— Town of Thauff —
The border town on the Herdial side of the wyvern peaks. So close to the wilderness, it's a hostile place no one in their right mind would live. It mainly houses adventurers preparing for an expedition into the wyvern peaks, along with the innkeepers and barmaids who serve them. Warehouses store merchants' wares. They usually hurry to the train station in Escher for fear of losing them.
[Population: 2000]
[Garrison: 500]
[To the east: The Sandworn Pass and Wyvern Peaks]
[To the south: Wyvern Pass]
[To the north: Fortress of Escher]
[To the east: The Carla depths]
Ria takes a deep breath.
She tugged at her shirt and skirt.
This was her biggest assignment to date.
She had spoken with generals casually at parties, but she wasn't sure how that would hold up in a real negotiation.
She entered the general's tent.
It was dainty.
Greenish crystals in lanterns cast a dim light.
A long, rectangular map table sat in the center.
Steel parts were strewn across the ground on one end.
A sleeping bag lay right beside the table.
In one corner, a young man sat at his table, scribbling, seemingly unaware of her presence.
"The general is not here yet; perhaps I can take a look around. This is already not quite what I expect from a Herdial general."
Ria leans on the ledge of the map table.
She studies it.
A flag sits on the rightmost part of the map.
A sketch of the town. A railroad stretches from the map's northern edge.
"This is where we're currently at. A trading town with all of its warehouses and an existing railhead is a good place to launch a raid."
From the starting town, a curved path highlighted by a red marker stretched across the map.
It moved through the center of the map, a barren area with no features.
Several sandworm figurines line the path.
The path moves further.
Another flag marks the ravine's mouth.
Wyvern figurines were placed around it.
Further left, the path leads into the ravine and stops at what appears to be a mine shaft, marked by yet another flag.
"The mine had been closed for over a year due to the wyverns. Our stake in the mine had been frozen. Luckily, we didn't put too much money in it. Perhaps we can get some of it back after this?"
That was all she could get from studying the map.
She looks around the room.
The scribe was still scribbling in the corner.
"I guess I'll wait around."
She walks around the table.
A pile of parts lay at the end of the tent like a scrapyard.
Her nose twitched.
"Gunpowder."
There was a pile of loaded bombs.
Her flames could detonate them and blow up the tent and her with it.
"Better stay away."
She browsed the parts.
It was not like she had anything better to do.
Arms and legs.
Armoured platings.
A cylindrical pod.
A mana core.
"Mana-powered suit. One of the spire city's most popular exports. Protection that money can buy."
Attachments for the suit.
A steam-pressured bolter, powered by a steam core and a narrow barrel to maximize pressure at a point.
A pile of steel bolts
After a few minutes, she walked up to the desk.
The young man seemed familiar.
A fine tunic typical of Herdial merchants, and ruffled hair one might expect after a journey.
"Excuse me, do you know where the general is?"
He looked up from his scribbling.
His eyes widened, his jaw dropped as he stared at Ria's astonished face, a mirror of his own.
A moment of awkward silence.
"It's you!?"
…
"Tea grown in the gardens of the Herdial capital."
The young man held up the copper kettle and poured into each cup.
"I heard of it. It's hard to get hold of the real thing, though. The ones that arrived at the RazenHeir estate are mostly just regular tea leaves. Though I did hear from multiple merchants that prolonged consumption improves your mana flow, stamina, and cognitive abilities."
The young man laughed.
His modest voice could project just far enough to reach Ria across the table.
"Haha! My lady, I thought you would be too sophisticated to believe that baseless nonsense."
"I didn't say I did. But you seem to enjoy it."
"Well, it hasn't made me throw up yet. Though I wish that it would improve my mana as it claims to."
Ria took a sip. It was fairly bland with a hint of bitterness.
The otherwise unimpressive beverage had a subtle, refreshing fragrance.
"It's not bad."
"Is it now? I was worried that it was going to be too bland for my lady."
"You can stop with the jests now, my noble general. I could hardly have imagined that the one who haggled on behalf of wyvern carvers would have such a grand post."
"Just a force of habit. I have been haggling with the spire dwellers my whole life. As for you, I could hardly have expected that a porcelain princess would show up heading a raid party for the wyvern queen."
"Hmp, this porcelain princess also would never expect to see a baby fawn in charge of a whole army either."
"I'm much older than I look. I'll have you know that I am fully of marriageable age."
Ria took another sip of tea. The general reached for the kettle and poured her another cup.
"That's my line. Does the baby fawn general not have any sense of creativity?"
"I am a general. I need none of that."
They both laughed.
"So, it would seem you are a pure-blood knight as well. The famed hearthstone house. The keepers of the stone fortresses of Herdial. But isn't it too early for you to take on the responsibility of an entire army?"
"What can I do? My eldest brother is dead. My elder sister is too quirky for this role."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"Don't be. He died an honorable death fighting a sandworm titan, having lived well past the median lifespan of knights all around."
"That's good to hear."
He took another sip of tea.
"By the way, you can call me Rey. Rey Hearthstone."
"Sure, General Rey. Let's get down ot business. How do you propose we slay a queen wyvern?"
"Fortunately, we're not the ones to worry about that. The Slayers Guild handles that. We are just here to carve a path open for them."
He stands up and walks to the map table.
Ria follows.
"This is where we're at. From here, we have to reclaim the road into the mountain passes, where an abandoned mana crystal mine sits. Sandworms have infested it since no one has used the road in so long. Then we have to reclaim the mine and drill a bit further to the wyvern's lair. The underground route would prevent the wyverns from strafing us from above as we approach the lair."
Rey points to the mountainous areas.
"The mine? It was shut down years ago. What exactly happened to it?"
"Bad things. We just lost contact with it. The lucky miners outside the mines were evacuated. Since then, we haven't had the funding for an expedition into the mines. The sandworm pass leading to it was also abandoned. Allowing the sandworms to breed endlessly."
"You called for our help?"
"Well, that knight that came along with you. Taller than a Herdial elephant. Many times stronger than one. Really helpful to have someone who could wrestle head-on with the horrors down there in the mines."
Ria chuckled. "You need a wall of muscle in the caves? Sounds about right. By the way, what are these markings here?"
"Mana veins. That's my first proposal. The wyverns feed on the cavern caterpillars and vegetables that grow inside them. If we capture these points, build bunkers into the mountain, and defend, we might draw the queen wyvern out."
Ria nods.
"I heard about them—those annual expeditions into these veins. The timing avoids the wyvern breeding season and the worst of the punishing weather in the peaks. They had to stop once the wyverns became aggressive all year round, though."
"It's not an easy expedition at all. They only take gold rank and above. Even then, the attrition rates are high. Rock slides. Falling off cliffs. The wyverns themselves are not too happy with having their food stolen."
"Do we intend to attempt them?"
"Nope. Even those gold adventurers have a hard time reaching those veins. What chance do I have with a militia drafted from the farms and mines?"
"Oh."
"The plan is simple. Clear the road to the mine. Drill a hole under the Wyvern Peaks to the Queen Wyvern's lair. Leave the rest to the Dragon Slayer Guild. Whether they win or not, we're still gonna get paid."
"I hope they do win. Food prices in Moradale are getting unbearable."
"I'm rooting for them too, you know."
"Of course. So, when do we start?"
"The steam tanks set off first thing tomorrow. I hope your knight's ready because we could use a monster slayer on the front."
Ria nods.
"Now, about the loot splitting."
"80-20. After deducting losses and expenses." Ria said flatly.
"My dear porcelain princess. You believe your knight to be of the strength for you to be demanding such a high share in the face of my cannons?"
"A giant knight with the physique of an elephant and a mana pool of a grand sorcerer. You won't get that for a better price anywhere else."
"Htmp. You mana users sure think you're special. Fair enough. 80-20 just for the first battle. Sandworm parts don't sell very well anyway."
"You won't be disappointed."