chapter 16

James had spent the next few days walking among the troops. All the troops were well built and they did know their material. His personal battalion was getting even more ready for the prospect of getting a promotion. They were training night and day. James had seen them practising fire magic. Their fire did reach to a particular length. They were able to combine the beams and with little and no books were they able to bring the idea of building a fire wall by combining their attacks. But the truth was there. They are nothing more than warriors. They will never be wizards. He did wonder why the queendom did not have a wizard army. Maybe it was true. Magic was only possible for a few. Whoever had learned proper magic was able to join the top spot in the country. Maybe it was why the children were sorted according to their magical abilities.

The idea of having the students of higher aptitude learn from the best mistresses while the lower ones learned meagre arts and mainly learned to use magical weapons like the commander. There were really a few among the common folk who managed the higher levels. The lower level ones even had the option of learning cooking, farming and other subjects. The higher class were able to step over this truth by one single method. Higher order artefacts. James was awarded himself one.

James knew the fact that the world was not fair. What he did not know was how the world was too much fair to him. He had learned magic by just understanding the theory and was able to summon a fire lordess. He was able to create weapons and modify most of the instruments into artefacts though none did reach the standard of the objects of the queen. The sword given to him was of a really good onyx and had an affinity to dark magic. He did have better ability to darkness though his present powers presided over the fire. The sword was so powerful that he felt like it was a wand. He never liked the idea of a wand as he thought it was for the weak people. But the sword did have power. Maybe it was what the princess said about lying. The sword he carried that day might have made her think that he was into dark arts.

James had modified the weapons of the commander. As a general he did receive a hundred gold coins per month. It was more than enough for him. The days were going by. He did have a lot more fun than he had had when he was at the academy. He had relinquished the wristband and he had felt freer from then on. The days passed by.

James had taught the commanders earth magics single attack. Controlling the earth to move up and be dropped on the enemies. It was pretty useful as they were in a deserted region. Apart from that, James was literally free to do whatever he wanted and he had spent the rest of the time understanding spells and how to do magic without them. He learned a lot through the time. He was getting the grasp over magic. The only thing left was to know magic for a lifetime, because he had perfected the technique. He had mastered all the arts such that he was able to do most of the things. He waited for the day he would be able to summon the primordial. The increase in his mana would be vast such that he would have the power to even destroy the worlds. He knew the facts. But he feared the queen. The queen of the Fenrir was said to have the power of the goddess bestowed upon her. It was written in the scriptures the time when the queen had fought against other races head on and won wars.

What James feared above all was destruction. The fact was that he did not want too destroy the world he lived presently. He had heard of tales of dark lords and demon lords arriving from different worlds and also the dark lords form this world going to the other ones. If he was able to claim the primordial, he would have tremendous power. But can he use only a particular amount of power before the whole world was swept in darkness.

Three men walked on the deserted land side by side. They were carrying huge bags and did not know when their destination would arrive or whether they will make it alive. They were walking with no rest at all, except when they slept after they ate the food. There was a possibility of animals attacking them but they cared for it not. As they walked side by side they kept mumbling on and on.

: The shift has come. The shift has come.

James had spent a long time in the fortress. The seal of the general was sent to him by the princess. She had said in the letter that if the army fails, he was allowed to summon his fifty thousand after the army of the griffin fails and also the dragon fails. It was written that he just had to call the name of the goddesses and command the figurine to call the troops and it will appear. He knew that the existence of such automates was questionable and there was no way to check the authenticity of the statement. But he was happy that he had accepted the post. He had to do nothing except be the general and the power had shifted to the princess. The possibility of there ever being a replacement for him was really less.

James was sitting in his chair when Olivia came to his room along with Mia. The possibility of both of them being together was really less. Yet when they appeared together meant only one thing. Something important had come up.

James stood up to receive the news.

Olivia: Three strangers were caught coming to the fortress. They had the pass to the borders, unlike some who crossed it without permission to enter the merchant city. They were tired and poor but they claim to be from the noble lines.

James: How is this of any concern to me?

Mia: You might as well as see them They had come over such a large distance saying your name.

James: They had come to go to the east mostly. East of here is the merchant city. They might have heard of me and might have come for some help.

Olivia: Nobody who goes to the merchant city take the pass. They go through the east door directly and then turns towards the north.

James: Fine.

James had entered the room to see three men sitting on the chair. Commander rat was with them and so were a few other soldiers.

Rat: Eat the food. You do look to have suffered from hunger over a longer period of time.

Freddie: I have my own food and is not interested in having anyone else's.

Rat: Just eat it.

Freddie: I am not interested woman.

Rat: Freddie. Eat the damn food.

James: Shut up you all. What is happening?

Freddie and the other two men stood up and bowed to the general in front of them. The soldiers had already stood in attention while he had come except Commander Rat. She looked a little nervous of having ignored the general.

Freddie: I came to here to meet you ser. This commander ever since I came have been trying to feed me. It happened ever since she heard my name.

James: Come with me to the office.

James walked out of the room with the other three men following him. The soldiers also began to move with him when he turned and looked at them.

James: Rat and the others stay here. You three come with me. Olivia and Mia. You too.

The six of them walked to the top where the general's office was. James sat at the office and looked at the others standing in front of him. Olivia and Mia had also come and stood to his either side. James looked at the three of them properly and indicated them to sit.

Mia: The magic coming from them is really low. Lower than a soldier. They might as well as be assassins.

Friedrich stood up and bowed again.

Friedrich: I am Friedrich Mathes ser. On my right is Archie Legan and on my left is Max Alchems. We are form the scholarly family and hence is our magic low. We use special food from the beginning of our life to convert all our mana for the sake of out brains.

James: Interesting. What might you be needing?

Friedrich: Straight to the point ser. It is that we have decided to offer you our services and hence come to request that you accept us.

James: Tell me on one factor. Why would I need the help of academics?

Archie: I am from the distant family of Legan. I know all the rules and regulations of the queendom that I can help you overcome any legal barrier placed on you by any of your political rival. I can even stand by your side and help you every time a new law is put forth.

Max: I can help you understand instruments and its values. I can smell the most diluted poison even in a bottle of wine. I can help you understand the essence of objects and help you check whether the gold is real. But my main talent is philosophy. It would be considered a manner of respect to have an attendant who knows the most intrinsic of the poems and the songs of the past.

Friedrich: I am Friedrich as you already know and I am from the ancient family of Mathes. My parents have taught me arithmetic and calculation ever since I was a child. I can help you calculate and analyse any data. I can analyse the situations of warfare and even the economical backgrounds. We three are graduated from the third-tier school. We call ourselves the trio of academia.

James looked at the three people in front of him serenely. He liked the idea of having three people with him but the risks were high. There was no provision for having such a person in the army, meaning he would have to pay for them, himself. Not only that, their use will only be in knowledge which he highly doubted he needed. James wanted to take the risk.

James: Mia, Olivia. Leave the room and close the door.

Olivia: I don't think it…

James: Leave the room Olivia. I want to talk to them alone.

Olivia left reluctantly while Mia left more freely. After the two of them had left the room, James looked at the three of them in front of him. He warded the door to be unopenable and warded the walls against sound permeability. He then looked at the three men one by one. Their clothes were shabby as if that of a D-block resident. Their tongue was well but that did not conclude everything. They did say they went to the third-tier of the academy.

James: Tell me. Why are you really here?

Archie: We are here for the exact same thing we said we came for. Do you really thing that we came without other motive.

James shifted his gaze solely to Archie. Archie sweated under the pressure.

Archie: SER.

James: Okay, suppose you are really true, what use will you to me, I rarely go to the court. The castle people do not care how I am and there is no need of luxuries for me. The battle count can be done by me alone and in a real battle instincts matter more. As far as economics is concerned, I do not care. The money I earn is saved and kept and when I need something, I buy it. What real life help will you be?

Max: We walked for three whole weeks…

Friedrich: It doesn't matter if we had walked for three whole weeks. The main thing that matters is if we are of any use to the general or not.

Archie: True. When you look it that manner there are of no use of us. But…

James: If there are no uses of you, you might as well as leave.

Friedrich: I would like to request that you consider us after checking us considerably till the end.

James: Fine. Tell me. Do you come to serve the general or the James?

Friedrich: The James who had attained the royal general title. There might come a day when you might be stripped of that position but we shall always be with you.

James: I am nothing but a mere male. In this queendom men are not given much privileges.

Archie: The top person is the queen. Apart from that the definition of the queendom stated that men and women are equal. You might as well as disrespect the women under you. I do not mean any disrespect, but you can even as them to have sex with you.

James: Why would I want to do that?

Max: We know you don't want to. But many of the ladies use this statement to slander men and high-ranking women even force their underlings to have sex with them. The lower branches of the society have even accepted the male form of slavery. The authorities just close their eyes as long as it is a male who is complaining but when a female complains, we are punished. That's why I left the previous establishment.

James: So as long as a person like me have power to precedent and demand justice, I am equal to a woman and is far superior than many women.

Max: Yes. That is the untold truth.

James: Interesting. I did learn a lot from you. But what is the passivity that I would need the three of you with me.

Friedrich: For solving a case we three would be really useful. For solving a problem, the same. There will surely be a time when there appears a political case on you. You might even have to fight the queen and it is better don in front of the court with words of appeal to every other member of the royalty. She will never say with her lips that men is beneath her.

James: True. I am ready to hire you as long as you talk to me each for one hour every day.

Friedrich: Okay.

James: I cannot provide you with much books.

Archie: Not much problem.

James: Answer me one thing. How come you are from a prominent family and is only three-tier. Isn't it a bit strange?

Archie: Did you think that we would lie…

Friedrich: This one has a little bit of temper of having faced many women in the court. He never was allowed to win though he was intelligent. As for the academy division we were send to, it is based on our mana production skills. Scholars like us do use magic to become sharper but that isn't everything. You surely know that.

James: True:

Friedrich: As for the family name, there are many who are allowed to use the name and is not even considered a real member of the family. We were merely made attendants but I assure you our knowledge is intact. We only used our names so that you speak to us but we had relinquished our names just as we had entered the academy.

James: Interesting story. Tell me why I shouldn't send for another scholar well accepted from a family. I can pay for them properly and also they will be accepted by others.

Friedrich: Because we are men. We do not have any other allegiance and hence will not betray you. There are many higher-level male scholars as I am sure you already know, but they will still be loyal to their family. Our survivability depends on your survivability.

James: Final question. What if I am declared a rebel by the queen and I hunted down.

Friedrich: We will happily leave your service and wait till you return to power.

James: You are wrong there. You should not be waiting for me. You should find work right away. I will come to find you if need arises. Never come to find me. It is a matter of life and death.

Friedrich: Got it.

James: How about five gold pieces for each of you for every month?

Everyone looked at James as though he was joking. The face blushed due to the sudden happiness they had endured. All the hardships and vainness were gone. All that was left was to keep on moving alongside the general.

Max: That would be nice of you ser.

James took the pouch from his pocket and gave five gold piece each to the three of them. They looked at him questioningly.

James: It is better to give you the money right now.

Friedrich: But what if we run away with the money.

James: I have an army and surely do have assassins in my ranks. I can easily track you down and have you tortured to death.

The three of them laughed at the joke. Seeing the seriousness in the face of the general they stopped. The general sat on his chair with having a weight on the air they breathed.

James: I want you to go to Olivia and ask for accommodations. I also want you to find someone named Erwin and ask him to teach you how to use a knife. I want you to exercise every day.

Archie: We are not soldiers.

James: Yes, you are. You will not be any use to me if you die in the hands of an assassin.

The three of them nodded. Seeing the general had not spoken for a few minutes they bowed and went to open the door. The door wouldn't budge at all. James waved his hand and the door was opened. James sat again like the last time, staring at the ceiling.

Woman 1: Men shall never be allowed to be powerful.

Woman 2: Isn't there no other way. I hate men, but.

The cloaked women came and caught the arms of the young underdeveloped woman's arms tightly.

Woman 1: Listen to me. It has to be done for the sake of mankind. Otherwise the goddess would be mad.

Woman 2: Men shall not live. Men are nothing but vile being bred by the devil.

Woman 1: The witch hunt shall begin again. Men shall be burned at the stakes.

James was enjoying a cup of tea when a letter arrived for him. The royal seal was visible on it. The letter of summons, the direct order from the queen which no one was allowed to deny. Any direct denial meant death. James went and got himself ready for the travel. He went to Erwin who was standing by the rails.

James: Erwin. Call all the commander and Rosy to my room. Also call the scholars.

James went away from there without even listening to what Erwin had to say. He waited for his officers in his room when all the commanders and generals came one by one. But baffled him was Olivia and Mia came to the room too.

James: Why are you here Olivia and Mia?

Mia: Since everyone was called, we thought we might come as well.

James: Let me rephrase it. Who gave you permission to come here?

Olivia: Sorry ser.

Olivia caught the hand of Mia and went from the room. James looked at the people that had been standing in front of him and noticed that Erwin was not there. He waited for a few more minutes and seeing that Erwin had not arrived asked Rosy about it.

James: Where is Erwin?

Rosy: He told you invited us. He did not come here at all.

James: Did he take the commands seriously. Anyway, I am here to tell you that I have received a Royal summons.

Rat: There are no approaching armies from the far north. The merchant city to the west of here is properly okay and the hills to the west from here aligning the forest does not have any forces hiding there.

Eagle: I have seen a few movements over there. This might be a direct attack on us. But the general need not be called under these circumstances. It seems there is another matter at hand. Something of a kind of direct mission form the queen.

Max: You should be taking me alone with you ser. I would be a lot helpful in that matter.

James: If it is the queen, we are talking about is there any legal way we can undo anything done by her.

Archie: As per the laws the right to punish the general griffin lies only with the princess heir and cannot be done even by the queen. The only power the queen has is to give James missions as he is one of the royal generals. If the mission is of limits then only the princess can challenge the queen.

James: Basically, speaking there is no use in having you along with me for this visit.

Friedrich: Do not underestimate the worth of Archie ser, this might be a summons because some other powerful matron had called in to complain about you.

James: True. But if I leave alone, I can reach there fast. And I also do not need any protection for this travel.

Fish: True. The attendants will be provided by the court and your needs will be taken care by them. The main if you are confident about your life it is best to enter the castle alone.

James: Fine. Then I shall leave for the court.

Eagle: I think you should at least bring along Rosy. Isn't she your Left Lieutenant General of the army?

James: No, she isn't and neither is Erwin the Right Lieutenant General of the army. The thing is that they are my lieutenants of the Rookwood army. They are completely separate from the griffin army.

Eagle: Are you saying we are the four are the top people in the griffin army after the general.

James: Yes. They are below you and is sure not above you. They are temporarily accepted in the griffin army as officers for the controlling the regiment of the general and also the special force. That is all.

Rosy: Interesting!

James: Hope you can take care of the things here.

Archie: Sorry to interrupt but why exactly was this meeting called into order.

James: So that you can give me any advice according to the situation.

Archie: But you haven't given us any information other than that the queen has summoned you.

James: Sure. But the possible reasons were intriguing. The fact that I might have been summoned to be given a mission does inform us that you all have to ready for most things. Not only that there is also the factor that if I am attacked you should be ready for any political standpoints.

Archie: True ser.

James: I shall be leaving right now.

Rat: Are you not going to bring any food or water like supplies for the journey. Also, a fair share of clothes.

James: Clothes are already placed in the quarters of the castle as for the food, I can live without food for a long period of time. Ever since I learned magic, I consumed a huge amount of food. But now I am able to satisfy my hunger with magic.

Rat: Yes ser.

James: Rosy. Did Selena send the horse that I had asked for the last time I was in the capital?

Rosy: The horse had been here for almost a year. We thought you had lost interest in the horse.

James: I never had any interest in the horse to begin with. All I wanted was to have a really powerful horse that can be used in a battle.

Rosy: Yes ser.

James: Ready the horse and bring it to the front gates. I will be coming down in half an hour.

Friedrich: Are you sure ser that you do not need our assistance.

James: Be it that I have hired you because of your intellect, you have not earned my trust.

The others left the room James sat there alone. He knew it would be better to bring the scholars along with him but he was sure that would be a bad idea. He knew he wanted to travel alone. I anything bad did happen, he would be able to summon Agni. And what was it that was told about having seen movement near the mountains. Wasn't Agni silent enough for that.

James had gone down to see his horse ready. He looked at the saddles by its side and sighed. It seemed these people did care for him. James smiled at everyone and looked at the alignment of soldiers in front of him. He raised his sword in to the air as he has read in many books and went rode into the wind. He knew the general direction where he was supposed to go. The magical sense helped a lot because the castle was like a lighthouse.

James rode onto the border and saw a few soldiers on the other side of the wall. They looked at him suspiciously.

Knight 1: Who are you male. Got lost from your regiment.

James did not speak but showed the crest in the back of his left palm. The soldier shivered due to pain.

Knight 1: So-sorry ser.

James: Just make it quick.

James crossed into the queendom and looked at the border town which was never mentioned in the ranking system. The place where soldiers and their family lived. The last line of defence. James rode on until he reached the castle. He had gone to his room with one of the knights and had changed his clothes. He was provided with food by the maid and he went into the chamber room as was shown to by the knight. The queen was seated there along with the princess, so was all the three matrons of the military family along with General Lucy and General Everly.

James bowed down to the queen high and then to the princess and sat down at the table chair he was indicated at, at the table they all had sat down at.

Queen: We were being seated here for three days, general.

James: I came by as soon as the message was received.

Queen: You could have used the crest to activate teleportation magic which would have allowed you to come here directly. Feel free to use it when you are in danger.

James: I was not told such magic did exist.

Queen: Why is it princess that such a thing was not informed?

Eleanor: I did not get much chance to talk to the newly appointed Royal General Griffin as he went directly to the fortress to do his job.

James: Apologies for the job princess.

Eleanor: There is nothing magical about it. Just say by touching the crest the following words, return to palace. That's it. As for summoning the army come forth my allies.

James: Interesting.

Queen: For summoning the army there are some regulation. No living being should see it. Also, they should be summoned in the mainland of a vast area. The army of automates are not summoned. They are just given an order to come to the caller and they move underground to reach to you.

James: Intriguing.

Selena: Nice to see you James:

James: Nice to see you Selena.

The queen tightened her hands such that the nails were already making a thin line on her hands. Little more the pressure needed to be for her to bleed. The queen was really angry in the face of the council that has newly come. It was that which made her keep her sanity though she acted sane.

Lucy: First matters first. How many members can you lend me general griffin?

James: For what?

Lady Stonewood: It seems like our new general does not have much information with him.

Queen. There, there. Do not humiliate him you all. The thing of discussion for the council is quite simple. There is a new Dark Lady.