Chapter 52 - Volume 4 (1/2)
VOLUME 4 BEGINS with a pleasant bonfire.
n.o.body took the fire seriously when it all started. Despite the constant reminders and warnings, there had been multiple incidents regarding fire during their stay. So everyone simply covered their drunk, aching heads with their blankets, wondering which r.e.t.a.r.d it was this time that was shouting ‘fire!’
However, they came to the realization that something was different when the shouts of ‘fire!’ came from all directions and the bell rang incessantly, eventually waking them from their slumber.
Dang! Dang! Dang!
The loud noise of the bell mixed with shouts, screams, cries, and tantrums in the streets, deafening everyone’s ears. Without a proper chain of command, all they could do was shout at each other to put out the fire. Soldiers are so used to acting in accord to what they’ve been told that they become powerless when there aren’t any orders. Every officer who should have been leading their men at this time was still in a drunken slumber, and most of the soldiers were in no better shape, struggling to stay on their feet.
Anton was perhaps the only person with a clear mind in this situation, but he lacked the authority to command the mercenaries. The only thing he could do was to wake Dike up, even if he had to punch him to give the orders.
Anton rushed out of his residence. He could see the fire flickering above the houses from afar, and the mercenaries were running around in circles, too disoriented and disorganized to act. He quickly rushed over to Dike’s residence, shouting at any mercenaries he met to extinguish the fire.
It seemed Dike had gotten wind of the grave situation and staggered out of his residence with his equipment on.
“What happened here!”
“It seems those foolish mercenaries have finally caused a problem.”
Anton’s voice was filled with contempt, expressing his discontent at all of Dike’s actions until now. If the Meta District was damaged by the fire, the cost of rebuilding the district would fall entirely on the Marquis even after they had won the war. This was why Anton warned time and time again to watch out for fires, yet the warning fell on deaf ears, leading to the current situation.
“Then we need to extinguish the fire!”
Dike spoke out in a panic. Anton could feel the frustration welling in his heart from witnessing such a one-dimensional reaction from his commander.
“The commanding authority over the mercenaries has yet to be transferred to the knights. We need to meet up with the leader of the mercenaries quickly and attain the commanding authority before we begin to fight against the fire…”
“B, before all that, we will go to the s.h.i.+ps first.”
“What? It isn’t too late now. If we act now…”
“Shut it! I’m sure those who started the fire will deal with it themselves! Can you not see? The fire is coming to us as we speak! The s.h.i.+p is the safest place, so we will go there first!”
“The wind blows northward at this time of the year!”
“That’s even more of a reason that the s.h.i.+p is the safest place! You can burn to death if that is your wish, but I am not joining you!”
Dike pushed Anton aside with his arm and quickly rushed over to the port, and the knights reluctantly followed behind their commander.
“Kuuk! That incompetent fool!”
Anton had no choice but to run with Dike despite the frustration. As long as Anton’s loyalty to the Marquis still existed, he had to protect Dike, who was a blood relative to the Marquis.
“The s.h.i.+ps… where are they!”
It seemed Dike wasn’t the only person to seek refuge in the s.h.i.+ps, as the port was busy with mercenaries who were deep in confusion. They were attempting to force themselves onto the s.h.i.+ps owned by the Marquis. As expected of the mercenary band notorious for their greed, they seemed more focused on keeping their prized loot than following the chain of command or camaraderie.
It was true that the s.h.i.+ps were the safest place once the fire started. But when they arrived at the port, the only s.h.i.+ps that were still docked were the sail boats owned by the Marquis, while the four s.h.i.+ps the mercenaries came on were missing.
“Make a path! Those s.h.i.+ps are owned by the knights! Any who try to get on a s.h.i.+p will be punished on the spot!”
One of the knights tried to threaten them, but it only proved that an empty threat was no better than never making one.
“What! Are they trying to save only themselves?”
“There’s plenty of room in there! Just let us in with you!”
The mercenaries were making a commotion as Dike and his men forced their way through the crowd, hungover. But as they made their way to the s.h.i.+ps, Dike made a bad decision.
“Shut up! You d.a.m.n maggots! Just jump into the water if you have to! It was you lot who started the whole mess in the first place! So get out there and put out that fire! How dare you speak of running from the battlefield! You will all be executed for desertion at this rate!”
‘s.h.i.+t!’
Anton screamed in his mind. The mercenaries were agitated enough at this point, and threatening something like execution was like adding oil to the fire.
“So they just want to save themselves?”
“How are we supposed to put out that giant fire? We don’t even know the way around here, much less than where the firehouse is.”
“I’d rather run away with the s.h.i.+p than burn to death.”
Witnessing the signs of mutiny developing within the mercenaries, Anton drew his sword and shouted.
“All men draw your swords! Group 4, 5, 6 will escort the captain to the s.h.i.+p; the rest will stop the mercenaries! Kill all who oppose us!”
Having heard their orders, the knights drew their swords, and Anton slew some of the mercenaries without hesitation to set an example.
“I am Anton Smith, the sword of Marquis Duberon! Any who block my path will die at my hands!”
There wasn’t a single mercenary here who didn’t know of Anton’s reputation. The mercenaries backed off at Anton’s show of force, and the knights and Dike quickly capitalized on the situation to get on the s.h.i.+ps. Anton and the group of knights tasked with stopping the mercenaries also slowly backed up toward the s.h.i.+ps.
“Where is the commander of your band? The mercenaries are to follow your commander’s orders and extinguish the fire! The longer you hesitate, the more it will chip away at your pay!”
Anton’s words finally seemed to calm the mercenaries. The reason they worked as mercenaries was because they needed the pay. The mercenaries seemed like they were about to calm down and search for their commander, and Anton made a sigh of relief. But just as he was about to sheathe his sword, one of the mercenaries screamed in panic.
“The s.h.i.+ps are trying to leave!”
“What?”
Anton turned around in dismay, unable to believe the mercenary’s words. But just as the mercenary said, the two s.h.i.+ps were lowering their sails and raising the anchors.
“Dike!”
Anton screamed at Dike whose actions reignited the mercenaries’ rage.
“I knew those n.o.bles were never trustworthy!”
“So you want to save your own skin, is it?”
“We’re going to die anyway if we stay here! Let’s get on the s.h.i.+ps!”
The mercenaries quickly roused themselves into a frenzy as they charged to get on the s.h.i.+ps.
“Kuk! Stop them!”
Anton ordered the knights as he cut down a mercenary who came right at him. However, the knights were hard-pressed to stand their ground. Although they went through harsh training to get to where they are now, they were also very new to a real combat situation.They weren’t able to stop the experienced mercenaries from getting on the s.h.i.+ps, especially when they were heavily outnumbered. Plus, the mercenaries’ main goal wasn’t to fight the knights, but to get on the s.h.i.+ps.
One by one, the mercenaries breached through the knights’ defense and made their way onto the s.h.i.+ps. The fight now spread to the decks of the s.h.i.+ps, where the knights and the mercenaries were in a struggle to gain control of the s.h.i.+ps. And while the fight ensued, the s.h.i.+ps slowly made their way out of the ports, but it seemed the combat on the decks had caused a fire to start on one of the s.h.i.+ps.
“No! Come back!”
“Stop!”
When the s.h.i.+ps were about to leave the port completely, some of the desperate mercenaries jumped into the lake in hopes of chasing after it.
“Calm down! Where the h.e.l.l are the commanders and captains of the mercenaries?”
“It’s their fault! It’s because of them that we couldn’t get on the s.h.i.+ps!”
The desperation and bitterness from facing the impending doom was now directed at Anton and his knights.
Anton frowned ever so slightly at the sight of the situation and glimpsed behind to see how his knights were faring. Although they were breathing heavily, there didn’t seem to be any casualties other than light wounds. Anton was quite happy to see that the knights, which the Marquis was so proud of, prove their reputation, but he was quickly engulfed by the sadness that his knights had to suffer through such shameful casualties because of an incapable leader.
Anton stomped the wooden floor with his foot, destroying it as a show of force and shouted.
“There is no time to waste here! As you can see, the port is constructed of wood, which will catch fire at a moment’s notice! Bring in anything you can use to fight the fire onto the port. We will defend the port with our lives! Follow my order if you want to live!”
The mercenaries seemed like they were about to submit to Anton’s show of force, but one of the mercenaries shouted out.
“The ca.n.a.l! We can just cross over to Port City through the ca.n.a.l!”
‘s.h.i.+t!’
Anton’s eyes flickered, and he quickly refuted that claim.
“We are currently preparing for war! We are not allowed to leave the war’s designated area at all costs!”
“Who cares about the d.a.m.n rules when we’re about to burn to death!”
The mercenaries ignored Anton and immediately made a run toward the ca.n.a.l.
“Stop them! Kill all who try to cross over to Port City! Don’t let anyone get into Port City!’
The knights immediately chased after the mercenaries. According to the rules of provincial war, partic.i.p.ating forces are forbidden from entering neutral ground. If they were to break this rule, the battle was nulled on the spot; in order to uphold this rule, the faction which broke the rule was automatically declared the loser for the following battle if the rule was broken purposefully by that side. Any complaint against the decision was met with the Central’s involvement.
Even if this was caused by an unprecedented event such as a disaster, it would still be a significant penalty for the Marquis. So, the knights had no choice but to stop the mercenaries from getting to Port City, even if they had to kill them all.
“H, help!”
The burning mercenary screamed in pain, and Anton gave the mercenary the relief of a quick death. Anton breathed heavily as he looked at his surroundings. There was raging fire everywhere he looked, and the smoke began to blur his vision.
“Viscount Anton.”
“Casualty report.”
“We cannot determine as of now. All of our knights have scattered across the entire district to chase the mercenaries.”