515 DXV. The Outpost's Squire

Thalos immediately stopped his run and returned beside his master, satisfied.

"Nice, good job..." the young Master continued, stroking his friend on the head and pulling their prey towards him with the dark tentacle.

Judging by his weight, that figure was a hooded man, with a cape so long that entirely covered his clothing.

"Leave me! Let me go, what's wrong with you?!" the spy exclaimed, who confirmed that he was a man from his voice, wriggling his legs and trying to escape unnecessarily from Dag's dark arm grip, which dragged him under his feet.

In a violent gesture, Dag grabbed the man's neck and turned it hard, clinging to his cloak and taking off his hood.

As the dark arm gave up its grip and returned to Dag's back, the bloodied face of the man became visible under the light of a nearby torch and Dag realized that he was a stranger.

"Grrrr!"

Thalos began to growl again, looking closely at the man and hoping that Dag would allow him to kill him.

"Easy, Thalos... easy" he said, calming the wild soul of his friend and continuing to look at the face of the man, who had a big cut on his forehead, having slammed to the ground just before.

"Leave me, fuck this!" he exclaimed, trying to grab Dag's arm and make him give up his grip.

Just then, a strong punch hit his face, causing him to fall on his knees.

"Try to move again and my wolf will maul you, dickhead" Dag answered, with the second punch ready to go.

The reddish-haired man looked at the floor and raised his hands above his head, asking for mercy, aware that he had no escape.

"Tell me right away who you are and who sent you to spy on me! Speak!" Dag shouted, regardless of whether his loud voice could attract the attention of the citizens of nearby homes, not being late at night yet.

"I... I am a warrior of Tungvek... I... I'm sorry I spied inside your house... I was just curious to see what you were doing with that girl... I beg your pardon..." stuttered the man, who was about thirty years old and did not seem to be a true warrior judging by his flickering and afraid voice.

After that response, Dag tore off his cloak, discovering that underneath it the man was indeed wearing one of the Clan's armor, including a light breastplate.

Before continuing with the questions, the young Master punched the man's jaw again, making him fall to the ground in tears, touching his face.

"I don't believe a single word of what you say! How can you be a warrior and cry like a little girl?! Get up, coward! And tell me who's sending you to spy on me for real! I'm losing my patience!" Dag screamed again, thinking that at that hour, after the busy evening he and Freydis had experienced, he just wanted to rest with his girlfriend.

"Well then, I'll take you to him, so we'll find out if you tell the truth! If you're really one of his squires, he'll certainly recognize your face, won't he?" Dag asked, who didn't know Atran's nickname, particularly suitable for his appearance, more groomed than the viking average.

"Ehm... I... I believe so...!" the man gasped, afraid of Dag's expression.

"Perfect, I will decide with him your punishment then!" he replied, giving him a powerful knee on his forehead and causing him to faint instantly.

After that gesture, Dag looked around, noting that no one had noticed what had happened.

"Let's get this idiot from Atran. I'm sure he won't recognize him... at that point we will start with the real questions, hoping that he is one of the spies of the Lies of Loki, as I suspected" he told Thalos as if the wolf could express his opinion.

Dag grabbed the neck of the alleged Giants Of Ymir squire's armor and lifted him off the ground, carrying him over his shoulders, noting that the armor was almost heavier than the man's body, slender and unathletic.

Without thinking twice, he headed to Colossus Palace, hoping that Atran and Kron would still be with Kranus, perhaps continuing the celebrations for the success of the diplomatic mission with the Claws Of Fenrir.

...

"Where the hell did you end up at this time of night? Damn it, I can't leave Claire here alone, she wouldn't be safe!" Freydis thought aloud, who meanwhile had got out of bed and walked back and forth down the lower floor of the house, looking out the window and waiting to see Dag, not understanding what he was doing away from her.

"Thalos is not there too... evidently they heard something strange, the window is half-open... in a hurry to heal Claire's wounds we forgot to close it completely. Maybe someone was spying on us" the Shieldmaiden continued, who as she watched the girl sleep on the floor, had already guessed what had really happened and sat by the fireplace, guarding her.

...

Continuing to walk with the unconscious man on his shoulders without the slightest effort, Dag arrived in front of the palace staircase, and immediately two of the guards guarding him blocked his advance.

"I am Master Dag, I have recently returned with your commander and your generals from our last mission. Let me through, there's no point in me explaining to you what I'm doing with a man on my shoulders. He could be a spy and I need to show him to your superiors" Dag exclaimed, anticipating the question of the two men, who incredulously let him pass, looking at him with a confused air and lowering their gaze on Thalos, who continued to follow Dag not even realizing their presence.