Chapter 127: Deres Vanguard

Baron Aldric frowned deeply.

’’Explain yourself,’’ he said. ’’What has happened?’’

Hesitation crossed the commander’s face.

For a moment, it truly seemed like he had no clue what to say.

’’The scouts we sent out...’’ he started slowly. ’’They’ve been ambushed, my lord.’’

A bad, nauseating feeling appeared in Aldric’s stomach.

If the scouts had been ambushed, what the hell happened to their advance force?

’’Who ambushed them?’’ he asked. ’’And how many men are there?’’

A complicated expression appeared on the commander’s face.

’’That’s...’’ His voice trailed off. ’’I believe it would be better if you heard it from the scout himself.’’

That only made the bad feeling in Aldric’s stomach worsen.

At the same time, the commander quickly turned around.

’’You!’’ he said, pointing at the scout. ’’Come here and explain what you saw!’’

The scout hurried over, his face still pale from fright and shock.

Once he reached them, he dropped to his knees.

’’I-I greet my lord,’’ he said, lowering his head onto his hands.

’’Rise,’’ Aldric ordered coldly. ’’Tell me what happened to your party.’’

The scout hurriedly stood up.

’’M-monsters, my lord!’’ he said fearfully. ’’There were monsters hiding beneath the mud!’’

A deep frown grew on Aldric’s face.

’’Monsters?’’ he repeated.

The scout began nodding frantically.

’’Y-yes, my lord!’’ he said. ’’Something bit off their legs! A loud noise echoed out, and suddenly they were screaming and collapsing!’’

Silence fell for a brief moment.

Aldric calmly observed the scout’s expressions, clearly in doubt.

But it didn’t seem like the man was lying.

’’Did you see these monsters with your own eyes?’’ he asked.

’’I-I only saw their sharp teeth!’’ the scout replied instantly. ’’The rest remained buried!’’

Aldric’s eyes narrowed.

’’Then how can you be certain they were monsters?’’

The scout opened his mouth, but no words came out.

Aldric scoffed.

’’I thought as much,’’ he muttered.

Without waiting for the scout to say anything, he turned to the commander.

’’How many scouts returned?’’

’’Two, my lord,’’ the commander replied respectfully. ’’The others are missing.’’

Aldric nodded once.

’’Very well,’’ he said. ’’Have this man accompany the vanguard. He shall guide them to the exact location where his party was attacked.’’

The scout’s face immediately turned pale.

’’M-my lord! Please! I can’t go back there!’’

Aldric glanced at him coldly.

The scout instantly lowered his head, his body trembling.

Then Aldric glanced back at the commander one more time.

’’Where is the other survivor?’’ he asked, his voice cold.

’’He’s being treated by physicians right now, my lord,’’ the commander replied.

Aldric’s eyes narrowed slightly.

’’Have him executed,’’ he ordered. ’’I will not have tales of monsters spreading throughout my army.’’

The commander froze.

He glanced up for a moment, his eyes wide.

But upon seeing Aldric’s cold gaze, he instantly lowered his head.

’’Understood, my lord,’’ he replied.

The scout stared up at Aldric in horror.

He didn’t dare say a single word, understanding very well why Aldric had let him hear that command.

With that settled, the Deres army began moving once more.

...

Several hours later, the vanguard finally saw Riverwood village appear in the distance.

The village appeared almost deserted.

Not a single villager could be seen working in the surrounding fields, and there was no smoke rising from any of the chimneys.

However, that wasn’t what caught the soldiers’ attention.

’’Sir Reynold!’’ one of the men suddenly shouted. ’’There are bodies on the road!’’

The officer leading the vanguard, Sir Reynold, immediately raised his hand.

’’HALT!’’

Five hundred soldiers slowly came to a halt behind him.

A short distance ahead, two men lay motionless in the mud.

One was sprawled on his stomach, while the other lay on his back with one leg twisted at an unnatural angle.

Large amounts of blood had mixed with the mud beneath them.

’Those must be the missing scouts,’ he thought, narrowing his eyes. ’But where are these so-called monsters?’

He glanced at the ground, carefully inspecting it.

But there didn’t seem to be... anything.

’’You three!’’ Reynold ordered, pointing at several nearby soldiers. ’’Go and inspect the bodies.’’

The men exchanged uneasy glances.

None of them particularly liked the idea of approaching whatever had killed the scouts.

Nevertheless, they obeyed.

Slowly, they made their way towards the corpses.

The first soldier crouched beside the man lying on his back.

’’Sir!’’ he called out. ’’There’s something attached to his leg!’’

Reynold frowned.

’’What is it?’’ he asked.

The soldier, not completely sure himself, began wiping away the mud.

Unable to reach it, he slowly lowered his hand into the mud.

SNAP!

CRACK!

’’ARGHH!’’

A scream suddenly echoed across the road.

The soldier shot up, raising his arm into the air as he stumbled back.

At least... what remained of it.

Blood poured from the mangled stump, splattering across his clothes as he screamed in agony.

’’HELP ME! MY HAND!’’

The other two soldiers stumbled backward, drawing their swords.

As the soldier continued screaming, Reynold’s gaze locked onto the ground.

There, beneath the muddy surface, two rows of sharp iron teeth had snapped shut around the soldier’s severed hand.

And yet, there was no monster.

Reynold cautiously approached, examining the strange contraption.

’’What in the world is this...?’’

He picked up a wooden stick and carefully swiped the ground around it.

But... nothing happened.

’I don’t trust this one bit,’ he thought, straightening.

’’Nobody is to approach those bodies!’’ Reynold ordered. ’’And have the men inspect every step they take!’’

The soldiers hurriedly obeyed.

Unfortunately, that did little to prevent further casualties.

Over the next half hour, several more of those strange contraptions were discovered.

Some were hidden beneath the mud, while others had been concealed beneath thin layers of grass.

And despite their precautions, more soldiers continued falling victim to them.

By the time Baron Aldric arrived, the vanguard had suffered over a dozen casualties.

Several men were lying beside the road, screaming in pain as fellow soldiers desperately tried to manage their injuries.

Others had already stopped moving entirely.

Baron Aldric stared at the scene before him in disbelief.

’’What in the world happened here?’’