William boated all night. During the trip, he was worried, because if what the yellow-haired girl said was true, that her friends from the north had arrived, then there was a chance that William might meet them in the middle of the river. If it's just one or two men, he still dares to face them, but if it's more than three, he's in big trouble. Because at this time he did not carry any weapon at all.
Fortunately, the men from the north were nowhere to be seen, neither in the tributaries nor in the Ordelahr River. Either because William couldn't see them, or because they were actually still far north. The yellow-haired girl might just be scaring him so he can go away. William accelerated his rowing and arrived at Thaluk before noon.
He rushed up the cliff to the base. He didn't stop even though he was still tired and sleepy. He met Rogas and Taupin in the main meeting room. There was also Master Morrin, the village head of Thaluk.
Rogas grinned happily when he saw William. "Ah, Tuck, you're finally back. How long have you been gone? Three days? I really hope you find something interesting."
"I just hope you don't bring bad news," Taupin said.
"Other patrols have returned from the west and north," Morrin, who was short and stocky, said to William. "And they didn't see those barbarians. I hope the situation is the same in the east."
William looked at the three men. "Maybe they're close."
They fell silent.
"We went all the way to Bullock's house," William continued, "and he said he didn't see anything suspicious."
"That's good news, isn't it?" said Morrin, a little hesitant. "But he's old. His eyes were a bit blind and his ears were deaf. Information from him is unreliable."
"My soldier checked the surroundings of his house, and it seems he was right," William continued. "Then from there, we parted. My five soldiers returned here first, while I continued to check east, along the river."
"What do you mean? Your soldiers came back before you?" asked Rogas.
"Yeah, they came back yesterday." William suddenly felt something strange.
"No one's coming back," said Rogas.
"What?" William asked in surprise.
"Your soldiers haven't returned," Taupin said.
"What happened here?" Morrin started to panic.
William froze, looking at the three men who looked confused. His mind was spinning, trying to link one possibility to another. What he imagined, in the end, was the worst possibility, that his soldiers might meet the enemy in the middle of the river.
"I don't know what happened yet," he said quietly. "But, maybe they're close."
"Who?"
"Hualeg warriors."
"You'd better tell us more clearly! Don't just say like that!" Taupin exclaimed.
Rogas gave William a sharp look. "What did you find in the east?"
"I rowed until the afternoon to the east, then pulled over to a place that I thought would be a good place to rest. Turned out there was someone else there. A Hualeg. We fought, and I lost."
"You lost?" Taupin jumped in surprise.
Rogas grinned in disbelief. "Are you serious?"
"How could you?" Morrin asked. "You're the best swordsman we have, and you lost?"
"I guess because my opponent is more skilled than I am," William replied flatly. If he thought about it, maybe he lost due to his carelessness, thinking that Hualeg girl had already bowed to him. But that's not an excuse. He lost, no matter how. "That's not what's important. Do you want to continue hearing my story?"
"Yes!" said Taupin.
"That Hualeg warrior caught me, but then released me."
The three men stared at him in disbelief.
"That's weird," Morrin said. "Hualeg warrior never gives mercy, and they like to kill. Why did he let you go?"
"Are you sure he's a Hualeg?" Taupin asked.
"Yes. But I think a good one. The warrior instead gave me a warning that the rest of Hualeg's men would be coming soon."
Taupin and Morrin looked at each other, while Rogas was stunned. For a moment everyone was silent, restless.
"What is this warrior like?" asked Rogas.
"Tall, yellow hair, good with the sword, and hits hard."
For now, that explanation sufficed. William did not want to mention the most important characteristic, that the warrior was a woman. William wasn't sure why he was hiding it. Maybe because it was a bit of a thank you to the girl, who had been kind to him. It felt wrong if William explained all the characteristics of the girl to his colleagues at headquarters.
Or maybe it's just because he's afraid of being laughed at by Rogas for losing to women?
"Do you believe his words?" Rogas asked.
"I believe." William sighed and shook his head worriedly. "Now my soldiers have not returned. It's possible they found something suspicious and pulled over. Maybe they met those Hualeg men."
"They should be back by now," said Morrin.
"Yeah, unless…" Rogas said, "something bad happened. Dead, for example."
"That was terrible!" cried Morrin.
"This wouldn't have happened if you all didn't split up!" Taupin accused William. "If you stick together, you'll be fine!"
"If Tuck stays with them, he'll die too," Rogas defended William. "He was lucky. Do you understand, Tuck?" He smirked at William. "Your luck just played here. Someday you'll have to thank someone for this, right? You're lucky you didn't die like your men, that's if they were really dead. And lucky to be able to get information from the Hualeg guy who released you."
"The one who beat him!" Taupin was still annoyed. "If only Tuck had beaten that guy, things might not have been so bad. Tuck could have brought the man here. We can take him hostage and then question him. We can have more information!"
"Listen, sir, my soldiers aren't necessarily dead. I'll go look for them," replied William who was getting annoyed too.
"Alone?" Morrin asked.
"No," Rogas said. "Tuck, go with ten soldiers."
"They all could be in danger when they meet Hualeg warriors!" Taupin said.
"Then what do you want?" Rogas asked impatiently. "We were all waiting like fools here until suddenly the Hualeg mob came?"
"We're staying here, as originally planned!" exclaimed Taupin.
"We should have patrolled better." Morrin shook his head as if to say to himself.
"That's what I meant!" said Taupin. He glanced back at William. "You should have done better on patrol. Remember, I paid you well, so you should repay me well too with your work."
William snorted. "I'll give you your money right now if you don't think I deserve it. I'm going back south, but remember, some soldiers might come with me. Seeing this situation, they knew it was better to leave than die in this horrible place. Is that what you want, sir? I'm here to help you! Compared to you, I'm really doing something out there, not just sitting around here. So don't tell me more nonsense!"
Taupin was silent to hear William's rebuke, as was Morrin. But Rogas grinned happily. A grin that often seemed annoying, but this time it calmed William because he felt Rogas was on his side.
"Ten soldiers, Tuck," Rogas said. "Take Thom and his friends."
William nodded. "I'm leaving now."
"Are you sure? Don't you want to rest first?"
"Later. The sooner I go, the better."
Roger nodded. "Remember, don't let go of your lucky item. It has helped you, whether you believe it or not."