Grimgal of Ashes and Illusion - Volume 18 - Chapter 1

1. Short-Lived Homesickness

Nick, a soldier with the Frontier Army, had been on guard duty at the watchtower of Alterna’s north gate since ten o’clock the night before. He was on what you’d call the night shift, lasting until the first bell tolled at six o’clock in the morning the next day.

The north gate’s watchtower had no roof. At twenty-seven years of age, Nick was of middling height and weight, but the moderately high walls of the watchtower only came up to his chest. He looked out over them, his eyes cautiously monitoring the area outside the barrier that protected Alterna. He was almost completely exposed to the wind. It was a chill wind that left him feeling awfully cold. On top of that, with dawn approaching, a thick fog had been hanging over the area.

“I’ve got no luck at all,” Nick muttered, rubbing his face with gloved hands. He was standing next to the watch fire for warmth, but his nose had been running pretty badly for a while now.

“Why’s it gotta be so damn cold? And the fog makes it impossible to see too...”

“Quit your bellyaching,” his coworker Chad, a man the same age as him, said with a laugh. “It’ll be dawn soon enough, and we’ll be relieved right after that. You can hang in there a little longer, can’t you?”

Nick cast a resentful sideways glance at the buddy he never seemed to be able to get rid of. “Hey, Chad.”

“Yeah?” Chad took a long swig from his leather water bottle. “What is it, Nick?”

“I’ve been wondering about something.”

“Yeah?” Chad responded with a generous shrug. “About what? Out with it, man.”

“About that water bottle,” Nick said, snatching it as soon as the words had left his mouth.

“Ah! Hey, you jerk!” Chad hurriedly tried to snatch it back.

“Oh, shut up. Who’re you calling a jerk, you jerk?” Nick countered, blocking Chad’s hands with one arm as he took a whiff of the contents of his bottle. It was faint, but he smelled something. “I knew it. Booze.”

“No, it’s not—” Chad said in a panic before slipping into a more coaxing tone. “D-Don’t be silly, Nick, buddy, you’ve got it all wrong. It’s not booze. Not at all. Of course it isn’t. I mean, if it was, I’d get drunk, right? Right? If I was drinking the whole night while I was on guard duty, I’d end up totally sloshed. Do I look drunk to you? I don’t, do I?”

“I’ll know for sure once I take a swig myself.”

“Oh, I dunno about that. Maybe you shouldn’t? I mean, I put my lips on that bottle and all. Not that it would bother me if you wanna go ahead with it. But you’re the sort who makes a big deal about stuff like that, aren’t you?”

Nick didn’t let that stop him from taking a sip.

“A-yep... This is some watered-down shit. There isn’t much, but it’s in there. Definitely. This’s got booze in it. Without a doubt.”

“Fine,” Chad said, putting a hand on Nick’s shoulder. “Yeah, yeah, yeah, you got me. That’s what it was.”

“Oh? Trying to go on the offensive now?”

“Just listen to me. I admit it, Nick. Like you said, I mixed a little booze into my water. Only a little, though. So little, you can barely tell it’s there. The perfect amount, really. If it doesn’t affect my work, what’s the problem, am I right?”

“Do you really think Commander Jin Mogis would let that slide?”

“I’m not talking to the commander, I’m talking to you. So, let me turn the question around. It’s cold, right? And we’re on night duty. At night. That’s why it’s called night duty. It’s tough, isn’t it? Of course it is. Yeah, I’m gonna mix a little booze into my water. It’s the least I can do. It’d be crazier not to. You get me? Nick, buddy, you’re the one who’s a little crazy here. What I’m doing is totally sane.”

“What the hell? I’ve got a crazy guy telling me I’m crazy now? What even is this? Chad, pal, what do you think common sense and regulations are for?”

“I’m telling you, it’s fine.” Chad took the bottle back from Nick and took a swig before winking at him. “Totally fine, buddy. You don’t need to worry. Come on. Think about it. Our Frontier Army and those uppity volunteer soldiers just finished slaughtering the enemy at Mount Grief, right? If you’d actually use some of that common sense, you’d realize there aren’t any enemies around here. No way. Times like this, we can afford to loosen up regulations a little. Yeah? We’re just human. Let’s take it nice and easy, okay?”

“But, man, there’re goblins right over in Damuro, aren’t there?”

“They aren’t gonna come attack us. What do you think the commander forged an alliance with them for? To tame those barbaric little shit-monkeys, right?”

“And you trust them? They’ve got no scruples. They’d eat you without a second thought; eat their own kind too while they’re at it.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Chad started massaging Nick’s shoulders. “That’s the thing. What an idea, forging an alliance with creatures like that. It’s crazy, isn’t it? Absolutely insane, that’s what our commander is. I hear he’s secretly been feeding us goblin meat too.”

“Huh...? The hell?”

“It’s just a rumor, but...” Chad lowered his voice. “A guy on duty in the mess hall looked inside one of the barrels in the larder, and there was a goblin, all sliced up and pickled in brine...”

Nick covered his mouth, feeling a sudden bout of nausea.

“Are you serious...?”

“Like I said, man, it’s just a rumor,” Chad said with a laugh, handing Nick the bottle. Nick accepted it, taking just a sip of the water that tasted faintly of alcohol.

“But...knowing the commander, he might well do it. I mean, sure, we’ve got guys out gathering up the livestock that were being kept in the outlying villages, and looking for other stuff we can eat. Question is whether that’s enough...”

“They say the commander’s got a stock of supplies hidden away. And there’s talk about how we’re getting regular shipments from the mainland resupplying us.”

“The mainland, huh?” Nick returned the bottle to his fellow guard, crossing his arms as he looked off into the distance. A light sigh escaped his lips. “Wish I could go back,” he said. “But even if I did, I’ve already cut ties with my folks, and I’ve got no other way to make a living. Nothing I can do about it...”

“That’s north, Nick. Mainland’s the other way,” Chad said with a laugh, shaking the bottle to check how much was left.

Nick sniffled. “I know that. I’m just being attentive in my duties. Getting clobbered by our superior officer for messing up’d be one thing, but damned if I’m gonna get myself executed by the commander.”

“Yeah, you’ve got a point...” Chad looked outside the wall. “He might suddenly start purging the ranks to enforce discipline. I wouldn’t put it past him... Oh. The mist’s—”

“Yeah.” Nick looked out over the area around Alterna as the fog dissipated. “It’s clearing—”

Then, as he was looking almost straight down, Nick stopped short.

He grabbed Chad’s arm.

“Hey.”

“Hmm?”

“There’s someone there. In front of the gate,” Nick said, squinting. Chad stood on his tip-toes and leaned out over the chest-high wall.

“Oh, yeah...?”

The ground was still hazy. Someone was standing in front of the north gate, and he could see well enough to tell they were human but couldn’t make out their face. It was a man, though. Bearded. The guy looked filthy. Nick scowled.

“A dog...?”

The man wasn’t alone. He had a critter with him, four-legged and dog-like. But was it really a dog? It looked awfully well-built.

The bearded man looked up. Probably at Nick. He waved his hand.

“Chad!” Nick shouted, and Chad grabbed the crossbow that was lying against the chest-high wall.

“What do we do, Nick? Should I shoot him?!”

Chad looked ready to pull the trigger any second. His shoulders heaved. His nostrils flared. Seeing his colleague all fired up, Nick’s head rapidly cooled.

“Hold up. The guy looks human.”

Chad took a deep breath.

“Sure does.”

“Who goes there?!” Nick shouted at the bearded man. “What are you doing?!”

“Waiting for the gate to open,” the man answered in an awfully calm voice. “I’m Itsukushima. I used to be in Alterna’s hunters’ guild. I don’t know what the situation is here, but I’d like you to take me to someone in a position of authority.”