"I've heard of Amaharpe's War Intelligence Group's legendary skills, but it seems that, in the end, rumors are just that—rumors." Alkori disdained as he looked at Soothing Smoke with a death glare.

He then faced Solomon and continued, "General Solomon, I'll make it easy for you. My brothers have made a great sacrifice at the expense of your side's failure. Double—I want twice as much as what was originally promised. Otherwise, I will cut my losses here and walk away from this cursed battlefield."

​​

"Ridiculous! You already signed an agreement, Alkori! It's too late to go back on your word, or can it be that you Pzenium warriors only know how to run when real trouble arrives?!" Tonne jumped to his feet and immediately rejected Alkori's proposal. As the Manager in charge of resource distribution in the Demilitarization Belt, he found Alkori's request too unreasonable.

"You should be grateful that we are allies—for now. Otherwise, your head would not still be attached to your body. Regardless, my demands stand. The previous agreement was before the error on your kingdom's side and the emergence of that demon." Alkori stated coldly.

"You-!" Tonne's face turned red from anger; however, Solomon decided to speak before things got too out of control.

Though the General inwardly sighed. Sometimes, he felt that managing this group of individuals was akin to keeping a bunch of children in line.

"Manager Tonne, Controller Alkori's words are justified. Asking for double is indeed too much for our current finances to handle, but I do not believe that we cannot come to a mutual agreement that satisfies all parties involved. Although it pains me to say, our kingdom holds much responsibility in this matter." Solomon said calmly.

Tonne wanted to protest but held his anger in as he released an annoyed grunt and returned to his seat.

Alkori sneered, "I'm glad to see that you know how to weave your words, General S-"

"Controller Alkori. I have entertained your outburst and outspoken nature thus far; however, even my patience has its limits. If you continue to test it, I hope you can bear the consequences that follow." Solomon asserted.

Alkori narrowed his eyes but remained silent in response.

Solomon internally sighed. Alkori's attitude was poor, but Solomon knew that when it came to the battlefield, Alkori was someone who could be taken at his word and then some. Besides, Solomon understood that Alkori was not as reckless as he appeared on the surface. If he left the safety of the camp now and ran into Tempest forces, there was little to no chance Alkori and his mercenary group would make it out of the Demilitarization Belt and back to Pzenium. Even if they did, their losses would be too significant to ever recover from.

After agreeing on a 40% increase to the Pzenium mercenary group's original payment, Solomon set the meeting back on track.

"Soothing Smoke, we are not done with our conversation. However, I must move onto the main topic of the conference." Solomon said as the mood in the tent experienced a drastic shift. The atmosphere was so heavy that it seemed as though the air was made of lead.

"We will put it to a vote—whether we should come up with a plan of attack, or... If we should cut our losses and retreat from the Demilitarization Belt." Solomon announced.

"Attack." Alkori was the first to answer, and there was no hesitation behind his decision.

He then continued, "If we were to retreat now, the blood of my brothers would have been spilled in vain. A Pzenium warrior has never known of defeat outside of death!"

"A Pzenium warrior has never known of defeat outside of death!" The two personal guards who accompanied Alkori declared proudly.

'Pzenium warriors—a strange bunch.'

Any other mercenary group would have already packed up and left after everything that happened. However, Izroth was reminded of his battle against the Pzenium warrior Falcinean in the Millennial Veiled Oasis. They were a kingdom of warriors that only knew how to properly speak when using their blades in battle.

"I also say that we attack—take the fight to them. That creature is too much of an anomaly. It's too close to Rosentarus and is moving towards our border with every passing moment. If it's not stopped here, the number of casualties will not be small once it crosses into Rosentarus." Duchess commented.

"Have you ordered the Zensana living near the Ronsentarus border to retreat?" Solomon questioned.

Duchess shook her head as she heavily sighed and said, "It's no good. We were able to convince some of them, but most of the Zensana sub-species at the border are too prideful. They will not abandon their home—even in the face of danger."

"I see. That certainly adds another element of trouble to take into account. And, the rest of you?" Solomon queried.

"I suggest that we retreat." Soothing Smoke answered.

Alkori locked his gaze onto Soothing Smoke, but he did not have an immediate outburst this time. Instead, he maintained his composure; however, one could see the fury on his face.

"Did you forget so quickly whose fault this is to begin with? Now you want to run away without facing the problems you've caused head-on? I didn't know the agents of Amaharpe's famed War Intelligence Group were such cowards." Alkori mocked.

"Taunt me all you will, but that does not change the facts. Your words are spoken out of anger and thoughts of revenge for your fallen comrades. The Beast Guardian's decision takes the protection of Rosentarus as the priority for her choice. As for mine, it is merely one of pure logic. Let's say we defeat the creature—did you know that as long as a single piece of it remains, it has the ability to completely regenerate itself and return immune to everything it was previously smitten by? If someone of General Solomon's caliber or even you, Controller Alkori, were to fight against it and have no way to guarantee its total annihilation, then you would only be making it stronger." Soothing Smoke explained.

"What do you suggest we do then? Let it roam freely, killing everything in sight until it gets bored?!?" Alkori snapped.

"Yes—or at the very least, until we can find a failproof method to containing it." Soothing Smoke said as they turned their head slightly to look in Aurie's direction.

Solomon narrowed his eyes and said, "I know what you want to propose, but I will only consider that as an absolute last resort."

"I know—which is why I suggested we retreat." Soothing Smoke stated.

Once Soothing Smoke confirmed his choice, Tonne cast his vote to retreat, citing that current resources were being spread too thin with all the damage their forces received.

Now, there were two votes to attack and two to retreat. At the moment, only Izroth, Solomon, and one other individual had yet to cast their vote.

"You've been quiet this entire time. Do you have nothing to add, Dolos Jestal?" Solomon said as he addressed the one person who had yet to speak up even once during the whole conference.

'Jestal? If they're from Proximus, then they are undoubtedly connected to that same Jestal family.'

Below the royal family of Proximus was the three top noble families—Aragon, Rutazou, and Jestal. Aragon focused on powerful fire-type magic. Rutazou specialized in a unique branch of nature magic. The Jestal family—they were considered the strongest among the three families for one reason—they were born with a natural affinity for a rare classification of spatial magic!

However, the Jestal family had been quite reclusive ever since their previous head died, and his son took over. It was not until the war began that they made an official appearance for the first time in many years.

Dolos was a well-adjusted man who looked to be in his mid-thirties. His eyes possessed no pupils, but one should not mistake him as someone blind. His hair stopped at his shoulders and was black with stripes of gray running through it.

NPC Name: Dolos Jestal(???)

NPC Level: ???

"I shall abstain from voting, General Solomon. Whatever choice is made here today, my Jestal family shall honor it in full." Dolos replied unhurriedly.

Solomon inwardly frowned. Usually, those from noble families were the first and loudest to give their opinion on a situation. Although they had been stationed together since the start of the war, Solomon was unable to get a good grasp on Dolos or his character. There was always a thin veil that surrounded the Jestal family noble that obstructed his Absolute Symmetry. Though he did not know whether he should be concerned or...

"Then, it would seem you will act as the tiebreaker, Captain Izroth. As, I too, shall abstain from voting." Solomon said with a meaningful gaze. After his words, everyone present turned to one person in the room—Izroth. They were shocked by Solomon's decision. Why would he leave such an important choice in the hands of a Captain?!

'I see. So that's why you invited me... Interesting.'