She felt his shaky breath on her nape as he mumbled, “Once it becomes an all-out battle, only the barest number of men will remain to guard the castle. Anything can happen, so always take Garrow and Ulyseon with you wherever you go. Ruth will also stay back, so go to him if anything happens.”
Maxi nodded without lookingup.
“I’ll be back soon,” he said after a long pause.
He kissed her earlobe. She clung to him like a baby monkey clutching its mother, and he had to pry her away.
Wanting to see him off, Maxi threw on her cloak.
“The Knights of Phil Aaron will be leaving with us,” Riftan said, stopping her at the entrance. “Don’t come outside.”
“B-But I’ll only—”
“Stay inside,” he repeated firmly.
He then gave instructions to Ulyseon and Garrow, who were waiting just outside. Standing at the entrance of the tent, Maxi watched forlornly as he trudged away through the wet darkness.
Beacons blazed atop the ramparts, illuminating the procession of soldiers on warhorses making their way toward the city gates. Soon the knights began their march out of the enclosed city. The remaining knights stood guard near the ramparts with extra vigilance, while mages came out toinspect the magical devices installed on the walls. Eth Lene Castle was now on full alert.
The rain continued to fall with varied intensity throughout the night. Maxi lay awake in her cot, her pounding heart preventing her from sleeping even though she knew she needed to rest for the following day’s work.
Tormented by anxiety, she had been staring into space with sunken eyes for God knew how long when she heard what sounded like a chorus of women pitifully sobbing. She sat bolt upright. At first, she wondered if she had misheard the wind. However, the faint sound that resonated through the rain gradually grew clearer.
Throwing on her robe, Maxi rushed out of the tent.
“H-Has something happened?”
The squires had pitched a tarp over the entrance to prevent the rain from getting in. Ulyseon snapped his head up from the small brazier where he was stoking a pile of coal.
“The noise must have woken you up, my lady,” he said apologetically.
The squire stared out into the white mist that had descended on the camp with a look of apprehension. The rain had dissolved into a weak, dew-like drizzle, and the sky held the bluish hint of dawn. The bone-chilling, mournful wailing rang through the eerie landscape.
Maxi glanced around, anxiously trying to locate its source. “Who on earth is crying? Has…s-something happened to the female clerics?”
Ulyseon shook his head. “It isn’t the female clerics, my lady. There are banshees in the mountains.”
“B-Banshees?”
The squire approached the dripping edge of the tarp. Hepointed to a black cliff that enveloped the ramparts like a shield.
Maxi’s eyes grew wide. On a large boulder that towered like the head of a snake about to strike, human-shaped bodies in black robes stood in the dim light. Maxi’s heart sank at their ominous presence.
“A-Are they…monsters?”
“They are spirits, to be precise. They will not cause us any direct harm, so you mustn’t worry, my lady. Those creatures merely…” Ulyseon trailed off before continuing cautiously, “…wail. They will leave once they’ve cried their hearts out.” His voice was barely audible over the hysterical wailing.
Maxi shrank back as she gazed at the dark figures standing tall in the hazy mist. Though they were too far away for her to be certain, she thought she could make out six of them in total. The sinister figures tore at their clothes as they howled.
“B-But banshees…”
Unable to finish the sentence, Maxi pressed her lips together. Banshees were spirits of death that came for those whose ends were near. People even believed that a banshee’s wailing visits always ended in mass death.
As if sensing her anxiety, Ulyseon said in an exaggeratedly upbeat voice, “I know it’s hard, but try to ignore the noise, my lady. The clerics are preparing a ritual to banish them as we speak.”
Maxi forced a feeble smile.
The wailing went on for hours. Though the clerics banished the banshees with divine magic to prevent morale from deteriorating, the relief was short-lived. The spirits quickly returned and continued their keening.
