Deté 73rd, 995 A.D.

It had been another peaceful morning within the walls of the hall for Monterayne's Knights of a New Era before one of the men found his comrade dead on the ground.

A long-faced knight with messy dark blond hair named Manfred Rickland had been on his way to the dining chamber for a soothing breakfast after a fitful night's sleep when he'd rounded the corner and espied a limp form on the ground. The shaft of an arrow jutted out from the dead man's chest.

Manfred hurried over to get a closer look. His stomach dropped as he approached, forehead tensing as he contemplated the repercussions—another soul suddenly snatched into eternity, all future potential stolen from him. And worst of all, this man wasn't alone. In fact, he was only the fifteenth in a series of knights who had been mysteriously killed in the past few weeks.

Upon closer examination of the body, Manfred observed the man's sword hung halfway out of the scabbard. Clearly, he had seen his fate coming, albeit moments too late. Just to make absolutely sure, he checked for a pulse and wasn't the least bit surprised when he felt nothing.

With a deep sigh, Manfred rose to his feet and glanced down the stone-walled hallway. Upon spotting a black-haired knight emerging from a chamber down the way, he called to him and requested that he bring Tom Holt, the leader of the knightly order.

In short order, Tom arrived, and he knelt beside the fallen knight's body with a furrowed brow. His single eye glanced up at Manfred as he pursed his lips. "You found him just like this?"

Manfred nodded. "Just like that. I don't like this. Fifteen of our—"

"Seventeen." Tom corrected, "Andal here is only the third body I've examined today. But I share your grief."

"Why would someone do this?"

"I can't pretend to understand the villainy of murder, Manfred. All I can do is attempt to uncover the culprit."

"And how's that been going?"

Tom ran a finger along his sweaty brow as he rose to his full height. "It has been an exercise in futility so far, I'm afraid. Whoever is doing this has displayed great skill, not in completely covering their tracks, but in giving us only useless clues."

After Tom had waved a pair of knights over to take the body, Manfred clasped his hands behind his back and followed him down the corridor. "Can you even guess where they're from?"

"I couldn't begin to formulate a guess, not with facts backing me. They're as likely to be a Monteraynian insurgent as they are to be an Innutukian operative."

Manfred let out a long sigh. "I just wish things would go back to normal. The way they were."

"We all do. But we must deal with the reality before us. Now, I was scheduled to meet with Princess Kate over breakfast to advise her of the situation, and if you wish to accompany me, you may."

"It's up to you, sir."

Tom's lips twitched as if he wanted to smile, but didn't have it in him. "She seems to enjoy your company. I think you should come."

"Alright, then I will."

"Of course," Tom said with a sigh, "I only regret that I must report to her today, when the news is more dire than it has ever been."

"Yeah...that makes it worse than it would've been already. But she's smart, so...maybe she'll have a solution."

"I certainly hope so."

****

Princess Kate Alder stood at the edge of a large balcony the size of any indoor room, which protruded off the south wall and pointed toward the knight's hall. Her striking green eyes gazed wistfully into the distance as she leaned against the railing and waited for her maid to finish grooming her wavy brown hair. The rays of the sun returning from its nocturnal journey gently warmed her fair skin as she waited for the knights' arrival.

"It is done, your grace." the maid said softly with a pat on the shoulder.

Kate turned to face the blonde youth and smiled. "Thank you, Amelia. Your efficiency is admirable. You may take a cluster of grapes on your way out."

The maid grinned and bowed slightly, clearly pleased that the princess had taken the effort to remember her name. She spun around and approached the elliptical table lavished with rich dishes ranging from roasted turkey to herb-covered bread to various pastries and other desserts. The maid reached into the earthen fruit bowl in the middle of the table and took a cluster of grapes as Kate had said, popping one into her mouth as she pushed through the door leading back inside.

Kate strolled over and took a slice of orange for herself. After pulling the juicy inner part off with her teeth, she made her way to the corner of the balcony, where her betrothed Captain Sloan Troy reclined and read a book. He was a robust man with sun-kissed skin, a stubbly face, and rough hands. The countless hours he spent outside both on and off the battlefield had aged him prematurely, drawing wrinkles especially around his eyes. Even though he was only 26 years old, just over six years Kate's senior, his appearance suggested a more advanced age.

When the shadow of Kate's petite form descended over his book, Sloan glanced up and offered her his signature smile, which momentarily erased years of aging. He closed the book with a thump and placed it on a nearby end table before rising to his feet and taking the orange peel from her fingers. She shook her head on him when he started eating it.

"I fail to understand how you enjoy such things." she remarked with a mischievous grin.

"You fail to understand a lot about me. I tell you, though I can't explain how, I derive great benefit from it. I can't help but wonder if this habit of mine's why I never get sick."

Kate stuck her tongue out. "I would argue the sickness is worth it to avoid that awful taste."

Sloan chuckled. "And I would argue the opposite. But to each his own. You look stunning as usual, by the way."

"Thank you."

Kate found herself confused when Sloan stretched out his arms for an embrace, but nonetheless, she accepted the gesture and wrapped her arms around his torso, resting her head in his broad chest. She let out a sigh when he slowly caressed her back and rested his chin gently on the top of her head.

Her heart underwent a civil war as she thought over her current predicament. About a year and a half ago, she and her father, King Maxwell Alder had made an agreement on the subject of her choice of marriage partner. After a series of unsuccessful pairings by her father, she had made him promise to allow her free choice on the matter, heeding his counsel of course. And that he had, with one stipulation: By the time her 19th birthday arrived, she had to have already found a suitable partner, or he would recommence making his own arrangements for her.

But the weeks leading up to her birthday had been so tumultuous for the Monteraynian Kingdom that she'd been unable to establish anything official in time. Shortly afterward, her father had initiated a courtship between herself and Captain Sloan Troy, who was already an accomplished military officer in his own right, having just led the Monteraynian forces to victory in staving off an encroachment from the Innutukian Empire. But also, the Troy family held considerable influence in the commercial realm, a clan of merchants and distributors of foreign commodities from every imaginable corner of the continent.

Sloan was a good man, but everything about him felt too old. He outclassed Kate in worldly experience as much as she did him in social status. Embracing him was like embracing an uncle or an older brother, and receiving comfort from him was like accepting counsel from her own father. Much as she hated to admit it to herself, Kate was glad for the ongoing war with Innutuk, because it kept Sloan away much of the time and prevented her father from sealing the deal for good. But with her 20th birthday now under two weeks away, surely he wouldn't hold off much longer.

"Are you alright, my love?" Sloan asked gently as he pulled back enough to see her face.

"Yes, I'm fine," she lied, "I merely find myself concerned over the recent killings. I can only hope Sir Holt brings some answers along with him."

"I hope so too. But don't fret, my love. Whatever happens, you'll be kept safe."

"My desire isn't merely for my own safety. My heart goes out to the families who now have an empty spot at their dinner table, and the poor women who suddenly have too much room in bed at night."

"That is a sad thought." Sloan agreed, "I share your hope that this gets remedied soon."

Both Kate and Sloan glanced up sharply when the balcony door creaked open. Dressed in the knightly formal tunic, Tom Holt strolled through the doorway, closely followed by Manfred Rickland. The only difference between their uniforms was in the sashes running from their left shoulders to their belts. Tom's was violet, indicating his familiarity with the versatile Halotinian style of swordsmanship, and Manfred's was a deep indigo, marking him as a defensive Torlenian warrior.

Kate approached the two with a charismatic grin. "Good morning, gentlemen! It is a pleasure to see you both."

Tom gave a graceful bow with his hand over his heart. "As always, the sentiment is reiterated, your highness."

Manfred awkwardly bowed and nodded too. "Yeah...it's good to see you too, Princess."

Kate let out a light laugh as she made her way to her seat at the head of the table. Though there was room enough for twenty or so, the others seated themselves close to her, with Sloan at her right, Tom at her left, and Manfred beside him. A servant hurried over from the door to ask Kate what she wished to populate her plate with, and after she gave her request, he set himself to obeying the order.

While the servant placed the best cut of meat on Kate's plate, she folded her hands in her lap and locked eyes with Tom. "So, I hope you have some progress to report on the knightly killings? The matter has weighed heavily on my mind as of late."

Tom grimaced, eye darting away for a moment. "I regret to inform you that our investigation has still turned up nothing, and that three more were found dead this morning. Truly, I wish I could report anything but that, but I must retain honesty."

Kate slowly nodded. Her gaze drifted to the source of the fresh herbal scent traveling to her nose. Her servant was pulling off a piece of bread for her plate.

Then she returned her attention to their conversation, and she rolled her shoulders. "Remind me what evidence has been examined thus far."

"Once the first pair of men were found, we searched for any clues to lead to the killer. At that time, all we discovered was that one of the lattices had been cut out of a window to allow entry, and that by a crude blade. Properly sharpened steel would have created much cleaner lines. But as you can imagine, that lead took us nowhere conclusive."

"Of course. Anyone could carry a bad blade. What followed?"

"We had no clues for the next few days, but then near the fifth victim's body, we found prints in the mud. Analysis revealed that they were made by a boot of distinctly Alcontean design. Again, though we pursued that piece of evidence how we could, there are far too many Alconteans intermingled with the Monteraynian populace to prove anything conclusively."

Kate turned to Sloan. "And Captain Troy, none of your patrolmen have spotted any suspicious activity in the area around the time of these killings?"

Sloan shook his head, running a hand through his dark brown hair. "None at all. We've been having some of the quietest nights imaginable."

"I see. Sir Holt, to the best of your knowledge, were all the victims slain the same way?"

Tom's eye followed Kate's plate as it made its way to her spot at the table. "If by that, you mean to ask what weapons killed them, it has been invariably arrows. The killer clearly has access to other tools, but does the actual deed from afar."

Kate took a bite of her bread and relished in the buttery taste mingling with the savory herbs. While still chewing, she abruptly stood up and headed over to a chest a few paces off from the table.

"The thought occurs to me," she said, "that we have another avenue of investigation to cover."

After exchanging a glance, Tom and Manfred rose and made their way over to Kate, though Sloan remained seated.

"What do you mean by that?" Tom asked.

Kate opened the chest, revealing a couple dozen arrows with strange barbed heads which had been cleaned, but still bore the reddish tint of blood. "These arrows are not Monteraynian. Neither are they from Alconte or Innutuk. But they are from somewhere, and I intend to find out where that is."

"I'm afraid I don't know the answer to that question." Tom said, scratching his beard. He glanced at Manfred. "Do you?"

Manfred shook his head. "I don't know much about archery, arrows, or anything. But...hmm..."

"Speak, young man. We cannot limit our speculation."

"I still don't know. But I think I know someone who does. The new knight...Nathan Korynn...he's a blacksmith, seems pretty knowledgable."

"Oh, that man." Tom muttered, a hint of disdain buried in his tone, "I marvel that he passed his trials. But nonetheless, perhaps he can be of some assistance. Fetch him, would you?"

"Yes sir." Manfred acknowledged before scurrying off.

"We shall resume dining, but I will ensure a portion is left for you, Sir Rickland." Kate called after him with a teasing glint in her eyes.

Manfred glanced back with a shy smile. "I was hoping so."

Kate laughed to herself as she slid back into her seat. The servant had just loaded up Sloan and Tom's plates, so they set themselves to eating while they vainly speculated. In the back of her mind, Kate knew they wouldn't come to any solid conclusions until Manfred returned, but they needed to occupy the time somehow.

**** 

A/N: And here we are, at the end of chapter one, folks! I hope you enjoyed this introduction to the exact middle of the Reformation Wars series, and the middle of the trilogy, as well. In a way, this whole trilogy centers on our trio from the last book, Manfred, Kate, and Andre, and we've just checked in on what the first two are up to a year later. Next chapter, we'll check in on good ol' Andre. 😉

That said, if you enjoyed the chapter, please do remember to vote by slapping that little star in the face, and leave some comments to let me know what you thought! I appreciate all the feedback that gets sent in. 😁

I do wanna ask specifically, any thoughts on Kate's situation? I feel like that might be one aspect that's understandably frustrating for anyone coming off of book 4, but I also hope it does pay off and prove itself worth the vexation. 😂 

Alright, well, I'll make a quick note about this book's update schedule. I used to update this series doing just two chapters each Friday, but I'm gonna be adding a regular single update now, on Mondays. So look forward to that, my people, and with that, I leave you until said Friday update. God bless, and I hope you stick around for this adventure! ❤️