462 Everyone has their concerns Part 2 (1/2)
The protracted night was over, while the rain had stopped. The small duke called Bifano invited everyone for breakfast, but Saleen simply rejected it. By then, Saleen was used to consuming his own prepared food. Usually, when he was traveling, he would not touch other people's food.
There were too many types of magic medicine which could kill a person silently and leave no clues whatsoever. The Detection Magic was not one-hundred percent accurate either. Lex had the God's Ring, which could prevent any danger, but Saleen did not own any premium godly equipment.
Since Saleen did not go, Sika naturally abstained from it too. The both of them had already prepared breakfast, while Nailisi accompanied Lex to meet Bifano.
Identical to the exterior of the castle, the dining hall was also simple and spacious, while its windows were narrow. The crystal chandelier which suspended from the ceiling only had six lights, causing the dining hall to appear dim.
”Bluefox, meet Her Highness Lex,” Bifano told a swordsman who was standing behind him.
This swordsman was clad in soft armor, with a longsword hung around his waist. With one knee on the ground, he bowed deeply at Lex.
”This is Bluefox, the captain of my trusted soldiers. For the trip down south this time around, my team will be commanded by him.”
Lex nodded. Bluefox was about thirty years old. He had a calm demeanor, and every action he took was as sturdy as a mountain. Lex was too familiar with such a vibe, a Black Metal Grand Swordmaster.
Lex was not astonished. Even though it was difficult to become a grand swordmaster, there were still many more grand swordmasters as compared to sorcerers. Titan Duchy had a population of almost ten-million, almost one-tenth of the Cloudflow Empire. It would be very normal for a duke to have several grand swordmasters serving him though.
Northern Titan was inclined to prudence, it was very different from Cloudflow. Breakfast only consisted of corn porridge and white bread. Meat options only included two pieces of smoked meat, topped with twenty grams of cheese which was barely sufficient. Fortunately, the vegetables were fresh. They were coupled with some mushrooms and sauce, and a small bowl of soup. These items summed up breakfast.
Habitually, Narnia prepared tea for Lex, and Bifano could not help but roll his eyes. Currently, Narnia was already a grade-4 mage, a grand mage. Bifano could not bear to see that she was using magic to brew tea.
Another female mage helped Lex change her cutlery into a set of silver ones. Afterwards, she used the Detection Magic to check each and every food item, before giving it to Lex with peace of mind.
They were used to doing such tasks. Even though the mages serving Lex lacked experience, their safety awareness was extremely high, it would be extremely difficult to assassinate them.
Bifano felt utterly embarrassed. He could not berate a the mages, those mages were not his subordinates after all.
”Bifano, please don't mind, they are used to doing such things.” Lex smiled gently as she consoled Bifano. She did not mean to do it either. There were many practices she did not wish for her subordinates to alter. It was good that these mages were serving her. If the lifestyle mages did not inculcate a similar habit, they could possibly lose their lives over trivial matters.
Bifano was rendered speechless. Luckily, this was only breakfast, there were no multiple rounds of dishes. The Detection Magic was only employed once. It was normal for Bifano to feel upset as the integrity of his food was questioned right in front of him.
Nailisi began eating the food, seemingly oblivious to her surroundings. She was not interested in the food. At the moment, she was more interested in learning the etiquette of humans. As for any poison that might be present, it could be disregarded as long as it did not enter her heart. Everything in the demonic plane was poisonous. To Nailisi, the Myers mainland was a little too pure already.
The swordmasters brought by Lex were arranged to have their meals in the small dining hall, while the few grand mages had not left their magic war chariot yet. Just like that, breakfast was over without any fuss or frills.
Bifano and Lex began discussing the situation down south as they drank some tea.
”Lex, the Pink Army will definitely attempt an assault during the journey. Please allow your swordsmen to be led by Bluefox for the time being, it will be helpful for the battle.”
Lex broke into a smile, and said, ”No, the dozens of people have been following me since the Holy Rock City. They can only converse in the Qin language. If they were to operate with your men, you would have even more trouble. I will deploy them to protect my chariots.”
Lex's words left no room for Bifano to rebut, but he did not have the intention to kill Lex and her men yet. He simply laughed it off and did not continue making any further requests.
”Out of my five-hundred soldiers, there are two-hundred cavalrymen, one-hundred shield infantrymen, one-hundred heavy swordsmen, and one-hundred archers. The cavalry will have three horses, while the rest of the men will have two horses. Their speed will not be too slow. You have seen the map too, the road conditions are pretty good. We will be able to cover at least two-hundred miles each day. By the end of the month, we should arrive at Fire Dance City.”
”That is very commendable to me. How are the preparations going on in Fire Dance City?”
”Other than the lack of mages, the rest of the problems have been settled. Lex, what is Saleen's background?” Bifano could tell that even though Saleen belonged to the Bitter Water Prefecture on the surface, he was actually extremely independent. He was almost free from Lex's control. Bifano had never done an investigation into him, and it would be too late to do so now, so Bifano decided to get information from Lex.
”Mage Saleen is a great man. What do you want to know?” Lex smiled. She would not reveal anything to Bifano. She would never disclose the secret between the both of them to anyone else.