The Brilliant sun in the sky descends down into the horizon. Signs of darkness start to spread and stars in the sky start to become visible.
?"Alright, the sun is going down, and slowly, I don't have to say it but we all know marching in the dark could be dangerous. Wild animals are more terrifying in the night than the day, and let's not talk about bandits and other solitary groups. So let's find a place to camp for the night. Melavan, get your bow and hunt down something to eat."
?The Death Galloper, riding his horse in the front of the group, announced after he gazed at the horizon. And except for Joshua, the whole group obeyed his words and quickly found a place for them to camp. While the group prepared a fireplace and temporary sleeping places, Melavan and two other men marched into a nearby forest for a hunt.
Joshua is situated close by the fireplace. He found a log and sat upon it, gazing at the remaining ash from the fire, contemplating the path his life is heading.
?It's not the first time he thought of this and it won't be the last, but whenever he thinks of it, it all stumbles on a wall, the empire and its vast power. It was massive, and had its roots dig deeper into history than any man could fathom to dig out, and it gave them a solid foundation, one where Joshua cannot even create a blister.
?"Is this the first time the little young lord is being outside from the barony?"
?As the only man to not do any hard work in the camping area, Death Galloper approached Joshua and sat down beside him by the fire. His words are kind, not the arrogant words he spoke before in their encounter.
"I did not give you permission to sit close to me."
?Joshua responded to him, no matter the kindness shown by Death Galloper, the man will always be the one that slew his father's right hand man, a figure that had been like an uncle to him in his own life.
?"This is my camp, I don't need permission to do what I need. And listen, kid, since we are going to the empire, let me give you some advice."
?"Right now, you're not the son of a baron, and you won't be getting any high respect and treats from us, to us, you're a prisoner. And it would continue to be that way even after you've gone to the empire."
?Responded the Death Galloper, trying to keep as much of the anger and frustration he truly has from Joshua's words in his own heart.
?"From being a baron's son to a prisoner, isn't that ironic? A lot of people hoped for this to happen to us, I bet they will laugh if they are informed of this," Joshua laughed, thinking of the whispers he heard all over the barony.
"So what? Nothing is going to change whether they laugh, only action would prove things, so here is my advice. The future lies in our empire and it will dominate this whole world eventually. Stick with it and you will be the one in charge again, regaining all the luxury you had and even more."
?At the moment, a commotion occurred in the camp as Melavan brought back a deer and a wolf after his hunt. Death Galloper also stood up, preparing to head to them. But he had a few more words for him.
?"Just to prove to you that things have changed now, I'm going to cut you from tonight's meal."
?Joshua watched as Death Galloper reached the group, and they soon prepared the creatures by roasting. True to his word, Joshua did not get a meal to ease his hunger from Death Galloper and his group.
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?But he got a bag of water, handed to him by Melavan , the second in command in Death Galloper's group.
?"Leader said you at least deserve water,"
?Said Melavan when he handed Joshua the bag of water.
?"That movement you did there when attacking our leader, that's some fast movement. It's impressive, although I've seen other knights moving faster than that, it's impressive because you're still basically a kid. And you moving like that, it's something to be amazed at."
It was not every day an enemy would praise his own enemy, and to do so, the enemy has to be humble and should be a wise one to know his own enemies' weaknesses and edges.
?Joshua gazed at Melavan , judging this man to be someone of that caliber. He prepared to say something but was disturbed by a loud cry from a man coming from just a bit away from the campsite.
?With the whole campsite becoming restless at the sound, Death Galloper's voice raised high to be heard by all. It gave them a moment of calmness, enough to judge the situation and locate where the sound came from and things that relate to it.
?"Sir, it sounds a lot like Pint, he just went out to take a shit in the dark, and the sound also came from that direction,"
?Reported the soldiers after they tied the knots. But Death Galloper silenced them with his hand, and at once, Joshua also stood up.
Around them was the darkness of the night, and the moon is nowhere to be seen now, along with the stars. Only in the campsite where the fire lit, it stayed brightened.
?Beyond the light of the campfire, in the darkness, Joshua saw the shine of the fire reflecting from eyes. They were in the dark, gazing at them, and in numbers more than their whole campsite has.
?They growled and emitted numerous sounds, giving Joshua and others a clear notion of their unseen enemies.
?"It's wolves, are they here to avenge their dead ones?"
?Someone commented.
"Sir, what do we do?" soldiers asked their captain, the Death Galloper.
?"What else is there to do? Let's show these beasts who are the king of hunting!"
?Death Galloper's voice rang over the field and at once one of the soldiers threw a sparking log of fire at the glowing eyes, and it illuminated a few wolves hiding in the dark. As a response to their attack, a few wolves leashed forward at them.
?Death Galloper was the first to move and strike at the wolves. And following him, his soldiers joined.
?"Huh! What? What is this? What is this light?"
As some soldiers managed to take down these beasts, they exclaimed words of confusion and perplexity, making others also feel confused by their behavior. Even the Death Galloper, who took down a wolf larger than him, gazed in front of him into the space, seemingly looking at something very focusedly.
But they did not have much time, as the wolves rushed at them again with a number more than they expected. Soon the whole camp was in a war against wolves.
?Joshua ran to his horse which was surrounded by a few wolves. He moved fastly, avoiding the wolves that jumped at him, and as he did, he couldn't help but to wonder at the size and ferocity of these wolves.
?"They are not like the wolves I hunted before, much too ferocious, and large too."
?He reached for his sword and pulled it out from the back of his horse and swung it back at the wolves with his swift speed.
?The sword thrust into the unprepared wolf's body, yet it still moved, making Joshua tighten his guts and swing the sword again through its body.
[8 chromos received]
?A light, or more accurately light glowing words appeared after Joshua killed his target, but he had no time to focus upon it as the other wolves surrounding his horse targeted him and rushed at him.
?Joshua had hunted wolves before, in the wilderness close to their Barony, his father had trained him to hunt and Joshua knew the behavior and the physical powers of the wolves. Or at least he thought he knew. Because the wolf in front of him defied what he knew. It moved much faster than regular wolves and behaved much more ferociously and also with more toughness.
?It isn't enough to thrust his sword into them, Joshua had to swing it more to kill the beast. But at the end, with almost exhausting himself to the limit, Joshua managed to take down both of the wolves one after another with his sword.
?[7 chromos received]
?[8 chromos received]
?The same light once again appeared in Joshua's vision. After killing both beasts, Joshua investigated it, but the light soon dispersed from his vision. Then his attention landed on the wolves.
