Chapter 129: Final Trap

Two days had passed since the Deres army first arrived at Riverwood.

And Baron Aldric was absolutely livid.

BANG!

A wooden table shattered underneath his fist.

’’ARTHUR WHITEMANE!’’

His furious roar echoed throughout the command tent.

Several officers stood before him, their heads lowered.

’’TWO DAYS!’’ Aldric shouted, smashing the broken table once more. ’’WE’VE BEEN STUCK IN THIS DAMNED VILLAGE FOR TWO ENTIRE DAYS!’’

Nobody dared respond.

And frankly, none of them could blame him.

The past two days had been nothing short of a nightmare.

Not only had the road been littered with those strange iron traps, but the surrounding forests had proven equally dangerous.

Of the hunting parties dispatched on the first day, most had never returned.

Those who did brought horrifying reports of concealed metal spikes and countless bear traps hidden throughout the forest.

Even the fields and village’s homes were completely empty.

Well, empty....

Several soldiers had scoured each and every building for rations and wealth.

Most would live to regret that decision every single day of their lives.

As a result, the army had been forced to rely entirely on its own provisions.

And that was only a small part of their problems.

Despite hundreds of soldiers working tirelessly to clear a passage through the village, casualties continued mounting.

Dozens had suffered crushed limbs, while others had lost their lives.

Eventually, Aldric had been forced to order the seriously wounded transported back towards Deres territory.

Naturally, they required escorts.

Although the decision helped reassure his soldiers that they wouldn’t be abandoned, it also reduced the army’s fighting strength even further.

All of this without encountering a single enemy soldier!

’’My lord...’’ Reynold cautiously spoke.

Aldric’s furious gaze immediately snapped towards him.

’’WHAT?!’’

Reynold flinched before quickly lowering his head.

’’We’ve received another report from the clearing parties,’’ he said. ’’They believe they’ve nearly finished securing a passage through the village.’’

Aldric froze.

For several seconds, he stared at Reynold.

’’Nearly?’’ he repeated slowly.

’’Yes, my lord,’’ Reynold nodded frantically. ’’There’s only one area left over at the end of the road.’’

Aldric straightened instantly.

Without another thought, he picked up his sword.

’’Take me there,’’ he ordered coldly.

Reynold bowed deeply.

’’Immediately, my lord.’’

...

A short while later, Aldric arrived at the far end of Riverwood, accompanied by several of his high-ranking officers.

But they weren’t the first who’d gathered there.

As representatives from the Ironhart Viscounty, Baldwin and five other individuals had made their way over as well.

Amongst them stood the arrogant three-seal knight, who appeared particularly irritated.

’’What’s taking so long?’’ he complained. ’’I was told the road was about to be cleared.’’

A Deres officer immediately bowed.

’’Almost, sir,’’ he replied respectfully. ’’There’s one final obstacle remaining.’’

He gestured towards the road ahead.

Several large logs had been placed across the passage, blocking it almost entirely.

Ahead of them, two dozen soldiers were carefully moving their swords through the mud.

Having just arrived, Aldric glanced over at Reynold.

’’Is this the final obstacle?’’ he asked.

’’Yes, my lord,’’ Reynold replied. ’’It doesn’t seem like there are many traps around it. But we’re being cautious just in case.’’

Aldric nodded once.

They’d already suffered too many losses in the past two days.

Unfortunately, the three-seal knight from the Ironhart Viscounty wasn’t nearly as patient.

’’You’ve got to be kidding me,’’ he scoffed. ’’All this trouble over a few pieces of wood?’’

Aldric frowned.

Reynold immediately stepped up.

’’We’re simply being cautious,’’ he said respectfully.

’’Cautious?’’ the knight repeated mockingly. ’’You’ve spent two days crawling through the mud like frightened children!’’

Several nearby officers exchanged uncomfortable glances.

Aldric’s expression darkened.

’’Enough,’’ he interrupted. ’’We’ve already suffered enough unnecessary losses. A few more minutes won’t make a difference.’’

The knight clicked his tongue but said nothing further.

A short while later, the soldiers finally finished inspecting the ground.

’’All clear!’’ one of them shouted.

Reynold immediately raised his hand.

’’Good!’’ he shouted. ’’Get those logs out of the way!’’

A group of soldiers hurried forward, carrying several thick ropes.

None appeared particularly enthusiastic about the order.

After two days of watching their companions lose limbs to seemingly harmless objects, even approaching a fallen tree had become a frightening idea.

One soldier cautiously approached the nearest log.

He prodded it with his sword.

’’Mhm, nothing,’’ he muttered. ’’Seems safe then.’’

’’Then hurry up and tie the rope around it,’’ another soldier replied.

The man nodded.

Together, they began fastening ropes around the largest trunk.

Once everything was secured, a dozen soldiers grabbed hold.

’’PULL!’’

The men strained against the ropes.

Slowly, the heavy log began moving.

’’Harder! Come on!’’

With another coordinated effort, they managed to drag it several feet.

THUD!

The trunk safely came to a halt against one of the buildings.

Several soldiers immediately sighed in relief.

’’One down!’’

’’Finally! Just a few more!’’

Even Aldric’s expression relaxed slightly.

Perhaps they would finally be able to leave this damned village behind.

’’Keep going!’’ Reynold ordered. ’’Get the others out of the way!’’

The soldiers quickly approached the remaining logs.

Having successfully removed the first one, they worked with noticeably greater confidence.

A few moments later, they began pulling the second trunk aside.

SKRRR!

A very faint scraping noise rang out below the logs.

One of the soldiers stopped.

’’Huh?’’ he let out before glancing at his companion. ’’Did you hear that?’’

His companion turned to him.

’’What are you talking about?’’ he asked, his expression darkening. ’’Stop trying to scare us and just pull.’’

The soldier swallowed hard.

Despite his gut warning him, he felt pressured to stay.

’’PULL!’’

As everyone pulled, the second log slowly began to move forward.

But as it rolled forward...

CLANK!

SNAP!

A loud metallic snap froze everyone in place.

WHOOSH!

The loose end of a rope flung through the air, originating from below the logs.

Before anyone even had time to react, a loud noise suddenly echoed out above them.

CREAK! CREAK!

The same soldier slowly raised his head, his eyes wide with regret.

Several huge logs began rolling off both rooftops.

’’W-What?’’ he muttered weakly as a shadow settled over him. ’’There were traps above us too?’’

BOOOOM!

The first log slammed into his head.

Its weight took him to the ground before crushing him.

’’ARGHH!’’

’’RUN!’’

’’GET AWAY FROM THERE!’’

Panic erupted among all the soldiers.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Some threw themselves back, just barely managing to save themselves.

But most weren’t that lucky and disappeared beneath the incredibly heavy logs.

Then... everything fell silent.

Aldric stared at the destruction before him.

And just when he thought things couldn’t possibly get any worse...

’’HAHAHAHA!’’

Loud laughter suddenly erupted beside him.

Aldric slowly turned around, his expression as cold as the peaks of Mount Everest.

The arrogant knight was laughing while slapping his knee.

’’HAHAHA! Now that was something!’’

He shook his head, looking towards the fallen logs with an amused expression.

’’I have to admit, whoever prepared these traps certainly has quite the imagination!’’

Baldwin glanced at his companion with sharp eyes.

’’Sir Baressa, this isn’t appropriate right now,’’ he said sternly. ’’They are our allies—’’

’’Oh, come on!’’ Baressa interrupted, still chuckling. ’’We’ve spent two days watching soldiers stumble into holes and get their feet crushed. At least this one was entertaining!’’

Aldric’s expression got even worse.

’’Entertaining?’’ he repeated coldly.

Baressa turned towards him without a hint of shame.

’’Definitely,’’ he said, raising his thumb. ’’It was just so simple but unexpected.’’

Aldric clenched his fists so tightly that they began trembling.

But Baressa remained oblivious to it all and continued casually.

’’We’ve spent days looking at the ground only for the final trap to be above us!’’

’’ENOUGH!’’ Aldric roared furiously.

Baressa went silent immediately.

Then he turned towards Aldric, raising an eyebrow.

’’My soldiers are dying, and you find it amusing?’’ Aldric shouted.

Baressa shrugged once.

’’They’re just soldiers, Baron. Casualties are inevitable during war.’’

Aldric stared at him in disbelief.

For a moment, he looked ready to explode.

But instead, he suddenly turned towards the road.

’’EVERYONE, STAND BACK!’’

The nearby soldiers immediately froze.

’’My lord?’’ Reynold asked.

Aldric gritted his teeth for a moment.

’’I SAID STAND BACK!’’ he ordered.

The soldiers hurriedly retreated, dragging their injured companions away from the fallen logs.

Once the area was clear, Aldric drew his sword.

His blade lit up brightly for a moment.

Then a powerful wave of aura was released from his sword in a storm-like wind.

BOOOOM!

The enormous logs shattered into countless pieces, sending splinters flying across the road.

As the dust settled, Aldric slowly sheathed his sword.

’’Reynold!’’ he said. ’’Have the wounded treated, the dead recovered, and finish checking the road.’’

’’We’ll set off at first light tomorrow.’’

With that, he turned around and left.

Aldric had hoped that would be the last time his presence was required that day.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t have been more wrong.

Barely an hour later, Reynold appeared outside his command tent.

And judging by his deathly pale face, something was terribly wrong.

’’What is it now?’’ Aldric asked, already feeling another headache coming on.

Reynold opened his mouth, but no words came out.

’’Well? Speak!’’

’’M-my lord...’’ Reynold finally stammered. ’’The advance force...’’