I looked up at the sky with a frown on my face.
My Divine Sword was stabbed into the ground, a faint crackle and arcing of lightning that lightly danced down its edge and into the earth. My hand lightly caressed the hilt as I watched above, the booming of thunder and the thunderous crackle of lightning drowning out most sounds around me.
My storm was currently propagating overhead, ever so slowly spreading outward with resistance.
The Sky wasn't connected to the Earth, I warned everyone as soon as we came in. I could feel it from my Authorities over the Storm.
Flying up might not end with someone continuously going upwards. They may be lucky to not end up in some misbegotten corner of this strange realm.
And not only that, but I was currently contesting the skies above our little foothold against the true owners.
I could feel them, there were more than two, more than just the Queens of their courts.
But I didn't back down, I couldn't see them properly, but through my Authority, I looked back at all of them and I could feel the emotions rolling across the metaphysical realm above.
At the very least, I didn't want them to be able to just hover over our breech and have that kind of top-down superiority.
Admittedly, I could feel the edges of my storm flaying as they ate away at its unnaturalness with their own control.
The Sun thing.
Presumably, that was the Summer Queen of the Summer Court, one of the major factions of this place. She basically created a miniature sun and threw it at us.
She had a hint of disdain in her tone over the air as she threw it, telling us to 'survive' as if it were something casual. But after experiencing it, I could vaguely understand the sentiment.
Did it piss me off? Completely.
But what she did was basically the same as me making my storm above, perhaps on a slightly grander scale, but no less destructive and overbearing in application.
I took her by surprise when I took it and threw it back at her using my newfound Authority.
I couldn't blame her, I could be taken off guard if someone I barely acknowledged took control of my Storm and basically hurled it back at me with such fervor out of nowhere.
Still, in that small exchange, I learned quite a bit.
It wasn't an Authority in the normal way when one spoke of Gods. No, it was much closer to something I experienced rather recently when fighting my cousin – Arcueid.
That was frighteningly close to a Marble Phantasm.
Realistically, there wasn't much a difference when looking at the outcome, but it did produce some manner of hesitation on my part that needed further consideration.
The same when the presumed Winter Queen basically sent a sea of Ice and Frost at us rather casually.
It wasn't Magic or spellcasting, it was the forceful application of natural phenomena on a grand scale overriding the current world.
So far, these Fae were the closest approximation to Elementals and Nature Spirits compared to my home that I've ever come across.
And those were just probing actions at the end of the day.
Just as they were doing right now bearing down on my storm while I continued to fend them off.
Regardless, I let go of my sword, letting it stay impaled in the center of our camp as it could shoulder the storm on its own.
My storm expanded a bit over a kilometer at this point which was good enough for now.
And there hadn't been another half-hearted attack, so at the moment I felt fine letting things progress on this end by themselves while I checked on other things.
I was able to pull my focus away from my storms above to properly look around at what was being set up down below.
I noticed Artoria with probably about a hundred Knights at her beck and call, they were situated around a table plopped in the dirt with some parchments spread out as she was throwing out orders.
Mordred moved her lips and grabbed a few people and ran off in one direction.
At the edges of our proverbial domain, the Druids that had cropped up among the Youkai were accelerating the growth of Earth-sourced trees.
That was an interesting concept I hadn't thought of until it was brought up among the older Celtic Druids that taught many of the Youkai in the months leading up to this invasion.
It was something passed down mostly in stories about the Fae coming to the Old Countries and bringing with them plants and such from the Fae Lands that acted as sort of an anchor that allowed them to come and go from a specific spot.
It was the same logic here.
In other terms, we were forcing the common sense of our home as much as possible onto this small part of this world.
It wasn't Alien technically. This place, these Fae realms were wild and untamed, which sounded odd considering there were living beings here that developed into some sort of society.
But by their nature, the beings here were Chaotic. If Earth was that of an established Order, Gods and Humans creating civilization, then this was the reflection. But just as there are Chaotic elements on Earth, this place too had Order within its established laws.
Chaos cannot exist without Order. If there was only Chaos within this realm, then Chaos would no longer exist because it would be the only order of existence.
What we were doing was essentially bringing the idea of Order to this small area and emphasizing it.
And despite Youkai being born from Human fears and imaginations, they were heavily tied to humanity thus existed on the other side of the fence in comparison to the Fae.
Besides the people specifically important to me, there were plenty of others running around setting things up.
Thousands of Youkai poured in, walls were being erected, tents were set up, a whole outpost was quickly being assembled as orders barked from the higher ups.
This had been meticulously planned for months and things were looking good.
"Student, are you finished?" Scáthach approached me.
I glanced up one more time. "It should be enough, I don't think they can spy downward now that my storm is blocking their 'view'." It didn't need to be mentioned that my Storm would contend against any other weather based phenomenon they attempted to throw at us.
Again, this was only really necessary because the Sky was so detached from the Earth that made it difficult to manually contend against such effects.
"How's the setup going?" I asked, knowing she was one of the first to claim a kill as soon as we entered. I was more focused on setting up the perimeter while she joined others in clearing out bodies.
"The Boundary has been erected, and Bounded Fields will be properly established momentarily." She replied, standing next to me as we watched the scene unfold. "I believe I need not go into detail how an established boundary can increase the effectiveness of a Boundary Field." She held a small smile, taking a light teasing tone.
I rolled my eyes, Magecraft 101 there.
The initial barriers and defenses were temporary, with a proper boundary set, we could turn this foothold into an actual camp. When land is claimed through certain means, defenses generally are more powerful when erected as the 'owner'.
"Young Lord." Soma appeared out of the corner of my eye, kneeling politely at my side.
"Soma, I've said it before, you don't have to do that." I let out a small sigh. Soma was perhaps Yasaka's most loyal retainer and Guard. I knew he wouldn't stop. "Weren't you supposed to be watching over those….reporters?"
Yasaka let in a Devil Reporter which….wasn't the worst idea. Honestly, whatever they recorded wouldn't be a secret and we could control the narrative to an extent. Hell, the purpose of this invasion was to send a message, so this did benefit them rather well.
"They are in good hands, Young Lord. I bring a missive from Lady Yasaka. She ordered me to perform my secondary duties now that the Holy Power within the lands has eased."
Right, the sanctification that the Church people did. Honestly, without that, the whole idea of claiming Fae Land would have been….a fool's errand at best.
Religion was an antithesis to Fae's beliefs. The Church as a doctrine was not only the most prevalent, but perhaps the most contrary to their existence by relation to the fact that there is only One God they worship and thus belief is more centralized.
"What did Yasaka ask you to do?" I wasn't familiar with his 'role' in this context.
"After noticing that some of the foliage responded with hostility, she requested that I use my Sacred Gear to seep into the ground beneath us and create a space so nothing can approach from below." He responded.
"Ah, I see. She came for you to ask if it would disrupt the portal. You're good, go ahead." I waved him off.
"At your leave." Soma bowed and disappeared through the use of his Sacred Gear.
"I swear, some Sacred Gears are just cheats." I pursed my lips.
"My student, that sounds like jealousy." Scáthach had a grin as she nudged me.
"I would be lying if I said I wasn't a tad envious of how some things are so easy with it even if I can overcome it with my Magic." How easily it can create Dimensions, hence its name, was commendable and worthy of respect.
Not to mention he had another role, which was coming up soon, to disrupt the space in the camp once everything was set up.
Obviously, we couldn't have people just teleporting on top of our heads.
"What are the others doing?" I didn't want to make a nuisance of myself. I went to find everyone as I didn't have anything I specifically needed to do at the moment other than stay on guard.
"Your Servant is acting with the Youkai of the East – Nurarihyon, to scout the surroundings. The young lass is fortifying the area with her Knights, and your Youkai Lover is currently handling the logistics of moving her soldiers into this realm." Scáthach listed off. "Are you anxious?"
"Perhaps." I admitted. "I'm not one for wars, so I'm a bit out of my depth here." I wouldn't really compare the week I spent in the Norse realms the same. Sure, that was a war, short as it was, but this was a whole other beast to tackle and I was not involved in the field battles. "Tell me about the things you killed when you first arrived."
"Mindless beasts." She said simply. "A reflection of what you would expect in a forest, but magical in nature with a hint more intelligence. However, they are distinctly native to this realm thus are the same as its inhabitants."
"Right, Fae is a rather large umbrella term. It would be like calling both Yasaka and I Earthlings." I tapped my chin. "Anything worth noting?"
"A large type of cat I slayed had its tail turned into a tentacle-like whip and tried to stab me with it. That was the oddest one I encountered thus far. Most Fae I have met in my life were Changelings, Earthen Clan, or those powerful enough to take on human-like appearances."
"I admit my knowledge of Fae back home is…lacking. But from what I recall, the difference between the top of the Fae ladder and Divine Spirits is a very thin line."
"That is correct. In my homeland, there were many Gods that were also Fae." Scáthach nodded. "Be wary, but do not waver. There is a fine line between hesitation and consideration, my student." She lightly cupped my cheek and sneaked in a kiss on it. "War is different than fighting."
A strange commotion arose from the north side of the camp. It was enough that everyone shifted their attention that way even if they didn't stop what they were supposed to be doing.
Both Scáthach and I shared a look before we went over to check it out.
There was a person….well, a Fae.
Why did we know it was a Fae? Well, it looked like a caricature of a Pimp and a caricature of a Leprechaun had a child, and it wore all navy blue with the flamboyant clothing and adornments.
He was also about three feet tall waving around a piece of white cloth, the universal sign of surrender or to basically say 'don't shoot me I'm a messenger'.
He also had a bit of a belly too that strained against the buttons on his shirt. He wheezed as he came to a stop right at the northernmost boundary of the camp.
It wasn't only Scáthach and I watching from a distance, but none of us made an immediate move. I think we all wanted to see what this random and intelligent Fairy was doing, or wanted to do.
Not to mention attacking someone carrying a 'white flag' was a bad precedent to set.
"I come bearing great tidings!" He sprung to his feet, catching his breath, he pulled out a large, rolled parchment that unfurled and hit the ground. He cleared his throat and started reading. "Hark, tidings to thee trespassers from yonder realms, we –"
The Youkai, the Tengu in front of him, held the spear up in his hands, pointing at the Fae. "If you have a message, I will deliver it to our Lady."
The Fae's smile, bright, seemed….odd. He began to roll back up the parchment. "Of course, of course my good sir. My name is Bubitybitybebupitty. If I may, could I perhaps have your name?"
….that name was made up.
"Umeda Taro, and I – "
I realized a moment too late. "Shit!" I cursed out loud moving quickly.
The Fairy smirked and rolled his hand as the Tengu clutched his check. "Ah, a wonderful addition to my collection. Now, my rude fellow, be so kind as to fetch me your Queen, I bring tidings from my Lord."
I quickly slapped a Talisman onto the Tengu's head, paralyzing him, and catching him before he could hit the ground.
The Fairies' eyes widened, and he took a step back, only to smack into Scáthach looking down on him.
"A most discourteous reception!" He harrumphed, fixing his collar.
"What is going on here!?" Yasaka rolled up, several of her Generals in tow.
"He got his name stolen." I gave a brief explanation.
"Ah, you must be the Queen from beyond the realm." His scroll unfurled again. "Hark, tidings to – "
"Execute him." Yasaka said expressionlessly.
Was I a little shocked by the suddenness? Perhaps. But I also agreed with her words.
The Fae blinked, looking admittedly confused. "I'm just a messenger!"
"You attacked my Guard, that makes you an enemy combatant." Yasaka looked at him.
"But…..I didn't break any rules! You can't attack me, it's against the rules!"
"Execute." Yasaka said again.
Very quickly, half a dozen spears pierced through the Fae's body, the first meaningful Fae blood split in this campaign.
Several other Tengu had appeared quickly to dispatch him with very pleased expressions on their faces as one of their own was harmed directly by him.
The spears pulled free; the Fae fell to the ground lifeless.
I retracted the talisman I put on the Youkai in my arms as he seemed to regain his bearing. "One way to cancel the effects is to kill the Fae in question." I snorted.
Of course there were other ways to counteract having your 'name' stolen.
"Clean up here please, search the body for anything worthwhile, then burn it. And bring that scroll, I'll read it in a moment." She said coldly, sweeping her gaze. "Wilhelm, Scáthach, with me I'm calling everyone together." She gestured as we followed her.
Yasaka in leader mode was hot.
I noticed Raikou was back and Nurarihyon was with her as was Artoria and Mordred with a bunch of older Youkai all surrounding a table.
Hastily drawn maps laid across it.
"I heard a commotion." Artoria looked at me.
"Our first visitor." Yasaka said dryly. "A messenger. He was executed." Artoria looked like she was about to raise a complaint. "He attacked one of my men."
Artoria seemed content and nodded in understanding.
"We should reiterate to everyone that Fae have the ability to steal names. It sounds rather flippant and whimsical out loud, but it's genuinely a terrifying thing if you can't defend against it. It's basically a forced Geass – a contract of servitude that you can't disobey." I spoke.
"I'll make sure my boys know to keep their mouths shut." Nurarihyon grunted. "We have a general idea of the surroundings." He smacked the bottom of his cane on the drawn maps sitting on the table. "We found a castle in the distance here." He said, gesturing to the end of his cane.
"A castle?' I asked.
"Reminiscent of architecture from our homeland." Artoria clarified.
I suppose that fits considering that the Fae were active during her time.
"That'll be our first target." Yasaka declared.
"Are you being hasty?" Artoria furrowed her brow. "We do not know if they are friend or foe."
"Unlikely to be friends, but more enemies may be unwise." Scáthach nodded. "However, it is likely they are our enemies."
"Can you be sure?' Nurarihyon looked at her.
"The sun that was thrown our way came from the East. The Deathly cold came from the North. The messenger who initiated hostilities also arrived from the northern border. The Sun rises in the East, the Colds of our home are thought of as coming from the North. It stands to reason this is where those two entities have made their domains if it was a reflection of our world." She spoke.
Her reasoning was sound and I had no arguments against it.
To be honest, I hadn't considered that.
The Winter Queen was most likely situated to the far North, and the Summer Queen is most likely situated to the Far East.
"If that castle is our closest neighbor, it stands to reason this messenger came from there." Yasaka slapped her hand on the table. "We're not here to play nice, any attack on our people makes them an enemy. Clearly, they aren't treating us like a threat, so let's make a proper statement. Medea was kind enough to make us some rather interesting weapons. I believe it's time to unveil them."
@***@
A/N
For those of you that don't know, I have a snippet thread over on Questionable Questing with several different story idea snippets. I also have one snippet in particular that's reached 5 chapters at this point, and I felt like if I'm dedicating that amount of time to it, I may as well give a chapter ahead to the people over on my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.
Also, two chapters of Looking Glass Omake are up over there as well.
If you want to read 10 chapters ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / astoryforone
I also have a boosty if you can't use the above under the same name.
I waited patiently in front of one of my portals with Jinn at my side.
It didn't take long for someone to leave, and Jinn immediately ran up to her for a hug.
"Medea!" She giggled.
"Look at you, a goddess and so willful. Or is it because you became a goddess that you became more willful?" Medea accepted it regardless.
Medea didn't like deities. She could be courteous and respectful, but there was a subtle uncomfortableness when she was around them. It was to the point where I was conscious of her when Izzy was around.
However, that seemed to not apply to Jinn.
Medea didn't show even a miniscule of dislike towards my genie.
Maybe it was because Jinn had no ulterior motives, and it was just so obvious to see.
"Do I get a hug too?" I looked at Medea, holding my arms open.
Medea scrunched her nose. "A hug? I should be kicking your ass. Do you have any idea what your daughter has been doing?"
"Did Kunou already get in trouble?"
Medea looked at me then laughed.
"What happened?"
"I'm not telling." She snorted. "You can find out from her when she comes home for the holidays."
Right, that should be a fun talk based on her words.
"She's doing okay though?" I asked.
Medea's expression softened. "She's doing fine; don't worry."
Good, that's good.
"Come on, I wanna see the thing you made in action!" Jinn playfully tugged on Medea.
"Alright, you silly girl." Medea huffed. "It's the whole reason I took the day off anyways. Otherwise, I didn't want to be anywhere near your little war."
"Let me show you the portal we made!" Jinn continued to pull Medea away as they ran ahead.
It's good to know that Kunou is doing better, and it took everything in my power not to press Medea for more answers. But... I didn't want to 'intrude' on Kunou's time, even if I wasn't physically doing so. I would hear the stories from her when she came home, and things she wanted to keep to herself, they would stay to herself.
Obviously, as long as they weren't harmful or we didn't need to know.
The surroundings of the portal changed drastically in Kyoto.
It took almost the entire day to move the vast majority of our troops through and secure the foothold in the Fae Lands.
I underestimated the logistics of moving so many people in unison and keeping everything orderly. Just another reason I wouldn't be good in a commanding role like that.
Now, the surroundings were set up as a defensive position.
Hundreds of different magical and mundane defenses overlapped in this small area, with thousands of soldiers on standby at any given time.
Not to mention it had become a forbidden zone for anyone not participating with a large distance from the city.
I could have just popped Medea in on the other side, but I didn't want to take any unnecessary risks.
The way that realm operates is so alien to me in the brief time I've been there that I didn't want to be flippant with my ability to jump to other worlds. Peace of mind only costs like an extra 30 minutes of traveling.
"Not bad, not bad." Medea was looking over the portal, tapping her chin. "Not what I would have done, but it's quality work."
"Practicality trumps elegance in this case." I shrugged.
"I helped!" Jinn raised her hand.
"I'm sure you did most of the work." Medea smiled. "The boy over there probably hoisted the majority of the workload onto you and just wants to take credit."
I rolled my eyes and ignored the short jab. It wasn't anything new for Medea to take shots at people without much heat to them.
Without hesitation, she trudged right through with Jinn at her side, and I quickly followed.
She took a moment to take in the surroundings.
At this point, walls had been erected, buildings were up with more on the way, and even 'roads' had been carved out in the most basic manner.
I quickly put a hand on Medea's shoulder and scooted her to the side. She was about to say something to me, but she noticed the cart full of materials skirt by almost hitting her.
"Careful, we're in the middle of traffic." It wasn't just us coming and going from the portal.
Medea scrunched her nose. "I don't like this place; it feels foul on my blood. Tell me when you're ready so I can watch my creations in action, then get out of here."
"It's going to be a little while." Jinn told her. "There are some neat things though! I found a few magic plants."
"Oh? Alright, show me." Medea seemed content to go off with Jinn.
I just shook my head and made my way towards the main….well, what would it be called? It was one of the first buildings raised and where the bigwigs were gathered to talk about the fighting.
Regardless, I nodded to the guards outside the door and pushed it open, entering.
Several of Yasaka's Youkai Generals were at her side as she leaned over a table, only adjusting herself as I entered.
"Is Medea here?" She glanced my way.
"She's with Jinn. She doesn't want to be here any longer than necessary." I nodded, realizing there were a few faces I didn't recognize.
Opposite Yasaka was Artoria, along with Mordred and Arthur. And someone I hadn't seen in awhile just as well.
"Agravain." I named the man, giving him a nod in acknowledgement.
He bowed his head more politely and stayed silent at Artoria's side.
Makes sense; he was one of the people running the Pendragon family and would have a hand in things happening.
He also looked a lot better than when I last saw him back at the Pendragon Castle when we invaded.
Also at the table was Nurarihyon along with Aotabō, his third seat. But Nurarihyon had one other person, and their presence was rather...hard to ignore.
In fact, standing this close to him, his body cast a shadow over me, and I had to tilt my head upwards to meet his eyes.
"Hello, I don't believe we've met." I greeted politely since we were all on the same side. "Wilhelm Henry Schweinorg."
The big man—no, the massive Kappa looked at me with a gentle smile. "You can call me Sadao. I'm the second seat." He held out his hand and gently took mine in a handshake, despite his hand being several times the size of mine.
And when I said he was big, I meant he was almost as buff as Father Swole. Maybe a few inches smaller in scale.
It was, frankly, an almost comical sight to see a Kappa with muscles this size.
"Am I going to meet this First Seat?" I could tell that Sadao here was several times stronger than Aotabō, which makes sense considering his higher 'position'.
"Don't expect it." Nurarihyon grunted. "That lazy bum can't move easily. He's back home protecting the place."
I shrugged, a little curious but not enough to ask for too many details.
Yasaka's tail snuck up around my waist and pulled me to her side. "We're getting prepared to march. It's going to be our first campaign, so I wanted you to be there with us."
The way she worded that sounded more than her asking for me to participate. "I assume you won't want me to get overly involved in this instance."
Yasaka smiled, as did her generals. "You catch on quickly. As I was telling Artoria, we need this. That is, us Youkai need this first fight, this first blood. Our desire for revenge isn't going to cloud our judgments, but we can't settle in his instance."
"I do not object to your intentions. Morale is important, often conflicting with logical strategy. It is undeniable that my knights assisting would be the better move; however, the hearts of your warriors demand differently." Artoria replied, closing her eyes. "As long as the lives of my men do not get endangered from such types of orders, I see no reason to refuse. We will not participate in this first battle and continue to secure the area while your forces march."
"If I may?" Agravain spoke softly as everyone acknowledged him. "To prevent any wedges from being placed between our forces, should we accompany your warriors with a small contingent of our own, perhaps a small but elite force? While they would not participate openly, it would be a gesture of cooperation and moral support."
Nurarihyon took out his pipe, biting onto it with a gruff hum to accompany his agreement. "My boys would appreciate the gesture more than Yasaka's."
"That's true." Yasaka looked thoughtful. "My people have seen your family demonstratively for months now. They've trained together, eaten together, and suffered together. Not to mention everyone knows that Artoria here helped during the rebellion. The Pendragon family has much more goodwill with mine than the East."
"I will attend, and I will bring along a group of magicians to aid defensive measures." Artoria chipped in.
"Sounds good." Nurarihyon agreed.
"Did you make sure to remind everyone to keep their mouths shut when dealing with Fae?" The last incident was still fresh in my mind.
Yasaka let out a short groan. "We made sure to give everyone a refresher."
"There's always one idiot that needs to be an example for everyone else." Mordred snorted, crossing her arms.
Well, there is a small bit of cultural clash here as well. Around these parts, when someone asks your name, it's pretty much an unconscious action to give it.
Still, he should have known better.
They had tens of thousands of troops; there was bound to be one slip up eventually. At least it was in a situation where the damage was mitigated and could be a lesson for everyone else.
"From what our scouts have told us, our target is a castle with some attached land and an accompanying wall. Magic was detected and expected. Though the number of enemies inside is unknown, there were a few hundred patrolling on the walls at any given time. Despite the small scale, we're going to treat this as a true deployment. We're going to convene at the North exit; make note of any logistic issues, and we'll address them afterwards."
Yasaka gave her orders, and everyone began moving.
This was going to be the first 'fight' of the invasion, and despite it being rather small, it was clear everyone was excited.
@***@
"You have a look, Wilhelm." Artoria glanced my way as we accompanied the thousands of Youkai marching north.
It wasn't too far away, enough that a straight but modest walk was enough to reach the castle within the hour.
"Just thinking. I'm surprised at how...traditional this has been so far."
Hell, we even had horses and stables erected back at the foothold.
"Ah. Did you expect more fantastical elements to be involved in this conflict?" She asked.
"Something like that."
"We have yet reached the threshold for such things being required. I have familiarized myself with the elements of warfare here, and such things as mass teleporting is an important strategy to utilize." She responded.
True, I do acknowledge that there was no point in throwing out those kinds of things when not needed.
Well, I say that, but glancing backwards, hundreds of Youkai were pulling those massive carts with tarps draped over them.
Medea's little project.
Should I be worried?
She spent an awful lot of time creating them and a lot of resources. She spent only a few days equivalent to create Kunou's birthday present, and that was an utter work of art.
She spent months tinkering with this invention.
She called it crude but practical.
I guess we'll see then.
The marching came to a steady stop as the castle came into view.
It was my first time seeing it, and it wouldn't be out of place in a movie. Artoria nudged me, and I followed her to the front after she gave the people with her a few orders, the Magicians spreading out defensively.
I didn't need to look to feel the magical barriers springing up all around the army.
I looked up at the sky; we weren't under my Storm any longer, but I was keeping an eye out in case any of our voyeurs would do anything. However, I think after my retaliation the first time, they were hesitant about overextending.
High up in the sky, a warm and cold glare could be easily felt due to my Authority.
I took my place up near Yasaka.
Despite not wanting to steal the proverbial thunder, I was a part of this as Yasaka's lover and as someone who was recognized by the Youkai as one of their own.
I stepped past thousands of lines of Youkai, many of which glanced at me as I passed before taking my spot in front.
Yasaka looked at both sides of her. "Come, we're going to give them a chance to surrender."
Maybe I was skeptical, but the way she said that made me think it was a very slim chance of happening.
Oh well.
As we got closer, I started to notice some irregularities in the castle. The bricks weren't uniform; actually, they looked... fake? Like someone just casually grabbed a bunch of different rocks, shaped them magically, then stacked them up in a way that resembled a castle.
Actually, I think some of them weren't even made of stone.
The magical defenses were impressive, however.
But that was to be expected. Fae were... well, they had a mastery of magic from what I recall. Though their particular brand of magic was different. But Magic it was all the same; they utilized Magical Energy even in their strange ways, and they were a type of magical being.
We stopped not too far from the gate, but not too close either.
It was just enough that the owner here could approach without feeling a threat from the army standing on his doorstep.
It didn't take long for the gate to be raised, and all the Fae visible on the walls stood up straighter.
Three exited the gate, and normally, I would only say one person, but in this realm, I wasn't too sure.
It was... two horses and a person. The man, I presumed, looked like an elf of some sort, but with butterfly-like wings on his back. But once he got closer, I realized there was something wrong with the horse he was riding.
Mostly the fact that the horse was a badly sown horse suit and there was clearly a person inside.
The other horse seemed 'normal' though.
"Woah, my trusty steed." The Fae called out loud as the not-horse came to a stop a few yards in front of us.
"Are you the Lord of this castle?" Yasaka addressed him.
"Lord? Lord…Lord!" The Fae snapped his fingers. "I like that! My adviser, write that one down! I wish to be addressed as Lord for now on."
The horse next to him fell on its bet and spit out a scroll and quill and awkwardly began to write that down using its hooves together. "Yes, my Lord." The horse replied in a monotone voice.
"Ah, such a dutiful adviser! Not like my last one!"
"What happened to your last one?" I asked, not able to help myself. Normally, I probably wouldn't have spoken while Yasaka was at the forefront, but honestly, this was a rather strange situation, and the more we learn about these Fae, the better.
"Incompetent!" He shook his head. "Why you wouldn't believe it. I told him I wanted a blue carpet for my menagerie, and do you know what he brought? Periwinkle. The nerve! I told him, Adviser, what did I tell him?" He looked at the horse.
"You told him that your horse could do a better job, my Lord." The horse responded in the same monotone as it still tried its best to scribble on the parchment.
"That's right! So, I did just that!" He nodded to himself with a wide grin.
Right, I'm guessing we know who's inside the horse outfit under him then...
"But enough of my incompetent former adviser!" He kicked the fake horse under him, and it neighed. The thing is, I don't think it neighed on purpose; I think when he traded their 'roles' his former adviser lost the ability to speak. "I assume you're here to offer recompose for my herald that you killed unrightfully."
"No."
"Excellent, we..." He paused. "Come again?"
"Your Herald, as you called, attacked one of my men. That removed his status as a messenger, and he was executed without hesitation." Yasaka said sternly before taking the'scroll' that was brought along and tossed it to the ground in front of him.
"Incredulous! Fabrication, Erroneous! My herald has even navigated the courts of Winter; he would never make such an error. You have trampled over the rules of hospitality!" He harumphed.
Yasaka's hand lit up with Foxfire, and she threw it at the scroll, setting it on fire under his gaze.
Honestly, I don't know what it said, but after seeing her read it the first time, she got pissed off, so I didn't ask.
"You seem to misunderstand. We're not here to argue; you are being given the chance to surrender."
"Surrender!? But I am not at war! I have received no declaration, nor have I broken any promises, and I am most assuredly in no one's debt! You have no right!" He seemed confused and slightly angry at Yasaka's declaration. "I withdraw my hospitality, and my threshold rejects you!" He turned his nose up, and I felt the simmer of the magic surrounding the castle flare up.
"Very well, if that's your decision, then we'll do things the hard way."
The Fae scoffed even as he retained a lofty smile. "Away with you, trespassers! Lord Felmort bids you good night!" He kicked his fake horse, and it turned around, trotting back inside along with the very real horse that held the parchment in its mouth and followed after.
I looked up at the bright sky overhead.
It was still daytime.
"Well, we tried." Yasaka didn't seem to care; frankly, she preferred this course of action. However, wartime 'rules' dictate giving your enemies the chance to surrender.
"I am reminded of why I let Merlin deal with any WildFae that appeared within my lands if possible." Artoria muttered, furrowing her brow.
Right, I understood her sentiment exactly.
"Pull the weapons up!" Yasaka let out a shout as we got close, and instantly, the warriors in formations let out a roar of approval.
Nurarihyon even had a smile as he silently trailed at our side, content with the course of actions, it seems.
The warriors parted like a sea as the massive siege weapons were brought up to the front, and Medea was in tow along with Jinn.
Medea unceremoniously pulled the tarps off of them with a flick of her hand.
At the base, it was normal wood to support, then as it climbed high, pieces were made out of Magical metal found in Skyrim. It culminated in a very large glass orb at the top with a place that could apparently open up. And there were four floating glass circles with Mithril wrapped around the edges. They each took up a side of the 'sphere' forming a square shape around it.
Upon closer look, the glass circles were engrained with beautifully woven spell circles. Not just the circles, but the orb itself had every inch of it covered in magical symbols and formulas.
If you wanted to be pedantic, they were scaled-up versions of what Medea devised for each warrior to wield, the 'wands' that allowed for casting without any magical knowledge of energy to utilize.
Medea cackled as she floated up and pulled off the 'lid' on the glass orb and dropped in a massive chunk of dust. She then inserted several Soul Stones into various places underneath, slotting them into intended spots.
The whole thing hummed as it came to life, and I could taste the magical energy it was exuding.
Medea then floated down, her job done as she shot a thumbs up to Yasaka while several Youkai, apparently having been trained in it, positioned it appropriately, aiming towards the castle.
There didn't need to be some grand speech or building up hype for the gathered Youkai.
I looked at the castle not far enough; the Magical defenses were genuinely impressive, and some of them, well, they were foreign to me, and I couldn't understand them at a glance.
Suffice to say, I would have to expend some effort to bulldoze them using my power if I tried.
The Magical Siege Engine vibrated in place as everyone seemed to hold their breaths. The Dust inside—the Fire Dust slowly disintegrated, and with the Glass 'Circle' pointing towards the Castle at the front, the Spell Circle within it started to glow a very similar red tone.
As soon as the entire Spell Circle lit up, another Spell Circle appeared in the air, projected right in front of it, then another, larger, then a third even larger, about the size of the contraption itself.
"Fire." Yasaka gave the order, and the air vibrated.
A beam of condensed fire-aligned energy from the magical source shook everything as it shot out towards the castle.
It slammed into the magical defenses of the castle and seared right through them. The large gate that we approached earlier was reduced to slag and ash as the beam tore through the walls, what was behind them, and continued onwards until we could no longer see.
Reinforcing my eyes, I could see some of the Fae playing as guards or 'knights' that escaped from other parts of the walls as they looked at the destruction in utter confusion and surprise.
There was a silence as the attack ended, the Fire Dust seemingly running its course as it was completely used up.
This thing made the cannons on my ship look like toys.
The glass circle that housed the magic circle sizzled as steam wafted from it. Then, the Four Glass Circles rotated as a 'fresh' one now pointed forward.
"Wilhelm." Yasaka called out to me.
"Yes?"
"Do you see a white flag or any signs of surrender?"
"I do not." I told her.
"Fire Again."
@***@
A/N
If you want to read 10 chapters ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / astoryforone
I also have a boosty if you can't use the above under the same name.
Looking Glass Omake will be out with next chapter.
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