Lucius kept his expression calm and unconcerned, but there was a certain edge to his tone, almost too casual, that Kiana and the criminals noticed.
Kiana presumed it was because of the fact that it was Gisir's kingdom that was at fault for all the harm that happened to Asher when he fought against them.
On the contrary, the edge was actually some excitement in Lucius' voice.
That was something the criminals recognized as they all exchanged discreet looks.
Arius and his team knew that they did a good job.
'We haven't heard anything from Gisir for quite some time, that I'm curious on what exactly they've been doing. There's the armistice, but based on my experience, nothing is truly as simple as it seems.' Lucius thought.
"We were hoping to find a good place to hide in the Gisir border, but all we found were soldiers camping." Arius said.
"And not just like a couple to watch and maintain the border, but more than necessary." Cohen shook his head. "Fighting them was tiring."
"But we've managed to deal with them all effectively." Carlyle said and nodded slowly. "This time it wasn't only Arius being the powerhouse. We all got our fair share in the action, right Cohen?"
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"Definitely!" Cohen grinned.
Lucius nearly forgotten that he had upgraded the gifts of both Cohen and Carlyle already.
'I've spent nearly 80% of the income from Dionysia Brewery for their upgrades, but it seems like it has only been an apt thing considering that they faced the Gisir army and came back unharmed.' Lucius thought.
The amount of wealth was something that Lucius didn't need to worry about with everything he gained from Bergan's Band vaults and the continued success of the Dionsyia Brewery.
"How did it go? Were the upgrades to your liking? Compared to before you had your gifts, would Arius the Fist, Cohen the Fang and Carlyle the Blood Hammer come out the same given the same situation?"
"Well, we would have survived all the same, but it would be with some injuries unlike now." Carlyle admitted. "I've been able to use my blood to form it into the hammer, but now I can shape it into something more projectile-like."
"Projectile?" Lucius asked.
Carlyle took out a knife and slashed his palm. Blood seeped out and quickly formed into shards which he used to attack the wall of the tavern.
"You're going to have to pay for that." Arius said with a shake of his head.
"Better to demonstrate it here than in our cozy new place." Carlyle shrugged apologetically.
"As for me the fangs I have are now poisoned." Cohen said. "Nothing as flashy as Carlyle's upgrade, but still effective."
'Hmm, now that I've thought about it... Ariana from Gellor's team also has a fang-based gift. A coincidence maybe? They don't necessarily have to be related to have similar gifts.'
"To keep it short for you though, Lucius. We managed to killed all the soldiers in the camp and found documents." Arius said and passed the documents to Asher.
"Hmmm... it's good that your superior power made dealing with the soldiers easy." Lucius said as he read the document.
It was one of the reasons why he made the Masked Legion in the first place and planned to create another force with Gellor and the criminals as well.
Creating elites was far better than simply having more troops and numbers.
"What is it... Lucius?" Kiana said, not being able to stop herself. She restrained herself from peeking over his shoulders, but she also wanted to hear the news at once.
"The Gisir Kingdom has created that particular group of soldiers as a camp of guerilla troops. Stationed at the border, they're ready to receive orders at a moment's notice." Lucius read aloud.
Kiana's eyes widened. "That's a violation of the armistice! If Grantz Kingdom were to discover it, this could cause the war to break out again. This is... this is horrible."
"Indeed it is." Lucius said as he returned the documents to their envelope. "How many did the three of you see while you guys were in Gisir?"
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm"Around ten camps, Lucius. We didn't fight with all of them, wanting to reserve our strength since it was just the three of us, but also because we promised to get back here as well." Arius said.
"Of course, that makes sense." Lucius nodded.
Kiana bit down on her lip, and the other three criminals glanced at Lucius in interest. This was vital and earth shaking news.
How Lucius responded to this information would say a lot about how he managed and worked through things, although Arius and his men already had a feeling that Lucius was no ordinary man.
Most of the nobility wouldn't even work with criminals in the first place, and even if they did, it would be through some other network or people so as to not trace it back to them.
On the contrary, Lucius personally came forward.
Cohen and Carlyle thought 'Lucius' was a disguise name, but it was still a lot of courage compared to other nobles who might have wanted to have several guards instead of just one maid.
Arius glanced slightly at Kiana. Even though there was a look of worry on her face, one couldn't also miss the way that her shoulders were straightened and her body was in a position ready to fight at a moment's notice.
"Thank you for the information, gentlemen." Lucius nodded. "This will be put into good hands. But this certainly does bring me into a new possible proposition for you three."
"What is it, Lucius?" Arius asked.
A smile played mildly on Lucius's lips and a cold look appeared in his eyes.
"Well, how do the three of you feel returning to Gisir again? The three of you finished off a camp all by yourselves, so it wouldn't be bad to deal with other ones given the right amount of time and preparation."
"Right amount of time and preparation?" Carlyle raised his brow.
"We are ready to act at a moment's notice, Lucius." Arius said. "Just say the word."