The Western Border Station—Mont

About ten days had passed since the villagers of Iluk had vanquished the aqua dragons, and in the domain of Baarbadal, the temperature was slowly dropping with the change of seasons.

Mont was walking along the western border station ramparts in the early afternoon, his wooden leg clacking loudly against the stone floor with each and every step. The sound of it sent shivers down the spines of the nearby guards and kept them firmly on their toes. This pleased Mont, who nodded to himself as he continued on his way.

The western border station rarely received visitors. The only arrivals of late were either the Peijins, who came for trade, or the nearby beastkin people, who wanted to thank Iluk for aiding them during the earth dragon attack. Given that both came peacefully, one might have thought that there was no need for the guards at the border station to keep such a tight watch over things.

However, the border station was named such because it sat on the border of a neighboring country, and that nation’s intentions were, for the most part, unknown. There were also monsters to consider, and neither rhyme nor reason could be found among such beasts’ motivations. Mont thus firmly believed that the border station should be at the ready at all times.

Once he had walked the length of the ramparts facing the Beastkin Nation, Mont walked the ramparts facing Baarbadal’s grassy plains and, by extension, the Sanserife Kingdom. Here, too, Mont made sure that everyone nearby heard his wooden leg upon the stone walkways—he would not have the domain guard slacking on his watch.

Some fields came into view along Mont’s route, at which point he saw fit to shout at the guards working them.

“Those fields have been chanted over by the lovely ladies Senai and Ayhan!” he barked. “Any slackin’ and I’ll eat you alive!”

“Sir, yes, sir!” responded the farming guards with a salute, their voices clear and their movements sharp.

Fields like these did not exist only at the border station—some could be found around Iluk Village too. The fields here at the border station, however, had been established on Mont’s