The World Dragon's Heir - Chapter 530: Rehomed

Chapter 530: Rehomed

Dominic stood up on the balcony and holstered the pistol from his right hand, while keeping the other low, hidden by the railing.

“Good afternoon, gentlemen. Might you be so kind as to tell us where we are?”

The group raised their bows with trembling knees.

“Are you a ghost?”

“Of course not. But that’s what a ghost would say as well, isn’t it? Why don’t you start with where we are?”

“Ten kilometres west of Soutford.” One of the men answered carefully.

“Oh, right on the Axbridge border, then. That makes sense.”

This was the furthest extent of the first storm, the furthest western town in Dagos. If they had been relocated by the storm, they had been hurled to the furthest extent of the phenomenon.

The man nodded, and Dominic continued. “Who is in charge here?”

The hunter shrugged. “Who the hell even knows these days? The Necromancer King sent a whole Regiment of undead to provide aid after the storm, but they killed all the Nobles and the town guards.

So, I guess that you could say that they’re in charge here now?”

“The Necromancer King of Shersdonia? Why would he send a rescue troop of any sort?”

The hunter threw up his hands in frustration. “How in the seven hells should I know? They just showed up through portals with food and then started killing everyone with Noble blood and turning them into Spectral Knights.”

“Alright. I take it that they’re all in town now?”

The hunter nodded. “I wouldn’t go there, though. It’s creepy as all get out. We’ve got two whole families staying with each of us in our hunting shacks so they don’t have to stay in a town full of undead.”

“Isn’t Soutford nearly four hundred thousand people?”

“Aye, most of the farmers have taken in people as well. The undead are staying in the Noble district, but the unholy magic is creeping everyone out. Everyone who has connections outside the city has left until things are settled.”

Dominic sighed. “Well, it looks like we’re here now. I hope this spot wasn’t claimed.”

The hunter gave him a faint smile. “You’re ten kilometres from the city, in the middle of the forest. Other than the fact that you’re sitting on top of my trap line, you won’t see much of anyone so close to the border.

It’s not safe to be here, the Axbridge army patrols the area to make sure that there are no smugglers trying to bypass the checkpoints on the road to Tinning.”

Dominic thought hard, and realized the issue. The road ran from Swasal in Skiple, through Thetle, in Axbridge, to Soutford, in Dagos, in only three days travel for a Caravan.

Naturally, there would be customs and tax collectors stationed all over the region.

“How is the situation, other than the undead?”

“Tinning is flooded. We’re alright. Swasal has minor flooding, as they’re right on the river. But Thetle should be alright. We’ve seen caravans from their direction since the wind ended this morning, and they’re not carrying refugees.”

“That’s a good sign. We’ve got a whole bunch of sailors and dockworkers in the house with us, along with some domestic ladies and evening friends of the free ports.”

The hunter gave a genuine smile this time.

“You know, I might actually like you, stranger. Never mind the horns, anyone who travels in a relic of a Barony Manor with a bunch of pirates and whores can’t be all bad.”

Behind him, Dominic heard Amie laughing. That was certainly one way of looking at things.

However, it didn’t tell them anything about how they had ended up here in the first place. The only thing that they could do was to either wait for someone else to arrive, or head to the city and talk to the foreign mages.

Assuming that they were willing to talk, and not just fight.

It wasn’t clear whose team they were on at this point. There were mages from Shersdonia on the side of Prince Kaizon, but they weren’t officially sanctioned by the King.

“Well, in that case, would you care to come in for tea? Perhaps some mulled wine? Call it a housewarming party, I suppose.”

The hunter’s friends still looked nervous, but they made their way to the front of the house, and Dominic went down to meet them as Amie woke the others.

They were groggy from the magic, but they weren’t injured, and they were overjoyed to hear that the storm wasn’t affecting the area, and that they weren’t dead.

That was the outcome they had all expected when things started going wrong.

Their first thought was that the barrier had failed when a tornado hit them, and that it was all over. Amie still had some concerns that it might happen again, but they were so near two other nations that there was at least some chance that the magic wouldn’t follow them.

When the hunters came in and saw familiar faces, Dagos faces, they were much more relaxed than seeing Dominic, who was clearly not human.

Then they saw Amie, who appeared to be a teen girl. An underage mage, by the way that she was dressed, and out of place among the rough and rowdy crowd in the house, or even the domestic servants that should belong to a Dagos Noble.

“Welcome. I believe that there is still some stew and bread to go with the tea. Just give us a moment to boil some water. We weren’t expecting to be relocated to somewhere that could get guests.” Dominic explained.

“Somewhere that can get guests?” The hunter asked, scratching at his scruffy beard.

“We were in Lytesin, and there is a major storm going on there, multiple tornados at the highest power levels we have rankings for. Everything is destroyed, either by floods or winds.

We were protecting the house with magic, and then something happened and here we are, just as confused as you are about how we got here.”

The cook nodded in confirmation. “Thankful, though. Nearly anywhere is better than where we were.”