As Zolast stood at the right side of the Duke while Artmiss took the left, silence ruled. I gestured for Mahruss and the rest to move away from the military, not willing to make them easy targets in case things had devolved into violence.

It was better to retreat while the opponents were paying attention to other things. We still stayed at the edge, between the ducal guards and the rest of the guilds, but I much preferred that to just being surrounded.

Especially when I had many ways of extracting them from this mess easily.

The duke was the first one to break the silence. "Is there a particular reason you have visited us, Baron, or are you here for sightseeing?" he asked, his tone distant and sharp.

"Unfortunately, cousin, I'm here due to my role as the Commander, so I would appreciate being referred to as such."

The young duke staggered at that comment for a moment, but Zolast came to his rescue quickly. "So, the royal military is not only challenging the independence of the guilds but is also invading the domains of the feudal lords. His Majesty is truly ambitious," Zolast declared.

From the way everyone froze, it seemed to be rather effective. While I lacked the historical context to appreciate the full impact, I could see what Zolast was doing. He was linking the recklessness of the commander to an imaginary policy shift in the kingdom.

Nicely reversing the initial, planned show of disrespect into something far more complicated.

"Nonsense! We're not here to challenge the supremacy of House Yoentia in his own lands. We're just here because of a deal between the House and the military."

"What deal?" the young duke intervened immediately. I noticed both Zolast and Artmiss shaking their heads slightly. They both managed to suppress their reaction well, and only my absurd Perception allowed me to catch it.

"The council has decided that the incursion of the creatures of destruction is a good opportunity to expand the military, and for that, we have decided to request access to the dungeon, to make sure our soldiers are strong enough to handle the dangers of the corrupted beasts and evil cultists," he explained.

"Permission denied," the young duke immediately declared, accompanied by his own flare of Charisma. He was young and impressive.

Too bad his response was useless.

Or the baron wouldn't be smiling victoriously.

"Unfortunately, Duke Yoentia, the military and your house had already signed an agreement to that effect," he declared as he pulled a piece of rolled-up paper, and gave it to one of his soldiers. "Here's a copy of the deal, signed by the steward himself."

The young duke froze even as the soldier strutted forward confidently, each step making the young duke blanch further. Artmiss managed to hide it much better, but he was similarly distressed, showing that the move was probably devastating.

Yet, I didn't feel any need to intervene, as I was able to read Zolast's stony expression very well, and underneath, he was excited.

Interesting.

Zolast was not impatient. First, he let the young duke grab the document and read it, then silently requested it. Despondent, the young duke just passed it, only to be surprised once Zolast leaned forward to whisper into his ear.

Even with my perception, I wasn't able to hear anything, so I was limited to reading their body language. He had probably used some kind of spell to conceal his voice, with only Artmiss inside to eavesdrop.

Whatever he was saying was not something the old knight enjoyed, his expression turning even stormier as he looked at Zolast, as he was clearly against Zolast's solution. But when his lord asked him for an alternative, his posture shifted in defeat.

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Zolast turned toward the baron, who had been watching the proceedings with a smug smile, confident in his victory. "It's an interesting deal, Commander," Zolast declared.

"It's more than fair," he responded loudly. "The military will be using the dungeon, and in exchange, we'll be paying House Yoentia three times the market rate. We have already made the advance payment to the steward."

"Yes, everything is in order," Zolast said, and the baron smiled even larger, confident in his victory … not questioning why Zolast was the one speaking "Too bad that you have been cheated by the steward," Zolast declared, and with a wave of his hand, a contract popped out of his bag and floated toward him.

This time, the baron was the one reading it, his expression collapsing as he did so. "T-this is nonsense. You're a mere, newly established guild. You can't just take sixty percent of all available slots. You don't even have the necessary number of members."

"I fail to see how that's of any concern to the military. It's a private deal with Duke Yoentia."

He looked shocked at first, looking around in confusion. "It doesn't matter. House Yoentia already signed the agreement with the military, trying to defraud the military. They have to answer either way."

"So, what you're saying is that, it's the military's position that any noble will be responsible for the agreements signed by their employees no matter the condition? Interesting position. I'm sure the royal court will be friendly to that idea."

Luckily, I was experienced enough not to laugh. I was sure that if such a contract had existed, Zolast would have mentioned it. Meaning, it was one of the many counter-plans he had arranged, predicting an attack from the legal direction.

Having competent allies was a great feeling.

The reveal made the baron frown, but he didn't say anything before he pulled back. A few soldiers gathered around him, along with the Guildmasters of the three guilds that supported him, their voices blocked.

Meanwhile, a whisper reached my ear. "Make him angry," Zolast said.

I decided to follow his request. I didn't give any outward sign as I slowly stretched my Charisma, connecting with the baron only without alerting him. Of course, the only reason it went unnoticed was that he wasn't using his own Charisma.

Luckily, with Charisma inactive, he didn't have a chance to notice as I played with his emotions. He was already angry and frustrated as his 'amazing' plan against his cousin was ruined, and it was trivial to fuel his emotions further.

It was harder to see that change naturally, but for that, I once again relied on my ability to read their body language. Whenever someone else was speaking with a guarded posture — signaling that they were saying something that the baron didn't like hearing — I fueled his anger further … and further.

Until he suddenly pulled back from his team. "Enough! I, Baron Tiamtia, have been tricked by a member of House Yoentia, and I demand satisfaction. I declare a blood duel."

Unsurprisingly, it triggered gasps from everyone. Even I was surprised. A blood duel between noble houses was significant, just below a declaration of war. Either the noble in question, or their champion, would step onto the arena.

"Really? Then, let's do here. Right here, right now," the young duke immediately countered, using the advantage of being the one who was being challenged by setting up the time and the location. Artmiss took a step forward, ready to take the field. "Are you going to fight yourself, or declare a champion?"

"A champion, of course. Derkan, step forward," he declared.

One of the soldiers stepped forward and removed his helmet, making the young duke gasp in shock. Even Artmiss looked shocked. The reason was clear. I remembered him. He was one of the knights that had been accompanying them when I had first arrived at the camp. Clearly, not all of them were dead.

"Long time no see, leader," he declared smugly as he stood forward, his confidence clear.

"You coward. You dare," Artmiss growled, shocked and betrayed.

"Let's not throw names around, leader," Derkan said. "We all made our choices. Just like you, daring to step forward and protect your liege lord. Have you recovered from your injury yet?"

Artmiss' expression suggested that he had not. "Pity, I would have loved to test my new ability against you properly, now that we both have our promotions."

From their reaction, I could see that, Artmiss' injury was significant enough to make the loss a given.

Considering the sequence, it looked like some kind of problem that could be disguised, effectively creating a glass jaw. No problem as long as no one knew of its existence.

But the traitor was enough to turn that into a deadly problem.

Then, Zolast spoke, destroying the somber mood. "Interesting that you expect us to send him to battle without proper healing," he said as he put his hand on Artmiss' shoulder, and a blue glow covered him.

Artmiss shuffled in surprise even as Zolast's face started to lose color and his legs trembled, showing his incredible sacrifice as he tried to struggle to heal the wound.

A heroic moment. Too bad it was fake.

Zolast would have never shown such exaggerated expression if it was the truth. He was playing it up for the crowd. Another bait, I recognized.

But that was for the future.

For the moment, Artmiss took a step forward, his blade already drawn, the rustling of his armor deafening.

"Let's fight, traitor," he declared, his voice thick with emotion.

I watched with rapt attention, even if the attitude of the traitor showed that he believed his victory was inevitable.

I focused. It was my first chance to observe a proper high-class battle.