George steadied himself in the dust and withdrew the dark-red light from his dagger. “Blackstone Town?”
“Otherwise?” A small flame flared up again in the red-haired youth's right hand. “Humans truly have fallen, submitting to the damn Demon Race!”
“Hey, stop talking nonsense that makes no sense.” George raised his dagger again, taking an offensive stance.
“What do you mean, colluding with the Demon Race? You're clearly the one who attacked me first!”
“Who told you to approach the negotiation site without warning? And carrying a greatsword—no matter how you look at it, you're a dangerous person!” the youth retorted, equally annoyed.
George froze for a moment, his dagger lowering slightly. “Negotiation? You mean... you came from the forest side?”
“What do you think?” Seeing him lower his weapon, the youth extinguished the newly lit flame in his hand.
George suddenly realized he seemed to have caused trouble.
“Are you... the representative invited by Mr. Leopold?”
The red-haired youth did not answer, merely crossing his arms and tilting his head to size him up. After a moment, he said unhurriedly, “You know Leopold?”
“Of course I do!” George sheathed his dagger. “He's the one who brought me out of Blackstone Town!”
“You're that knight?” The youth's gaze lingered on him a bit longer. “I heard you stayed in Blackstone Town for two years.”
“Two years, yes.”
“To survive two years without being converted by the Demon Race, you must have some skill.”
“Of course, I'm very strong!” George pointed a thumb at himself, continuing with a smug look, “I'm the man who will become a Hero in the future!”
“A Hero? I wouldn't have guessed you still had such a childish heart.”
“Hey, what's that supposed to mean? A mere sorcerer like you could never learn Martial Skills, so you could never become a Hero!” George shouted angrily.
“Ah, yes, yes, Mr. Hero.” The red-haired youth had already turned around, taking a step deeper into the woods before turning his head back. “Since you're with Leopold, come with me. They've been waiting for a while.”
“They?” George quickly caught up. “Who do you mean? Adele? Or...”
“You'll know when we get there.” The youth didn't look back. “And my name is Theo.”
George curled his lip but didn't press further. He looked down at the path under his feet and noticed crooked footprints scattered everywhere.
He followed the footprints for about the time it takes to burn an incense stick. The trees ahead suddenly thinned out, revealing a small clearing surrounded by bushes.
A small fire crackled in the center of the clearing, its light illuminating several faces. Adele sat on a fallen log by the fire, a book spread open on her lap.
At this moment, Leopold was gazing at the moon in the sky with a solemn expression.
As Theo led George out of the forest, the sound of their footsteps alerted the people by the fire.
Adele looked up, her gaze lingering on George for a brief moment before turning to Theo. “Did you run into trouble on the way?”
“Just a minor misunderstanding,” Theo said nonchalantly, sitting down on the other side of the fire and warming his hands. “This knight here thought I was a Demon Race spy and attacked first.”
“Figures. He's just part of the combat faction and is useless for negotiations, which is why we didn't bring him along.” Adele's words were utterly merciless, instantly making George blush.
George lowered the greatsword from his shoulder, leaning it against his leg as he squatted to warm himself by the fire. “How was I supposed to know you were a sorcerer representative? You didn't even say your name before you attacked!”
“And you didn't ask,” Theo shot back.
“That's enough,” Leopold said calmly. The situation was somewhat complicated; these sorcerers didn't seem to fully trust human villages.
Two other people sat on the eastern side of the fire, having remained silent until now.
One was a middle-aged man with graying hair, a sharpened wooden staff resting by his hand. The other was a younger woman wrapped in a dark-gray cloak.
“Lord Leopold, we wish to reach a cooperation,” the middle-aged man spoke up. “It's just that our Elder still doesn't seem to trust humans.”
“The threat of the Demon Race is growing more severe by the day. If we want to survive in the Eastern Border, humans must unite once again.”
“Thank you for your contributions to humanity,” the middle-aged man said, suddenly standing up and bowing to Leopold.
“It's too early for thanks.” Leopold withdrew his gaze, letting it fall back to the fire. “Whether this cooperation works depends on whether your Elder is willing to sit down and talk.”
“The Elder's stance is clear—we can discuss cooperation, but he will not allow sorcerers to be integrated into the human military.”
“I doubt that's your Elder's only condition.” Leopold found it amusing. These sorcerers were incredibly shrewd, each more calculating than the last.
On the surface, they claimed they wanted to save humanity and fight the Demon Race. In reality, they simply couldn't survive in the forest and had come to the human villages to beg for food.
Yet now, they were unwilling to send troops or dispatch people, while constantly demanding all kinds of grain, cattle, and sheep. A classic case of a snake trying to swallow an elephant!
The middle-aged man gently rubbed his fingers against the wooden staff, not replying immediately.
The woman wrapped in the gray cloak was the first to speak up: “Mr. Leopold, you speak very directly.”
“Time is tight; there's no need to beat around the bush.”
“Your Elder wants food and supplies but doesn't want to provide people. This deal won't work.”
“It's not that we don't want to provide people,” the middle-aged man finally replied. “The sorcerer population is already small. All our settlements in the forest combined only amount to a little over a hundred people.”
“If we send all our young and able-bodied men to the front lines, the settlements will be left empty. Who will care for the elderly, the weak, the women, and the children?”
“The villages can care for them. You would only need to focus on fighting.”
The middle-aged man fell silent, knowing he was in the wrong.
The woman wrapped in the gray cloak glanced at the middle-aged man, then looked at Leopold.
“Respected Lord Leopold, it is getting late. Let us continue our discussion tomorrow.”
Leopold said nothing more, merely nodding slightly. The people by the fire rose one after another and walked toward the tents in the clearing.
Theo stood up, glanced at George, who was still standing in place, let out a cold snort, and followed them.
George laid his greatsword across his knees, slowly wiping the blade with a rag. “I knew you sorcerers were unreliable. Back in the cathedral, you always acted all high and mighty, never lifting a finger.”
Adele closed her book and looked up at him. “Still better than certain people who wander around all day waving a greatsword.”
“You!” George instantly grew flustered.
Watching this scene, Leopold couldn't help but sigh. At the end of the day, George was still just a youth, unable to settle his mind.
Let alone teaching the villagers Martial Skills, getting him to sit still in one place for half an hour was harder than climbing to heaven.
“I really don't understand. Why do we have to bring those sorcerers in?” George threw the rag to the ground, looking at Leopold with dissatisfaction.
“Respected Lord Black Dragon, they don't even trust their own people. Can they really be relied upon on the battlefield?”
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