CHAPTER 606: SURE

Bartuk felt a chill run down his spine at Zach’s reaction after he explained how gods worked. But he pushed that aside. He had no reason to fear Zach. From what he could tell, while he and his companions were strong, they weren’t strong enough to kill him. So, he pushed aside the chill and looked Zach in the eyes.

"Well...?" He asked. Was Zach going to give them what they wanted? What did he want in return?

"You want me to just let you slide on right by and give you free access to my continent?" Zack asked. He didn’t sound sarcastic.

"Preferably," Bartuk answered.

Zach tilted his head, considering it.

"What can you give me and my continent in return? From the sounds of it, you and your gods will gain a lot from having a whole continent of people to recruit into your faith. Aren’t you just taking our people from us without giving anything back?"

Frida and Bartuk stared blankly at Zach after his questions. They were confused.

"We are bestowing the blessings of our god upon your barren lands. We are granting your people the greatness of our gods and giving them a chance to be a part of something bigger and greater than they could ever hope for. We are raising the status of your isolated, country-side continent to a higher level."

In other words, them spreading the words and beliefs of their gods was doing the Gjula continent a favor already. Why should they need to offer anything else?

Zach’s eyebrows rose in a mix of amazement and skepticism. Believers were interesting people. For some reason, he had a feeling that they wouldn’t mesh well with the people of the Empire.

Zach crossed his arms and sank into thought for a moment.

Monolith couldn’t help but worry. It seemed like Zach was actually considering it. There was no way it was a good idea. It would be better to just drive them out and collapse the tunnel while preparing for the next round as soon as the other side excavated the tunnel again.

Nessa, Dukiel, and Anerias knew better than that. There was no way Zach would agree to such a one-sided deal, at least not unless it was in his favor.

However...

"Sure." To everyone’s surprise, Zach nodded.

"But wait for a day or two here. I’ve got a couple of things to prepare, if that’s alright?"

Frida and Bartuk were surprised.

Zach had been like a roadblock of the hardest stone. He had been covered in spikes and seemed impossible to get past. But now, he was just stepping aside?

They would have been skeptical and doubtful of his intentions if not for the endless benefits they could reap from the other side of the tunnel. Their faces lit up.

Monolith, Nessa, Dukiel, and Anerias stared at Zach with wide eyes and their jaws barely clinging to their faces. They could not understand what he was thinking.

The moment they let them into the Empire, they would try and take control over the people. They would spread their influence and recruit more and more followers until theri Apostles and whatnots became unstoppable.

There was also Zoe to think about. The cornerstone of the world was one thing, but she had almost died fighting Bartuk.

They were enemies!

Zach winked at them when Frida and Bartuk were busy celebrating.

"Let’s meet here in a day, then." Zach put a hand on the table and stood up. He offered his hand to Frida and Bartuk to shake on it. They accepted. Zach smiled. They returned the smile. They were too enthusiastic about the millions of followers they were going to get to notice the satisfaction and greed in Zach’s eyes.

Zach turned around and returned to their side of the tunnel with the others. He put up a barrier behind them. It covered the entire tunnel and was invisible, so it wouldn’t be indestructible. But it would stop any spies from trying to sneak past, and it would alert him if the believers tried anything.

Zach didn’t think Frida or Bartuk would try anything. They were strong, and he understood why they had been sent. But they weren’t the strongest, and they weren’t the sharpest. Their side hadn’t been planning on diplomacy, so they hadn’t sent diplomats.

But Zach didn’t rule out the possibility of other forces infiltrating their groups or there being smarter followers who would want to get an edge or advantage.

It was always better to be safe than sorry, a lesson he had learned too late.

When they were at a safe distance from the believers of Vatar and Mistra, Zach told the others his plan. Once they heard it, they understood why Zach had agreed to Frida’s and Bartuk’s request.

If his plan worked out, they would gain a lot of information on the southern continent to prepare for an eventual full-scale war between the two continents. They would learn about the strange energy the believers used. They would get an understanding of what they were dealing with.

The other side, however, wouldn’t get anything.

And that was just one side of Zach’s plan.

The second part seemed a lot more reckless. It seemed much more like something Zach could come up.

And it was the part that Monolith, Nessa, Dukiel, and Anerias liked the most. They liked it for a few different reasons, depending on what Violina chose to do.

It was a shame that both Zoe and Violina were asleep, but there wasn’t much they could do about that right now.

So, they focused on spreading Zach’s idea to the important people on the surface, such as the Emperor and the dukes. In the east’s case, they told Zach’s proxies. Everyone’s cooperation would be vital for the plan’s success. Naturally, they had to inform the principal as well.

There was a lot to be done in the short deadline Zach had given them.

Fortunately, it seemed like most agreed to the plan. However, the principal was still busy, which worried Zach.

But it was another thing they couldn’t do anything about, so they focused on the present and prepared what they could.