“An army of several thousands has been spotted.”

An airship pilot made an emergency report. He was making his usual round from Gonne to Laufeld. When he was approaching the latter to land, he spotted some activities at the border. Laufeld was really quite close to the border. The distance was less than a day by foot. With an airship, it was far less. The closest settlement in Estana was Makarlika which was renowned for its spice exports.

Kamil and Cezary exchanged glances. Perhaps, it was only a matter of time before Estana would start making noises and that they shouldn’t be surprised.

“How many soldiers do we have?”

“Only about fifty, Milord,” Cezary replied.

“Send a word to Keviel. Inform the king about the movement. Send a word to Lux as well. Inform Lord Fenchel.”

The airship pilot nodded and walked out at once.

“Sir Waszak, recruit more soldiers at once. I want at least a hundred total.”

“That shall be done, but what do you plan to do?”

50 or 100, it wasn’t going to make a difference if the opponent was in thousands.

“I wish to ride out to confront them at the border.”

Cezay wasn’t even amused and simply retorted flatly, “Milord, surely you jest.”

“What do you advise me to do then?”

“At this point, we should wait for the king’s decision. He will likely send the royal army here. Lord Fenchel is also obligated to assist you.”

While true, both of them knew that it was Kamil they were after. Going roundabout way wasn’t going to solve the fundamental issue at hand.

“I am beginning to think that having a chat with this Estana king is one way to solve the issue, Sir Waszak. Am I wrong?”

Sighing, he folded his arms. “You aren’t wrong,” He replied eventually. “But, if you meet their king on your own, rumors will be created. The only safe way to meet their king is under the supervision of another.”

“You don’t think they will invade Laufeld, do you?”

“I highly doubt that they want an outright invasion. Given their previous attempts, it’s clear that their target is you.”

It was frustrating that there was nothing he could do at the moment. But he heeded Cezary’s advice and stayed put, waiting for either Karsten or Edmund to make a move before he’d do anything. Thanks to the airship, a reply from Keviel arrived within a few days. The pilot delivered a small piece of paper, sealed with red wax with a royal stamp on it.

“It says…” He furrowed his brows. “He is mobilizing the entire nation?”

“What?” Cezary blurted, completely unexpected of such a development. “Surely you jest?”

Kamil handed the piece of paper over to him. The only exception was the Flissing who were tasked to watch over the Siwen and Atra.

“It does not make any sense. This was never meant to be a full blown war,” Cezary complained.

“Perhaps he is acting aggressively to show off? This could back them off.”

“Perhaps, but that is a very dangerous and unnecessary gamble.”

They were basically told to stand by and hold the line if required. Laufeld had no army to speak of anyway. All they could do was stand by.

Then exactly two days later, Edmund’s army of 5,000 men arrived in Laufeld, which was a clear indication that the whole nation was being mobilized.

Edmund surveyed New Laufeld with amused eyes on a horse. Elias was right behind him, also on a horse.

“So, this is the new town I’ve heard so much about,” he remarked. Kamil and Cezary welcomed them.

“Lord Fenchel, we welcome thee,” Kamil responded with a bow. Edmund was clad in full plate armor, and Elias was in his usual scholar outfit. Theo Ros could be seen behind them, leading the army on foot. There were several people in scholar outfits right behind them. Presumably, they were the mage corps.

“We’ve been ordered to station here and protect the town,” Elias declared.

“I don’t understand,” Kamil claimed. “We know nothing about our enemies. Why are we matching out like this? And why are we mobilizing the whole nation for an enemy who isn’t yet an enemy?”

Elias rode his horse right next to Edmund and asked, “Is it true that Estana has been contacting you in the shadows?”

“Yes, twice. The first one was Gregor who walked right up to me and told me to defect. The second one was a spy who infiltrated my manor in the cover of darkness.”

“Gregor…,” Edmund mumbled. “Dead, I heard. Bested by you.”

“Aye,” Kamil admitted flatly as if it’s not a big deal.

“It’s hard to believe that you bested him. The guy was probably the best mage in the world,” Elias remarked.

Whatever.

Kamil made no comment. He had nothing more to say. He felt Gregor deserved to die and killed him. That was all there was.

Seeing Kamil wasn’t showing much reaction over Gregor’s death, Edmund changed the subject and explained, “If you are wondering why we are taking such a strong stance, it is simple. We do not like how they are conducting themselves. Surely, you’d agree on that part.”

True, their underhanded conduct had been a frown.

He continued, “I personally believe that them wanting you is just an excuse for conflicts. They are making it too obvious.”

“We will find out soon enough,” Elias noted.

image [https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/4329/8QO6e8.jpg]

Three war fronts were soon established. Edmund’s 5,000-strong army was stationed by Laufeld, near the border. Another army, formed from Maiava and Keviel stationed at Fort Edimaia. Finally, an army formed from the Western houses, led by Noah Harga, was stationed on Fort Reen. The royal army’s whereabouts was currently unknown which Kamil believed to be a part of their tactics. It was the largest and also the strongest army the Kingdom of Egra offered. Wherever it was, it’d probably tip the tide of battles. This conflict, unlike the Siwen war, had potentials to become ugly because Estana didn’t look to be as clueless as the Siwen.

“Our weakest link is Laufeld,” Cezary declared after having taken a look at the map. “Simply because we have no fort there.”

“The enemy doesn’t have a fortress there, either,” Kamil argued.

A fortress provided numerous benefits. First of all, it provided a place to retreat for an army to regroup and provide protection from elements. It also had an emergency food storage in case an army was completely out of supplies. Right now, Edmund’s army would be out in the open and his supply lines being exposed. Cezary pointed out that it was not a good situation to be under while noting that the Estana force supply line was somewhat protected by the nearby forest.

“Either way, what we need is information. We have no idea what’s out there. I am thinking of flying out there and scouting ahead.”

Cezary wasn’t against it at this point because it was indeed true that they were right now blind.

“Make it quick, sir. I am pretty sure they have wind mages waiting for you.”

“Eh, you jest.” Kamil dismissed his concern initially.

It turned out that he was not joking because, when Kamil approached the Estana army from the sky, six wind mages shot out from the ground and approached him at once. They were dressed eerily similar to the man who paid him a visit the other night; They were dressed in dark gray clothes with their faces covered with an equally dark scarf of some sort. Needless to say, he wasn’t too amused.

“Predictable, I guess,” He remarked as he summoned numerous wind darts and fired at them without hesitation.

“*#($@)(#@!!” One of them shouted. It was a feminine voice. “*(&^!@#$!”

She was speaking a foreign language which he obviously had no idea of. He had never heard anyone speaking a foreign language to begin with, let alone study it.

Whatever. Elementals, track them down, boys.

The wind darts curved around widely and chased them down.

“&%!@?!” One of them blurted as if he didn’t see them coming. “&#$!#%?!”

He screamed after being shot in the back by about six wind darts. Bleeding pretty badly, he began his rapid fall at which point another one in the sky plunged to save him. However, Kamil was drawing an arrow at them and shot soon after. The arrow didn’t reach them because another wind mage flew in to stop the arrow with his body. The wind arrow pierced his shoulder through and vanished into the thin air. Holding his badly bleeding shoulder, he was also slowly descending.

“^&#!@$$!” Another barked.

Finish him off.

Several wind darts flew right at the descending man and struck him at which point, he was literally falling out of the sky after losing consciousness.

“Please, stop!” The female, who seemed to be their leader, shouted in a language he could understand and flew in between him and them. The other remaining two wind mages flew behind her.

“Are you joking? You guys are the one who started this,” He retorted. “I assume you expected an easy prey out of me.”

“I admit that we did!” She shouted. “I didn’t think you’d be able to command magic as if it’s your flesh and blood!”

The reason Kamil was so strong against them was that he wasted no time casting magic one after another. An ordinary wind mage would need to cite careful incantations and then wait for his magic to actually materialize which wasn’t a 100% percentage occurrence. In stark contrast, Kamil was firing magic one after another without any downtime or whatsoever. Logically, they stood no chance.

“Well, too bad. You reap what you sow.”

Tens of wind darts appeared out of thin air around him, pointing directly at her. She became pale at the sight, and the two behind her looked like they were on a crossroad between staying put and fleeing.

“W, we surrender!” With hands in the air, she declared. The two behind her did the same.

“Not interested.”

He had no interest in taking prisoners simply because he wasn’t confident in his ability to be able to retain them. After all, he was alone at the moment.

“P, please wait! Please talk to our king!”

He let out a frustrated sigh.

These people really, really, piss me off. Just how many times do I need to say out loud? I am not in a fucking position to speak to your stupid king!

“You guys really piss me off,” He complained with a growl. “Just get out of my face.”

“Please! Talk to our king! We don’t want this conflict to escalate!”

They were high in the air. The soldiers down below looked tiny. In a sense, this was a secure place. He pointed upwards.

“Just you and me, let’s have some talk. Go higher.”

Instructing the two behind her to stay down, she flew upwards and Kamil followed. Once they were at a point that the soldiers looked like literal dots, Kamil stopped her.

“I am sure you know who I am, but who are you?” he demanded.

“Kerekes Izabella, the leader of mage corps div two.”

Mage corps? Estana employs mages as well then.

Which wasn’t too surprising given the fact that they were waiting for Kamil and intercepted him in the air.

“Alright, Lady Izabella, what is going on with your country? Are they itching for war?”

“I should say the same to you, Lord Fenchel. It’s your country that looks like it’s itching for more conflicts.”

“Lady, I asked you a question. Please don’t answer it with another question. Are you not a noble?”

He wasn’t wrong, and she cleared her throat.

“M, my apologies. It’s been quite chaotic for a while now…”

She explained that, when their king found out about the airship, he went ballistic, and that was an understatement. He ordered his scholars to produce something similar, but his scholars claimed that, while they were able to decipher most of its mechanisms, they just couldn’t figure out how it was floating in the air which was the core part. With them unable to figure out the most important aspect of the airship, they couldn’t copy one. Once the king found out that it was Kamil Fenchel who invented the airship and that his land was really close to the border, he decided to bring him over to his own kingdom.

“Of course, we did inform the king that what he was trying to do was ridiculous,” She claimed. “No self-respecting noble would switch sides like that.”

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

“You’d be correct,” He replied. “I have no interest in switching sides. I literally have no reason to.”

“Well, most of us are aware. It’s just our king who is really pushing for this.”

She sagged her shoulders visibly as if she was tired of the whole affair.

“Just so you are aware, I AM more than willing to sell the schematics. You just need to go through the official channel. Send a diplomat to Keviel, and we can start from there.”

“We’ve already tried. Your king refused any form of communication.”

Karsten, you fool!

He heaved a long sigh and shook his head. In a nutshell, both kings contributed to this outcome. He could no longer just watch the whole affair unravel like this anymore. At this point, both nations were going into an all-out war. If they had a good reason, he might have accepted, like the Siwen war where they had more than valid justifications. This conflict, however, had no justification.

I get a feeling that Karsten just wanted wars.

“Very well, Lady Izabella. Then I will sell the schematic to you directly.”

Her eyes lit up as if she finally saw the light at the end of a dark tunnel.

“Are you speaking true?”

Do you really think I’d be pulling tricks at this point?

“Tomorrow, at noon, this location. Just you and me. I will give you the schematic. Four gold pieces.”

“Money is not an issue.”

He figured as much. Money was probably the last thing in their mind. Regardless, he needed money; Laufeld needed money. With the potential deal in place, he returned to Laufeld. Of course, he did take a close and careful look at the Estana army that were camping near the border. Their number looked to be about five thousand and well drilled. There was clearly order within the camp. If both sides clashed, there would be heavy casualties. They were nothing like the Siwen. If the conflict escalated further, he wasn’t sure what would happen.

“Are you sure about this?” Cezary was against the idea when he expressed his desire to make the sale after he returned. “If the king refused communication, that means he is against the sale.”

“Is there a reason why we should refuse selling the schematic?”

“If I am being truly honest, there are aplenty.”

“Oh? What would those reasons be?”

“First of all, airships could easily become a weapon in which case a nation knowing how to build these could hold an upper hand.” Having said so, he shrugged with a crooked smile. “However, I can see the schematic leaking out at one point. In that sense, I agree with the sale. We should make money while we still can. But ultimately you are going against the nation’s stance.”

“Even if it could stop the conflict?”

Cezary retorted, “What makes you think that they want to stop the conflict? The mere fact that the king is mobilizing the entire nation over some petty provocation tells me that he was waiting for any chance.”

After a moment of silence between them, he brought up an interesting fact.

“Milord, the winner of war gets the spoils. If the king wants to fix his economic issues, this is perhaps a chance for him.”

Karsten was good at wars but was inapt at everything else. It would make sense that he’d try to do what he was good at. The issue was that the kingdom was no longer just a small backwater country like before. A conflict no longer had just one front anymore. At the moment, there were three fronts with potential for two more fronts in the North from the Siwen and Atra. No matter how good he may be, there was no way that he could take on all those fronts with just a single army.

“I am going to make the sale tomorrow,” He declared, affirming his decision.

“I won’t stop you. But let us be discreet. No one has to find out. Please let them know as well. Whether they will withdraw their troops, we won’t know. Either side has to take a risk and withdraw for this conflict to end, which won’t be easy.”

Backing down at the moment could be seen as a sign of weakness which would be something no king would ever want to display. And, as for determining who was at fault, it wasn’t so clear cut, either. Ultimately, objectively speaking, the root of this conflict began with Estana wanting the schematic of the airship. If they did contact the kingdom via the legal route like Kerekes claimed and was refused, they should have backed down but they did not. Instead, they began probing Kamil after finding out that it was him who invented it. Perhaps, in a broad sense, Estana couldn’t be blamed for trying underhand tactics. Quite frankly, no kingdom would just back down if they wanted something even after they were refused flatly. Would this conflict be worth it was another line of question historians would probably love to argue at one point in future.

The next day, he flew to the same location as promised, and Kerekes Izabella was there but she wasn’t alone.

“The hell?”

Kamil was pretty amused. There was a small square carriage that was just big enough for a person to sit inside, and it was being afloat by four wind mages who were supporting it with their shoulders via a pair of long bars. In a sense, the whole scene looked hilarious.

“Lady Izabella, what is the meaning of this?” He demanded an explanation; He had every right to do so. He asked her to come alone.

“Please, hear me out. It’s … the king inside.” Then she made a weird request. “Lord Fenchel, his full name is Szalai Rajmund. And I would like you to say a line of greetings in our language to him.”

“Before that, here is the schema -”

She interjected while handing over a small coin purse. “Please, hand the schematic to the king and say a line of greetings in our language. I added an extra gold coin for this strange request.”

These people are weird.

It was perhaps the cultural differences between the two kingdoms. Regardless, being paid a single gold coin piece for saying a line of greetings was … a profitable business in his mind.

“Fine, what do you want me to say?”

“Please repeat after me.” Then she went on to say a sentence he couldn’t quite grasp the first time. Their language sounded like a literal tongue twister. In fact, it took him about ten minutes just to be able to repeat after her.

“Ok, that sounds just good enough to pass,” she acknowledged.

“What did I say anyway?”

“It basically means: Greetings, my name is Kamil Fenchel, your holy highness.”

It would appear that those from Estana had far greater respect for their liege than they did in Egra because the only king who bore the title of “holy” was only one: The holy queen Maco. No other king in the history of his kingdom had “holy” in their titles.

Alright, let’s get this over with.

He and Kerekes approached the carriage slowly. She stopped him once close enough and approached the front of the carriage where it looked like there was a door. She knocked it and exchanged a few words before finally sliding it open, revealing Szalai Rajmund inside. He looked to be in 50s or 60s. He had full white hair along with a long mustache and beard. There was a golden brown on his head, and he was wearing a silver robe with golden linings. He did look the part as a king, and he had a gentle appearance. Since Kamil didn’t know their etiquette, he simply followed his own custom. He bowed in the air with a palm on his chest while speaking the line of greetings which he practiced a moment ago. And then he pulled out the schematic and carefully extended it forward toward the king. Meanwhile, Szalai studied Kamil up and down and piercing eyes. He spoke some words he couldn’t understand. Eventually, he signaled Kerekes to take the schematic which she did promptly.

“Will you withdraw?” He asked which she translated on the fly. The king made a reply which she, again, translated for him.

“Not entirely in my hands,” she said. He expected such a reply. Then he spoke some more words which she translated.

“He wants you to learn our language. It will come handy, he says.”

There was a merit in his suggestion. Although he hadn’t thought about it until recently, Laufeld was a border town. This was especially true after the relocation which placed them closer to the border than before.

“I shall consider it.” He gave a non-committal answer. He flew backwards and showed his respect for the final time before glancing at Kerekes.

“I think we are done here,” He told her to which she nodded back. Turning around, he swiftly flew away from them. It was a strange meeting with the king of Estana in the most unlikely place. Either way, he had done what he could do to de-escalate the whole situation. After arriving back in Laufeld, he inquired Cezary for any updates.

“It’s been a quiet staring contest,” He replied with sarcasm. “No actual clash yet.”

“Do we have any idea where the royal army is?”

“Yes, actually. I’ve sent the airship out to scout around. His army was located near Rokk.”

Without the airship, it would have been virtually impossible to locate the army. After all, running around in the wilderness was asking for trouble.

“Near Rokk? Is he after Konika?”

Konika was another well-known city for spices. It sat right on the border of the Estana desert. He honestly didn’t know whether the city had any strategic value. In his mind, the city had no value.

“We don’t know, sir. We will have to wait and see.”

“I’ve done all I can do to defuse the situation. Wait and see indeed.”

For the time being, they indeed had to wait and see.

Meanwhile, perhaps it was inevitable because Edmund’s army was staying by Laufeld. Since there was no fortress around, and the enemy army was close enough, they chose to stay in the town. Therefore, perhaps it was inevitable that he would spot Esther, the daughter he abandoned, at the central market. He looked dumbfounded while looking at her from a distance. She was tending her market stall which was selling numerous goods from simple bread to tools. To his further amusement, he also spotted an Estana spice vendor who didn’t seem to care at all about the current situation and was merrily selling his spices which had been steadily rising in popularity among the locals. Flora had been taking notes from Gojar on how to use spices properly and published a very thin book based on what she had learned. The cooking book was just 20 pages and had been copied by using Kamil’s “copy” crystal. The library had ten of those cooking books. The literacy rate had been steadily rising thanks to Marat, and the cooking books had constantly been rented out. Essentially, Marat’s library had been seeing some traffic which made her extremely happy. Either way, Edmund visited Kamil and brought up Esther.

“I saw her at the market, tending a stall,” he said. “Didn’t you say you let her go?”

“I have. She somehow ended up with a merchant named Julian who recently became the designated merchant for Laufeld.”

“Fate works in mysterious ways…,” he mumbled.

Should I drop the bomb?

“I have to agree because she is about to become Daniel Flissing’s mistress.”

His eyes went wide slowly but surely. “How did that happen?”

Kamil gave him a short version of what went down. “You don’t have a problem with this, do you?”

Taking a deep breath, he replied, “I have no right to meddle in her life, for I’ve let her go.”

“Do you approve of the arrangement though? You’d have some opinions on it, no?”

“I don’t,” He replied curtly. “My opinion does not matter.”

“Do you at least wish to talk to her?”

“I do not.”

While he understood Edmund’s firm decision to stay out of her life, the hard truth was that he was her father. The biological connection was not something neither he nor she could discard.

“Sir, at least talk to her before she is married.”

It took a short moment for Edmund to answer. “What am I supposed to say to her? Congratulate her? For what?” He raised his voice a bit.

Kamil recalled his past life which was now nothing more than fragmented and hazed memories. But, if there was one thing he still remembered vividly, that was his regret of not having spent more time with his former family. Yes, as the sole provider, he had to work to bring food to the table. However, if he truly meant it, he would have been able to make time to spend with his family.

“With all due respect, nothing is going to alter the very fact that you two are related. Whether you abandoned her or not, you are still her father and she is your daughter. For the love of God, I demand you to talk to her at least before she becomes someone else’s.”

Edmund grimaced and was clearly hesitant. For nobles, once they abandoned their children, that was it. They’d never talk to each other unless circumstances forced it. Eventually, however, Kamil forced him to comply because, in a corner of Edmund’s mind, he did want to talk to her.

“How much for this bread?” A miner inquired to which Esther replied.

“Two quarter iron pieces, sir.”

An iron coin could be divided into four pieces. This feature existed only for iron coins.

“And this strip of jerky?”

“The same, two quarter pieces, sir.”

“Alright then. I will take these two. An iron coin, yeah?”

“Yes.”

Esther’s market stall had the prime spot in the central market, and it sold a wide range of goods. She wasn’t the only one working at the stall, but she was the boss when Julian wasn’t around. Even when he was around, he generally did not interfere with whatever she was doing. The market stall had the best prices in the town, therefore, miners almost always went to the stall for bread and jerky. As a service, they provided free mugs of water as well as long as they returned the mugs. A lot of miners would eat right on the spot. Thus, there were some small tables in front of the stall. There was a long line of miners waiting to purchase bread and jerky. Edmund stood in the line with Kamil observing him from afar.

“We are low on bread,” She told one of the workers behind her who dragged a woven basket to her location. Opening it revealed more bread. They were fresh bread, baked early in the morning. Most of the miners were from Gonne who rarely had a chance to consume bread. In fact, bread in Gonne was more of a luxury food. Being able to purchase them at will and cheaply was like a dream come true for a lot of them.

“A loaf of bread please.”

“Here you go.”

“I want two strips of the jerky.”

“There you go.”

Coins and goods exchanged hands swiftly. She was simply too busy to have seen Edmund coming closer in the line. When it was Edmund's turn, she initially didn’t realize it was him because she was looking down to keep the stock checked. When he was silent because he wasn’t sure what to do and say, the man wasn’t hungry after all, it was only then she looked up.

“Sir, what do you wan-”

She froze at once, realizing it was her father in front of him. They’d stare into each other’s eyes for a moment before an impatient miner behind him complained.

“Come on. I am starving here. Buy something and step aside.”

“I, I will take this bread and this strip of jerky here,” Stammering briefly, Edmund pointed at a loaf of bread and a strip of jerky which Esther quickly grabbed and handed them over.

“An iron coin please,” She said while handing them over. Edmund didn't carry iron coins, and she probably knew that. She waved him away without accepting any payments. Looking dumbfounded, he walked away with bread in his one hand and a strip of jerky in his other hand. Walking toward an empty table, he reluctantly took a bite at the jerky.

“... Not bad,” he remarked quietly. Meanwhile, Esther entrusted the task of looking after the stall to a worker and approached her father carefully.

“Ehm…” Unsure of what to say, she simply stood by the table. She did bring a mug of water with her which she placed on the table.

“You… need water to eat bread,” She said weakly.

“... True,” he replied equally weakly. Then there was a long period of silence between them which was eventually broken by Edmund.

“I’ve heard that you are getting married.”

With eyes downcast, she said weakly, “It’s not final but … Julian said I wouldn’t get a better deal.”

A mistress being allowed to run her own business? Such an amount of freedom was unprecedented, not to mention the financial support as well as having the Flissing on her back.

“Do you trust him?” Edmund didn’t know Julian, thus perhaps he developed an urge to ask.

“I would be dead if it wasn’t for him. I trust him,” she replied, her eyes still downcast. He pulled a piece of bread and consumed it. It smelled and tasted good as expected from a fresh loaf of bread.

“These commoners are having good food. Color me surprised,” he remarked.

“They are literally shaping this town,” she explained. “Everyday they see the fruits of their labor with their own eyes. They are motivated.”

Nodding along, he looked around to see miners casually eating their food at their leisure. None of them were complaining. Equally, no one was frowning, either.

“Fate works in mysterious ways, doesn’t it? I will be honest. I never expected to see you here.”

“I … learned a lot,” she said timidly. Then she slowly looked up to face Edmund. “I now know why you let me go and why Kamil also let me go.”

A spoiled brat was what she used to be. She was unable to stand on her own foot. Those who couldn’t pull their own weight were abandoned. She learned it the hard way. He beamed a satisfied grin at her.

“Attagirl,” he said curtly. She didn’t know why, but tears welled up in her eyes. It was the first ever compliment she had ever received in her life. Parental affection she yearned but never received. The harsh truth was that, if Edmund cared more about her back then, she would have met a similar fate as Ichilia. Because she was illegitimate, she was abandoned instead of being outright removed by other means. He, too, changed over the years as well especially since he finally got the son he wanted. Since the whole ordeal was over for him finally, he was able to look back on what he had done to his children. Even so, he had no regrets on what he had done to Ichilia. He firmly believed that she had to be removed. Meanwhile, Esther couldn’t stop sobbing, and he began to pat her head gently. She was still short, and he was well over a head taller than her.

Kamil, from a distance, was observing them. He never really understood the concept of illegitimate children. He was aware of why such a system existed; it existed to control and get rid of unwanted children. He knew that by head. In his heart, though, it told a different story. At one point, Cezary approached him swiftly.

“Milord,” He whispered from behind.

“What is it?”

“Atra and the Siwen are on the move.”

Perhaps he didn’t need to ask but did anyway.

“Together as allies?”

“Most likely.”

Kamil heaved a long sigh. “Is there a possibility that they are in the league with Estana?”

“Unlikely but possible.”

If they were to be ganged up by three nations, it would turn ugly indeed.

“Seize operations for the two airships we have for Gonne. I want them to be repurposed as scout ships.”

Cezary nodded. “Understood.”

“And inform Nestor to clear out the refugees ASAP. We are abandoning old Laufeld.”

There were still several hundreds of refugees in old Laufeld. He no longer wanted to divert resources for them any more.

“We could offer them to employ them as soldiers,” Cezary suggested. “I am sure some of them will be willing.” Originally, he was against the idea of employing foreigners as soldiers due to the question of where their loyalty was at. But desperate time called for desperate measures. Laufeld required an army now rather than later.

“Do it.”

Nodding at once, Cezary turned around and left. Kamil, taking a long breath, began walking slowly toward Edmund and Esther to inform them of the new development.