Igor and Eirik returned when the night was falling, and they quickly had the machine one of his men adapted, making the round pieces of gold these people used.
That night felt eternal, and Cuyler wished he could go out for a walk. After what had happened the night before, he knew it was better if he didn’t. There was no sense in scaring the villagers before they were ready to make contact with them.
The following morning, they gathered at the command center. Cuyler had decided to leave two men on the ship, just in case they needed an urgent exit, and he would go with the others to meet the villagers.
“Are we ready to approach them?” he asked.
“Yes, my king, I believe we are,” Haskell replied.
“Let’s do it then.”
“There’s one thing we haven’t considered,” Eirik intervened. “They seem to use this animal they call horse for transportation. Don’t you think they will find it strange that we arrive on foot?”
“Probably, but we can’t get horses without talking to someone, so, we’ll say we rather walk. After all, we’ll say we’ve arrived from the sea,” Cuyler said. He wasn’t delaying their visit any longer. “Let’s get dressed and go.”
His men nodded, and they went to their quarters to get ready.
And a few minutes later, they left the vessel and headed to town.
Ten tall men, dressed in dark clothing, heading to the village surely wasn’t something the villagers had seen before.
The alarm was given, and the town’s gates were closed.
Kaylein heard the alarms and ran to the window, but she couldn’t see anything, so she ran downstairs to find out what was going on. Once more, her instincts hadn't failed her.
“What’s going on?” she asked one of the guards.
“A group of strangers is approaching the palace on foot, milady,” He answered, with a slight bow.
“On foot? Through which door?” she asked, puzzled.
“Through the southern gates, milady.”
“Thank you.” she turned to head to the thick walls surrounding the village, but her father’s voice stopped her before she could put a foot outside the castle.
“Kaylein, return to your room and stay there until I call you,” he snarled at her.
“But… father…”
“Do as I tell you or I’ll order the guards to take and keep you there for a month,” He shouted at her.
Knowing she wouldn’t be able to convince him, she turned around and headed to her room. This time she would have to wait to find out more about the strangers.
“State your name and your business.” One of the guards shouted from the top of the walls surrounding the village.
"My name is Cuyler from Zuvrak; we are here to discuss business with your leader." He said, talking a bit slow, trying to pronounce the words as the translator whispered them into his ears.
The man turned to speak with someone on the other side of the walls. “We have never heard of such a place.”
“It’s very far from here, across the seas.” He explained. “We come in peace. As you can see we carry no weapons.” They didn’t need them, but the villagers didn’t need to know that.
Again, the man talked with someone else before he gave them an answer. “You shall be received, but at any suspicion of foul play, you will be imprisoned.”
Cuyler did what he could to hide the smile in the face of such a weak threat, but he would have made a similar threat under the same circumstances. So far, they had kept their hoods on, but at some point, they would have to show their faces, and that would startle the people, they knew that.
The doors were opened, and they were escorted by a group of men inside the walls of the village and straight into the castle’s main room. A man with gray hair waited for them seated on a big chair, surrounded by a few armed men. They immediately deduced he was the leader.
Cuyler took a step forward and spoke, “Greetings, my name is Cuyler, from Zuvrak.”
“Greetings, I’m Lord Arryn of Crail. What brings you to our small village, Sir Cuyler?”
“We have been sailing the seas nearby and decided to dock here for supplies.” He explained.
“We’re quite far from the sea. How did you get here, with no horses?” the man asked, still suspicious.
“Walking. We didn’t find what we were looking for on the other villages we’ve been to.” It was, after all, a half-truth.
“Is it too cold here for you? It would be nice seeing the face of the man I’m talking to.” The man finally asked, and Cuyler nodded.
They would have to show their faces, sooner or later.
The minute they took off their hoods a murmur of astonishment filled the room. Some women even let out small cries. It was obvious they had never seen people like them.
“How far is the place you say you come from?” Lord Arryn asked, recovering from his surprise.
“Very far. I assure you we mean no threat for you or your people. We just want to do business with you, if possible,” Cuyler said, in a calm tone.
“Why should we believe you?” the man insisted.
“We came here unarmed. Does it not tell you about our intentions?” he replied, trying to appear as calm as possible.
“We have never seen people like you,” Lord Arryn admitted.
“Do you receive many visitors from other parts of the world?” Cuyler asked him, sure that the man didn’t know much of the world outside the small village he lived in.
“No, I have to admit we don’t receive many strangers.”
“We can pay for our stay, and if you have what we’re looking for, there will be more for you and your people,” Cuyler insisted.
Arryn turned to speak to the man on his right for a few moments before he turned to look at Cuyler. But before he could talk, another man, dressed in some sort of brown tunic, approached him and whispered frantically in the man’s ear.
Lord Arryn seemed upset by the man’s words, but even so, he turned to look at Cuyler.
“Our priest is convinced you are demons,” he said, signaling the other man that was clearly shaking and squeezing a wooden object in his hands.
“Demons? I’m not familiar with the term. Could you explain it to me?” he asked, frowning.
“Demons are men from hell, servants of the devil,” Lord Arryn explained.
“I’m afraid I don’t recognize the terms, but again I assure you, we mean no harm for you and your people.”
The man turned to talk to the one on his right again, and when he finally turned to look at Cuyler, he had decided. “You can stay, under surveillance. I reserve the right to throw you out if I become suspicious of your intentions.”
“Fair enough,” Cuyler accepted with a sigh. Though he was a warrior, he would avoid the war as much as possible. Unnecessary slaughters had never felt right.
"My servants will show you to your rooms. I'm afraid you'll have to share them since my castle isn't very big." Lord Arryn announced.
“I’m sure it will be enough.”
“Please, join us for lunch in a couple of hours.”
“It will be a pleasure. Meanwhile, we would like to walk around the village. Is that possible?” Cuyler asked, eager to see more than the cameras had been able to show them.
“Yes, of course. Henry will be your guide.” Lord Arryn accepted, signaling the man to his right.
Cuyler nodded and waited for the servants that would be showing them to their rooms.
Two women approached them, clearly nervous and wriggling their hands. They barely dared to look at him or his men, while they guided them up the stairs and to the left wing of the castle.
They were taken to three rooms, and his men decided he should share one with Igor and they would use the other two. He wasn’t very pleased with the division, but Igor slightly shook his head, warning him not to change things.
"They wouldn't feel very comfortable sleeping in the same room with you." he explained, when they were alone in the room, they had been given.
“I hope you don’t feel the same way.” Cuyler grumbled, taking a look at the place.
The place was heavily decorated, with barely enough room to walk around the room. The large bed, with posts and drapes all over, occupied almost all the room, and in front of it, there was something he wasn’t able to recognize, built against the wall and with what seemed a narrow conduct that led outside. There were also a few chairs, a wardrobe, and a small table. Like in all of the castle, here too, the window was small and narrow.
“I believe I’m your friend, above all,” Igor said, with a naughty grin.
“Of course, you are.” Cuyler chuckled.
He and Igor had been together since they were babies. They had gone to the same schools and academies. Other than his brothers and sister, Igor was the closest person to him, especially now, that he had lost his family.
They finally left their rooms to meet Henry, the man that was supposed to be their guide on their walk through the village.
Cuyler decided to leave six of his men back at the castle and go out with just three. “If we go all, people will most likely be afraid of us. Stay here and observe all you can, and search for what we have been looking for.” He had ordered them.
“Yes, my king.”