The only thing that managed to make the second brother look any different than the other two of his little brothers was the huge scar line going across vertically starting from the jaw, running along the left cheek and coming at a stop right below his left eye. This made him look ferocious and wild.
"Word from our spies is that the war in the south has come to an end. Meaning that we have now already lost the chance to reap benefits from this situation."
Anyone who was sitting on the table couldn't help but show disappointed on their faces after listening to that sentence.
This had been a golden opportunity for them to not only become rich raiding all the unguarded villages and give a severe blow to whoever wins the position the lord in the end.
Doing this would have made easier for them to win future wars without much resistance and they may even have been able to topple the enemies once and for all.
"Those profit sucking mongrels, it's all because of them that we couldn't move forward."
"Calm your head down, third brother. No need to boil your blood over spilled milk. Let me say everything first, there is more to come. The merchant Union had backstopped now because they have been invaded by enemy troops from their southern border. It is said that they had already lost many villages to them."
"What? Was it the Darren Dorbank or Cole Jordan? But ..I don't understand how could the Merchant Union lost badly to them when they have almost the same strength."
"It is not clear whose forces they are as even those seven money suckers merchants are in the dark now. But in my guess its most likely Cole Jordan as he had made an alliance with the other family's making the fight almost one-sided but that's just my guess. Who knows, Darren Dorbank might have something up his sleeves to squash the rebellion this quickly and come out on to. It may just be that no one won and all of them came to a truce. There are many variations of situations I can think of."
"We all are in the dark until our people can send us any intel from there. Anyway, leaving that matter alone for now. I wanted to tell you what we are going to do now. The Merchant Union is very much guilty this time as they had tried to barge our way to riches and victory." all the officers and advisors saw the commander of their troops stopped in between speech for a moment to drink alcohol from his cup and then continued.
"The Merchant Union has to be the one who should compensate us for our loss of money and time if not the Dorbanks. According to our spies, it seems they have been hit very hard in the south border. This is our chance to bleed them in their weakened state and get our revenge. Does anyone of you have any objection?" The last question was directed towards his little brothers.
"No, Second Brother." "None at all" replied the two brothers almost immediately.
"Let go and get those bitches then"
"The merchants definitely have deeper pockets than the people in the south."
"We are going to bleed them dry this time"
Others were also happy with their commander's decision as they cannot afford to go back empty-handed or Lord Frey would skin them alive on return.
Because it has already gotten dark, the Frey's quickly assembled their troops to move. At some distance away a commanding officer of the Merchant Union saw that the Freys are going in the direction of the Dorbanks just as they had thought.
While giving a sigh of relief inside his mind, that commanding officer turned and said to the person standing behind him "You can go now. Take half of the troops back. We will need the other half to keep an eye on the movements of the Frey's. Go!"
The Merchant Union failed to take notice of one thing and that was the Frey's changing their target in between.
This was because they thought that the Frey's would not get the intelligence in time from their spies till they go and fight with the other party.
The Merchant Union had also made sure to not let anyone pass on the news to the Frey's of them losing numerous villages in the south.
The Frey's this time seemed to have used their heads properly which is usually not the case as they are considered to be single-minded brutes.
Particularly, Lucas Frey, the second brother of the current Lord Frey. He is not able to devise strategies or anything like that as he mostly fights head-on with his army.
But since the important position inside the Frey family is determined by individuals' personal strength, Lucas Frey was able to command the Frey family troops.
The reason that forced him to make a sensible decision this time was the letter that his spy stationed in the Merchant Union had sent to him.
Of course, the Merchant Union had ensured that no such thing can happen as they had made the arrangement at the border and they have been very successful in doing this at least.
So the arising question is that how can the intel from one of Frey's spies inside the Merchant Union can reach into the hands of Lucas.
This is because the person who had sent the letter was none other than one of Alex's puppets who had successfully infiltrated the Frey's to become their spy after showing its worth to them.
After knowing the secret code and the unique seal through which the Frey's authenticate that the sender is one of their spies, Alex had asked his puppets to send that information to the Frey's.
In that letter, some suggestions were also written on the parts that the Merchant Union most worried about and afraid of.
That was battling the Frey's and the unknown enemies in their south after suddenly losing a considerable part of their troops without any warning. They cannot afford to battle on two separate fronts anymore.
After reading the letter Lucas had decided to move his troops as if he was going to fight the Dorbanks or whoever it was in the south but in reality, he was going to attack the Merchant union after they start to lose their guards a little.
This was not actually suggested by Alex at all but was instead thought up by Lucas himself. He was not completely stupid.
...
Coming back to the Mordrake manor, in the main hall, Alex sat on a cushioned chair to listen to what their uninvited guest had to say.
While they were walking down from Anna's room to the main hall on the ground floor, Alex was informed telepathically by his puppets about the situation pertaining to the Frey's and the Merchant Union and their troop's movement.
Also before Alex was taken by Anna to see the bird/Norman in her room, Uncle Jack and Donald went out of the city leading a small number of troops around a thousand soldiers to reinforce their army that had taken over the Merchant Union villages near the northern border.
Soon a counter attack is going to start against them in which cultivators at the stage of Dantian Formation Realm may participate. That is why Alex had sent his uncle with reinforcement at the border to watch over the battle there.
Also, his army now is not entirely made up of puppets as it also includes normal people. They need to have a Dantian Formation Realm cultivators in their midst to boost their morale and fight their counterparts on the enemy side if required.
So right now, in the main hall other than Alex and Norman the druid, Master Clayton was also present. Alex and his Master were the only ones strong enough to deal with the intruder if he had come here with ill intention.
The puppets inside the manor were also ready and alert. They were now searching the whole manor checking every corner for any type of animal, insect or bird to check if Norman had any accomplices with him.
Also on the terrace of the manor, five puppets were stationed there to stop any bird from trespassing.
Alex had to do this because he didn't want to take any chance. Knowing that such a species is present in this world that can bypass his puppets and come this close to his loved ones, makes him very uncomfortable.
Other than the puppets Alex was also using his spiritual sense constantly to check around the manor. Even the puppets around his Uncle had been ordered to stay on alert.
Anyway, Alex turned his focus at the middle aged man who had introduced himself as Norman Ciassach, a Druid that can shapeshift into any normal animals.
In his previous world, a druid was a thing of fantasy, and but seeing one now in front of him made Alex compare Norman with the imaginary Druid in his previous world.
The basic concept of animal-based transformation is similar in Druids of both the world.
They are known to be the protector of the forest, the forces of the good and were also well known for their nature-based magic. But still, their might be some difference between the real and the imaginary Druid from the earth.
Norman felt like he was sitting on a chair full of nails after being continuously glared by the boy.
Finally, he had to say, "Master Clayton, you must have heard about me. I am Norman Ciassach, butler to the Merchant family of Angevine. You had also met with Ms.Violette Angevine some three years ago for business purposes. Do you remember? Can you please tell your disciple not to scare me with his mean face."