Four days had passed since the monster stampede. On this day, the tribes that had gathered at Grimjaw Mountain were finally preparing to head to the Bonegnash Tribe to make them pay for their crimes.

The Aslan Tribe had provided them with wagons, grains, flour, and drinking water, which would sustain them on their journey.

The meat from the monsters had also been processed, further increasing their food provisions.

After Leone had privately talked to some of the other chieftains, the young man agreed to host Tianna, who was currently in disguise, Vlad, and Elias.

Their respective tribes would allocate twenty warriors to be their bodyguards. As for the rest, they would leave with their tribes to help in the campaign against the Bonegnash Tribe.

"Please have a safe journey, Troy," Jafar said with a respectful bow.

He had already sworn allegiance to Leone in front of the other tribes to ensure the safety of Cain, Travis, and Byron. And so, even though Troy survived, he would no longer follow his chieftain. Having put his honor on the line, he must uphold his oath.

"You too," Troy replied.

The Chieftain of the Darkmane Tribe had personally tasked Jafar with this mission, so he understood that he could no longer take the shaman with him back to reclaim their people.

"Jafar, who is the one whom you serve?" Leone asked.

"It is you, Great Chieftain," Jafar replied, bowing respectfully to the young man.

Hagen, Malik, Oswald, Duncan, and Garen looked at the shaman who had decided to remain with the Aslan Tribe with a look of envy.

Jafar was an outstanding shaman, second only to Gundar. It went without saying that all tribes would have loved to have him. Unfortunately, he had already sworn allegiance to the Aslan Tribe.

Poaching him was no longer an option. Doing so would only invite others to look down on them.

"Heed my command then," Leone stated. "I suspect the Darkmane Tribe still holds a grudge against the Aslan Tribe. So, I shall order you to accompany Troy and keep watch over the Darkmane Tribe. If you suspect they are planning to harm the Aslan Tribe in any way, you are to report it to me right away."

Jafar blinked once, then twice, after hearing the young man’s orders.

Even Troy was taken aback. Leone might have phrased it negatively, but in the end, sending Jafar to accompany them was more or less telling the shaman to continue working with Troy.

"And last but not least, take this with you." Leone handed him two storage rings.

Each ring cost him 10,000 BP. However, Leone deemed that this would greatly help the Darkmane Tribe deal with the Bonegnash Tribe.

Jafar accepted the two storage rings and proceeded to check what was inside of it. Though when he saw that each ring contained four Fireshard Catapults, the shaman’s eyes widened in shock.

"Regardless of whether Osteon surrenders or not, I want you to destroy their fortress," Leone ordered. "If they complain, tell them to come and find me."

"As you command, Great Chieftain." Jafar bowed with an evil smile on his face.

Since Leone ordered that their fortress should be destroyed, then it would be his pleasure to follow his command.

Simply put, Leone was telling Jafar that before talks with Osteon could even start, they were to start the siege against the Bonegnash Tribe.

It was the classic strategy of destroy first, talk later.

Troy smiled faintly, for he was of the same mind.

Letting the Bonegnash Tribe escape their crime so easily? He wasn’t that nice.

Plus, Troy and Leone had already privately talked about what they planned to do with the Bonegnash Tribe.

A plan that Troy would carry out the moment he arrived at their destination.

"Leone, how about you let Kael accompany us on our trip to the Bonegnash Tribe?" Hagen asked. "He can serve as the representative of the Aslan Tribe and bear witness of justice being served."

The chieftains couldn’t help but give Hagen a thumbs up in their hearts. Clearly, he still hadn’t given up on his plan to poach Kael from Leone.

Although they had seen the young man unleash power that defied all odds when he fought against the Ogre Warlord, they still believed that Kael was more powerful than Leone.

After all, the shaman could build a fortress from scratch without breaking a sweat.

"Should I?" Kael played with his beard.

Clearly, he was enjoying the attention given to him by the high-ranking tribes.

Of course, he only "considered" going. If he really went, it wouldn’t take long before they realized that he actually didn’t have the powers they wanted from him.

Gundar only shook his head helplessly at the sight. Unlike these clueless fools, he was well aware that Kael was a mere decoy to prevent anyone from discovering Leone’s true powers.

"Leone, after we’re done with the Bonegnash Tribe, I hope you will honor our agreement," Malik said with a smile.

"I will," Leone replied. "I promise."

The other chieftains glanced at Malik after hearing that, wondering what kind of agreement he made with the Aslan Tribe.

Among the tribes in the Borderlands, the Sandreaver Tribe was the most elusive. They avoided politics and were content to live their lives in their own domain.

"Just what kind of agreement do the two of you have?" Hagen tried to subtly pry for some more information because he was indeed very curious.

"Oh, it’s nothing much." Malik smirked in response. "I was just planning to marry off my granddaughter to Leone."

"Your granddaughter?" Godwin frowned. "Isn’t she just... six?"

"Give her a decade, and she will make an outstanding wife." Malik chuckled. "I’m sure you are also thinking of arranging Tianna to marry Leone, right? If I were in your shoes, I would have done the same."

Godwin neither agreed nor disagreed with Malik’s jest. In fact, he had decided to let Tianna stay, even telling her to get to know Leone more.

He even told her that if she needed to use seduction, she was free to do so!

Jason lowered his head after hearing Malik’s statement. He felt an ache in his chest at the thought of Tianna being betrothed to Leone.

Meanwhile, Leone was doing his best to keep his smile from breaking. He already knew that Tianna liked Jason, so why would he get in the way of her love?

He wasn’t that desperate for women.

In fact, he was already planning to play matchmaker for them!

Though, for the meantime, he kept whatever thoughts inside his mind safely buried there. After all, it would be bad if Godwin changed his mind and took Tianna with him back to the Warclaw Tribe.

"Kael, my offer still stands," Hagen said. "I’ll allow your granddaughter, Aria, to marry either Marcus or Elias. My youngest son will be staying here until the Tribal Gathering. I hope both of them will get to know each other more."

"As long as the children are happy, then I will be happy," Kael replied. However, deep inside, he would rather kick Elias off a cliff and pretend it was an accident.

The two crafty men chuckled as if they were the best of friends, not knowing what each other was thinking.

In Kael’s eyes, Marcus was nothing more than a muscle-brained fool who solved every problem by swinging his axe.

As for Elias...

The old shaman snorted inwardly.

A walking stick with a brain.

That was what he thought of that self-proclaimed scholar from the Grimhowl Tribe.

How could Kael allow Aria to marry either of them?

They weren’t worthy!

Leone might not be the strongest nor smartest young man in the Borderlands, but he was still on the top of Kael’s list.

And with his existence, why would Kael settle for bronze when he could have gold?

Yet Hagen and Kael kept patting each other’s shoulders while exchanging hearty laughter.

In the eyes of those around them, they looked like two men who had become lifelong friends overnight.