After waiting a whole two days in the snow, Morgan and Kai were preparing to enter the fortress and cross over into the duchy, when a flying pigeon in all white suddenly descended from the foggy sky and landed accurately on Morgan's shoulder.
Initially, he was about to shoo it away, however, he noticed a message tied to the leg of the pigeon, so he decided to read the message first.
==========
Ha! Morgan? I knew you were alive! I had received news that your barony was burnt to the ground and you along with the son of that monster had perished along with it. Good thing you survived the 5 days in the wilderness.
Thankfully, you are fine. Quickly enter the Western Fortress and find an inn to stay at. I will be there in 2 days from when you receive the message. Just wait until then, perhaps 3 days, or maybe 4.
On the battlefield, the yue sings in preparation for dangerous troops. The army cannot leave behind anyone so it immediately equipped everyone from their head to their toes with eastern weaponry to ensure safety. Rush the soldiers must not.
That is the story that man would tell us before he rushed into battle with his men. Sometimes I wonder if he was truly a genius or whether he was a madman…
==========
Kai, who was reading it from the side was delighted to know that someone was coming to pick them up in two days' time, however, he frowned when he read the second half of the letter. Just as he was going to ask Pops about the strange words, Morgan spoke of his own volition.
"Wilderness is the term we use for code, and the 5 is the important thing. After that everything makes sense until we reach the second last paragraph, which makes no sense. The last paragraph makes sense so we ignore it."
"Using the 5 of the first paragraph, we can try and decode the true message."
Kai frowned, but he still tried to decode it, and slowly his eyes shone as he mumbled under his breath,
"Yue dangerous leave immediately head eastern rush?"
"No. It says 'You dangerous. Leave Immediately. Head East. Safety not"
'Holy!!' Kai exclaimed in his mind as he realised what this message was saying without actually saying anything to any normal person who did not know of the code. This friend of the ex-Baron even used multiple lines with numbers to throw off any attempts at decoding.
"My soldiers! Get ready. We head into the fortress immediately! Charles, you will be by Kai's side at all times!" The Baron exclaimed.
As they walked towards the gate, Kai noticed the long line which stretched so far into the distance, that he could not see its end.
In reality, however, it was due to the thick fog around the area which prevented him from seeing the end.
However, Morgan did not line up as everyone else and instead headed straight towards the guards travelling along the long line.
"What it! There's a line here!" a few of those in the line complained, however as soon as the troop of 20 soldiers donned in complete metal armour appeared from the fog, they immediately shut their mouths.
"Halt! This is the Entry to the Western Fortress of the Bluestone Duchy. State your purpose for entry with armed soldiers."
Morgan faced the guard and nodded before tossing over a pouch filled with coins. Instinctively, the guard caught the brown leather bag, and the weight of it coupled with the jingle from the coins inside made his eyes brighten.
"Right this way!" The guard bowed as he motioned for the others to follow him as well, and after some hesitation, they too followed and made way for Morgan and his entourage of 21 horse-riders.
Soon enough, the group were inside the fortress, and within just a few minutes and bribing a few more guards, they were out the other end.
"Pops… is this not a bit too easy? What if an enemy were to sneak into the Bluestone duchy by just using money?"
"Ha… Those spies are already inside. This is not the only way to enter, they can choose other paths, and worst comes to worst, they can just sneak into the Bluestone duchy using one of the mountain passes on either side of this West Fortress."
"…So, everything is just a formality?" Kai questioned with a strange expression.
"No. Spies are single units that cannot deal too much damage to you, and in some situations can be used to benefit you. However, an army is different. They are large in number and require equally large logistics, and it would be impossible to have them go through the mountain pass undetected. For them, the best method would be to force their way through this fortress, for which these soldiers have been placed here."
"Ah" Kai nodded in understanding before sighing internally. Ultimately, everything was still just a formality for those weak, poor, and of common birth. A simple barricade was erected by the 'masters' of the fortress to ensure their egos were lifted high enough.
…
Meanwhile, Kai felt that Yu had finally regained consciousness once more, and this time, he was no longer in a sack, but instead in a completely different setting.