Chapter 527 527 First Refugees
Chapter 527 527 First Refugees
Wolfe watched patiently as the first truck came into view, overloaded with people, and pulling a trailer loaded with more people, both with backpacks loaded all over the sides and the metal hoops that would usually be covered in tarps to keep the weather out.
They had grabbed whatever they could carry, and then found a spot to hang it on the truck after they had packed everyone in as tightly as possible for the journey westward.
They were sure to be in rough shape even if they weren’t injured after standing for an entire day pressed into a truck bed like that, but they were here and alive, and for the refugees, that was the part that mattered the most.
“Welcome to the Fae Forest. If you have injured, please bring them forward first. We have food and water here if you need it, and we have arranged boats to bring you to the village.” Wolfe greeted them as soon as the truck stopped.
He recognized the man who got out of the truck, he was one of the Bear Kin from Deep River Village. They were right on the front lines, between the two forces, so it made sense that they had to evacuate when things got bad between the Witches and the Grand Dutchies.
“How did your kinfolk fare? They did well against the first threats.” Wolfe asked.
“We’re better than most. We decided early that we would relocate, there were too many battles in the area, and they would have to pass over our villages every time they sent out new waves of monsters that they brought in from their home continent.
Most of my villagers are driving the trucks or leading groups on foot into the mountains. Our village was strong, but not very numerous, you see.” He explained, before climbing down to shake Wolfe’s hand.
The injured were brought forward, mostly just minor things, but a lot of the scouts had been shot and patched up.
“They’re not using curses?” Wolfe asked, when [Detect Hidden] showed an unfamiliar slug embedded in one of the Bear Kin scout’s shoulder.
“Not really. They got gassed pretty early, and the Grand Dutchies spread it out everywhere, in case they were hiding. So most of the battle on the outskirts is conventional warfare with extra artillery. I don’t know where they’ve set it up, but there is an awful lot of artillery firing.
When they get going, it sounds like a drum solo out there.” The Bear man explained.
“I am told that their good stuff has a range of a hundred kilometres, so it could be well back into their own territory where it’s not threatened by the Witches, and they can protect it from air strikes. As long as it looks like they’re winning, that’s good enough for me.” Wolfe shrugged.
Wolfe looked back at the river and noticed that the riverboat now had friends, there were three more large boats waiting along the shore, ready to ferry passengers to safety.
The Witches hadn’t bothered to break out the potions, they had realized that the injuries were minor and had saved them for more urgent healing and used a light course to take care of the people in this group.
Light by Rank Three Witch standards anyhow. They healed them enough to fix the gunshot wounds and the broken bones, along with the bruising and pulled muscles that had been incurred in the flight from their homes.
“Thank you, Noble Ladies, and Mister Wolfe. We promise we won’t make you regret taking us in.” One of the older women assured them as she passed by.
“That was never in doubt. Anyone as resourceful as you are is bound to be an asset to any village.” Wolfe replied with a wink that seemed to melt some of the tension in the refugees’ faces.
“More trucks are incoming. Everyone, please ensure you have all your belongings from the vehicles, as we will have to move them out of the way in a moment to make space for new arrivals.” The witch on duty at the border announced.
Everyone double-checked their bags and took a seat in the boats, which raced away as soon as they were full. They didn’t have a lot of the river boats, and with so many people showing up at once, they were going to need to make the trip as fast as possible to get back in time to get the next group.
Wolfe turned up the radio so that he could hear all that was going on, but it was more of the same. Guiding the fleeing vehicles in the proper direction, with no sign of battle within radio range yet.
“By my count, we have twenty total vehicles incoming, most of which have injured witches on them. The battles in the east must have gone very poorly for them if there have been so many desertions already.” Wolfe informed Mary and the others.
“Reminds me of the first day of the fight against the Grand Dutchies when they attacked the Morgana Lines. Everyone broke and ran. But they had somewhere to go, and they weren’t left behind enemy lines in every direction.
We should find out if they’re being drafted, like mandatory military service or something. That would explain why so many of them don’t really want to fight, and why they would flee at the first sign of danger.” Mio suggested.
That was a good point. A lot of the witches had mentioned how a military promotion would help them get to Rank Three, as it was granted by the Mana Beast, or their local equivalent, and not obtained naturally. But he had never thought to ask if that meant people outside the military didn’t ever reach Rank Three. Or possibly, there were no Witches on the other continents who weren’t in the military after they awakened.
Even the politicians seemed to be somewhat related to the military. But that could wait until they had finished up here, Wolfe had a lot of work ahead of him if all these trucks were carrying squads of Witches who needed their Mana System repaired.