Novel Full Chapter 353: The Watch.
Chapter 353: The Watch.
“Kayden.”
He greeted with a forced smile as he grabbed Lavinia’s waist and pulled her close to him, as if openly claiming her for all to see.
Kayden did not miss that action. However, instead of reacting to it, he glanced at Lavinia, wanting to see her reaction instead.
Lavinia was momentarily taken aback. Soon, however, as she realized what happened, she side-eyed Kael with a smirk and then closed her eyes as an extremely beautiful smile appeared on her face.
The entire time, the woman didn’t even look at Kayden once, and when Kayden realized that… he just sighed.
He once again turned towards Kael, who was currently staring at him with narrow eyes, and then—
“Welcome, Dragon Rider Kael.”
He smiled.
Kael nodded.
“Are you here to work at the Wall?”
As the son of the Matriarch, he obviously knew the arrangement the Dragon Rider had come up with, so he wasn’t that surprised, especially when he saw Alrisa standing next to him.
“That is correct.”
Alrisa nodded with a smile. Then, she looked at Kayden and laughed lightly,
“I brought him here because I knew the Young Patriarch would be here, so I knew my workload would be halved.”
“Alrisa, when will you start taking things seriously?”
Kayden just sighed, as if admitting his defeat.
“You’ll get lazy if you continue like this.”
“Don’t worry, my body moves when it has to.”
Alrisa grinned, patting her biceps.
Kael and Lavinia stared at the two in silence.
“So you two know each other.”
Lavinia muttered.
“Yes, Alrisa is Mother’s favorite. She is quite capable, so Mother uses her for all important tasks.”
Kayden answered with a nod.
“Is that so…?”
Lavinia muttered, silently staring at Alrisa.
“Mhm, if she wasn’t as lazy as she is, she would have achieved so much by now.”
Kayden nodded again, and Alrisa just snorted,
“Achieved what? More provisions? I already have enough. Why would I want more? The only thing I need are the relaxation hours.
I only work to not work.”
The Assigned Liasson declared proudly, and Kayden just sighed again.
“Are you the head here?”
Suddenly, Kael questioned as he glanced at Kayden.
“Hmm? No, that would be Sir Korvath, but I am the Second in Command, so I will be taking care of you today and help you familiarize yourself with what we do here.”
Kayden answered. Kael raised his eyebrow; this was quite different from what happened at the Smith.
“A Second in Command will be guiding me? Aren’t you busy with work?”
He questioned, and as if he had been waiting for this question all this time, Kayden grinned.
“Why do you think I came to the Wall anyways?”
“What?”
“Come with me, I’ll show you something.”
Kayden said, grinning as he turned around and walked ahead.
Kael frowned. He glanced at Alrisa, who nodded assuringly, and everyone followed the Second in Command, curious.
The group walked up a spiral stone staircase built into the wall itself. After a short climb, they stepped out into a long, flat walkway that stretched across the top of the enormous Wall that guarded Ashen Heights. The view from up there was breathtaking—on one side, the snowy slopes of the mountain ranges, and on the other, the town of Ashen Heights laid out in quiet peace below.
Kayden stopped near a raised platform where a few guards stood lazily, some chatting, some eating, others simply sitting and looking through long-range scopes pointed outward.
“This is the Watch,”
Kayden introduced with a smile.
“It’s our pride and responsibility.”
Kael looked around.
“Doesn’t look too busy.”
He commented.
“That’s the point.”
Kayden laughed.
“The real work here is to keep an eye on the outer regions. We mostly watch for beast movements, or signs that some of the other mountain tribes are up to something stupid.”
“Mountain Tribes?”
Kael tilted his head. Imperia’s Ants still hadn’t settled here yet, so he did not know much about things here.
“Yes, Velmourns aren’t the only humans residing in the Ashen Heights. These tribes were here in this darned place long before us.
I understand our situation, but I have no clue why they choose to stay here.”
The Second in Command shrugged. He clearly didn’t like these tribes very much.
“And why are you watching them?”
Kael questioned.
“We have to keep an eye on our enemies, do we not?”
“Enemies? I thought the Treaty stopped other Factions from getting involved with your people.”
“The Treaty only stopped other Empires or Kingdoms, not the Tribes. I doubt these people understand what a Treaty even means. They would probably hear the word ’treat’ and start dancing in joy.”
Kayden snorted disdainfully. Soon, however, he shook his head and—
“Anyways, what I am saying is, treaty or not, these people can attack us, and they do. The number of our men who have died under these tribesmen’s attacks in all these years can’t even be counted.
These people are actually our greatest adversaries. They are much worse than beasts because they come with a plan. Tensions are worse right now because Winter is coming—they will try to steal our food.
This is why we need to keep watching attentively—well, at least those who need to watch do, anyways.”
He shrugged.
The Second in Command then pointed toward a group of the watchers sitting at the very top and—
“Out of everyone here, those guys are the only ones who really need to focus all the time. They track everything—temperature shifts, beast migrations, smoke trails. It looks easy, but it takes a lot of training.
Of course, every man here is well trained. The work is done in a 2-hour weekly shift. Their duty began in the morning. After this, their next two-hour watch will be after seven days.”
“And before that?”
Kael raised his eyebrow, and Kayden grinned and pointed at the rest of the guards.
“They are mostly free. They only need to remain here for their 12-hour shift in case something actually happens. When there’s an emergency, everyone moves. But until then, they’re free to rest, spar, train, eat, or whatever.”
The Second in Command then leaned against the railing and looked out at the snow-covered mountains ahead.
“Being on the Watch is the most desired position in Ashen Heights. You get the best view, good food, and not much pressure.
You basically need to work for just 2 hours a week and just show your face for the rest of the time.”
“Sounds quite relaxing.”
Kael admitted, impressed.
Even Lavinia was taken aback. She thought she had it quite easy, but to think something like this existed.
’Should I just take weekly classes?’
She wondered in her head.
Kayden, oblivious to her thoughts that would make Aelindra lose her mind, continued,
“It is quite relaxing, but not everyone can make it here.”
“Because of strength?”
Kael asked.
“Exactly.”
Kayden nodded.
“Only those who’ve proven themselves in the field are posted here. Even if they’re free most of the time, when it’s time to act, you have to be fast, brutal, and precise.”
Kael considered it for a moment, then asked,
“If you’ve got so many men up here doing nothing, why not use them inside the city too? For lawkeeping or patrolling?”
Kayden smirked at the question, like he was expecting it.
“We don’t need guards inside the city,”
He said proudly.
“The people of Ashen Heights don’t need someone watching them to stay decent. There aren’t any big crimes to begin with. Everyone follows the rules.”
“Really?”
Kael blinked.
“Mhm.”
Kayden nodded.
“We’ve got a code, and people respect it.”
“The fact that we live in a secluded island also adds to that here.”
Suddenly, Alrisa spoke up.
Kael tilted his head, and his Assigned Liasson laughed lightly,
“It is difficult to commit a crime knowing that there is no escape. The city’s layout, the weather, and the lack of outside help make it nearly suicidal to run.”
She paused and glanced at Kael.
“So yes, people are good—but the environment helps keep them that way.”
Lavinia nodded at those words. The explanation made much more sense than simply saying ’people here are good and follow rules.’
Kael nodded thoughtfully as well. Soon, he asked another question.
“So everyone who’s trained in combat works up here?”
“More or less. There are a few people who help at the forge or assist in the mines when needed, but most warriors aim for the Watch. It’s the best position if you qualify. You get freedom, respect, and peace—until something goes wrong. Then you earn every bit of your title.”
Kayden nodded.
“What about the Matriarch? Shouldn’t there be anyone protecting her?”
Kael questioned. Wasn’t she like a Queen? How could they leave her defenseless?
But Kayden—
“Protect her from who?”
He just shrugged.
“As I said, people here are good. No one would even think of attacking the Matriarch—everyone loves her.
Not to mention…”
Kayden’s body momentarily trembled and—
“Attacking her is no different than suicide anyways. The one who thought of that is a complete fool.
My Mother is not weak.”
He declared, proud of his mother.