“It is beyond any doubts that since the beginning of the orcish invasion, the House Ashentree of Grasshaven was misleading our army with false information about locations and numbers of greenskin troops.

Investigating military reports we’ve noticed an alarming tendency. The army was suffering much higher casualties in areas scouted by their retainers. Especially when those rangers happened to scout for units provided by other nobles.

Moreover, we’ve interrogated some of their retainers, who served as messengers during the invasion. They confessed to have been ordered to falsify reports relayed to troops, which led to the destruction of multiple squads, sent against overwhelming numbers of foes.

The House Ashentree is still continuing their treachery; my agents were able to connect numerous attempts of sabotage with them; from watering health potions to damaging preservation wards used to transport supplies.

Taking a closer look at the family’s trade records, we believe that the volume of gold they claim to earn from trade with the Phenyth Kingdom is much larger than the estimated value of merchandise sold to them.”

- a report from the King’s Left Hand,

Sae led out of the building. She immediately ushered Ion and Reria out of the pavement to hide inside the bushes. They caught glimpses of an unnatural light show made by the spells flung behind the building. The shifts of mana could be felt even here.

Guided by the rogue, they managed to avoid any guards running towards the commotion. Suddenly, a loud eruption sounded behind them. A moment later it was followed by another. they turned just in time to see a part of the building falling apart.

“Well, I wasn’t expecting this,” Sae whispered. “I wonder, were those your wards or the explosives?”

Ion and Reria looked at themselves and shrugged.

„Both probably.”

„Maybe Silverfords weren’t exaggerating skills of that alchemist,” Sae mused as they pressed forward.

“You bought the explosives from the alchemist they recommended you?”

“Of course. Would you prefer me to buy from a random one and risk finding out during the action that he was a fraud? Certain wizard’s failed healing potions are a great example of a wannabe alchemist’s work.”

“Hey! I still remember who took a whole stack of this stuff for herself!”

Unbothered, they arrived at the wall of the possession. It seemed as if every guard was investigating the clamour made near the main building.

The stone wall was either enchanted or covered with some kind of alchemical ointment that made climbing up on it nigh impossible; its surface was simply too slippery to give any hold.

Sae whistled, making a sound similar to the one made by thrushes. They remained hidden, seconds extending like an eternity.

Soon, they heard someone answer from outside the wall in a similar fashion. Moments later, it was followed by clamour and panicked voices further away.

After a few minutes, they heard a whistle once again. Immediately, three thick ropes were thrown from the outside. They quickly tied themselves to them and let their helpers pull them up. A slippery coating covering the wall made it easy for a rope to move.

Even if they have already tested the method with some animals, Ion still half expected a warded spell to discharge on them when passing through; he knew it was possible to make a ward not responding to certain thing passing through it; just imagine setting up an alarm around the estate that ringed whenever a bird flew in and out; it would be useless. The same could be said about various offensive spells. However, Sae managed to convince him that setting and maintaining something like that on the surface so large as Silverford's estate wall wouldn’t be possible with their funds. She claimed that even most of the mages would have deemed something like this too expensive.

‘That’s why many wizards prefer to live in towers. Lesser surface to cover with wards.’

A loud ringing noise sounded for a moment when they crossed the middle of the wall, but nothing else happened. Only earth started to close to them dangerously fast, as neither their hands nor feet could find a purchase on the wall’s surface.

Ion quickly focused and gracefully fell supported by Feather Fall spell.

“We really did it!” he said, grinning.

Reria and Sae gave him an angry glare bruised after their fall.

“Sorry. Had no time to cast it on everyone.”

By the time Ion finished with himself, they were already hitting the ground.

“How convenient,” Sae commented, not convinced.

“Quickly, cover yourselves with this. Soon the area will be swarmed by city guards,” Dorian threw them slightly oversized commoner clothes and mantles to cover their armours.

“To think that you’ve convinced me to assist you in causing that... mayhem. Just the ruckus you made inside was enough to make people panic, you could have refrained from burning the city too,” Ciros’ presence here surprised Ion.

Taking a gaze around, the neighbourhood was far from calm. People hired by Sae set flames somewhere not far from the manor and began screaming about cultists attacking. The panic caused by them was hopefully enough to keep anyone from looking at the part of the wall they have chosen to cross, but it was the best to quickly leave this place.

“It isn’t my fault! We weren’t the only ones thinking this is a good day for a little robbery! And our competition was less discreet…”

“Sure Lass. Just don’t forget about the second part of our payment,” a hooded man said as he and three other humans rolled the ropes and disappeared in the alleys.

Ion’s group quickly followed. They only managed to pass a few streets, when Sae suddenly embraced Ion and started moving like a drunk.

“Aaand I tell you, I cut off that beast’s arm, but in seconds it regrew… hic!...”

“Halt! What are you doing here?” a half dozen of guards approached them.

“Just returning from a tavern,” Ciros said in an annoyed voice, “You see, our friends here drank too much.”

“…so I sliced and sliced, but it kept regenerating… why troll’s meat stinks? Just imagine a chicken regenerating like this!” Sae gestured while speaking, almost throwing herself and Ion to the ground.

“Look at their weapons!” some guard cut in, “Maybe they are the cultists everyone is screaming about?”

“…cultists? Where?” Sae unsheathed her sword dropping it on the ground immediately. The guards tensed for a moment but most laughed and relaxed seeing the weapon fall.

“Oops…” she tried with a second, wielding it unsteadily. “Will you pay us for takin’..hic!... care of them?”

“We are mercenaries that arrived at the town a few days ago,” Dorian said., “We have nothing to do with any cultists.”

“And why are you going with your weapons even at the festival?”

Ion stared at the older guard who asked that question like on a feebleminded.

“Would you expect anyone to go unarmed when an evil cult is plotting inside the town?”

“Moreover I wouldn’t like to lose my sword because some thug tried to stole it from the inn when I’m out,” Dorian supported Ion’s argument.

“Let’s move, it’s a waste of time!”

“Shouldn’t we at least take them into a custody?” an older guard suggested.

“Does any of them looks like a necromancer to you?”

The man was still unconvinced.

Sae staggered and finally released Ion, hanging herself on the unconvinced guard, before anyone could react.

“Yess… look at her, she’s your necromancer!” she pointed at Reria with her sword. “I am sure that at night she could raise something dead inside your pants!”

The guard and Reria reddened accompanied by a laugh of everyone else.

“I would prefer to take you into my custody, honey,” one of the guards was staring at Sae intently.

“You are cute, but sorry, I am already taken,” she swayed back and embraced Reria. “We are honest humans… aand elves… at least in a part… certainly, there are no necromancers, warlocks, demons nor aberrations among us…”

“Still…”

Seeing that Sae’s performance, even if kind of entertaining wasn’t taking them anywhere, Ion focused. Making as small movements with his hands as possible, he casted a cantrip.

From an alley not far from them a scream sounded, followed by a plea for help.

The guards unsheathed their weapons before charging in that direction, finally leaving them alone.

They quickly ran in the opposite direction.

“Why are you always pretending to be drunk when something goes wrong?” Ciros commented.

“Because it works! And you know how to perfectly act as if you were annoyed by the thing!”

“It isn’t an act, it really is annoying…”

Few streets further they noticed a larger crowd dispersing to make a passage for a contingent of soldiers. They recognised Heinrich leading them, angrily trying to force a way forward.

Ion’s group joined the crowd. Not long ago townsfolk were fleeing from the area but now encouraged by the presence of the soldiers many tailed them, trying to guess what was happening. A strange sight of guards wearing the tinctures of Silverfords, Lawketts and Farangers marching together only fuelled the gossips.

Going against the tide of the crowd wasn’t easy. Finally, their struggles were rewarded, as they managed to take a position just behind an old man pulling a cart filled with excrements stored inside barrels.

The smell was enough to make crowds part before the man and his cart. They walked behind, in a distance that made smell bearable but too early for crowds to start pushing on them from the sides. Ion tried to lessen the burden on their noses using Prestidigitation to make air smell better, yet it wasn’t very effective as they were constantly on the move.

Suddenly, Reria grabbed Ion and whispered to his ear.

“This cart that we are following… it isn’t real!”

“What?”

“I’m sure that it is an illusion, even if all my senses scream otherwise.”

Ion looked at the cart. Sometimes there were people who bounced off of it. There was its awful smell, screeching of the wheels. He thought that Reria must have grown really paranoid.

He focused for a moment sensing fluctuations of the mana around. They weren’t completely normal, maybe its flow was slightly denser around the vehicle, but it wasn’t anything that he would deem suspicious.

“Maybe someone just placed some runes to make it a little more durable? They could have thought about getting rid of that smell though.”

“Then it would be the most enhanced shit-cart in Rikse. No, the guy pulling it must be a powerful illusionist!”

Ion would have immediately laughed at the suggestion, but he remembered that out of the three of them, it was Reria who managed to disbelieve the illusion inside the vault.

“Even if I know that the cart is illusory, I can’t see what is hidden behind it. Look at that rock!”

She pointed at the small stone. The cart’s wheel shoved it to the side while it rode. Ion couldn’t guess what Reria wanted him to see. Suddenly, when the cart was already further from the pebble, it rolled back to the place from which wheel moved it.

“Have you seen this? It happens to everything the wheels come in contact with, after a while it goes back to its previous place. Or should I say, it isn’t moving at all, it is only an illusion.”

Ion Messaged Sae and they decided to push for a side street. He either imagined or the man pulling the cart was looking at them until he disappeared within the crowd.

After wandering around the city for a while to lose any possible tails, they returned to their inn.

“Finally, you are back,” Thaleus greeted them. “Bring us six dwarven!” He yelled to a bartender.

“You sure weren’t wasting time,” Dorian said, looking at the empty mugs lying on the table.

“I had to do something to ease my worries. It was your idea to leave me behind.”

As dwarves weren’t that common in Leisha’s Crossroads, they deemed that taking Thaleus along would make them too noticeable.

“But now we can celebrate!” the dwarf eagerly took ale brought by the bartender. “Staying sober in a day like this is surely a crime!”

Ion was reluctant to start drinking at first, expecting guards to appear at inn’s door at any moment. But few sips and a possibility to behave normally, not having to hide under illusions nor transmutation quickly eased his worries.

****

Immediately after returning to his manor, Edler Joseph Silverford received a report from Gunther.

It was a disaster.

Out of thirty guards who stationed inside manor today, fourteen was killed, seven more heavily wounded. Evans' body was found in front of his laboratory, in a part of the garden damaged by magic. The wing of the manor containing his apartment was destroyed too; Gunther assumed the wizard created wards inside his room that would destroy it on his death. It was said to be a common practice when a mage wished to protect his secrets even after death.

“Bodies of six intruders were found. Three were presumably killed by Evans, one by guards patrolling the walls when he tried to assassinate them and one more by one of the wards Arienne set up before leaving,” Gunther concluded.

“Surprising, to think they lasted that long. Probably the first good news today. But you mentioned six bodies.”

“The final corpse was found in the outer vault; the guards found there were drugged by some kind of poison. They claimed to have killed the intruder before they have succumbed to it but I don’t believe them. Wounds on his body were made not only by swords but also by either explosives or spells. Not something those guards should be capable of inflicting. I ordered them to be taken into the custody, leaving some of those that arrived with me in the vault.”

“Good, I will talk with them later.”

‘was this an argument between thieves? Maybe they couldn’t agree on splitting spoils between themselves?’, Joseph mused.

“Anything else?”

“I can’t be entirely sure sir, but I and some of our men believe that Faranger’s and Lawketts’ captains tried to delay our arrival.”

The edler furrowed his brows. No one tried to delay his group, but contrary to Gunther’s they were one of the last to leave.

“I see. Lead me to the bodies of intruders first. Have you managed to identify them?”

“No sir, most of the bodies were heavily affected by magic, only the one who tried to assassinate the guards still had her face intact. However, their equipment was quite good, the potions they had seemed to be high-quality ones, but we’d need an alchemist to be sure of that.”

“So not random thieves… is this a plot made by Belith or had Hans Swiftglade finally decided to betray me and sent his thugs?” he whispered to himself.

Joseph didn’t expect his rivals to try something that daring as attacking his property. But if not them, it would only leave the rumoured cultists… whose existence he doubted, considering what he has learned from Heinrich and Evans.

“We’ve gathered all the bodies in the backyard,” Gunther said, leading him.

“Edler, a few clerics of Uther arrived,” a guard dashed to them from the gates, “they heard about the attack and wish to tend the wounded.”

“Even more guests today? Sure, let them in. Keep an eye on them and escort to the barracks were our wounded are.”

They walked further. The edler forced himself to don’t look at the gaping hole in his manor nor think about riches that could have been stolen from his vault. He needed to be calm now.

True to Gunther’s words, the remnants of the magical warfare were still clearly visible in the backyard; scorched earth, trees split by lightning, pillars of melting ice dug into the ground.

There was a group of people gathered here. Most notably both his son Heinrich and Belith Faranger, along with quite a few bodyguards of theirs. The sound of talking was cut off when Joseph has arrived. The crowd split, letting him see the bodies gathered here.

On one side were six people. Their armours weren’t looking impressive at all in Joseph’s opinion, but that could be the effect of damage they suffered. He would trust Gunther on their quality. The first two corpses were charred, the third seemingly suffered from both freezes and burns. The fourth looked like a bloody mass that an owlbear had chewed for a while before throwing away; he recognised it as an effect of Arienne’s wards. The final two had sword wounds, but in the light cast by a lantern, he could clearly see traces of damage that was also made by fire on the last corpse.

On the other side, his guards have neatly arranged three rows of bodies. Almost every single one wore armours in colours of his house. Most of them had only one or two visible wounds, but always in vital areas. Two were charred similarly to invaders.

The final corpse, unrecognisable because of burns it had suffered from, wore what could have been once an ornate robe.

When Joseph was pondering how to proceed further, he noticed a sparrow landing on the wizard’s corpse. Somehow, the bird’s chirping sounded sad.

Belith coughed.

“While I am deeply sorry for the men you’ve lost today there are things we need to discuss. Some things we’ve found on arriving are… little unsettling.”

He waved to the side, where fragments of dead beasts were. A severed head of a vargr was still moving.

“It dug up from the ground when we were gathering bodies,” Belith continued seeing Joseph’s questioning glance. “Could you explain the presence of undead here?”

Since the head of Silverfords has learned about Evans experiments, he began preparing answers to such questions. His researches weren’t illegal per se, only in a grey area, yet the connotation could be unfortunate given the current situation. He knew that housing him further might cause problems, but considering the wizard’s usefulness, in both deciphering notes and training the apprentices he planned to adopt to his family in the future, he decided the risk to be worth it.

He sighed sadly.

“So they’ve found out,” he paused looking at the confused crowd. “The cultists. They must have found out that the wizard I hired searched for a way to easily put the undead to the rest. I believe he was close to a breakthrough.”

Heinrich managed to not flinch at his revelation. Good, lessons he was taking from Gunther seemed to finally bear fruits.

“What? If that is true, then why were you keeping it from the church?” a woman pushed her way through the ranks of guards.

“Forgive me, sir, but I couldn’t stop her,” one of the guards said. “After we led the clerics to the wounded, she demanded to see you.”

“Head Priestess Lydia, it’s an honour to greet you in my house. I wish I could host you in better times,” Edler’s voice was dripping with sarcasm. “And I really appreciate you leaving the ritual conducted by your Church just to ascertain my family’s wellbeing in the light of recent events.”

“Answer my question.”

“I could say that it was a guilt. That after the unfortunate duel my son and Boeward’s heir had, that after his corpse has been defiled, I wanted to add a piece that Silverfords would put against that vicious cult that took residence inside our beautiful city. But that would be a lie,” he opened his hands helplessly. ”The real reason lies on the north. The haunted battlefield. If my family could have find a way to clear the trading route from Easthorn to the Vrolan Dynasty… could you imagine the profits? And not only this! With orcs almost subjugated, having a way to easily cut through the undead before attacking the Phenyth Kingdom… just think how much generals could pay for this. If it would also hinder the cultists, then why not try to also make a city more secure? It’s a pity that Darius isn’t here with us, he would surely agree with me.”

Joseph couldn’t tell whether they believed him or not, but in politics, it hardly ever mattered.

“I can even say so in the Circle of Truth if you'd like me to. Again.”

He really asked Evans about the possibility of implementing the aforementioned solution and conducting a research. Twisting truth, or even trying to subtly lie under the effects of the spell was entirely possible for someone with his willpower. Especially if it recognised trues and falses only by the letter, not a real intent; many things could be arranged earlier to meet the correct criteria.

Joseph sighed.

“Not that this matters anymore. Those cultists destroyed everything.”

He nodded at Gunther. The man understood and took a large battleaxe from one of the guards. Despite his lean silhouette, the edler was fairly proficient in wielding this weapon.

He swept cleanly severing the head of one of the intruders.

“What are you doing?” the Priestess shouted.

“Sticking their heads on pikes should bring some comfort to townsfolk, shouldn’t it?” Joseph said, swinging again.

“Stop that!”

“Why should I? Those heretics killed fifteen good people today, they must be made into an example,” Joseph was staring intently at both Belith and Lydia, judging their reactions. “Carrying a whole body to make a display out of it is too bothersome… are you really thinking that it would be a better idea?”

“We should try resurrecting them. If they are really cultists, we might learn what they are planning, where their leader is hiding!”

“You must be kidding me!” swiping furiously, Joseph missed corpse’s neck and the battleaxe cleaved deep into the corpse’s chest. If it wasn’t so charred surely huge amounts of blood would have splattered around. “You want to tell me that Uther would be willing to resurrect those scums?”

“They might have the answers able to save many lives! I understand your anger, but it’s clouding your reason! Don’t damage the bodies any further! Stop!” she infused her voice with mana, commanding him. “We can’t discern Uther’s plans, but don’t close that possibility!”

“I. Am. Not. Angry,” Joseph shouted, gritting his teeth and trying to fight against her Command.

He wasn’t angry, he was furious. Yet it was just a cold rage, what he was showing to the outside was mostly an act.

He wasn’t buying priestess arguments. Gunther’s offhanded suspicion was still fresh in his mind. Was this a plot they had prepared together? Was she trying to protect people they have sent?

“I heard your discussion on the way and I believe I know a good solution,” an older woman cut in.

“Welcome, Runemaster Amanda. I hope you forgive me sending my men in the middle of the night to look for you but we have a situation here.”

After he learned about wards to the vault being broken, he immediately ordered some guards to search for Amanda. Not only was she currently assisting in deciphering the notes Joseph acquired; for many years Silverfords hired her whenever the wards of their manor needed conservation.

“I was in the middle of the karak, but I was losing anyway…”

“So what is your suggestion?” Belith asked, staring at the woman intently.

“Well, if you only wish to learn something from the dead, why bother with resurrecting them? There is a much simpler spell, that makes it possible to speak with their spirits. Interpreting the answers is harder, but even resurrected can try to hide the truth, so it doesn’t matter anyway.”

“You see, priestess?” the edler smiled coldly as he approached another corpse. “This is an even better solution, otherwise people might start gossiping that Uther's Church is willing to resurrect cultists… it would look really bad.”

The priestess seemed internally torn.

As Joseph swung with his axe Amanda called.

“Just look out to not destroy… a jaw. Well, it’s too late for this one. They need to have something remaining to speak trough… jaws and tongue should be enough. If I remember correctly trachea isn’t necessary, I always wondered why...”

“I will remember," Joseph smiled. "So, head priestess, if the Church is really able to resurrect someone, chose one of my fallen guards instead. Or the wizard himself; he would be able not only to give you his thanks but might feel obliged towards you. And his research might save many lives as well as increase Leisha’s prosperity.”

If the gaze could kill, Joseph would be already dead. Well, as far as he knew some wizards and monsters could kill with their stares, but to his luck, priestess Lydia was neither of those.

“I am afraid that with his body that damaged even High Priest Alexiel wouldn't be able to call his soul back,” her tone was flat. “However, I will pray to Uther tonight and ask for his guidance in the matter of your soldiers. After all, it is his decision whether should we, the mortals, affect the balance of nature by bringing someone back.”

"So quick to change your thoughts..." Joseph whispered.

The priestess left soon later.

“I appreciate the assistance Farangers and Lawketts granted us today, you can be sure that I will remember it. For now, I believe that we have a situation under control, so you might want to return. Especially you, Belith. You left the ball you’ve organised, the remaining guests are surely restless.”

After exchanging few forced pleasantries they also left.

“Burn the corpses. Their heads will be shown outside of the manor for everyone to see. Prepare a place to store the bodies of our fallen until we could bury them. Gunther, make sure that by tomorrow morning everyone in the city will learn that we’ve been targeted by the cultists. Make it known that we’ve been working on removing them from the city. Also, have someone search for whereabouts of Evans’ apprentices.”

Joseph knew that Heinrich took a liking into Evans apprentice; now with her master’s death, maybe he might convince her to marry his son? Having their bloodline boosted by someone with magical abilities would benefit the family.

The edler also didn’t want to accidentally lose Lara and Sten to some other plot. He already began thinking about them as his assets. Joseph hoped that after the basics they have learned from Evans and earlier from their guild, trained further by his daughter when she finishes Aethera University, they would enhance the strength of his family. Currently, only a matter of dealing with the guild they fled from has been stopping him from officially adopting them.

“As for you, Runemaster, I would like you to check the wards of the manor and to reset the wards of the vault. Afterwards, check Master Evans room and laboratory. Tell me when you deem that the estate is safe enough for my wife to return here.”

They have acknowledged his orders.

“Anyone knows where Master Melker is? His help would be appreciated…”