Page 80 of I Ran Away to Evil #3
I Do Love Gossip
Julian
One Week into the North
To say that travelling with Gerda was wonderful would’ve been an understatement. Instead of pushing through until they were forced to give up and go back to the fortress, they were making steady progress, and spirits were high.
The days were spent leisurely exploring, and the nights were spent in a warm bed.
“Good morning.” Julian bit Gerda’s neck playfully then sat up before she could swat him.
Fresh ocean air drifted in from the open window. Gerda had moved it to a small bridge she had at the southern tip of Sumbria. It made the summer nights bearable.
“Morning.” Gerda stretched languidly, and he wished they had more time together. He craved it … But work called, and so did the bathroom.
They’d developed a routine in the days they’d spent together; they would bathe, get changed, tidy up the bedroom, and then have breakfast. That morning, he’d snuck a note under her pillow before they left.
He enjoyed writing his thoughts to Gerda, and this one said simply, I can’t stop thinking about your smile.
Breakfast was overnight oats with cinnamon sugar and freshly picked peaches. Gerda had gone out and picked the peaches while he poured over reports from the Northern Fortress at the table.
“Corporal Saunders sent word,” he told her when she brought over the food. “There’s been elevated monster activity in the area.”
“Alright.” Gerda put down their plates before pouring him a glass of his new favorite drink.
“We’ll have to prepare for a surge.” Julian enjoyed the smell of fresh cranderberry iced tea. His glass had slices of candied citron stirred with the ice, and a tart bite. Just like his bridge troll.
“Just leave Tully behind to defend the fort; he could use the experience points.”
“He’s dodged a month of disciplinary punishment already, with us coming to the North. I bet Visha would approve.” He chuckled, setting aside work to eat.
“Oh?” she asked.
“He was tasked with training the knights in the afternoons for a month, which means we could abandon him at the border with due cause.”
“Is he enough to hold back a surge?” Gerda asked, dubious.
“Tully can handle the first wave of monsters just fine, and we could come back for the actual battle.” Julian picked up their dishes and carried them into the kitchen.
While he washed all of the breakfast dishes and set them to dry on the rack, he told her, “The hidden dungeon has been sending out monster surges every few months. We’re all used to it by now. ”
Gerda came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his back. “Let’s go tell him.”
Two Weeks into the North
“How do you get used to this ?” Gerda wondered aloud, looking at the chaos below. They’d received a summons from Tully that afternoon and had come back to help.
“Aerial team, hold off the frost goliath. Vanguard, attack the snow craigies.” Julian stood beside her on the fortress wall.
He’d already activated his [Battle Call] to direct the soldiers.
To Gerda, he joked, “You just throw away rationality or hope for peace.” After a pause, he let himself give a more honest answer, adding, “Or think about those you are defending.”
Visha took down two snow craigies, fluffy beasts that looked like snowballs with long ratlike noses, sharp teeth and claws, and long, hairy tails. The remaining three were surrounded by his knights and defeated.
Tully hit the frost goliath with his war hammer, sending the monster back a step. It shook itself and swung a fist at the paladin. Behind them, Julian counted twelve holly treants and forty-seven armored trouters. The fish monsters only came up to his knee, but they had a vicious bite.
Gerda turned on a dime, lifting her hand to shield her eyes against the sun. “There are more monsters circling around the east side. None Shall Pass by, [Bridge Barrier].” She set the same riddle that everyone had already agreed upon, “What do dragons use to measure things correctly?”
The answer was their scales.
The drawbridge remained lowered during the battle to let the knights retreat in case of an emergency. Any monster would have to circle to the south side of the fortress to access it. And answer the riddle to cross.
“Eyes to the east, Jeffry. Flankers incoming.” He gave the order without hesitation.
Jeffry left off distracting the frost goliath to scout the area Gerda pointed to.
“Five rocksoc; what are your orders?” Jeffry yelled down at us from the sky. The creatures were burrowing rodents the size of a cat. Usually, they cut through the frozen mountainside and made their homes inside the dark caves.
“Corporal Saunders, fall back. I need your party to circle around the fort and set up a subterrain defense line,” Julian instructed. “Pram, you’re with them.”
The selkie moved with the group.
“Dearest”—Julian grabbed Gerda’s hand and pulled her closer, dropping a kiss on her cheek—“I think it’s time I head down. Can you hold the fort?”
“Of course.” She waved him on. “Just make sure everything is cleaned before dinner—I had a surprise planned for us tonight, remember?”
“I remember.” He leapt off the wall, over the moat, and straight into a row of trouters.
He wouldn’t risk their date or his alone time with Gerda.
It was time to wrap this up.
“We’re having dinner here?” he asked, watching Gerda set down a picnic blanket on the grassy field beside Lake Loria. He knew she’d deliberately been avoiding Nilheim until now.
They were in the shade of a tree at the forest’s edge.
Nearby, a family of sprites were on vacation, sunbathing on a patch of sand.
A ways away, three mermaids frolicked on a rocky bank, singing a lilting harmony.
Plittsmouth, the underwater city in Lake Loria, couldn’t be seen from the shore, but on a beautiful day like today, there were countless denizens of the deep enjoying a swim to the surface and a spot of sun.
There was also a fire-breathing dragon napping about fifty paces away. Her Eminence Feliwyn was curled up on a dragon-sized blanket much like the one Gerda was using now.
“Yes, now come help,” Gerda told him, sitting down and pulling out an actual picnic basket full of food. She was perfectly able to store everything in her ring, so the basket was purely for aesthetics.
Julian unequipped his Valarian Royal Set.
He also stored his socks and shoes, wearing only a simple tunic tucked into his britches before he dropped onto his knees and helped.
There were potato wedges, roasted fowl, honey butter buns, smoked cheese, fig jam, pickled cabbage, and a bowl of fresh fruit.
Gerda pulled out a bottle of wine, and he accepted a glass.
Tinking their drinks together, the vintage that met his lips tasted like the sun itself, bright and acidic. It was lovely, with the smell of forged iron and a tang that settled on his tongue long after he pulled away to look at the glass and scrutinize its delicious contents.
“What is this?” he asked, savoring the taste.
It was one of the best wines he’d ever had.
“I got it from the Dark Queen Roselia’s hidden treasure trove,” she said, shooting him a grin over her own glass. “That’s King Keith’s great-great-grandmother, I think?”
“I have so many questions,” he said. Instead of asking any, he simply took another sip and enjoyed the flavor.
“I’ll be happy to answer them later, but for now …” Gerda turned toward the giant green-and-purple dragon who’d just shifted in her sleep.
“You knew?” Julian froze, wondering if he should reequip his set.
She didn’t answer, simply shuffling across the blanket to lean against him. Since she was unconcerned, so was he. Julian wrapped an arm around her waist and waited.
Her Eminence Feliwyn stretched like a dragon would: arched back, forearms sliding forward until they brushed the grass at the edge of her blanket. She flexed her talons in the earth and yawned wide, showing off teeth the length of a kitchen knife.
Golden eyes opened with a hint of sleepiness, the irises like thin black diamonds.
The entire forest was silent as everyone held their breaths.
Feliwyn turned her gaze on all: the mermaids, the sprites, and the pair of them. One eyebrow rose delicately at the sight of Duke Julian of the North cuddling a troll woman on the banks of Lake Loria.
It was important to show proper courtesy to a dragon, or they might eat you, so Julian tried to stand and greet the dragon.
Gerda stopped him, grabbing his hand and pulling him back down to the blanket.
“Your Eminence.” The troll waved a hand at their picnic spread. “Would you like to break your fast with us? It’s been eight years, and I promise you, I have all the best gossip.”
The dragon eyed them for a moment longer before her face split into a wide, toothy smile, and she spoke with a deep, effeminate voice, like warm honey cake.
“I do love gossip.”