Chapter 228: Illumination

Chapter 228: Illumination

Snow started to fall a few hours before dusk, thick and wet flakes that stuck to everything they landed on. With bad weather rolling in, the focus was on getting the soldiers some proper winter clothing and somewhere warm to sleep for the night. The bandits had taken all of their weapons and armor, as well as a good portion of their supplies, leaving Willa and her troop with little to get them through the storm. Considering the amount of supplies the soldiers had brought with them on the expedition, Jadis was surprised the bandits had made off with so much. It certainly didn’t look like they’d carried that much with them when they left.

Kerr suspected the bandits had squirreled away the supplies somewhere either elsewhere in the valley or in the mining cave. If their goal was to travel light and keep moving, it would make sense to leave supplies in hidden caches in locations they planned on returning to. The idea made sense to Jadis, which was why she planned on searching the area for the possible hidden stock of supplies. Not right away, though, not when the bandits could possibly be nearby and waiting to ambush anyone who separated from the main group.

On the bright side, the soldiers still had their wagon and their horses, as well as a few supplies that hadn’t been stolen. Fortune’s Favored also had an excess of food in the form of drake and bear meat from all the fights and hunting they’d done for the past few days, so there was plenty to go around. The pelts of the golden bears also served as warm, if smelly, coats for the divested troops.

There was no letting any guard down and no separate sleeping arrangements either. Jadis made sure to clear out the warehouse of the disturbing death machine the bandit called “Rickets” had made, giving both her companions and the soldiers a safe and secure place to spend the night.

Eir was able to heal everyone back to full health, though the effort left her magic reserves almost completely drained. With a maximum magic value of three hundred and sixty and a Divine attribute sitting at one hundred and twenty-three, her skill allowed her to heal eight thousand six hundred and forty health points, a true blessing for the battered soldiers. Between all the healing she did during the fight and all the healing afterwards, she actually went up a level by the time she’d gotten to everyone.

Eir Aedraheill

Race: Elf

Primary Class: Beloved Cleric of Lyssandria (23)

Secondary Class: Lustful Oracle of D (6)

Tertiary Class: None

Combined Level Rating: 29

Health: 100/100

Magic: 12/360

Attributes

Strength: 8

Dexterity: 12

Agility: 10

Vitality: 10

Fortitude: 8

Endurance: 10

Arcane: 0

Divine: 123

Eldritch: 0

Focus: 36

Resilience: 10

Will: 20

A new level in Beloved Cleric of Lyssandria brought with it a new spell, one that made some sense considering all the healing the priestess was doing.

Beloved’s Dual Channeled Healing

There was one corner of the warehouse where the mood was darkest, however, and was likely to stay that way for a while.

Jay, Aila, and Thea had gathered together with captain Willa to go over the events that had led to the soldiers being captured by the bandits. Jadis made sure that Aila was with her since her sharp mind would likely catch any important details that Jadis might miss. She also asked Thea to attend the meeting since she was a former soldier of the Empire. It wasn’t that Jadis didn’t trust Willa, but she wanted Thea’s direct opinion on the story since there could be context, orders, or motivations that Thea might catch that Jadis would be ignorant of.

“They ambushed us yesterday, inside of the cave,” Willa recounted. “Achim was killed in the initial crossfire while Otto, Lutz, and Gunnar were captured. Then they pushed out of the cave and attacked the rest of us. They were on us so fast that we barely had time to mount a defense. Sofie and Gerd were killed during the fight outside. By that point, I was forced to surrender, else we would have all been killed.”

Willa didn’t look good. Eir’s magic had healed the wounds of her flesh, but there wasn’t much the magic could do for her mind. The normally stern and self-assured woman looked shaken, her confidence brittle, if not broken. She probably needed a therapist, or at least a couple of weeks of rest to come to terms with her recent terrible experiences. But that wasn’t an option out in the field. As much as Jadis felt for the woman, she needed answers to her questions. Willa’s rest would have to wait.

“How’d they catch you off guard?" Jay asked. “I know you’re careful about keeping watch. Was it the witch and her translucency spell?”

“No,” Willa shook her head, then thought better and shrugged. “Well, the witch contributed. They set up a screen over a tunnel in the mine. We never found it, not until it was too late. It let them get behind Achim and the others. That trap master of theirs has some powerful skills to be able to make such convincing screens without the use of illusion magic.”

“I didn’t think you were going to explore the caves,” Aila interjected. “Wasn’t your plan to investigate the village and then search other cave exits?”

“Yes,” Willa nodded, “that’s true. We didn’t go deep. Perhaps a hundred yards into that tunnel and the cave splits into mortal-made mining tunnels. We were investigating the entrances to those tunnels. We didn’t go far at all. They just... that man got the better of me.”

“You w—were outnumbered,” Thea pointed out.

“True,” Jay nodded in agreement. “There were a lot of those bandits. I think we killed a dozen or so of them, and I’m sure there must have been more when you fought them. No way you and Nora didn’t take down at least a few.”

“That’s true,” Willa said, one corner of her mouth lifting up slightly. “I believe Nora fried five or six of them with her lightning. We killed perhaps eight total. If they hadn’t split our forces, we likely would have been able to repel their attack. Most of them were not trained or skilled fighters. Their leader, however...”

Willa’s face morphed into a deep scowl as her thoughts turned to Stavros.

“That man is an elite. Three classes, level eighty to ninety would be my guess. He took on Jaxton, Landry, and me at the same time. I don’t think any of us ever landed a clean blow on him.”

“If he’s so strong, I’m surprised he gave up so easily,” Jay mused, running a hand through her hair. “We barely got a hit on him before he pulled back and started negotiating.”

“He’s cautious,” Aila said, her stoic expression as cool as the snow falling outside. “I would say he attacked you directly so he could assess your combat ability, then fell back when fighting the three of you proved to be too risky.”

“He’s a snake,” Willa spat. “He’s the type to put a knife in your side. I’ve no doubt he’s still somewhere in the forest nearby, plotting another ambush. A viper like him doesn’t run. He plots.”

Jadis agreed with Willa’s assessment. She was sure Stavros and his bandits were planning revenge for their defeat. But there was a more important question on her mind, one she wanted to steer the conversation towards. What better way to direct the flow than by brute force?

Well, probably lots of better ways. But a direct question could do wonders, in Jadis’ opinion.

“He’s a snake alright,” Jay said as she leaned forward, meeting Willa’s eyes. “But he’s not the reason you and your troops are out here. According to Stavros, imperial soldiers captured five of his men. Clearly, that wasn’t done by you. That means there are imperial soldiers already out here, in the tunnels that are supposedly being illegally mined. So what the fuck’s going on, Willa?”

There was a tense silence as Willa stared at Jay with an indignant expression, perhaps not expecting such a direct confrontation. Aila’s poker face was immaculate, though Thea looked nervously between Jay and the captain. Jay kept quiet, waiting for Willa to respond before she said any more. Eventually, the captain sighed, shaking her head.

“You’re right. We weren’t sent to investigate bandits. Didn’t have a clue they were out here.”

“Then who did you have a clue about?”

“Someone you don’t accuse unless you have concrete evidence,” Willa said with a dark look. “Not unless you’re prepared for a major conflict.”

“Someone high up in the military chain of command,” Aila said slowly. “Someone who ranks high enough or has enough political backing that the Magistrate can’t simply arrest or investigate them openly per her authority but also isn’t high enough that they can challenge her directly.”

“S—someone that can c—command the loyalty of a good number of imperial t—troops,” Thea join in. “Or at least k—keep them silent.”

As ignorant to local politics as Jadis was, even she could narrow down the list of suspects to just one person.

“Egilhard,” Jay grunted, her expression turning sour.

“General Egilhard,” Willa agreed.