n

n

n

"And that's the situation,

" Layn said in a grim tone, turning his face towards his fellow aces of the camp.

"Not only are we against an overlord, different to the one we are trading with, we are also against the clock in the race of supporting a faction friendly to us in Slavians,

" Tom said, painting the picture of the entire situation.

n

"We are all against that... for what actually?

" Al asked, looking around him as if to point at the entirety of the camp. After all, indoors, there was hardly anything he could find interesting to look around at.

"A few run-down buildings that barely classify for that kind of name?

" he asked, shaking his head.

"Wouldn't it be easier to just let the two of them duke it out together and then make allies with the winner?

" the burly man suggested.

nFor a moment, everyone turned silent. Not even the slightest murmur came out of the mouth of those present.

nSlap.

nThe sound of a hand hitting the front of a head filled the room when Ation expressed his exhaustion.

n

"Al, it doesn't work like that,

" Ation said, putting an uneasy smile.

"Right now, we are the weakest of the three. With all due respect for the heavy work that you guys put in this place when compared to that kind of swarm? Or with force capable of picking up a fight with it?

" Ation shook his head.

"They will just roll over us. If we decide to stand by the side, it's even likely that one of the sides will try to use the other to get rid of us. Not in a play against an equal opponent, but in an attempt to weaken the other major force,

" Ation explained, proving that not all of Layn's ancestors represented the level that modern science often pictured General companions to be at.

n'I guess the legends came to be just to praise Al. Keeping capable figures by his side would make it harder for the storytellers to flaunt his epicness,' Layn thought, noticing the disproportion between what he expected and what he got.

n

"If we are not playing on the same board as those two, they won't consider us a player,

" Layn said, shaking his head.

"As such, we won't be able to get any backing for the faction potentially friendly to us,

" he added, explaining this weirdly complex yet ultimately simple problem.

n

"Wait for a second,

" Sitra finally dared to speak up. Given how she was surrounded by the people who proved to be way more than just capable on the battlefield, this normally haughty girl turned strangely silent.

"Did you say that you made a deal with another overlord?!

" she exclaimed, standing up and smashing her hands at the desk.

nOnce more, the room turned silent. This time, however, it wasn't Al that everyone directed their eyes at, but Sitra instead.

n

"Is this a problem?

" Layn asked, pretending to be confused. 'That's what I was waiting for,' he thought internally, forcing his lips not to let them form a smile.

"Well, that's the case, so let's move on,

" Tom said. He was perfectly satisfied with Sitra's reaction and already had plans in his head how to use it later on... But for now, there were other topics they had to talk about.

n

"Moving on, my ass!

" Sitra protested, once again slamming her hands against the table.

"Do you not realize how insanely impossible it is to strike any deal with an Overlord?!

" she cried out. Her face turned weird when she was met with confused stares from everyone.

"Oh, right, you guys have no idea...

" she muttered as she sat back in her seat, powerless.

n

"Either way,

" Layn said, moving his eyes from Sitra back to Antion and Markus.

"I believe we can all agree on intervening in this situation, right?

" Layn asked just to make sure everyone was on the same page.

n

"No objections here,

" Markus said, speaking up for the first time since the meeting started.

n

"It's not a good idea... but the only one we can have for now,

" Antion nodded his head, expressing the consent of the remaining part of their group.

nIn this small council, the range of everyone's influence was well established. Layn, as the slayer of the Overlord, had the ultimate right of decision. Ultimately, they were on his land and had to follow his rules. In terms of any conflict, he already proved to be well-versed in local ways of using powers, giving him the edge of ignorance over both Markus and Yelna.

nOn the other hand, Markus came here not only as a friend but also as the leader of the greatest group currently in the camp. The mercenaries he recruited before reaching for the camp were paid directly by him, making him the leader of the most populous faction in the camp.

nThen came Al and Ation. While Al was the real leader of his own group, he was smart enough to leave the tasks he was bad at to the subordinates that could fill the gap of skill he was lacking.

nBetween Layn's powerful but lacking numbers group and Markus leading the people that were basically the opposite of Layn's party, their ancestors were placed in the middle.

nAl could boast quite the numbers, several times the number of mercenaries that followed Layn. On the other hand, even his unit was outnumbered by Markus hired mercenaries. Their advantage, though laid in the fact that they were all from the same tribe instead of being people that just worked for the money.

nWith this dynamic in the room, Sitra was the only one who didn't boast a potential faction on her own. Yet, given how important the relations with Slavians would become down the line, giving her a spot at the council was just a move ahead of its time aiming at establishing proper diplomatic relations with the other said.

nIn other words, Sitra, even if she didn't realize it yet, already served the role of an impromptu ambassador.

n

"Well, now that we have this matter dealt with, let's move on to the future of this camp,

" Layn said, leaning back over his seat.

"Personally, I don't really give two **s what we are going to do here in the longer term. If you want to settle down and create cities, I'm game. If you want to use this land as a hunting ground, just help me figure out how to produce monsters,

" Layn said, preparing the ground for the small bomb that he was about to drop.

n

"But you are not going to give up on your wish to get an academy here, right?

" Markus interjected, raising his eyes at Layn. While others could consider this kind of interruption quite intrusive, the small smile on his friend's face made Layn certain that, at least from Markus's side, he didn't need to expect any objections.

n

"That's right,

" Layn said, nodding his head.

"While there is a chance I will be able to recreate the gran arcana and move everyone back to their time, I personally wish to stay in this place and this time,

" he suddenly announced.

nOnce again, the room turned silent. With only five people inside, it shouldn't be that hard to keep silence. Sadly, as if some kind of ill fate dabbled in reality, everyone in the room somehow had the habit of silently speaking to themselves when thinking, making for quite a background noise.

n

"I understand,

" Markus nodded his head as a hint of nostalgia entered his eyes.

"It's for Irea, right?

" he asked, looking at Layn with random curiosity.

n

"I don't see how is that important,

" Layn said, squinting his eyes for a moment before releasing a deep sigh and nodding his head.

"But yeah, I follow the idea that home is where your loved ones are,

" he said bluntly, not even getting his cheeks red while at it.

"There is nothing for me to return to in our original time,

" Layn said, looking at everyone in the room.

"On the other hand, I would rather devote my life to studying the current times before doing my best to preserve it for as long as possible,

" the archmage announced, leaning over the table sitting in the middle of the chairs.

n

"I understand,

" this time, it was Ation to speak up.

"But I don't understand one thing,

" he added, staring straight into Layn's eyes.

"From everything that I heard, you intended to move through time while your friends,

" Ation nodded his head to Markus with respect,

"somehow were caught up in the spell.

" Ation took a short break to water his throat. But even after this, he remained motionless, as if gathering the courage for the question he was about to throw out.

n

"My point is,

" Ation finally picked up after nearly an entire minute of dead silence.

"How come did we get involved?

" he asked.

n

"To be fair?

" Layn asked rhetorically before taking a deep breath and revealing the devastating truth without even a shred of hesitation..

"I don't have the slightest idea.

"

n