Relatives Gather, Conspiracy Before Departure

In the Gute Territory, Baron Olcott's first reaction upon receiving Velin's letter was suspicion.

"Butler, go and fetch Administrator Abbott."

"Yes, master."

After the butler left, Olcott sat down with the letter, carefully examining the information once more.

It bore a specially made family crest, and he believed it came from his nephew. But how did the other party know that over two hundred Mountain Dwarves would be escorting a batch of Mountain Copper through the borderlands of the Graylight Wasteland?

"There's a big question here, whether I should agree." Olcott tapped his desk rhythmically, contemplating the pros and cons.

A moment later, Abbott, the chief administrator of the Gute Territory and Olcott's Guardian Knight, arrived at the study and bowed, saying, "My Lord, you summoned me."

"Abbott, take a look at this."

Seeing his trusted subordinate arrive, Olcott handed the letter directly to Abbott for him to read.

A few minutes later, Abbott deliberated before replying, "My Lord, I believe there's an eighty percent chance the information described in this letter is true. Your nephew wouldn't fabricate a lie to deceive you."

"Under this premise, the Mountain Dwarves leading the escort of such a valuable metal as Mountain Copper would definitely not be weak. With your nephew's strength, he would be unable to seize it, which is why he is seeking your help."

"Finally, you have met all the basic requirements for promotion to Viscount, with only military merit left. This is an opportunity."

"Therefore, this subordinate believes you can agree to go."

Olcott pondered, finding it reasonable. His nephew wouldn't dare to deceive him like this, as it would severely damage his reputation within the family.

"Good, you go and order the knights to assemble. This time, I want to collect enough Mountain Dwarf heads to lay the final brick for my promotion to Viscount."

"Yes, my Lord."

As Olcott made up his mind and began assembling his troops, in the Ridge Territory, Brian, upon receiving the letter, immediately led all his Bronze Knights and Knight Squires to the Lake of Star Prayer, leaving his territory to be managed by the Magic Knight Adrian.

Finally, in the Maple Leaf Territory in the northeastern part of Cadro Province, Ake's father, Edgar, summoned his son the moment he received the letter.

"Father, you sent for me."

Edgar opened his eyes upon hearing this and looked at his eldest son, asking, "Velin Ex, the fifth son of the current generation of the family, what do you think?"

Ake was stunned upon hearing this, not knowing why his father was asking about this matter.

However, since his father had asked, he could only answer truthfully.

"I met Velin once at Brian's castle, and we spent some time together. He is calculating, understands how to weigh pros and cons, and most importantly, he is cautious."

"Alright, go and gather people, and prepare to accompany me to Velin's territory," Edgar instructed Ake after listening.

"Yes, Father."

He didn't ask why he was doing this, believing his father had his own reasons.

On September 16th, an unusual day, Olcott, Edgar, and Brian, along with their subordinates, successively arrived at the Lake of Star Prayer.

"Uncle Olcott, Uncle Edgar, Cousin Brian, please come in."

Velin, with a smile, led his two elders and cousin into a meticulously arranged room.

After some pleasantries, Velin directly produced a pre-scouted terrain map and began explaining the plan for this operation.

"Uncle Olcott, Uncle Edgar, Cousin Brian. In four days, over two hundred Mountain Dwarves will be escorting a batch of Mountain Copper through this area. The strongest among them will be High-Silver."

Olcott, seated in the first position on the left, looked at the detailed terrain map on the table and asked, "Velin, everyone has their own secrets, but I still want to confirm with you, will there really be Mountain Dwarves escorting Mountain Copper through here."

On the other side, Edgar also looked serious, staring at his nephew, whom he had never met, hoping for a positive answer.

As for Brian, he didn't care. He trusted Velin wouldn't deceive him and wasn't concerned whether this was a lie or not.

"My elders, I swear by the Goddess of Life and the ancestors of the family, everything I say is true."

Seeing this, the two middle-aged men believed Velin's words.

"If that is the case, then let us discuss the plan for this operation."

Olcott, being the most powerful among the four, deservedly took command of the operation.

Edgar on the opposite side nodded in agreement, and Velin and Brian had no objections.

After all, in this operation, Olcott brought the most people: two hundred Bronze Knights, six Silver Knights, and he himself was a High-Silver Knight.

Next was Edgar, with one hundred and twenty Bronze Knights and four Silver Knights.

Then came Brian, with fifty Bronze Knights, plus himself, making him one Silver Knight.

Lastly, there was himself, deploying eight Bronze Knights and two Silver Knights.

"In this operation, I will handle the High-Silver warriors among the Mountain Dwarves."

"Edgar, Brian, you two will lead the remaining Silver Knights to deal with the other Silver-ranked enemies among the Mountain Dwarves."

"As for Velin and Alick, you will be responsible for leading the Bronze Knights to encircle and eliminate the remaining Mountain Dwarf transport personnel."

"Since our actions will absolutely provoke retaliation from the other side, information must be kept confidential, and not a single Mountain Dwarf must be allowed to escape."

After Olcott finished speaking, Velin asked, "Uncle, can we use this opportunity to frame the Centaurs for this matter?"

In the conference room, everyone looked at Velin, very confused.

"Tell me."

Seeing this, Velin took out a bone token from his embrace. The token had Doris's name written on it, along with a unique mark of the Centaur clan.

Olcott recognized the token at a glance and asked with confusion, "A Centaur Silver Warrior's token, where did you get it?"

"Uncle, I can't tell you that. But we can use this opportunity to stir up trouble between the Mountain Dwarves and the Centaurs, allowing us to clear our names."

"Velin, this kind of thing can easily be exposed, and doing so will bring us great hidden dangers," Edgar said, clarifying the connections and advising him.

"Uncle, don't worry. Even if the matter is exposed, the ultimate target won't be us, but the Hax Family."

After careful consideration, Olcott nodded and said, "Alright. However, when deploying, use a scent-removing potion to cleanse the token of any lingering aura, to prevent them from tracking us with magic."

"Uncle, I understand."

The next day, three hundred and seventy-eight Bronze Knights and fourteen Silver Knights, fully supplied, departed from the Lake of Star Prayer and headed 150 kilometers southwest to ambush the Mountain Dwarves and seize Mountain Copper, a rare metal.