rejoindre Adalgrim. Normalement, personne ne chevauchait à côté d’un chef de légion, mais le statut de Leon – équivalent en tier et protégé princier – lui valut cette tolérance. « Sir Adalgrim… », entama-t-il. « Appelle-moi Grim », corrigea le vétéran avec un sourire cordial. « Entre frères d’armes, les formalités s’estompent. D’autant que mon nom est un véritable casse-tête… » « Dans ce cas, Leon suffira », répondit le jeune homme, ce qui fit sourire l’aîné. « Alors, que veux-tu savoir, Leon ? » « À quel point cette mission était-elle représentative ? Puis-je m’attendre à ce genre d’interventions sous les ordres du Prince ? » « Tout bien considéré, cela s’est déroulé de manière optimale. Les complications surviennent généralement quand la créature persiste après ses premiers meurtres », expliqua Grim. Leon buvait ses paroles, avide d’apprendre pour éviter les mauvaises surprises futures. « Et est-il fréquent que la cible ait déjà déserté les lieux ? » « Sur mes deux douzaines de chasses vampiriques, la moitié s’étaient envolées avant notre arrivée. Ce cas était donc simple. D’expérience, ils observent leurs proies plusieurs jours, sélectionnent des victimes faciles, puis frappent massivement en une nuit. Les intelligents se terrent ensuite, et les **vraiment** malins fuient avec leurs prisonniers dès que possible. » « Et les autres menaces ? » s’enquit Leon, enthousiaste. Il avait espéré tester ses progrès après son entraînement avec le Prince, mais l’occasion lui avait échappé. Le regard déçu d’Alix reflétait son propre sentiment. Anzu, lui, gambadait insouciant près des chevaux. « J’ai déjà mentionné le griffon », répondit Grim. « Quelques lycanthropes, et nombre de bêtes plus communes ravageant les campagnes. » « À quelle fréquence partez-vous en mission ? » poursuivit Leon, faisant rire Grim. « Une à deux fois par semaine, selon l’urgence. Après un vampire, nous mériterons certainement une semaine de repos. Pour un ours de troisième tier ou une meute dirigée par un alpha puissant, le répit serait moindre. » « Fascinant… », murmura Leon, absorbé. Ces missions, souvent routinières, consistaient surtout à éliminer des menaces trop importantes pour les milices locales. Comme le précisait Grim, les créatures mineures constituaient l’essentiel du travail ; vampires et loups-garous n’en représentaient qu’une fraction. La discussion se prolongea durant des heures, Leon questionnant avec précision et Grim répondant avec patience. Lorsqu’ils approchèrent des Cornes, la nuit tombée, leur échange battait encore son plein. Ils furent interrompus par l’exclamation soudaine d’Alix : « Messieurs… regardez ! » Leon suivit son doigt tremblant vers Ariminium, protégée par la Corne Sud. D’épaisses volutes de fumée s’élevaient de la ville, mais l’épicentre était clair : un quartier entier flambait au sud. « C’est le district des guildes magiques ! » s’écria Grim, une note de panique dans la voix. « Pressons le pas ! » ordonna Leon, ce à quoi Grim acquiesça. L’escouade éperonna ses montures ; onze kilomètres les séparaient encore des postes de la Corne Nord. Aux écuries, Grim délégua la paperasse à son écuyer avant de se tourner vers Leon : « Rendons compte à nos supérieurs ! » « Absolument ! » approuva Leon. La lueur orangée de l’incendie illuminait les nuages, et les cris provenant des Cornes parvenaient jusqu’à eux. « Suis-moi ! » lança-t-il à Alix avant d’escalader la rampe avec Anzu. Les gardes, malgré les vérifications d’usage, les laissèrent passer rapidement devant le flot de soldats descendant en hâte. « Où allons-nous ? » interrogea Alix. « Au donjon, trouver le Prince », répondit Leon. « Et s’il est absent ? » « Il y sera, j’en suis certain. Il coordonne sûrement les secours. » Le trajet à travers les enceintes fortifiées prit près d’une heure, chaque mur intérieur nécessitant de nouvelles contrôles. « Quelque chose cloche gravement », observa Leon tandis qu’ils progressaient. Les bruits d’armes préparées et l’intensité persistante des flammes alarmaient. « Un incendie ordinaire aurait été maîtrisé depuis longtemps », renchérit Alix, partageant ses craintes. Ils redoublèrent d’efforts, atteignant finalement le donjon. Trajan s’y tenait, entouré de légats et tribuns, tandis que des centaines de soldats s’alignaient en formation. « Sir Leon ! À moi ! » hurla le Prince en les apercevant. Leon s’avança promptement avec Anzu tandis qu’Alix rejoignait les autres écuyers. « Votre Altesse », salua-t-il, négligeant quelque peu l’étiquette dans l’urgence. Les officiers présents n’y prêtèrent pas attention, trop préoccupés. « Votre arrivée est opportune », déclara Trajan, glacial. « Nous mobilisons toutes les forces disponibles. Une des cinq grandes guildes magiques s’est soulevée. » « **Révoltée** ?! » s’exclama Leon, abasourdi. « **Ici**, de tous les endroits ?! » « Les motivations restent obscures, mais la priorité est de contenir la situation », rétorqua le Prince en désignant une carte déployée sur une table improvisée. Ariminium s’étendait sur les îles du delta tyrrhénien, découpée par les bras du fleuve. « La Guilde des Flammes Bleues contrôle désormais tout le quartier des guildes », expliqua Trajan en indiquant une grande île méridionale. « Nous les contenons, mais il faudra percer leurs barricades sur les ponts. » « Et la marine, Votre Altesse ? » suggéra Minerva, légat de sixième tier. Leon remarqua alors l’absence du commandant naval. « Le Légat Merovic refuse d’agir sans ordre direct du Consul du Golfe », gronda Trajan. « Quand ce chaos sera terminé, j’aurai une **discussion approfondie** avec lui sur la négligence du devoir ! » Leon étudia la carte. Sans soutien naval, une seule option restait : forcer les trois ponts menant à l’île rebelle. Il soupira, mais une excitation sourde l’envahit. L’affrontement avec le vampire lui avait échappé, mais cette crise offrirait enfin l’occasion de mesurer ses progrès après un an d’entraînement intensif.