My Kingdom Building Done Right!

Three days had passed since Ivan, Cain, and Travis returned to the Darkmane Tribe.

War preparations were in full swing, and the city was in a flurry of activity.

"Hey. The enemy is merely an upstart tribe. Do we really need to mobilize this many warriors?" one of the captains in the army asked.

"I thought the same thing at first, but I heard something from the cavalry division. Looks like Commander Ivan holds a grudge against the Chieftain of the Aslan Tribe," another warrior replied. "That upstart guy not only insulted our commander, but also our chieftain."

"That chieftain sure knows how to court death." Another warrior shook his head. "They say the ignorant are fearless. It must be true."

"You bastards, why are you all slacking off?!" the Vice Commander shouted. "Move those crates to the wagons or I’ll have all of you whipped!"

The gossiping soldiers immediately scrambled to follow the order, moving the crates to their respective wagons.

High above the warehouse, a squirrel observed them for a few seconds before jumping to the other roof to check what was happening over there.

Blitz made sure to remember all the important places in the city, specifically those that the warriors of the tribe frequented.

Since it was small, fast, and agile, it was able to cover a lot of ground—errr roofs easily.

’Let’s check that building on the right, Blitz,’ Hassan, who was hiding in the squirrel’s shadow, proposed. ’It looks like it’s an important building.’

*Squeak!*

Blitz did as it was told and went to check the building that Hassan had pointed out.

After crawling along its wall, Blitz realized that this structure had no windows. For this reason, it headed toward its giant doors, which were currently open right now.

The moment it entered the building, it looked around and saw several sacks. Blitz then went to one of them and poked a small hole with its claws to check what was inside.

’Grains,’ Hassan commented after seeing its content. ’This must be their provisions for the war.’

*Squeak!*

Blitz was tempted to grab a handful of it to snack on, but Hassan told it not to make the hole any wider lest the spill cause a commotion.

With a heavy heart, the flying squirrel left the warehouse and continued to check the other buildings where the warriors had gathered.

An hour later, Blitz climbed the highest structure it could find and looked at its surroundings.

It already knew where the chieftain’s residence was, as well as the shaman’s residence.

Yet, although they wanted to explore them, they didn’t dare go there.

After all, there was a high chance that Blitz might trigger some magical enchantments that would alarm the entire residence.

This was a covert operation, so they must not do anything that might delay the war from commencing.

Yes, they weren’t there to sabotage the war preparations... at least, not yet.

They had a more sinister plan in mind. One that would make Troy and his warriors tremble in anger, fear, and anxiety.

’Let’s go back to Otto and report our findings,’’ Hassan said.

*Squeak!*

And with that, Blitz temporarily left the Darkmane Tribe and regrouped with Otto, who was watching the city from afar.

They were the advance vanguard that Leone had sent on an important mission to the Darkmane Tribe.

They all took this war seriously. The purpose of their presence there was to make the Darkmane Tribe understand that even when the Aslan Tribe was far away, that didn’t mean that they were safe from their retaliation.

————

Grimjaw Mountain...

Leone had asked his vassals, as well as the high-ranking officials of all the barbarian tribes, to gather for an important meeting.

Since the White Falcon Merchant Guild was technically the powerhouse that ran the economy of the Warclaw Tribe, they were given permission to participate.

Godwin and Tianna, his daughter, stood behind Zen, the head of the merchant guild. The pair had kept their act as his subordinates.

"Thank you for coming today," Leone said calmly. "I have an important announcement to make."

Currently, everyone was gathered on the second floor, where the villas for the middle-ranked tribes were located.

Since the gathering area was spacious enough, he held the meeting there. That way, everyone could participate.

"Three to four days from now, the Darkmane Tribe’s army will march out from their city gates," Leone said. "After leaving their domain, It will probably take them seven to ten days before they arrive here at Grimjaw Mountain."

At this news, everyone’s expression turned serious.

"Is this information credible?" Hagen asked with a smile.

"Yes," Leone replied. "And this is why I have a favor to ask everyone here. Since we need to make preparations for the upcoming war, I am afraid all of you can only stay here for six more days. We don’t want to put our guests in any danger, so if you wish to watch the war, then please do so from a safe place."

"Isn’t this the safest place?" Malik asked in a teasing tone. "If possible, I’d like to stay here and watch the war as it unfolds from the perspective of the Aslan Tribe."

Hagen and Godwin gave Malik a side-long glance. They were wondering why Malik would dare to do such a thing despite being aware that his very life could be in danger.

Although the Darkmane Tribe would definitely not hurt him if they saw him, stray arrows and spells still might accidentally kill him.

If that happened, then the Darkmane Tribe couldn’t be blamed because it was an accident.

"I’ll stay here too!" Vlad declared. "I’ll stay with you, Leone!"

"Shut up, Vlad." Ragnar glared at his brother, making the latter shrink back in response. "You are coming with us, and that’s final."

Wayne also nodded in agreement because they couldn’t possibly leave their little brother behind. If their father discovered that they had allowed such a thing to happen, they would definitely be punished for being irresponsible brothers.

However, they were not aware that their father, who hid his identity, was observing his youngest son with a calm expression on his face.

"Thank you for the sentiment, Vlad, but you should listen to your brothers." Leone smiled faintly. "Although I am confident that I won’t lose, I don’t want to put you in any danger. Plus, once the war starts, I will no longer have time to take care of you. I will be busy commanding everyone."

Vlad understood that his request was selfish, so he nodded his head, agreeing to Leone’s suggestion to follow his brothers when they evacuate the mountain.

"I have a question," Hagen spoke once more. "Since you seem to know when the Darkmane Tribe will send their army out, are you also aware of their numbers?"

"Yes," Leone replied. "Around fifteen to sixteen thousand. And yes, this news is credible."

"If you don’t mind me asking, where are you getting this ’credible’ information?" Hagen arched an eyebrow.

"A little glutton told me," Leone replied with confidence before shifting his gaze towards Malik, who had asked to stay behind. "Also, as much as I want to honor your request, Malik, I can’t do that."

"Six additional wagons of Sand Steel," Malik stated.

"Alright, deal." Leone nodded. "But I won’t be responsible if you accidentally die, okay?"

"Don’t worry." Malik smirked. "Killing me won’t be enough to kill me."

At his reply, Hagen and Godwin narrowed their eyes. There was a rumor going around that Malik had a special constitution that made it hard for people to kill him.

But seeing his confidence, they were starting to think that those stories might have some truth to them.