After all, whoever was over there was currently attracting attention. If not Indigos, then whatever other creatures stalked this forest. Hector had seen a large red bear covered in thick tree roots tear through some shrubs to get at berries earlier. A few times today, if it had spotted him, he'd be dead. Perhaps dead was an overstatement, but the fight would have been rough, to say the least.

Either way, they ended up deciding to camp. They rested through the night. But when morning came, and to their surprise, smoke was still rising, so they decided it would be best to head there.

After a few more hours of heavy trudging through puddles and enduring Lincoln's grumbling at having damp feet, they pushed out of the tree line and paused.

"What is that?" Lincoln asked. Sticks cracked beneath his sandals as he moved through the bush, spear resting on his shoulder.

Ahead, smoke twirled into the sky. Walls held back several hundred insects, which clawed at them. Dotted groups of what Hector could only assume were mercenaries fought the insects, pushing them back away from the wall as other insects bypassed the mercenaries and continued trying to scale it.

"They're being raided by bugs?" Jodie said, though it came out more as a question than a statement.

Hector nodded. Raided was exactly the word, because this was unusual behaviour for the bugs. So far, they'd seen the bugs attack people and kill them outright—more like hunting than an actual coordinated offence. But this? The bugs had a target. They wanted to break through those walls to reach whatever was inside.

Ahead, in one of the small groups pushing the bugs back, someone collapsed. A scythe-like appendage sliced through his leg. The mantis bug—the same type Hector had fought with Jodie before—stood over him. Its scythe reeled back and punched through the man's chest before heaving him into the air and snacking on his entrails.

Hector grimaced as he began developing a plan. They couldn't just stand here and watch these people get torn apart, not now that they'd seen them.

"I think we should avoid them," Lincoln said. "Maybe the smoke attracted them, and they'll probably be like this for a while."

"You want to abandon those people?" Jodie asked.

Hector frowned as well. Hadn't they just spoken about this a few hours ago in the cave? Was Lincoln really going back on his word so soon?

Raising a hand, Lincoln shook his head. "I'm just saying it doesn't seem wise to get involved in something we clearly have no business in. I mean, they look to be doing just fine as well."

As he spoke, another squad of mercenaries leapt off the fortification's walls and clashed with a group of bugs. They cut through them, their blades catching on thick carapaces with some resistance, but ultimately they triumphed, rescuing the squad about to be overrun by the mantis-like insects.

They were pushing them back—but for how long?

A second wave of insects screeched as they rounded the fort. A heavily armoured insect, similar to the one Hector had seen in the Shade Forest. Its large back bulged as it thrummed with a brown light. It was a ranked beast.

"We have to go help," Hector muttered.

Jodie nodded whilst Lincoln's face whitened, his grip tightening on his spear.

Hector wanted to go over because it was the right thing to do. But beyond that, they were also low on resources, and camping without a tent had done nothing to help his back. They were far more capable than the average mercenary at holding off the bugs. That fact became obvious as the second wave of insects slammed into a group of mercenaries from behind. Four dropped dead in an instant.

"Alright, let's move," Hector said.

He exploded off the grass and raced toward the fight. Jodie and Lincoln followed a step behind.

The three of them launched into the melee. Purple energy crackled as Hector's dual daggers materialised, meeting the flesh of the first insect and slicing through with a clean swish. Lincoln held firm beside him. His spear twirled in a defensive arc, jabbing at smaller insects. The weapon punched clean through their carapaces before he reeled it back to block a second attacker. A grim look lingered in his eyes—the only feature visible beneath his mask.

Hector powered forward with the two of them. Jodie struck when she could, slicing through mantis-insect arms and creating openings. Moments later, Hector's blades severed their heads.

The mercenaries, who'd been struggling, now watched with open awe. A few nearly paid for their distraction with their lives as bugs closed in. Hector saved whom he could while ensuring he provided timely aid to his friends.

"Get back," he called out, minutes into the battle.

Lincoln thrust his spear through a rather large ant-like creature covered in fur. The weapon punched through the beast's skull and erupted out the other side in an explosion of chitin. Lincoln tugged it back and took several steps in retreat. A moment later, he appeared at Hector's side, breath ragged.

"What?" Lincoln said.

"Conserve your energy." Hector levelled his sword. He could use the blazing arsenal talent here—end this faster. Too many eyes watched this area, though. Too many people.

A bug raced at him from the side. Hector crossed his blades. The creature's mandibles crashed against metal. His leg whipped up, cracking into its side with a crunch. The beast staggered. Its head fell a moment later as Hector's sword flashed a purple streak through the air.

A few paces away, Jodie ripped the head off another mantis-like creature. Blood sprayed through the air. She launched off the corpse, flipping and landing on the damp ground—grass soaked with the blood of insects and humans alike.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

"Thank you," a man said from where he lay clutching his side. The wound still leaked. Hector had saved him moments before from the mantis creature that now lay broken and bloodied nearby.

"What's the plan here?" Lincoln's voice carried a shade more hesitation than he'd probably intended.

"We hold," Hector replied.

The bugs were failing now. Even the large creature that had led the second wave had fallen under the combined attack of two mercenary groups. Each squad had suffered only one casualty and minor scrapes among the survivors.

Another squad of bugs raced forward. Hector kicked off the ground. Air churned with static as he activated his field. The creatures spasmed as he slammed into them. His sword flashed through the air, cutting limbs and spraying blood. A moment later, his blade pulled free from the carapace of the final bug. The insect let out a wheeze and thudded onto the soft grass. A puddle of green spread beneath it.

Around the field, the remaining battles ended one by one. Hector tracked one bug as it peeled away from a group of mercenaries, its grey legs scampering against the grass as it fled toward the bushes. He could chase it down. Better not to, though. Who knew what it would lead him to? The final screech of the bug across the field sounded the battle's end.

Mercenaries limped back toward the fort. Some clutched the bodies of dead friends. Others limped as they scavenged the battlefield for what they could.

Jodie stepped beside Hector. Her shoes squelched on the grass. "Well," she said, raising a hand to wipe away blood that smeared her cheek—thankfully not her own. "I didn't expect it to be so easy."

Hector nodded. He had the system scan the few mercenaries around them. None had breached Gravity Forging-Two. He had climbed to Gravity Forging-Four a couple of days ago, with Jodie and Lincoln both at Three. These people were far weaker than the three of them, which explained why their presence had proved so decisive.

His gaze moved to the fort wall. A man stood there—fiery red hair whipping in the wind—watching over the battlefield with his arms crossed. Who was he, and why had he simply watched instead of helping? Hector scanned him with the system and frowned at the results.

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Cultivation level: [Gravity Forging - 6]

Talent: [None]

Talent Fragment: [3 Uncommon]

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What was someone so strong doing observing when he could have intervened? Or had this fight not been worth his time?

A mercenary approached—brown hair shifting in the wind, iron breastplate hanging loose and more broken than intact. He held a sword in one hand, dragging it behind him as he moved.

"We're all making our way back into the fort." He paused. "We thank you for your help, and… actually—" His eyes moved toward the forest. "It'd be better if we talked inside."

Hector followed his gaze, though he couldn't make anything out. More creatures would probably come, though. This fort had clearly been suffering repeated incursions from these insects.

A few minutes later, they stumbled through a gate. A group of men armed with tattered swords and broken shields had pulled the gate's metal grates up. Their equipment, too damaged for combat now, made them perfect for garrison duty. Perfect for handling the simple tasks inside the fort.

"What's your name, by the way?" The man who'd greeted them asked as he adjusted his breastplate with his other hand.

"Me?" Hector tried to lower his voice. It came out muffled behind the mask.

The man glanced back at him and nodded. Behind him, several mercenaries coughed. One spat up blood. A few seconds later, someone rushed over with a vial. The injured man drank it down. Relief spread across his face.

Hector debated giving his true name. If he revealed himself, what was the point of wearing a mask? "Just call me H. I'm the leader of the Clear Sky Mercenary Company."

"One of the fresh ones formed from the trial realm, I take it." The man nodded, clearly noting that Hector hadn't given his actual name. He didn't seem to mind. "There've been quite a few of you around lately. I must say I'm quite thankful."

Hector nodded. "I take it you were a mercenary before the trial realm?"

"That I was. Duncan Alcard, leader—or at least co-leader—of the Tin Mail Mercenaries." He paused. "Though I lost a few men out there, and our leader still hasn't returned from the bug nest."

"Nest?" Jodie spoke up. She adjusted her mask and stepped closer as they continued to walk."I didn't see any nests when we were coming in."

"No, it's deeper in the forest," Duncan said. "We've been assaulting it under the command of Lord Raquel." He gestured back toward the walls. "You might have noted him on top of the fortification walls."

Hector glanced over his shoulder. The man he'd seen earlier was no longer there—probably off handling some unknown duty. "I spotted him."

"He's a good man. Honourable sort. He's probably right chuffed someone like you came along to aid us."

Hector nodded. They continued moving through the crowd of injured men. A few nodded toward them. Hector even recognised some he'd saved. They stopped at what amounted to the square of the fortification.

Duncan adjusted his still-failing breastplate and spoke. "If you wait here a moment, someone should come to receive you and bring you to some lodging. Try not to get into too much trouble." With that, he turned and walked away. His sword scraped against stone and sloshed through mud.

"Well, this place is nice," Lincoln said. Sarcasm dripped from his tone. "It's got pleasant views. People seem perfectly healthy."

As he said this, a man who looked like he'd seen a ghost sat in the corner and retched before then throwing up onto the mud. The contents mixed with the puddle of black at his side. He'd clearly been doing that for a while now and probably didn't have that much time left. Hector's hand moved to his pouch, where he still kept some of the few potions Marcus had made.

His young friend hadn't yet figured out the healing potion, but perhaps an antidote could help the individual. Then again, many men like him waited around the fort for death—apparently poisoned by one of the many insects that had assaulted them.

"So what now?" Jodie asked.

"Well, I doubt we can just leave. They'll want to know who we are and what we're doing here."

"Nobles," Jodie said. "Raquel—do you know that name?"

"No."

Jodie gestured toward a banner flapping in the wind. On its face was that of a flame in a golden sconce with petals curling around it. "The insignia of the Flamelight family. If I had to guess, he's a lord of the Flamelight family. Likely high-ranking—well, as high-ranking as someone in the Gravity Forging realm can be."

"You think he's a successor?" Lincoln asked.

Jodie scoffed. "No. I doubt a successor would be out here slumming it with mercenaries, clearly of the common rank." She paused. "A few slum dwellers are clearly among them."

Hector glanced around, noting the loose divide among the mercenary groups. It wasn't as stark as what they'd see in the sanctuary, though.

"Okay, so our options are to take the praise, let them question us, and then leave," Hector suggested. "Or we can stay and actually see what's going on—perhaps offer a hand if we can."

"You want to help?" Lincoln asked.

"I mean, people are dying, and if we can at least remedy some of that, it's the right thing to do."

"But what about getting back to Mirae?" Jodie's question hung in the air.

Hector bit his lip. He wished to return to his sister; part of him ached to. Another part knew she could handle herself. Besides, when he meditated, he had at least a slight chance to communicate with her. She'd be okay for now.

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