158 War of Information

"What are you doing here Shadow?" Escanor asked in a hushed tone.

"Same as always brother" Shadow said. He looked forward "They have the whole area surrounded. Your sudden exit earlier alerted them. You are in a bind Gold. I am disappointed. Your edge is getting dull"

Escanor looked around. The busy street accommodated dozens of pedestrians. He couldn't identify his pursuers in the mass of people.

"How many?"

"Three. The rest haven't caught up yet"

"Point them to me"

"The carriage driver to the right. The aged woman sitting by the clothing shop. And one is behind us"

"I know a secret passage on the next alley"

Shadow smiled "Alright"

After walking a few more paces they turned to the alley to the right. It was a narrow passage between a merchant house and a store. The moment Escanor judged they were out of sight he ran. Shadow followed him.

To the left of the alley was a hole in the wall of the merchant house. They squeezed through and found themselves on the garden of the house. Escanor crouched. His head was hidden by the plants. They crossed the garden and went up the other side of the wall. Another alley greeted them.

After turning a few more corners, they found themselves looking at the palace. The area was cleared of houses and only seldom patrols of royal guards walked the streets.

"I retract my words. You still got it" Shadow said. He was catching his breath.

"I pride myself in being elusive and prepared" Escanor said "So why are you really here?"

"Same as you. We need to be of service to the King and the Queen. I also need to talk to His Majesty to report what happened recently in Eastern Castonia"

"And are you going to tell them about who we suspect they are?"

"Not yet" Shadow said. His forehead formed a fleeting frown "I'm afraid the truth will affect them"

Escanor nodded. It was the right choice. They need to wait until the end of this crisis first before dropping the truth to them.

"And do you know what's happening here in Vanadis?"

"The merchants and nobles and that muscle-head right? Planning a coup as if it would succeed"

"It could"

"It wouldn't. Have faith in them. The Queen is cunning and the King..." Shadow smiled widely "Do you have any idea what he's doing right now?"

*********

"Oh it was glorious!" Timothy's voice boomed in the streets of Holm. He was standing on a platform telling stories to the people. Thousands of faces, mostly of young men, were on him. The people were not blinking. He had sole ownership of their attention.

"My three legions were pinned by a force more than twice their numbers. A few thousand of the enemies were cavalry. Tulosan Knights I tell you! Their charge was like raging storm. Their horses were fast and muscular. They were clad in armor, a hard kill even for a veteran. Imagine a sea of horses charging towards you with spears and lances. Lesser men would have ran. Lesser men would have lost their will to fight. But my men? No. They firmly looked the enemies in the eye and met their lances with courage"

Timothy leaned his head closer as if telling an old friend about a secret. "And do you know what happened?"

He slammed his palms together. "Bam! They collided with a force that can shake mountains. Steel met against steel. They brawled into a chaotic melee. They fought like crazed men. To tell you, the Tulosans questioned reality upon seeing that my men didn't rout. They scratched their heads, confused as to why my men were not showing fear. They charged again but the same thing happened. They were met with a resolve stronger than the hardest steel. Several times they charged and several times they failed. But something was happening on their back. They didn't know that I had prepared a trap for them. Now who among you knows what happened next?"

A Vanadian raised his hand as soon as Timothy asked. His eyes were brimming with interest. "The Vanadians! The Vanadian reinforcements arrived!"

"Aha! So they did. The Vanadians slammed against the Tulosan cavalry. My own cavalry also arrived. The three forces enveloped the Tulosans. The hunter became the hunted. The predator turned into prey. They tried to escape but we didn't let them. It was truly glorious!"

Timothy feasted his eyes upon the faces of the listeners. For the past days he had been telling stories to the people of Holm. Abraham stood in full armor beside him to give the listeners an idea what his soldiers looked like. It could be called cheating because Abraham is a giant, but he couldn't find a better model other than his royal guard.

At first the Vanadians only numbered in a few dozens. But today there were thousands of listeners. The number of volunteers for the Vanadian legions had also risen.

"But things were different on the left flank" Timothy's voice became mellower, colder and lower. "The other allies we had were too slow. The Dawn legion was struggling against the continuous attack of the Tulosans. They tried to..."

"surround the Tulosan cavalry but failed. As a result my husband had a headache that night" said a familiar voice.

The people looked behind. Timothy also searched for the source of the voice.

"The Queen! It's the Queen"

"Queen Lucia!"

Timothy soon sighted Lucia. She was being escorted by armored royal guards. She was smiling, a smile so sweet that was directed to him.

The people knelt upon seeing the Queen. Lucia continued walking towards the platform. Timothy reached towards her hand and pulled her up.

"Missed me?" Timothy put a kiss on her cheek. He didn't mind the thousands of eyes watching.

"I did hear that there was a new preacher in town, spreading whispers of war. I also heard that you are doing a great job turning merchants into footmen" She smiled and bent closer to his ear "I hate to disturb you but new information about the conspirators just surfaced"

"Reliable information?"

"Yes if you consider Escanor and the Spectator as reliable informants"

Timothy doubted his ears at first. "They are at the palace?"

"Yes"

Timothy nodded. He turned towards and smiled to the people of Holm.

"I would like to continue the story next time. The Queen and I have pressing matters to attend to"

**********

Hot food was served for Escanor and the Spectator. These two were here to bring them valuable information. Listening to how they evaded pursuers confirmed that they risked their lives to get in the palace. Filling their bellies with a hot meal was the least she could do.

Lucia didn't know that Escanor and the Spectator knew each other. She was surprised when a royal guard told her that the two were at the gate and requested her audience.

She poured tea into her own cup. She took a sip and looked at Timothy who was intently listening to the report of the Spectator or Shadow. Strange names they have, Lucia thought.

"I see" Timothy was supporting his head on his knuckles "So my father is well?"

"The healthiest person of his age that I know" Shadow confirmed.

"Good to hear. Now let's talk about what's happening here in Vanadis. The Queen said that you have information?"

Shadow looked at Lucia. "I already told the Queen the gist of it Your Majesty. I have also already pointed in the map where they would strike. Four thousand mercenaries and at least three thousand of the navy. Unknown number of serfs and a bear"

"A bear?"

"He is... strong. But he's not smart. He's one of my kind"

"Should we be worried about this bear?"

Shadow shook his head "No. Ten of your Castonians could put him down"

"And what of their leaders?"

Shadow again looked at Lucia as if getting her consent. He looked back at Timothy. "An Admiral. Veno is his name I was told"

Lucia angled her look towards Timothy "Admiral Veno. Ironically he's the one we sent to fetch Erik from Greenwater. He has thirty-eight galleys under his command. Strict and has the loyalty of his marines"

"So it's him. Should we be worried that he'll find out that Erik is ferrying his people?"

"I don't think we should worry about that" Lucia said "Have faith in the Marquis"

"Alright. And the other leaders?"

Lucia decided to answer Timothy herself. She already listened to Escanor and Shadow earlier anyway.

"The wealthiest spice merchant and silk merchant. And..." She lowered her head "Escanor spotted Arthur"

"Arthur again?" Timothy gave a troubled look "When will he learn?"

Lucia shrugged. It pained her that Arthur was again fighting against them. "I hope soon"

Timothy sighed loudly "Okay. It's his choice anyway. Anything else that may be of significance?"

"One of the mercenary companies!" Escanor blurted. Up until now the merchant had remained silent. He looked embarrassed by his sudden utter. "Your Majesty, one of he mercenary company is Silverback. They are tough"

Lucia had heard of this information from the merchant earlier. She again shrugged and disregarded the information. No matter how tough they are, her husband has the best mind in the world when it comes to military planning. Surely Timothy could make a plan. But when she turned towards Timothy to admire, she saw that his expression changed. He was shocked and pained at the same time.

"Escanor and Shadow, we thank you for the information you provided us. But now I must request that you leave us alone for a little while"

"Of course Your Majesty" The two gave a bow and exited the room. After a while she was left alone with Timothy.

"You can talk to me now. They're gone"

"Lucia" Timothy's expression remained "About the mercenary company Escanor was talking about"

"Silverback. Yes, what of it?"

"The captain, he is known as Silver. I know who he is"

"A friend of yours?"

Timothy looked at her. His face was downcast. "He's William"