Darius Supreme

Darius pondered for a bit before explaining his thoughts. "In truth, you don't have to go so far. I can offer you three methods to cut out the middleman altogether."

Elijah's eyes brightened. "Go on."

Darius raised his index finger. "Firstly, there is the option to have my servant, Gunner, retrieve all the supplies we need. The only reason those spatial talents were needed in the first place was due to the fact that it is difficult to cross through the two bands with the resources and remain safe from undead attack."

Darius gestured to his Branded Servant. "Gunner here isn't afraid of any undead, and can easily carry tons of resources over at a time and at a scary speed too, so that is one option."

Darius raised his middle finger to add to his upraised index. "The second option is to rely on my two vampires. They have the ability to create Blood Warriors who possess some of their combat power. With enough of them, we could form a tireless and consistent supply line from Baratuo to the encampment."

"Most importantly we won't have to fear for such a caravan's safety. Not a single undead would dare to attack a vampire's servants as they radiate the aura of their masters, Supreme Undead."

Darius leaned back in his seat. "In fact, it won't be an issue of them wanting to attack but fearing to, rather they would never even entertain that thought, as these undead only attack the living."

Elijah's eyes brightened further. He could almost picture it, an almost endless train of these so-called Blood Warriors carting in resources in a timely manner, not bothered by fatigue or remuneration, only the task.

In fact, that was not all. These Blood Warriors could also cut out costs altogether in the most efficient way. That union of greedy fellows would be at a loss while all the resources would be held by Elijah.

He could then use a high vantage point to 'distribute resources according to donation' thereby using soft tactics to force those factions to cough up their cash.

Currently, when resources arrived, they were shared among the factions immediately as many had bribed the union.

"And the last method?" Elijah inquired curiously.

Darius raised his ring finger. "The third method is to have our own person either teleport with as many materials as he can, or open a portal from which resources can be carried in seemlessly."

Elijah frowned. "But if we could get someone like that, I wouldn't even be in this situation."

Darius chuckled. "Exactly. Up until now, you never had a person who could fulfill this criterion."

Elijah furrowed his brows, before the answer hit him. He wondered why he had failed to account for Darius himself up until now, then he realized why.

Normally such a menial task would be beneath a bonafide noble and Adept, so he had been thinking of an underling.

Darius pointed himself and affirmed Elijah's conclusion. "That's right, I can use the space element. I've reached here via teleportation. I also have a special Adept spell that allows me to open a personal void space for myself, where I can carry large loads of items."

Elijah simply nodded in understanding, waiting for Darius to continue on.

Darius himself began thinking once more, a playful smile on his face. "As for the issue of funding, it is very easy for me to solve… yet I refuse."

Darius remained calm when faced with the Royal Seneschal's souring mood as he continued. "I may be an Adept mage, but I consider myself a merchant first and foremost. I do not have a habit to give out money freely without any real returns. The first two solutions provide some benefits for myself in terms of power, control, and convenience."

Darius shook his head. "Giving the encampment money for its own problems from my pocket though, does not do anything but make me look like a rich idiot who does not understand the value of money."

Elijah blew out air and rubbed his forehead. "So? What then do you have in mind to solve this issue?"

Darius' eyes flashed as he had led him to ask the question he wanted. "First of all, Lord Seneschal, you have to understand that the first two issues are semi-natural problems."

Darius wiggled his still upraised index finger. "The blight is something not created artificially but a natural part of the Plains of Death, and it causes an unavoidable issue. Having the priests clear it for a price was not exactly detrimental, merely inefficient."

Darius then wiggled his middle finger. "Hunger and thirst are natural things. No human can easily avoid this issue, especially in a position like this where creating a supply line is arduous."

"The union fellows taking advantage is also to expected because it's a part of human nature to make use of opportunities to enrich themselves, even at the cost of others. In truth, all they're doing is asking for more money, from what you've told me they've neither shirked their duties nor caused any truly detrimental problems to the camp as a whole."

Darius' smiled turned to a frown as he wiggled his upraised ring finger. "But this third issue is a purely artificial one, and one that doesn't make sense for you to bear as a burden in truth."

Elijah was stunned. "What do you mean?"

He might not be a merchant, but he was someone knowledgeable enough to give out advice to the Queen and manage the Royal Factions' daily businesses, including funds, cleaning, preparation, the servants, etc.

To be told that he had made a mistake in his management style would have annoyed him any other day, but not right now as he was seeking help from Darius. Not to mention, that some suppressed part of Elijah agreed.

Darius clapped his hand together and then pointed outward. "Lord Seneschal, you are the chairman and manager of this camp, not the custodian or babysitter. As such, aren't you supposed to lead and decide on big issues while delegating others to handle smaller tasks, creating a decentralized commission covering the entire camp and each faction?"