68 Call of Duty (2/2)

My vision caught sight of something unexpected at the far right corner of the center armies battle. Two cavalries were in close-quarters combat in the area with the blue cloaked soldiers clearly gaining supremacy over their gray-clad opponents. Even from the height of my vantage point, the reason for this disparity in strength was obvious. The quality of commanders was just too different.

General Roger Thors—resplendent in his silver armor, his cape billowing behind him as he rode on his brown swifthart, was an unstoppable force that broke through every barrier sent his way. Empowered by his charge, his soldiers followed suit and decimated their own opponents.

And now I knew the reason for the swifthart's alarm. Very soon, the Thors cavalry would break free from the weakening Magesong cavalry and find their way to where my Foolhardies faced off against the enemy command unit.

Satisfied with what I'd seen, I sent my vision back to ground level where I was just in time to witness Jimmy Jonas dismount his swifthart.

”Sadly, we don't have enough time for a discourse on the teachings of the Art of War...” Jimmy Jonas raised his golden glaive over his head and rested its similarly golden pole on his right shoulder. ”I'll have to kill you now before your general makes his way here.”

Ah, now I knew the other reason why he'd forgone defense for offense. Time. He couldn't waste any more of it dealing with the Foolhardies while Thors rampaged across the battlefield.

”Might have been easier for you if you just stayed on your mount...” I raised my sword-arm forward with my falchion pointed menacingly in Jimmy Jonas' direction. My other hand rubbed at my eyes. They had begun to sting and I knew my time with Fool's Insight was nearing its end. ”I guess I should thank you for making this fight even...”

Jimmy Jonas stretched both his beefy arms to the sky, forcing me to take note of how easily he carried his glaive in one hand. It didn't look light at all.

”I did mention we aren't all child murderers in the Magesong team, right,” he laughed. Then his face turned deadly serious. ”I guess that's not true... in light of current circumstances. Apologies, young commander. I don't want to kill you... But I have to.”

Despite the threat sent my way, I couldn't think of his words as anything less than sincere. It wasn't just his voice that sounded remorseful. It was the way he looked at me. Not with pity or hate but with compassion.

”You're a very emotional guy to be leading an army of fairies,” I noted.

I blinked several times to keep the stinging at bay. For those who didn't know this fact, dry eyes were my worst enemy.

”I'm a man who understands duty,” he said simply. Then he raised his glaive forward so that the sticky point was aimed at me. ”I assume you're the same. A man who answers to the call of duty.”

I spared a glance at my team.

Luca, Aura, Edo, Varda, Qwipps, and Ashley were all present. Thom, like we'd planned, was out of sight and waiting for a chance I hoped to give him.

Now, while Luca was looking back at me with a worried expression that was typical of him, Aura, who stood beside him, gave me nodding approval. She understood that sometimes these kinds of fights were necessary. By how they looked proudly back at me, so did Ashley and Edo. But Varda and Qwipps were reflections of Luca's worry.

I took in a long breath. ”You assume correct... I know the weight of my responsibility.”

”Good,” Jimmy Jonas nodded approvingly. ”Then we can fight it out without regrets.”