Arrival at Gelhofen

After the spontaneous battle where glimpses of the true capabilities of Zark's subordinates were glimpsed, the surviving Werns decided to leave the farm as quickly as possible.

It took a while for everyone to regain their composure, Cassandra and Myriam were barely keeping their cool; Marcel had a stiff and stoic expression, thereby showing a lack of feeling or emotion.

On the other hand, Grandpa Gunther was immersed in his thoughts about what the future would bring, the fact of surviving was something he took for granted, together with someone of Zark's caliber, it was easy to know that he would continue alive

On the other hand, Grandma Lilian did not know what is happening, she simply knew that they had to move.

"Can you do the same thing you did to me to her?" asked Grandpa Gunther referring to his sudden rejuvenation.

"I could ..." Zark started "... But I won't"

"Why?"

"What would you do if you knew that you can live forever?"

"I would find a way to obtain it"

"That answer was to be expected, but I will tell you that not all people have the will to live forever; even less so when the person who obtains immortality is someone of a race that has a relatively short life "

Hearing Zark's words, Grandpa Gunther swallowed hard, he should ask the next question.

"How do you know that?"

"That is irrelevant; you should help your grandchildren to pack "Zark answered avoiding giving a real answer.

It took ten minutes to pack a few things they needed, these being: clean clothes, blankets, a raincoat, and baskets of food.

They had a cart in the barn but it would be of no use to them, since the horses were killed when the undead attacked.

The loss of the chariot seemed to have demoralized them, as the Werns' faces were grim.

With no other alternative, they started pulling things out to make their luggage lighter and easier to transport.

Feeling a stab in his cold heart, Zark stopped them.

"Stop. We will help you "

Zark approached the luggage they had prepared, when he prepared to hold it, Keil quickly beat him and it was she who lifted the luggage

"We will take care of it My Lord" were Keil's words as she along with Ingrid and Nyos helped carry other things.

With a slight smile, Zark nodded and began the journey to Gelhofen village.

♦ ♦ ♦

Finally reaching the village of Gelhofen, the moon was high in the sky emitting its serene light over the place.

The central part of the village was surrounded by torches stuck in the ground, and it seemed that the majority of the population was moving around in a confused and frightened manner.

While crossing a normal wooden bridge, supported by two stone pillars with a length of about 8 meters long and 2 meters wide. Quickly a group of villagers approached Zark's newly arrived group.

A small crowd anxious and with a worried face approached the group led by an imposing Zark.

The peasants were armed with agricultural tools, posing no threat to might that only one of Zark's companions was capable of demonstrating.

The first to come up was a name in his 40s, who said "Mr. Gunther, is that you?" his words denoted a certain surprise, perhaps at the fact of seeing Grandpa Gunther walking.

"Who else would be?" Grandpa Gunther answered curtly.

The man nodded, since his question was silly, so he decided to change it "What happened? Who are they?"

Grandpa Gunther sighed heavily before answering "We left the farm" he stopped and looked in the direction where Zark and his companions were "Without the help of these travelers, we would not have survived."

"Travellers?" With those words, the person who looked like the boss looked at them directly; His gaze reflected a detained scrutiny in each of the members of Zark's group, it seemed that he was making sure that they were the same ones who saved the miners "Are they the ones who saved the miners?"

"Yes, it's them." Giving room, Grandpa Gunther allowed the man to come closer.

The man approached and introduced himself as "I am Gregar Brioche, head of the village" he bowed slightly before continuing to speak "Thank you, you saved my nephew."

"No need to thank" Zark began "Anyone would have."

As the man introduced as Gregar gave a look full of expectation, he looked around, it seemed that he was looking for someone.

"Where are Emrich and Hugo?"

As he made his way to the center of town, Grandpa Gunther replied

"Dead"

♦ ♦ ♦

Main buildings in the town of Gelhofen

Located in the north of the Gelhofen fence in the northern section of the river that came down from the mountains.

As a means of passage to the south, there was a normal wooden bridge, supported on two stone pillars having a length of about 8 meters long and 2 meters wide.

Next to the river there was a Mill with a large hydraulic wheel that made its internal mechanism work; It was occupied by Gregar Brioche, along with his wife Simone and his daughters Nara and Laira. The mill is a two-storey building, it was the largest compared to the rest of the houses in Gelhofen. Next to the mill there is also an apple orchard surrounded by a fence.

Like most of the buildings in the town, the Heyman family's house was located in the central square; It is a normal house, inhabited by Kastor And Gilda Heyman, a middle-aged couple.

Adjacent to the Heymans' home was the home of Reinwald Lutter, a lonely 71-year-old man suffering from early stage dementia, apparently some kind of military leader of some sort in the distant past.

Away from the main square, next to the path that heads west down from the town was the house of the Lauterbarch brothers; Andres and Gottlied Lauterbarch live here, quarrelsome brothers aged 22 and 23 respectively. The land behind their home is fenced off with a fence that they have put up to protect their trained (and fierce) ferrets. Both are usually drunk, almost always idle and ready to hit someone.

To the north of the square is the Krautheim house; villagers refer to them as rabbits. This is due to their numerous descendants: Hedwig (16) and Tilda (15) their daughters and their sons Leopold (11), Wolf (8), Diehl (5) and Werner (3). You could say that this house is crowded. Anton, the father, is a strong 34-year-old man, while his wife Gretchen is a woman with greasy hair and a bland-looking face who is usually seen with a rolling pin, currently six months pregnant.

The couple residing in Villa Giscard in the eastern section of town are run-down middle-class people, although they still have pathetic pretensions: rose bushes that climb framing a sign with the family's name on the front door, Varnished wooden pots on the flat windows of alpine flowers and the like. Both Alphonse and Mimi are both middle-aged, 36 and 34 respectively, although the years have affected them differently. Alphonse's most prominent feature is his extreme fatness, while his wife Mimi has a secret affair with Knud Bergman. Her Daughter Fleur (9) is an unpleasant girl with shaggy hair and misshapen teeth, fond of biting people; In short, she is a horrible spoiled brat.

Trappers Knud Berman and his cousin Waldemar have their home by the river in the eastern section of town; they are currently on a hunting expedition. Mimi Giscard cleans their house while they are away. They will not return to the village, as they are being eaten by hungry bears at the precise moment that Zark and his companions arrive at the village.

The town has only one place to buy objects, this being the Prapin Store: Giller and Etilda Prapin compete with the Giscard in bad taste when it comes to decorating their houses. His home also functions as a village shop, Giller makes frequent trips to buy merchandise (blankets, pots, pans, tools, cloth, etc.) which he then resells in the village for a good profit (everything is worth twice the normal ).

The Stables and Vaquería of the town They are owned by the Widow Rouz. This is the only accommodation available to most unfamiliar visitors. This large building has a somewhat defective roof and is home to four horses and half a dozen cows, the occupants often being awakened an hour before dawn by the constant bellowing.

The widow Eletha Roux lives in a house in the West section of the town next to the River, her husband Pierre having died two years ago, Eletha is a beautiful woman, pretending to be a young woman of about 30 years while her supposed real age is around that At 54, she has no intention of becoming a bitter spinster. She can be quite rapacious towards any male she detects with sufficient manhood; she owns the stables and the vaquria and the villagers pay her (with money, food or aid) to use the place. Eletha is a generous and kind woman, very loved by the community. Madame Roux has an adopted son named Armand Roux, a 20-year-old milkman and pastor.

Villagers worked together to build a communal barn in the western section of the village along the road. Grain and other food are stored here, although the barn is somewhat larger than would actually be needed; when the villagers built it they thought Gelhofen would grow bigger. Currently the most relevant thing in the place is a flat-bottomed river barge.

In the central square is the Gascoigne House: Alain Gascoigne lives here with his unfortunate wife Veronique. Veronique contracted the Black Plague as a result of a rat bite from Vivian before moving in, the disease was cured after several unsuccessful attempts, but Veronique was left disfigured and incapacitated. Alain was hoping that the mountain air would help her and brought her to this house of a relative, but Veronique hid at home and never allows anyone to see her. Alain is now mired in pessimism and despair. However, Alain is a man with military experience and he is not just any villager.

Next to the Gascoigne House is the Lagisquet House: Guillaume Lagisquet and his wife Chantal live here with their unbearable 12-year-old daughter Monique and their newborn Jean-Michel. The Lagisquet are distantly related to a small noble house in the Kingdom of Lothal and they do not let anyone forget it. They are not very appreciated by the rest of the villagers. Guillaume is 51 years old, 17 years older than his wife, who is 34 years old. This age difference provoked ironic comments from the other villagers.