The sound of the horse drew ever closer to the knight. Crouched, he observed the frigid body of what appeared to be Rhakan, the jawless one, sprawled on the ground. The scene was horrendous.
The man who was said to be one of the most problematic in the region lay dead on the cold ground. One of his arms was no longer attached to his body, and his face was crushed by what seemed to weigh tons.
"We inspected down below, Colwill," said the man upon dismounting his silver-armored horse.
"And?"
"Well, it's a mess, the carriages are all destroyed, many bodies of the students and bandits scattered about," he affirmed.
The man then approached the corpse on the ground. "Heavens, who could have done this to him?"
Colwill stood up, a few faint pops could be heard—results of his years of service. His wrinkled skin sweated like a leaky roof. His hair, once brown like tree trunks, was singed with faint gray strands.
"I don't know, but it saved us a lot of work. And Esteban, where is he?"
"He stayed behind to identify the bodies down below. At least when I left, we hadn't found the boy with red hair," he reported.
Colwill then mounted his sleek, gentle horse. "I want to see with my own eyes the incident that decimated our next generation."
At the site, a young knight was dragging what appeared to be the bodies of the students, separating them from those of the bandits.
"Damned old geezers, left me here dragging bodies."
As he moved another one, he checked the information on a large clipboard and tried to identify the corpse.
"Here it is," he said, marking the sheet with an "X".
The sound of hooves could be heard behind the large boulder that crushed the two carriages.
"They still used the same tactics as before, huh," said Colwill, carefully dismounting his horse. "I hope the boy we're looking for isn't crushed underneath this. I don't want to carry pâté in my bag."
The other man approached after dismounting. "Why don't you go ahead and destroy this boulder? It'll save us a lot of work."
Colwill arched a smile. "Right, right. Shitty procrastinator." He stretched his shoulders before drawing the sword from his waist. He was adorned in gleaming silver, worthy of a veteran of the Order.
Taking a deep breath, a veil formed around him. His white Aura matched that of the Knights of Aurora. And after a few brief seconds of concentration, a quick thrust pierced the rock like a twig into soft sand, his Aura penetrating inward.
Certain cracks echoed through the area, until the large, imposing boulder exploded into a thousand pieces that disintegrated in the air.
Little by little, the crushed bodies appeared, mixed in with the pieces of the carriages.
"As expected from Samuel Nikitich's second master," said the other knight, walking toward Colwill.
He, resting on his knees, panted as if he had made the greatest possible effort.
"Yeah, time has finally caught up with me," he complained.
Approaching with frightened steps, Esteban found the other two knights.
"Y-you guys... almost scared me to death."
For a moment, he calmed down, but trembled out of pure instinct.
"Stop grumbling and identify the crushed bodies."
The man gave the order. An almost impossible request indeed, but the young man had to show his worth as a member of the investigative unit.
"Ugh..." he grumbled, nauseated as he checked the victims' bodies, and one by one, found the students' identification tags.
"Well, it seems that's all of them." He approached the veterans who were sitting under a certain tree. "They all match the information in the files, except for three."
Colwill adjusted his posture, now paying closer attention to the boy.
"Right, and which three are missing?"
"Let me confirm." He flipped through the clipboard at an unparalleled speed. "Here! The missing ones are these."
The veteran knight then took the sheets extended toward him and began to examine them.
"Masala Arkhon, so heiress of the eastern matriarchy, excellent grades and evaluation indices."
Flip
"Seras Navigrad, protector mage of Masala. And finally..."
Flip
"Samo Gorynych, standout in hand-to-hand combat and swordsmanship..."
Colwill sighed slowly. "This is the boy we are looking for, Antony's protégé."
"The reports said that Rhakan had a right-hand man, who deserted the Order of Aurora, right?" Esteban asked, carefully removing his gloves.
"Malag is the name..." the other man spoke, after taking a small bite of the apple in his hand. "That damned bastard was always helping Ferdnand with his corruption schemes."
With a slight gesture, he tossed the rest of the fruit away. "I'd kill him myself if I found him."
He stood up, brushing the crumbs off his armor. "Well, I think we should go now."
Colwill looked and nodded, while the young prodigy took a step forward.
"What about the bodies? Or the three that went missing."
"That is not a job for us, boy," said Colwill, adjusting his armor. "We came here to investigate the lack of communication with the convoy, let the evacuation team deal with the transport."
With masterful skill, he mounted the horse in a single leap.
"As for the remaining three, let the 'Agents' handle the search."
Esteban swallowed hard. Agents... It's never a good thing when they are involved. But if Rhakan is already dead, why call them? he thought.
"Don't just stand there doing nothing, mount your horse, boy."
Colwill ordered, the other man on the chestnut horse beside him.
"Yes, sir."
The boy, with extreme difficulty, climbed onto the creature.
The three headed toward the forest of the Nirvanas.
The unsteady galloping of the horses indicated fatigue. After three days without rest, the vigor of both animals and riders was depleting.
"I think... We should rest a bit," Esteban suggested, trying to stretch his back while the sun beat down on his face.
The man beside him looked at him with disappointment on his face.
"Tsk, stop complaining, we need to get to the company quickly."
Colwill looked back; the other two were falling behind, and fatigue exhaled through the nostrils of his faithful beastly companion.
"The boy is right, Corloch, we'll never get there if we kill ourselves with exhaustion along the way."
"Hmph, whatever you say," he retorted.
The veteran pointed his finger toward an incline that led to a nearby river. "Let's go that way."
"Curse it!" Corloch agonized. "My back feels like Drake bones." The man tried to stretch as much as he could, but the physical limits of his age prevented him.
Young Esteban approached, a slight smile on his face and tears falling from his eyes. "I told you we should stop."
The two got into a dispute, while Colwill stroked his horse, which was quenching its thirst. "You always keep me company, right buddy."
Suddenly, in the distance, a soft cry could be heard. The three looked in that direction; a reflection of light guided them to what appeared to be a tall man with short hair, the color of newly lit flames. By his side, a robust woman with a battle axe.
Meanwhile, at the 5th Company, the watchmen patrolled the high masonry wall, with surprising attention and professionalism. When one of the many grabbed his spyglass and observed in the distance—approaching, three already known horses.
"Open the gate!"
First was Colwill, mounted on his distinguished horse; on his pillion, now wearing a blue cloak that protected her from the cold, Masala Arkhon.
The second to pass through the gigantic gate was Corloch, galloping the animal alone. While lastly, young Esteban carried Samo, his horse visibly exhausted.
Inside the Fort, knights trained and adjusted their equipment; it was like a living, bustling city.
"This is your new home," said Colwill.
They all dismounted upon reaching the stables; the groom soon approached. He was a man dressed in blue overalls, with no shirt underneath, curly hair, and a memorable horseshoe scar on his cheek.
"Good morning, Mr. Colwill, Mr. Corloch," he greeted everyone. Curious, he observed the two new faces. "And who might our guests be?"
"Good morning, Hest," greeted Corloch. "They are our new cadets. Or at least what's left of them..."
The young groom then put his hand to his chin, taking a good look at the novices. "It's going to be tricky finding horses for them, maybe an elephant?"
Colwill laughed heartily before ruffling the boy's hair.
"I believe you will have plenty of time to find the ideal species, little Hest."