Supreme Magus novel Chapter 4009

Chapter 4009: Hidden Game (Part 2)

"Meln never lived in the Desert. If he’s going to aim for a country, he’ll set his sights on the Griffon Kingdom." Lith pointed out.

"My thoughts exactly." Salaark replied. "Yet that doesn’t mean he won’t mess with me. All he needs is to place a few thralls in a few key locations to deal a devastating blow to my Blood Desert."

"How?" Solus was flabbergasted.

"Think about it, Solus. An outlaw tribe attacks one of my Feathers, and two, maybe three of them, are Upyr thralls." Salaark said. "One sneak attack from someone with the mass of a Divine Beast is enough to kill a fake Awakened.

"My soldiers would slaughter the tribe, but my Feather would still be dead. Meln would exchange a pawn he created with a few drops of his blood for a mage it took me decades to nurture and train."

"By my Mom!" Solus’ eyes widened in shock.

"Agreed. It would be a terrible trade for me." The Overlord nodded. "In the same way, the thralls could stall the members of my Nest during a crisis. Not one engineered by Meln, he lacks the resources for that, but by my enemies.

"Meln doesn’t need to fund any plan against me because the outlaw tribes are already backed by the free countries that surround the Desert and work with them. Once the outlaw chieftains ensure that I can’t track their moves and get used to their powers, they’ll become bolder.

"At that point, the outlaws and the free countries could stage a coordinated strike at my tribes to destabilize my country."

"I can see that happening, but I still can’t find a reason for Meln to do all this." Lith nodded.

"I can see a few, instead, Featherling. We are dealing with the Horseman of Chaos, and she doesn’t plan ahead as you and I do. Such a strategy could be intended to punish me for helping you in the past, or to keep me busy in the moment of your need.

"After all, Meln is not committing any of his Upyrs or resources to this. He’s just giving others the means to challenge my authority. He doesn’t care about their victory or defeat, only about inflicting as much damage as possible."

"Surprise attacks, eliminating key figures, and letting others do his dirty work for him fit Meln’s pattern. It’s what he did in the Kingdom during his first campaign against me." Lith pondered. "How are you going to reply to his challenge, Grandma?"

"The only way I know." She replied. "Swiftly, decisively, and striking his forces before they do, Featherling. As I told you, I know the position of most outlaw tribes in the Blood Desert.

"Even if Meln has tuned a few chieftains into his thralls, I can still detect everyone else. That and the need for an oasis for survival limits the places where my enemies can hide. I’m going to sweep the Desert, locate all the outlaw tribes, and check them for Upyrs.

"I need to determine their numbers and position to understand how much Meln has spread his Upyr plague and stop whatever he is plotting before it’s too late. I plan to destroy the Upyr thralls one by one, but only after thoroughly interrogating them in person.

"Only Meln can create new Upyrs, and he might have let something slip during one of the many conversations he had with the chieftains. The odds I discover something about his plans for you are slim, Featherling, but if Meln is using a similar strategy in the Kingdom, you’ll know what to expect."

"It sounds like an excellent plan, Grandma." Lith nodded. "Every one of Meln’s defeats is my victory, no matter how small-"

"Thank you, but I didn’t call you here because I wanted your opinion." Salaark raised her hand, asking for silence. "I’m warning you that my Nest and I are going to be very busy until this threat has been neutralized."

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify