[COLOR=FF8C00][B]"Well aren't we just a motley crew of survivors? A lawyer from a patrician family. A street urchin, no offense intended to you Cilia. An Immaculate Monk who gave up on the order. And a merchant princess who lost it all."[/B][/COLOR] Had they not just escaped almost certain death... TWICE... Fergus would have laughed at the prospect of being grouped up with his current associates. Not so much at the fact they were of 'lower standing' so much as that the odds were just absurd. And yet here he was, sharing stories with them as they all came to terms with their lives being turned upside down. [COLOR=FF8C00][B]"I suppose we should all count ourselves lucky, yes? Sure, we may have lost a lot today... but at least we have our health."[/B][/COLOR]

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[B]Approximately fifteen kilometers to the east... [/B][/CENTER]

Cackling Harlot's Retribution was contemplating which settlement to take next. Something close but with lower population? A bit further away that would need another Soulbreaker? She could not use those thoughtlessly, after all. Yes, Mask of Winters had amassed a large number of them. That did not mean they could be used indiscriminately, however. They were still a finite resource. It was then that she decided to make camp for a short time, if only to discuss it with the undead officers who accompanied her.

[COLOR=DDA0DD][B]"I think a few smaller towns should suffice before we cross the sea to Pangu Prefecture. After all, the shadowland made by our assault on the Imperial Ruins..."[/B][/COLOR] Cackling Harlot still hated referring to them as such, as she had always wanted to see the Imperial Palace when she was a girl. And now that she was finally able to, it was only to utterly destroy the place. Bittersweet, to say the least. [COLOR=DDA0DD][B]"... will grow to be quite large. If Master Winters' calculations are accurate, far outside the radius of the Soulbreaker. Only minimal casualties will be needed to extend its reach northward."[/B][/COLOR]

The officers with her seemed to agree, and they began packing up their camp as Cackling Harlot took a quick bath in the river. While putting her clothes and armor back on, she noticed an odd taste in her mouth. Spitting on the ground, she found it was a small amount of blood from a recent feeding. [COLOR=DDA0DD][B]"Ah, right. I got a bit carried away with that one. I should thank him if I ever run into him again. Though for his sake, I hope I never get that chance."[/B][/COLOR] She laughed for a moment, thinking how even now she was not used to feeding on people like that. Would she ever get used to it? Would she eventually grow numb to it? Would it always bother her? Questions for later. Now, she resumed her campaign to bring Mask of Winters' plan to fruition.

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The night had been kind to the four survivors of the Imperial Ruins. No bandits, dangerous animals, or undead stragglers had come across them as they slept. Fergus was a bit annoyed at having to wake up in the middle of the night to go on watch, but he knew why it was necessary. And now they had to move on. It was a very long way to Lord's Crossing, but they needed to make the trek if they wanted to mount any sort of organized defense against Mask of Winters.

[COLOR=FF8C00][B]"There should be a city or town to the northwest. We're not far from the Imperial River, after all. Stupid dynasts had to name everything around here Imperial this, Imperial that... dumbasses."[/B][/COLOR] The second half of that was unintentionally spoken aloud, but at this point Fergus didn't care. Who was going to yell at him for talking down on the Great Houses right now? No one. [COLOR=FF8C00][B]"We can buy some supplies, get a real meal, and maybe even secure some transportation inland. Not like I'm lacking for money to buy things for us, right?"[/B][/COLOR] Truly, it was a bit of a blessing that Fergus had brought some of his wealth with him to buy frivolous things after work that day.

As the four survivors put out the fire and packed their belongings for the long walk to the Imperial River, Fergus caught sight of something roughly human-shaped on the other side of the stream they camped next to. Given the day they had yesterday, he was visibly nervous. [COLOR=FF8C00][B]"Oi, you! Come out! We're all armed, and we're not afraid to kill you if you try anything funny!"[/B][/COLOR] He didn't WANT to do that, but current circumstances dictated that he place the survival of himself and associates above the survival of others.