684. Noble Problems VII

684. Noble Problems VII

Screams and shouting echoed in the distance as the four rode up to the town near the late afternoon, their fresh horses letting out whinnies, slowing from the riders pulling their reins. Adam threw a glance towards Jurot, who nodded his head, and they trotted in, past the gates which had been forced open, with dead guards scattered about like toy soldiers.

They rode in on their horses, who snorted at the scent of blood, but did not back away. They rode through the main road, watching as people peeked out from their homes, others still running around, trying to keep out of the way.

The centre was filled with chaos and death, with dozens of bandits, each adorned with furs and blades, slashed and cut at the nearby guards. The bodies of commoners lay dead all around them, like litter on the road.

Several of the bandits were unlike the others, wielded much larger studded greatclubs, with large metal discs covering their chests. They clashed against the guards with greater fervour, and broke bones with every other swing, even through their thin chain armour.

The nobles were easy enough to spot, adorned in their full plate, with long capes which fell from their shoulders. One wore a cape of brilliant silver, and the other wore a cape which was the colour of the ocean depths. One wielded a longsword in hand, and the other wielded a large warhammer, not quite a maul.

Their opponent was a humanoid wolf, which snarled at the pair, but held them both at bay. The blade cut against its skin, but the warhammer slammed against the creature and bounced off harmlessly. Yet, while the creature was facing two heavily armoured warriors, it was forcing them back with its terrifying claws, which tore apart the plate mail as though it were cardboard.

“Ha!” the silver caped noble roared, his blade managing to cut a deep gash across the creature’s chest, causing it to wince for the first time in their bout. “You wicked beast! Back to the moon with you! Back!”

“Boss, we need to get outta here!” a bandit shouted.

“Boss! Trouble!” another bandit shouted, noting the approaching four, two of whom were adorned in full steel, though one was purple, and each were heavily armed.

The silence within the storm surrounded the town as the three groups stepped in line between another, while the commoners swiftly retreated away from the scene.

Adam’s eyes glanced from the bandits to the wolfman and then to the nobles. His eyes fell across the scene, the wolves which had been slaughtered, and the many more commoners. Many of the guards and bandits seemed relatively fine, and though some were heavily wounded, none were dead, yet.

Adam almost hopped off his horse, and he sauntered a few steps forward, resting his arm between his axe and his waist. “Hm.” Adam hummed out, his eyes still glancing around the scene.

“Who are you?” the wolfman growled.

“Careful!” the silver caped noble shouted. “His bite is contagious!”

“Really now?” Adam replied, his eyes meeting the wolfman’s gaze. “I’m rather good with diseases.”

“A lycanthrope’s bite is a curse, not a disease,” Kitool stated, slowly bowing her head.

Adam paused, blinking for a moment. ‘Kitool, you really had to do me like that?’ “Well, either way, this is a little awkward.”

“Who are you?” snarled the wolfman, extending his claws towards the Half Elf from his rag tag group.

“I am a guy whose been betrayed by two nobles,” Adam replied, his eyes darting between the werewolf and the noble. “Which is a little awkward in this situation.”

“We have earned our spoils, so let us pass, and you may take whatever we have not snatched from their fiendish grasp,” the werewolf stated, their voice still a growl.

The werewolf howled, bringing his other arm to strike Adam, before Adam sliced it off, and left the creature on his knees, screaming and howling in pain. Adam pulled away from the wolf, before turning, going to deal with the remaining enforcers who were battering away at his brother’s body.

“Sorry, Jurot,” Adam said, having knocking a pair of enforcers down, while Jurot killed the others. “Thought we should deal with it quickly, otherwise the nobles might start getting bright ideas.”

Jurot nodded, glancing to the side as he watched the bandits flee. They took with them their hard earned loot, only to find commoners ready to pelt them with stones, and jabbing them with sticks and spears. Had they not seen their baron force back the creature, or the new gang which had stepped into town and dealt with the beast with ease, they certainly would have remained within their homes, safe and sound. Yet the bandit’s morale had broken, and thus they began to avenge their fellow peoples, whose riches had been stolen.

The clean up had taken not long at all, while the silver caped noble stepped up towards the four. “I cannot thank you enough, great heroes.”

“Great heroes?” Adam asked, shaking his head lightly. “We got paid to do our job, that’s all.”

“Adam says that, but he would have helped you out even if you didn’t pay as much,” Jaygak said.

“Yeah? How do you gather that?”

“Commoners were killed,” Jaygak said. “You would have at least made it troublesome for them to leave after that.”

“You know me too well.”

“How Guntherian,” the noble said.

“What?”

“Guntherian? It’s a term used for those who follow the teachings of Gunther.”

“I don’t know who that is, but I suppose he sounds like a good guy,” Adam replied.

“You must not be from these lands,” the noble stated, eyeing them up through his visor. “Gunther is the most well known hero across all the land, spoken in the same breath as Saul and Petra.”

“Yeah, we’re pretty new,” Adam admitted. “Though he sounds like a good guy, so I won’t use it against you.”

The noble glanced towards the wolfman, who had fallen unconscious, though his arms had seemingly healed over. “You have left him alive?”

“I thought you might want to interrogate him,” Adam replied, though his heart still ached from killing recently.

The baron drew his blade, a blade of shimmering silver, runes etched across the blade. “You shouldn’t have abandoned the Sun Father, beast.” He cut through the werewolf’s neck cleanly, before blood pooled towards Adam’s boots.

Victory!

XP Gained: +300

XP: 16 100 -> 16 400

Look at that sweet, sweet XP!