***
Mikhail climbed off his horse, binding it to a safestall.
There were multiple of them installed in the forest beyond the wall by scouts who came before.
Taking a deep breath, Mikhail rubbed his gloved hands.
The cold had gotten significantly worse north of the hold. He couldn't even feel his face.
Stepping through the thick snow and the tall thin trees, Mikhail felt an eerie feeling on his back.
He knew he was on the right path.
The main reason he had picked this route to investigate wasn't just the man's death.
It was also because what was near the area he died.
A frozen lake. But not just any lake.
It was a mana source.
A mana source were natural sources or artificial objects that contained large amounts of condensed mana.
Oftentimes, these sources were a big reason for a wormhole's appearance.
A source this close to the wall had to be monitored every day. One wormhole and it would prove to be very dangerous for them.
The Empire overestimated the strength of the people at Ironhold.
Most of them didn't know anything about fighting, even if you were to ignore their dwindling numbers.
In fact, a majority of the recruits that arrived didn't even opt to be soldiers, they ended up choosing to become a steward or a weaponsmith etc.
The fear of death was too strong for some people.
Moving back to the topic, mana sources were sensitive things.
Any kind of disruption or damage could result in the two realities interconnecting, allowing Sylaris to break through.
Unfortunately enough for the man, he came right next to a mana source.
The Magnolia Lake.
It wasn't a large lake by any means but it was certainly larger than your average mana source.
There were definitely signs of trouble.
But here was where Mikhail begged to differ.
Even though the reports stated in the past life that his death might be related to the mana source, he felt it was masked.
If it was due to a mana source, then a gate would have opened, which would have gotten everyone to know.
Not to mention, in the first place, a mana disruption was quite a rare case by itself.
So someone had definitely covered it up.
Unfortunately, Mikhail didn't care enough in his past life to think about this.
Focusing himself forward, he quickly started running.
He couldn't stay idle, monsters were also known to assemble near a mana source for healing.
Fortunately, he had every bit of the map memorized over the years.
But the moment he took a few steps, an ear piercing scream echoed in his ears.
"AAHHHHHH!!!"
By instinct, Mikhail's hands went to his guns as he quickly took cover.
He quickly examined the area around him for any danger.
Seeing nothing, he quietly jumped from tree to tree, searching for the source of the scream.
'Yes this definitely leads to the lake.'
It only proved his point more.
As he took the next step however, the sound of a gunshot echoed awfully close to him.
Boom!
Remaining calm, Mikhail quickly pressed his back to a tree, hiding himself.
He heard the gunshot connect perfectly with the target's flesh as they crashed on the ground.
He could hear their whispers and whimpers as they crawled on the ground.
They were near. Awfully close.
Mikhail readied himself for a confrontation, pressing his hands to the triggers of the guns.
The time window was too small to activate a spell, he couldn't take the risk.
But to his confusion, the footsteps suddenly faded away from his hearing.
'Hmm?'
He didn't let his guard down just yet. It could be that they had already seen him.
Illusion spells could interfere with his senses.
It was only after a couple of minutes of hearing nothing, that he decided to move.
However, the moment he turned his neck to see behind the tree, he felt a cold blade press against it.
Click.
"Move and you're dead."
The voice came from right behind his ear, no higher than a whisper.
But it wasn't the chasers.
Rather, from how the voice sounded at the verge of death, it was the target.
He probably didn't recognize Mikhail because of his fading eyesight as he approached death.
He wasn't worried, the man was on the verge of death. He could do nothing.
"I think you should be worried about yourself, that gun will blast your heart faster than this blade can snap off my neck."
The gun pressed deeper into the person's heart.
The man laughed hoarsely, minutes away from death now.
"You sound pretty conf-"
Boom!
Blood and flesh flew in the air as Mikhail moved his gun to his thighs in a split moment.
The man screamed but he paid him no heed.
Grabbing his wrist, he spun the man in the air, throwing him away.
Standing up, he wiped the blood off his gun and face.
"Who said you're safe while speaking?"
Disarming the blade from him, Mikhail bent him on his back and stood above him.
The man had one of his legs blown off, he could do nothing.
He screamed but it was so light that the birds in the nearby trees remained unbothered.
Grabbing his hair, Mikhail pulled the man's head up, making him meet his eyes head on.
It was then that the man recognized him in his dying moments.
"Wait…wait..wai-I-"
"Yes yes, I know you. Stop wasting your breath on me, you're dead."
The man's voice turned hopeless, realizing his fate.
Mikhail had no time for his antics however.
"Those people, who were they?"
The man looked him in the eyes, hesitating if he should even tell when Mikhail was leaving him to die.
The latter was quick to remind him of his oath however.
"Remember your oath, you don't want to be remembered as a traitor, do you?"
For the first time, the man suddenly shivered. Mikhail knew he was a man of his word.
Coward but would still hold up his oath.
Unfortunately, he needed to speak quick and stop wasting Mikhail's time.
The scream might have not reached those men's ears but the boom of the gun could possibly be enough.
He needed to get the intel and go back.
Mikhail couldn't go to the lake. He didn't know how many people would be there.
It was a huge risk by himself. At max, he could take on only 4 or 5 people considering his rank.
Fortunately, the man finally spoke up.
"S-s-s…Pact….k-killed….b-b-betrayal…protect….the D-Dominique."
But before he could continue, the light faded from his eyes and he slumped in Mikhail's arms.
The latter clicked his tongue, it was barely enough of a clue.
Unfortunately, he couldn't do anything else now. He needed to hurry back.
Mikhail gazed at the dead body in front of him.
As a brother in arm, it was his duty to bring his body back for a proper burial.
Unfortunately, Mikhail wasn't as patriotic as him.
Strapping his guns, he quickly rushed back to his horse.
And back to the Ironhold.