Return to Jorgaldur Volume IV: Reunion

Preparations (II)

More and more agents were arriving, until a total of twenty-six. That caused Gjaki to look at Eldi and smirk. She had gotten closer, so she had won the bet.

The three of them were on the edge of the hill, while keeping an eye on the supposed targets. They assumed that their enemies had something planned against them, so they had stayed there. They didn't want to fight yet, and their enemies wouldn't dare attack them if they were in the line of sight of their targets, for fear of alerting them.

Eldi was watching with interest the efforts to seal the space. Sixteen of them had surrounded the place, had taken out some strange artifacts, and had imbued them with mana. A kind of dome had been created, and it was practically invisible. If he hadn't been watching closely, he wouldn't have noticed anything.

He didn't quite understand the function of that mana dome, how it was supposed to distort space and prevent the correct operation of the pass return function. Although, more than frustrate him, it heightened his interest. He only regretted not having time to study it in detail.

Eldi was carefully observing the actions of each agent he had in sight, that is, four. One of them particularly caught his attention. Her actions were somewhat different from the others, and the result was a strange, almost imperceptible distortion.

"There's something weird about that agent," Eldi murmured to his companions.

"Good or bad?" Gjaki asked.

"I'm not sure. She's doing something to the barrier. Maybe, she's sabotaging it, or maybe she's making it more dangerous. I don't know," Eldi answered, somewhat frustrated at not being able to deduce more due to his lack of knowledge.

"We'll keep an eye on her," Goldmi assured.

The elf warned her sisters to pay special attention to that agent, either from the sky or from her hiding place. The lynx hadn't appeared in front of the agents, as she was hidden, on the prowl.

The rest of the agents, the ones who weren't preparing the mana dome, were waiting patiently in their positions, and slowly creating an artificial mist. It wasn't unusual in the swamp, so it shouldn't arouse suspicion. As soon as their companions finished, they would wait half an hour to recover the mana, and then attack.

The plan was to move quietly around the tent in three concentric circles. That way, if someone went out and managed to escape the first barrier, they would still have two more to overcome. As soon as agents got close to the tent, they would attack by bombarding with their spells and skills.

The mission was that Eldi Hnefa didn't escape alive. If he survived, and they could capture him, all the better, but they weren't going to take any risks. They didn't know how powerful he was, but there were too many legends about him, perhaps exaggerated.

Not for a moment did they first consider confirming that it really was him. They would check it with his corpse. If it turned out not to be, it would just have been a waste of time.

They were an elite command in charge of unofficial missions, of dirty secrets, of those actions that could not be recognized. In fact, if they failed or were captured, the Engenak kingdom would deny any involvement. They would even be outraged that "a group of criminals had used their name."

"Who stays with them?" the one who seemed to be the leader of the group asked.

"I can," one of the agents offered with some reluctance.

The three companions looked at each other. It was the one Eldi had pointed out. It was too much of a coincidence.

They watched her out of the corner of their eyes as they were observing the others sneak up on the tent. The mist had been gathering over the tent, thus blinding its occupants. It had become an easy target for the attackers.

Gjaki and Eldi tensed as the agent approached them for no apparent reason. They didn't think she would try to kill them yet, but they were prepared.

"You better get out of here, or your lives will be in danger," she warned them in a low, very serious voice.

They looked at her stupefied. They believed that she could bring nefarious intentions, but instead, she was trying to save their lives.

It couldn't be a trap. The rest of the agents were approaching the tent, so there was no point in setting them up now. It would be a lot easier once they had accomplished their goal, when there were more of them available.

"What about the reward?" Gjaki asked.

She didn't quite know what was going on, so she asked a silly question in case she could get more information. The vampiress was trying to continue to appear naive.

"Forget about the reward! Your life is more important! They won't give you a reward! They'll kill you!" the agent exclaimed. She was visibly exasperated, although she didn't raise her voice.

"What'll happen to you if we disappear?" Eldi intervened.

"That'll be the least of problems. When they see that..." she began to say, but didn't finish the sentence.

They didn't miss her glancing toward the barrier for a moment. Her attitude confirmed their suspicions that she had done something to it.

They looked at her suspiciously, doubtfully, not sure if they could trust her. However, it didn't seem she was with their enemies, which made Eldi think of something he had discussed with her adoptive daughter.

"Are you with Lidia?" he asked, looking into her eyes.

Even though her face was covered, the shock caused by the high human's words was evident. She took a couple of steps back and brandished a short sword, visibly astonished.

"Who... who are you?" she asked.

She raised her sword threateningly, but she didn't seem to want to attack. Rather, the agent looked surprised, open-mouthed, not quite knowing what to do.

Eldi took from his inventory an emblem that Lidia had given her and showed it. At the same time, Gjaki and Goldmi were tense, ready to act at any moment.

The supposed agent stared at the emblem with wide eyes and mouth. She then took something out of the folds of her clothing, a similar emblem. It caused both of them to react to each other, glowing slightly. Only then did she sheath the sword.

"Who're you...? No, wait, I can't ask that. This... If you're from the resistance, then... What about the so-called Eldi Hnefa who should be in the tent...?" she asked, surprised.

"Before that, tell us, who're they? What kind of people are they?" Goldmi interrupted.

The agent glared at those advancing with obvious hatred and contempt. She had stopped hiding it.

"People? They can't even be called humans. They're a commando that takes care of the dirty work of the royalty of Engenak. Those monsters are the worst of the worst. They don't mind killing defenseless civilians, even children, either because of their goal or not leaving witnesses. In order to infiltrate, we had to simulate several slaughters," she explained while gritting her teeth.

Her doubts about the so-called adventurers had vanished. Those emblems weren't forgeable, and they had resonated. She didn't say or express it, but she was really stunned. The emblem that the panther-man had pulled out was of a very high level. Who could he be?

"Then, there's no reason to show mercy. Goldmi?" the vampiress sentenced.

The archer nodded, and began to Hold arrows, while an Ethereal one was waiting at the bowstring. Soon, it would be the moment of truth.