Chapter 28: Spirit Tree
It was Kaelor’s turn for his eyes to widen.
A mercenary? Of all things he had expected... that wasn’t one of them.
"I was once a noble," Vi began, her voice steady but touched with distant bitterness. "My father held the title of Count. But he owed too much, and when the Duke came to collect his debt... everything crumbled."
Kaelor said nothing, simply listened.
"The others were sold off. I was the only one who escaped." A small, ironic smile touched her lips. "I became a mercenary. Started from nothing, scraps, odd jobs, dangerous missions no one else wanted. Slowly, I built a party. Then a company. Eventually, it grew into a guild, five thousand strong. Men and women who followed my command without question."
There was pride in her voice now. Real, earned pride.
"My skills became highly sought after," she continued, her eyes briefly flicking to the window, as though seeing another world. "Not just in my birth kingdom, but as far as the Dukedom of Merlin... even beyond. No one cared for what I offered when it was small, when it was just a girl trying to survive. But once I stood among Counts, Viscounts, even shared ballrooms with Dukes... they noticed."
Her tone shifted, darkened.
"And then, what I built was taken from me. By the very people I trained. Those arrows your apothecary pulled from my flesh? They were fired by men I brought out of filth and gave purpose to."
Kaelor crossed his arms. "So they’ll be hunting you."
Vi nodded slowly. "Always."