The Guardians' Throne - The First Magic Swordsman

 Zaos's squad reached Salide at noon of the next day. Camping outside the base was as rough as it could be due to the snow and cold, but Zaos's squad already had plenty of experience with that. Elius made sure to make them experience every single possible situation it could happen in that region.

 Regardless, Saline was a small town, just as Zaos had expected from a place where less than one thousand people lived. The place was so small that the inhabitants didn't even have enough hands to build a wall or something like it. No, most likely, the reason was the fact that the town was still growing since it was a relatively new place. Zaos concluded that when he saw that the wood in the houses was pretty unique.

 Although the place was small, Zaos heard that one could find whatever they wanted there. From magic books to armor and weapons. Since cities that were located near the borders directly commercialized with the northern base, they more or less were obligated to have types of establishments. Unlike small villages that mostly relied on selling wood and herbs, Salide was a place that had many farmers. Zaos could see even from far away from a pretty high number of barns, where thousands of cows and sheep have looked after.

 Zaos imagined that he would find some guards at the main entrance of the town… in fact, maybe because there wasn't an entrance, only a road people were used to walk by, he didn't find a single guard.

 The citizens couldn't help but open their eyes in surprise when suddenly some riders approached. Still, they relaxed a little when Zaos asked for the guards and the captain. The man called Verkan and his men were at their… post… resting. It wasn't unexpected that they would have lunch at such a time, but it was weird that they didn't leave a single one of them behind to guard things.

"Thank you for your help," Zaos said after a random woman showed him where their post was.

 The post was essentially a place where the guards used to rest during and after meals. Zaos heard that there were cages in such places to keep prisoners, but it was rare to find bandits in such regions. Even bandits fear the followers of the demon god since their methods were quite grotesque, and nowadays, some people say that they can control the dead. Zaos thought that the commander would be able to keep that information from spreading. Still, as expected… most soldiers can't keep their mouth shut at times when they are drinking or when they are with women.

 Although they were resting, ten or so guards showed up when they heard the sound of horses approaching. Fortunately, they were wearing some pieces of armor, and they also had their weapons with them. Zaos imagined they would be a pretty relaxed group despite the attacks they had been suffering, at least considering what he had seen so far. Still, in fact, they looked like a band of mercenaries who had seen a lot of shit. Some of them even had burn marks on their faces.

"Good afternoon," Zaos said, and he jumped from his horse. "My name is Zaos, and Commander Ruvyn sent this squad and me to help you. Is the captain Verkan among you?"

 The guards looked at each other and then let out a long sigh after seeing Zaos's side up-close. He was pretty tall for his age, but he still was half a head shorter than the shortest of the guards.

"I am Verkan…" A dark-haired man that had one heck of a thick beard stepped forward and stare Zaos down. "Is the commander really that shorthanded? I asked for a small group of soldiers, but he sent a band of kids. Is this some kind of joke?"

"No, sir. This is not a joke," Zaos said. "Due to the battle last year, the commander decided to change a few things since he feels like another battle is fast approaching. He decided to keep the main force at the base in order to act fast if something happens. Last year, many of the first years died because they had no experience, and our forces were scattered around the region, protecting other places."

"… If the commander explained that much to you, he must think you have a pretty good head," Verkan frowned after a brief moment of silence. "Did your squad participate in the battle?"

"Yes, sir," Zaos replied.

"How many squad members did you lost?" Verkan asked.

"Fifteen, sir," Zaos replied.

"How many did you kill?" Verkan asked.

"… What is the point of that question, sir?" Zaos frowned.

"I want to know if you are just a boy or a man who avenged your comrades. That is why," Verkan replied. "Some good people died in the last year, and I want to avenge them all. Do you have what it takes to help me avenge the people we were supposed to protect?'

"… Thirty-five," Zaos replied after a long sigh.

"This attitude… you must be Zaos," Verkan said while he looked at Zaos's squad members. "You don't look to be lying… I heard that the shield of the king had a pretty stupid son, but while you have the nerve to keep looking at me without blinking, you don't look like someone who would shout in front of the enemies that you are his son."

 Zaos frowned after hearing that. It looked like some rumors about him had spread around. That was odd, though. His squad guarded plenty of villages over the last year, but he didn't hear anything like that.

"It seems you are hardheaded as your father, so all that history about a first-year killing so many mercenaries wasn't just a stupid tale," Verkan crossed his arms and then nodded. "Your family is pretty good at making some unnerving pain in the ass's heirs."

"You know my father?" Zaos asked.

"Yeah, I wasn't in the same squad as him, but I enlisted on the same year he did," Verkan said.