Gerrard raised the wineglass on the table, took a sip, and said, "Before we discuss business, I'd like to ask you three questions."
"As long as I know the answers, I guarantee I'll tell you everything," Velin immediately promised.
"How many troops does your territory have now?"
After speaking, Gerrard set down his wineglass and quietly watched Velin, waiting for his answer.
Several minutes later, Velin looked up at Gerrard and slowly replied, "The Standing Army is maintained at around seventy thousand men."
"The City Defense Army has roughly forty thousand."
"The Auxiliary Army composed of underground creatures numbers one hundred and twenty thousand."
"The other forces amount to around twenty thousand."
"If I pull out all the stops, I can also gather one hundred thousand troops in Qixing Territory."
"Over in Zephyrus Territory, there are around ten thousand regular troops. With emergency recruitment, another forty thousand can be raised."
"Therefore, the total forces under my command amount to roughly four hundred thousand troops."
Velin picked up the wine bottle beside him and poured Gerrard another drink as he continued, "Those four hundred thousand troops are also the foundation of Qixing Territory. Without them, my territory would probably be gone as well."
Looking down at the wineglass, which was nearly half full, Gerrard reached out and held the mouth of the bottle, stopping Velin from continuing to pour. "Four hundred thousand troops... dispatching half of them, two hundred thousand men, would already be enough."
"Is another major war about to break out?" Velin set down the bottle and looked up at Gerrard, his curiosity growing.
Gerrard did not answer. Instead, he continued asking, "Among your subordinates, how many are at the Soul Intent rank, and how many are at the Gold rank?"
"Excluding those in Zephyrus Territory, Qixing Territory currently