The caravan had come to a complete halt amidst their journey due to a rather unfortunate scene.

  Harwin, having witnessed the spiked heads of the soldiers, was in a state of trepidation. The outpost was in complete ruins. None understood what had occured there.

  “Calm down Gor. I and Farelen will go inspect the area. Stay here and tell the others to get out of the carriage as well. Be vigilant of your surroundings for the time-being" Viyetral ordered.

  As they left, Harwin did as he was ordered to do. His face was as pale as ghost which made Landel and Alisa concerned, but they had no time to waste.

  Soon after, the captains returned and a small meeting was called upon with the caravan-master. It was held a bit away from the crowd. Only the captains and Harwin from the main group participated.

  “There is fresh blood everywhere and the attack seems to be fairly recent by the state of the severed heads. Nothing has been stolen from the outpost so the assailants were definitely not outlaws." Farelen shared his findings and then Viyetral continued:

  "It appears that it was not a small group that attacked them but a fairly large one, as it would not make sense for any outlaw party to target the outposts near the capital. The mutilation of the bodies do not make sense either, this seems as if someone was trying to give a warning of sort.”

  “What is the situation around the area? Have you sent for any scouts?” Harwin had calmed down a bit and tried to grasp the situation.

  “No sight of anyone in the vicinity. Either they are waiting in ambush or have simply left, having accomplished their mission.” Farelen replied.

  “So what is the plan now?” Pyrel, the caravan master, asked.

  “It is clear that we can not move ahead, as it is more than probable that the other outposts have suffered the same fate and the enemy might be waiting around. The capital will know of the matter soon enough and will task a search party for the perpetrators. I am sure, this new party will be more thorough in their inspections of the caravan, so our current arrangement will obviously become futile especially since they were already trying to find elves.” Farelen put forward his thoughts.

  “We will have to go off-road, but all things considered, we can not afford to move with the caravan anymore. We have to pick up the pace which is not possible with such a large group. It will be better to move close to a path that is near the great-mountains which is opposite in direction from here, to the far west, as opposed to the 'City Of Warlord' which lies eastward. From western moutains, we will be going to the first town instead of the southern great-forest. It will be a long road but better than to walk into an obvious trap.” Viyetral came up with a new plan.

  “What will become of my caravan? It was reassuring for your party to accompany it.” Pyrel questioned.

  “We can not proceed together anymore. You should head back near the Great-forest and let them know of the situation. I am sure that they will be happy to provide you with their assistance considering the circumstances.” Viyetral replied.

  “Very well, It is certainly unfortunate that I was not able to help you reach your destination.” Pyrel bowed his head in shame.

  “No need, you could never have predicted this outcome. Now then, deputy and battle-commander, are you both in agreement with my plan?” Viyetral asked while facing them.

  “It is a route that I am familiar with. The dwarves of the great-mountains have remained neutral and peaceful with our race for the last millennium, so it is safe to even visit their city without any sorts of problems.” Farelen assented.

  “I have no counter-plan or solution to this problem either, so I am more than happy to rely on your experience. Although, is this not too sudden of a change of strategy? Should we not send out scouts further, just in case the road ahead is safe.” Harwin questioned.

  “The risk is too much for the reward it may offer. I did not object to your plan the first time, as it is true that it is be better to save our time, but it is not absolutely necessary to accomplish our mission. Also, as you are aware, that the real roots of treachery lie not in the southern forest but in the first town where the leaders there have become too powerful..." Viyetral paused and then continued:

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

  "If I send Kraft and Landel for scouting or even go myself, it is more than likely that we will find the same situation that I have predicted already. It is possible that whilst returning, the scouts might leave behind footsteps which could give away our location to any well-versed man in the enemy party. If this is indeed a trap then we can not afford to risk it. As the sword-saint had ordered: our mission does not include fighting any unnecessary battles. Does that clear your doubts?” Viyetral replied.

  “Yes, I am sorry for doubting your judgement.” Harwin apologized while not meeting the gaze of the captain

  “Very well, then let the others know to prepare themselves. We will travel as far as possible from here. Pyrel, you should also try to get back to the great-forest as soon as possible.”

  After the issue of new orders, Viyetral began discussing some matters with Farelen while Harwin and Pyrel made their way back to the caravan.

  Upon returning to his party, Harwin found that Landel was no-where to be found while Kraft and Grantal were guarding near the carriage. After inquiring about the lad's whereabouts, Harwin found out that Landel was scouting the nearby area. It was a perilous task, but no one could have stopped that young man once he had determined to do something.

  It took sometime before his eventual return. In the mean-time, Harwin and the others readied up the carriage and the horses for their eventual departure. He also helped Pyrel in a few matters who was most grateful to the deputy.

  “Landel, where were you? It is dangerous to travel alone for now.” Viyeteral inquired with a stern glare.

  “There is a small party of ten well-equipped men, about a mile ahead on this road. They appeared to have encamped but do not like they are waiting in ambush. Also, the bunch did not appear to be humans, rather consisted of different races.”

  “This further confirms my suspicions. This small party might be part of a larger group scattered throughout this area to keep eye on anyone coming. Did they notice you?” Viyetral asked.

  “No, I kept a fairly large distance from them. This item from Iquaral was quite useful, as it can help me look at anything miles away quite clearly.”

  Landel handed the item to Harwin who upon observing it quickly recognized it to be a spy-glass. Of course, it was not as great as the one in his old-world, but it was enchanted by magika to further its effectiveness.

  “Good, but do not ever again act without orders!” Viyetral lectured him.

  “Now that everyone is ready, we shall begin to travel. We will be travelling through the night, but it will be better if the ones in the carriage can sleep so they will be able to guard at dawn-break.” Farelen ordered.

  Harwin, Landel and Alisa were in the carriage. Farelen and Kraft sat on the driver’s bench while Viyetral and Grantal rode their horses; all of them bid farewell to the caravan, and then began moving once again.

  The night was a silent one. There was no wind, but of course, as they went off-road, the entire carriage was bumping left and right. It was not going to break, but the constant turbulence was not making it easy for the ones sitting inside it to sleep.

  Landel did not sleep on his own accord. He was trained like a soldier and could not rest when the circumstances were dire. For now, they were out of the danger, but the unexpected could happen anytime, so he took it upon himself to scout through the window.

  “Gor, do you know of this new route?” Alisa tried to make small talk to pass the time.

  “Not really. Captain Viyetral and Farelen are quite familiar with it. They said it will be safe, but of course, there is not direct road to it which is the reason it is so bumpy.”

  “Why is there no road to it?” Alisa asked.

  “I have read about the dwarven towns and cities. They build their settlements in the mountains especially near caves, as they also did not like to interact much with other races. However, in the recent times, and by recent I mean the last two centuries or so, they have opened their trade routes to various human kingdoms and the elves in the first town. As you are aware, the elves residing in the great-forests like to keep themselves isolated from the rest of the world, so it would not have made sense to connect a route directly leading from your great-forest to the dwarven city of Gilbert.”

  “What do you mean ‘your’? It is also your home now. You know they respect and accept you with open arms in the village. I am sure that everyone there considers themselves to be indebted to you for the rest of their lives, even myself.” Landel interjected, it was out of character for him to speak with such emotions.

  “You embarrass me, I am not worthy of such words. I only did what I should have. I am the one indebted as you people freed me from slavery, and especially since you two became my first friends.” Harwin slightly bowed his head.

  “You call us friends and yet talk so formally all of a sudden. None of us owe each other anything because friends help each other no matter what!” Alisa said while being slightly flustered.

  “It is a force of habit. I will be sure to remember to not think in such a way again.” Harwin reassured.

  The trio talked about all sorts of stuff to pass the time with occasional glances outside as well. Soon, Harwin and Alisa were able to rest for a while.

  The night passed without any trouble. They were now far away from the outpost that had started all of the problems. With the first light, the carriage finally came to a halt.

  Landel was already awake and Harwin woke up as well due to the sudden stoppage. Alisa was still sleeping peacefully. Most of the night was spent on a rather troublesome road, so it was only expected to still be tired.

  The captains did not rest, even though, it was there turn to do so. They were too busy thinking of the next course of action. Leadership often requires sacrifices especially the sacrifices of your needs and desires.

  The path to the first town was going to be a perilous one. They would encounter life-threatening situation in the great-mountains but all of the events, that had occurred till now, made it seem like this was meant to be their destiny.