Chapter 84: Airael’s Envy

Chapter 84: Airael’s Envy

Not to mention Airael, who was simply enjoying the spectacle.

After Axi made it clear he had no opinion on the matter, it naturally fell to Hudeman to come up with a solution that would satisfy both parties, or simply discard one side altogether.

As they continued to argue, Hudeman was frantically weighing his options in his mind.

Although he was the leader of this troop and a rather esteemed Count, he couldn’t completely disregard the opinions of these people.

Especially Baron Powell.

Though just a baron, Powell was anything but an ordinary one.

Moreover, even His Majesty the King could not ignore everyone and do as he pleased.

What Hudeman wanted to do was naturally aligned with the southern folks’ ideas.

Cleaning up the leftover orcs was indeed a time-consuming and labor-intensive task.

And the effort was not proportional to the reward.

Mark Fortress was where they would truly shine.

But this idea didn’t resonate well with the northern folk.

Their lands would suffer losses in the process.

The southerners merely needed to calculate their own costs and gains, while the northerners had to factor in the loss of their territory.

Actually, convincing these northerners was simple; as long as he could guarantee their lands wouldn’t suffer severe losses moving forward.

Hudeman believed the northerners would definitely want to perform well on the battlefield at Mark Fortress, but their concerns about their own territories forced them to shove that ambition aside for now.

After analyzing all this, Hudeman quickly reached a conclusion in his mind.

“Everyone quiet!”

His words brought silence back to the scene.

No matter what, Hudeman was still their leader, and some face had to be given.

With such courtesy extended to him, Hudeman felt quite better inside.

He looked at Powell and said, “Baron Powell, your earlier suggestion is indeed a concern; we can’t sacrifice one for the other.”

Upon hearing Hudeman’s words, Powell and the others’ expressions improved significantly.

In contrast, the faces of the southerners darkened considerably.

At this moment, they labeled Hudeman as a “southern traitor.”

Since Axi had already expressed his stance earlier, both he and Airael were merely watching the show now.

However, Axi was less interested; it was Airael who was keenly paying attention.

And Airael felt that a twist was definitely coming.

As a bystander, she was quite clear about this.

She didn’t think Hudeman would be foolish enough to do something like that.

Even though the southerners were allies, trying so hard to please the northerners would yield minimal benefits for him if they did accept; in contrast, his losses could be significant.

Some things are hard to regain once lost.

Just as expected, Hudeman soon threw them a major curveball.

Many faces changed as a result.

“However, I think you don’t really need to worry too much about this. The remaining orcs can’t stir up much trouble within the kingdom anymore.

What’s more, even if we don’t deal with those guys, someone else will. Don’t forget, the kingdom has hired many mercenaries to assist in the battle.

Most of those mercenaries are rather pathetic, but sending them to deal with the leftover orcs won’t be much of a problem. Wouldn’t you agree, Mr. Axi?”

At the end, Hudeman looked at Axi and asked.

Although Axi was a lone mercenary, he held significant prestige in the mercenary world.

Those mercenaries respected him greatly and would certainly listen to what he had to say.

One could say Axi was the spokesperson for mercenaries here.

As long as Axi nodded, Hudeman could spread that information, boosting the morale of the mercenaries and helping them tackle the remaining orcs more efficiently.

To this, Axi had no choice but to nod, “That’s right! The mercenaries can definitely take out those leftover orcs.”

He couldn’t very well say the mercenaries were incapable.

After all, he was one of them.

And it was an undeniable fact that many mercenaries could handle those leftover orcs.

The now disgruntled northerners had nothing to say upon hearing this exchange.

Besides, just as Hudeman had anticipated.

If it weren’t for their territorial concerns, they would also want to strut their stuff at Mark Fortress.

They’d felt quite stifled these days due to the orcs.

Forced to stay at home while the orcs flaunted their power outside.

Yesterday’s battle merely let them vent a bit of frustration; to thoroughly release that pent-up energy, several more proper combats were necessary.

After reaching a unified opinion on this matter, the morning meeting concluded.

After leaving the venue, Airael walked alongside Axi.

After a moment of silence, Airael finally spoke up, “What do we do next? Are we going to Mark Fortress with them?”

At this moment, they had arrived at a rather secluded spot.

Airael’s question naturally stemmed from their special identities.

Her own, well, let’s not even get started—it was complicated beyond belief.

As for Axi, he was currently a mercenary, a highly capable one at that.

And the plan discussed during the morning meeting had mercenaries tackling those leftover orcs.

Not to mention Hudeman planned to rally the mercenaries under Axi’s name to boost their morale.

At a time like this, it would seem inappropriate for Axi not to set an example.

Yet truly sending Axi to deal with those leftover orcs felt like a gross underutilization.

The battlefield that would be far more suited for Axi was undeniably Mark Fortress.

That was where humans were about to launch a counter-offensive against the orcs.

Therefore, that was where Axi’s presence would be needed most.

Axi stopped and looked at Airael, “You think I care what they think?”

Airael was momentarily at a loss for words.

After a while, she shook her head with a wry smile, “Alright, I guess I was overthinking it.”

Humans are indeed complex creatures, but sometimes, they can be quite simple too.

Thinking of this, Airael suddenly found herself a bit envious of Axi.

He lived so straightforwardly and genuinely.

He did what he wanted without worrying about what others thought of him.

And what about herself?

While she was also doing what she wanted, she couldn’t manage to be as direct and carefree as Axi, completely ignoring how others perceived her.

To put it simply, she cared about others’ opinions.

Especially how Linis viewed her.