Volume 2 – Chapter 23
The fortress bells continued to ring.
Soldiers rushed through the courtyard, fastening armor and gathering weapons.
The peaceful evening had vanished in an instant.
Commander Varick stood atop the stone steps, his voice carrying across the fortress.
“Squad leaders, report immediately!”
Within moments, the courtyard was filled with knights awaiting orders.
The messenger knelt before Varick.
“The royal convoy was ambushed nearly thirty kilometers east of the capital.”
“Were there any survivors?” Varick asked.
“A few.”
“They said the attackers wore black cloaks bearing the Raven Crest.”
Murmurs spread through the gathered soldiers.
“The Black Crows…”
“So they’ve finally shown themselves.”
Varick’s gaze swept across the assembled squads.
“Squad Three.”
“Squad Five.”
“Squad Seven.”
“You will accompany me.”
Finn’s eyes widened.
“So much for a peaceful evening.”
Kael tightened the straps on his shield.
“I had a feeling.”
Mira slung her bow across her shoulder.
“Let’s move.”
Alyra looked toward Raimer.
“You ready?”
Raimer nodded.
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”
Night had already fallen by the time they reached the convoy.
The smell of smoke lingered in the air.
Broken wagons lay scattered across the road.
Crates had been smashed open.
Several horses wandered aimlessly through the forest.
The battle had ended…
But its scars remained.
Finn slowly walked among the wreckage.
“…This wasn’t a robbery.”
Raimer looked around.
“No.”
“Nothing valuable was taken.”
Commander Varick knelt beside a fallen guard.
His armor was cut cleanly across the chest.
“One strike.”
“A master swordsman.”
A faint cough echoed from beneath an overturned wagon.
“Someone’s alive!” Mira shouted.
Together they lifted the shattered wood.
An elderly royal scholar emerged, covered in blood and ash.
Varick immediately knelt beside him.
The old man struggled to breathe.
“They…”
“They weren’t after the gold…”
He clutched a leather satchel.
“They wanted this…”
Before anyone else could move—
WHOOSH!
A black feather pierced the satchel, pinning it to the ground.
Everyone looked toward the trees.
A lone figure stood among the branches.
Wearing a familiar cracked crimson mask.
Vesper.
He applauded slowly.
“Excellent.”
“You arrived sooner than expected.”
Commander Varick drew his sword.
“Black Crow.”
Vesper smiled.
“I prefer ‘messenger.'”
The forest grew silent.
Not a single insect chirped.
Even the wind seemed to stop.
Raimer stepped forward.
“What do you want?”
Vesper tilted his head.
“The same thing you do.”
“The truth.”
Finn frowned.
“Then why kill innocent people?”
Vesper’s smile faded.
“Innocent?”
He glanced toward the burning wagons.
“History rarely has innocent people.”
“Only winners…”
“…and those forgotten.”
Before anyone could respond, he tossed a small scroll toward Raimer.
It landed at his feet.
“A gift.”
“Consider it… repayment for breaking my mask.”
Kael growled.
“Don’t touch it.”
But Vesper simply laughed.
“We’ll meet again.”
His body dissolved into a cloud of black feathers.
Within seconds…
He was gone.
Raimer cautiously picked up the scroll.
It was sealed with black wax.
Inside was a single piece of parchment.
Only one sentence had been written.
“Find the Frost Kingdom before the first snowfall… or the truth will disappear forever.”
The old scholar’s eyes widened.
“Impossible…”
“You know something?” Raimer asked.
The scholar nodded weakly.
“The Frost Kingdom…”
“It wasn’t destroyed.”
“It was…”
Before he could finish—
His body went limp.
Silence.
Mira slowly lowered her head.
“He died…”
Varick closed the scholar’s eyes.
“He fulfilled his duty.”
As the soldiers searched the wreckage, Finn discovered a hidden compartment beneath the lead carriage.
Inside was a wooden box.
Unlike the other cargo, it had not been touched.
Raimer carefully opened it.
Resting inside was a crystal compass.
Instead of pointing north…
Its silver needle pointed toward the distant snow-covered mountains.
An inscription was carved into its base.
‘Only the rightful path can be revealed to the rightful bearer.’
The moment Raimer touched it…
The needle began spinning wildly before settling once more toward the north.
A cold gust swept through the forest.
Alyra wrapped her cloak tighter.
“…Did anyone else feel that?”
Kael nodded.
“It was like…”
“…something woke up.”
Back at the Royal Fortress, long after midnight, Commander Varick studied the compass in silence.
Finally, he looked at Squad Seven.
“You’ve completed every mission I’ve given you.”
“And every answer you find only creates more questions.”
He folded the map of the northern territories and placed it on the table.
“In three days…”
“You leave for the Kingdom of Frost.”
The room fell silent.
No one had entered those frozen lands for centuries.
Outside the command hall…
High above the fortress…
A black raven watched from the roof.
Its crimson eyes gleamed beneath the moonlight.
Then it spread its wings…
And flew north.
End of Chapter 23