My Kingdom Building Done Right!
Chapter 257: You’re A Life Saver
Uneasy peace descended upon the land.
The first clash between the Darkmane Tribe’s army and the Aslan Tribe’s defenders concluded with the former’s defeat.
This result not only shocked the Darkmane Tribe but also those spectating the battle. As such, everyone wondered what Troy and Jafar would do next to turn the tide of the next battle to their side.
Leone rested in his room with Yuni, while Ulric, Otto, and Kael borrowed the villa of the middle-ranked tribes to hold a short meeting.
Brann was currently on night watch duty with Blitz and the squirrels, the latter of which were all eyeing the enemy’s army with vengeful looks on their faces.
If the little ones could get their hands on either Troy or Jafar, they would definitely be swarmed with bites and claws until they were mangled.
"Should we attack them?" Kael asked Otto. "If you wish for it, we could make them unable to sleep tonight."
"I’d love to do that, but Leone ordered me not to do anything for tonight," Otto replied. "It seems that he is worrying about another threat we ought to prepare for aside from the Darkmane Tribe."
"He said that?" Kael arched an eyebrow. "Since our Great Chieftain has already given the order, I will no longer pursue the matter."
Ulric nodded in agreement. If it were him giving the orders, he would have asked Otto to harass the Darkmane Tribe without a shred of mercy.
In fact, he even believed they were lucky since they did not have an enemy with the same ability as Otto.
Had they been faced with one, they would have been in great danger. The mere idea of facing someone who could snipe them from a distance and pick them off one by one terrified them.
Naturally, Kael shared Ulric’s opinion.
Actually, even Otto felt blessed because he was given such a powerful ability. However, he didn’t forget what Daedalus had told him in the past.
The grimoire told Otto that its previous owners also had vassals with similar abilities. But the power got into their heads and made them overconfident, leading them to think that they were invincible.
And that mindset led to their demise.
Out of curiosity, Otto asked Daedalus how the vassals who had similar skills as him had died in the past.
In response, the grimoire told him that there were many unique abilities in the world. One of them was the ability, Bonded Death.
If the owner of this skill died, the one who killed them would die with them. Not only that, but the one who ordered it, the mastermind behind the killing, would die as well.
This even included everyone who had consented to the killing.
There was a famous saying that went along the lines of "when one person is cursed, two graves are dug."
One of Daedalus’ previous owners, as well as their vassals, died in this manner.
When Otto asked if there was a way for him to identify someone with this kind of power, its answer was quite straightforward.
"You can’t. Just as the enemy can’t determine your ability, you also can’t know their ability. Only someone who specializes in appraising people can do so."
For this reason, Otto decided that he would strictly follow Leone’s orders when it came to killing people with his ability.
At the least, Daedalus would’ve vetted the targets and determined if the latter had skills that countered Otto’s. As long as the grimoire could warn him in time, the archer wouldn’t commit a mistake he would regret for life.
When morning came, Leone opened his eyes and saw Yuni sleeping beside him.
They didn’t do anything last night and simply slept together. Yet, Yuni’s presence still allowed Leone to calm down a bit.
Then again, if not for the situation they were facing right now, the opportunity for them to be together like this might not have come sooner.
The young man soon propped himself up from the bed and walked toward the table to pour himself a cup of water to drink.
Daedalus, which had been waiting for Leone to wake up, moved down from the shelf and hovered beside its master.
"Good morning, Leone," Daedalus said.
"Good morning," Leone replied. "Did anything happen last night?"
"No." Daedalus shook its body. "Everything is quiet. The Darkmane Tribe stayed put."
"What do you think they will do today?"
"Beats me, but I’m sure they will try to do something. After all, they don’t have the leeway, especially since their food supply has taken a hit."
The Darkmane Tribe had tried various ways to secure food. However, it was futile.
They had burned the forest, which forced the beasts to flee far up to the northeast and northwest.
The wolves, who were allied with the Aslan Tribe, had also escaped during the forest fire, prioritizing their safety.
With that, the most they could do was to gather water and fish from the river located at least two miles from their location.
But it was not a long-term solution to their problem, since the spectating tribes also get their food and water from there.
Of course, robbing the spectating tribes’ food supplies had also crossed their minds.
But with Gundar there, Troy and Jafar didn’t dare to do such a thing.
"You’re still thinking about that warning from the mission, aren’t you?" Daedalus asked.
"Yes," Leone replied. "I have this nagging feeling at the back of my head, and I can’t shake it off."
Daeadelus didn’t reply right away. Instead, it shifted its attention toward the bed.
Yuni had also woken up and was doing a few light stretches while seated on the bed.
Leone couldn’t help but admire her very fit body, as well as the curves that went along with it.
"Good morning," Yuni said after noticing that Leone was looking in her direction.
"Good morning, Yuni," Leone replied. "I know it’s a bit too early to ask, but did Rio see anything yesterday?"
"Give me a moment." Yuni closed her eyes as she tried to connect her senses with her familiar.
The hawk answered her questions through their shared connection, and soon, the young lady reported all intel she had gathered to Leone.
"Rio didn’t see anything suspicious last night," Yuni reported. "However, it plans to fly farther today to continue its mission."
"Thank you, Yuni." Leone smiled. "You’re a lifesaver."
The young lady only smiled in return before getting off the bed. She then walked toward Leone and poured herself a cup of water as well.
After she finished drinking, she felt a pair of hands wrap around her body from behind.
"Let’s stay like this for a while," Leone said, resting his head on her shoulder. "Just three minutes."
"Okay." Yuni didn’t resist and even leaned her back on Leone’s body, allowing him to hold her in his arms.
Daedalus decided that it was now time to give the two some privacy, so it flew to the door. It would be best to wait for them outside.
When Daedalus left the house, it saw Hassan leaning on the wall of the house with his arms crossed over his chest.
The two shared a knowing glance before the grimoire flew toward him to strike up a conversation.
"Any luck?" Hassan asked.
"No," Daedalus replied. "Leone wants to take his time."
"I see." Hassan smiled wryly. "Two days from now, the night of the new moon will arrive. Leone can once again use the obsidian crystal to communicate with his family. Remind him to introduce his girl friends to his mother. Lady Helen will be thrilled to meet Yuni. And perhaps Aria as well."
"Will do." Daedalus nodded. "I’ll make sure to remind him. I’ll even tell Kael about it."
Hassan didn’t know whether the grimoire was joking or not.
The moment Daedalus mentioned that Leone would be talking to his mother, Kael would definitely want to use the opportunity to join the conversation in order to introduce himself and possibly try to greet his "in-laws", which would definitely be amusing to watch.
A few minutes later, Leone and Yuni left the house, and Hassan merged with his Young Master’s shadow once more.
Soon, they had breakfast together, just in time to hear Daedalus’ warning that the Darkmane Tribe seemed to be preparing for another attack.
Leone wondered what they planned to do today while heading toward the ramparts where the Orcs and the warriors of the Aslan Tribe were already waiting for his arrival.