Though Jan did his best, there was still a lot of work to be done before the army could resume their march again. Westbridge was eight days away from here. That’s assuming the soldiers walk without extended breaks, something that Varre wasn’t willing to force them to do without a good reason. They needed time to rest and recover, so another three days or so would be provided to ensure that they were ready for battle as soon as they reached the city.

  Though he hasn’t contacted his advisors in the capital recently, choosing to focus on the final battle against clement instead, he left Benjamin in charge of communication. The chamberlain kept in touch with Steward Marna and confirmed that Duke Charles has arrived at Westbridge, surrounding the city and beginning his siege.

  The pretender also sent out his list of grievances to the nobility across the entire nation, urging them to join his cause. In it, he agreed with Clement’s assessment that Varre’s sudden ascendance to the throne was nothing short of suspicious. Additionally, the new monarch’s actions outlined thim as a tyrant.

  Most kings would have distributed their lands to their loyal subjects, allowing them to properly administer the realm, ensure security, and grow the kingdom’s prosperity. Instead, Varre chose to keep all of his ill gotten gains for himself. Hoarding land, wealth, and spending it to draft a massive army that he used to clobber his impoverished vassals with.

  He introduced sudden changes to his council, throwing out his Court Mage on some shaky allegations. Most likely, the real cause was to stifle any sources of opposition in the government. According to the duke, all these actions were just the beginning to a true reign of terror.

  Charles promised, that his tenure on the throne would return Logres to what it should be. Land would be shared with the nobility and their privileges assured. Peace and prosperity would abound. And all would be provided by a true, honorable leader, one who fought in the Langogne war personally, just as Mikkel had done. The only correct replacement for a hero like that, was another war hero.

  Of course, this last argument left Varre an avenue for a counterattack. When the list of grievances was first written, the duke had no idea that Clement was working with the enemy. As soon as the loyalists found out, and before the capital got encircled, they sent out teams of heralds across the nation, to spread news of the Western Province’s treachery.

  Once word got out that Varre ended up defeating Langogne in an open battle, with minimal casualties no less, Charles’ story would hold even less sway. Now Varre was the charismatic, experienced hero, and not some washed up old man.

  Regardless, the threat remained. Westbridge was under siege. And though it could survive for a couple months, every day weakened the incumbent king’s position. Highlighting him as a weakling, too incompetent to defend his own home. That couldn’t stand.

  The loyalist army would need to march out tomorrow. Supplies would need to be constantly delivered from Banbury, while the injured warriors could again be replaced by fresher ones from that city. Additionally, the captives could be sent there as well.

  With an influx of thousands of convicts, the city would be slowly turning into a prison. But there wasn’t any other obvious solution. The captives couldn’t remain with the army. They’d need to be kept under guard, they’d consume precious supplies, and they could cause little acts of sabotage along the way. Not to mention the risk of having them run and join the enemy forces.

  The rebels could theoretically be sent home. With Clement out of the picture, it was unlikely that anyone out West was still thinking of treason. All of his supporters were either already dead or in chains. Those who refused to join him before, wouldn’t do so now, after their figurehead was defeated.

  Still, having hundreds of angry peasants walking freely around the country would cause unnecessary chaos. The journey home was long and dangerous. The former soldiers could turn to looting or banditry before they made it. It was best to wait until the end of the war, when they could be safely delivered back to their villages.

  Langogneans were even worse. They were the enemy. Even disarmed, they couldn’t simply be trusted to walk back by themselves. Precious troops would need to be deployed to guard them on the road. The captives could even eventually rejoin Francois’ army, and turn around to continue the conflict.

  They were another issue left for after the war was concluded. Perhaps they could be ransomed back home, or settled out West, to replace the casualties from the war. After all, Clement said that they were of the same Aubinian culture. They should fit in well with the locals.

  Though it wasn’t easy, all the prisoners would need to be sent to Banbury for now, where they could be watched by loyal citizens. At least the granaries were filled enough to provide for everyone.

  In the meantime, Jan’s scouts continued scouring the Southern countryside, looking for fleeing survivors from the battle. Most of the soldiers hid in the woods, trying to rest before finding some way to return North. Many would get away, but the cavalry already managed to find two hundred of them. By the evening, they ended up capturing another hundred.

  Around two hundred were still considered missing, along with most of the enemy knights, but even if they managed to rejoin Francois, that wouldn’t be enough for him to keep fighting. He was out of the picture. For now.

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  But along the captives hid another success. One important enough that Elvira visited Varre to inform him about it personally.

  “How are you feeling, your majesty,” she asked, noticing his sullen expression, “I hope you weren’t injured?”

  “I’m fine,” the king deflected, “how about you? You were in the thick of it. And your flank had got hit the hardest.”

  “Indeed. It was… brutal,” she said turning away and looking out at the hillside, “we were completely surrounded and the rebels had no mercy. The worst part were the wounded,” she shuddered, “we were locked in that tight square and they couldn’t flee anywhere. They tried to squeeze past their allies, hide in the middle, but…” she trailed of.

  “I’m sorry,” Varre replied, unsure of what to say. It was his command that put those men in that dire situation.

  “Oh, no. No need to apologize,” she quickly waved her hands, “war is never easy, your majesty. And your plan was excellent,” she smiled awkwardly, “I’ve seen the casualty reports already. No one could have expected a better result.”

  “True, but being locked in like that, with no way to escape? Just trusting that reinforcements would arrive? It must have been horrible. I shouldn’t have put you in that place. That’s what I’m apologizing for.”

  “Please, if I weren’t there, then Tobias would have had a free hand to kill everyone with his spells,” Elvira reached out as if to touch his shoulder, but stopped herself. She gestured wildly to the side, in an attempt to conceal the motion. “You’ve seen what he’s capable of. He blew up half of your honor guard with a single attack!”

  Varre grabbed his head with both hands. “Oh no. I still haven’t asked how many died in that explosion! No one told me yet!”

  She changed her mind and gently touched the king’s forearm after all. “Don’t worry, your majesty. Everyone’s fine. Your guard is the elite of the elite, after all. A wide, dispersed attack like that wouldn’t have pierced their defenses. Just stunned them for a bit.”

  “And the battle after that? Clement threw all of his remaining knights into that charge!” the king insisted.

  “Noblemen try not to kill each other, if they can avoid it. Even in a war like this one, and in a suicidal charge, it’s hard to change that mindset. Their entire training focuses on disabling enemies, not executing them,” she smiled, “ransoms are important, you know? They didn’t have the time to finish off anyone properly.”

  “So everyone’s really fine?” he straightened up.

  “Yes,” Elvira nodded, “some are injured of course, but your healers are taking care of them. They’ll all recover soon. And that’s not the end of good news.”

  Varre raised an eyebrow and the Court Mage gestured for him to follow her.

  “The explosion was so large, that Tobias used all of his remaining aura on that last attack,” she continued, “that’s why he ran away instead of joining the battle.”

  “I see. And I take it we’re looking for him now?”

  “That would be difficult. He is a powerful wizard you know?” she laughed, “sure, at our level it takes several days to properly recover, but after a day, he’d have rested enough to kill most people who try to come after him. Especially just some regular scouts. If he wanted to hide, or flee to another country, there’d be little we could do to stop him.”

  The king stopped. “Then we must hurry! I don’t want a rogue mage prowling around my kingdom!”

  “Don’t worry,” she raised a hand to halt his train of thoughts, “that explosion cost him more than his remaining aura. That detour, where he helped Clement instead of running, gave me enough time to find a horse on the battlefield, gather a bunch of knights around me, and go after him.”

  “Does that mean…”

  “Yes!” Elvira jogged the last few steps to make it to the door of a nearby building, protected by a couple Royal Guards, “your majesty, I present you…” she threw the door open, “Tobias, the traitor!”

  The former Court Mage sat by the wall, in what seemed to be a former shed, tied up with ropes. His mouth was gagged with some rag, and he glared furiously at his captors, growling something incomprehensible.

  The prisoner was clearly dangerous. Even in this condition, no one was going to take any chances. A third guard was sitting on a stool inside the room, watching Tobias at all times.

  “Good job Elvira!” the king immediately cheered up, “one more enemy dealt with!”

  “Thank you your majesty,” she grinned, “but may I make a request? Or perhaps a suggestion?”

  “What is it?”

  “I know that he wronged you and your family, and that you are in every right to want him dead. But before that, I would like to take him with us to the capital.”

  “Do you want to interrogate him first?” Varre asked.

  “No, it’s not that,” she sighed, “I know that he is a traitor, but he is also a powerful member of the mage guild. While, again, I know that you have every right to execute him on the spot for what he’s done, I’d like to take him to the guild first.”

  “Really?” the king raised an eyebrow, “I thought you hated the Archmage.”

  “I do, I do,” she repeated, “it’s just that… look, I don’t want to have him be our enemy forever, alright? There’s no need to antagonize Kadmos any further. This could be an olive branch. We’d be doing him a huge favor.”

  “You want me to give this dangerous traitor amnesty? After killing half the royal family?”

  “No! No, it’s not that. Like I said, I know you have every right to execute him,” she rubbed her arm, “if we take him to the Archmage first, and allow him to deliver a judgement of his own before the death sentence… I’m sure he’ll appreciate it.”

  Varre scratched his chin. “I see. And what if he decides to pardon Tobias?”

  “He shouldn’t,” she replied, “I mean, his crimes are pretty terrible. He’ll need to fall in line. But I think it’s an important gesture. Following procedure and all. I don’t want to constantly be fighting with that man. We’ll need his cooperation if we want to turn the guild into a better place. And I think we both agree it needs urgent changes.”

  “So you want me to keep this dangerous prisoner alive, drag him all the way to the capital, expend resources to guard him, and deliver him to the guild, risk Kadmos taking his side, just to have him executed there anyway?” the king slowly reiterated.

  “I know it’s a lot.”

  Varre sighed. “You captured him. If you think it’s worth it, I’ll take your word for it. But I want you to keep him under watch alright? I don’t want him escaping and burning down half the camp during the night you hear?”

  “Absolutely, your majesty,” she bowed deeply, “thank you. I’ll prepare some potions that will drain his aura.”

  Upon hearing that, Tobias started thrashing again in his binds. The guard stationed inside had to walk up to him and backhanded him across the face to get him to calm down.

  “Good. And I’ll send someone here to interrogate our little friend,” the king added, “maybe we’ll at least get some picture of the truth out of this.”

  Not only did the count lose, the former Court Mage got himself captured as well.

  Will it be worth it?