Black Panthers Close In, the Bull Clan Makes Its Move

John felt his luck had been incredible lately.

Not only was construction in his territory progressing steadily, but Meyer, whom he had sent out to carry out the In the Name of the Sage Project, was working hard. Even the shipyard he had put out of his mind had brought good news: the Horst-Class Battleship was complete. Every problem facing the territory's development had been resolved. All he needed to do now was drink tea, take the occasional ride, and wait for the struggle between the two parties to end. By then, his steadily growing army would be enough to secure the final victory.

Everything was going so smoothly it felt like a dream.

These days, he could practically wake himself up laughing.

Unless the Beastfolk of Saga Kingdom decided to cause trouble at this critical moment, he couldn't imagine what could drag him back into working himself to the bone. "Of course, that's never going to happen!"

In his office, John looked at the fewer than ten documents left in front of him and broke into a confident grin.

After the last assassination attempt, both the Venomfang Clan and the Froststar Clan had been weakened by heavy losses. The Bloodwolf Clan had lost almost all its elites in the First Battle of Faoken. Those three tribes had become tempting targets, just as the Morning Star Clan and the Black Marsh Clan had before them.

With those tribes so short on troops, the expansion-hungry Beastfolk of Saga Kingdom would surely seize the chance to strike. Why would they waste time on a tough nut like Faoken?

Cultural differences meant Beastfolk generally had little education, and few of them were especially clever.

But that didn't make them idiots. They knew better than to pick a hard fight when easier prey was