13th December 1190
"Yawn..."
Alicent rubbed his eyes groggily as the sun shone through his window.
I couldn't get much sleep last night... He recalled his conversation with Anastasia. Poor girl was probably traumatised for life. He sighed solemnly.
He expected her to get better as time passed, but he couldn't be sure; she did indeed lose a close family member after all.
He opened the door and walked into the living room, embers slowly radiated from the fireplace in the middle of the hard stone floor.
It was getting colder, he shivered as he walked.
I must go to Grunard and call some guards, I had left those poachers tied up in the hole. I hope no one has found them yet.
There was a chance that a kind passerby would untie them.
He got some bread from the pantry and some goat's milk from the bucket near the pantry door. He finished his breakfast soon enough and picked up his bag.
Like a scholar, he hadn't opened his bag after arriving home yesterday. He took out the large pouch of money and kept 30 Ros in person. He inspected the gun he had kept hidden in the bag.
It had a metal barell that was around half of his forearm's length. It was a splendid silver colour with a rotating piece made of brass. The handle was black with ridges.
Currently, the gun had five bullets, he hadn't found any lying around near the poachers.
Engineering has advanced quite a lot. At first I thought it was like a cannon which possessed immense destructive power, but I was wrong... the small tip makes it like a needle which could pierce with a slight push.
He kept it in his bag and turned towards the door.
He walked outside and found Anastasia looking at the few pots of flowers that were planted near the fence. He silently walked near her, making sure not to disturb her observation.
He observed her expression for a moment, her mood seemed to have improved a bit, although not much. She looked like she had cried for some time in the night.
"You like flowers?"
She was startled.
"I... I um, yes. I find them pretty." She said.
There were a couple of daisies there, which commonly grew across the north and were also quite common in Snofel.
Perhaps they remind her of her village... He thought as he observed the flowers, many of their petals had started to wither in the cold.
"I am going to Grunard today to inform the soldiers." He told her. Her expression turned grim.
"I will stay here, I don't want to enter the forest." With a low voice, she muttered.
"It's alright, you've been through a lot."
"They might take advantage of some stranger and get untied... See you then." He said with a wave. She silently waved back.
...
As he walked through the forest, the hole of the trap came into view. He had thrown both of them into the hole after he couldn't get Basil out of it; it was better for them to lie in the hole than be tied outside anyway.
He half expected them to have escaped, but to his pleasant delight, he found them still sitting there in the hole.
They both had bite marks around their faces, and Basil's face had swollen up because of the brutal hit he got from the tyrant's biography.
Imagine two middle-aged men arguing over who was at fault. He chuckled loudly as he kicked a rock down the hole.
It hit the scrawny Anzer in the head, he hissed in pain as he opened his eyes.
"It's... It's you!" He said his face had mixed emotions—Anger and Fear. Right now, it was more of the latter.
"Rise and shine, sh*theads," Alicent said as the larger man, Basil, started waking up.
"You!" He said with a grunt as he wriggled like a salted leech.
Hsss!
He winced in pain.
Some broken bones probably...
"Argh... Just let me get out of this hole you fa*got!" Basil said as he started biting the ropes. Alicent sighed.
"I'm going to get some guards from Grunard, you two are getting no less than two decades... Stay put till then." Alicent told them as he kicked another rock into the pit, hitting Basil's swollen face.
"Karma..." He muttered.
"Heh..." Basil grinned calmly. Alicent had expected the man to get angrier.
"If that bitch hadn't screamed, We would have been taking turns right now... Ain't it Anz..." With a laugh, Basil glanced at Anzer beside him. He wasn't laughing at the joke.
He turned to the teen.
Alicent stood there, staring at the man. He spoke no words. It was just a glare that sent chills down the poacher's spine.
After a few moments passed.
With his glare subsiding, Alicent sighed.
"I'm not in the mood to be ragebaited." Alicent mounted atop Betsy. "Just say there for a while."
...
About two hours passed when Alicent returned with two soldiers and a cart.
"They are inside the hole." He pointed at the trap. The soldiers affirmed with a nod.
As both of them carried Basil out of the hole, he examined Basil's face again. It had a few more bite marks.
Deserved, Good job Anzer... He lampooned silently as the man was loaded into the cart like a sack of potatoes.
"Eat sh*t a*s hole! Fall off your Fu*cking horse!" Basil screamed while wriggling like a worm.
As the soldiers finished loading the two poachers, one of them approached Alicent.
"Holy Lord of Light! How did you even beat the big one? He's heavier than a Bull." The soldier exclaimed in surprise. Alicent chuckled.
"The Lord of Luck was on my side, perhaps. " Alicent said humbly. The Lord of Luck was a god who sometimes blessed believers and non-believers alike.
"Hahaha, A true warrior is always humble. " The soldier exclaimed as he patted the teen's back.
"With tensions rising between the Empire and The church of Stone, a large number of the city's forces are being sent to the south." The soldier said, Alicent raised an eyebrow.
"Since when?" Alicent said, surprised.
"Since today morning, the priest received a raven yesterday evening." The soldier continued. "Rumor says a Cardinal of Light was assassinated in Valion, the culprit is most likely a believer of the God of Earth."
The Cardinals were the second-ranking bodies in the Church. With the pope being a first.
A cardinal is not easy to kill; several bodyguards are protecting them... As the former Emperor, he was aware of the religious hierarchy; in fact, King Aegis was once above the Pope because of his service to the lord.
"The assassin must have been quite experienced." He remarked.
"A hiring notice should be published later today. Merits like this are well-liked by the current Priest." He said with a smile as he once again patted Alicent's shoulder. "It certainly pays better than herding sheep in the countryside."
Is he trying to recruit me? Well, he certainly isn't wrong about the payment, but I don't know how to wield a weapon. Alicent thought inwardly.
"I appreciate it, sir, but I must ask my father." He told the soldier.
"Fair enough," the soldier said with a light nod. "But remember, boy; every man must step out of his father's shadow one day."
"I'll think about it." Alicent paused for a second. "Do you know any carrige drivers willing to head to Snofel?"
"I know of a guy, real cheap." He emphasized the word 'of'. He didn't know the guy, perhaps the friend of a friend.
'I cannot let her go alone after what she went through.' Alicent thought for a second.
A carrige ride to Snofel would take more than a day. The girl would probably feel very unsafe travelling with an unknown carrige driver in a day.
"Thanks." Alicent thanked the man. "Can you negotiate with him in my stead. Around a hundred and fifty Ros for a two-way trip would be fine."
"Alright then."
The soldier left after some small talk.
Quite a talkative one...
...
Alicent returned home around an hour before noon. He found Anastasia helping with some of the housework. She was spreading some sliced fruits for drying.
Dried fruits lasted the entire winter, they were customary to the people of the north as well.
The dwarves of the mountains used to descend every year to the north to buy dry fruits for the winter. This was known as the festival of "Dwarven descent". The Dwarves have long since been wiped off the earth, though.
They were still alive when King Aegis conquered the north, the most notable amongst them, Albeard, the Dwarven Giant.
Upon hearing the creaking of the fence, Anastasia turned her head towards him, a small smile crept up on her lips, one which was barely noticeable.
She seemed happier.
Perhaps after staying in the city for so long, such acts probably remind her of her village. He thought as he returned the smile. He closed the fence gate behind him.
"The soldiers have taken them, they won't be getting out soon." He told her.
"They deserve worse." She said with clear frustration ringing in her voice.
Her brows were furrowed.
This is the first time I've seen her angry...