After three hours of going forward, they didn't lose their enemies at all, the carriage was still okay and also the horses of the carriage. But they have stopped moving because the horses didn't have any more energy and also Kratz didn't have any more stamina potions for the horses to give. The horses were on the ground shivering, and only the spell formation is supporting them to keep living.
Kratz was almost dead exhausted, he was sitting at the coachman seat a lot of wounds were everywhere on his body, but because he was showered in enemies blood he wouldn't look at all as for his soldiers there were still 5 knights at the door of the carriage, they were supporting themselves with their weapons, their eyes bloodshot and with a heavy heart because all these sacrifices of their friends and yet nothing, they couldn't escape or let their prince escape.
All this commotion at the forest of victory and yet no one came not even patrolling soldiers, or adventures this was strange as strange could be.
Kratz was not like other knights, he knew there are rivalries among the princes, but a rivalry could only exist when both parties fight for something but their prince even his presence could not be felt if not for food, so if the crown prince is not the mastermind then who is?
"Sigh." Kratz sighed he knew this was the end at least he will take down even an archmage using the potions that Arturio has given him when they first met. That if the archmage shows up because he knew there was someone following them but always in the distance when he could not reach at all. That's why he was always on guard in case of a sneak attack, and how does he know there is an archmage? That's simple to fight Arturio the archmage another one is needed to defeat him, but because he was killed unexpectedly, the Archmage didn't show up, like a wolf eyeing his prey from afar.
Kratz looked around him there were still mercenaries or assassins, he doesn't know who these people are at all. All around them, they were hundreds of them and yes they were also exhausted, some of them were missing one of their hand, one has lost his eye, all of them were pretty much bleeding by different injuries. Even though they have been lots of them, now only hundreds of them remain. This could only mean they were all weak and probably slaves, and yet gathering this many slaves thousands of them, giving them weapons, armors, and horses without any authority's knowing means that is a powerful hand behind the scenes or a country that is not in the influence of the empires.
Because even Kings can't take more than 5 slaves and slaves are mostly only criminals who kill other people, it is too wasteful to kill them or put them into prisons so they make them slaves and put them into use.
And this law is only in the spheres of influence of the empires, outside the city's or in the dungeons if you kill someone and no one knows, of course, you are free to roam around, but if you kill inside the city's, it is almost certain that you will get caught.
And finally, because no one was moving and everyone was just watching each other, someone came from the shadows.
`Clap, clap, clap..` "Magnificent indeed, what a wonderful show, you have been showing me." From the shadows, a man in black robes came forward. He wasn't tall, he was like your average middle-aged guy, who you would even miss to notice if he were before you. But Kratz was surprised because he didn't know who this archmage is. Because archmages are quite of famous, even though they are lots of them, at the end of the day he was a holy knight, and he needs to know this kind of information about archmages, holy knights, nobles, dukes, politics so he can be helpful to the prince, he is the personal guard after all.
"Commander Kratz of the second prince personal guard, ten years ago you were just another knight, but because you were one of the trusted men of Arturio, you won the lottery and became a holy knight advancing the job and the skills. Became the leader of the 100 knights from that point on you didn't fight another battle and only stayed to protect your prince, I thought you were just a rusted sword, but it seems like I was wrong." The archmage said with a smirk on his face.
Kratz's lips twitched, this archmage knew too much and especially that line of being the trusted man of Arturio before ten years ago. That was top secret that only he, Queen Justina, and Arturio knows, probably also the King, but as far as he knows the King doesn't know, and everyone just knows he was just a knight of a Kingdom, nothing else nothing more and people probably might think he was the Queen's person but this guy knows and is completely confident.
Where is this confidence coming from, in the end, he could only sigh, this was game over with this expression he earned another smirk coming from the archmage, that made him want to eat him whole from anger.
"And in the end, why do you guys even want to kill the prince, to be honest, he doesn't care about anything in politics. There have been and are kids at his age that are quite famous for different things, but he only cares for food, as for you trying to stop the alliance with the West Empire that's even more stupid, in my opinion of course." Kratz said with a voice like a dying man asking his killer why he killed him.
"Well, I also don't know as you can see I can't tell anything." Said the archmage as he opened his robes a little to show his neck, at the neck was a black iron collar, only by seeing it, you can understand that if a normal person has that he might have even problems walking.
"I see." Kratz said with a powerless tone, to think that even an archmage was enslaved, that means the mastermind was even stronger, and he never heard of someone stronger than the archmage, in these last thousands of years probably it isn't even worth fighting anymore. As he was letting his thoughts out of control, the archmage chuckled as he saw his expression.
"It seems like you misunderstood me, he isn't stronger than me he just made a contract because he doesn't trust me." The archmage said.
Kratz just twitched his lips and lowered his head because it seems like today his face was like a reading book, but still, he was glad that there was still a chance, he still had two potions that Arturio gave him when he saved Arturios life. The first time he met Arturio was when he found him half-dead in a corner inside of a dungeon, and whenever he asked later how did he end up like that, he never responded.
"Well it seems like that barrier at the carriage is indeed strong but you can still open the door so it seems like the barrier is kind of useless. Those that have a lower level than an archmage and lower than level 80 can never open the door with force, so an assassination never succeeds, but the door can open so is kind of useless in this kind of situation."
"What?" Kratz asked astonished. Then how did Arturio died? He sure as hell is dead, because he checked it himself, plus the key point here is that Arturio was inside the carriage when he was killed he only opened the door and the barrier formation should have protected him and the barrier formation was made by him a week before the journey started, and only he knew probably the Queen, he only told me when the journey started that the horses and the carriage itself has a spell formation and I didn't even know how powerful that formation is, so this could only mean that someone has talked to or this is all was planned by Queen Justina, taking a cold breath Kratz didn't think more about it because a mother killing her child doesn't seem right and Arturio doesn't seem like a guy that talks, that only means someone close to the Queen or Arturio is a traitor.
And to think it more even Queen Justina probably didn't know, because a week before the journey started no one knew and even I didn't know that Arturio was making a strong formation, that means even the Queen didn't know, because the Queen only saw us once, a week before the journey started and she only told us to take the most important and trusted people only on the day that we will leave and some of the knights that day didn't even have chance to say goodbye to their families, and we would tell the guards at the gates of royal palace that we were just going to hunt for some couple of days and with Arturio on board no one even the king who doesn't know anything would be worried.
For two days without rest we almost were running these were the orders after all, and as for why we were going to the West Empire Oblivion, I don't know at all.