Chapter 343: Rumors
Four days since Heila’s crushing victory over the Tuscan warriors, rumors once again swept through High Fen City, this time with even greater fervor than the arrival of the Mother of Trees and her unbeatable Willow Witch.
By now, everyone had forgotten the rumors that had painted the noble and refined Mother of Trees as a pauper from the impoverished Vale of Mists. It was as clear as the bright blue autumn sky to anyone with eyes in the arena that this human witch was a woman of grace, elegance, and strength that no one could fathom.
Never before had the people of High Fen City seen the strength of a witch on display in their sacred arena and now they finally knew why. Witches had nothing to fear from the arena’s challenges, rather, there was little there that could challenge them
With Heila’s final victory feeling increasingly assured, people turned their attention to the latest rumor circulating in the busy markets and the shaded parks. Farmers from the outlying villages had already brought word of a powerful force on the march. Hundreds of soldiers, no, thousands, no, tens of thousands of soldiers, all marching under the banner of an Eldritch Lord that no one recognized.
"A hundred thousand strong, and not a soldier less," an apple seller confidently told the young women gathered at his stall as he filled a sack for them. "They say it’s just an honor guard for the lord that’s come to challenge High Lady Erna to a duel in the arena. Mark my words, by winter, we may be tithing to a new High Lord, or even a Great Lord!"
"I heard that the Golden Eyed Clan marches at the head of a great army," an excited voice said in a small cafe elsewhere in the city. "They say that they’re refugees. A motley bunch of refugees who escaped the destruction of High Lord Hamdi’s Tangled Tower. They’re coming here to beg High Lady Erna to take them in."
"Hush, none of that here," a worried-looking shopkeeper said as he poured fresh mulled cider for the pair of young men gossipping at a small table in the corner of the cafe. "What if it’s true, eh? You think you’re strong enough to fight off High Lord Hamdi’s men if they hear you’ve been talking down on them? Even a starving wolf can kill a rabbit and what are you but a juicy rabbit to the likes of them?"
"I’m no rabbit," the young man from the clan of painted masks protested. "I’ll be sixteen come spring and I’m already enrolled in the Crimson Blade Academy. I’ll be a gladiator on the sands in two year’s time!"
"Sure, a gladiator in two years, but a rabbit today," the shopkeeper said. "So mind your tongue. Besides," he added, leaning in close and giving the young man a conspiratorial wink. "Have you forgotten who has been keeping our High Lady Erna company in the arena lately? I hear that Her Dominion Ashlynn has called up the rest of her coven from across the land and she’s just waiting for them to gather here before she returns to the Vale of Mists..."
Some rumors were more wildly exaggerated than others, and the only people who knew the truth weren’t saying anything, or at least, they weren’t saying anything to the common folk.
Rumors of an impending attack died almost instantly when soldiers and staff from High Lady Erna’s palace assembled in force near the city’s North Gate and all along the thoroughfares leading from the gate to the palace.