Jackal Among Snakes

Chapter 333

A big man with long red hair opened his eyes. Margrave Reinhardt stared at the stone ceiling above before suddenly leaning up. He grabbed his neck and grunted in pain from the sudden movement. A serving woman in the room froze in her tracks. The margrave opened his mouth to call out to her, but she quickly exited the room.

As Reinhardt leaned back into his bed, his son—a red-haired man quite similar in appearance to himself—entered the room, led by the serving girl who’d left earlier. One of his eyes had been rotted away by the waxpox, leaving a glossy useless eye in its spot. The other was rich and red like a ruby, and the two stared at each other.

“What’s happened?” the margrave demanded of his son upon sight.

Elias stepped to his father’s bed, and though his relief was evident, he did not hesitate in explaining, “You took a blow to the back of the head in the ambush. We won the battle, but the Duke Enrico was captured.” He looked at his father and narrowed his one good eye. “We had this same conversation yesterday. We thought you were better, but then you…”

The margrave looked stunned. “Last I remember…” he closed his eyes. “Walking into the fortress, and the ambush.”

“You didn’t remember that last time,” Elias sat on the bedside.

Reinhardt closed his eyes. “Enrico… was captured?” He opened his eyes. “And I wasn’t hit by an enemy.”

Elias’ concern grew. “What do you mean?”

“I was in a tight corridor. There were no traps above, and no place for any enemy to attack from. You said… I was hit in the back of the head?” The margrave rubbed the spot, yet his fingers found no scar to trace past his mane of red hair.

“…you were,” Elias nodded after hesitating a beat. “Are you sure you’re remembering this clearly? When you woke up last time, you passed out about eight hours later.”

“I’m certain. Gods be damned, how many days has it been?” Reinhardt grabbed the sheets over him and threw them off, then turned his body slowly. “You look grim. What else has happened?”

now. “On top of that… Nikoletta

Duke Sumner gathering forces to chase… someone attacking me from behind…” the margrave stepped away from his son, standing without assistance. “I feel… bare. I need my armor. I need to talk to

who had a way to grant an army access to

surprise. Then, his face grew stoic and he nodded. “You’ve grown up,”

#####

the horse as it had been decades since last she rode. Nevertheless, she was quick to remember how, and

be sure that everything was up to her standards. It was only there that they could eat, drink, and rest. Each of those experiences were short-lived, as they could afford no long breaks. Where it was reasonable, they exchanged horses for

unreasonably quick travel. When it was dark, they could light the way. When water was required, it was easily produced—this enabled them

and Elenore prudently advised that pressing into central Vasquer might mean

still he couldn’t avoid a select few from inside the city. Or

Leopold told Argrave as the king ate tiredly,

important to our strategy they spread fear. That’s how the Mongols did their thing, in large part—fear,”

they came from those fortresses,”

side where Anneliese ate a large loaf of bread. While she had the loaf in her mouth, he tore it in half

Leopold continued, stroking his white beard. “No room for deserters,

he chewed bread, then swallowed a spoonful of meat broth. “It’s your city. You want to kill free labor, that’s your business. Did you at least ask

before Rovostar’s apparent ‘defeat,’ and your tremendous victory in that chokepoint at Atrus. Regardless,

you talking about?” Argrave stopped

father’s conquests as they happened, drinking in all news eagerly. And Duke Rovostar is not a commander that is so easily beaten by one like Sumner, who hastily assumed

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