CHRONICLES of a PC Gamer Stuck Inside an RPG (Book One: Duelist)

Chapter 41 - Transition of Power

"Keep going!" Hivande urged as he quickened his pace through the tunnel, which was eerily quiet. Whatever battle his captain was fighting in the chamber supposedly up ahead, if the nobleman was truthful, was already over. The officer felt a tingling down his spine; it was a bad omen. He saw more flickering lights up ahead and an opening into a wide chamber, just as the nobleman had promised. "We're almost there!" he yelled. The sound of heavy steps confirmed that his men were keeping up with his fast pace.

Finally, the cavalry broke free of the tunnel—only to find their captain laying on the ground, with a growing pool of blood seeping out of his body; the infamous swordsman, Maisen, was on her knees next to him. "NO!" the loyal men cried out in anguish at the sight of the woman holding Jiang in her hand. By tradition, the fallen Captain of the Watch has the right to choose his successor, and the passing of Jiang identifies that chosen successor. If the named successor isn't nearby, a trusted aide will take custody of Jiang, but forbidden to draw the blade, until the custodian can physically deliver the sword to the newly named Captain. Thus, the sight of an unsheathed, blood-soaked Jiang in her hand confirmed the passing of their beloved Captain.

Hivande privately shared their pain but the disciplined officer pushed his emotions aside. A part of his personal pain was due to the fact that Captain Li had declined to name Hivande as the next Captain of the Watch. There could be several reasons. Perhaps, the late captain judged Hivande to be deficient in certain areas such as leadership or swordsmanship. Or perhaps the former captain believed that Hivande was better suited as the Right Hand to the Captain rather than to take the hot seat himself. Regardless of his wounded pride at being passed over, Hivande had too much respect for the deceased man to ignore Li's decision. Instead, the officer will respect and honor the former Captain by supporting the new Captain to the best of his abilities.

Hivande slowly walked up to the new Captain of the Watch. He offered a crisp salute. "Captain! What are your orders?" the officer asked. As he waited for a response, the man took note of the six dead wererats in the chamber. He wondered how many of them were killed single-handedly by this woman kneeling on the ground before him. Truth be told, no one currently serving in the Watch could duplicate this marvelous feat and thus, her outstanding fighting prowess partially validated the late captain's decision in Hivande's eye.

It took a moment for Maisen to realize that the officer was addressing her as "captain." The former member of the Butterfly School of Swordsmanship took a deep breath and then got back to her feet. She looked Hivande in the eye and nodded in acknowledgment of his acceptance of her position as the new Captain of the Watch. A reason for her hesitance to accept Peng's request was that the previous captains were all men (and human since the Watch was part of the Church, which disallowed non-humans in its membership and by extension all Watchmen were humans, too). She wasn't sure how the men would react to having a woman as their leader.

Maisen looked at the gathered men in the chamber and took a quick headcount—there were twenty men squeezed into the chamber. If her memory was correct, the Watch had only five dozen members in all. The other two groups had three Watchmen each; her own group had four including the late Peng. With thirty members underground this meant that more half the force was currently inside this wererat lair. The Were-Hunt must be completed soon, or else other troublemakers may take advantage of the temporary shortfall in manpower of the Watch.

The new captain took note of the respectful look on the faces of these Watchmen, and she was secretly relieved to see that none had disputed Peng's decision to name her as his successor. Although they had the right to do so by challenging her to a duel, none had chosen to exercise this right.

Captain Maisen pointed at the left and right opening in the chamber. "I want a squad of six men going into each of these tunnels. We still have people exploring each tunnel and they may need reinforcements."