Ambush

"My two sisters are right, we shouldn't interrupt Sordil's train of thought. But Brother Igneel is also correct; our purpose in coming here is to eliminate the Evil Dragon of the Western Continent, not anything else. So I think we should deal with these Evil Dragon first, and then think about other things. What do you all think?"

Sordil glanced at the savior Mevajena through teary eyes, then quickly went to her, excitedly grasped her hand, and said, "Mevajena, for reminding me. Otherwise, it would have been a huge mistake!"

Seeing Sordil's deep gratitude, Mevajena said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Well, wasn't it timely that I offered you a way out?"

"Perfect timing, so perfect timing! I don't even know how to describe how perfect it was!"

"So, how do you plan to thank me?"

Sordil looked at Mevajena in disbelief and asked in surprise, "Sister Mevajena, when did you become like Brother Igneel, learning to repay kindness?"

Glancing at the naive and clueless Sordil, Mevajena said disdainfully, "What do you mean by 'returning a favor'? I helped you out of a predicament, and you pay me? That's business, isn't it? Besides, haven't we been doing this since we met? What's so surprising about that!"

After being reminded by the socially savvy Mevajena, the country bumpkin Sordil suddenly realized that this was indeed the case. From the initial siege to their adventures in Philiers, and now to the hunt for the Evil Dragon of the Western Continent, he and Mevajena had always had an employer-employee relationship in every operation. It was just that as they became more familiar with each other, Sordil had forgotten about this.

Having clarified the relationship between the two, the unsophisticated employer glanced at the 'sleazy employee' with a sly smile on his face, and then said with great reluctance, "Name your price, but on the condition that I can deliver!"

"Don't worry, I won't ask for an exorbitant amount! After all, if I kill you, no one will hire me, and then my brother and I will be kicked out by your five fathers!"

With Mevajena's reassurance, Sordil finally felt relieved. However, not knowing Mevajena's demands still made him uneasy, so he quickly pressed her for details. "What conditions do you want? Tell me quickly, or I'll be so scared I won't be able to sleep!"

Hearing Sordil's words, Mevajena smiled and said, "My condition is very simple: just do something for me unconditionally when I need it!"

What goes around comes around! Sordil had just used the same trick to trick Belserion, only to be retaliated against in the same way. But given the circumstances, he had no choice but to swallow his anger. After Sordil tearfully agreed, Mevajena gently patted his shoulder, gave him an encouraging look, and then lightly returned to her original position.

After resolving the financial dispute, Sordil began to share his views on the attack and his subsequent action plan with everyone.

"Everyone, after hearing Katro's description, I believe you have also realized that this attack was not a meticulously planned operation, but a sudden incident. This means that the other side has no intention of staying in Ishgar for a long time, so we must find these Evil Dragon as quickly as possible and leave them in Ishgar."

Hearing Sordil's statement, everyone nodded in agreement, but they had no idea how to proceed, so they could only place their hopes on Sordil. Seeing that everyone agreed with his view, Sordil continued:

"There are two possibilities for why they left the town. The first possibility is that they went to hunt down the creature in the bluish-white sphere, and the second possibility is that they went to explore the terrain along the coast to lay the groundwork for the final attack. Of course, it's also possible that they are doing both!"

"Brother Sordil, you only need to keep these brain-taxing things in mind. You don't need to tell us. Just tell us what to do next!"

No sooner Igneel finished speaking than his old rival Metalicana and his Yesveta joined forces to attack him.

"Igneel, we don't blame you for not being able to remember these things because you're not very bright, but you can't lump us all into the brainless category!"

"Exactly! It's okay if you don't understand these things, but you can't tell Brother Sordil that none of us understand this!"

Faced with two verbally abusive individuals joining forces, Igneel was instantly rendered speechless. Left with no other option, he sought help from his friends. However, to his surprise, everyone, including Grandiere, refused to accept his distress telegram. In the end, it was Sordil who stepped in to resolve the crisis.

"Everyone, I believe you all know that Brother Igneel didn't mean it that way. He just misspoke. Please forgive him this time!"

After Sordil finished speaking, Igneel immediately chimed in, "Yes! Yes! Yes! I misspoke and asked everyone to give me another chance!"

With a formidable enemy at hand and Sordil's bail, everyone forgave the brainless Igneel. However, while he was spared the death penalty, he couldn't escape punishment. Although Igneel wouldn't be humanely exterminated, he was now responsible for all the chores, from serving tea and water to massaging backs and legs. After dealing with the prisoner Igneel, the topic returned to the matter of slaying the Evil Dragon of the Western Continent.

"Whether they are hunting down the blue-white sphere or gathering intelligence on Ishgar, they must find a place to meet and exchange information. This town is the most likely place for this exchange, so we need to leave some people here to lie in ambush. At the same time, to prevent them from choosing this place to exchange information, we also need to send some people with King of Babaronza to the nearest territory to gather the local army to search for these Evil Dragon of the Western Continent."

"But no matter which side finds these Evil Dragon, do not act rashly. Instead, immediately notify the other members. Once all members have assembled, we will concentrate our forces to launch a fatal blow, striving to achieve victory in one fell swoop!"

After hearing Sordil's plan, Igneel's mind was completely blank. He didn't understand what Sordil was trying to say at all, but for some reason, he had a feeling of profound understanding. In order to avoid being proven to be a brainless fool, he had no choice but to pretend to understand completely and blend into the crowd of people who said, "I see."

Compared to the 'I see' Igneel, the pragmatist Yelibell quickly discovered the flaws in Sordil's plan.

"Brother Sordil, your plan is perfect, but it has a fatal flaw: how will the members stationed in different locations communicate? And how will another group quickly reach the scene after the enemy is detected?"

Sordil gave Yelibell an approving look and then said, "Sister Yelibell has a sharp eye, and the problems she discovered are very important, but these are all within my consideration. Regarding the communication and support issues, I think we can solve them using Spatial Teleportation Array."

"But I remember you, Sordil, saying that the Spatial Teleportation Array can only be activated using Space Magic. But whether you choose to stay in the town or go to the territory with King of Babaronza, one of you will ultimately be unable to use the Teleportation Array. So how can we use the Teleportation Array to communicate with each other and reinforce our teammates?"

"Don't worry, Sister Yelibell, I have a way to handle this!"