Former Fake Becomes Grand Duke of the North

Ewald’s tavern had a room in the back area which he used to meet with clients when discussing jobs. It wasn’t anything special, just a small square room with a wooden table and a few wooden chairs, but it was the perfect place to hold private meetings. A glass lantern with a mana crystal provided light and heat.

I made my way to the meeting room and found Sir Kane waiting for me. He was a tall man, almost as tall as me, with a broad and muscular physique. He had the mana signature of an Aura Expert. He wore the uniform of the Coldsteel Knights, a black outfit with blue trimmings. The crest of Order of the Coldsteel Blade was embroidered over his heart: a grayish-white sword surrounded by a blue flame.

Like me, Sir Kane had pale skin, short black hair, and blue eyes, which was rather common up here in the Barrens. It was rarer in the Riverlands, the Reichwald Empire’s western region, where I grew up. When I first arrived in the Barrens, I was shocked to find myself surrounded by people who looked just like me, since I was used to standing out. It took me some time to get used to it.

Sir Kane had been sitting down, but stood up when I entered.

“Greetings, Sir Kane,” I said, giving him a slight bow. My tone became more formal as well. After living as a mercenary for three years, I had shed most of the mannerisms I adopted when I pretended to be a noble, but old habits died hard.

“Wulfe,” Sir Kane said, nodding to me in return. He spoke in a deep voice. “It’s good to see you again.”

“It’s good to see you as well. I apologize for the wait. I was out on a job.”

Sir Kane flashed me a faint smile.

“So I heard,” he said. “You don’t have to apologize. I’m the one who showed up without prior notice.”

Rather than respond, and continue a potentially endless round of apologies, I gestured for Sir Kane to sit down again before sitting down myself.

“So, to what do I owe the honor of this visit?” I asked, skipping the small talk. “I believe this is the first time you have sought me out like this.”

Sir Kane and I shared an odd friendship. Most knights looked down on mercenaries and treated them with contempt. They viewed us as nothing more than greedy sellswords who were only interested in coin, and they weren’t wrong. Sir Kane was an exception, at least when it came to me.

The two of us first met about a year ago, when a large horde of demonic beasts invaded the Barrens. Grand Duke Kaltbrand and his vassals didn’t have enough knights to deal with the horde, so they hired mercenaries to make up the numbers. They split us off into groups in order to defend key locations. Sir Kane and I both ended up at Jagged Tooth Pass, a passageway that led from the Barrens to the Crownlands, the heart of the Reichwald Empire and location of Haven, the imperial capital.

Due to its location, less than a thousand of us had been posted to protect the pass. Most were mercenaries, with about a hundred knights accompanying us. No one thought that the horde would make it that far south, which was why there were so few of us. If any demonic beasts reached Jagged Tooth Pass, we figured there would only be a few hundred of them at most.

We couldn’t have been more wrong.

About a day after we reached the pass, thousands of demonic beasts stormed our location. It was a bloodbath. Most of the mercenaries died within the first few hours. The remaining few who survived fled for their lives. Of the hundreds of mercenaries who had been there, less than ten lasted until the end. I was one of those ten. The Coldsteel Knights fared somewhat better, though they still took grievous casualties.

Sir Kane and I ended up fighting back to back, though I didn’t remember much of the actual fighting. All I remembered was struggling desperately to survive as an endless tide of demonic beasts swarmed us. During my entire career as a mercenary, that had been the only time I feared I would die. I still have nightmares about that day. However, that same battle allowed me to cross the threshold from Aura Expert to Aura Master.

Near the end of the battle, I took an attack meant for Sir Kane and fell unconscious. I heard about what happened afterwards from others. A relief force led by Knight Commander Bardin herself arrived soon after I fell unconscious and saved the day, preventing the horde of demonic beasts from reaching the Crownlands.

When I woke up, Sir Kane swore to repay me for saving his life. I accepted his offer, and asked for his help in joining the Coldsteel Knights. The two of us had been friends ever since then. At first, my reasons for cultivating a friendship with Sir Kane were entirely out of self interest. However, as I came to know him, I found that liked Sir Kane as a person. He was quiet and reserved most of the time, but there were moments when he displayed a dry sense of humor.

Due to his low status within the Coldsteel Knights, Sir Kane’s help was limited to throwing dangerous jobs my way, which had helped raise my reputation. However, he always went through Ewald when he did this. This was the first time he had ever sought me out directly.

Sir Kane’s expression grew serious at my question.

“Wulfe,” he said. “Why do you wish to join the Order of the Coldsteel Blade?”

My excitement rose, though I made an effort to hide it. I took a moment to think about his question. A part of me wanted to lie or deflect, but I decided against it in the end. Sir Kane always struck me as the sort who preferred an unpleasant truth over a convenient lie. I didn’t want to lose his friendship by deceiving him, even if it meant disappointing him. After all, I was a mercenary. In the end, I worked for my self-interests first and foremost.

“For the title,” I said.

Sir Kane seemed unsurprised by my answer.

“I figured as much,” he said. “It’s the same reason why most people seek to join the Order of the Coldsteel Blade, though only a few manage to succeed. The rest join for honor and glory, or because they wish to protect others from demonic beasts.”

I shrugged.

“I have no interest in honor or glory,” I said. “And while I understand the importance of keeping the demonic beasts at bay, the main reason why I want to join is to earn a title.”

I needed a title, and joining the Coldsteel Knights was my best chance at earning one. If that fell through, there were other avenues I could explore but the chances of success were much lower.

“In that case,” Sir Kane said with a nod. “I have an offer for you, Wulfe. However, this isn’t an invitation to join the Order of the Coldsteel Blade.”

His words doused my excitement.

“If this isn’t an invitation to join the Coldsteel Knights, then what is it?” I asked, an edge to my voice.

Why did he ask that question if he hadn’t planned on inviting me to the Coldsteel Knights? Had it been some sort of test? If so, had I failed?

“A job offer from my superiors,” Sir Kane said.

I narrowed my eyes at him.

“If your superiors wanted to hire me for a job, they could have gone through Ewald,” I said. “He is my broker, after all. They didn’t need to send you.”

Sir Kane shook his head.

“This is a sensitive matter,” he said. “Since you and I know each other, my superiors told me to approach you directly rather than go through your broker.”

I frowned. This was strange. Sir Kane was a Coldsteel Knight, not some errand boy. If his superiors were using him as a messenger, then this wasn’t some simple job.

“What sort of job is it?” I asked.

Sir Kane shook his head again.

“I can’t tell you that,” he said. “I don’t know the details myself.”

A thread of unease wrapped itself around my heart.

“What can you tell me, then?” I asked.

Sir Kane took a moment before answering.

“My superiors tasked me with bringing you to Frostheart so they can meet you,” he said. “You’ll learn more then. That’s all I can say on the matter.”

Frostheart was the regional capital of the Barrens and Grand Duke Kaltbrand’s seat of power. It was also where the headquarters of the Coldsteel Knights was located.

“So let me see if I understand you correctly,” I said. “Your superiors want me to go to Frostheart to meet with them about a job, but didn’t tell you the details of said job?”

Sir Kane nodded and gave me an apologetic look.

“I’m just the messenger,” he said. “They knew that you would be wary and suspicious, given the lack of information, which was why they sent me. They thought that if I asked you, you would be more likely to accept.”

They weren’t wrong. Sir Kane and I had fought side by side against impossible odds and survived. I trusted him with my life because I knew that if I was in danger, he would have my back. He had done it before, back when we were complete strangers to each other.

“And if I don’t accept and refuse to meet with your superiors?” I asked. “What then? Will you be punished?”

“No,” Sir Kane said, shaking his head. “They said that if you refused to accept the job, then you would be invited to join the Order of the Coldsteel Blade.”

That caught me off guard. All I needed to do in order to join the Coldsteel Knights was to refuse to accept this suspicious sounding job? That couldn’t be right.

“However,” Sir Kane continued. “In order for that to happen, you need to meet with them in Frostheart and hear what they have to say first.”

Of course it wasn’t that simple. I resisted the urge to sigh. Regardless of what I chose, if I wanted to join the Coldsteel Knights and earn a title, I need to head towards Frostheart.

“If it makes you feel any better,” Sir Kane said. “My superiors have had an eye on you for a while now. If they hadn’t needed you for this job, whatever it is, I believe they would have already invited you to join the Order of the Coldsteel Blade.”

That did make me feel a little better.

“Thank you, Sir Kane,” I said.

The two of us fell silent after that as I mulled over my options, not that I had many options to mull over in the first place. I needed a title, and joining the Coldsteel Knights was my best chance at earning one. If I let this opportunity go, I had a feeling that I would regret it. Still, it worried me that Sir Kane’s superiors were so insistent on meeting me.

Why? I was just a mercenary, as far as everyone else knew. No one, not even Sir Kane, knew that I was an Aura Master. So why did they want to meet with me? They even went as far as to use the possibility of joining the Coldsteel Knights as a way to lure me to Frostheart. Was it some kind of trap? It seemed so, but why bother? Again, I was just a mercenary. In the grand scheme of things, I wasn’t anyone important.

Did this have to do with House Guld, my former adoptive family? Now that was a possibility, albeit a small one. As far as I knew, House Guld and House Kaltbrand had little to do with each other, even though both were ducal families. One ruled the prosperous Riverlands, while the other ruled the cold and desolate Barrens.

Still, if House Guld had found me, there was a chance that they had reached out to House Kaltbrand in order to try and lure me in. The chances of that happening were low, but they existed. But why though? I was no longer a part of House Guld. They took me in for a specific purpose and I had fulfilled the purpose. We had nothing to do with each other anymore, for now at least. After I earned my title, that would change. Maybe then, I could become a real member of their family. However, that hadn’t happened yet.

I sighed. There wasn’t any point in thinking it over anymore. I had already made my decision. I just hadn’t admitted it to myself yet.

“Fine,” I said. “I’ll go to Frostheart and meet with your superiors. When do we leave?”

“Tonight, if at all possible,” Sir Kane said. “I received permission to use the warp gate network so we don’t have to waste time traveling on foot.”

I raised an eyebrow at him. The warp gate network was a series of portals that connected the cities of the Reichwald Empire to one another. This allowed for instantaneous transportation from one city to another. There were limits to this, of course. Each warp gate was only connected to one other warp gate. Not only that, but a pair of warp gates needed to be within a certain distance of each other or they wouldn’t work. Meaning that if someone wanted to travel from one end of the Reichwald Empire to another, they would need to go through several warp gates before reaching their destination.

Traveling through a warp gate also used up a significant amount of mana crystals, so not just anyone could use one. While mana crystals were cheaper and more abundant here in the Barrens, they were still too valuable a resource to waste. This meant that the warp gate network was limited to high ranking nobles and important government officials. Everyone else had to travel on foot or by carriage. If Sir Kane’s superiors gave him permission to use the warp gate network, that meant that they wanted to meet with me more than I thought.

Just what kind of job did they want me to do?

“Give me an hour,” I said. “I need to pack my things and settle my affairs here. After that, I’ll be free to go.”

I didn’t own much, so it wouldn’t take me long to pack all of my things. However, I needed to talk with Ewald. Regardless of what happened in Frostheart, I wouldn’t be working with him anymore. Either I would accept the job Sir Kane’s superiors wanted me to do, or I would join the Coldsteel Knights. It looked like my days as a mercenary were over.

Two hours later, Sir Kane and I found ourselves in Frostheart. By that point, it was well after nightfall. It had taken me a little under an hour to retrieve my things and settle my affairs in Warrior’s Rest. Ewald looked unsurprised by my departure and the reason behind it. He must have guessed the reason why Sir Kane came to see me.

It took us an hour to reach Frostheart from Warrior’s Rest. The reason why it took that long was because none of the warp gates in Warrior’s Rest led to Frostheart. We had to travel through a few other cities first. If Sir Kane and I had traveled on foot, it would have taken us about two weeks.

After we left the warp gate platform, I followed Sir Kane deeper into the city. It was my first time in Frostheart, so I took a good look around. Reading and hearing about the city was different from experiencing it firsthand. Frostheart was large, as expected of the capital of the Barrens. Most of the city was built from dark gray stone, giving it a bleak and foreboding appearance. It was also colder than Warrior’s Rest, since Frostheart was much further north. Thankfully, I had dressed for the weather, so the cold bothered me not at all.

It must have snowed not too long ago, since a thin layer of snow coated much of the city though the streets themselves were clear. In contrast to the cold and the city’s bleak appearance, tall lamps lined the street and shone with warm light. The light made the snow glimmer. Despite the late hour, there were still several people out and about.

Frostheart was built atop a large hill, so the streets were sloped. A massive wall, made from the same dark stone as the buildings, surrounded the city. In the center of it all, at the very top of the hill, stood a tall and imposing fortress: Kaltbrand Castle.

While I had never seen it before, I had read much about it. The castle came first, built to defend against the constant threat of demonic beasts, with the rest of the city coming after. It was the ancestral home of House Kaltbrand and also the headquarters of the Order of the Coldsteel Blade.

Contrary to my expectations, Sir Kane didn’t lead me towards Kaltbrand Castle. Instead, he led me to another area of the city. This made me wary. While I trusted Sir Kane, the same couldn’t be said for his superiors. This entire business had me on edge, so I made sure to keep a constant eye out for any potential threats. So far I hadn’t seen anything suspicious, but I maintained a vigilant watch.

As an Aura Master, I was confident in my ability to escape any potential ambush or trap. The only people in the Barrens I had to fear were Grand Duke Kaltbrand and Knight Commander Bardin, and I doubted either of them would concern themselves with a mercenary like me.

It was what would happen afterwards that worried me. If this was all indeed a trap set up by the Coldsteel Knights, then there was a good chance that I would end up as a fugitive before the end of the night. In that case, I would have to escape the Barrens and readjust my plans. I hoped it didn’t come to that.

Sir Kane soon led me to a building that looked much like the others in Frostheart. It stood two-stories tall and had a simple appearance. However, I found myself caught off guard when we went inside. Contrary to the exterior, the interior of the building looked like a lavish and well-appointed restaurant. It was the sort of place nobles liked to frequent. Compared to the restaurants in the imperial capital of Haven, it wasn’t anything special. However, by Barrens standards, it was unbelievably luxurious.

The warmth of the place hit me like a physical force. A waiter wearing an expensive outfit approached us and gave each of us a slight bow.

“Sir Kane?” the waiter asked in a polite tone. “Your party is waiting for you upstairs.”

Sir Kane nodded to him in thanks before heading towards the stairs leading to the second floor.

“Sir Kane,” I said under my breath. “Who exactly am I meeting?”

“My superiors,” he said.

“And who are these superiors of yours?”

When he mentioned superiors back at Ewald’s tavern, I assumed he meant officers within the Coldsteel Knights. However, considering the choice of meeting location, I doubted that was the case. Despite my misgivings, I continued to follow Sir Kane.

The second floor consisted of a hallway with doors that I assumed led to private dining rooms. A team of Aura Experts, all of them wearing the uniform of the Coldsteel Knights, guarded one of the doors. Sir Kane and I headed in that direction.

Without a word, the Coldsteel Knights searched me and confiscated my weapons. As this went on, I considered leaving but decided against it. I had already made it this far, so I might as well see it through.

After the Coldsteel Knights finished searching me, they gestured for me to go through the door.

“This is where I leave you,” Sir Kane said with an apologetic expression on his face. “They want to meet with you alone.”

I gave him a cross look.

“When this is over, you and I are going to have a conversation about honesty, Sir Kane,” I said.

One of the other Coldsteel Knights glared at me and opened her mouth to say something, but Sir Kane silenced her with a gesture.

“I’m sorry, Wulfe,” he said. “I had my orders.”

I shook my head, before opening the door and entering. Two people waited for me inside, a man and a woman. The man was sitting down, while the woman stood behind him to his left. According to their mana signatures, both were Aura Masters. My heart sank. It didn’t take a genius to figure out who these two were.

“Welcome,” Grand Duke Kaltbrand said. “We’ve been expecting you, Wulfe.”