65. The Traps (II)

Peter held Aman for a private meeting, after the dinner, while the girls returned to their lodge. Peter led him to one of his makeshift war rooms, where a few of the other soldier captains joined them.

"Lord Errama." They greeted as Peter walked in. "Hero."

Aman felt his heart skip. It's been a long time since someone saluted him with such seriousness that it felt- different. It truly reminded him of his duty to slay the demons. "Alright. My men say they have something to discuss with you. Some of our messages have came back, and- well, I don't know the contents, I was too busy drinking, but men, please let the hero know."

Taptain nodded, as he began to read out. "The City of Sodenterland has received our memorandum on the attacks by the demons, and have agreed to send aid. Some elite soldiers will be headed our way. The Temple of the Goddesses also claimed to have located another warrior blessed by the goddesses, and she, together with the elite soldiers of Sodenterland will join the coming battle with the demons."

"Wow." Aman nodded.

"Count Edmund Natar has also volunteered some of his soldiers to the battle, they are headed this way as well, and will arrive in Northengard a week." Northengard was a few days away from Errama. Close enough to launch an attack on the demons, if needed.

Aman paused. "That's where Kiara was-"

The captain continued to read out the missives, and soon it was clear that there would be about two hundred soldiers headed to Errama. Peter Errama, however, didn't seem too happy.

"Hero." Peter frowned, and then said frankly. "The responsibility to pay for food and provide lodging to visiting soldiers that come to our aid is with the host. That means we have to pay for it."

Aman didn't like where that angle was going.

"Once they arrive, we need to mobilize them and launch an attack on the demon lord as soon as possible. The longer they stay around here, the longer we have to pay for their food."

The captain then quickly clarified. "Count Natar's forces will be self-funded. He declared that the aid of his forces will not burden Errama."

Aman's assessment of the Count increased. If Kiara's mother was rescued by this Count, he couldn't be that bad. But the Count's forces was only a fraction. The rest of it were the neighboring cities, supporting Errama's call for an attack on the demon lord Karras. Lord Peter Errama looked at the hero. "That's good. But still, hero, Errama- well, I'll be frank, I don't intend to spend too much money. Can you and your girls help to hunt down monsters for their remains, and fund this war operations? I don't need you to fund all of it. Just half."

"Half?"

"Captain, how much will the logistics of raising such an army cost us?"

The Captain thought about it, "About 200 gold, milord. Each additional day will cost us about 10 gold for all their various needs."

That wasn't much, Aman thought. He has that money already, in his magical storage skill. The hero, Aman, has a special skill with a goddess-powered item box. That meant he could store gold with almost zero risk of theft, and even better still, it paid interest! So, the more money Aman had inside the store, it'll multiplied. "I see."

"Milord, if I may, I think we can afford the cost." The Captain clarified. "Instead, we need the hero to either help restore some of the damaged bridges."

Lord Peter Errama's eyes blinked. "OH! The damaged bridges to Northengard! Yes. There's an old swamp monster in the caves and some terrible trolls living under the bridges. I've been trying to get adventurers to kill those pests but none of them are strong enough."

"Sounds doable. I'll bring my team there and defeat those monsters." Aman offered.

Captain clarified. "Hero, if I may, we might still be attacked by the demons. Are any of your team members strong enough to defeat the creature?"

Aman frowned. "I don't think so."

"Perhaps some of them should stay behind and help us defend the city, or all of them head there while you stay here? We've used up some of our magical formations and could use the mage's assistance to restore them. And our injured soldiers would benefit from a goddess-blessed priestess."

Aman thought for a moment. "I'll do it myself. Or I'll just take Raven with me. Hannah, Kiara, Wynn and Nysta will stay behind."

The captain nodded. "In that case, I'll ready up the repair crew to go with you. The restored bridges would allow the forces along Northengard to travel to Errama faster."

Peter clapped his hand. "Is that all, Captain?"

"I believe so. Our scouts located the demon lord Karras's fort. Once we have the force ready, we should be able to launch an attack."

Peter nodded. "Fantastic. Go get some rest, Aman. You deserve it."

Aman smiled. Peter Errama didn't seem so bad, now.