“Mistress, they’re not onto me. They have totally accepted me as one of their own!” Salicia said over Slave Communication.

It was the next day and I contacted Salicia to make sure that her infiltration went okay. I didn’t think that this Deek would hurt her. If he did so, he’d lose all credibility with the rest of the girls. It seemed like I had no reason to worry about her since he had fallen for it completely.

“Why are we out here, Master?”

I had gotten Terra and Celeste to join me early this morning. After getting Salicia’s response, I stopped focusing on her report and then turned to the girls and gestured. We were standing in the middle of a field east of Chalm and a bit south of the original Chalm.

“This will be the location of the battle.”

“Huh?”

“Deek will bring his army through here, and this is where our two armies will fight.”

“R-really? How do you know?” Celeste asked.

“Because this is where I would direct my army. Since we think alike, then I have to assume he’d make the same choices I’d make.”

“Unless… he knows you’d suspect he’d make the choices you’d make, and then changed his choice in order to catch you off guard!” Celeste declared

“Ah… but you forget, I knew he’d do that! That’s why I made the choice he’d make knowing that I knew what choice he’d make, but I’d also acknowledge!”

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“I’m so confused.” Terra shook her head.

“Unless, he knows that you knew that he knows, so he chose a choice that you wouldn’t choose! Perhaps he even trusted in Elaya’s choice!” Celeste declared

“Heh… then I’ve already won!”

“You have?” Terra looked between the pair of us.

“If Bernice is to be believed, then this Deek is a planner. He’s not willing to go outside the plan that he makes. That means I can predict what he’s going to do before he does it. As for me, I just have to change the plan once I see whatever plan he makes. In that way, I’m guaranteed victory.”

“Okay… I guess… but why are we out here?”

“Terra, I know your time is tight, but is there any chance you can get that golem printer working? I’d like you to increase our forces.”

“Even if I printed out the golems, they’d be too weak! That’s been my problem with new golems. They only look impressive, but they don’t have the strength I’ve been aiming for.” Terra sighed.

“No, I don’t want the golems to be fighters, I need them to be workers!”

“Wo-workers? All they’d be good for is digging holes and piling dirt.”

“You don’t have time to make that moat, but what about a hundred golems?”

“M-master… that’s brilliant!”

“Well, it’s not just the moat I want. I want this entire battlefield built in our favor. When Deek arrives, we’ll be ready for him!”

“And the Lord Reign too, right?”

“Ah… yeah, sure, him too.”

“Wonderful! Celeste, I’ll need your fairy dust to run the machine.”

“Y-yes Mistress!”

“Now… if I just had someone who could help control them.” Terra sighed.

“That I’m working on.” I grinned before returning to the Slave Communication. “Salicia, you still there?”

“Y-yes, Mistress?”

“Your target is Rub… ah, Garnet. You need to convert her to our side, and then send her to me. She shouldn’t be that loyal to him.”

“Yes, I will see her over by any means possible!”

“Well, it’s best if she comes willingly, but do what you need to do.”

I ended the conversation and smiled. They’d never see it coming!