บท 229: Missing Person

Okay, not really, Warren was just unconscious. However, the blood loss and the damage the poor guy sustained during his time here left him truly at the edge of death.

If he didn't receive immediate help he would surely die before long.

***

Gerald flew out of the hole in the ground and shakily landed on the soft soil. His body trembled and blood sprayed out of his mouth as he coughed as if his life depended on it.

Exhausted and severely wounded he fell to his knees, the strength-empowering magic quickly leaving his body. The strain was too great, and his muscle trembled in pain with each tiny movement. The hand with which he was still holding himself up also gave out and he fell face-first on the naked soil ground.

With difficulty, he took a potion and drank it, before taking a few scrolls out of the Ring.

The silver hand was currently useless since he currently couldn't muster any magic, so he used his teeth to bite off a corner of the scroll and trigger the spell inside it.

With his last bit of strength, he directed the spells on the area around himself and fell unconscious seconds later.

***

Around the entrance, the first group of warriors was slowly recovering. Slow as in, barely any improvements even after a long time.

The dead human fighters were gathered at one place and given proper respect, while the beasts were tossed on the pile of wood to be burned.

The five women were busy helping the wounded, and although they were also bleeding, the warriors at the front line sustained much more damage.

Elly was especially determined to help. During the time they were learning from Gerald, he did teach them about healing magic, however, they didn't go into details, and everything they learned was theoretical. She didn't have any experience being a healer… until now.

She did her best to help the warriors recover, but for all her effort, the most she could do was slow down the bleeding and relieve about 20% of the pain.

Still, even this was quite demanding on the young lady and she soon had to take a breather lest she faints as well.

To their surprise, they soon heard sounds coming from the opening in the ground, and the warriors shuddered at the thought of another battle.

They stood up and took weapons even though they were exhausted and wounded, for the dread of Orcs returning and fear of death was a great motivator.

Soon the first being stepped into the light…

Seeing them, the warriors sighed in relief and their beating hearts gradually calmed down. It was the returning group of warriors that came back.

But, just like the group on the surface, they lost many good fighters and even more were wounded. A few malnourished prisoners also followed them out, and they had to close their eyes when stepping into the sunlight.

They were pale and weak, barely hanging on to their life and sanity. The camp remained quiet and somber, except for occasional painful moans and quiet sobs.

The Phoenix Knights gathered to exchange information and decide on a strategy on how to go from here.

"Thank Innos, you are still alive!" Tabbris exclaimed and wiped the sweat off his brow when he saw the four girls from Black Onyx with Irgit.

"I was seriously worried. The beasts set up ambushes all over the place. I'm afraid there is something sinister going on here…"

"It was not just the ambushes, they acted with strategy and foresight!" Ravian said and poured himself a cup of wine to calm his nerves.

"Exactly!" Igrit exclaimed, "I almost felt like fighting other humans! They never acted like this before, Tabbris, I'm concerned. If that guy, um... If Gerald didn't come, we would probably be dead by now."

Tabbris nodded in acknowledgment and said, "True, but we'll deal with that later. Where is he now?"

The group looked at each other.

"He's not with you?!" Xilia gasped, "But he went underground after you!"

"No, no, that's not what he meant," Ravian quickly explained. "We did meet him, but he already left after massacring the Orcs a while ago. Although now that I think about it…he didn't look so good at that time."

"Are you telling me he didn't return?!" Tabbris questioned, but seeing Igrit shake her head, he almost panicked.

"Quickly!" he gestured, "Get a few people to follow me, we need to find him!" He then turned to his right-hand man.

"Get Riordian some help and gather the warriors to establish a perimeter. We'll have to spend the night here, and I don't want to be a target of another ambush!"

"Will do!" Ravian responded and swiftly rotated on his heels and went to search for the men that could still fight. As he left, Tabbris also wasted no time and went to search for Gerald.

"Wait!" Sera shouted. "We'll go with you!"

The rest also stood by her side, determined to help.

"Okay," Tabbris agreed without a second thought. "Then let's go!"