Kai and his group continued their journey East as they travelled past village after village, wavering just outside the notice of the patrolling guards of the villages and only stopping near nighttime once a relatively safe shelter was found.
It had been around 5 days since their encounter with the bandits, and during this time, Kai had learned a skill which might be useful for Yu in the near future. Not only was he taught the 'proper' method to handle a bow and arrow and how to maintain it, but also taught how to properly remove the organs and skin of game he killed.
Until now, Yu had been relying on the instructions from the system which Kai gave him to hunt, skin, and cook the meat of creatures. Now, however, it would be a more streamlined process. Of course, Kai had not become an expert of any sort in these matters but was only a beginner who had just been given the information to begin his progress.
Kai practised a bit of archery while the group was resting, and only after a few arrows he realised that his back muscles were aching from pulling on the bowstring. It appeared he would need to build a lot of muscle if he wanted to use better weapons.
Well, although learning such skills would definitely have been useful to Yu, they would be utterly useless in the current situation. He had been knocked out for a good day and a half after being hit, and the process repeated itself each time he woke up; no matter if he remain silent and did not move, the assailants would somehow know and knock him out before he could gain any clues about his location.
Kai was utterly helpless in this situation and could only focus on gaining as many skills as possible which may be of use to Yu. Perhaps, Yu might even be able to escape alive…?
'Yeah… Even when I think about it with an optimistic mindset, that result is highly unlikely…' Kai sighed in his heart as he continued to shuffle about on the saddle of the horse.
Another two days passed and this time around, the Baron allowed everyone to take a few hours longer to rest and recuperate from the tiring journey over the past weeks, and everyone had a hardy meal of one rabbit per person before they headed out.
"Let's get going. By the afternoon today, we should already be in the territory of the Bluestone Sect. Just follow me without saying anything." The Baron said before getting onto his horse.
…
"Wah!" Kai exclaimed as he noticed the fortress in front of them.
It was an incredibly tall wall of grey stone; about double the height of the Dread Manor. Yet, what was more magnificent compared to the incredible structure itself, were the soldiers guarding it. Like ants protecting their nest, the soldiers in metal armour and blue-coloured leather were continuously moving around on the walls of the fortress in an extremely orderly and alert state, making the entire fortress seem alive!
"Wait here. I will be back in 2 minutes." The Baron said as he turned his horse to walk away from the group of 21. The horse neighed out of exhaustion but still persisted and took the Baron to his destination.
Kai turned to the others and said.
"Be on alert. Although nothing wrong should happen, there is always a possibility. Still, unless absolutely necessary, do not unsheathe your weapons since it might be taken as impolite, or if the other party is really in a bad mood, perhaps even a declaration of war…"
Kai turned around and ensured that his dagger was correctly fastened to the leather strap around his waist, before shifting his gaze to the disappearing Baron. The weather today was just as cold as before; however, it was not snowing or raining. Instead, there was a thick fog covering the land, together with the white snow from last night's snowfall, making it seem as though one was in a dream where everything was white.
After the Baron vanished a few meters away, Kai could no longer see him and sighed, hoping for his safety.
…
The Baron continued walking until he noticed a long line of people, and without wasting another second he followed along the rather orderly line of people and soon reached a tall gate built into the grey-stone wall. The gate was a cast-iron gate made in a grid pattern for visibility through it as well as to prevent enemies from breaking through.
Now however, this gate had been lifted high up for people to pass, yet its ominous presence made the entrants feel as though they were death-row inmates waiting for their execution at the guillotine.
At the gate, there were more soldiers dressed in blue leather and metal armour, who were searching those who wished to enter, asking for money from some, while allowing others to enter after looking at differing plaques of various materials, ranging from wood to gold.
However, the Baron's destination was the small stall-like structure to the left of the gate. It was a rather small shack, yet there were countless people coming in and out of the place. More importantly, every now and then, some people with thick bags could be seen leaving the shack and entering the fortress without any checks, while some with empty bags would return from the fortress. Occasionally the baron could even see pigeons flying away into the distance, headed towards the Bluestone duchy; on the other side of the fortress.
Sighing, the Baron got off his horse and the snow under him crunched. Unlike before, the snow was not up to his knees, but rather only to his ankles.
Walking slowly, the Baron approached the dilapidated tent-like structure and tied his horse to its side. Next, he entered.
After just a few minutes, the Baron could be seen leaving the tent, with a grim expression and a few coins short of what he entered with.
Within moments of his departure, the white pigeon flew out with something attached to its foot as it headed towards the Bluestone duchy's interior.
…
"What happened Pops?" Kai could help but ask.
"Nothing. I have sent the message to my friend. But it did cost me 2 gold…" The Baron replied.
"2 gold?!" Kai exclaimed. He had been taught about the currency here, which was rather simple.
Copper was the lowest coin. 100 copper made a small silver, and 100 small silver made a silver. 100 silver made a gold coin. Normally, a person of common birth could buy their entire family of 4 people a sufficient meal for just 50 copper.
But sending a message here cost him 2 Gold? That was 2 million copper?!!
'No wonder Pops is upset. 2 Gold was the tax collection of the family for an entire year!' Kai mused.
"However, that is not the issue. It cost that much because I sent an urgent message. I could have done the same thing with just 1 Small silver, but it would take at least two weeks to reach its destination since it would be travelling by foot."
"The problem is with the news I overheard. Some people were talking about a noble household in the West whose manor got burnt down."
Kai immediately perked up as this news was likely related to him.
"Apparently, everyone in the household died in the fire, and the traitorous Inferior knight and his co-conspirators were captured and sentenced to death. The Inferior knight however was forced into a slave contract with a powerful Rank 4 Arch Mage and taken for experimentation. The rest of the knights were executed."
The gears in Kai's mind spun rapidly as he arrived at an unlikely, but hilariously ironic conclusion…