Chapter 146

Chapter 146: Chapter 146

Caedos stood in the castle grounds, his three captains next to him. In the distance was what made up their little army, sparring.

"Trusting a Fiend is no different from trusting a Shadow Assassin." Captain Ayred said coldly.

"Half of his army has been decimated, he has reason to be wary." The third captain chimed in, he was of the opinion that they had been lucky not to have any casualties in the last attack, he hoped to keep things that way.

Caedos impassively listened to their opinions. After the one-sided battle only a handful of days ago, Grand Duke Morkoth had sent him an important message. The Fiend King wanted to call for a truce, calling for a discussion of peace.

The captains held varying opinions, Ayred was adamant about not honoring what was certainly a trap. No Fiend had survived the attack so they could use the same tactics as the last time when another inevitable attack was launched.

Elaith was hopeful about the truce talks, if there was a chance that they could peacefully rescue the remaining captive Hellhounds in Ibaeron, it would be wise to take it.

"What say you, Ardan?" Caedos cut off what was a budding argument between the two captains.

Ardan had held his tongue the entire time, but at the Prince’s urging he spoke up. "I say you accept his offer to talk. It’s the best way to infiltrate the castle." He said directly.

Ayred had been about to speak up until he heard the other half of what he had to say, a thoughtful look in his cool, dark eyes.

Caedos had already considered that, Elaith was far too kindhearted, a truce was impossible. Not just because Morkoth had been the one to launch the first attack, but also because of the Fiend’s pride.

Morkoth was no doubt in a rage, his claims of a truce was to assure his next victory, they would have to step carefully if they decided to humor him.

"I’ll hear what he has to say," He decided after letting the captains share their opinions, "You three will accompany me."

"As His Highness wishes," They all agreed without pause, saluting.

Caedos glanced over to where the sparring session was being held, laughter drifting from the soldiers as they piled over each other, ditching their practice to have fun.

"It will be dangerous so be prepared. We will leave at sunrise." He said dismissively, turning a blind eye to the soldiers taking a break from training, making his way into the castle.

Things were going to get grim before they got better, these short moments of peace shouldn’t be taken from them.

-+-

By sunrise, they departed, the portal Caedos created opened to the outskirts of the city.

He had put in a lot of effort, even wearing a crown and a cloak. He might intend to abolish the crown but not yet, the weight of it was needed to win the war against the Fiends.

Caedos hadn’t responded to Morkoth’s flowery message, simply showing up. He walked up to the new guard posts that had been put up at the edges of the city, the Fiend guards looking out of place amidst the squalor that surrounded them.

"Take me to Morkoth." He ordered.

The guards shared wary looks but did as they were told, acting swiftly. In a short time, a carriage with the royal crest had been arranged, pulled along by none other than two Hellhounds.

A deathly silence fell over the group when this happened, the only one keeping their calm was the last royal Hellhound. Behind Caedos, his three captains were burning with rage, even kind-hearted Elaith was gritting his teeth.

The guards who had made the faux pas were unable to speak, fear in their eyes as they looked on. The news of the fire-breathing Hound King that crawled from the depths of the Deep Woods to demand retribution had spread, fueled by the disappearance of the large army that had been sent to kill him.

Caedos simply walked forward to take the Hellhounds off the harness shackling them to the carriage, his expression impassive when the Hounds lowered their heads in a show of respect.

He had to shift to break their limiters and that would mean losing the extravagant clothes he had worn befitting his station. "Take them home, Elaith." He ordered without a change in tone.

Elaith bowed in response, leading the Hellhounds a distance away out of the city to create a portal back to the Deep Woods. On the way there, he spoke quietly to the rescued Hounds, it helped him rein in his anger.

Caedos watched patiently until the trio disappeared into a portal before refocusing on the cowering soldiers. "Put on the harnesses," He tossed to them. "I still need to honor your Duke’s invite."

The soldiers shared confused looks, Ardan’s burning eyes on them prompting them to do as they were told. The harnesses were unsuitable for the five soldiers who scrambled to fill the place of the Demons they once demeaned to draw carriages.

The two captains left by Caedos’ side sat opposite him in the carriage, their expressions grim. There was a tense silence in the carriage as it slowly lumbered forward, pulled by Fiends unequipped for the task.

The journey to the castle at the center of the city took hours, the unlikely sight of Fiends pulling the carriage drawing attention, so much so that word of it got to the Grand Duke of Ibaeron.

Morkoth heard of it and could do nothing but grit his teeth, suffering such humiliation from dogs filled his veins with bile but he had to tolerate it in the meantime.

After conquering the audacious Hounds, he would make the fire-breathing Hound King his personal mount. He had even already commissioned a special limiter just for him.

So he sat on his throne and waited for the carriage bearing his guests to arrive. A gaunt-eyed succubus sat on the arm of his throne, refilling his goblet with freshly pressed fermented grapes.