53 They are here!

A few days later.

The sun was just about to rise above the horizon and yet Brine City was already very noisy.

Most workshops had opened hours ago, the noise of hammers, saws, and other tools kept echoing in the camp during the night, but no one had any complaints. After all, the King's army was scheduled to leave for a major battle in a couple of days.

Soon the rest of the camp was up and working, loud shouts echoed in the streets as people carried goods between workshops. Carmelo and his blacksmiths were working on special shields designed to stop attacks from the Kunalls, while Rinat and her carpenters were busy crafting, arrows, traps, and horse drawn carts for the army.

All of this meant that Brine City was even busier than it had been when Selv 'visited'. This was because the next battles were a big deal.

The first part was the easy one, the soldiers would intercept the Kunall scouts as they did in the past and then take some rest at the wall building site. But, this time, instead of coming back to Brine City, they would leave the next day for the scout's main camp in the south where they would fight a little more than a hundred Kunalls. (Travel plan : https://www.dropbox.com/s/mg9h641pgboyh36/MoltenValley%20%28Chapter%2052%29.jpg?dl=0 )

The rules where the same as they had been for the previous battles against the Kunall patrols: No survivors were allowed.

If any Kunalls managed to flee, then retaliation from the Eastern Kunall Fortress would soon follow, and without the defence wall, this would be a death sentence for Brine City.

To achieve this, most of the troops in Brine City would participate in the battle. This meant that a lot of preparations were necessary. Food, tents, weapons, armors, cloths, medicines, all had to be prepared and packed and time was running out. This meant a lot of people working and making noise..

In contrast, Mia's tent was very calm as she was overlooking reports of the past week.

She was sitting, looking a little distracted, as she browsed through the different scrolls.

Chris suddenly entered the tent shouting loudly. "Man. Everyone is full of energy today huh?"

His energetic demeanor was betrayed by the bags under his eyes.

Mia acknowledged him with a nod, but it seemed more like an automatic response from her than a conscious one.

Chris took advantage of her distraction to sit right next to her.

"So? Miss Queen of Logistics, how are we doing?" He asked with a smile.

But there was no answer.

"Mia?" Still no answer.

[Whoa is she that focused?] He thought as he nonchalantly laid down on her lap, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"Ah!" Shouted Mia. When she finally noticed him. "Chris? When did you get here?"

"Just now. I tried to call you, but you were lost in thoughts. It's time for our date. Did you forget?" He teased.

"Date?" Mia's blank expression betrayed her confusion. She soon reverted back to her usual self and pinched his ears as she tried to pull him off her lap. "As if!" Get off!"

"W-wait!" Wailed Chris. "I barely slept for the past few days. I need my energy back."

Mia eased her grip on his ear and asked. "Are you worried?"

"I am a man full of ambition. I am always a little worried." He said still on her lap. He had decided he would cling to her like a barnacle on a boat.

Luckily for him, Mia was a little distracted lately.

"What kind of ambition?" She inquired.

"As a king I want a beautiful kingdom, to be loved by my people, a magnificent castle, a domineering mount… and not a donkey." He said that last bit under his breath.

"And of course a beautiful wife with at least five kids!" He said as he finished listing his wishes.

"F-five kids?" Said a shocked Mia.

"Why? Does that worry you?" He teased.

"I am worried about the poor girl that will become your wife." She retorted back.

"Fine, let's agree on three then." He said as if it was something they both decided on.

Mia was about to snap a retort back at him but signed instead and gently pinched his nose. "Still an idiot even before going to battle." She paused before adding. "You don't have to go. You know that right?"

"Huhu. Think I want to go? Look at this." He pointed to the bags under his eyes. "Don't worry. I am putting my time in now and that way I'll be able to enjoy life more later on!"

He quickly added as he noticed Mia's reproaching eyes. "I'm going because there are things I can do to help. Things that won't help later when our armies will grow to the thousands. But I promise I'll be careful and come back victorious."

"Look at you. So sure of victory." She said as if reproaching him his attitude. But Chris still felt she seemed more at ease.

He continued to enjoy the very luxurious lap pillow as he thought of his plans for the next few days.

[Me going to battle? Are they kidding?] He really didn't want to go. [Do I look like a warrior to these people?]

Unfortunately, for Chris, this was still an era where a King's prestige was directly linked to his past achievements. As shameless as he was, he knew, despite Mia's reassurances, that he needed to go. Even Berg who would always put his safety first advised him to join for the troops' morale.

[Damnit. I'm more of an idea's man… Oh Mia's smells good.] His mind started to wander, but he managed to concentrate back on his thoughts by quickly shaking his head.

Which lead to a small shriek from Mia followed by her best efforts to get him off her lap.

"Come on, get off!"

[Still… If I have to go, I need to put every single chance on my side.]

"Hgnnn! How strong is your grip?!"

[Aiden is taking care of the shields designed specifically to stop a Kunall's charge, but I need something else to raise my King stock. Hmmm…]

"Chris! I'm going to start getting mad!"

Mia was prepared to bring out her fingers of death when Titus suddenly dashed inside the tent. "My Lord! The elves have sent an…"

But his sentence was cut short by the strange scene in front of him. "I-is this a bad time?" He asked.

"Of course it is, can't you see I am currently recharging!" Grumbled Chris who was finally kicked off by Mia.

"Recharging?"

"Doesn't matter. What about the elves?"

"Right! They sent an envoy! They are waiting at the camp's entrance. Should we let them in?" Asked Titus.

"Huhu. So they came to us first huh." Chris had a naughty expression on his face. "Let's see what they want… And what we can get from them."