Varre stammered. “I… what?”

  “Yeah, you heard me,” Perry repeated, “I know you’re…”

  “Shut up!” Zarkon roared, rushing over as quickly as he could, “shut your mouth right now or I’ll shut it up for you!”

  She stood up and turned to face him. “It’s too late! The cat’s out of the bag already! Everyone heard me.”

  The king had no idea what the old healer was planning to do but he didn’t like anyone getting into physical altercations right beside the black blotch still covering the ground. A single misstep or shove could quickly throw another victim to their doom. He decided to step in between the two before losing yet another person.

  “Stop her damn it,” Zarkon barked, “or let me through! You know damn well this concerns you too.”

  “What the hell is going on here?” Elvira asked, taking a few steps back and trying to get a read on anyone, “what are all of you talking about?”

  “Nothing,” Perry shrugged, “I’m just saying that our beloved king isn’t who he says he is. That’s all. And he’s been fooling you all this time.”

  The girl showed an angry smirk, though her face was still wet with tears. She spoke loudly, trying to make sure that as many people as possible heard her, even as they kept their distance from the argument. No one, not even the Royal Guards wanted to step in until the monarch explicitly called for them. This was out of their pay grade.

  At first the knights tried to keep the onlookers away, but with most of their forces still fighting the goblins they simply didn’t have the numbers. Nearby mages and even some of the archers began forming a circle around the shouting nobles, curious at what had happened.

  “You’re going to ruin everything!” Zarkon yelled, “stay quiet fool! I beg you!”

  “Ha! It’s a miracle you’ve lasted this long, master,” Perry drawled the word with a mocking tone, “I mean really? Amnesia? I can’t believe anyone fell for that. Let alone the so-called keenest minds in the realm. You’re all pathetic!” she yelled, glaring at the wizards standing in the distance.

  Varre put his hand on the healer’s shoulder to make sure he kept his distance, then turned to the girl himself. “Perry, I’m really, really sorry about what had happened, but perhaps this isn’t the best place to talk about this. Let’s head back to the camp, shall we? We all need some rest.”

  “Why not?” she laughed, “this is the perfect place!” she walked closer to the smudge and pointed down into it, “Jury died right here. Right in this spot. And it’s all your fault! You’re the one who sent us to investigate those damned ruins. If only we’d have stayed back…” her voice cracked.

  Elvira took a step closer, ready to console the girl again, but her hand was slapped away.

  “And you!” Perry continued, “don’t act innocent! You left us there, in the middle of the goblin horde as you fled back to safety. Some teacher you are. What the hell were we supposed to do?!”

  The Court Mage charged forward and caught her assistant in a hug. At first the girl tried to break away, or shove her teacher away, but the older woman held her ground. Eventually Perry relented and started to cry, as Elvira rubbed her back.

  As Varre watched them from a distance, he felt Zarkon leaning towards his ear.

  “We need to talk,” the old man grumbled, “now!”

  “We do,” the king agreed.

  As Perry broke down after the loss of her sister, the battle raged on. Thousands of men and goblins continued slaughtering each other on the hills surrounding the ruined village, uncaring about the little tragedies. The earth shook as formations of heavy knights charged into dense enemy positions. Blood pooled on top of the black soil, the sheer quantity too much to absorb. Screams, shouts, and the sounds of clashing metal filled the air as death filled the entire valley.

  Away from the battlefield, the wounded and those too exhausted to continue began leaving the combat zone. They helped each other walk, supporting those most injured as they limped towards the Southern tree line.

  Now that the major threat was beaten back, the healers got to work in earnest. They had already set up some tents, but the amount of patients was going to balloon quickly. So far, they only had to work with the cavalry. Scouts and light riders alike retreated whenever they got too wounded, heading straight towards the physicians.

  Camp followers and other auxiliaries ran around the area, quickly setting up new facilities and unloading carts. Others moved their wagons towards the stream. Barrels of fresh water had to be brought in to wash the bloodied bandages and clean everyone’s wounds.

  Previously, the commanders decided to keep everyone mobile in case the army had to reposition or fall back. Now that thousands of wounded made their way back, everyone scrambled to receive them. A few of the healthy horsemen even rode down to the valley, ready to load those most injured on carts and drive them towards salvation.

  The goblins attempted to retreat in good order, covering those allies who had already panicked. Even without their shaman and his deadly weapon, their leadership remained strong.

  If their situation deteriorated into a full rout, they’d be doomed. The cavalry would have a field day as the horsemen rode up and down the hillside slaughtering everyone within reach. As long as they stuck together, the invaders had a chance to survive.

  The battle wouldn’t last forever. Eventually the humans would have to turn in for the night. There was simply too much risk of falling into traps or ambushes if the fighting continued long after dark. The goblins couldn’t be pursued too far into the woods either. The forest could have been littered with surprises and reserves sitting in wait, ready to pounce on tired and isolated groups of Logres’ soldiers.

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  The men were reckless and wanted to follow up on their victory, but it was the officers’ role to rein them in. Everyone wanted to extract as much revenge out of this opportunity as possible, but they had to be careful. Lest the losses became irreplaceable.

  Varre, along with many of the mages joined the wave of people trudging back towards his side of the hill. The generals could continue the battle, mopping up the goblins and deciding how to pursue the fleeing enemies. He had little experience with such matters and felt it was best to leave it to the experts. He was exhausted, thirsty, and frankly feeling sick of all the bloodshed. The others could handle things without him.

  Yet, he wouldn’t get to rest just yet. Perry’s outburst created a new problem, one that had to be dealt with as quickly as possible.

  Dozens of people had heard her allegations. If this knowledge was allowed to fester, rumors would spread overnight and by tomorrow morning the entire army would be buzzing with discussions. Was she telling the truth? What did she even mean? And what consequences would it have for the kingdom if the monarch was somehow an imposter?

  It was too important to be left alone. The people, or at the very least the top decisionmakers, had to be properly informed about what happened out there. The narrative had to be controlled. Once these people were on Varre’s side, they’d stifle any rumors in the bud.

  It would be impossible to fully erase this knowledge, but right now the king held the advantage. He was fresh off of his grand victory. If the kingdom’s leaders supported him now, no movement to hurt him could form. No matter what the regular soldiers gossiped about after a few beers. Even once they learned the truth, it wouldn’t matter who had saved them from the brink of destruction. That man was a hero.

  Varre only took a couple of minutes to remove his armor and dunk his head in a bucket of cold water. He wiped his face with a towel and picked up a quick meal from Benjamin. He grimaced as he accepted the food.

  The chamberlain was one of the people most familiar with the original noble inhabiting this body. Likely, he would have the greatest reservations about what to do next. Even if his position on the Royal Council wasn’t nearly as powerful as the others, his support will be vital. And yet he still hadn’t heard about what had happened.

  The king ate the pastries as he walked, rushing towards the meeting. He needed to hear everything. If something went wrong, this single conversation could easily get him denounced and killed. He had to be there, ready to defend himself no matter which way the winds blew. If the Council decided he was a threat, it would be the end.

  Elvira occupied one of the tents and chased everybody away before any of the medical equipment could have been set up. Most of the Royal Guards were still out at the battlefield, but a few, including Hakon, were already standing outside, making sure that no one else came within earshot.

  The captain gave his liege a concerned look once he saw him. It seemed like the man had not reached his own conclusions yet. Perhaps he wasn’t even sure whether the allegations were true to begin with.

  Inside, Perry sat on a chair, in silence, staring at the cup of water held in her hands. The Court Mage stood just behind her, keeping a reassuring arm on the girl’s shoulder. Zarkon awkwardly paced across the large tent, while Kadmos sat in a chair of his own, staring at the entering monarch with curious eyes.

  Duke Jan was invited too. The others: Gregory, Fletcher, and Helmut could continue directing the troops in his absence. Someone from the upper echelons of nobility needed to be here, to make sure that the aristocracy remained on the king’s side. They couldn’t be snubbed at this point.

  “Finally,” the archmage said, “will somebody please explain to me what’s happening? Unexplainable goblin magic is one thing, but what the hell is your assistant going on about Elvira?”

  “She isn’t only her assistant,” Zarkon shot back, “she’s mine too. I can do the talking.”

  Kadmos chuckled and raised his hand to stop him. “Oh, I don’t think so. I want to hear her version of the story. If you have no objections, your majesty.” He said it with a very accusatory tone, as if expecting some pushback, but Varre let it pass. He wasn’t fully aware of everything that’s happened either. While he had some assumptions and guesses, he had no idea what brought him to this world and had no intentions of looking like a tyrant at this point.

  Perry sighed and kept her eyes downward, until Elvira rubbed her shoulder. Then the girl looked up at the monarch and waited for him to nod.

  “It’s true,” she said, “I’m sorry to you all, but this isn’t the same Varre as the one born to Lord Tymon.”

  Zarkon grit his teeth, but remained silent. Hakon kept his eyes focused on his liege, but it was Benjamin who was the most surprised.

  “What? What do you mean, my lady?” the chamberlain asked, taking a step closer. No one had told him about what happened down in the valley until now, so this was the first he’d heard about this revelation.

  Perry continued, “Prince Varre, along with his parents, was suffering from the Soulkiller Plague. A deadly and very rare disease. There are stories about people who managed to recover, but they are few and far between. It’s nearly impossible to cure.”

  “An illness that fascinated many excellent healers,” Kadmos pointed out, “is this what drew you towards it?”

  The question was directed to Zarkon, but the old man was still too discombobulated to respond. He opened his mouth a few times, but no sound came out.

  It was his assistant who had to answer again. “No. Despite his reputation, Master Zarkon’s expertise doesn’t lie with medicine or healing. It’s only a small part of his skills. His real field of study are souls.”

  The archmage smirked and turned back to the old healer. “Look at you… That’s rare. But even more interesting. Why hide? You could have achieved so much in my guild, you know?”

  The old wizard ignored him, focusing fully on Perry.

  “Together with my s-sister,” the girl’s voice cracked, “we worked under Master Zarkon for a few years. Learning his methods. He wanted to run a certain experiment that he’d been gearing up to for years, but he struggled to find the right subject. Until we heard that a few people in the capital fell ill to the Soulkiller Plague.

  “Instantly, he tried to offer his services, but he was refused. He couldn’t just give up. He was so close. Every day, he asked again, until both of Prince Varre’s parents passed away. That’s when his steward finally gave in. To save the last heir.”

  Benjamin gulped, but the girl wasn’t finished. “Once we were in, we made some agreements. No one could bother us as we worked on the sick patient. Most of the servants were sent away and the steward himself was forbidden from coming upstairs. There could be no witnesses for our experimental treatment. We got to work quickly, but… we never even tried to save our patient.”

  “It was impossible!” Zarkon yelled, finally ready to join the conversation, “everyone knows that the Soulkiller is a death sentence. What the hell do you want from me?!”

  A sharp glare from Hakon shut him up.

  “He’s right. I’ve seen his work,” Perry smiled sadly, “no one knows why any of the Plague’s survivors made it. Not a single researcher was ever able to find out for certain. But that’s not the only thing that makes it such a deadly disease. You see, unlike a normal plague that affects the body and can be cured with magic or alchemy, this one, as the name suggests, goes straight for soul.

  “The subject loses consciousness as his spirit continues to fade away. Then, once his body is empty, it doesn’t take very long for the other processes to shut down. But this is what made Varre such a perfect subject for Zarkon’s experiment.

  “Once the prince had passed away, the real work could begin. We kept his body alive and began to look for a replacement soul. It wasn’t easy and I can’t tell you everything about it. After all, I’m just a student. Even my master doesn’t know everything. This is all groundbreaking work. But,” she looked Varre in the eyes, “we succeeded. We brought something in. We weren’t sure what we’d find, but clearly, we found something resembling a human. And he’s sitting right here with us today. Someone or something is right in the original prince’s body. And they’re not from this world. That is the one thing I’m certain of.”

  These chapters are critical, so I wanted to be extra thorough with the dialogue and all the details. We are revealing big secrets after all.

  Now they must share what they know.