Red hit the mute button on his end for a moment, and looked at the Omni-Web data.
The Druid wasn't lying. It was a basic military strategy. If Aurelius secured the southern forest, he could build a supply road right up to the edge of Bastion, entirely bypassing the traps Gorak and Razor-Fin had set in the western bogs.
Furthermore, 7,000 followers was the magic number. A Major Domain Shield would force Aurelius to fight a protracted, traditional siege, draining his DP immensely. It made perfect, logical sense to accept the merger.
But Red wasn't just a logic engine.
He thought of Krug, tending the Violet Flame with absolute, unwavering faith. He thought of Iron-Scale, charging into the dark with a Star-Iron blade. And he thought of the Root-Father, the Druid's former Elder, who had sacrificed his centuries-old life just to give Bastion a fighting chance, while the Druid hid in the south.
