Eastern Conquest (2)

As the eastern fortress of the enemy fell into the hands of the Novamantus army, the once peaceful countryside of the eastern Skogzgard territory was ravaged by the marauding bands of mercenaries.

These mercenaries, driven not by loyalty or payment, but by their own will, presented themselves as participants in the war against the kingdom of Skogzgard in the northern middle lands.

They reveled in the opportunity to pillage and destroy, seizing whatever spoils they could find from the towns and villages that were recently ravaged by the advancing army of Novamantus.

They unleashed their cruelty upon the defenseless citizens of the scorched towns and villages. With their relentless assaults, they showed no mercy.

Although they had volunteered to join the war, their ulterior motives were clearly obvious.

"Please, spare us!"

The innocents pleaded for mercy, only to get their throats slit open.

"Kyaak...!"

Bands of mercenaries broke inside each homes by smashing the doors and shutters; killing those whoever they liked to kill, regardless if it were kids or elderly, and violating most women with reckless abandon.

"This was the best decision we made, boss! We could rape these women all we want!" exclaimed a mercenary while biting on an apple.

Perched upon a wooden barrel, the leader of the mercenary band looked at his comrade with a smug. "Hey, tell those mutts to not damage those wenches too much. They will hold a great value in the days to come."

The mercenaries roamed the scorched town, doing whatever they wanted while laughing.

"All these loots are truly ours! Surely these Novas won't intervene, no?"

"Ha! Fear not, my brother! We have risked our lives and limbs for these bountiful rewards," replied the mercenary.

"Damn right, we did," said another one.

Despite all of these atrocities, they undoubtedly still played their part as participants in the war by breaking through the remaining defenses of the Skogzgard soldiers that had been abandoned by their main army, leaving them to fend off the small villages and towns. Their actions served to further destabilize the military power of the enemy.

"Kyahaha! Got ya!"

"Please, let go!" the woman squirmed with force, trying to break free from the mercenary's tight grasp on her wrist. Her screams filled the dense air of smoke as she pleaded for mercy.

The mercenary grew annoyed at her squirms; giving a harsh punch to her face that made her fall to her knees and lay on the ground. Tears from her eyes and blood from her nose trickled down as she crawled towards him, grasping on his feet while crying.

"I beg of you, please...! Have mercy on me! My d-daughter... I have to feed...!"

The mercenary paid no heed to her pleas as he scoffed at her desperation. He then forcefully nudged her with his foot and said, "Damn wench." And with a contemptuous look, he then seized her by the hair and yanked her head up.

"Oww... Please, it hurts." the woman whimpered, hoping to appeal to his sense of humanity if there was any left.

But the mercenary only chuckled and he leaned in, his nose grazing her neck while he savored the scent of fear coming from her. The woman shuddered as she felt his warm breath upon her skin. She tried to repress her voice by blocking her mouth with her hand while the mercenary continued to trail down his hand against her trembling body.

Although overwhelemed by disgust, she understood the futility of resistance and remained still. She knew that any act of defiance would only invite her own demise.

As she gave in, the mercenary moved away from her and looked her in the eyes. She gave an initial lustful look before it widened in shock, seeing the man's lips curled into a sinister smile.

With a malicious look in his eyes, the mercenary then suddenly drove the blade of his dagger agonizingly slow deep into the woman's throat, causing her to gasp and choke on her own blood.

But before the woman fell to the ground, he whispered something into her ear, "I would have spared you, wretched woman, had you not attempted to flee."

As her lifeless body fell upon the floor, and her blood seeped into the very earth, several mercenaries who were chasing her as well approached him. Turns out they were members of the same mercenary band.

"Nay, why did you kill her?" one of the men spat while catching his breath, annoyed by his comrade's impatience.

"Hah... This wench is worthless now," added another, placing his foot on the lifeless woman's head.

"Truly, had she cooperated, I would have spared her," said the first mercenary while cleaning his bloodstained dagger with the cloth of the woman;s dress. He then stood up before looking at the surroundings, finding any sign of the woman's daughter who had ran with her.

"She might still be useful, ye know?," spoke one of the men with a wicked grin on his face as he tore the dress of the woman, revealing her breasts.

"Wency, you're still a lunatic," exclaimed their leader, approaching them. Various accessories and jewelries were hung around his body.

"Ah, boss."

...

The flames of the burning houses illuminated their faces, casting a glow that shadowed their twisted expressions. The crackling of the burning woods resonated and its dark smoke rose towards the evening sky.

The sun is almost setting but the towns and villages remained bright because of the flames that engulfed the innocents' homes.

Men, women, and children alike fell victims to the mercenaries' hands. Like ants trampled on the ground, their lives were snuffed out with indifference. Their pleas for mercy drowned out by the roaring flames and the cries of their loved ones who were murdered.

As they freely roamed around the village aflame, lifting stones and sifting through the collapsed woods in search of anything of value, one of them stumbled upon someone that made him gulp his saliva.

A little girl appeared in the middle of the road, her face streaked with tears that she kept wiping off with the hem of her dirty dress. She frantically looked everywhere while sobbing, desperately searching for her someone.

The mercenary looked around, checking if there's someone nearby before he hurriedly approached the little girl. "Hey, hey. You okay?" his voice sounded calm.

He knelt in front of her before he caressed the little girl's arms while trying to sound reassuring. "It's okay... I'm not here to hurt you."

Lowering her guard down from his remarks, the girl sobbed as she finally spoke, "M-Mother... Have you seen mother...?"

"Your mother...?" the man frowned. He looked slightly hesitant but he eventually stood up.

"Oi, you lot! Come here!" he suddenly shouted, his voice echoing through the desolation.

The other mercenaries gathered at the call, their gruff expressions and horrible scars on their faces made the little girl uncomfortable, making her cry and hide behind the man.

"What does this mean, Johannes?"

Johannes nudged the girl away from his leg, causing her to fall on the ground.

As they closed in on the defenseless little girl, their voices filled with a malevolent delight. "Hey, hey. Hasn't your dear mother taught you the dangers of venturing beyond the safety of your home...?"

"Help, please... Mother. Where is she?" she continued sobbing.

One of the mercenaries, his grip vice-like, seized her small wrist, pulling her off the ground with a cruel strength.

"Aaha-ouch...! It hurts!"

"Your mother? We killed the wench! Hyakhahyakha!"

Shiing!

A sharp sword made a sound as it unsheathed. The mercenary stuttered as the blade of the sword pressed onto the side of his neck, threatening to cut off his head.

"H-Hey, w-what the fuck is this...?" he said as he turned his head slowly.

Standing behind him was a Novamantus knight, who, kept his face straight. The mercenary chuckled, realizing that the knight was alone. But there was something in the knight's eyes that made them uneasy. Something of an ominous; murderous-like look.

Shaking off the unsettling thought, the mercenary, pissed off and feeling mocked, tapped the blade away from his neck, his hand trembling slightly as he did.

Overcome with frustration, exclaimed in irk, "This fucking Novamantus dog...?!" His words dripped with contempt as he reached for a rusty dagger tucked at his waist.

As the mercenary took a step towards the knight who held his sword down, ready to attack, a man who wore various accessories and jewelries intervened.

The man appeared to be the mercenary band's leader. As the leader gave a stare towards the knight, sensing the tension, he placed his hand on the mercenary's shoulder, making him halt.

"Boss?"

Leaning in close, the leader whispered something into the mercenary's ear, causing him to reconsider his actions. With a dismissive scoff, he sheathed his dagger back at his waist and directed a piercing glare at the knight.

The other mercenaries followed suit, casting contemptuous gazes before turning away, leaving the knight and the little girl who sat on the ground alone. Fortunately, the man who appeared to be their leader recognized that the knight to be no mere pawn of the royal army.

"Phew..."

The knight exhaled a soft sigh as he sheathed his sword, putting it back to his waist. He then walked towards before kneeling down, trying to comfort the sobbing girl. "Fear not, young one, the miscreants have already left," he reassured her in a soothing voice.

The little girl lifted her tear-streaked face and looked at the knight's face. "Thank you," she said, her voice carrying a slight hint of relief.

Curiosity sparked in the knight's eyes as he sought to know her name, he extended his hands and wiped her falling tears with his finger. "And what might be this fair young lady's name be?" he asked with a smile.

Lira hesitated for a moment, her gaze meeting his with a trace of trust, before she replied, "...Lira."

A warm smile formed on the knight's lips before he gently patted her head, "A lovely name... Young Lira, huh?"

"How about mine? Would you like to know my name?"

The girl nodded with a smile, she seemed to have calmed down already. The knight smiled at her nodding, helping her stand up."

"Very well, then. My name is Charles, Charles Flamwerth. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, young Lira."

...

As the sun sank past the horizon, the night has finally came.

The Novamantus knights erected a makeshift scaffold in the town square, where they impaled the heads of both the enemy soldiers and innocent townspeople on wooden stakes that were placed everywhere.

The air was thick with the stench of death and blood, as the corpses of the innocent and guilty alike rotted under the pale night sky.

Surrounding a bonfire lit by the headless bodies of the townspeople, one of the mercenaries sneered from the sight as he looked up at the impaled heads, skewered on towering wooden stakes, "Look at those, hanging like crows on a wire."

"Their families must be weeping in the pits of hell right now."

One of the mercenaries laughed heartily at the remark, downing the tankard of mead with a loud gulp. The others joined in, their boisterous laughter echoing through the stillness of the night.

The sound of the horse footstep resounded within the quiet street of the town.

The mercenaries cast piercing gazes at the knights who had just arrived, mounted on their steeds. Disgust contorted their faces as they looked at the lifeless bodies that scattered around the streets.

"These heartless wretches..." muttered one of the knights from atop his horse.

Their captain, Gelis MacBaran, spoke with a firm tone, "Let them be. We were explicitly instructed not to interfere in their actions. We shall proceed quietly and avoid drawing attention."

"Understood," replied the knight, his voice filled with dissatisfaction as he glared at the mercenaries that they strode pass through.

The disapproving frown on his face revealed his inner turmoil, struggling to comprehend how these "people" could do such callousness and looked unbothered by the gruesome acts they had just done.

After the downfall of the eastern fortress by the hands of Niamh Morgan and Leonhart Montmorency; the first commander, Royce Varus Pendragon, issued an order to the eastern troops to advance towards the Skogzgard eastern major city tomorrow morning.

The commander's aim was to strike a heavy blow to the source of economical power in the east... Over 20 thousand soldiers of Dreadmoore, WInthrope and Lancaster combined regrouped to prepare the siege.

To fully capture the fortified city in the east, the city of Reichaupt.