Ch#229
“What about this?”
When he asked back with a voice full of suspicion, the man tilted his head and pointed his thumb at the embroidery on the surface of the pouch.
“That was made by Her Grace, the Grand Duchess.”
Blinking blankly, Varkas’s gaze dropped back to his waist.
The leather pouch, lined with silk, was densely covered with delicate patterns created by intersecting small bead decorations and brilliantly colored threads. It was far too sophisticated a decoration to be the work of a woman who had only recently taken up embroidery as a hobby.
He glared at Edric, looking skeptical.
“She made this?”
“There’s no mistake. I’ve watched Her Grace hold onto that for the past few months.”
At the confident tone, Varkas wore a bewildered expression.
“Why do I have something she made?”
“How should I know that?”
Edric Luvon furrowed his brow as if the question were absurd.
Varkas recalled the moment she had visited his room before he left for the expedition. Could she have slipped it into his belongings then?
But why on earth?
He untied the water pouch from his belt—one he had been carrying without much thought until now—and stared down at it as if it were an object he was seeing for the first time.
Ivy patterns woven densely with gold thread surrounded the Black Horse crest, which was designed in a unique way, like a halo. Feeling the dense thread marks with his fingertips, Varkas suddenly felt his throat tighten and swallowed hard.
What was she thinking when she made this? And why did she give it to me?
“Giving someone a handmade item before they leave for a long journey usually means you want them to return safely, doesn’t it?”
Edric Luvon spoke up abruptly, as if he had read his mind.
Varkas looked up at him again. Scratching the back of his head, the man added with a sigh.
“Ask Her Grace yourself when you return this time. Why she gave it to you…”
The meaningful tone sent a stir through his gut. As if to suppress it, he took a deep breath, hung the pouch back on his belt, and tied it tightly with the leather strap.
Stop having vain expectations. It was surely nothing more than a whim.
How many times had he been swayed by that woman’s unpredictable behavior? He didn’t want to act like a fool anymore, letting his emotions rise and fall with her every action.
Varkas rose from his seat with a hardened face and jerked his chin toward the gap between the rocks.
“If you’ve rested enough, let’s move. We don’t have time to linger.”
Edric Luvon let out a groan of pain.
Ignoring him, Varkas began walking along the mountain path again. However, his mind was entirely filled with thoughts of her.
Just what does that woman want from me? She pours out resentment, saying she won’t forgive me until she dies, then suddenly hands me an unexpected gift.
He wanted to ask her.
What on earth do you want to do with me?
What am I to you?
“Your Excellency, approaching any further looks dangerous.”
Snapping out of his thoughts at Rgen’s low voice, Varkas stopped and stared ahead.
Before they knew it, they had approached close enough to peer inside the windows of the main castle.
Steeling his distracted mind, Varkas hid behind a rock and carefully examined the massive fortress. This was no time to be lost in useless idle thoughts.
Hiding in the deepening shadows, he soon moved to the rear of the ramparts, passing through dense trees and rocks. Beyond the steeply rising cliff, he saw the walls where a high watchtower and a wide sentry path were located.
“Your Excellency, isn’t this enough scouting? Perhaps you should return at this point…”
“From here on, we will move separately.”
Ignoring his subordinate’s dissuasion, Varkas pulled out two parchment documents from his breast pocket. He then handed them to the fastest warriors among those lined up along the steep slope and continued his instructions in a calm manner.
“Give one to Daren and the other to the commander of the flanking unit waiting in the north. The rest will split into two squads and lie in ambush near the rear and main gates of the castle, respectively.”
“Does that mean…”
“Labomir, Trian, Edmon, and…”
Varkas, who had been calmly calling out the names of his subordinates despite their agitated reactions, finished by pointing to Edric last.
“These four will follow me.”
“Surely… you’re planning to infiltrate the fortress?”
The man, who had been silent until then, asked in a tense tone.
Varkas gave a stoic nod.
“I’ve roughly grasped the patrol routes. We’ll wait until it gets dark, then sneak inside and open the castle gates. When I give the signal, commence the offensive immediately.”
“That’s too reckless! Please leave such tasks to us and join the main force, Your Excellency!”
“Lower your voice.”
At Varkas’s rebuke, Rgen, who had raised his voice with an excited face, flinched and shut his mouth.
Varkas added coldly.
“My words are a command, not a suggestion. I will not allow any objections.”
“But for Your Excellency to take such a risk…”
“That is not for you to judge.”
Cutting off his subordinate’s counterargument flatly, Varkas continued dryly.
“I have already given instructions to the detached force, so the operation will proceed without a hitch. Move without delay.”
Exchanging glances as if intimidated by his fierce attitude, they soon began to scatter in an orderly fashion.
Varkas watched the soldiers move swiftly according to his orders for a while, then led the infiltration team toward the mountain ridge that was being dyed blood-red.
Before long, a thick darkness covered the foot of the mountain. He moved nimbly along the path he had memorized in advance, carefully observing the lights emitting a faint glow atop the castle walls. Soldiers holding torches were moving slowly along the patrol path at regular intervals.
He pulled his hood low over his head and cautiously moved toward the bottom of the outer wall. Soon, the dizzyingly high wall completely blocked his view.
“I’ll go up first and take care of the sentries.”
“Wait! I’ll go.”
Edric Luvon, who had been following closely behind him, urgently grabbed his arm.
Shaking off the hand as if it were a nuisance, Varkas took out the crossbow he was carrying on his back and loaded an iron arrow connected to a rope onto the launcher.
Then, he wound the spring to put maximum tension on the bowstring and aligned his sights toward the highest point of the wall. Soon, with a sound like a whip cracking, the arrow pierced through the darkness and soared upward.
Varkas firmly grasped the end of the rope that was stretching out violently. Eventually, the rope went taut. It seemed the hook at the end of the arrow had caught properly on the battlement.
He pulled the rope a few times to check its strength, then lightly struck the parapet with the spikes on the toes of his boots. Then, gripping the rope firmly with both hands, he began to climb the wall with wind-like speed.
It took less than a few minutes to climb the height of nearly 80 kuvets.
Varkas, who had scaled the battlement in an instant, approached the back of a soldier standing guard. Then, covering the soldier’s mouth with one hand, he immediately pulled out the dagger installed inside his wrist guard and drove it down.
As he twisted the blade pushed deep into the soldier’s nape to widen the wound, hot blood sprayed out like a fountain.
He tilted the struggling soldier’s head to the side to accelerate the bleeding. The sentry’s body, which had been convulsing faintly with gurgling sounds, eventually went limp.
After confirming the man’s breath had completely stopped, Varkas dragged the corpse under the watchtower and pushed it into a corner, then walked back to the battlement. The hook was caught securely in a gap between the bricks.
Varkas, who kicked it to fix it even more firmly, sent a signal downward. Soon, the soldiers climbed up the parapet one after another.
“Considering the structure of the castle, the mechanism controlling the drawbridge and portcullis is likely inside the southern tower. Split into pairs, eliminate the surrounding sentries, and secure the entry path.”
“What will you do, Your Excellency?”
Edric Luvon asked with a suspicious voice.
Varkas, who had retrieved the hook and rope and tucked them into his equipment bag, replied calmly.
“I intend to find His Highness the Crown Prince.”
He was about to step toward the entrance connected to the castle ridge when Edric suddenly grabbed his wrist.
“Hadn’t you given up on him?”
“There is someone within the Imperial Guard who aided in His Highness’s kidnapping.”
Even in the pitch darkness, it was clear that Edric Luvon’s eyes widened. Shaking off his hand as if it were a nuisance, Varkas added in a low voice.
“I judged it more advantageous for the rescue if I were perceived to have abandoned him.”
“Then I will also help in rescuing His Highness…!”
“I am enough on my own.”
Varkas dismissed him coldly.
“This is a solo action based on my personal circumstances. You just focus on capturing the castle gates according to my instructions.”
“Personal circumstances… How can rescuing the Crown Prince be…”
Varkas left Edric Luvon, who was trying to say something more, and moved toward the watchtower. Perhaps having given up in the end, Edric did not hold him back any longer.
He immediately passed through the door connected to the building and went straight down the stairs. Then, noticing light coming up from below the railing, he stood against the wall. He saw a soldier trudging up the stairs with a face that still looked sleepy, as if he had just crawled out of bed for his shift.
Varkas hid in the deep shadows and waited for the man to come within range.
The soldier, who was grumbling something in a dialect mixed with northern accents, eventually reached the floor connected to the sentry path. Varkas immediately snatched the soldier and shoved his dagger into the man’s mouth. A short groan escaped the soldier’s throat.
Varkas, who had covered the man’s face with the hem of his robe to prevent sound from leaking out, pushed the dagger in deep.
The blade, which had pierced through the man’s throat, passed through the neck bones and penetrated the spine. The man collapsed to the floor, his knees buckling, without being able to let out a proper scream.
After a moment of thought, he pushed the corpse between the cargo boxes piled under the stairs. It was a bit flimsy for a concealment, but he couldn’t waste too much time hiding the body.
He pulled the mechanism on his wrist guard to retract the blade and slid out of the watchtower.
It was common to keep high-ranking prisoners at the top of the main castle. According to what he had observed from the outside, the passage connected to the main castle was to the southeast. However, a frontal breakthrough carried high risks.
Since there would be a side door used by servants near the kitchen or loading dock, it would be best to look for an infiltration route from the back of the building.
Having finished his judgment in an instant, Varkas immediately began to move along the outskirts of the walls surrounding the fortress.
