Edwin pulled open the tavern door and entered. The tables in the main room were pushed to the side and several soldiers as well as the members of Gerrit’s party were milling about or kneeling next to the two prone forms that took up much of the floorspace. Gerrit was standing nearby, in deep conversation with captain Vellis, and both looked up when Edwin entered. They walked over, stopping the others from filing in behind Edwin.

“Good, you’re back.” Gerrit greeted him. “Let’s meet outside, it’s packed enough in here as is.”

Moments later, the two newly arrived parties along with the two leaders were standing in a circle in the town square.

“What happened?” Bordan asked. “We heard you had wounded. Are they going to be okay?”

“Two men suffered superficial injuries, they will be fine.” Vellis said, gravely. “Bannerman Lorl got stabbed in the arm, he is also doing well, but he needs magical healing before he can fight again. Recruit Urem took several major injuries, losing a lot of blood in the process. We managed to stabilize him for now, but he needs a healer soon or he will die of internal bleeding.”

“How did it happen?” Doren asked. “Your men are so heavily armored, I didn’t expect injuries like this.”

Vellis nodded darkly. “I’m afraid that we were too complacent. From what they told me, they encountered several goblins and formed a shield wall. The goblins attacked and were unable to overcome it when bannerman Lorl noticed that at least as many again had crept around the back and were attacking the formation from behind. There are maneuvers for this exact situation of course. Usually, we either fold in the flanks to form a triangle, or order every other soldier to step back and turn around. Lorl ordered the second option, as it is faster.” He paused, running a hand through his hair. It was sweaty and disheveled from wearing a helmet all day. “Apparently, we failed to train these maneuvers enough. The recruits became disordered, some turning who shouldn’t and other staying when they should turn. The fight devolved into a disorganized melee, with the goblins concentrating their attacks on a few of the recruits, swarming them. Together, they managed to attack the gaps in the recruits’ armor, especially around the legs. The goblins were defeated, but not before inflicting considerable damage.”

“As I just told captain Vellis,” Gerrit jumped in, “the closest hospital is of course in Pel Darni, which is too far for our comatose patient. There is, however, a mage in residence at Newmark, which would’ve been our next stop anyway. He’s not a healer, as far as I know, but he should be able to patch up the boy enough that we can get him to the city.”

“Sounds good.” Doren nodded, then perked up. “Wait, can any mage heal?”

All eyes fell on Salissa, who squirmed.

“Right, I completely forgot we had our own.” Gerrit smiled. “Can you help him?”

“I’m afraid not.” she said, lowering her head. “I never received any training in it. Unless…” She looked over to Edwin, who firmly shook his head.

“That’s not something you can learn in a day. With injuries this severe, you’d have higher chances of outright killing him, I’m afraid. If it was our only chance, maybe, but as it is we should look towards Newmark.”

“Ah, a shame.” Vellis said, shaking his head. “Because we have another problem. We don’t have a cart or wagon to transport the wounded, and Maff is such a… modest settlement, that there is none to be had here either. That means we need to march to Newmark, secure the help of the mage, then return with him here so he can administer aid. Usually, that would take two days on its own, and we’re not sure recruit Urem has that much time. We were discussing marching through the night when you arrived.”

Gerrit nodded, turning to the others. “I was thinking that it would be faster to send one of our parties. We’re more used to traveling by night, and we aren’t slowed down by armor. Doren, are you up for it?”

“Sure.” Doren answered. “Give us a moment to refill our waterskins and we’ll be off.”

Edwin considered it, then raised his hand. Gerrit noticed and looked at him expectantly.

“If the most important thing is speed, I could go myself.” Edwin said slowly.

All eyes turned to him in general confusion. Gaining confidence, he continued.

“Without anyone else to slow me down, I could run the whole way there in a few hours at most. If the mage leaves soon after, he could be back here by noon tomorrow.”

Gerrit looked to Bordan, probably expecting him to tell Edwin off. The former soldier sighed.

“It sounds dumb, but he can do it. It would definitely be the fastest option, and we’ve already cleared part of the way today, so chances of an attack are slim. Your call, Gerrit, but I support it.”

The old adventurer looked between the two with curiosity, then nodded slowly. “I wouldn’t ask you to do it, but if you’re offering, I’m not gonna tell you no, Edwin. As long as you’re sure. No heroics, alright?” He held Edwin’s gaze with a serious stare.

Edwin waved off his objections and started to untie his shield and shed his gear. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll be fine. I just need to follow the road, and if anything attacks me, I just need to be faster than it.” He passed his equipment to Bordan, leaving only what he carried on his belt.

“You can use the time to figure out what the goblin attacks tell us about the nest’s location. Oh, Bordan, tell him about the hobgoblin.”

“Wait, what?” Gerrit asked, confused. “What hobgoblin?”

But Edwin was already off, jogging towards the gate. He hadn’t run a long distance since his training at the Guild, either walking slowly or full-on sprinting during combat. He was looking forward to the opportunity to test himself out where nobody was watching. After all, he had a much better understanding of how his body worked now than he did months ago, when he’d traveled from Three Faces to Pel Darni.

He passed the army camp, waving to a few confused sentries as he jogged by. Once he stepped onto the road west, he slowly started to increase his speed.

The sun had just set, and the cool evening air felt great on his skin as he ran. The road was in decent shape, so he didn’t need to worry about stepping in holes and hurting his feet. He reached the upper limit of what regular people considered a jog and leaned forwards to reduce drag. He couldn’t sprint the whole way, as moving his tree-trunk-like legs so quickly for such a long time would burn through his mana. Instead, he tried lengthening his gait until it looked like he was almost floating, each step carrying him as far as a jump. Turning was a problem, but the road was fairly straight, so he rarely needed to slow down. With nothing else to think about, Edwin concentrated on his steps, refining his technique further.

Edwin flew through the nightly forest like a ghost, wind whistling past his smiling face as his pumping legs devoured the distance.

Thank you, Walter. One more thing to add to the pile of experiences I would’ve never had if I’d stayed a mere man.

Before he knew it, Edwin shot out from between the trees, the forest around him changing to barren fields without warning. He started to slow as the wall of Newmark silhouetted against the starry sky. His gait was so strange and unnatural that it took Edwin a moment to remember how to run normally.

After a bit of shouting, a confused night guard opened the gate. The man had trouble understanding what was going on, but after a bit of persuasion, he guided Edwin towards the town hall. Twenty minutes later, Edwin was led into a candle-lit office. A middle-aged man sat behind the desk, wearing hastily donned attire and a frown. Another stood to the side, this one in the familiar robes of a Journeyman mage. The first one addressed Edwin with the telltale annoyance of a man who just got pulled out of bed.

“I’m Knight Fordwen, headman of this town, and this is Mage Fordwen. My man said you had business with my brother?”

Edwin looked between the two. He wouldn’t have been able to tell before, but now that he knew they were brothers, he could see the similarity in their brows and the potato-like shape of their noses.

“Yes, thank you for seeing me this quickly. You see, I am part of an Adventurer’s Guild extermination force…”

He told them the whole story, at least the important parts, and while he spoke the brothers’ faces changed from annoyance to worry, then to determination. When he was done, the headman leaned back in his chair and exchanged a look with the mage.

“Your news is more than troubling.”, he said after a moment of consideration. “To think there is a goblin nest this close to our town... I need to alert my citizens, and make sure they don’t stray too far into the forest. I’m glad your compatriots will arrive soon, as I know that none of us will feel safe until the monsters are taken care of.”

“To save one of our brave soldiers, I will depart immediately.”, his brother added. “I’m not a trained healer, but I have plenty of experience treating the injuries of our citizens. I’m sure the wounds of the soldier can’t be much worse than when Ingel almost chopped his leg in two with his axe. Can you spare me a few guards, Padir?”

“Of course, anything to help.”, the headman nodded. Edwin didn’t know if he would’ve been so eager to please if his town hadn’t been in existential danger, but he would take what he could get.

“In the name of the Guild, I thank both of you for your willingness to aid us.”, Edwin said, inclining his head. “I’m sure captain Vellis will say the same once he gets here on the morrow.”

“Think nothing of it, we’re just doing our duty.”, the headman said with a pleased expression, Edwin’s flattery clearly working. “The army and the Adventurer’s Guild are the ones who put their lives on the line, this is the least we can do. I’m impressed you traveled here at night; you must be exhausted. I’ll send guardsman Trend with you to show you to an inn.”

With his job done, Edwin said his goodbyes and left, the guard taking the lead once more. He wasn’t tired, of course, but it had been quite an eventful day, and he was looking forward to a soft bed.