At the writing desk sat the man called Nelson. He was a large man with a slight stubble on his face. He had brown eyes and small dark circles under them, indicating that he probably hadn't slept properly in a long time. He was wearing the same military uniform as the other soldiers, but on his shoulder there was a patch with four stars, indicating his rank. Standing next to him were two people clad in iron armor, their appearance greatly surprising the trio. In their hands were two long sticks with blades at the ends, similar to those of axes, but with sharp tips.
Asan immediately thought of the name of this medieval weapon. Halberd.
Due to the helmets, it was impossible to see what faces were hidden beneath them, but one could confidently say that these were most likely soldiers.
"Who are you?" A hoarse and tired voice of the captain sounded, who shifted his weary brown eyes to the trio. He slowly tapped his finger on the desk where various papers were scattered.
Paul was somewhat taken aback by such an introduction, but, swallowing hard, stepped forward nonetheless.
"Hello. I assume you are the leader of this camp?" Paul asked first.
"And who wants to know?" The man asked simply, folding his hands into a steeple and leaning slightly forward.
"I am Paul, the leader of the strike group of a nomadic camp located near the city" replied Paul.
His voice conveyed firmness and determination, though he wasn't exactly nervous. Of course, this was assuming one didn't notice how he kept clenching his jaw.
"So, Paul… I am Nelson. I truly am the leader of this fort. Tell me, what is your purpose for coming here to see me? What do you and your people need?" Nelson replied with a sardonic smile, settling more comfortably into his seat.
Asan couldn't seem to look away from the two knights standing next to him. Where had they gotten all that armor and weapons? He had previously seen the man on the wall, known as Stiletto, wearing leather armor. Maybe someone has the ability to create such equipment?
"We came here to stay for a week at the fort, to rest and resupply from the city. We didn't think we'd meet anyone here, so I came to negotiate."
"We still need to take a break and replenish supplies" Paul said frankly, without trying to evade the issue.
Asan didn't like this idea because then they would be in a less favorable position during negotiations. It was also unclear how much they would be charged for staying at the fort. The boy was certain that they wouldn't simply be allowed to stay here for free.
"Hmm…" Nelson sighed heavily, tapping his finger on the table more forcefully. Finally, he began to examine each person standing before him individually.
When his gaze fell on Asan, the boy felt uncomfortable. This was even more uncomfortable than when everyone in the camp had looked at him when he first joined. This man…
He was literally looking into his soul.
A shiver ran through Asan, and he wanted to leave the building. He had never experienced such a feeling before, and it was incredibly unpleasant.
Fortunately, the man's gaze was fixed on him for no more than a couple of dozen seconds before it slid back to Paul. Asan wondered how Paul could calmly continue standing there, completely unaffected by that terrifying stare.
"How many people are in your camp?" Leaning back in the chair he was sitting in, Nelson asked the question contentedly.
"Considering our strike team – 16. Two old men, four women, the rest are men" Paul said truthfully again.
"Good. I think I can allocate a piece of land for you in the fort. But not for free… Let me calculate… Seventy-five percent of your trade will go to our fort, okay?"
The man smiled slyly, watching the reaction of the trio.
If Alice had been a cat, her fur would have stood on end after Nelson's words. Her face immediately twisted into a furious grimace.
Only as she began to speak, Paul put his hand up in front of her, silencing her before she could say a word.
"We accept this condition, but considering that we will indeed live in your fort for a week, and you will protect us" Paul replied calmly, completely devoid of emotion. Asan was stunned by Paul's response.
What the hell, Paul? Is this how negotiations are conducted? Shouldn't they have at least bargained down to fifty percent?
Asan bit his lip so hard that he tasted blood in his mouth. He hated what Paul had done. What was the point of stopping to gather supplies if they were almost going to give everything to other people? Wouldn't it be easier just to search the city, take the supplies, and bring them back to the camp daily? Wasn't this sheer stupidity?
"Fine, so be it."
I think we've come to an agreement, right? You don't have any more business with me? You can bring your people to the fort, we'll gladly accommodate all of you here. We'll take care of everything before your arrival" said Nelson, returning to the papers on the table with a satisfied smile.
Alice and Asan were confused. Unlike them, Paul nodded and bid farewell, ordering them to follow him.
***
When the entrance doors to the tower closed, Nelson's smile immediately vanished. He let out a heavy sigh and got to his feet, pulling a cigar case from his pocket. Taking out a cigarette, he lit it up. The foul smoke quickly spread through the small room, filling the area.
"Tsk... This doesn't add up, Nelson" came a muffled voice behind Nelson. It was the Jack, the man he had served with in the army and who was truly his right-hand man, not Kirill.
This entire show put on for the newcomers was a long-planned scheme. Kirill was supposed to play the part of a fair and nice guy to win people over. Stylet was actually even nicer than Kirill, but unfortunately, only he could properly portray his role as an asshole.
They noticed the approach of the assault group even when they entered the city. This was the main advantage of the observation tower where the man's office was located. He watched through a small window as a group of six people left their fort. Even now, no smile appeared on his face; everything depended on the negotiations.
"You're right, Jackal. Using my ability to check them out, I realized that the short kid is currently the strongest among them, although I'd place this group leader in second place."
It cannot be ruled out that maybe that kid is actually the leader, and all this was organized specifically. Although... They're not military. Their gait, what they do, how they communicate... All of this gives them away as ordinary civilians, but then the question arises of how they managed to achieve so much in just a month?' — Nelson reasoned aloud, once again inhaling cigarette smoke. A sigh escaped from under another helmet.
"Captain, we've never seen people outside the city before. Maybe the situation outside the city allows for more opportunities for advancement?" — said the second man, clad in armor. His voice was somewhat unpleasant and squeaky, earning him the nickname Goblin.
"The hell if I know, Goblin. On top of that, this Paul agreed too easily. Two possibilities: either things are really bad for them, or they had some plan for this."
"Should we take note of two options right away, and for now, can we be satisfied with what we have?" said Nelson, tossing a smoldering cigarette butt into the square window, which had slightly burned his fingers.
"Maybe they think they're the smartest and can screw us over? We've already seen such bastards who thought they were better than the military and could stand up for themselves, haven't we?" said Jack, taking off his helmet to show his face. There was a bandage over his right eye, and his lips looked absolutely terrible.
"I remember how that bastard slapped you across the face, Jack, how you screamed like a little girl back then... By the way... About the girl. The one next to the glasses-wearing guy isn't bad at all, I'd say—" Goblin started to say with a laugh, but suddenly felt his neck being grabbed. Despite the armor, the Goblin was lifted up and squeezed tightly.
This was Nelson.
"If you, scumbag, even mention sex one more time, I'll cut your dick off myself, piece of shit. You talked about it all the time before the war and now. Last time I barely managed to get rid of the evidence after your stunt, so shut up and don't say another word about it" Nelson roared at the Goblin, whose eyes reflected cold fury. He remembered how Goblin had raped some new girl who had just arrived at the camp.
In turn, she wanted to tell everyone about it, but to maintain stability, she had to be eliminated. Nelson hated cleaning up after someone's shit, especially that of his subordinates. The command had to give him the most despicable scum that the European Alliance knew. Orders from the government had stopped two weeks ago, signaling that only the strongest would survive.
And Nelson understood this.
If necessary, he will kill both the Goblin and the Jester. He doesn't care about anyone at all.
As long as he's in charge.
***
The way back to the camp was not very difficult. A couple of times, the group encountered Ronnie, but successfully avoided each battle using Paul's instructions. After talking with the captain and leaving the tower, Alice unleashed all curses on the leader of the strike team like a unleashed dog. Asan remained silent, but clearly was also displeased. When the others found out, only Crane looked... indifferent. This guy is hardly affected by anything. Sometimes Asan thought that he must be constantly under some kind of medication or tranquilizers. Can a person really be so indifferent to everything?
To Asan's surprise, the next one to be the most vocal among them was Bridgite.
She kept saying that they wouldn't gather anything this way, and that the deal was foolish. Laszlo, surprisingly, said that he trusted Paul, but upon learning the reason, Asan was not at all surprised.
"Whether it's 75% or not, it doesn't matter. We'll be able to gather enough food for the journey ahead, right?"
This response slightly eased the tension, but it flared up again when Asan saw the outlines of their camp in the distance.
It is unknown how Geographer will react to such news.