As soon as Olga stopped moaning to the whole camp, pretending wild passion, and Alexander with a satisfied smile on his face left the tent, one of the vampires knelt down in front of him and reported that he had brought the caravan safe and sound, and was ready to fulfill all the orders of his lord!
With a sigh of relief, the triumvir ordered the caravan to rest for the time being and returned to the tent, from which loud noises were soon heard again, leaving no doubt as to what was going on inside. The warriors of the caravan did not listen to the second part of the performance, which was not intended for them, and went to the place where the convicts were stationed and began to set up a temporary camp there, and at the same time unloaded the food brought for the mercenaries.
In the evening the duke came to see the knight. Again there was talk about nothing and some attempts to make a hint, but it did not become clearer. What the young ruler of the duchy wanted from his future baron, remained a mystery. Alexander even wanted to drink Kass's blood again to find out what was going on in his head, though the vampire realized that it was not worth wasting efforts on such nonsense. When he matured, he would tell him what he wanted. And if he doesn't manage to formulate a thought before the caravan leaves, it means that it wasn't necessary.
The convict women were actively preparing for the passage to Savoyardi. In addition to food, for increased nutrition, there were enough warm clothes and tents in the carts. The clothes were men's, purchased for this winter for the captive Orodian soldiers working in the settlement, but this did not embarrass anyone at all.
The prisoners were warm and well fed for the first time in recent times. But they were not allowed to enjoy this state and rest. Under the supervision of the vampires, the women practiced quickly putting up and taking down their tents, and in general, quickly moving from camping to resting and back again.
Of course, there was no special need in such active training, but Olga just couldn't watch someone resting. And if this someone was her ward... In general, the convicts were actively practicing. A couple more days and they had to make a long journey along the tract.
The archmage returned satisfied. His face was glowing. One look at him was enough to realize that he had stolen a lot more than he had planned. And looking at the commander, the vampire realized what a foolish thing he had done, not keeping him company, but preferring to remain a hen over the convicts. After all, the mine management must have been involved in Elos's operations to embezzle the mine's loot.
Schemes to defraud the king and possible stashes of moon silver, that's what the blood of the top brass kept, and now it was all surely lost. But as it turned out, the situation was fundamentally different. Dukun, amazed by the speed and efficiency of the investigation that Alexander had conducted at the copper mine, did not go for the crane in the sky, but preferred a tit in his hand, especially since this tit looked more like an eagle.
And after his detachment took possession of the fort, he did not conduct the proceedings personally or assign them to his men. All the documents found and the men who had anything to do with them were taken with him under special guard, and he considered himself lucky. The captured soldiers, mixed with the convicts, were driven on their own, and not all of them made it. The captives, having an opportunity to take revenge on their former guards, did not restrain themselves.
Calling the knight aside, the archmage personally asked him to investigate and not to spare the suspects, except that he wished not to execute them personally. And then, glancing around, he quietly handed the vampire a cloth bundle with something heavy in it.
- I hope that whatever you manage to find out, I'll be the first to know.
- Don't doubt it, Your Excellency," Alexander imagined what might be in the bundle, so he didn't even think of turning his nose up at it. If the archmage wanted to see him as one of his trusted men in such a matter, he'd better be in on it, because he hadn't sworn an oath of loyalty to the king.
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