At those words, every elder present went deathly pale.
After all, as far as they knew, Dimis was the only soldier in the Darkmoon Clan who had truly seen the world and lived through a major war.
Within the Darkmoon Clan, Dimis's judgment of how a war would end carried even more weight than that of the clan chief, Dip Darkmoon.
"But submitting to humans—"
Groom, the grand elder, tried to argue, unwilling to give in. Before he could finish, Dimis cut him off. "Not submitting. Integrating!"
Dimis stared at him without expression and said, each word deliberate, "The governor has given us a safe, orderly place to live, medical care far beyond anything the clan has now, and even a chance to truly join civilized society. Yet all His Excellency asks is that we hand over a mineral vein that rightfully belongs to the lord anyway."
"To my mind, that's more than fair. You could even call it merciful!"
Ignoring Groom's ugly expression, Dimis turned to Ace and bowed slightly. It was a gesture unsuited to an uncle addressing his nephew, but its meaning was unmistakable. "Captain Ace, please allow me, as an ordinary clansman, to convey the Darkmoon Clan's loyalty to His Excellency John through the Governor's Office."
"And I, Dimis Darkmoon, am willing to personally lead the way to the Magic Crystal Vein and assist the Security Forces with every part of its handover."
Ace felt as though thunder had exploded inside his head. His expression turned uglier than ever.
That damned old fox wasn't pledging loyalty!
He was stealing the credit!
And stealing it from me—the loyal goblin who'd been first to pledge himself to Governor John!
If Dimis really led the team to the vein, whose achievement would the governor consider it?
Dimis had also