Chapter 508: War Knocks at the Tent

Luke had reached the military encampment. It had taken him three days to get there from the temple. The camp sprawled across a wide stretch of open plains near the mountains and a massive abyss. At the base of those mountains lay the stronghold where the enemy army kept most of its forces concentrated.

Getting anywhere near Cassandra’s camp hadn’t been easy. There were archer towers, constant patrols, eyes everywhere. The moment he was spotted, a squad formed up on the spot, ready to cut him down under the assumption he was one of Miles’s soldiers.

Only after explaining himself did he finally receive permission to enter.

He’d been inside a tent since early morning while several meetings took place. In the main pavilion, a mage had conjured an Anti-Sound Barrier so nothing inside could be heard from the outside. Not even Charlie’s enhanced hearing would have pierced it. But Luke… well, he had his own methods.

Using [Soul Infiltration], he sent his soul-cat leaping into one of the people inside the tent and listened through their senses. Most of the meetings so far had been about strategy, logistics, and other useless details. But the one he was listening to now was actually interesting.

Only Cassandra, Peter, and a handful of trusted soldiers were present.

“That bastard baron has control of the exit. Even if we attack with the full army, he can still escape,” someone said.

“Assuming he hasn’t already escaped. This whole thing may only have been to delay news of his betrayal. For all we know, he could already be far away.”

“He’s still here. I know he is,” Cassandra replied. “If he was willing to betray the Kingdom of Lagras, it wouldn’t be just for treasure. He wants the legacy.”

Luke didn’t care much about their faction war, but he had to admit the reasoning made sense.

Eventually, he left the tent and walked the camp. More troops were arriving to reinforce Cassandra’s side. The soldiers stationed outside, the ones protecting the city of Sirius, had already begun mobilizing, even without knowing what was happening inside the rift. If Luke hadn’t been able to use Teleportation Pentagram, then neither artifacts nor communication magic were functioning either.

When it was finally his turn for a meeting, he met with Peter.

“We meet again, mercenary,” Peter said.

“Yeah. We meet again.” Luke reached toward his storage item, and several soldiers immediately drew their swords.

“It’s fine,” Peter said calmly. “Even if he tossed a bomb like those alchemists do, I’d manage.”

Luke pulled out a box filled with more antidotes. He hadn’t sold all the ones he’d taken from the alchemists.

“I brought these for you,” he said.

“You know what’s interesting, mercenary?” Peter leaned back slightly. “You told us you were looking for the treasure. Not long after that, the fourth treasure was found.”

“You really think a newcomer like me would just happen to find something your whole army has been searching for all this time?” Luke asked.

‘Yes. Just as unlucky as you are, you’re equally lucky,’ Artemis murmured in his mind.

“I find it hard to believe anyone could be that lucky,” Peter said. “And besides, the treasure is guarded by an army of oni. You wouldn’t get anywhere near it.”

“At least now I know it wasn’t you,” Luke replied.

“Or maybe it was us, and I’m only bluffing,” Peter said.

Luke nudged the box lid open with his foot. “I’ll trade this for information.”

“We don’t need it,” Peter said. “We already have soldiers capable of handling situations like this.”

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“It’s never too much,” Luke answered. “One of these might save someone’s life.”

“If you want information, you’ll have to offer far more than that.”

“I know. That’s why what I want isn’t very valuable.”

He explained his request.

“That’s it? That’s easy to get. Any mercenary who’s lived in these lands knows that.”

“And how do I get into Arcadia? I’m not interested in getting dragged into wars, and they seem busy with their own. Maybe they’d accept another member.”

“Unlikely. They shut themselves off when all this chaos began. Although… that military acquaintance of yours managed to contact one of their leaders. If she goes with you, they might at least let you set up a tent near their territory.”

***