"So what is the point of this?"
When he asked back in a skeptical voice, the man tilted his head and pointed with his thumb at the embroidery on the surface of the pocket.
"That is something Her Highness the Grand Duchess made, isn't it?"
Barcas's gaze, which had been blinking blankly, dropped back down to his waist.
The leather pouch lined with silk was densely covered with delicate patterns woven from intersecting small beads and colorful threads. The decoration was too elaborate for the work of a woman who had just taken up a hobby in embroidery.
He glared at Edric suspiciously.
"She made this?"
"There is no doubt about it. I have watched Her Highness hold onto it for the past few months."
Barcas wore a confused expression at the confident tone.
"Why do I have the thing she made?"
"How can you ask me that?"
Edric Rubon furrowed his brow in disbelief.
Barcas recalled the time she had visited his room before leaving for the expedition. Could she have slipped it among his belongings back then?
But why?
He took the hydration bladder he had been carrying around without much thought from his belt and stared down at it as if it were an object he had never seen before.
A vine pattern tightly woven with gold threads surrounded the black horse's emblem, designed uniquely, like a halo. As he traced the intricate threads with his fingertips, Barcas suddenly felt his throat tighten and swallowed dryly.
What was she thinking when she made this, and why did she give it to me?
"Giving a handmade item to someone setting off on a long journey usually means wishing them a safe return, doesn't it?"
Edric Rubon blurted it out as if he had peered into his head.
Barcas raised his head again to look at him. The man, scratching the back of his head, added with a sigh.
"When you return this time, ask Her Highness directly. Ask him why she gave it to you..."
His stomach stirred at the meaningful tone. Taking a deep breath to suppress it, he hung the pouch back on his belt and tightened it securely with the leather strap.
"Throw away your vain hopes; it is clearly nothing more than a whim..."
How many times had I been swayed by that woman's unpredictable behavior? He no longer wanted to act like an idiot, fluctuating between joy and sorrow over her every move.
Barcas rose from his seat with a stern face and gestured toward the rocks.
"If you've rested enough, let's move on now; there's no time to dawdle."
Edric Rubon let out a groan.
Barcas began walking along the mountain path again, undeterred. However, his mind was completely filled with thoughts of her.
What on earth does that woman want from him? She poured out her resentment, vowing never to forgive him until the day she dies, only to suddenly present him with an unexpected gift.
He wanted to ask her.
What on earth do you want to do with me?
What on earth am I to you?
"Your Excellency, approaching any closer seems dangerous."
Barcas snapped out of his thoughts by Regen's low voice, stopped walking, and looked ahead.
Before they knew it, they had approached close enough to peer inside the window of the nature.
Barcas composed himself and hid behind a rock, carefully examining the massive fortress. This was not the time to be lost in useless thoughts.
Hiding himself in the deepening shadows, he soon passed through the dense trees and rocks to the rear of the fortress. Beyond the steeply rising rock face, the wall came into view, featuring a towering watchtower and a wide guard walkway.
"Your Excellency, isn't this enough espionage? Shouldn't you return at this point?"
"From now on, we will move separately."
Ignoring his subordinate's pleas, Barcas took out two parchment documents from his bosom. He then handed them to the fastest of the warriors lined up along the steep slope and continued giving instructions with a calm demeanor.
"Give one to Darren and the other to the commander of the flanking unit waiting in the north, and divide the rest into two squads to lie in ambush near the castle's back and front gates, respectively."
"That means..."
"Labomir, Trian, Edmond, and..."
Barcas, who had been calmly calling out the names of his subordinates regardless of their agitated reactions, finished speaking by pointing at Edric last.
"The four of you follow me like this."
"Surely you aren't planning to sneak into the fortress, are you?"
The man, who had been silent the whole time, asked in a tense tone.
Barcas calmly nodded.
"I have roughly identified the patrol route. I will wait until it gets dark, sneak inside, and open the gates, so launch the offensive immediately when I give the signal."
"That is too reckless! Please leave that to us and join the main force, Your Excellency!"
“Lower your voice.”
When Barcas raised his voice with an agitated look on his face at the criticism, Regen flinched and closed his mouth.
Barcas added coldly.
"My words are a command, not a suggestion. No counterarguments will be allowed."
"But there is no reason for Your Excellency to take such a risk..."
"That is not for you to decide."
Barcas, having flatly cut off his subordinate's counterargument, continued speaking dryly.
"Orders have already been given to the special task force, so the operation will proceed without any setbacks. Move without delay."
Those who had been exchanging glances as if intimidated by the menacing attitude soon began to scatter in perfect order.
After watching the soldiers moving swiftly at his command for a while, Barcas soon led the infiltration team toward the blood-stained mountain ridge.
Not long after, thick darkness enveloped the foothills. He walked nimbly along a route he had memorized in advance, carefully observing the faint light emanating from the ramparts. Soldiers carrying torches were moving slowly along the patrol route at regular intervals.
He pulled his hood down over his head and cautiously moved toward the lower part of the outer wall. Before long, the dizzying height of the fortress wall completely blocked his view.
"I'll go up first and take care of the sentry."
"Wait a minute! I'll go."
Edric Rubon, who had been following closely by his side, urgently grabbed his arm.
Barcas, shaking off the hand as if annoyed, took out the crossbow he was carrying on his back and mounted an iron arrow connected by a rope onto the launcher.
Then, winding the spring and applying pressure to the string to its limit, he aligned the sight with the highest point of the fortress wall. Immediately, with a sound like a whip, the arrow shot up through the darkness.
Barcas firmly grasped the end of the rope, stretching furiously upward. Soon, the rope tightened. It appeared that the hook at the tip of the arrow had caught properly on the battlement.
He tugged at the rope a few times to check its strength, then lightly struck the breast wall with the serrated edge of his boot. Then, gripping the rope tightly with both hands, he began to climb the wall at the speed of the wind.
It took less than a few minutes to climb a height of 80 quarts.
In an instant, Barcas leaped over the battlements and approached the soldier on guard from behind. Then, covering the soldier's mouth with one hand, he immediately drew the dagger hidden inside his wrist guard and plunged it down.
As the blade, which had penetrated deep into the soldier's neck, was twisted sideways to widen the wound, hot blood gushed out like a fountain.
He twisted the struggling soldier's head to the side, accelerating the bleeding. The sentry's body, which had been choking and convulsing faintly, eventually went limp.
Having confirmed that the man was completely dead, Barcas dragged the body to the base of the tower, pushed it into a corner, and then walked back to the battlement. The hook was firmly caught in the crack between the bricks.
Barcas kicked it to secure it even more firmly and signaled downwards. Soon, soldiers climbed up the parapet one after another.
Considering the castle's structure, the devices controlling the drawbridge and lattice gates are most likely located inside the southern section. Divide into pairs, eliminate the surrounding guards, and secure the entry route.
"What will you do, Your Excellency?"
Edric Rubon asked in a skeptical voice.
Barcas, having retrieved the hook and rope and pushed them into the equipment box, replied calmly.
"I intend to look for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
Then, just as he was about to step toward the entrance connected to the castle ridge, Edric grabbed his wrist.
"Didn't you give up on him?"
"There is someone within the Imperial Guard who helped His Highness kidnap."
Even in the pitch-black darkness, Edric Rubon's eyes widened in surprise. Barcas, shaking off his hand as if annoyed, added in a low voice.
"I decided that it would be more advantageous for the rescue if it were perceived that I had abandoned him."
"Then I will also lend my strength to saving His Royal Highness the Crown Prince...!"
"I'm enough on my own."
Barcas harshly dismissed it.
"This is merely an independent action driven by my personal circumstances. You all follow my orders and focus on attacking the city gates."
"To say it is personal matters... how could rescuing His Royal Highness the Crown Prince be..."
Barcas left Edric Rubon, who was trying to say something more, and walked toward the watchtower. Perhaps resigned to the situation, Edric did not try to stop him any further.
He immediately passed through the door leading to the building and went straight down the stairs. Then, noticing a light rising from below the railing, he stood pressed against the wall. He saw a soldier trudging up the stairs, his face still groggy as if he had just emerged from his sleeping quarters for a shift change.
Barcas hid himself in the deep shadows and waited for the man to come within striking distance.
The soldier, muttering something mixed with a Northern accent, eventually reached the floor connected to the guard post. Barcas immediately snatched the soldier and shoved a dagger into his mouth. A short groan escaped the soldier's throat.
Barcas covered the man's face with the hem of his robe to prevent any sound from escaping and thrust the dagger deep inside.
The blade pierced the man's throat, passed through his neck bones, and went through his spine. The man collapsed to the floor, his knees buckling, without even being able to let out a proper scream.
After a moment of hesitation, he pushed the body between the cargo boxes stacked at the bottom of the stairs. It was a bit sloppy to call it concealment, but he couldn't afford to waste much time hiding the body.
He pulled the device attached to the wrist guard to push the blade back inside and slid out of the castle tower.
It was common practice to confine high-ranking prisoners at the top of the main fortress. Observations from the outside indicated that the passage leading to the fortress was located to the southeast. However, a frontal assault carried a heavy risk.
There is likely a side door used by the servants near the kitchen or loading dock, so it would be a good idea to look for an infiltration route from the back of the building.
Having made his decision in an instant, Barcas immediately began to move along the outer perimeter of the fortress's sanctuary.
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