As Aldred mined the resources of his newly-obtained city, the news of his lightning victory spread out.
"Hey, did you hear? Death Lord is helping our nation fighting against the bugbear."
"No wonder, I didn't see him with his soldiers anymore, so he went to war."
"I heard he defeated the Black Wind Division."
"Seriously?"
"And he also conquered Nakatiharna City in one day."
"How is that possible?"
"My friends said he used a golem army to attack."
"Golem army? Not an undead army?"
"No. Apparently, he's also a golem master."
"What in freaking fuck! So he's a magician, a sword master, a necromancer, and now a golem master? What can he not do?"
"Instead of thinking that, what if you think what the kings and emperor would do to him."
"No need to worry about that. He's a treasure hunter. He's protected by a curse. Anyone above Gold Rank will die if they dare to touch him."
"That's kind of unfair isn't it? After all, Death Lord is now at war with the bugbear, but they cannot kill him?"
"That's where you're mistaken. The enemy commander can send in troops below Platinum Ranks without any problem. But if they tried to kill him secretly using poison or curse, they would die instead."
"But what if a Gold Rank dark magician put a curse on him?"
"That's fine. The world sees everything, and it will judge accordingly."
"Let's hope that's the case, because it might happen to us as well."
"True."
…
Further east from Nakatiharna was a city called Folineley. Unlike Nakatiharna, the city wasn't heavily fortified, and it was much wealthier, abundance of food, people, and resources.
Within the town leader's mansion, five men sat down in the reception hall. Seated in the seat of honor was a bugbear with rough skin and hooked nose. Despite his calm upbringing, the man had a hint of tyranny.
He was Town Leader Tarrar. And he began the conversation with his four subordinates.
"Nakatiharna is captured. This marks our first loss in this war."
The four of them did not reply immediately.
They were his arms and fingers in governing this city. They were competent and rarely made mistakes, and so of course Tarrar would compensate them handsomely.
But one of the reasons they could become so competent was he let them have time to think.
Bugbear was a warring race and relied a lot on their powerful bodies. This made them a capable warrior, but unreliable thinker.
Tarrar realized that and chose the smartest bugbear to act as his closest subordinate.
His bet paid off.
"Since town leader Bogrith is killed, we know that they have no intention to back down and are confident with their ability. I say we ask for reinforcement."
Tarrar smiled. If they were ordinary bugbear, they would advise him to charge at the enemy head first and battle it out.
And if he was an ordinary leader, he would feel insulted right now. Asking for reinforcement was seen as a sign of weakness, and leaders hated it when their subordinates called for retreat or reinforcement.
Not him.
"What is the chance they come to us?" Tarrar asked.
"Very high. We are the second closest city from Nakatiharna."
His military strategist lay out a map on the table. "The winged-men called a golem master to fight us. This mean they are ready to use a lot of resources in this battle, and will capture a lot of city to make up for it."
"What do you suggest?" Tarrar asked.
"I suggest we go directly to the west, and attack a city deep in their territory. This will make them retreat from the frontline. But it would be even better if we can tell other town to attack at the same time to create confusion and chaos."
Tarrar glanced at his diplomat. "Can you get it done?"
"I can, town leader."
"What about provision of food, water, and other supplies?"
His supply master bowed. "We are ready for long and quick campaign, town leader."
"Good. And our treasury?"
"Our treasury is in a good state, town leader. Years of export made us a lot of profit. We can use this to bribe the enemies and give our allies some incentive to move."
"Perfect." Tarrar laughed. "Those winged-men wouldn't know what hit them. He grinned as his eyes glint with confidence.
Meanwhile, within the castle of Nakatiharna, Aldred and his comrades were watching Tarrar and his subordinates through Stella's mirror. They even heard all of the conversation.
"Ummm." Aldred scratched his cheek. "I kind of feel bad now. All of this careful planning, and we heard it all."
Bartrem laughed. "I feel bad as well."
Aldred glanced at Bart. "You heard it yourself. Tell the other cities to prepare for an incoming attack. I will directly go to Folineley and make their army come home running."
Bart nodded with sweat on his forehead. This group of people could never be underestimated. All of them were powerful and had unique ability very useful in war.
Just that all-seeing mirror was enough to almost win every battle.
Aldred stood up from his seat and walked to the balcony. There he saw numerous workers golems plowing the field and mining the hills and mountains.
Since he knew what the enemy was planning, he wasn't too worried. His undead army was still active. They were currently on the north part of the war, reinforcing any cities in need.
He got large incentive for that, and he didn't even need to do any work.
Zafrina hugged him from behind. "What are you thinking, Aldred?"
"Nothing. Just enjoying the view."
Suddenly, a group of female bugbear came, not with swords or spears, but trays of local foods.
They set the food and drinks on the table, then they were about to leave.
"Wait,"
The bugbear halted and trembled in fear.
"Here is some tip for you guys,"
When they turned around, they saw Aldred holding a bag of gold coins in his hand.
They looked at each other and didn't know what to do.
"Take it," Aldred offered.
"T—thank you," one of the waiter took the bag, and they quickly left.
Aldred smiled, and then he glanced at the food. "Stella, can you check if there's any poison in the food?"
