White Ravens: Advent of War

Two Birds With Two Stones

It had been a week since the squad escaped Merseto by the skin of their teeth, and they had been hiding out in Valdano's estate in Ritz. Rune had already told everyone that he wanted to end the hundred-year war between Regalia and Wisteria, and his friends shared his sentiment.

However, they still had no idea where to begin. They had already spoken to Valdano through Leif, and it seemed that the man was willing to assist them. But so far, they hadn't received word from him that there were other lords within Regalia that wished a ceasefire.

During the course of the entire week, Zeke, Gust, Tatiana, and Yelena honed their abilities in spellcasting in order to reach Rune's and Sigil's level. Their previous encounter with the Black Hawks squad made them realize how powerless they were when it comes down to it.

Zeke and Gust were a bit too proud to receive help from Rune, but they were fortunate that Leif was often around. They found out from Corselia that Leif was a talented spellcaster. Although she only ever learned how to use magic on her own, she had a stronger control over her mana than the rest of the party.

Days passed by, and they soon became better than ever. Gust was able to conjure twice as many phantoms than before, and his wind magic became more potent than ever. His bodily enhancement spells improved, and he also learned how to enchant weapons.

Yelena was now able to withstand prolonged use of her shadow magic, and she was able to widen the reach of the shadow grip she used in the battle for Mirea. Tatiana, on the other hand, was now able to use offensive spells as well as her support magic. Additionally, under Zeke's tutelage, she improved her martial skills to the point that she was able to incapacitate him once.

Lastly, Zeke had learned to control his emotions during battle. He no longer relied on his adrenaline and bloodthirst in order to strengthen his will. Thus, he gained a better handle on his earth magic, and it was now even more stable than before.

Leif was impressed by how fast they all improved, but there was one other person that surprised her: Corselia. She was initially reluctant to learn how to cast magic, but she soon realized that in order to be more useful to the others, she had to learn everything she could get her hands on.

The rate of her improvement astonished everyone. Normally, someone their age wouldn't be able to learn spellcasting even with months of dedicated training. But Corselia exceeded all of their expectations. Similar to Rune, she was now able to cast enchantments on weapons, and conjure up weapons whenever she needed. However, her spells weren't as powerful as everyone else.

One fine morning, while everyone else was training with Leif, Rune and Sigil were out on a reconnaissance mission. Since everyone else was busy, they decided to visit the other towns within Regalia. When they reached the western gate, they were surprised to see Corselia waiting there.

"You buffoons don't even know where you're going. You're gonna need me whether you like it or not," she said to them.

Rune shrugged as he glanced at Sigil. "She's not wrong."

Sigil let out a sigh and said, "Fine." Then, he pondered for a moment and asked, "Do you know who Lord Reinbach is, Corselia?"

Corselia's eyes lit up upon hearing the name. "Regalians have a divided opinion of Lord Reinbach. Some of us say he's a coward, but others admired him for his desire for peace. If only we lived in a less cruel world, everyone would've hailed him a hero."

Rune averted his gaze, while Sigil continued asking more questions. "Was there a city, or perhaps even just one notable person who supported Lord Reinbach's cause?"

Corselia rubbed her chin, seemingly in deep thought. "There is, actually. Lady Lelei Merces. She once led an army of revolutionists who allegedly caused civil unrest, but in reality, they were only trying to overthrow a corrupt feudal lord. Sadly, her army lost the battle before it even began, because one of her lieutenants betrayed her. She's now being held in one of Regalia's heavily guarded prison cells: Fort Vestige, located in the southern coast of Regalia."

"Is there nobody else? It sounds like if we get her out of prison, it's only going to make the other Regalians hate us," Rune remarked.

"Lelei Merces, huh? I saw her name on the papers yesterday," Sigil commented. "We may not have to break her out of prison."

Then, he approached one of the newspaper stands to grab a copy, and show it to the others. Written on the headlines was "Lelei Merces, leader of the rebel army, to be executed in the capital city of Regalia in two weeks".

Rune immediately shook his head in refusal. "Oh, no. No f*****g way, dude. We're not doing that!"

Corselia felt confused but when she saw the look in Sigil's eyes, she figured it out. "You're just as insane as this doofus," she said while pointing at Rune.

Ignoring Rune, Sigil asked, "How long will it take us to reach the capital and what's the fastest way to get there?"

"About a week on horseback, but if we go by ship, we'll be there in less than four days," Corselia responded.

"I see," Sigil replied. "Then we'll have to go there by ship."

Rune slapped his own forehead and sighed. "Fine. But we need to gather enough intel first, and tell the others about this. It's probably best to prepare supplies for the next few days and learn more about the ins and outs of Regalia's capital."

Sigil chuckled. "I thought I was the worrywart between the two of us? Since when did you become so methodical?"

"Since you all got captured by Dreyfus, asshole. Let's just go back to the estate and ask for Leif's help," Rune retorted.

Upon their return to Valdano's estate, they found the others gathered in the lounge. Sigil told them of their plan to help Lelei Merces escape, to which the others immediately objected. However, Leif figured that it might be a good idea to get Lady Merces to their side, since she was a strong political figure before her incarceration.

Sigil's plan was to help Lelei Merces escape execution, and reunite with what remained of her revolutionary army. There was a high probability that if some of them had survived, they were probably going to try to rescue her. Thus, he wanted to take advantage of the situation and help the remnants of the revolutionary army to save Lelei.

Zeke told Sigil that he was either becoming more cunning or more reckless by the day. Gust and Tatiana were both initially opposed to the plan, but after careful reconsideration, they agreed that this was better than sitting around and doing nothing all day.

Yelena, on the other hand, said, "I go where Rune goes."

Corselia rolled her eyes and crossed her arms at her remark.

A few minutes later, one of the maids of the estate handed Leif a letter. Upon reading it, she said to everyone, "Lord Valdano has managed to convince a few lords to attend a covert meeting with him in two weeks at ground zero. He says that he'll need us to attend that meeting with him in order to ensure his and the other lords' safety."

"Ground Zero? You don't mean..." Corselia didn't even dare to finish her sentence.

"Unfortunately, yes. We'll be going to Old Valeria," Leif answered.

The others were also shocked to hear the name "Old Valeria". It was the former capital city of Regalia, which Wisteria destroyed ten years ago. A decade ago, it was the richest city in the land, even compared to Wisteria's own capital city. But after being besieged by the Queendom's strongest forces, it was reduced into rubble.

Now, it was just a lawless wasteland where thieves, bandits, muggers, and the scum of the earth resided. Many of its former residents moved to other places, but those that remained turned to a life of crime. Why Valdano resolved to meet at a place like that was a mystery to all of them, but Leif seemed to know something. However, she kept it to herself for the time being.

"Hold on, two weeks? But that's when Lelei Merces will be executed. We can't afford to assist Valdano if we want to save Lady Merces," Corselia remarked.

Sigil cleared his throat and proposed, "I may have a solution. We split into two groups. One group will rescue Lady Merces, and the other group will assist Lord Vanderbilt. Now, it's only a matter of who goes with whom."

"This goes without saying, but I must return to Sir Vanderbilt's side," said Leif.

"Alright, Leif will assist Lord Vanderbilt. Anyone else?" said Sigil.

Corselia raised her arms, and all eyes fell on her. "I'd like to help rescue Lady Merces. I've always considered her my idol. So, I'll be the one leading her rescue squad."

Rune grimaced at her last sentence and said, "You're not leading the rescue squad. You can barely lead anything!"

Corselia tried to smack the back of his head, but Yelena appeared in front of her, causing her to avert her gaze and cross her arms. "Whatever," she said.

"I'm going to help rescue Lady Merces as well," Tatiana chimed in. "It looks like there will be more injured people there, so you'll need my help there more than anyone else," she said to Sigil.

"How did you figure I'll help rescue Lady Merces?" Sigil asked.

"You're the one who proposed the crazy idea to rescue her, so I just assumed you'd take responsibility over her," Tatiana replied. "Besides, that doofus over there is needed at Lord Vanderbilt's side. He's the reason this is all happening, so it only makes sense that he's present in that meeting."

Sigil chuckled. For some reason, he felt like they were back in the academy again. This usual exchange of banters among them was one of the simple pleasures of being friends. "So, Zeke, Gust, Yelena, where are you going?"

"As I've already said, I go where Rune goes," said Yelena. "I'm not letting him do anything reckless again." Then, she tugged on Rune's sleeve and lowered her head.

For a brief moment, a smile appeared on Rune's face. Gust noticed it, but he decided against pointing it out this time. "Since Yelena is already in Rune's group, I might as well join yours, Sigil. You'll need a talented scout in your group, since it requires covert skills."

"Well, Zeke, buddy boy, I guess you're in my team, huh?" Rune remarked while patting his shoulder. It seemed that they had grown a little closer since the squad was formed.

Then, Zeke clasped hands with Rune and replied, "I wouldn't miss this opportunity to show you how better I've gotten."

Now that everything was settled, they all prepared to depart for their designated missions. Sigil's group gathered supplies for their trip to Regalia's capital, Vicencio, while Rune's group prepared to depart for Valdano's estate in Hadar.