329 Into the Chaos Part 1 (1/2)
On the second day, Piac approached Saleen again. This time, he carried an additional item with him – the deed to his land. True to his word, Saleen discussed the terms and conditions of the contract with Piac once again before getting the latter to sign over his land to him. Before Piac left, Saleen reassured him that he would get the benefits that they had discussed earlier.
There were no traps present in this contract. It was not easy to use magic to take advantage of the loopholes in any contract and Saleen had not completely mastered this on his own. He still needed Aini's help in order to complete the spell. However, since he was dealing with the likes of an insignificant male baron, Saleen could not be bothered to use magic to secure the contract.
One of the reasons why Saleen had said that he wanted to stay in Deep Forest Town for three days was to give the pirates some time to rest. Technically, he did not have to treat them so well. Aini and Saleen both had their own spatial equipment. Besides the issue of heavy weaponry and tents, which were all carried by the skeletal warhorses, the pirates were all provided with food and water courtesy of Saleen. The main reason for this break was because Saleen knew that one week of non-stop marching would have definitely stressed them out. Thus, he felt that they had at least deserved a short break.
Almost everyone knew not to enter the Chaotic Swamp during the winter season. In fact, the Chaotic Swamp was always more dangerous to explore during the winter compared to the summer. Although some magic beasts would be hibernating by then, there were others that did not. These monsters would be in constant starvation. Thus, a person could expect them to be very aggressive. Even the more docile magic beasts would attempt to make a meal out of anything and anyone who crossed their territory. That would also explain why there was not a single adventurer to be seen in Deep Forest Town at this time of year.
However, once Saleen and his troops reached the forests located about fifty miles away from Deep Forest Town, they would be much safer. The most dangerous magic beast there was merely an insect believed to be closely related to bees. They existed in droves and were able to live up to a few decades in cold environments. However, once winter came, all they would do was hide in their nests. They would not even bother trying to hunt for food. Even defenseless prey that passed their hives would not motivate these usually violent creatures to attack them.
Gurney's wounds were healing pretty well, thanks to Saleen's magic liquid. Even though he knew that the magic liquid was precious, he did not want his injuries to hold everyone back. Leaving a good impression on Saleen was much more important than some magic liquid.
The pirates, on the other hand, did not dare to have too much fun. They were afraid that they would lose their lives by violating some rule that Saleen had created. They did not want to end up like their companions who had lost their lives in the middle of the night for something as trivial as abandoning their posts.
Three days passed by in the blink of an eye. Aini and Saleen had already prepared themselves for the long journey ahead of them. In fact, Aini had already fully memorized the map that Saleen had given him, which was technically Canghong's. Saleen missed Canghong deeply and wondered whether he had managed to escape the evil claws of the Holy See.
Most of the Falcon mercenaries had been killed off in the Chaotic Swamp. In fact, there had only been two survivors. This meant that Canghong had incurred heavy losses. It did not help that all his life savings over in Sikeqinya had also vanished. Saleen could only hope that the riches Canghong had been blessed with over at Myers Temple would not be robbed from him.
The same white deacon who had let Saleen go was the same person who had been sighted during the battle where Faerun ended up being killed. Saleen reckoned that the Holy See had found the Second Dynasty archaeological sites by now. All that was left for them to do was to wait for the three kings to breach the contract.
Saleen's troops travelled along the streets of Deep Forest Town and exited through the western gate into the wilderness. They were still a distance away from the forests, but it was not as if there were vast areas of cultivated fields here anyway. Aside from Piac's farmers, the rest of the people who made up the town's population were merchants who depended on adventurers for their livelihoods. The boulders over in the wilderness had been buried by the snow. In fact, it looked as if balls of snow had suddenly popped out of nowhere. It was a strange sight indeed. The winds here were much gentler compared to northern phoenix, where the winds cut a person's skin even more sharply than a knife.
The skeletal warhorses trotted through the snow, albeit unsteadily as their hooves sunk beneath the snow as soon as they made contact with the ground. However, the pirates sitting on top of the horses' back could hardly feel any bumps. They were all freshened up after the three-day break. The troops forged quickly through the wilderness and reached the edge of the woods in no time.
Now that the leaves had been stripped off of the trees during wintertime, the forest did not look as ominous as it did during the summer. Under Saleen's commands, the pirates collectively slowed down instead of dismounting from their horses straightaway. Saleen's forces acted like a long python and slithered their way into the forest.
The journey was unusually silent. Besides the occasional appearance of a few silver-beaked ravens, there were no other creatures that came out to grace Saleen with their presence. Even then, the ravens could not be bothered to attack Saleen's soldiers to steal their food. These lower class magic beasts were smart enough to have saved up hoards of nuts during the autumn season. Thus, there was no longer a need for them to forage for food during the winter. No sooner had the silver-beaked ravens discovered the presence of humans did they fly away, not willing to become sitting ducks.
As soon as the pirates passed through the forests, they saw a huge pile of gigantic white bones lying haphazardly on the path that they were on. It did not come as too much of a surprise to them since magic beasts frequently roamed about this area. No one knew which type of magic beast these bones had belonged to. All they saw were bits and pieces of flesh and muscle that clung onto the skeletal remains. It was obvious that whichever predator had done this was not a very clean eater. Its skull had already been split open and the magic nucleus contained inside its brain was gone.
Aini eyed Saleen for a split second before saying, ”Someone came here.”
”But he or she hasn't passed by Deep Forest Town yet,” Saleen piped up. Another reason why he had decided on a three-day break, besides giving pirates some time to rest, was because he wanted to gain information on the recent happenings in the area. So far, he had not been informed of anyone going into the Chaotic Swamp via Deep Forest Town.
Saleen knew that no matter how vicious magic beasts could be when fighting each other, none of them would deliberately crack open the skull of their foe to retrieve the magic nucleus inside. This magic beast might have been killed by another stronger monster, but it was definitely a person who had taken the magic nucleus. People who dared to enter the Chaotic Swamp at this time of year were definitely not ordinary adventurers. If they were adventurers, they would not have gone around Deep Forest Town. Why would they do so when it was the only town for a few hundred miles with military supplies for sale?
Both Aini and Saleen cracked the reins on their skeletal horses to get them to accelerate towards the magic beast's remains. Once they reached their destination, Saleen sat upright and looked downwards. The hole in the beast's skull was unusually smooth, almost as if it had been created by explosives shot through a magic cannon. Saleen also noticed that the edges of the hole looked charred, as if it had been subjected to extremely high temperatures.
Saleen unleashed a detection spell to heighten his senses and study the miniature crater.
”It's not magic. This hole was created using the sword aura,” Saleen concluded after a quick scan of the magic beast's skull.
Aini, who had been scrutinizing the hole as well, stretched out his hands, balled them into fists, and compared them with the size of the crater before adding onto what Saleen had said. ”This person cracked open its skull using their bare fists. I'm pretty sure it's the same person who took the magic nucleus.”