The archer charged an arrow over the Failnaught and pointed it upwards: two other warriors of the troop did the same, aiming towards the same point.

"You have ten seconds" Dag said, pointing the Giantbane blade at the enemy's neck, still standing on the ground.

"You... you're just a fool... you pretend you don't understand... you're playing with fire..." the man whispered, his face completely covered with a kind of scarf that allowed only the eyes to be glimpsed and a turban-like headdress.

"seven... eight... nine..." 

Dag raised the axe, ready to strike the man to death, when Reidar pushed him away, knocking him to the ground and making him dodge another spear, which impaled the ground.

Soon after, a spherical object fell from above and as soon as it hit the ground it released a cloud of black smoke, which forced all the warriors to cover their eyes and mouth.

When the smoke began to disappear, Dag and Reidar were the first to notice that the wounded enemy was no longer there, there was no trace of him.

"Where did he go?!" 

"I don't see him! Be careful!" 

"There are others!" 

The Hammers Of Thor soldiers continued to look intimidated upwards, holding their weapons and preparing for a second attack.

"Don't worry, I think they escaped. There were three of them, maybe four. They knew right away that they didn't have many chances" Egill said, urging his team to put down their weapons and calm down.

Dag thanked Reidar, and together they rose, tearing the earth off their clothes.

"They just don't seem to want to leave you alone for a second, don't they, Dag?" Egill replied, implicitly asking the young Master if he knew the reason for that sudden a.s.sault.

"Yes, apparently... I've never seen armor like that, and I don't think there are bandit groups around here... or at least, Sander never told me about it" Dag said, explaining to Egill and others that he had no idea what had just happened.

As if nothing had happened, the two companions returned on horseback and continued their journey to Skjegg, while the sunset light partially penetrated the dense branches of beech trees that lined the narrow streets of Runar.

Dag continued to think back to the man's words, moments before he disappeared into thin air.

"I'm sick of being treated by everyone like a kid... a fool who for some strange reason has supernatural powers. I can't take it anymore, that's enough!" he thought, getting angry with himself and rethinking all the bad choices that had caused him and his friends to get into trouble in the past.

About an hour after the ambush, Skjegg's high rocky walls were finally visible and the vegetation became less dense, as the road leading to the entrance tunnel widened, finally allowing the carriage containing weapons and supplies to travel smoothly.

"Wow!" 

"It's amazing!" 

"Look how tall those walls are!" 

The astonishment of the delegation's warriors was immediate as soon as they saw the mighty walls surrounding the Crows of Odin capital, as many of them had never strayed so far from the Temple Of Orn.

"The last time I came here was several decades ago, for a diplomatic mission. The Rocky Crown is always a marvel, seeing it again fills my heart with pride and makes me think of the human magnificence, which sometimes manages to reconcile its needs with the surrounding nature, creating these indefinable masterpieces" Egill thought out loud, riding alongside Dag and beginning with one of his usual philosophical speeches, looking up.

"Captain, if I'm not mistaken, this was where we were supposed to meet Gridd and her warriors, right?" Reidar asked, pointing to the sign stuck in the ground at the last crossroad before the city entrance.

"Yes, we should have met her here, but as you see the Sun is setting and the Sons Of Freya must travel a little bit more than us to get here, Hevnen is not that close. We will wait for them inside the walls, I am sure that by tomorrow morning they will have arrived" Dag replied, gesturing with his arm and urging all his warriors to continue following him. 

The entire delegation reached the gates of Skjegg and the guards guarding the entrance immediately recognized Dag, Reidar, and Freydis, who after the recent catastrophic events suffered, had well-known faces to all citizens.

"Master Dag!" the two guards exclaimed in unison, opening their spears and bowing their heads out of respect, allowing pa.s.sage to all allied warriors, who greeted politely.

Once inside Skjegg, the illuminated streets greeted travelers from afar, while Dag made his way to the stables.

The citizens looked curiously at the warriors and the caravan, acknowledging that the armor and faces were not part of the Crows Of Odin. 

Some of the elders, who were still on the street for various reasons at that time of the evening, focused their attention on Egill's long white beard, while he kept riding masterfully in the middle of the road next to Dag.

"Master Egill!" a man shouted, rising from the wooden bench on which he sat holding onto his stick.

Egill looked up at him and smiled, waving at him with his hand.

"Is that really Master Egill?" an elderly woman asked, who approached the old man with the stick and looking at Egill with languid eyes, recalling the past.

"h.e.l.lo everyone! Yes... the years have pa.s.sed for me too! Hahah!" the wise Master Of Healing chuckled, mocking his age and touching his long white beard.

Dag was pleasantly surprised by the fact, not expecting his Master to be known so far from the temple.

"Egill fought a thousand battles and served the G.o.ds for more than thirty years. He is one of Okstorm's most famous Berserkr and was one of those who helped to write the history of the nation. No one is more suited than him to join the mission to Krypstorm! His fame will rise even further!" Dag thought to himself, looking at his colleague with admiration.

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