“How dare you claim that you are doing this for the Raksasa Tribe?” Alaric pointed at Amastan and shouted as he trembled with rage, “You idiot! If it
weren’t for your insubordination, this would not have happened. You ignored my warning and charged right into the enemies’ formation, putting yourself in danger. If it weren’t for that, our sister wouldn’t have gone to your rescue and ended up held captive by Darryl Darby.”
Alaric looked around the room and continued to say in a cold tone, “I hereby announce that Amastan will be temporarily relieved of his position as the Vanguard Commander and detained in the camp. He will not be allowed to step foot out of this camp without my order.” Alaric was far too reckless to be left unattended; he had to do that to prevent him from wreaking havoc and going after their sister on his own.
“Yes, Honorable Son!” The generals replied in unison. They thought that Alaric’s decision was slightly inappropriate, but since he was outraged, none dared to plead for Amastan.
“What?” Amastan’s eyes turned red in disbelief as he stared at Alaric. “You are stripping me of my position? What have I done to deserve this?”
“You still don’t get it?” Alaric rebuked, “You will answer to Father when we find him.”
“I—” Amastan wanted to refute, but he gave up and turned to leave reluctantly; he knew that nothing would change his brother’s mind.
“The rest of you, go and get some rest.” Alaric waved his hand and gestured to the generals to take their leave. The generals obeyed and left his tent in an orderly fashion.
After they left, Alaric turned around to face Debra and Shentel and said, “My apologies for the incident earlier. The two of you must have been terrified. My little brother has always been reckless, doing whatever he feels like doing. I hope that you would be kind enough to look past this; as long as I’m here, no one can harm you.”
“Okay!” Debra nodded even though she was still in shock.
Shentel, on the other hand, responded with a gentle smile, “That’s alright, we won’t hold grudges!” She studied Alaric’s pale face and said with genuine concern, “Honorable Son, you are wounded. You should get some rest as well.” They had spent many days with Alaric, and they believed that he had a golden heart that longed for peace and was destined to be a wise leader.
Alaric nodded and called for soldiers to escort the women back to their tents before he laid down to rest. His previous encounter with Darryl left him feeling as though all the veins on his chest were blasted open. He really needed to rest to recover.
It was past midnight. As commanded by Alaric, the Raksasa Army had tightened their defenses as silence loomed over the camp. Only dozens of soldiers patrolled back and forth quietly. Alaric meditated for a while before he closed his eyes and prepared to rest.
Suddenly, faint footsteps approached the tent as a shadow snuck into it. It was dark, and Amastan’s expression was cold with traces of internal conflicts. Alaric sat up immediately when he noticed the sound, and he was stunned to see his younger brother in front of him.
“Brother? What are you doing here in my tent instead of resting in yours?” Alaric was still irritated by Amastan’s previous behaviors and remained affectionless in his tone.
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