'Baron had already killed them and even placed their heads on the execution platform!' Abium felt deep anger towards Baron Harry.
The next instant, the image was dispelled and replaced with the void-like circle.
Abium soon opened his eyes in his room and took a deep breath.
"They are dead," Abium muttered in a low tone, got out of his room, and returned to the reception hall. As soon as he reached the reception hall, Abium asked Page to follow after him and moved out of the manor with a cold expression on his face.
"Let's go."
Noting the serious look on his face, Helena sheathed her sword and chased after Abium. Claude and Viper also stood up and walked out of the hall. Meanwhile, Sarah, Lily, and Kuran remained in their seats and appeared gloomier.
"Let's arrange the accommodation for those official guild members. Miss Lily, can you help me select which building is suitable for them?" Kuran quickly turned his face to normal and asked.
Although Baron's matter was serious, he didn't put much thought into it and focused his attention on the current problem.
…
Frozen Mountain Range's base.
It was around 1 P.M.
After hours of travel, Abium, Page, Helena, Viper, and Claude crossed the Alastall woodland and arrived near the underground tunnel entrance. They noticed multiple human and even horse trails near the tunnel entrance a moment later and got confused.
'Baron's soldiers must have come to our territory to check.' Abium thought.
Without minding the footprints, the group entered the tunnel and arrived at the other side after an hour of travel. But soon, they got surprised as they saw a check post on the other side. Unlike last time, ten guards stood guarding the tunnel exit and looked well-armored.
As Abium's group walked out of the underground tunnel, the soldiers noticed their arrival and blocked their path.
"Page? Why are you bringing Baron to our territory? Haven't Lord Harry told you earlier to deliver the message and get the money along with you?" A cold voice came from the crowd of soldiers. Abium squinted his eyes and soon noticed a familiar face.
Abium remembered the soldier's face. His name was Glover, and he was the one who blocked Abium's carriage when they entered Moondale town. While Abium was analyzing him, Glover looked coldly at Abium's group for a second and shifted his gaze towards Page.
"I got the money. But Baron Abium said that he didn't trust me. So, I have no choice but to let him accompany me." Page said with the same arrogant voice.
"...Yeah, you do look like a criminal," Glover said with a laugh and turned his attention towards Abium's group. "If you want to enter Lord Harry's land, you must pay ten white gold coins per person as tax." His words almost infuriated Helena, but she gritted her teeth and stood silently.
In the meantime, Abium sighed heavily and started to speak coldly.
"We will wait here until evening. If our soldiers didn't return before dusk, you and your lord would know the consequence of opposing a mage."
Glover's expression went stiff for a second, and soon he nodded while taking a few steps back.
On the other hand, Viper and Abium remained cold.
As the carriage arrived near the check post, the carriage driver pulled the horse rein and stopped the carriage.
A moment later, two new soldiers walked out of the carriage while opening the curtain and turned their gaze towards Abium's group.
After that, both took out a bunch of leather bags from the carriage and threw those at Abium's group direction with disdainful looks on their faces. Even the remaining soldiers who stood on guard were perplexed by their rude behavior, giving them a questionable stare.
"This is Lord Harry's first gift. Treasure it." One of the soldiers shouted with a hint of mockery and soon signaled the coachman to return to Moondale town. In a blink, the carriage turned around and vanished from their sight, leaving everyone dumbfounded.
Sniff!
Helena slowly sniffed the air and frowned as she noticed a rotten scent coming from those bags.
"Head!" She called out in alarm as she opened a bag in a hurry. It was the head of a newly recruited soldier from the released slaves! Meanwhile, Claude knelt and picked up a black-haired warrior's head with a painful expression on his face. Edward was a good friend and had been with him for years. But now, he died for no reason, making his blood boil in a seething rage.
"What is your next move, Young Baron?" Viper glanced at the bloodied bags and asked with the same cold tone as he had already expected this type of outcome.
"We are going back. We will do a proper burial for them. After that, we will think about what to do next." To everyone's surprise, Abium shook his head and replied.
His reply made Helena and Claude widen their eyes.
"Tell me the reason why we shouldn't go and butcher that baron?" Helena asked in rage.
"I have a reason. If we go now, there is a possibility that some of us will die there." Instead of Abium, Viper responded to her question while shaking his head. Upon noticing Claude's and Helena's puzzlement, he sighed heavily and started to explain.
"Baron Harry is not some foolish idiot to demand such an absurd amount without any background strength. Unlike commoners, the nobles are well-literate and have basic knowledge of the outside world. He should have already known the danger of opposing a mage. Even if he did something foolish like the last time, their family elder would have warned him. I think they had planned this big trap and then provoked the Young Baron. If we walk into the trap, there will be some casualties."
As she heard Viper's words, Helena started to understand the seriousness and was deeply startled. Meanwhile, Claude turned his gaze towards Abium and said solemnly.
"From the rotten smell coming from their heads, I can tell that Baron had killed them yesterday or the day before yesterday." He stopped for a second as he thought of something and hurriedly asked:
"What about the money?"
"Don't worry about the money. I didn't give the money in cash. Also, those two cards are just fake ones." Abium said as he turned around and walked into the dark, gloomy tunnel.
"You already knew?" Helena picked up those bags and followed after him while asking.
"Well, I also do divination sometimes. So, it's not a hard thing for me to see through the Baron's plan." He said while glancing back at Helena.
'If Page had asked me to pay cash, it would have ended differently.' He sighed inwardly. If he hadn't cast seer's intuition spell and hadn't used that mysterious fountain's power to check Edward's physical condition, he would have lost 2000 white gold to Baron Harry's family.
'No, I would have walked into the trap and got killed already.' A bitter smile appeared on his face. What made him angrier was the necessary death of the veteran soldier!
'I failed to protect him. Although it was an unexpected problem, I should've made some preparations against the Baron.'
While Abium was walking in deep thought, Claude, Helena, and Viper got startled inside by his last reply and followed him into the dark tunnel in silence.
The group soon reached Amaryllis Town around midnight. A woman's painful cry resounded inside the town within a few minutes, waking everyone up.
She was none other than Edward's wife. At that moment, a 13-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl stood behind the fallen blonde-haired woman, and both looked at their father's beheaded face with teary eyes.
Everyone from Claude's group also gathered before Abium's new manor and stood there with a seething rage in their eyes.
A day later, in the corner of the cemetery near the Amara town's Southern Gate.
A large crowd gathered before a new tombstone. On it was Edward's name carved. A few feet away from there were another five graves.
Edward's wife stood before Edward's grave with dead eyes and seemed to have lost any will to live. Behind her stood both of her children, and their eyes appeared scarlet red color.
Abium, Claude, and another two warriors carried the coffin and walked over, lowering the coffin into the grave.
After individual prayers, the grave was filled with soil, covering the black coffin bit by bit. The grave was leveled, and soon a stone slab was laid over it.
Under the mournful atmosphere, all the members started to disperse with angry faces.
...