Chapter 525: Sabre Point

"We have a problem. There’s been a leak."

"How so?"

"A survivor. A little girl."

"Can you not take care of it?"

"I can, but not quietly. Besides, this may be an opportunity."

"Explain."

"Princess Christina Rockwell is together with the witness. If she were to... disappear on Darr Kingdom soil..."

"I see, that certainly does sound like an interesting opportunity. What do you suggest?"

"We’ll be making a stop at Sabre Point and likely resting there overnight. We can strike then."

"They’ll need to come ashore for a strike to be effective."

"Leave that to me. Just make sure you’re ready when night falls."

"We’ll be ready, but what about you? Are you sure your cover hasn’t been compromised?"

"I’m certain. We may have missed that little girl somehow, but none of us lost our masks during the attack. There’s no way she could have seen any of our faces."

"Very well. We’ll proceed according to your plan. For our glorious cause."

"For our glorious cause."

.....

As they sailed into the harbour at Sabre Point, Christina couldn’t help feeling surprised at the ridiculous size of the port, especially given the population of the town itself.

A quick count put the number of berths capable of accommodating large cargo or warships at over 10, while smaller ones that medium-sized ships could dock at were over 3 times that number.

Christina also spotted numerous lumber yards and workshops, all clearly designed to build and service ships.

A large fort and numerous watchtowers equipped with heavy siege weapons also made for a less-than-friendly façade.

It was a visual reminder that this was less a port-town, and more a military installation.

Even so, if one looked past the high walls and heavy defensive fortifications, there were some signs of a more normal settlement.

Cargo being unloaded at the docks, smoke rising from kitchen chimneys, and the general hustle-and-bustle of evening shoppers heading home from work or out to the pubs for a drink.

Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Christina went over the plan for the evening once more before glancing back over her shoulder, towards the hold below where she had left Elly in the care of old man Uri, whose friendly personality and image seemed to make the little girl feel more comfortable around him.

Not long after they had set sail this morning, Christina and the rest of the senior officers from the Rockwell Kingdom had received an invitation from Prince Landon to dine with him tonight on-shore in Sabre Point.

No one from the Rockwell Kingdom was feeling enthusiastic about socializing at the moment, but refusing an offer from a royal was never really an option; as such, after a brief discussion about how to proceed, Captain Gage accepted the invitation.

Christina had very much wanted to stay behind to accompany Elly. The little girl’s earlier panic attack was a serious cause for concern, but after calming her down and talking to her about it, Christina found herself in something of a dilemma, caught between her desire to protect the little girl and her duties as a soldier.

After thinking about it for a bit, however, Christina realized that it would probably be for the best if Elly remained on the ship while she attended the dinner, not that Christina really had a choice in the matter.

For better or worse, she wasn’t just an ordinary soldier, she was a princess, so while Lana Gage was technically the unit’s commanding officer, Christina undoubtedly held the highest status and was obviously the one Prince Landon was interested in dining with.

She needed to be present, no matter how reluctant she was to go.

The Third and Fourth Battalions of the Raging River Legion’s First Regiment were elite units with a much higher proportion of Captains than normal, but there were still only 12 of them in total. Taking the need to guard the ship into account, Captain Gage assigned 6 of them to remain onboard while the rest would attend the prince’s dinner.

Another 30 or so regular soldiers would accompany them as ’guards’, though how useful Vein Opening Practitioners would be if something went wrong in the middle of an enemy town was questionable.

Still, protocol was protocol, so as the 3 ships were being tied down at the docks and gangways were being moved into place, the landing party assembled on deck.

It was a small blessing in all this that since they were currently on a mission, none of them had any formalwear on them, giving them an excuse to attend tonight’s event in their armour as that was also technically considered ’formal’ attire.

Other than Christina, who was afforded special considerations given her royal status, the senior officers probably wouldn’t be allowed to carry their weapons with them into the banquet venue, but they could leave their swords and spears with their guards who would be nearby, which was at least some small comfort.

Knowing they were all walking into danger, and how serious things could become if they didn’t all play their roles perfectly, Captain Gage was giving her subordinates one last talking to, "You all know what you need to do tonight. Stay sharp and stay alert, understood?"

"Yes, Ma’am!"

"Good, move out!"

Gently caressing the jeweled bracelet on her right wrist, Christina did her best to relax and put on a smile. No matter how the night turned out, as long as she remained calm and vigilant, things would work out... she hoped.

.....

On the Darr Kingdom’s side, Commander Anders was, as one might have guessed, grumbling about allowing Rockwell Kingdom soldiers into a strategic port town. Even if they wouldn’t be allowed into the military facilities, he still felt this was a bad idea.

His assistant, Captain Lani, was busy trying to placate her grumpy superior, while Landon was simply focused on making sure the evening went smoothly.

He had big plans for tonight, plans that he and his mother, Crown Princess Talia, had discussed numerous times since Christina’s birthday banquet in Misty City. This was his chance to make his mark, and assuming all went well, it would surely be a huge boon for the Darr Kingdom.

Landon’s only regret was that this opportunity had arisen too quickly, so the time he had to make preparations was very slim.

Still, he was determined not to fail.

A thin smiling forming on his face, the prince couldn’t help anticipating what kind of look everyone would have when he sprung his ’surprise’ for Christina tonight.