Chereads / A soldier's journey in the Plaguelands to Utopia / Chapter 48 - Finally, a normal road

Chapter 48 - Finally, a normal road

"We will make it to Valtrar lands shortly… Approximately within the hour."

There were three men with pointy ears and white skin in the forest riding on their horses to Valtrar because of the sacred weapons. The king of elves feared an unwanted predicament in the promise so he sent three of his mightiest soldiers; they were strong enough to be able to kill a strong beast that was thrice their height with a single swing.

The one who warned about the vicinity of Valtrar was called Richard. He turned away from the road and gazed at a faraway that seemed abandoned. It brought him the shudder of creeps so he turned back to his two companions. The night was upon them and they had to find an inn where to spend the night. When the sky turned dark, the bandits and monsters became active. Therefore, it was riskier to stay on the roads travelling at the time of the day.

"Do you think the king will favour us with gold as soon as we deliver the merchandise?" Hermey said with a frown. Gold was what mattered to him the most.

"This isn't what I am concerned about. I mostly fear that something happened to the messengers. Both kings thought that sending a single person from their kingdoms wouldn't attract attention from other races and they chose Valtrar as the land of meeting because of the unlikeliness of the attacks. However, they are late," Casper rubbed his nose sensing something was about to happen.

"Don't worry too much! The human king lost all his lands; he only has one left. He wouldn't think of waging a war when he is this week. If it wasn't for the conflict between the nations, humans wouldn't be able to keep their last land."

"It's too cruel but I heard Valtrar is their most praised land. He kept the gold while he lost the silver," Casper turned his head to both sides, a gut feeling telling him to unsheathe his sword and be on the road for defence.

"Mostly, we, elves, don't care much about humans. We only intervened because the human king got on his knees and begged our king. He must have done the same to the dwarves. It must have been humiliating but it's worthy of praise. Humans kept their last land because of it. You know how vampires are; they are stinky with their prey and they have been eying the humans for a while," Richard glanced back at Casper who stopped and jumped down from his horse. He was the sensitive one of the three and his instinct was always right.

The two others jumped on their feet as well. Valtrar was neutral land now; it was the place where most meetings between the races happened and most conflicts. Since humans were weak to keep it protected, the dwarves and the elves decided it would be a neutral land for everyone to use for safe trade. It made the human king furious but considering his strength, he had no other choice but to acquiesce.

There were many discussions about why humans didn't disappear from Masmoenia; they were subject to all kinds of foolish treatments and didn't have their places amongst the twenty-two seat holders. All the mages that blossomed from the weak race left it to its own fate and secluded making their own place.

The three unsheathed their swords, wary of the danger that came closer now. Certainly, they had to find an inn earlier. The monsters that were lurking in the woods sensed they were discovered so they leapt from their hiding place, jumping on the three. They all had arrows on their backs and swords for close combat.

Humanoid creatures emanated from the shadows; they had a loathsome aura around them. They looked like stitched all around with different kinds of monsters organs and lambs. There was nothing human about it. They looked like coming from hell to kill any traveller. There was a story that went around those parts about bestial creatures that only went for intelligent creatures.

Hermey unsheathed his sword happily thinking of how much he would get from killing those monsters. There would be a lot interested in buying an odd-looking creature that wasn't discovered yet. Especially mages, they liked to make things with the skins and flesh of those cold-blooded murderers. The three of them swung their swords, defending against the group of monsters that were counted by ten.

Not far from them, Stephan was dying to find a road so he could walk normally instead of doing all kinds of acrobatic moves that looked like a walk to the others. The four of them departed at night when the moon was high in the sky. Soprana had a broom flying next to the others that were walking. The witch laughed each time Stephan complained about the hard road.

When he finally found a road, he got on his knees and started kissing it happily. "You don't know how much I am happy to reunite with you. No one can survive without a properly built road."

Hearing the clash of swords and claws, the four of them turned their heads towards the source. The distance was approximately fifty kilometres from the three elves that were fighting the monsters that were cut down by the half and the warriors were growing tired.

Agandaur recognized his fellow elf comrades and wanted to help but he didn't have a weapon. Therefore, it was impossible to rush to that place. He turned to the witch, pleading with his eyes. "Can you do something about them?"

The witch rolled her eyes at the elf then looked at Stephan. She guessed what he would say about it but she still asked. "What do you think we shall do? Do you want me to help them? However, this might include some new charges."

"When it's not my business, it doesn't matter to me," he examined the monsters and shook his head strongly. "I am not a hero who sacrifices his life for someone else. Let's keep moving! I can't afford to lose more time. I already lost enough playing along with your failed attempt to turn me into one of your servants."