The winter snow has finally begun to melt. Lotheris' forward operating post on the Isoban border has begun to change from frozen and miserable, to wet, muddy, and even more miserable.

A sense of anticipation and dread hangs over the camp. With the snow retreating and the weather warming, it's only a matter of time before the Isoban army pushes our position. War is just around the corner, and I couldn't be happier. Not that I'm okay with people suffering, but because I'm sick and tired of sitting around in this smelly camp doing nothing. Grinding dungeons is the only thing that has kept me sane over the long winter, and I've pretty much gotten everything I can get out of the ones close to us.

Oscar claps me on the shoulder, "You've got such a sour look on your face, looks like you swallowed a lemon."

I shake my head and release a pent up breath, "Just anxious. I think the worst part about all of this is the waiting."

The leader of the Golden Order nods his head in agreement, "Yes, I agree, and most of the men do too." He digs some parchment out of a belt pouch and hands it to me, "New orders. We have some preliminary reports that suggest enemy movement in certain areas. I would like you and that drake of yours to check these locations and see what you can find."

"Sure." I easily agree, desperate for something to do, and grab the report.

Making my way outside of the camp, I put my fingers to my lips and whistle out for my companion. A confirmation roar sounds in the distance and I can see the dark form of my drake flying towards me. It took the soldiers almost an entire month to get used to Mick, having a vess around isn't exactly comforting if you don't understand them.

Landing with a heavy thump, Mick shakes some loose mud off and snorts, it almost sounds like a greeting to me. With a single leap, I land on my friend's back and he launches us off into the sky. He roars and I laugh, smacking him lightly on the back of his neck, "Come on, now you're trying to scare them!"

With the heavy beat of wings, we ascend high into the sky. A shiver passes through me, not from the cold, my glassfire sword keeps me warm, but from anxiety. Sometimes flying still makes my heart race.

We pass over the camp, rousing some cheers from the soldiers, and head east. The first spot is an hour's flight away, so I settle down for the ride. Pulling out my phone, I check for any messages from the Goddess. Nothing.

Frustration has me gritting my teeth, she has been silent for a while now. I'm not going to hit level eighty without her quests, and I do need to hit eighty. Lotheris intelligence believes that Isoban has someone on that level. I'm easily the highest leveled person in the kingdom, and so the responsibility of taking on the enemy powerhouse falls to me. When am I going to get a new quest? Shouldn't we be cramming as many quests in as possible before the war comes?

We reach the first location faster than I thought. Mick is sure to keep us high enough to keep us hidden. If someone were to look up right now, they would just assume I were a bird, possibly a monster bird, but fairly harmless.

It's pretty easy to see that nothing is here so we move on. The next location is empty too, and the next just has signs of a camp having been there in the past. It feels like a waste of my time, but it would have taken anyone else days to scout these places.

The final location finally yields results. An enemy camp, and a massive one at that. I take out my phone and use its goddess blessed camera to zoom in and take pictures. It's honestly incredible how clear the images are despite my shaky hand. I wonder if my phone is a legendary artifact now, will it be passed down through the leaders of the Golden Order? Or maybe my family? Will I even need to pass it down? Supposedly a high vitality stat can significantly extend your life expectancy, and mine is quite high.

My idle thoughts are interrupted by a figure stepping out of a tent and looking up in the sky. Right at me. Zooming in with the camera reveals a man in silver chainmail wielding a rapier. His hair and beard are close cropped and blonde. He's a handsome man with a worryingly interested look on his face.

The man jumps into the air and begins rocketing up towards me. Mick panics and banks to the side, but the man is faster and intercepts us. A flash of silver knocks me from the saddle and sends me tumbling towards the ground. I scream.

Before I can panic, Mick plucks me out of freefall with his talons. He roars and douses the blonde man in fire before soaring away from the camp.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

Laughter rings out in the air. Silver blurs and the man is pursuing us, flying with some kind of wind magic. He's right behind us and the look on his face tells me he's greatly enjoying this.

Ranged attacks aren't easy for me, but I have a few options. I use my light manipulation skill to form a dozen bolts of light, narrowing them and sharpening them into a proper projectile. My finger aims at the silver man and a light arrow flies towards my target.

His armor shines in the way enchanted gear does and my arrow is harmlessly deflected. He laughs.

You're lucky we aren't on the ground, I'd thrash you in a heartbeat. But we need to keep moving, if the enemy army catches up I'd be horribly outnumbered.

I launch a half dozen more arrows at the grinning man, intent on at least breaking his smile, but they all splash off of his silver mail. I'm going to need something stronger. My mana swirls and the remaining arrows fuse into a single spear of light. I dump a bunch of mana into the tip, making it as sturdy and sharp as possible.

Before I can launch my spear, the silver man's joy crumbles into a dark scowl, and he abruptly stops following us. Looks like someone didn't want him chasing me and he isn't happy about it.

I let out a sigh of relief.

Mick lands briefly so I can climb onto his saddle and ride properly, I'm not looking to spend the few hours to get back to camp in his claws. My drake lifts back off and soars back towards the border with haste.

That silver armored man is going to be a problem. He must be a champion, and a high level one at that. And his attitude really creeped me out, is he one of those battle maniacs?

A snort communicates Mick's amusement, as if to say 'look who's calling the kettle black'.

I lightly punch the drake's neck, "Okay you made your point, but I'm only like that with monsters; I hate killing humans. That guy's probably a psycho."

As much as I like a good fight, this coming war concerns me. The photos on my phone depict a massive and well equipped army, and at least half of them appear to be undead. Good for me and my light magic, but much more difficult for the average soldier. Undead can only be killed with light, fire, or destroying their head, and that only works on the foot soldiers. The high level abominations are going to require a lot of work to take down.

I didn't see any high level undead, but that clearly isn't their main force. The Golden Order are going to be stretched thin if they decide to attack multiple locations at once.

At least the trip back is blessedly uneventful.

As we approach the outskirts of the camp, I can see a small crowd has gathered on the west side. Alarmingly, they are in combat formation, facing off against a single large humanoid. My heart skips a beat, was I followed? The figure looks way too large to be human, could it be an undead?

My drake passes low over the camp and I swing my leg over his back, dropping out of his saddle and landing on the ground with a heavy thud. The white and gold plate armor I'm wearing is splattered with mud, but I don't pay it any mind and sprint towards the creature.

The soldiers part quickly for me, everyone knows the hero around here. Already lines have been formed and archers are taking aim. Captains scream orders and the army of Lotheris stirs itself from its long slumber.

I skid to a halt, "Halt!" I scream, "Stand down, stand down! That's a vess!"

Over the winter through countless conversations, spars, and drinks, I've gained the respect of this camp. So when I say stand down, they actually listen. That and people tend to listen to people with high levels.

A dozen feet away stands a single vess knight.

Oscar jogs up to me with a look of concern on his face, immediately voicing my concerns, "What's a single vess doing here?"

I shake my head in response. Normally Ren sends me letters by scouts. Never once has any other vess showed up all winter long. Did she send it here for a reason? Maybe it's carrying an important message that warranted a protector?

My muddy boots take me closer to the towering knight, until I am directly in front of it. I notice the knight does indeed seem to be protecting something clutched in its arms. The knight is scanning the gathered army, the blade arms on its back bristling slightly.

"It's okay." I reassure the knight, "They won't hurt you. You can give me the letter."

This seems to satisfy the knight, who kneels down in front of me and unwraps its arms from around a black basket. No, it's not quite a basket. It's silly, but it almost reminds me of a baby carrier, it even has a cloth that is pulled down over the front of it. There's also a second basket that does just look like a plain basket.

Reaching for the cloth, I pull it up to reveal a soft, cozy interior with a tiny sleeping vess inside. My mouth drops open, it looks just like Ren. Well, if Ren was three feet tall. Her horns are little nubs, just starting to come in, and most of her skin is pale and human looking, with only the very tips of her fingers and feet looking claw-ish. There's no tail that I can see either, and with the black hair and soft facial features, it's undeniably Ren.

The tiny figure stirs and glowing, red eyes open to stare at me.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.