Caesar sat in complete silence as he patiently waited for the sun to go down, although he gave precise instructions, he still wanted to personally oversee the tasks at hand. He didn"t want there to be any possibilities for his plans to derail.Soon, the sunlight that seeped into the room became less apparent, until finally, it was replaced by the vibrant moonlight… seeing this, Caesar"s lips curled as he stood up from his chair. He wore a black trench coat, a white dress shirt, a black tie and a pair of black gloves and shoes. He purposefully wore all black as to be more obscure within the night.
He walked out of the room and headed for a relatively concealed window inside the halls, he jumped out of the window and made his way to the top of mansion. He peered down on the entire stronghold as the midnight breeze fluttered his snow-white hair, creating an almost ethereal picture.
He scanned near the outside walls and focused on the three points he had ordered Falthor, Faust, and Soka to a.s.semble their soldiers… if everything went according to plan, they should be ready in a few minutes or so.
Caesar waited for a few minutes and as expected, three groups of soldiers stealthily moving through the dead of night soon appeared in his line of sight… they adorned dark garbs, perfect for obscurity whilst carrying less apparent weapons such as daggers, sabers, and small axes.
They were being led by three figures of varying size, presumably, Falthor, Faust, and Soka, each with a vastly different physique and weapon choice. With Falthor sporting two small axes, Faust carrying a scimitar and Soka wielding two daggers.
After meeting up, the three groups split into different directions, with Faust going north, Soka heading west, and Falthor heading south. Each heading to a different region in which the furbolg, ghoul, and gnome clans respectively resided.
"If my memory serves me correctly, Faust"s group should be heading north, where the furbolg clan lives…" thinking to here, Caesar squinted his eyes and hopped off the roof, once he landed on the ground, he quickly ran after the group that headed north.
Although he didn"t fully trust Soka, he didn"t believe that Soka had the capabilities of being the main spy within the fox-kin stronghold, while he somewhat trusts Faust, there were many things that pointed Faust to being the mole. Alas, after getting to know him, he felt as though they were attempting to frame the man.
Caesar shook his head and discarded his unnecessary thoughts, he traveled atop the trees and concealed his mana as best he could whilst following the group… they traveled in an organized and efficient manner. The group of soldiers had no breaks while moving and soon arrived in front of a very tall and thick tree to which they halted their movement.
They cautiously approached the tree which was abnormally large compared to the surroundings, it"s branches extended out a few dozen meters and its bark was a dark brown, a few shades different from the other trees.
Suddenly, from a relatively large opening in the base of the tree, a half bear, half man, looking creature walked out, it was coated in a thick brown fur and walked on its hind legs. It held a robust staff in its right claw and many different emotions flashed through its eyes as it gazed at Faust and his soldiers.
Faust took a step forward and half bowed respectfully, common courtesy for a guest, "it"s a pleasure to meet you of the furbolg race, we are not here to fight nor pillage any of your belongings, please do not be alarmed" he spoke with his hands in the air, signifying his stance.
Caesar, who could barely hear their conversation, moved a bit closer and listened in…
"You say you come in peace, however, why is it that you"ve brought so many soldiers carrying weapons of war, is this not insinuating that you"re expecting battle?" The furbolgs deep and heavy voice was carried by the wind and entered into everyone"s ears.
Faust"s brows furrowed, he took his saber out of his belt and threw it on the ground, to further prove his harmless motive. "Please do not misunderstand, we were just afraid that the trolls would attack us in the midst of travel" he replied with an apologetic tone.
Soon, the rest of the soldiers following behind Faust set down their weapons and put their hands in the air, albeit, the weapons were still close to them, if the need arose, they could reequip themselves in a matter of seconds.
The large furbolg which practically dwarfed Faust swept his gaze amongst the crowd and nodded his head appreciatively, "very well, you have shown me your sincerity, however, what is the reason you have come here if not for battle?" he asked curiously.
Faust breathed a deep sigh and raised his eyes with resolve reflected inside of them, "as you may know, the trolls are getting more and more arrogant, directly pillaging, ma.s.sacring, and even robbing the smaller clans in the broad of daylight… even us, the fox-kin tribe, which was once the strongest clan in this area faces destruction from their might. Because of this, we have set aside our pride and have decided to ask of you, and many other smaller clans to band with us and defeat this enemy together" Faust spoke with a loud and confident tone, further proving his honesty.
The furbolg scratched his chin with it"s left claw, "although we may look like unintelligent beasts, that couldn"t be further from the truth. I am very aware of the threat the trolls provide, while also their capabilities. Just a few years ago, your clan was stronger than the trolls… so I ask of you, how have you devolved into such a pitiful position, as to be begging other clans for help?" the furbolg asked, although the contents of his words could be considered rude, no one present was offended.
Faust gripped his hands tightly at the furbolgs words, "we were far too conceited, battles amongst ourselves and clan heads who wanted to lead the clan started infighting… during this time, we were infiltrated by spies and soon, we weren"t even capable of hunting without being ambushed" Faust replied honestly.
The furbolg nodded his head and sighed, "such is the fate of the upper echelons, with powers comes great responsibility, alas, you never monitored the other clans nor garnered their support. At the very least, your clan didn"t become a local tyrant such as the trolls currently are" The furbolg said with a strange look on his face and looked toward the starry sky.
As Faust was about to respond, the furbolg continued his words, "our clan contains many women and children. If we were to join you, we put all of our clansmen at risk, such is the risk of war… what merits do we gain for joining you besides the trifling emotion of doing the right thing" The furbolg spoke bluntly, it was clear that his intelligence was not to be scoffed at.
Hearing the furbolgs blunt words, Faust closed his eyes and thought about what that man would say, what Caesar would say… after a few moments of thought, he abruptly opened his eyes and patted his chest, "for the hope of a better future, for a place where your women and children can live without worry, although it is indeed a risk, sometimes, a risk is worth taking" he said.
"Hahaha"
The furbolg burst out in deafening laughter, "you"re right, once the trolls destroy your clan, all of us are next… any possible threats without foundation will be eliminated by them" suddenly his words stopped and his smiling expression was replaced by one with graveness.
"Say we join you, and many other clans join you as well, what"s your next plan? Surely this isn"t the just of your strategy… to simply acquire more troops" he said while studying Faust.
Faust"s face became troubled as he scratched the back of his head, "I actually don"t know the next plan… our strategist didn"t brief us on the future, he just merely a.s.signed me to this role" he spoke truthfully with a wry smile playing on his lips.
The furbolg nodded in understanding, "ah, so it wasn"t that the fox-kin clan put aside their pride, but more so, you"ve gained a competent leader… very well, I want to personally meet this man and I"ll decide whether or not it is truly worth it of us to join your coalition" he replied after some thought.
A few seconds after his words ended, a nearby bush shuck and a tall man exited, his most striking features being his snow-white hair and piercing red eyes… "I believe that could be arranged," Caesar said slyly to which the furbolg"s lips curled.