Night Guild 3 by DB King

Author:DB King [King, DB]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-01-30T13:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

“Horse riding,” Eric said glumly, “is one skill we were never taught in the Night Guild.”

They were bouncing along on the backs of a set of five fine northern horses, the result of Diana’s fierce haggling and the last of their Saon gold. The beasts were tame and well-mannered, and they trotted along at a much better rate than the companions would have been able to walk. Despite the undeniable advantage of speed, it was not comfortable going.

They had been on the road for nearly a week. At first, the riding had come easily enough. They were pleased with their purchase, and Emelia and Tanya, who both had some experience as riders, were particularly happy about the change. But for Ronan, Diana, and Eric, the days in the saddle quickly became uncomfortable. Horse riding was not standard practice in the southern regions, and the assassins were not used to it. They chafed, and each night when they lay down to sleep, they were stiff and raw from the many hours of steady riding.

But day by day, they made their progress along the road south. They traveled through unremarkable lands of brown heather and rolling hills, punctuated by little farming villages. The main industry in this part of the world was cattle farming for meat and leather, and herds of small, rangy cows dotted the rough hill grazing pasture all throughout the land.

All the companions were happy enough to have a quiet ride through the northlands, and at the end of the week, they had their first sight of the high mountains of Ghennet’s northern range stretching away, west and east, across their path. Three days more, and they were coming down from the northern mountain pass into Ghennet, the flat country stretching out green before them, with Saon City on the Hill of Helder rising abruptly out of the plain, far off in the west.

Here, in the foothills of the northern mountains, small, sooty towns dotted the hillsides. The sound of clanking metal from the forges rang through the clear air, and the roads were full of donkey-drawn carts filled with the produce of the mines and forges. This was the mining country that produced so much of the silver, gold, and iron ore that was used in this part of the world.

They discussed whether to stop in at Saon City on their way or just go straight on. After some discussion, they decided that they would have to do so. Ronan was particularly keen to speak with the king. He still remembered how the king had sent a message to the Night Guild, but the message had not been acknowledged. Ronan wanted to know if the messenger had returned, and if so, who he had spoken to.

“If we can prove that the message was delivered to the Night Guild but that Tarquin did not receive it, then we could have a first step in identifying the true traitors within the guild,” he said.

The others agreed, and they headed for the city.

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