Veil of Destiny

Chapter 10 Ambush

Sunlight filtered through the forest canopy, even at the peak of midsummer noon, leaving only dappled patches on the ground below. The dense foliage of the Demon Forest kept it perpetually cool and damp, even at its edges. Thirty knights, silent and grim, moved through the forest with practiced ease. Most wore finely crafted half-plate armor and carried gleaming poleaxes. About half of them also had longbows slung across their saddles. This was Dorian's mercenary company, the "Dragon and Beauty."

Grayson, with he military experience, led the group into the forest a day ago, bypassing the main road to avoid detection by scouts from the bandit-occupied Fort Cyrus, which was still over 200 miles away. After a grueling day's march, they were now within 100 miles of their destination. The journey went relatively smoothly, without encountering any ferocious monsters. After all, the mercenaries were only operating on the outskirts of the forest.

Fort Cyrus is surrounded by numerous mountains, although most of them are low hills. Due to its remote location and lack of resources, coupled with Bedivere's intentional negligence, Fort Cyrus remained occupied for half a year without anyone taking notice. The local civilians in the surrounding areas suffered as a result. However, all of this information is outdated, and in the end, Dorian and the others had to rely on the map provided by Bedivere for this reconnaissance mission.

By afternoon, they estimated they were within 70 miles of the Fort Cyrus, entering the range of enemy scouts. Grayson ordered the group to spread out and advance in a dispersed formation. Four seasoned scouts dismounted and moved ahead to search the area.

Dorian, clad in black half-plate, rode near the middle of the group. Despite being a mage, he carried a short battle-axe with him. The axe was a work of art from the "War God's Hammer" series, with elegant lines and magical runes engraved on its back. The hilt was set with a rare black crystal. Tristan, ever the cynic, once remarked, "A battle-axe mage? Not funny."

Most mages, due to their long immersion in magical tomes and exposure to various harmful substances (most parts of magical creatures are somewhat poisonous to humans), do not possess great physical strength. Wearing heavy armor would be a significant burden for them. Additionally, it has been proven that metal significantly hinders the gathering of magical energy. Even if a mage stands still and wears full plate armor, the probability of magic failure would exceed 50%. In a battle, this is a matter of life and death. However, for Dorian, neither of these is a problem. His mental power is immense, making it effortless for him to control his meager magical abilities. Furthermore, whether it is due to his body being modified or not, Dorian's mental power experiences minimal depletion when channeling magic through metal. With his limited magical energy, enough only for casting spells of the third level, he could still unleash magic even if he were sealed within a metal sphere.

Since entering the Demonic Forest, Dorian often felt detached, as if seeing the world as flat images, hearing strange whispers. He repeatedly had the urge to pierce this veil with his axe, to see what lay beyond. He saw Grayson approaching, her mouth moving, but the words seemed muffled, as if underwater.

Dorian shook his head vigorously, as if shattering a mirror, breaking the two-dimensional world. Sound and color returned to this world. "Dorian! What's wrong with you??" Grayson shook him forcefully. "I'm fine, is something wrong?" Dorian felt exhausted, as if he had just slept with ten prostitutes. Grayson stared at him for a while before saying, "We've discovered the whereabouts of the enemy patrol. I think it's best for us to lay an ambush here and capture a few of them for questioning."

The scout trails led to within ten miles of the forest's edge, marked by fresh and old hoofprints, indicating frequent patrols of 7-8 men. As dusk fell, the mercenaries set traps and rested for the night. The next morning, Grayson positioned new lookouts at the forest edge while the rest continued to rest. Though lacking advanced military knowledge, some mercenaries were familiar with ambush tactics, making their preparations fairly competent.