My Kingdom Building Done Right!

"How many more surprises are you hiding from us, Leone?"

The young man pondered for a while before answering the question.

"Truth be told, I’m just as surprised as you are," Leone replied honestly. "Everything that recently happened was out of my control. Fortunately, all went well in the end, and I am certainly pleased about the results."

"If I were in your shoes, I’d be happy as well," Malik commented. "First, Brann. Then, your Kobold. Who’s next?"

"Perhaps that Orc Warlord?" Hagen commented. "What was his name again... ah yes, Logan."

Marcus’ and Elias’ gazes locked onto Leone after that, waiting for his answer.

Ragnar and Wayne were also doing the same.

As for Vlad, he was looking at Leone with admiration. He wasn’t the least bit interested in the schemes hidden under these seemingly harmless questions.

Leone naturally understood what they were trying to probe.

What happened to Brann and Maximus had already exceeded everyone’s expectations.

If Logan underwent a similar transformation in the future, then the balance of power in the Borderlands would tilt even further in the Aslan Tribe’s favor.

"Who knows?" Leone replied with a smile. "If it were that easy, then I’d have already transformed my entire tribe into powerhouses."

Hagen and Malik had the "I knew it" expressions on their faces after hearing that.

The Chieftain of the Grimhowl Tribe even thought that Leone had to pay or sacrifice something in exchange in order to grant these blessings to others.

Because if not, he would be able to bestow it to anyone, which would have been "unfair" in his eyes.

However, he wasn’t aware that Leone didn’t need to sacrifice nor exchange anything to make someone his vassal.

He only needed to complete missions to increase his Vassal Slots, which would allow him to add more vassals who would serve under his wing!

"How about you teach my father how to do it?" Ragnar asked calmly. "If you do, the Warclaw Tribe will become an ally of the Aslan Tribe for eternity."

Malik and Hagen gave the young man a side-long glance.

’Still green,’ Hagen thought.

’Still naive,’ Malik mused.

If Leone truly had a trick behind these boons, he would definitely not share it with anyone. Of course, Ragnar knew this as well.

If anything, he was just simply trying his luck to see if Leone would agree to his offer.

Truth be told, Hagen was very tempted to capture Leone and pry his secrets out from his lips using any method.

But as soon as this thought popped up in his mind, he was forced to toss it aside.

Doing so would anger Gundar, after all. And that was a trade-off that he didn’t dare risk.

Although the great shaman looked unassuming most of the time, he was a walking calamity when angered.

This was why even the Warclaw Tribe didn’t dare oppress the Grimhowl Tribe, despite them being regarded as the strongest tribe in the Borderlands.

"I’m sorry, but this is something that cannot be taught," Leone replied.

Ragnar didn’t appear disappointed by the answer. From the start, he wasn’t expecting anything. It was merely a probe to see how Leone would react to his proposal.

If it failed, then nothing changed.

If it succeeded, then... that would be an achievement even the two chieftains by his side would acknowledge.

"Don’t lose in the war, Leone," Hagen said. "Jafar, the shaman of the Darkmane Tribe, would love to pry your secrets from you. But, since I will give them an ultimatum, you will at least be safe from his clutches."

"I will also warn them not to lay their hands on you," Malik stated. "With two of us giving them an ultimatum, the Darkmane Tribe shall not dare to touch even a strand of your hair."

"Thank you," Leone replied. "However, we won’t be defeated by the Darkmane Tribe."

"Good. I’d hate to see someone as talented as you perish from this world." Hagen smiled faintly.

Of course, Malik, who sat beside him, knew what Hagen was thinking. There was a famous saying in the Borderlands.

"If we can’t have it, then you won’t have it as well."

This was true for any territory, property, or person. They would rather destroy it than let others get them.

They had been in the Aslan Tribe for nearly three days, and they already knew who was responsible for the miraculous events that had happened during the past few months.

Leone was the pillar of the Aslan Tribe.

If he died, then the Aslan Tribe would collapse and be absorbed by the other powers in the Borderlands.

"Since we are all gathered here, how about we also call the chieftains of the middle-ranked tribes in?" Hagen proposed. "I want to discuss how we will handle the possible monster stampede that will come soon."

At the sudden change in topic, Leone and the others became more serious.

"Kael, call them here," Leone ordered.

"Yes, Great Chieftain!" Kael bowed respectfully and headed down to the second floor to invite Duncan, Oswald, and Garen into the discussion.

Brann had already taken a few chairs and set them beside Leone.

It was very obvious that he planned to make the three chieftains sit by his Master’s side.

A few minutes later, the three chieftains of the middle-ranked tribes arrived and sat on the chairs that were prepared for them.

"Now that we’re all here, let’s discuss the contingency plans for the upcoming monster stampede." Hagen took the lead to open the discussion. "During the past couple of decades, the bulk of the monster stampede always headed north to the Kingdom of Britannia.

"However, according to the Orcs, there is a chance they will head south this time. If this is true, then we must prepare to face a calamity more dangerous than the previous monster stampedes."

Everyone nodded in agreement at his words. During the previous monster stampedes, only a fifth of the monster army would head south.

While the number of monsters that invaded the barbarian lands were less than the number of monsters headed to the Kingdom of Britannia, they still numbered in the thousands.

Whenever signs of this calamity were about to take place, the low-ranking tribes and the middle-ranking tribes would all seek shelter within Eden, a massive fortress city that could accommodate all the tribes in the Borderlands.

"Will the Sandreaver Tribe remain in their domain even during the monster stampede?" Hagen asked Malik with genuine curiosity.

"Yes," Malik replied. "I don’t know if they will head into our domain. Though, even if they did, we are confident that we will not be in any serious danger."

Leone was already made aware of some of the secrets of the Sandreaver Tribe, which made him understand why Malik sounded confident.

"I have already sent a messenger hawk back to the Grimhowl Tribe, ordering them to prepare for the monster stampede," Hagen said. "I’ve also asked them to pass the message on to the other tribes to warn them of the danger."

With Gundar aiding them, Hagen was confident that they could face the monster army even if they came knocking at their doors.

"I think the real concern right now is what route the monster stampede will take," Wayne commented from the side. "A single tribe will not be able to defend against so many monsters at once.

"Of course, this problem can be fixed if we all evacuate to Eden. However, this must be saved as a last resort."

He then shifted his attention to Leone.

"How about the Aslan Tribe?" Wayne asked. "Do you have any contingency plans for the monster stampede?"

"Of course, we do," Leone answered. "We’ll just hide inside the mountain and let the monster stampede pass by."

"Is that also the plan you have in mind when you realize that you can’t win against the Darkmane Tribe?" Ragnar asked.

"Yes," Leone replied with confidence. "The Grimjaw Mountain is a natural fortress. Not using it is a waste of natural resources."

His reply was very reasonable, so Ragnar really couldn’t say anything against it.

Little did he know that Leone and Daedalus actually found the monster stampede a blessing in disguise. A good opportunity to capture some monsters to be used for their Beast Synthesis experiments.

The Weresquirrels were Leone’s first experiment, and that had been a resounding success.

Though, the one thing they lacked were flying mounts.

The Orcs had the Dread Condors, while Leone had Arion.

That wasn’t enough. Leone wanted the Aslan Tribe to have more flying mounts to boost their combat capabilities.

Leone remained silent as the discussion continued, but his mind had already drifted toward the countless possibilities the monster stampede would bring.

To everyone else, it was a calamity that threatened the Borderlands.

But to him, it was an opportunity.

Though, while they were still discussing the monster stampede, Troy had finally arrived at the territory of the Grimhowl Tribe.

He had to personally go there to sign a magical contract, agreeing to the terms that Elder Yun had stated in exchange for turning a blind eye toward the upcoming war.

Gundar was also present since Elder Yun had pleaded for his presence during the signing ceremony.

Yet, from start to finish, the great shaman didn’t say anything and simply left after the agreement was signed.

Although Troy found this scene anticlimactic, he decided to return to his tribe as soon as possible.

Now that the Grimhowl Tribe would no longer get in their way, the war between the Aslan Tribe was already sealed in stone.

All he needed to do now was to return to his domain and tell his warriors to prepare for war.

A war that would be recorded in the history of the Borderlands as the War of the Lions.