“Last day,” I mutter to Alana over breakfast. When Kierra and I brought the goliath down, my wife-to-be promised that we would only march for another week. What that actually translated to, accounting for breaks to fight monsters, dismantle said monsters, and to give the weaker members of the army a break, was three weeks. Three whole weeks.

Really, this place is just one thing after the other. First it was the goliath and the reapers. Then there were the bears. Turns out those are pretty common. Pests of the north. Not as common as rats in the slums. Closer to the population of stray cats, which is plenty.

Loved the sleeping horror apes. Apparently, they can wipe out entire armies if they’re caught unprepared. Thankfully, Kierra is good at her job. Better than good. Incredibly miraculous is a better description. When the slothpaws are sleeping, they don’t breathe. Their hearts don’t beat. They give off no heat. They’re considered undetectable until they start emerging.

The usual way the armies handle things is to simply cut the creatures down, as they’re not that strong. A valid strategy when there aren’t too many. The swarm we found was one of the smaller ones, numbering around two hundred. Nowhere close to a threat for a regular army. Deadly to our group if they hadn’t been noticed.

I asked her how she did it but she won’t tell me. Wants me to figure it out for myself. Says I am completely capable of doing the same to narrow down the options. If I weren’t the daughter of a god, I’d think she was overestimating me.

The worst thing was the storm. It came out of nowhere and lasted for days. The snow fell and the wind howled relentlessly. After the first several hours, Alana ordered the casters to raise stone and ice structures as the tents would be buried. I was forced to distribute my shroom juice as the low temperature dropped further, threatening to kill people in the night if we didn’t keep them warm.

Alana didn’t need it, heh.

But all those challenges are behind us. Today’s the last day. Camp is being broken down and wagons loaded. We’ll walk until the sky begins to darken, hopefully without encountering anything worse than knee-deep snow. Then, tomorrow morning, we turn around and hustle back to Victory.

I can’t deny I’m excited.

Alana feels the same, despite trying to keep a neutral face while drinking that disgusting bitter drink. She’s been in a good mood since the storm broke last night. Apparently, there are monsters that only attack during storms and they are just as troublesome as titans. So far, we’ve made it through this terrible journey with no casualties. The people of the north are more than willing to give their lives for the war effort but she is happy to preserve lives where she can.

“It’s not over until we’re home,” Alana reminds me, not for the first time.

“But the hard part is over. We already fought our way here. It’s just a march back.”

She laughs. Oh, saints. That’s her mocking laugh. “As if the north is so simple. I promise you, our path home is already populated with enemies.”

“You’re kidding.”

“It’s the storms. Monsters run from them, run through them, and chase after them. It’s sure to have put a couple fateful encounters in our path.” One of her hands brushes my cheek as I sigh. “Little ones. The winds would have carried the scent of the goliath and brought scavengers.”

“When I think scavengers, I think pesky bugs and disgusting rodents. What do you think of?”

She smiles faintly. “The same.”

“Wonderful.”

She chuckles as she sips her drink. “I’m more concerned with what happens when we return.”

“We get showered with praise then leave for some place warm?” I didn’t think it’d be more complicated than that. I hope it’s not.

“Have you forgotten the March?” She frowns, likely recalling our first true fight. I rub her back until it eases and she shoots me a grateful look. “It may seem like a silly tradition to you but this is a real thing with real consequences. Three guilds owe us all that they are. We have tocollect.”

I wince. When I first heard that, all I heard was the tinkling of gold crowns hitting each other as they rain on top of us. With a little time to think on it, I realize this may not be the easy money I think it is. The recent challenges have reminded me of something I’d forgotten. I’m not invincible, yet. The vast majority of the threats in the kingdom might mean nothing to me, but that still means there is a small minority that do.

The March means we’re entitled to all the possessions of the Shadow Wolves, the Torchbearers, and One For All. One of those guilds is the largest guild in Quest. They are not going to be happy handing over all their possessions. We undoubtedly will have to take it by force. That means being responsible for the first war in the history of the kingdom. A thought that was vaguely amusing when I first had it, as I have trouble imagining the soft nobles that run this kingdom waging a real war, but has become a lot more terrifying now.

From her hard tone, I think Alana can sense my reluctance. She certainly doesn’t have any, or if she does, she is doing a much better job of hiding it. “We have to, Lou. This isn’t just about us. It’s about all of Victory.”

She sighs. “I don’t know what my father’s thinking but his orders are absolute. We could do nothing and Victory would still enforce the tradition. The only way to mitigate damage is to hold the sword.

“If we want to control the sword, preparations have to be made. We need to send out invitations to the soldiers we want to march with us. Unless you want my father to send whoever he likes, like he’s done this time.”

“Mm, no.” Our army is functioning but it’s hardly a cohesive force. Thank the saints the knights are professionals. They don’t seem to get along, or even communicate outside their orders, but they manage to work together without issue.

“There is also the matter of diplomacy. There is a chance to settle this without violence but not if someone from Victory does the talking.”

“I suppose that’s worth a little preparation.”

“Don’t worry about it, Lou. I’ll take care of it.”

“No.” I put a hand on her shoulder. “This is my mess as much as yours.” Though I do kind of blame her for getting us into this. Just a little. I also didn’t look too closely at the situation so it’s my fault too. “We’ll handle it together.”

“…keeping an eye on me?”

“No. No!” I turn her to face me, grabbing her chin until her blue eyes meet my own. “I trust you. This is not me keeping an eye on you, this is me being supportive.”

She holds my stare for a long moment before pulling away with a nod. “Let’s get these people moving. We aren’t going to be slow footing it just because it’s the last day.”

“Yes ma’am.”