Steel and Sorrow: Rise of the Mercenary king

Chapter 144: Aiding the effort

Chapter 144: Aiding the effort

The army of 700 men marched in unison, their footfalls thudding against the hardened dirt as they approached the city of Megioduroli. Dust rose with every step, swirling in the cool morning air. At the head of the column, Alpheo rode alongside Lord Shahab, both of them silent as they neared the city walls. The banners of their combined forces fluttered behind them, their colors catching in the wind,as the city's gates remained closed.

The initial coldness which the lord held toward Alpheo had started to get warmer as the relationship betweent he two reached a point at least, where the old men did not groan every time he exchanged talks with the young man.

Ahead, stark against the landscape, were two banners planted firmly into the ground—black stags on a blood-red field. The sigil of lord Aidon's house with the head of it being the lord of Megioduroli, Lord Damaris.

Alpheo signaled for the army to halt, his hand raised. A ripple of motion passed through the ranks as the men obeyed, their armor clanking and horses snorting in the sudden stillness. 

Alpheo turned to his companions. "We go forward. The rest of you hold here," he ordered. Alpheo knew that marching into another lord's domain was considered an enfrangement over the latter's rights; as such he wanted to make sure to let their first encounter to the lord of the city not end badly.

The dozen riders accompanying them followed as Alpheo and Shahab nudged their horses forward, breaking off from the main force.