Chapter 160

Chapter 160: Chapter 160

"Rest and recover for today," Caedos said to his remaining captains after they had returned to the castle. "Send a few scouts to Ibaeron, it’s a delicate time now, it’s imperative that we keep an eye out."

All three were still wrapped in bandages, their eyes hued red from exhaustion, but they saluted vigorously regardless.

Caedos warped directly to his room, going right to his bed. They had won the battle against all odds, there was no telling how Flaeris would take the defeat of one of its cities.

Rescuing the captive Hellhounds in Ibaeron was the task with the highest priority at the moment, and the only reason they weren’t already in the Fiend city was simply that they were too injured to.

Caedos fell into another restless sleep, awoken at sunset by Lady Dilya once more. This time, she brought him a hot meal, making no attempt to encourage him to eat with everyone else.

His external injuries had all but healed, he ate in silence, took a bath, and then went right to sleep again. Giving his body adequate time to heal was the best treatment, his body mending itself while he was in deep sleep.

The entire castle was silent, wounded Demons recuperating in their sleep. The Deep Woods shared in this solemn silence, the forests slowly mending themselves, alien creatures littered around the still-smoking forest. It would take years for the forest to completely heal from the battles waged within it.

A full day after the battle, the castle was lively, Caedos mobilizing some soldiers to march to Ibaeron to finalize their victory. There should be no resistance with the death of the Grand Duke and his enormous army, but even if there was, they were not afraid of battle.

The portals opened to the outskirts of Ibaeron, there was no change from the last time Caedos had been here, save that the newly established guard stations were deserted.

Grand Duke Morkoth had truly taken every last soldier with him, regardless of their positions, even watch guards hadn’t been spared.

Caedos warped directly to the royal castle of Ibaeron, the location of the captive Demons was already known. On the other hand, there were other stables in Ibaeron, so each captain would lead a rescue charge.

The castle was deserted which wasn’t surprising, Caedos marched to his destination with focus, looking at little else. Even the guards manning the stables had been carted to the warfront, leaving behind the caretakers who looked after the Hellhounds.

"You-" The first Fiend he came across had been carrying a large bowl of well-cooked meat, the caretaker paused in consternation, staring at the Hellhound in front of him who towered over him.

"If you want to keep your life, step aside." Caedos said generously. The stables belonged to Morkoth, the workers there had little fault.

The caretaker quietly hobbled to the side, "I’ll tell you for free, Grand Duke Morkoth will cut you down." There was a despairing air in the Fiend’s words, he didn’t seem proud of his ruler’s actions.

"He’s dead." Caedos tossed over a shoulder, going right to the first cage he could see.

The cages in Morkoth’s stable were bigger, able to hold multiple Hellhounds. It was much cleaner and the Demon captured weren’t skin and bones but it was no different from any other stable. Stripped of their identity and treated as beasts of burden, Fiends had left an irreversible scar on them.

Caedos right away broke the doors on the first cage, there were about five Hellhounds in it, their gazes profound as they looked upon royalty.

The sound of a metal bowl dropping came from behind him but Caedos paid no attention to it, not until the Fiend he had just spoken to scrambled to stand in front of him.

Caedos stared back at the cage he had just opened, the Hellhounds within were still reluctant to step out. He was no good with comforting others, Elaith would have been better suited to speak with them.

"Pardon my presumptuousness, but did you just say Grand Duke Morkoth was dead?" The caretaker asked with a whisper, his demeanor mousy.

Caedos glanced down at the Fiend obstructing him, his minimal patience visible in his hazel eyes.

"In-In that case, I’ll release the Hellhounds right away." He added with more bravery, turning around to dart off.

Caedos watched him leave and then moved onto the next cage, he would need to create a portal right in the stables, there were simply too many Demons to release everyone from their cages before sending them off to the Deep Woods.

After opening the second cage, he created a large portal. "Step through, home is waiting on the other side..."

Just as the last Hellhound stepped into the portal and he moved to another section to free more captive Hounds, he heard the unmistakable pattering of feet.

The caretaker had kept to his word, recruiting other caretakers to open the cages, freeing the Hellhounds without any input from him.

Caedos simply carved out a large portal and stood guard while they trooped in. The portal opened directly to Avalan, and it was a relief that there were few injured amongst the rescued Demons because their resources were already stretched thin.

After the rest of the Hellhounds were rescued from Ibaeron, the castle would no longer contain the sheer size of them. The first root of the ravaged city of Avalan had begun to grow downward.

It took a full day to rescue all of the Hellhounds kept captive in Ibaeron. Their numbers were only several hundred prior to the rescue, and even with the inclusion of the Hellhounds released from Ashford, there were barely two thousand of them in the Deep Woods.

About ten thousand Hellhounds were rescued from Ibaeron, the sheer number bringing life to the Deep Woods. Minor battles had to be fought as a handful of manor lords refused to part with their ’wealth’.

But not even a single Hellhound was left behind when they returned to Avalan. Most of the keys to the limiters were obtained, shackles falling away as another sunset arrived.