They walked through the corridors of the castle, nodding to some of their acquaintances who were only now emerging from the battle. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9RLIOmphtV 維尼
“Is everything alright?” a short woman asked nervously. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4897jVafKI 維尼
“Yes, everything is fine,” Aldene said with a beaming smile. “We’re safe from the rogues for now. We just need to speak with Lord Albin for just a moment. We need a favour.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡAro3jxBPh4 維尼
The woman exhaled. “Very well. He should be in his room, resting. He is still quite weak from the sickness.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡoeYknUWjM5 維尼
“Thank you,” Aldene said and brushed a hand to the woman’s arm. She continued on with Marcus right next to her. Some of his braids have come undone, but there were still two at the nape of his neck that were still intact. He noticed her looking at him and he gave her a smile. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEVrx9J4dr 維尼
“Is something wrong?”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡLQLMzbYblw 維尼
“No. Some of your braids are loose.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡnfMMEAIYE5 維尼
“Would you help me tie them back if I help you with yours?”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡf3a7KJ2jAx 維尼
“Of course,” Aldene said with a grin. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡCGQSmBrFSF 維尼
They stood side by side in front of Lord Albin’s room, which was guarded by two women who nodded, having recognised them from their frequent visits to the chambers. The doors opened and they saw that Lord Albin was sitting on a chair next to a window overlooking the courtyard which was now a battle field.8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡIAuTWJT7US 維尼
“My lord,” Marcus said with a slight nod. Aldene followed his lead and they waited for Lord Albin to turn to them. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8TKNkJHvf4 維尼
“Marcus. Aldene.” His parch voice was calm and welcoming, as was the smile on his face middle aged face. “It is so good to see the two of you unharmed.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡHAgOSTFAYO 維尼
“Thank you, my lord.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡaSPWaiIUOw 維尼
Aldene approached the table in front of Lord Albin and poured him a cup of water. “From the sound of your voice, you need some more fluids in you, Lord Albin.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡGlIhYjDHXH 維尼
“Quite right. I got carried away praying for my fallen men. I hope their ancestors will guide their essence easily to the other realm.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ra3pHV6r5 維尼
Aldene nodded her head mutely, agreeing with the lord. It was important to all Enzlans that their essence left their bodies and moved on. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡCd1tQhda6b 維尼
Lord Albin accepted the cup from her and took a large gulp. “Marcus, I believe you will be glad to know that while everyone was busy fighting, the healer you had placed unconscious woke up. Seeing himself in chains and behind bars in the dungeon, he quickly confessed to the crime.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡZiZF3g3UP1 維尼
Aldene shot Marcus a questioning look. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡmRayAqlMEj 維尼
Later, his eyes told her. Aldene raised a brow and poured more water for Lord Albin.8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡymyeFKQ3OJ 維尼
“I’m relieved to hear that. Did he give the name to the one who gave the orders?”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡdWzUOgyYuV 維尼
Lord Albin scowled into the water before downing it. “He didn’t know the person, only that the money arrived when they said it would.” He pushed the cup away. “You have refilled my cup a dozen times by now, Aldene. Surely that is enough?”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ76kHKI6Ntb 維尼
Aldene hid a smile. “Yes, my lord.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡf7eQImrTMC 維尼
Lord Albin sighed. “Now, is there anything in particular you came to visit me for?”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8b0W3QDslh 維尼
“If we are not asking too much, would you permit us to use your magic mirror?” Marcus asked. “We would like to contact home.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡgUFdBsys6W 維尼
“You have a daughter, I seem to recall,” Lord Albin said. “I understand your worry and love, as I would wish to do the same for my own children.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡGY3cvffFga 維尼
Aldene’s heart was in her throat at those words. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡgCtF72qCpG 維尼
“Unfortunately, my mirror was being used to survey the grounds during the battle. The great shock that came with the Ician rogue caused it to fall.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡiuIEJAiym8 維尼
Marcus’s face became grim as he heard the news. Aldene went back to his side and stood close enough to touch. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡQragl4AamX 維尼
“Lord Albin,” Aldene said. “We have been delayed by the battle and we are glad that we were able to help. But we are anxious to go home.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡIveV6h8vHB 維尼
Lord Albin nodded. “I thank you again for all that you’ve done. Your belongings were being packed before the rogues invaded, so you should be ready to go immediately. I will have your horses prepared for you.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡhIskXPsDNN 維尼
The two murmured their gratitude and farewells to the lord. When the doors closed, they made their way down a flight of stairs to the wing where the visiting healers had their rooms. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡFu1BzAUNMY 維尼
Sure enough, Marcus’ bag was packed and he noted that his bag was also sitting by the bed. He quickly went through both bags and was satisfied with the contents. After changing his shirt for another green one, he slipped the blue bag over his shoulders and turned to see that Aldene was removing her light plate armour.8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡhTWKEUAjDG 維尼
They dropped off the borrowed armour at the armoury, said their goodbyes, and saddled their horses with fingers that long since memorised the movements, as did the rest of their body when they mounted up and started to ride toward the gate. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Jp2IvQbFM 維尼
The snow had started to fall, giving the landscape a soft and cold blanket that covered all the imperfections in the world. Sounds were muted by the snow as they set their horses on a steady pace. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡs5lqWqiUAC 維尼
“What was that you were talking about with Lord Albin?” Aldene asked after a few miles. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡxRe0iUTX2D 維尼
“One of the healers was poisoning Lord Albin even as we tried to find the cure to his illness,” Marcus replied. “Whenever we came close to a cure, the symptoms always changed.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡQnrmwLi642 維尼
Aldene nodded. “It was as though the illness started afresh after every time we created a cure.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡd0UElvxj2C 維尼
“It was Konnoly, the healer from the Southern Islands. He was bought by someone with a large sum of money to poison Lord Albin.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡLk8QE4AYTo 維尼
“How did you find out it was him?”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡUJJkP0fbZz 維尼
Marcus ducked under a tree branch. “I was in the infirmary treating the soldiers coming in with wounds. I had run out of supplies and was getting more when I accidentally knocked down a few books from Konnoly’s worktable. Some papers fell out, and I saw that they were lists of ways to counter our cures to make sure that they didn’t work.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡtahh3Psl74 維尼
“That bastard!”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4vWBvinmy7 維尼
“After I hit him with a scale—”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡZV4LzVAqOu 維尼
“A what? A scale?”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ343kM2onmM 維尼
“He pushed me into a stack of them,” Marcus said defensively. “Stop laughing!”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7wYUnd2Dkf 維尼
“S-Sorry!” Aldene leaned into her mare’s mane and tried to control her giggles. “But—scales—oh, Marcus!”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡLNB8gU20fN 維尼
“The weights that were on the same shelf fell, too,” Marcus said with a light glower but he couldn’t stop his own lips from twitching upward. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡsC82dMHQ0N 維尼
“I’m sorry, carry on,” Aldene said, pressing two fingers to her lips to keep them from becoming an uncontrollable smile. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡV81OU5VovF 維尼
“I brought him to Lord Albin, who had Konnoly tossed into the dungeons until we had time to deal with him.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Xk8VQqRkK 維尼
“At least he’s caught now,” Aldene said. They passed on in silence for only another heartbeat before Aldene burst out laughing. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡmnzW36HmS0 維尼
“What?” Marcus demanded. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Mo40bSGL9 維尼
“You could have easily stopped him with your magic but you hit him with a scale!”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡD4v9bh9STz 維尼
“It’s not as funny as you make it sound.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7WjR9h7jQZ 維尼
“I’m definitely telling Gerald and Maya about this.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5n4OaS5hpw 維尼
“Don’t you dare!”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡR2zXdWY273 維尼
Aldene stuck her tongue out and increased her mount’s speed. Marcus shook his head and patted his own mare. “Come on, girl. we can’t let them beat us.” His mare tossed her head and raced after Aldene, whose laugh pierced through the quiet, peaceful world.8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡxgTty7TqWE 維尼
They passed the village entirely, opting to continue on to reach the town. Their horses, bred for speed and stamina, would make it there just fine. Besides, with the snow falling throughout the night, it would be harder to start their journey in the morning. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡsy2dR4lUSR 維尼
Aldene slowed her horse to a walk as they approached the gates, which were closed shut. The torches lining the wall made shadows dance on the snow a few metres away from the wall. They stepped into the light and she shouted, “Hello!” 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡWPx6Oz5AEF 維尼
A figure peered down at them. “Who goes?”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡcYI5oMTQi9 維尼
“A Healer and a scout!”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡimjpY4v69g 維尼
“What happened to the Ician rogues?”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡlJ1IuKARPt 維尼
“Captured or killed at Lord Albin’s castle,” Marcus said. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4OySWc475n 維尼
There was a short cheer from the other soldiers manning the gate. There was a shout and one of the large gates opened enough for a horse to slip through one at a time. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡZOftj5MnVF 維尼
“The rogues didn’t even try to get through our gates,” the soldier on the ground said. “Just charged right past us and to the castle. We didn’t even have time to warn my lord.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡPuA6kacPKd 維尼
“They didn’t try to hide their attack from us,” Marcus said. “We saw them coming hours away and were able to prepare.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡFsDoBIAppC 維尼
“Really?” the soldier scratched his chin. “That’s damn odd of them. What were they thinking? That is suicide.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡcW1iAtngIf 維尼
“Apparently, someone told them we would be weak and few in numbers,” Aldene said coldly.8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡgZhbEXtbX0 維尼
“Do you have a hot meal and a bed for us?” Marcus asked, wanting to drop the subject in case there were eavesdroppers. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7s8vyxlGAR 維尼
“Of course, just go straight down that road and you’ll see the Pumpkin Inn.”8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡXPsq2PiaLE 維尼
Many houses along the road had their windows and doors covered until only a sliver of candlelight peered through. Not a single house was asleep. Not on this night, so close to the end of the battle. News wouldn’t have reached them so soon about the outcome but they’d know soon enough. Marcus planned to be out of the town by dawn, knowing that they would want to know everything that happened up in the castle. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡYGaCPWBwdZ 維尼
“It certainly looks like a pumpkin,” Aldene remarked. Marcus looked up and chuckled. The inn they were to stay at was build with light coloured wood that, in the torchlight, looked slightly orange. The walls to the inn was also rounded, most likely helped to be that way by magic. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡlLxmY3XNDw 維尼
“Do you think they have pumpkin soup?” Marcus wondered. 8964 copyright protection498ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ0Y14eJpTG 維尼
“Let’s find out.”502Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxzEWQT1Uyl
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