There was a large gray castle in the Dil Republic famous for its sturdiness and aesthetic beauty. It was well known to the surrounding Kingdoms and even more well-known to Argon who had tried conquering it on multiple occasions. The most famous castle on the continent, the Gray Immortal.

The walls were so thick and tall that it was a marvel how it was even put together. But thick walls weren't enough to call the castle, Immortal. The walls were made of a special stone with a simple name, gray rock. Gray rock was a thick stone filled with earth elemental mana and was similar to granite. It was thought that golems that were born in nature were made of this rock. The walls made from the gray rock were self-sustaining. Enchanted with self-repairing magic by the Gray Tower master over two centuries ago the wall was even considered a human wonder.

The outer portion of the wall was made from thick rocks made from earth elemental magic. Like a turtle's shell, the gray rock wall that made up the castle protected itself from damage. The core of the gray rock center. When a mage blew apart the outer portion of the wall it would quickly heal the damage done making it the most annoying castle to deal with on the continent. Headed by Jamie Vallas and defended by the greatest army of knights on the continent the Gray Immortal had successfully defended against the attack of the previous Emperor of Argon and Archmage, Maximillian Daybright.

In the center of the castle was a meeting room with a long rectangular table called the Knight's Table. The heads of all the major families in the Dil Republic sat side by side with two of their trusted knights standing right behind them.

An older stocky man with a large pair of glasses banged on the table before yelling, "Argon has gone mad!" He spit on the ground before continuing, "The audacity to go to war with not only OUR Republic but the rest of the fucking Continent as well! Are we fucking pushovers?" Sitting across from the stocky older man was a mountain of a man who in a sitting position was almost as tall as the two knights behind him he gruffly responded, "Treating us like an afterthought! Argon isn't giving us the respect we deserve. Going to war with every kingdom on the continent? Can we be seen as fodder?" He slammed on the table and shouted, "I say we stand together, and fucking slaughter the lot of them. We can clear the fucking dogs by the end of the day!" The rest of the Knights at the table started banging on the table in unison and shouted, "To war! To war!"

At the central point of the foot of the table was a middle-aged man with curly brown hair. He was muscular and tall with a large belly and a perfectly curled mustache, he spoke somewhat softly, but most everyone quieted down to hear what he had to say, "I think we can do better." The massive mountain of a man spoke up, "Another one of your brilliant ideas, Jamie? All you want is control, you fucking wiggly maggot!"

"Do I have to put you down, Vargas? How many times do I have to smash your face in before you shut up?"

The giant Vargas smiled and said, "A thousand more times." Jamie ignored him and continued, "I think Vargas is right when he says Argon's being cocky. If we attack now, I'm confident we can regain our lands. We can probably even limit our losses, and come out the complete victors, but... well they can just come back even stronger next time can't they. Clearing out Argon is only a temporary solution. I have an idea." A skinny man with white hair at the other end of the table sighed and said, "Another patented Jamie Vallas idea. The boy genius of the Dil Republic."

Jamie pretended as though he couldn't hear the sighs, "We have an incredible opportunity. Argon is trying to chew far more than it can handle right now. This is our opportunity to damage them enough to take away their threat completely!"

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The white-haired frowned and focused his piercing eagle-like gaze at Jamie, "And how do you propose we do that?"

"We do what I've been doing to all of you this whole time. Just on a larger scale." The entire table gave off chilling energy as they stared daggers at Jamie Vallas.

"I'm not so arrogant as to believe that none of you know the strategy I've been using this whole time? I know you are all aware of it." Jamie paused to look every knight in the eyes before saying, "What if we do the same to Argon?"

The white-haired man crossed his arms and said, "Continue."

"I'm thinking of using Lome, Elion, and Ayes to strike at the core of Argon." The stocky man with glasses shouted, "And how exactly do you plan to do that? Messing with families and territories is nothing like doing the same thing on a continental scale!"

"Well, Rhine, just like when someone decides to mess with a small territory you first have to look at a glaring problem there. The territories I seized weren't managed properly and were easy to take because the people there were mistreated. I looked for a glaring problem and offered a solution. Everyone, what is the glaring problem Lome, Elion, and Ayes have right now?"

An ogre-like woman with a scar going down her right eye spoke for the first time in the meeting, "Argon, We get it. We don't need your semantics to get the point, I vote no! I fucking hate snakes whether they are on my side or against me." She spit on the floor and got up. Several other knights in the meeting also got up and started to leave the room.

Jamie simply smiled, "Did you know there is another way of messing with the game board? You don't have to target a glaring problem. Sometimes there is a simpler solution that can work for everyone in this room, including me. Greed. What if I told you all that what we get out of this isn't only peace from Argon? What if I told you that this plan involves treasures?" The woman continued walking without ever looking back, but a few of the knights that joined her stopped in their tracks.

"The way I phrase things is a bit vulgar, but all of us here are the same. We are all greedy, and we are all ambitious. If we weren't ambitious, we wouldn't be the Dil Republic! I want the treasures of Lome! The magic of Elion! and the breadbasket of Ayes!"

Those leaving all turned around and walked back to the table one of them said, "How are we to do that, Jamie?"

"Don't the heroes always swoop in at the end and take the spoils?" Vargas slammed the table again and shouted, "Stop giving us the roundabout! Tell us your fucking plan, and be on with it!"

Jamie stood from his chair and said, "Soon, I'll be going with a small group to Lome, Elion, and Ayes. I'll get us all on a united front against Argon. Of course, with the stipulation of treasures and knowledge for our cooperation. Argon will drive us all to desperation, and that's exactly how we will turn the tables on them and change the course of this war for good."

The white-haired knight tapped on the table a few times before saying, "Your plans are always bare. You hide critical points in hopes of gaining more for yourself, we aren't stupid. We already know how you operate, Jamie. How are you going to do any of this when we are currently at a standstill with Argon? How could we offer military support when we need military support ourselves?"

Jamie frowned slightly, "Alex, I don't have to tell you that some promises need to be broken, or that sometimes promises are made that can't be kept. I think our plan would be great if we help the other powers, and in fact, we will need to help them. If we completely leave the other powers with empty promises we will either gain their animosity or Argon will grow larger than we can handle. So Alex, what if we plan one thing and provide another?"

Alex, the white-haired knight sighed, "I think the wisest of us here has already left. I vote yes." The rest of the knights in the meeting room all said yes as well albeit reluctantly. They didn't stay much longer, and all quickly left the meeting room trying to get as far away from Jamie as they could.

Soon Jamie was left with only his two knights beside him. One of the knights, a young brown-haired man with auburn colored eyes asked, "Lord, there's more to your plan isn't there? It didn't seem like you really gave anything away?" Jamie smiled, "Of course there always is." He stood up and left the meeting room.

The Dil Republic would finalize its plans of action over the course of two more meetings. The continent was a massive fuse, and Jamie fully intended on lighting the fuse himself.