What Lord Bronson didn't know was that while he was busy cooking up all these fancy plans, Barda was wondering what his next step would be. He had seen the cowardly lord running back to the castle.
He had been tempted to run after him and waylay him, but that would have been too extreme for now. Maybe later.
The slow option was to investigate what was happening from the locals. All the while, he couldn't set his eyes off the prize, which was the key. He had to get it fast since had a war to get back to. Hence, this option was less desirable.
On seeing the men stationed to entrap him, Barda had a mind to slay them first, but something held his hand. He made his way past them and into Litta's house.
The men soon came out, and the arrogant commanding officer made his statement. By now, Liliana was also away and was clutching at her mother's drapes. Seeing the terrified look on both mother and child, even the coldest heart would melt.
Barda made his way to the door, but not because of this scene, but because his plan was coming to fruition.
When he came out, Barda saw that indeed the hut was surrounded, and the smug commander was eyeing him as if he was prey. However, beyond what they could see, Barda could detect silhouettes in lurking behind them, and it was for them that he came out.
Without even saying another word, Barda pulled out the sword he had stolen from the guard and charged at the commanding officer. The surrounding guards could only chuckle as they saw Barda's reaction, thinking that these were the last throes of dying man.
After training with his Elementals in the tower, Barda had managed to integrate the sword skills with his personality matrix, making them a part of himself. That, coupled with his Reaction Speed, even at 8% Power he was a formidable opponent with a plethora of fighting skills. No one told the commanding officer that.
The man met his opponent's charge with a swing of the sword in an attempt to block him. Barda had anticipated that, so he swerved left and countered with a strike at the opponent's neck.
However, since Barda was not as fast, his opponent, was able to react by raising his arm, blocking Barda's thrust. Unfortunately, that meant his arm was severely injured. Barda kicked at the man's cuff as he pulled up his sword. When the man fell, Barda's sword pursued his neck, slicing away the head.
All this had happened in less than 7 seconds. The soldiers had not had time to react before their commander was beheaded. Still in the shock, men came out of the shadows and attacked them.
The 20 combatants had already been cowed by Barda's fighting skills, so when they were attacked, their only thought was to flee. In a brief exchange, 13 villagers fell, never to rise, while 15 others were severely injured. No guard was left standing.
One of the men that came to his rescue approached Barda and greeted him saying, "You are only suffering for our village, we could not let you be killed here."
"Thank you," Barda said as he looked around. After all the people were downed, Barda asked,
"What now?"
"We have to move, everyone in the village."
"Why?"
"After his people died by your hands, we got off the hook by saying we did not know you. Now that we have spilled blood, there is no other way for us."
"If we linger, we will all be slaughtered, the way they did to Iten," another added. There were a few mumbling of approval here and there.
"Where will you go?" Barda's question quietened them down. No one had any idea what to say or do.
"You know, the lord of this area took my belongings. He also to Lydia's husband and father of her child. I am guessing he had taken quite a lot more from you all," Barda began.
"Yeah so?" Juliana asked. One of the elders who had come to reprimand Litta for inviting a foreigner in their village.
"I am headed over there to get him and my property back. Is there anyone willing to show me the way?" Barda's statement had hidden connotations.
"They took my father, if you help me get him back, I will show you the way!" Shouted someone.
"They took my crops, if you help me get the back, I will show you the way!" Another added.
"They burned my house down, if you help me pay them back, I will show you the way!" Before anyone knew it, the entire village was grouped around Barda, ready to strike. This was what he wanted all along.
First things first, Barda got the residents packed up and settled. Before dawn, he gathered the men and the weapons he had. The sight of it made Barda sigh.
If there was one thing Nalu got right was that they heavily regulated their weapons and equipment. Even the farm tools were closely watched, and if anyone lost one, they would have to pay for it by producing more food. This was Norma's - the burly man - plight.
Norma was as hardworking as it gets and was always the top farmer every year. Despite the dwindling farm produce, he had always managed to stay ahead of everyone. Unfortunately for him, his last born son tossed a sickle in the river, the beginning of his troubles.
Like all teenagers, the boy had snuck away from the farm to hang out with his girlfriend. Caught in their love bubble, the 2 had wandered off to wolf country, and a pack waylaid them. The boy had his girlfriend climb a tree while he ran off to pull the attention of the pack away from her.
Without knowing, the boy ended up in the river, all this time holding the father's farm tool. The same tool he was supposed to be using while on the farm. Daddy got in trouble, the son got punished. Somewhere along the way came Barda.
Now that he was caught up on the man's problems, Barda still was faced with the fact that he had very little in terms of weapons and equipment to defend themselves. There was no forge or any means of acquiring more weapons.
***
When he got word of what happened the previous night, Lord Bronson was perplexed. He did not understand how a single person could turn an entire village. He had gotten so used to seeing the people do his bidding that the idea of them revolting seemed so far fetched.
Worse still, he had to report to Lord Crewe, the Duke of Nodevel, the region Somar was based. As the administrator, he knew he would face severe consequences due to the revolt, so he made Barda, whom he knew as Lincoln, to be the fall guy, the instigator.
"My Lord, if this man is allowed to continue, he could end up turning the entire land against us!" Lord Bronson said as he finished his tale.
"That is a bit dramatic, don't you think?" Lady Ayleth, Lord Crewe's wife, said offhandedly.
"Take a hundred man, find this trouble maker and put an end to him," Lord Crewe said.
"My Lord, given how many this man has managed to turn, and his suspicious involvement in magic ..."
"Are you telling me that you need more than a hundred men to deal with a few farmers?"
"My Lord, the farmers are not the problem, this wizard is."
With a sigh, Lord Crewe said, "Fine, take three hundred men then," After a thought, he added, "Lord Bronson, I don't need to remind you the consequences of failure."
***
"My Lord, the preparations are complete," an astute gentleman approached the Prince of Gumina from the balcony overlooking the whole of Reuze.
"When do they arrive?"
"Tomorrow morning my Lord."
"Did they run into any trouble?"
"Yes, My Lord. Some Tristan ships thought of meeting them along the way. They were sunk by the same animal they have as their sigil." There was not a hint of joy in the Prince's face. His thoughts were on a different matter.
"Any flying ships?"
"No my Lord, no such absurdness was seen."
"You are dismissed."
Up till this moment, the Prince had been waiting to see Barda's move. Someone as powerful and as strong as he was should have already moved by now, not just taking out the subordinate cities, but going after the main city.
To him, life was binary. There was the strong, and the weak. He had done his best to escape the show his strength, but he had also learned to see strength in others, especially enemies.
Part of the reason why Gumina was known to be so tyrannical was that they always went after the strong. To be the best, you have to beat the best. That's why they went after Tristan.
He had been waiting to see Barda's next move, kept his ears on the ground, but nothing. It could be said that Tristan was building strength, as they were also giving time to recover as well. It did not make sense in his eyes.