Chapter 68: War Preparations
The queen’s eyes narrowed slightly, processing his audacity.
"You want me to marry you?"
"If I win this war for you, how about we start with that?"
Before she could form a reply to his blatant demand, his tone shifted right back to business.
"Three simultaneous actions," he instructed.
"First, launch a highly visible military response at the eastern border. Don’t make it defensive; make it aggressive. You want Menual’s spies to report back that you took the bait. Keep them confident their little deception is working."
"Second, send a covert message to Milfheim," Kane continued.
"Not a peace treaty, just a warning. Tell them what’s marching toward their western flank, and tell them you know all about it. Don’t beg for an alliance. Offer the information freely and let them decide what to do with it. If Milfheim pivots their military west in response, Menual’s invasion window slams shut."
"Third," Kane said, leaning closer, "the tree needs to be moved."
The queen stared at him.
"Or it needs to be protected in a way that changes what taking it would mean," Kane clarified.
"I don’t know enough about what it actually is to tell you how to do that. But whatever it is, it currently sits in a fixed location that Menual has had five years to plan around. That location needs to be changed."
The queen looked down at the maps.
"You said three days before you would give your answer about accepting the residency terms," she stated.
"I accept the terms," Kane smiled.
"That’s not the answer I’m asking about," she countered.
He waited for her proposal.
"The empire desperately needs a military commander for the coming war," she offered, her green eyes locking onto his.
"Not one of my traditional generals. We need someone who isn’t already trapped inside the arrogant assumptions that got us here."
She held his gaze.
"What does the position come with?" Kane asked casually.
"Whatever you manage to negotiate," she promised.
Kane looked down at the maps.
"I’ll have a list ready in the morning," he declared.
She almost smiled.
It was the closest thing to a genuine smile he had seen from her since arriving.
*****
Morning arrived, and thirty barbarians stood assembled in disciplined formation.
Standing tall with squared shoulders, they looked like the hardened veterans they had become.
Firlia waited patiently by the fountain when Kane finally walked downstairs.
Arriving long before dawn, the noblewoman retained the nervous habit of early arrivals born from years of managing a strict registration office.
She carried three rolled parchment documents tucked safely under her arm.
Her determined expression made it clear she had decided her tactical usefulness to a rising warlord far outweighed whatever the prince thought of her shifting loyalties.
Standing right beside the bureaucrat was Lirael.
The elven warrior had come a long way from bleeding inside a rusty cage, paralysed by Sira’s arrows and dragged in a supply cart as a captive escort.
Remaining hidden somewhere inside Sylvandar since the group first arrived, she clearly refused to leave the border city.
Meeting Kane’s gaze, she wore the expression of a soldier who just made a life-altering decision she wasn’t fully prepared to explain yet.
Caelindra marched through the front gate precisely on schedule, her portfolio already flipped open.
Offering Firlia a professional nod, the secretary then shot Lirael a significantly more complicated look.
They obviously recognised each other from the labyrinth of palace administration, sharing an unspoken history that Caelindra deliberately chose to ignore for the moment.
Kane surveyed his assembled warriors, letting his dominant aura over the courtyard that had morphed into a working military headquarters.
Shifting his gaze, he studied the three elven women offering their vastly different kinds of usefulness.
’It’s time to make an army.’
[Bloodfang Marketplace]
[War Preparation Tier Unlocked]
[Current Gold Coins: 18,247]
[Tier 2 - Advanced Weaponry]
[Bloodfang Siege Crossbows x10 | 800 Gold each]
Description: Reinforced repeating crossbows with triple-bolt capacity. Designed for fortification defense and open-field suppression.
[Elven-Design Composite Bows x20 | 400 Gold each]
Description: Lighter than standard issue, higher draw weight. Accurate at 300 meters. Upgraded version of Sira’s silkwood bow.
[Iron-Alloy Tower Shields x15 | 200 Gold each]
Description: Resistant to standard magical projectiles. Paired with spear formation creates an effective anti-cavalry line.
[Tier 2 — Defensive Equipment]
[Bloodfang War Armor Sets x30 | 350 Gold each]
Description: Full-body iron-alloy plate designed for barbarian builds. Maintains mobility while providing elite-level protection.
Tier 2 — Special Items
[Warbrand Elixir x5 | 1,200 Gold each]
Description: Temporary stage enhancement. Raises an Ironborn-stage fighter to Warbrand for 6 hours. Non-stackable.
[Elven Signal Crystals x10 | 150 Gold each]
Description: Communication tools. Paired crystals transmit voice across distances up to 50 kilometers.
[Explosive Charge x20 | 300 Gold each]
Description: Compact detonation device. Effective against fortification walls and armored formations.
Kane finalized his selections quickly.
Thirty sets of armor, ten composite bows, five siege crossbows, signal crystals, and three Warbrand elixirs held securely in reserve.
[Transaction Complete: 19,450 Gold Deducted]
[Remaining Balance: 798 Gold]
A sudden flash deposited the new equipment into neat stacks across the courtyard.
Brak immediately grabbed an iron-alloy chest plate, strapping it on with a feral grin.
Turning his attention to the bureaucrat, Kane crossed his arms.
"What did you bring me, Firlia?"
She unrolled the first parchment.
"Manual troop composition assessments from the past eighteen months. I pulled these from the archive right after the banquet. Nobody suspects a secretary doing routine filing."
Unrolling the second scroll, she tapped the ink.
"Current supply route maps for the northwestern corridor toward Milfheim." A third document hit the table.
"A list of twelve Menual commanders. Three have fought the Imperial Guard before. I annotated their tactical patterns."
’She built a war dossier in a few hours,’ Kane mused, genuinely impressed.
"This took you all night."
"I didn’t sleep," Firlia answered simply.
"Bring Aldrin here," Kane ordered softly. "Whatever you two managed in secret does not need to be hidden anymore."
She nodded once, profound relief flashing in her tired eyes.
’Although if she wished, he wanted to fuck her again even harder this time.’
Shifting his gaze, Kane looked at the silver-haired sellsword.
"You stayed, Lirael."
"You never sent me away," she replied defensively.
"I’m not sending you away now," Kane promised.
"What do you know about the Knights of Elfheim?"
Lirael’s professional composure slipped.
"I trained with two of them. The divine designation changes them physically. Their reaction speed, their endurance... they operate far above the Silver Wardens. Their loyalty belongs entirely to the queen."
She paused, biting her lip.
"But one knight spoke to me after the tournament."
"Say it," Kane prompted.
"She said the queen has been waiting a long time for someone to truly understand what this empire needs," Lirael whispered.
"She hinted that if the right person asked, some of them might be available for a very different kind of assignment."
Perfect.
It’s time for a counterattack.
