The Free Expeditionary Army was like a snail.
As its lord and Chief, Annan inched forward, dragging a heavy shell behind him.
The first to join them was Olin's deputy, Mila Dia. Broad-backed and powerfully built, this Elite knight was a woman whose family had served Montreal for generations.
Someone needed to organize the Professionals who would join the Free Expeditionary Army. Mila Dia, representing the Montreal Golden Family, was the best choice. Annan suspected Olin's decision might also have involved the Palace Garden.
The Joint Expeditionary Army had been pulled in different directions and crushed. The shell Annan dragged along had no such divided loyalties.
Whether the Empire wanted to extend an olive branch or use the Free Expeditionary Army to erase its humiliation, Annan didn't know.
He only knew that he had barely entered the Northern Province when he encountered a band of Bandits outside a Village.
The Town behind them did nothing. Or perhaps the Village itself was the bandits' den... They farmed most days and turned to banditry whenever outsiders appeared.
That sort of thing was common on the border. They had simply picked the wrong target.
Annan couldn't be bothered to "cast Summoning magic and frighten the bandits into fleeing with a Blue Dragon." He summoned Mila Dia instead and let her handle her own country's affairs.
Annan watched Mila Dia walk up to the bandits with her knight's sword. In a few strokes, she killed their Chief and the lackeys beside him. The rest fled back into the Village.
Mila Dia followed them in. A few minutes later, she came out carrying her blood-dripping sword. "They won't stop you now."
Annan and the Dean approached the Village and found several Slaves, bloodied from head to toe, clutching scavenged pitchforks and iron swords. They looked