Chapter 33: Coincidence or fate?
The captain entered the infirmary. He slowly moved towards Egor's bed.
"Your Majesty, this may take some time. You have spent a lot of magical and physical strength, I dare to suggest that you rest a little and have a snack."
Klaus reluctantly tore his gaze away from the doctor, who was examining his friend, opening his eyes and feeling the gray lines on his hands, which resembled swollen veins, if you discard their unnatural color. He did not trust the doctor. He did not trust any of them, but at the same time he understood that if he did not regain his strength, then his threat would be insignificant. He could die before he could bring it to life.
As if confirming the fact that it was still worth having a snack, Lilith's stomach, standing behind him, growled loudly. Klaus glanced sideways at the girl, who blushed deeply and lowered her eyes to the floor.
"Good," the prince answered shortly and followed the captain.
They walked deeper into the seemingly endless corridor and stopped near the open doors. It turned out to be something like a dining room with long tables in four rows. At the other end of the room, people were bustling around three large stoves, in front of which stood three impressive tables in the shape of the letter "U". A broad-shouldered man with an axe in his hands and a large knife at his belt was cutting up a skinned carcass, most likely a deer. Three women, bent over a wide basin, were peeling vegetables.
Klaus, Lilith and the stranger in the cloak approached the cooks.
"Glad you're back, commander-in-chief," the man smiled, stirring some kind of liquid in a huge saucepan on the stove.
"What do we have today?" the captain asked, sniffing, nodding towards the saucepan.
"Thick porridge with giblets."
"Then we'll have three servings, and don't be stingy, serve more."
The man scooped up the sticky mass and generously filled the plates to the top, placed them on a wooden board, put three impressive pieces of bread and three cups with a steaming drink, similar to tea, but the aroma was not so pleasant.
The captain took the tray and put it on the nearest table, inviting the guests to sit next to him. Klaus sat opposite, Lilith next to the prince. Klaus sniffed the brew in the cup warily and looked up at the captain.
"This drink was invented by our healer. Yes, the aroma, of course, is not very good, but the taste is not so bad and it helps restore physical strength very well." The captain answered, taking a sip without wincing.
Lilith watched Klaus closely. He also raised the mug to his lips, took a hesitant sip, and then drained it completely, putting the empty mug aside and scooping up the porridge with a spoon. Seeing that the prince had started eating, the girl greedily took her portion. Despite its unsightly appearance, the porridge turned out to be unusually tasty and filling.
"How are you even going to eat in your helmet?" Klaus asked, raising an eyebrow, while the captain, opening the lower part of his headdress and exposing the light skin of his chin with black stubble, sent another spoonful of porridge into his mouth.
"It doesn't bother me," he answered shortly.
"You ask me for trust, while you so carefully hide your identity. Now I am more than sure that I once saw your face and I assume that you are worried that I will recognize you. So what did you do in the past? Participated in one of the attempts on my life? An executioner sent by my father?"
"Neither one nor the other, but you are right. We know each other very well. I will definitely reveal my identity as soon as we resolve the issue with your friend. I promised that I would do everything I could to save him. I will prove my loyalty with my actions, and then I will reveal my identity."
"I don't like it, but there is logic in your words. Perhaps."
The captain turned his gaze to Lilith, who was sitting with an empty cup and staring at his unfinished porridge.
"You can come and ask for another helping," he addressed her, which made the girl shudder and look at the prince in fear.
"Go and bring me some more," he told her, and the girl quickly collected the dishes and went to the serving area.
During the time spent in the dining room, Klaus managed to notice that at least a couple of hundred people visited this room, and they all came and went without any restrictions. So, there were no strict rules about meal times, like in a regular army, and this surprised the prince a little. How could they fight so harmoniously and unquestioningly follow the orders of their commander without proper discipline?
"How many of you are here?" he asked the mysterious man in front of him.
"A couple of thousand, but we rarely gather in full force."
A couple of thousand different people? Who was able to unite them together, or rather, what is their goal?
"And under whose house are you gathered? For what?"
"Your Majesty, as I said, we are all your subjects."
"I don't remember gathering a retinue around me," the prince noted sarcastically.
"That's right, I did it for you, so that when the time comes, you would be ready."
"Ready for what?"
But the man didn't have time to answer, a breathless boy, a little younger than Klaus, ran up to him. He wasn't wearing any armor, just a simple village robe made of rough gray fabric.
"Commander, the doctor urgently calls for you and your guests," he looked at Klaus, then at the marks on his temples. The boy's eyes widened.
"Your... Your Majesty," he stammered and quickly began to bow down, but Klaus stopped him.
"No need. No need to spread who I am. For now."
The boy looked at the captain, who nodded slightly. The young man nevertheless bowed slightly in front of the prince and quickly ran away.
Lilith approached the table with new portions of porridge.
"When you finish eating, come to the infirmary," the prince told her, getting up from his place, and they hurried to the doctor together with the captain.
The girl did not want to be alone for long, so she stuffed her portion of food into her mouth as quickly as possible, practically without chewing. After thinking for a while, she did the same with the prince's portion, took the dishes, thanked the man at the counter and ran to the infirmary as fast as she could.
Only near the door did the girl stop and catch her breath in order to approach her savior as quietly and unnoticed as possible. She arrived just in the midst of an argument.
"Your Majesty, we cannot take your blood because it is not suitable for eliminating the poison in his body."
"What is wrong with my blood?" Klaus hissed furiously.
"Tell me, does your friend have lightning magic?"
"No."
"That's the rub. We need blood that contains the same elements of magic, or, if he does not have it, then it must be appropriate."
"So he only needs blood with the same magical properties? Is there no other option?"
The people around him noticed a change in the prince's voice. He spoke as if his friend was doomed to die and Brod was just offering a simple and quick solution.
"I don't see any problems," the healer addressed the prince soothingly. There are mages of all elements in our camp and each of them would be happy to donate a couple of vials of their blood.
"I think that your people will be powerless here, unless of course there are a couple of anti-mages among you."
"What?" Brod was surprised. "An anti-mage? Are you saying that this guy is an anti-mage?"
All those present fell silent. Anti-mages were very rare, sometimes only one could be born in several hundred years, and now one of these rarities was lying in front of them and dying.
The prince reached out and touched one of the gray "veins", which had already reached the top of his shoulder.
"How much time do we have?"
"I'm afraid, no more than a couple of hours. Forgive me, Your Majesty, but I doubt that you will be able to find another anti-mage on the continent, not to mention that we have two or three hours at our disposal at most."
Lilith looked up at the profile of her savior and something in her chest ached. She saw how strong, proud and unshakable he was, but now this young man stood with his head down, holding the hand of a frail boy. His whole being screamed with regret, guilt and anger. She knew that she could not do this. She knew that it would definitely bring her misfortune. She remembered what had happened last time and involuntarily shuddered. Intently watching the changing expression of the master's face, she herself did not notice how the words burst out of her mouth:
"I. I can."
The healer and the strange man in the hood turned to her with an uncomprehending look, but she did not take her eyes off her savior, who did not react to her sudden words.
"Master," she called hesitantly, and he turned, looking straight into her eyes. She saw the emptiness in his deep, almost black eyes. "I can help."
"Do you know the anti-mage?" he asked, not hoping for anything.
"Yes."
"And how long will it take to find him?" Hope was born in his heart, a light flashed in his eyes. He stared at the girl he was not going to save.
"He is in front of you. I am the anti-mage."
The silence became dead. Not only did Brod and the captain learn that the anti-mage exists, and had already resigned themselves to his imminent death, but they also learned that there is another anti-mage and he is standing in front of them now.
Klaus came to his senses first.
"What are you standing there for? Prepare everything you need immediately!" he addressed the doctor with authority, without raising his voice.
"Your Majesty, let me warn you. If she is lying and her blood is not what we need, then your friend will die instantly."
Klaus turned his gaze to Lilith. She looked him straight in the eyes. He believed her, or maybe it was just hope.
"Proceed immediately," the prince said.
'But maybe it is worth checking…"
"Am I not expressing myself clearly?"
No one else said anything. Brod prepared several vials and a large needle. He treated the girl's arm at the bend of her elbow and drove the needle straight into the vein, collected the blood and went to Egor. He inserted a tube into one of the gray veins and ran the antidote he had just collected through it.
A minute. Five minutes. Ten. Everyone watched tensely as Egor barely breathed, and then a miracle happened. The gray veins began to retreat back to the wound. Slowly, but the blood did its job. Everyone sighed with relief, and Klaus burst into laughter, which confused everyone.
"Just think," he said, having finished laughing, turning and grabbing the girl by the shoulders "And I wanted to leave you there!"
He pulled Lilith to him and hugged her tightly. The girl was speechless, but did not pull away. She was not even hurt by the words that he was not going to save her. Now Lilith relaxed in warm and strong arms, felt protected and mentally thanked that this gentleman had decided to save her. More precisely, she thanked that it was this gentleman who decided to save her.