I spent the next dozen days camping with the poachers while recovering. For someone used to modern comforts, it was quite a difficult time.

  The camp was rather crude—a simple fire pit surrounded by four makeshift lean-tos assembled between tree trunks. A tanning frame and several meat racks were set up a small distance away. Baskets were scattered around, filled with various animal pieces. Strips of meat, pelts, innards, bones. Nothing was wasted.

  My presence wasn't wasted either.

  I was given small duties around the camp as soon as I could move my arm again and no signs of infection were appearing. For someone who grew up on a farm, most were familiar chores, even if I often found myself slightly nauseous when I had to clean out innards or the like. But I knew better than to complain to people who had saved my life.

  The food was also nausea-inducing at times. Cooked innards, roasted pigeons, blood cake, bone broth... The poachers usually ate better, but with winter coming, most of their game had retreated deep into the forest. What they did catch was kept to be sold during winter as peasants would head for the hills to mine lead ore for extra coin—hard work that required a hardy diet to sustain. So until spring, the poachers were stuck eating whatever was too unattractive or spoiled too quickly to sell.

  During this time, I also learned a lot about the four men. It turned out they weren’t just common bandits as I had originally thought.

  For example, Dietrich, the oldest, used to be a scout and archer in the imperial army during the Heldisch Wars. But once the fighting ended and the Emperor was forced to disband most of his men-at-arms, Dietrich was sent to settle the frontier along with several other veterans. He lived secluded in Rand for close to twenty summers before a great famine swept through the village a year ago. Seeing families starving around him, he was the first to take up his bow again to secure some food, royal laws be damned. Having never married nor had any children, he reasoned he had the least to lose.

  The others had similar stories. Kurt joined to help feed his children after his wife was claimed by the famine. Ralf ran away from home after his parents sent his sister to be the bailiff's maid in exchange for a sack of grain. And Wulf joined the band after his wife and sons were torn apart by wolves while foraging for roots and wild berries.

  All in all, their tales were equally sad and ironic. Despite being outlaws destined for the gallows if caught, the quarry they brought in had likely saved dozens of lives. Hell, they were probably the reason the village wasn't wiped off the map. And yet the bailiff still pursued them and threatened their families, those that still remained, at least.

  Hearing all this only hardened my resolve to depose the bailiff the first chance I got. But I couldn't do it alone. So as soon as I got to know them better, I started testing the waters.

  "So... I suppose you four aren't big fans of Ugo either?" I opened bluntly one afternoon as we gnawed on a fox caught in one of Wulf's traps.

  "Hah, what else is new?" Kurt chuckled around a mouthful of meat. "I think even his wife dislikes that bastard."

  "I wish I could ske’er that fat pig." Ralf waved the stick he'd used to roast his portion.

  The other two simply nodded.

  "I feel the same." Emboldened by their sentiments, I decided to push further. "Which is why... I'd like to liberate Rand from the likes of him."

  "Well, you certainly got a good start on it, eh, Yer Majesty." Ralf answered with a sardonic chuckle.

  "That's true." As much as I found Ralf annoying at times, I needed to stay on his good side for what I was about to ask. "By myself, I could probably do little. But with your help…"

  All four stopped eating as soon as they heard the words, their gazes fixing on me.

  "That's a dangerous suggestion, boyo." Dietrich narrowed his eyes but spoke in a calm tone. "We're simple men. We survive by laying low on the edges of civilisation. And now you're asking us to get caught up in royal squabbles."

  "Yeah! We got enough problems of our own." Ralf's tone wasn’t as calm. "How much you royals care for us, you should be lucky we saved you. We won't go die for ya. And if what you told us is true, this is all just some game to you. Some contest. What's stopping you from going back once your time is up or you get bored, leaving us all to be hanged by the next noble that comes along?"

  "Sorry Karl, as much as I'd like to see Ugo brought down, I can't really see it happening." Kurt concluded in a friendlier tone, patting me on the back.

  "But don't you see? This is a unique opportunity. With a noble supporting you, you'd have legitimacy and—"

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  "And what's stopping you from turning into another Ugo, eh?" Ralf cut me off. "We heard about your reputation too. A drunkard princeling. A philanderer. You're more similar to that bastard who took advantage of my family and my sister than—"

  "Ralf, that's enough." Dietrich silenced him with a firm motion. Ralf shot him a disgruntled glance and grumbled under his breath but stopped talking. Dietrich continued in his place. "I apologise for the boy's words. But there's some truth in them. I know not to trust rumours, and so far you seem like decent folk. But I also know better than to trust someone on surface impression alone."

  "We've all learned that lesson the hard way, young prince. And some paid a high price." Wulf added in his usual cryptic tone.

  I sighed.

  I could understand their position. For all they knew, I was just some random noble staying with them purely out of circumstance. And based on their past, nobles rarely if ever did anything good for them. No wonder some barely tolerated my presence. Yet here I was, asking them to start a revolution for me.

  I wished I could tell them the truth. That I wasn't actually a noble and shared their distaste for this world's society. That I'd lost things coming here too. That I was, in a way, an outcast just like them. But it all sounded too outlandish even for this magical world. They'd probably think I was lying, and I had no way to prove otherwise. And if they were hesitant following a noble of this world, how would they react to someone who wasn't even from here?

  Still, I needed them on my side. Even if I could move without pain or crutches, I had little chance of overthrowing the bailiff alone. I'd already failed once before I even tried. And all my knowledge of the future couldn't help on its own.

  I'd realised it during my time here. When I first came to this world, I was blinded by my ego. I was already dreaming up grand designs, fantasising about industrialising the whole continent. And while I still wanted to do that, my brush with death made me realise I couldn't do it alone. I needed allies.

  "Look, I'm not asking you to fight for me. I'm asking you to fight for Rand. For a brighter future." I spoke carefully, my voice slightly shaky. " I admit, I didn't come here to overthrow the bailiff—not at first. But seeing Ugo, hearing your stories, almost dying... I realised that if we want a brighter future, this is where it needs to begin."

  I paused, searching for the right words. They weren't coming easily. None of my textbooks or lectures ever dealt with oration. But the more I spoke, the more I felt a kind of fire building up in me.

  "I don't have skills with a bow. Or a sword. I can't move through the forest unseen like you can. Especially, now that well, you know." I gestured vaguely at my still-healing wounds. "But what I do have is knowledge—knowledge we can use to make sure people like Ugo can never oppress Rand again. But I can't create that opportunity alone. That's why I need your help."

  I could see Ralf about to speak, but Dietrich stopped him again. "Look boyo, it sounds nice when you say it, but I can't risk the lives of my men and families who depend on us—"

  "But you already risk your lives!" I stood up, feeling a surge of conviction despite my nerves. My voice came out louder than intended. "Being here. Poaching. Defying the bailiff. You risk everything every day. Not because of greed or selfishness, but for your families and the people of Rand. So they have something to eat. So no child goes to sleep hungry."

  I took a breath, my hands trembling—whether from lingering weakness or the weight of my words, I couldn't tell.

  "And for now, it works. But what about tomorrow? Next year? A decade from now? What if another famine comes? Or the bailiff decides there aren't enough boar and deer on his table? What then?"

  I looked at each of them—Dietrich's weathered face, Kurt's cautious eyes, Ralf's defensive scowl, Wulf's unreadable stare.

  "I know you have little reason to help me. To you, I'm just another noble. And you've spent your whole lives under a noble boots. I understand that. But this is your chance to break free, for the sake of everyone you care about."

  My voice cracked slightly but I pushed through. "A chance to show what a few good men can do. I can give you an opportunity—one you probably won't get again. A chance for freedom. For hope. For something better."

  I finished and immediately felt self-conscious. It wasn't exactly inspiring—my voice had wavered, I'd stumbled over words, and I probably looked more desperate than heroic. But it was honest. And that was all I had.

  Silence settled over the group. The fire crackled between us, casting dancing shadows.

  "When you put it like that..." Dietrich sighed, eyeing the others. "I'll join you. But we'll have conditions."

  "I'll follow the old man. But for my family and friends—not for you." Ralf lifted his cudgel, his tone a bit less hostile than before.

  "Hey, you can count on me, Karl. Can't wait to see the look on that pig's face." Kurt laughed and stretched his fingers.

  The three turned to Wulf. He stared at me in silence, his sharp eyes making me nervous. I did my best not to flinch under his gaze.

  "You remind me of my son, you know... Idealistic... Na?ve." I held my breath as he spoke in a low tone. "So long as you remain true, you will have my bow, young prince."

  As soon as he agreed, I silently sighed in relief.

  I did it.

  I'd surprised even myself.

  My legs felt weak and I sat back down before they could give out. The surge of adrenaline was receding and I could feel my wounds begin to ache once again.

  "Though, what about his magic?" Dietrich asked as we returned to the meal, a new sense of purpose in the air. "Ugo was never a powerful mage, but our swords and arrows are no match for him in a direct fight." He glanced at me. "And from what I've seen so far, you don't seem exactly mighty in magic yourself."

  "Heh. Leave that to me." I allowed myself a small smile despite the pain and exhaustion creeping back. "I have a plan…"