Herald of Steel

Once alone, Alexander gestured for Camius to take a seat.

By this point, the sun had well and truly risen into the sky and Alexander feeling peckish, decided to order some breakfast and invited Camius to join, "Let's talk over breakfast. Have you eaten?"

"No, not yet. We did drink a bit to celebrate your win though. Congratulations doc." Camius revealed a huge smile.

He was still amazed by how easily he had won today.

Alexander on the other hand was thinking something quite different.

He was lampooning in his mind, 'Drinking first thing in the morning, really guys?'

In this period, where water tended to spoil easily, basically any and all time was drinking time but Alexander still found it weird.

Outwardly though he hid all this and revealed a grin and simply replied, "Thanks."

Once the meals were bought in by the guards, Alexander started wolfing it down while also addressing Camius in a hushed tone, "Your first and foremost job will be to slowly form a secret information network within the various mercenary groups. I want to know what the grassroots soldiers say and think about the whole situation."

"Well, I have already made some good contacts. But I will need some gold to grease the wheels of some," Camius reported.

"You will get it, don't worry. Also, spread some malicious rumors about me. I am too popular and that's not a good thing." Alexander instructed.

"Don't worry, who do think spread that rumor about you sleeping in because of …hehe..you know?" Camius proudly revealed with a sly smile.

"So, that was you, bastard!" Alexander joked with feigned anger.

Then, him being used to the loudmouth's antics said with an exasperated voice, "*Sigh*, just keep the maliciousness in check, okay. Don't spread stuff that's too potent."

"Rest assured, I got loads of embarrassing but harmless stories about you," Camius seemed weirdly enthusiastic about bad-mouthing his boss.

The fact that Alexander did not need to explain to Camius why he needed to do such things went on to show the intelligence of the former street hustler.

Because despite his apparent laidback attitude, Camius easily understood being too perfect was not good for any military commander as it tended to alienate the soldiers from their commander and place unrealistic expectations on him.

"You do that. Just remember nothing about malicious about Cam or Mean," Alexander gave a warning

"Oh, darn, there goes half my stories, huh," Camius let out an animated, exaggerated sigh while shaking his head in regret.

Alexander did not even pay attention to this theatric as he then again spoke up, "There is one more thing I want you to do."

He then slowly moved his mouth to near Camius's ear and in a low growl whispered, "I want you to give me an excuse to dispose of Pallidus!"

This produced wide-eyed Camius who seemed to be still digesting the command.

"*Guip*," drinking a glass of water, Camius asked, "What do you want me to do? Specifically, I mean."

Sensing Camius being a tad uncomfortable and unsure about what to do, Alexander elaborated, "You of all people should know how Pallidus has tormented me. And now that Damious and Aristotle are both dead, the craven worm thinks he can make up for everything just by sucking up to me? Huh, fat chance!"

"That ingrate will stab me in the back the first chance he gets. But I can't deal with him too openly…..."

"Because he still has the second phalanx," Camius snatched the words from Alexander's mouth.

Giving Camius an equable look, Alexander nodded after a little pause, "Yes."

"So, how do you want me to do it?" Camius asked for specifics.

"I will leave the details upto you. It can be anything like finding ropals in his room and charging him with being a spy or suspecting him of attempting a coup or branding him as a thief for stealing food from the army. Use your creativity, my man." Alexander waved his hand.

"Hmm, attempting a coup is too big an offense and might draw the attention of other mercenary groups. And stealing food would be difficult for him as access to those are limited by Theocles and Cambyses, both our people." Camius prudently analyzed.

Then he reasoned, "But the thing with ropals might be doable."

Ropals were Adhania's unique currency and Camius seemed to like that idea better than the other two.

Here Alexander added, "Remember we took a lot of roplas when we burnt down Acme, so you have to make sure he can't weasel out using that excuse."

"Forged letters maybe? Leaking military secrets to the enemy is a capital offense." Camius brainstormed.

"You decide. Remember it's your job to present me with hard 'evidence' that can get me to execute Pallidus. Think of it as me testing your skill. Pass and I will use you for lots of critical tasks in the future."

"Hmmm, by when?" Camius asked for a deadline.

"Preferably before we start the march. But at the very latest, before we escape Adhania. I don't want him breathing in Cantagena." Alexander fiercely said

"Okay," Camius did a simple nod.

As this conversation was wrapped up and the two men finally started enjoying their meal, a herald quickly appeared outside his tent and announced he had urgent news.

And when the soldier was ushered in, he informed Alexander that a messenger from Adhania had come to meet him.

The arrival of an emissary was not totally out of Alexander's expectations as he did expect Adhania to make calls for their surrender.

So, he directed, "Hmm, okay bring him in here."

He then added, "Make sure to check that he carries no weapon."

And, thus very soon a tall, tanned caucasian man was escorted into the tent, who strode in with an undisguised haughty facade on his face, as if he owned the very earth he walked on.

He gazed imperiously down at the young boy sitting on the chair and after the initial shock of seeing someone so young as the new commander, his look of disdain only increased, even giving birth to faint disgust.

The undisguised scorn in the messenger's eyes made Alexander inwardly chuckle and he greeted the man with unrestrained mockery, "Hey, buddy, be careful. Your nose is so stuck up in the air, it might soon reach the moon,"

"You..you, what did you…." The man was at first so stunned that he seemed not to know how to respond.

He had done many negotiations before and never once in his life had he been addressed so rudely.

In the past, he had been even threatened with imprisonment and death during negotiations, but he had never been so personally insulted, something the high-hanking Adhanian noble took as being thousand times worse than death.

He usually considered it beneath him to even talk to such plebs and wanted nothing more than to strangle the boy right here right now, but held off in that thought because he was here today not for himself, but under the king's orders for the good of the nation.

His professional experience also told him that it might be a ploy by the opposition to rile him up and make him slip.

So, he decided to try and do the same, "Heh, why is a brat here? Come on, this is not a place for kids. Why don't you go play somewhere else and get your mama here. I hear she's expecting me.'

But how could a sophisticated noble ever match the street smarts of someone like Alexander, who said in pretended surprise, "Ehhh? Mama? Mine?"

Then his mouth turned to a huge grin and sneered, "But why do you wanna meet my mama, when your mama calls me daddy!"

"You, you, uncouth barbarians,... you.." The messenger roared in anger, shaking his fist in fury and looking at Alexander with unmatched fury, lost for words.

But Alexander did not pay heed to this.

Instead, he laughed boisterously, "Haha, yes, yes we are barbarians, so please save your breath and don't expect us to surrender." Alexander unequivocally made his intentions known.

"Surrender? I'm not here asking for your surrender. I'm here to hire you, you fool. Or I was. Hmph, now Ramuh's wrath will destroy you!" The man was ready to storm out of the tent.

"Hire us? Why hire us? And who wants to hire us?" Alexander seemed confused by simple english.

Alexander could envision no scenario where Adhania would want or even need to hire them.

And here and today, Alexander was once again reminded that just because you cannot think of a reason, does not mean others cannot think of one or one doesn't exist.

Usually, the messenger would not have bothered to reply after the kind of insult he received, but today, he chose to bear it, because he was here for his own gains, but for the king and nation.

They needed the mercenaries and he could not let his personal prejudice derail the future of his nation.

So, despite his raging fury, he drowned it with the crushing pressure of responsibility and started delivering the message sent by the king.

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