Making a name for the organization is the key feature for a better future. The man before Sarey and Allan was the prime suspect of talking better than he should, but he was honest about it.
Perhaps he could maintain the thrust of customers in long term with such talk and exaggerated manner of speech.
“Alright. I don't question your Guild, sir.” Allan said, taking his previous words back. “Other questions then. What is the position of the Timeless kingdom in a scheme of war? Are they occupying more lands than the Tricloud region? What kind of armies they had and what amount of them is available for this invasion?” Allan asked a series of quick and steady questions.
“Scheme? You mean... like the purpose or the reason for waging war against the Tricloud region?”
“More or less.”
“That's... We don't know the right reason, since I doubt there is even one. There are some hints here and there about some inside information about their royalty, but they are prohibited to share at the moment. Not until we solve our lack of trust in these hints and doubts. Further research is necessary to believe in any claims and for now, it's the case of simple war for resources or something else. Royalty doesn't need many reasons for waging a war, you know?” The man explained.
“What is the hint then? Is there a reason for not telling us since you don't believe it for certain?”
“We as a Guild of Questions have our standards. Just to say it for the sake of telling isn't good enough of a reason. For the most part, it involves the royal family of Timeless. At least it seems that way and that's about it.”
Allan silently grunted. “Of course...Who else would decide to stage a war against other nations.”
Sarey listened to Allan's clever questions, yet still thinking of her own questions. Maybe she should have asked him beforehand since it seemed he know what to ask for. Unlike her.
“So how about their powerful war structure? I heard they are powerful, but I am rather curious about it.” Allan once again asked, following the man's previous questions that talked about only one thing.
“Oh, I suppose you did ask more before. I got focused on your first question. As for this one, you are the first one to ask about the actual military operations of other nations...” The man said. “It's rather a sensitive topic but a topic nonetheless. I will still answer it because it doesn't matter. Timeless Kingdom has a large amount of military power and their power is more or less known by many. However, to get the full picture of such a hegemon, can you imagine the troubles of reaching such information.”
“Of course, I will be very grateful for the excellent services of the Guild of Questions and their outstanding work.” Allan sweetly said, hitting a weak spot in this man for sure. This was a talking technique Allan knew very well. Talking well to others is one step to solving any disputes, or even getting more out of it. The following conversation could be more proactive, they could listen or talk back in a more approachable way.
“Good. Good. I have no problems with talking about it at all. After all, it involves the military departments which I found fascinating as well. I used to work in war management in different kingdoms before sacrificing myself to the cause of Guild of Questions.” The man continued, but this time, with a melancholic tone. “General way to see any kind of war conflict is two regions made into many smaller ones. This way, they could become manageable chessboard pieces for the hegemons, and military strategists. On the opposite spectrum, is the true tip of the war, which is about politics. The timeless kingdom has more experience in this than any nation I know.”
“Back to those smaller pieces, I mentioned. They are usually made from the districts or regions, making a much clearer picture for the management and most of all, strategists of the rulers of their respective nations. Think of it as a game of catching others off-guard. It is a very deep process where any mistake could lead to thousands of death, and not just on a map on a table. It's a deadly game of war, dramas, and power.”
Allan fell stunned, silently hearing the talk of a man who knew what he was talking about. The way he told it was clear that things were much more complicated than he made them out to be.
“As for the structural way of their armies you mentioned, It all forms around the district I talked about before. They are decided by strategists with a captain, squads, and overseeing general being the prime leader of defenses. Of course, there is countless lower kind of positions in the military. From footsoldiers, cavalry, spearman, and so on. Tricloud sections are in charge of Colonels, with further squads of soldiers, ranging from 5 to 50-man units. They fight over the small pieces of land which were decided by the strategist upon the start of the invasion.”
“That is at least the current way the Tricloud Alliance is solving the military conflicts. Since it's still rather early from the start of the invasion, we can't be sure how the fight will proceed in the long term. Fighting over the borders is quite hectic since it is all close to the lands between each of us. Everything could happen to us, and the further this will go, the tenser it will get. Both for them and us, but if I speak for myself, the Timeless Kingdom has more aces up their sleeves.” The man paused, seeing the bewildered expression of both youngsters. “ Well, It is a fear of invasion which makes such decisive changes. Their piercing attacks on our lands could lead to management issues and possible ambushes. Are you still following? I know I talk quite enthusiastically over just this simple question, but...”
“It is good, sir. Please continue.” Allan jumped between his sentence listening with great interest and vigor.
Seeing his smile, and tense body, the man scratched his head, feeling helpless, but excited to talk about this. “The position Timeless kingdom is currently doing is a play of mouse and cat. Our shock from the sudden invasion will lead to troubles for us, making possible victory for the Timeless side in quick momentum. It is also fair to say that the whole martial power of the kingdom of theirs is rather unknown, apart from general military operations and human resources.”
“I heard that. Can you tell me something about their powerful army?” Allan asked.
“Hmmm. Something that is known regardless of anything? Alright, I think I know a few things that shouldn't be that hard to guess. Altghjoiuygh I am not sure if they are as truthful to the past. Something could have changed in the last decades of peace.”
“That is fine and normal. Any past could still be present, or the future.”
“Well said, boy.” The man nodded. “Talking about military prowess is always a topic about numbers and powers. That's what an army is. Not including the ploys of direct royalty powers which are usually stationed in their respective capitals, there are military divisions. From infantry, cavalry of all kinds, heavy soldiers, joggers, heavy machinery, and so on. As for the source of the power of the Timeless Kingdom, they had absolute savage cavalry divisions which forms their most powerful divisions. They take more numbers than even infantry which is rather strange by military standards. Feeding mounts, as well as soldiers, could be a recipe for quick disaster, but that is a problem of the management. Timeless Kingdom appears to be quite familiar with all things regarding their potential problems. It makes them a hard and powerful enemy.”
“What kind of cavalry?” Sarey suddenly asked after a long time immersed in his way of speaking.
“Oh, nothing fancy. From Red Bulls, Widegators, Rhinhorns, Devil horses, Rose Tigers, and some wolf species that are rare in the rural and harsh parts of our continent.”
Unfortunately, both listeners had no clue about the majority of these species. Only Widegator was something Sarey know about because they ate part of it a while ago. Widegators were about 3 to 5 meters long lizard-looking beasts with thick hide and scales around most of its body. It had a wide and flat-looking posture with thick and strong 4 limbs. It made a perfect beast for mounting a rider on its back. It could be tamed with the forceful strength of others, and enough training could make a fierce mount. It had a big and wide maw with sharp teeth which could munch a regular man in half, or straight up swallow their halves. Unlike their posture and wideness, they travel fast like a horse, with a powerful scaly tail and legs, providing enough balance.
“You seem like you don't know what I am talking about. Do you want me to make a small introduction to a couple of their species? I saw them a lot in the past.” the man asked, seeing their unchanging faces.
“No. no. It is already quite a lot of information you are telling us. You are quite a good teller, sir.” Allan answered.
“Alright. If you say so. With these beasts, all you need to know is that the strength of their cavalry is the deadliest when least expected. I heard many times how they decimated entire armies with their single cavalry push. Still, even when expected, their charge could cause the deaths of many formations in a single push. I heard about it from the past directly from a few survivors of such charges. They were left in a state of mental breakdowns and never stepped their feet in any wars afterward.” The man kept talking as if he was questioning himself, losing any regard for questions, since he was very interested in this himself. It was a long time since he even met someone who he could share some interest with.
It took him a long time before his talking speed and things he could tell declined, and his words decreased. He stopped by some questions from Sarey who had finally managed to remember some questions but they led to his long stretch of talks once again.
He answered everything with the same sense of interest and left the pair before him with a headache from his talk and the amount of information.
With great regret but no hesitation, Sarey was the one to break the ice, letting the man know it was over. As they wanted to escape from him, the man who still haven't introduced himself, stopped Allan.
“You were quite a nice customer, boy. May I introduce myself to both of you?” The man asked and pulled his hand towards a handshake with Allan.
“Oh, where is my manner, you are blind, are you not?” The man recognized the issue and asked for forgiveness.
“This isn't a big deal, sir. My name is Allan.” Allan found his arm and shook his hand vigorously.
“What a grip! My name is Ronauld Po. It is very nice to meet you two. If you have anything else in the future, you can always ask for me in the lounge.”
“My name is Sarey, nice to meet you too, mister Po.” She shook his hand with some force as well, not wanting to lose out against Allan.
“Nice grip as well. It is good to be young! Hahaha.” Ronauld laughed in a good mood.
“It was very informative.” She said, clearly aware she lost out.
“Do you think Tricloud has any chances of winning this war?” Allan asked a grim-sounding question, stopping Ronauld's laugh. Allan already learned a thing or two and was aware that the Timeless kingdom was much stronger.
Sighting, and stopping within his words, Ronaulds turned serious. “If the previous instance of the Alliance formed from the surrounding nations is still reforged, perhaps. Right now, it is grim-looking as you assumed from my words, or maybe you knew about it long before coming here.” Ronauld said with understanding.
All three of them paused from the ending which sounded not that great. Facing the reality of what was around them in their own ways, Allan and Sarey gave him their thanks before walking out of the building.
This was a big harvest of information, and Sarey didn't expect it to be like this. The way Ronauld acted, there was still a place to be suspicious, but overall, her fearful thoughts ended up being correct. Timeless Kingdom had the upper hand, and there wasn't much that can be done about it.
Though, she wasn't able to force Ronauld to answer the current military records, hoping to get some valuable information about them. He didn't tell much, but the handful of unnecessary things ended up nice, but they weren't what Sarey hoped for.
She knew that Tricloud Alliance went through a lot of changes from the time it was formed, all the way to the time of the peace treaty with the Timeless Kingdom. Now wasn't a good time to run to the past and bark around with some promises, since they made little sense in the grand scheme of the war. Many people were already dying and war-shrouded borders led to alarming messages to inland locations. Even the headquarters of the Tricloud Alliance was under tremendous pressure, but that wasn't something that the Guild of Questions was aware of.
Talk about the losses was more than apparent, and it caught the eyes of not only the Guild of Questioning but many others. That included even the surrounding nations and kingdoms, but those were observing the situation. It was a smart thing to do after all, and finding out the power of the current Timeless Kingdom was important. Most of them weren't keen on figuring out Tricloud Region's forces, or what Three ancient schools do. For now, the brunt of the invasion was upon the Tricloud Alliance and only time will tell their power.
Who knew why, at the moment, a group from Tricloud Alliance was far from such war? The group of them was right at this moment, walking around Griontesse city in a leisure manner as storming the borders.
It could only be understood by their mission, which will be something they will do right at this moment. Apart from Reez Dias who got the orders from his superior, the rest were clueless about their mission, or why they were away from the war. Some would blame them for this, although there would always appear some people who would unreasonably deter and hate the governing or in this case, protectors of the people.
Such were the problems that were facing the neutral standing Tricloud Alliance, and Region as a whole. It all looked like a tasty treat to the hegemon in a shape of a Timeless kingdom, which wanted a new resource, land, or something different altogether. They viewed the treaty as a way to push against the past and undeniable disdain was the start of this invasion.
Sarey was currently walking on the road towards the receding sun which had a sliver of time left. The night was approaching, but that was no trouble for the nightlife in the city. Bustling restaurants would still have many customers from all kinds of fields who had time only at night when the sun was hidden.
Laughter and clutter of many sounds littered the paths. They made Allan, who was holding Sarey's hand still uncomfortable, but he was getting hang of this.
It was easier outside, in the space of the city, rather than in the crowded space of a tavern or Shady restaurant.