The busy day passed quickly, and late at night, the lights in the main tent were still on. Unas was so engrossed in military affairs that he forgot the time.
His primary task today was to train the alien prisoners. The Orcs were all obedient, and none of them dared to challenge the rule of the seventeen Orcs Warriors. However, he only had one or two leaders from the other races under his control, and there were occasional instances of passive resistance, which required severe punishment.
After the training, he opened his private food reserves, allowing these guys who usually only ate half-full to experience a long-awaited feeling of fullness. Of course, he didn't want to win the hearts of these prisoners; these alien races would never truly obey humans. He only hoped that the carrot and stick strategy would make them more obedient.
According to the statistics, there were 95 Troll, 101 Ogre, 53 ogres, and nearly 200 Gnolls Kobolds combined, which nearly doubled the strength of the stronghold. Unas organized them into four hundred-man squads.
The Ogres and Gnolls were grouped together. The Ogres were not very intelligent and would obey as long as they had food, which made them suitable for keeping an eye on the Gnoll were most prone to causing trouble.
Unas stared blankly at the military map on the table. He had previously discussed two tactics with the officers: one was to proceed steadily and advance with all available forces, while the other was more risky. They would take out the Red Stone Stele and have a suicide squad take it to a high ground five kilometers away to re-erect the tablet, making the spiders understand that humans wanted to redraw the boundaries.
This force, which has penetrated deep behind enemy lines, will certainly be besieged, but it will also attract a great deal of the enemy's attention, providing cover for the offensive of the main combat forces.
The prisoners are natural candidates for a suicide squad. If the Overlord Spiders were to lead the way, it shouldn't be difficult for them to charge five kilometers with several hundred-man squads of alien races. Moreover, once they arrive at their destination, there would be no need for supervision. Being surrounded by the spiders and not resisting would mean certain death, so they would naturally fight desperately.
Unas prefers the second tactic, which is risky but also has a greater chance of success. If he plays it safe, he may not be able to achieve his goal of advancing five kilometers.
The only problem was whether they could hold out. If the suicide squad was wiped out before the main force arrived, they would be completely finished. He hesitated because of this, feeling sleepy but unable to fall asleep.
The next morning, the Warden, who had been sleeping on his desk in the main tent, was awakened by a guard. "Sir," the guard said, "Another sorcerer is requesting an audience. This time she's a beautiful woman, but we stopped her outside the camp."
Unas was groggy with dark circles under his eyes, perked up slightly upon hearing the words "beautiful woman." He took a sip of water, washed his face, and said, "Let her in."
If Du'an wanted to use a honey trap, it wouldn't hurt to reluctantly fall for it. Resolving this matter sooner would benefit both sides. Unas sat in his chair, full of anticipation, waiting to see the beautiful woman.
Quite a while later, footsteps approached. The first to enter was Whitemane with a poker face, followed by a blonde, blue-eyed beauty in the same purple-red robe as the male mage from yesterday. Her rosy cheeks resembled ripe apples, and she was half a head shorter than the white-legged man, looking petite and charming.
Whitemane coughed lightly, expressing his displeasure at Unas's aggressive gaze, and introduced, "This is my good friend, Miss Helen Ganis, a mid-level fire mage from the Earl Ganis family."
The female mage gave Unas a very polite curtsy. Unas, not wanting to be impolite, also stood up, nodded, and smiled, saying, "Miss Helen, hello."
"Lord Unas, I would like to apologize for Doan-Norwid's rudeness yesterday. I hope you will not hold a prejudice against the Mage Academy because of this." Helen's voice was gentle and elegant, and it was very pleasant to listen to.
"So many people have been apologizing to me lately," Unas thought impatiently, but he maintained a smile on his face and used the same sweet talk he used on Whitemane: "It's just a small misunderstanding. Although I'm not good at forgiving others, if it's a beautiful lady like Miss Helen, I can't help but forgive her."
The young mage covered her mouth and chuckled, her face seeming to flush even more. "You flatter me, sir. Your heroic tale of defeating the Dreadlord is my favorite story to hear lately. It is an honor to meet you."
The adoration in her eyes when she spoke was genuine; otherwise, she deserved an Oscar.
Unas felt light as a feather, as if floating on clouds. So this was a fan of hers! Du'an had sent her; his intention to yield was clear. "Which part do you like best? I can tell you about it myself."
"Really?" Helen's voice trembled with surprise. "The part where you rescued the women and children from the demon's dungeon was so touching! I heard a Night Elf girl fell in love with you because of it. I understand her feelings... I..."
"Ahem," Whitemane coughed to interrupt her, saying with a hint of sourness, "What's the point of talking about those stories that bards exaggerate a thousand times over? Let's get down to business, we're all busy."
Helen pouted, "That's no exaggeration. I saw the rescued women and children in the Monastery, and they were all very grateful to Lord Unas."
Unas secretly overheard the bards singing his story, and while there were indeed many exaggerations, this falls under the category of artistic embellishment and is therefore perfectly acceptable.
Whitemane was furious, but she didn't want to argue with her confused best friend, so she just snorted to express her dissatisfaction.
Unexpectedly, Helen wasn't about to let her go. "Sally, I heard that Lord Unas has expressed his love for you several times but has been rejected. Yet you willingly followed him here. Why is that?"
She looked at Unas again. "Is there some secret between you two? I'd love to know."
Whitemane slumped her shoulders helplessly. This morning, her good friend, who was studying at the Mage Academy, suddenly came to her and asked her to introduce her to Unas. She agreed without much thought and was now filled with regret.
Unas thought for a moment and said, "I can tell you very honestly, there is indeed a secret between Sally and me."
"I knew it!" Miss Gossip's eyes lit up. "Sally and I are good friends, can you tell me?"
"A secret is a secret, and I can't tell you, but why don't you stay and find out for yourself?"
"Stay?" Helen didn't react for a moment.
Una began to entice the girl. "Yes, how about staying as my Arcane advisor? We don't even have a single army mage!"
She would be more than willing to be by her idol's side, "But what about my studies... will Professor Du'an agree?"
When Unas learned that she admired him greatly, he decided to poach her. Such a young mid-level mage had a bright future, and he really needed a mage advisor. After all, Blood Elves were not of his kind, and he would feel more at ease having a human mage he could completely trust by his side.
"There's a high-ranking Blood Elf fire mage here; I can have him teach you. As for Dean Du'an, doesn't he want elemental crystals? One of his conditions is that you stay here. What do you say? Are you willing?"
"Of course I'd love to!" Leaving that dull library and venturing out into the world had always been Helen's dream.
"I object!" Whitemane played the villain again. "Helen, you need to think Monastery through. There are no comfortable rooms, delicious lunches, or storytelling bards here, and war is about to break out. It's extremely unsafe. You can't stay here."
"I knew it! In your eyes, I'm just a pampered aristocratic lady. You've hurt me so much, Sally, I hate you!"
"That's not what I meant. I'm concerned for your safety," Whitemane quickly explained. "I can even tell you his secret right now, so you don't have to stay here."
Unas was displeased by these words. He'd promised to keep the secret of the Resurrection a secret, and now he wanted to break his vow right to his face?
"I won't listen! I won't listen! I want to stay here!" Miss Helen screamed, covering her ears in a fit of temper.
Whitemane stood with his hands on his hips, a hint of helplessness in his eyes. "You have to go back; it's for your safety."
"You keep talking about security, do you really think I, the Warden, make you feel so insecure?" Unas joined the argument. "As long as Miss Helen is willing to follow me, I will protect her with my life."
"Do you know what everyone calls you behind your back? Executioner!" Whitemane found his target. "You're not a demon-slaying hero, but a serial killer, a being that terrifies me more than my enemies."
"Tell me who terrified you when I killed them— the Undead? Trolls? Or Gnolls?" Unas retorted. "Mercy to your enemies is cruelty to yourself. I'm sorry, but if you continue to follow me, you'll only see more carnage."
"Since you hate Lord Unas so much, why do you still follow him?" Helen's suspicion that the two were having an affair now seemed to be completely wrong.
"He has something I don't, and I want that too. That's all there is to our relationship," Whitemane revealed the reason cryptically. "As soon as I get that thing, I'll leave here immediately."
"And then go back to a place with comfortable rooms and delicious lunches? So what you just said was just your own feeling," Unas's anger rose. "Since staying here is so painful, it's you who should go back to the Monastery, not Helen."
You want to get rid of me?
Unas shrugged. "You can interpret it that way too."
"Fine, I'm leaving!" Whitemane turned and walked away like he was in a melodramatic soap opera, ignoring Helen completely.
"It seems she's really gone, what should we do?" The female mage looked at her retreating figure, feeling a little panicked again.
Unas said nonchalantly, "So what? The sun will still rise no matter who's gone, and I bet she won't really leave."
"Why? What exactly is that thing she was talking about? Could you tell me secretly?"
"It has little to do with that thing, it's because of you. She has such a deep prejudice against me, how could she feel comfortable letting you stay by my side?" Unas changed the subject. "Never mind her, let's talk about serious matters. You should tell me what Dean Du'an's opinion is on the crystal mine."
"Our teacher is researching a new Magic Circle and urgently needs a lot of energy. He knows that it's not easy for you to mine it, so he said that 30% is enough, and you can exchange it for resources from the Mage Academy."
"What an outrageous demand," Unas thought with a cold laugh. "I understand. I'll arrange for someone to reply to him. You don't need to go back. Let me show you around the entire outpost first. Although we don't have comfortable houses, we have cave dwellings that are warm in winter and cool in summer. We don't have delicious lunches, but we have fresh crocodile meat. We don't have bards, but we have me. When it comes to storytelling, I dare say I'm the best in the world."
Unas dared to make such a boast because he had seen so many movies, TV series, novels, and historical stories. He could recall all sorts of stories and never finish telling them. Helen, who loved listening to legends, would never be bored with him.
As for the reply to Du'an, the other party's exorbitant demands were an attempt to bargain, but he could also make exorbitant demands. Didn't he say he wanted to exchange goods? The price I'm offering is one that you can't afford.
Moreover, having abducted Du'an's student, this deal is definitely not a loss. Du'an will certainly not let it go easily. When he personally takes action, he can then set his bottom line, and perhaps the two sides can reach a more reasonable agreement.
Unas's ideal scenario was to achieve three conditions. First, of course, was to fulfill the promise made to the Blood Elves that the crystal production would be satisfied before it could be distributed to others. Second, he wanted Du'an to agree to let Helen stay, although Helen did stay regardless of his consent. The third, and very difficult, was to get him to personally lead a team to assist in the battle; having an extra team of mages would make victory much easier.
Judging from his continuous dispatch of people to negotiate, Du'an is very eager for crystals, and it is not impossible for these conditions to be met.
Unas ordered that the best accommodations be prepared for Helen and arranged her Tent next to Whitemane's. The silver-haired prosecutor so resolutely said he was leaving, but her Tent didn't move an inch.
Unas seemed to have guessed correctly; Whitemane wouldn't abandon Helen. In fact, she felt that after suffering so much, the opportunity to learn Resurrection was right in front of her, and she wouldn't give it up because of a verbal dispute.
Unas first took Helen to the Blood Elf camp and introduced her to Arenas Fireleaf. The new teacher gave Helen her first lesson: Blood Elf tormented by Mana Addiction.
The horrific scene filled Helen with shame about her mission. The elemental crystals were the life-saving medicine for these Elves, and her mentor was trying to take their lives. She immediately wanted to return to the Monastery to stop him.
Unas quickly stopped her, knowing that if she went back, she would likely be difficult to get back. They couldn't afford to lose the Arcane advisor they had worked so hard to acquire. "Leave everything to me."
Unas was impressed that he had convinced the female mage with just one sentence. He could only sigh at how easy it was to communicate with people who admired and supported him. In contrast, talking to people who were prejudiced against him was a torment, like the silver-haired prosecutor who had come to his door again.