Chương 13: The Refugee Camp

West of Five Cave Village, in the refugee camp.

A tall woman entered the camp; her stride was calm and confident. Her reddish hair was braided all the way down to her waist. Her skin was tanned from the long hours under the sun, and her expression was as calm as her demeanor. She was currently wearing a long leather armor supplemented with iron parts to protect her neck, heart, and other essential body parts.

She was quite dashing, and her toned and scarred body betrayed her training and occupation.

"Good morning, Miss Catherine!" Greeted the many people she met on her way. "On your way to see Miss Mia?"

She was Catherine Brahm, the second in command of the refugee camp. She had never been part of the old army, but she was still chosen by Mia as her second in command, and as leader of the guards. Her excellent work earned her a great reputation and the trust of the people under her. Anyone doubting it would change their mind when witnessing the cheerful welcome she received as she came back from her last job.

"Yes." She answered calmly. "Be careful, we have not yet removed all the dangers around camp."

Catherine was smart and had a calm temperament. Her only weakness was her foolhardiness when it came to battles; she could hardly resist a good fight.

The people were used to her personality and did not mind her "to the point" responses. "Yes!"

Catherine was currently on her way to the tallest tent in the camp. She stopped once in front of the tent, but then stepped inside without formalities, as she was used to. The two guards in front knew how to act and did not stop her.

A rare smile showed on her lips once inside. "Already working I see?"

The tent was large, and there was enough space inside for a few shelves filled with books, a soft bed and a few chests filled with clothes and writing tools. Mia was currently sitting, in her pajamas, in front of the table in the middle of the tent with piles of books and parchments surrounding her.

"No wonder they call you the 'Queen of Logistics'. You never stop working! You have to take better care of your health." Said Catherine softly.

Mia looked up from her parchment. "You are one to talk Cat. You just came back, didn't you?"

"Huhu." Laughed Cat. "Guess we are two workaholics."

"You are alone?" Noticed Mia. "So I guess it was another failure..."

"I failed again, I'm sorry." Cat sighed. "They rejected our offer."

Cat's job in the recent days had been to find small settlements and try to recruit people. Her efforts have not been met with much success. There was no reason to worry, however, as there were thousands of refugee camps hidden in this region alone.

"Don't feel bad." Consoled Mia gently. "People are just scared. We only need to work hard to convince them."

"I know." Said Cat as she sat unceremoniously with her feet up on the table. "But it would be so much easier if we had more people. "

"Hmphh." Mia made a small noise as she pushed Cat's feet down. "I know, this is a real headache. We need more people to be able to convince other people to join us. But we can't get more people without having what is needed to convince them."

As she said that, she stood up as she had to change to a proper outfit.

"Well. It would be much easier for us if we had that..." Continued Mia as she changed into proper clothes.

"You mean if we had the royal garment, right?" Asked Cat.

"Yes, if only I could have grabbed it before the fall of the capital. Who knows where it might be right now." Mia continued. "Another way would be to build a fortified city, one that can stand up to the Kunalls. If it's safe enough, people will come."

Cat looked up to Mia with a sad face. "But with what people are you going to build it?"

"I know right? That was what I was doing right now. But by my most optimist calculations, we'd need at least a hundred time our current workforce to pull it off." Sighed Mia as she finished changing. "Another good reason, to continue to do our best."

Cat simply nodded. She knew how hard-working Mia was. Unfortunately, that was just enough to stay alive right now. Anything more tangible than just surviving required resources and manpower they did not have.

Even their currently stockpiled resources were dwindling with every passing day as they were used to replace tools, weapons, and clothes. This was a very stressful time for everyone.

Mia noticed Cat's expression. "Come on, don't be sour. Let's see how our people are doing." She said as she stepped out of the tent.

Loud greetings came her way as she left the tent. "Good morning, Miss Mia!"