[ Purple: You should delegate more of your tasks if old age is claiming your mind. ]

  Gilgamesh waited for his slight to take effect, but the next Message he received was not from who he expected.

  [ Blue: Haha. What did you say to the Old Man? He’s fuming. ]

  Conceited Boy messaged as though he knew the whole situation.

  [ Valley. How is the Old Man acting? ]

  Gilgamesh asked his Scout.

  [ Valley Post: He seems frustrated, I think. ]

  [ Report to me every time something like that happens. ]

  With that confirmed, Gilgamesh responded to Conceited Boy.

  [ Purple: Do you have so much spare time that you can be paying attention to us? ]

  [ Blue: Haha. Like you aren’t spying on everyone, too. Well, to be fair, everyone is spying on everyone. ]

  Gilgamesh did not doubt it.

  [ Blue: Want an opportunity to get the Old Man? ]

  [ Purple: No need. ]

  Gilgamesh gave a dispassionate response. Conceited Boy was certainly just looking for an opportunity of his own.

  [ Blue: C’mon, don’t be like that. Look, I’ll help set up Green as an easy victory for you if you help set up that fake noble lady for me. ]

  “Fake? Does he mean Aristocrat Woman...?” Gilgamesh mused. “Did he glean something that I missed again, or is this just a trick?”

  It wasn’t something he could deduce on pure contemplation, so he decided to test it. If Aristocrat Woman was pretending to be something she’s not, then the likelihood that she was Ambitious Man’s secret pawn was higher than before.

  “But it wouldn’t be as easy as sending him a message pretending to be her. They surely have a password known only to them.” Gilgamesh thought. “I should target the Sycophant, then.”

  [ Jungle. Watch everything the Nobleman Ally does closely. ]

  With his Scout instructed to heighten his attention, Gilgamesh sent a Message to Sycophant.

  [ Purple: Are you Ambitious Man’s pawn as well? ]

  [ Jungle Post: He looked at the Noblewoman, then looked to the right, then back to her. He didn’t do anything else. ]

  “He glanced at her then in the direction of Ambitious Man…” Gilgamesh’s suspicion rose. “That feels too obvious. Too clean a proof. He might be working with Conceited Boy to manipulate me. Maybe they’re all working together…”

  Though Gilgamesh soon dispelled the possibility the moment he thought it. “No… If so many are already loyal to Ambitious Man, then this Alliance is an inefficient scheme. If the goal is to gain loyal and competent Allies, he wouldn’t have so carelessly chosen several who will surely aim to betray him.”

  “And if most were already on his side, and the goal was instead to rear a few unwitting Lieges like livestock before butchering them, then they would have done so by now. Not to mention, it’s a worse strategy than simply plundering rival Factions themselves…”

  Gilgamesh delved deeper into contemplation.

  “Conceited Boy was too combative during the meeting, even as a cover, to the point where it was disadvantageous. He’s likely not a loyal pawn. Old Man is unlikely to be either, given his temperament. As for Jaded Woman and Stoic Man, it could be either way.”

  “It is possible that Conceited Boy is conspiring with Sycophant, though. But even if he is, it could still be to my benefit. Whether his target is truly Aristocrat Woman or someone else, it doesn’t matter as long as it isn’t me.”

  [ Purple: What kind of cooperation do you envision? ]

  [ Blue: I just want you to make the lackey more aggressive, so the Faction will launch a big attack. ]

  [ Purple: You can easily do that yourself. ]

  If it were Gilgamesh, he would just provoke Sycophant into testing whether Aristocrat Woman was a pawn of Ambitious Man by pressing for a change in strategy and seeing how she accommodated him. If she were truly a pawn, she would be hesitant as she would need to first wait for approval.

  [ Blue: Thinking of some two-bit plan like making him press for a change in strategy? ]

  Gilgamesh did not respond.

  [ Blue: Well, that’s not a bad idea, but it’s only half of it. You need to message her as well to manipulate her actions. But I can’t do that since they’re too wary of me. ]

  [ Blue: Just make her think you’re planning something big. ]

  Gilgamesh eyed the Message with sharp, calm eyes.

  [ Purple: I want you to infuriate the old man. ]

  [ Blue: Sure. It’s a juvenile strategy, but it should work. ]

  Gilgamesh ignored the passive slight.

  [ Tundra. Warn me if his warband ever moves in my direction. ]

  [ Tundra Post: Yes, boss. ]

  With that settled, Gilgamesh contemplated his approach. “Bringing up her allegiance to Ambitious Man would be a terrible move. I would only make them cautious, and mark me as a priority for elimination. I need to wear the mask of a cooperating ally for a little while longer…”

  Gilgamesh carefully crafted his march of words.

  [ Purple: Do you want to know if she is really conspiring with him? ]

  Gilgamesh first sent an incendiary question to Sycophant, and received the expected lack of a response. Then he sent one to Aristocrat Woman.

  [ Purple: Your partner isn’t being too cooperative. Are you actually the one in charge? ]

  Again, there was no response.

  [ Purple: No matter. Green is becoming a thorn in my side, so I intend to remove him. This will be to your benefit as well. ]

  [ What do you mean? ]

  “Sycophant finally took the bait.” Gilgamesh deduced. “And this tone… He’s trying to hard to seem unbothered. Jealousy?”

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  [ Purple: You already know what I mean. You’ve noticed it to. She probably answers to someone else. ]

  [ Jungle Post: They’re both being very still. ]

  With that, Gilgamesh pressed the attack.

  [ Purple: There’s an easy way to test it. You are the strategist, are you not? I’m giving her the opening to attack Green while he is vulnerable and plunder everything, without running afoul of the Alliance. If she is not a pawn, she won’t oppose when you ‘notice’ the opportunity. ]

  [ Yellow: In what way could that possibly be to my benefit? ]

  Aristocrat Woman finally responded.

  [ Purple: Because you will reap the rewards. I’ll lure him into obstructing my efforts again, which will leave him vulnerable to another’s attack. And you are in the best position to do so. ]

  [ Yellow: Have you forgotten the rules of the Alliance? ]

  [ Purple: If he attacks me, he will have broken them first. We are to lend aid to those who are attacked, aren’t we? ]

  A short lull ensued.

  [ Yellow: And you’ll just let me have all that Prestige? ]

  [ Purple: As I said, I just want to remove a thorn. ]

  There was another pause.

  [ Yellow: Alright. But if it looks suspicious in any way, you can forget about my involvement. ]

  Gilgamesh almost sneered.

  [ Purple: Be ready. ]

  Gilgamesh then chose an insignificant enemy Faction to attack, and his plan fell into place almost immediately.

  [ Valley Post: They’re rushing right for you! ]

  Moments after his Scout’s Message, Old Man’s Faction attacked him in full force. This was not a tactic that could be done lightly, but one that would require reason for him to be certain of the circumstances.

  Just as Gilgamesh foresaw.

  “Brace!”

  Gilgamesh quickly rearranged the most optimal formation for Guards to provoke arrests and return to the line using a system of gestures to prove their identity to the other Guards. And Gilgamesh keenly scanned the fray for his enemy's response.

  “Brace, ha!”

  At his verbal signal, they all suddenly changed the gesture used. Though some continued to use the original. Those were naturally Old Man’s Soldiers, crudely trying to infiltrate his ranks. Unfortunately for them, Gilgamesh was one step ahead.

  Gilgamesh’s tactics stalled Old Man’s army long enough for his own to regather. At his direction, some returned to bolster his defense, while others targeted Old Man’s Guard base, which had moved forward with his attack.

  [ Tundra Post: They attacked another small Faction. Blue assassinated the Liege himself. ]

  The battle bogged down even further, but Gilgamesh was still outnumbered and at a disadvantage.

  [ Jungle Post: They’re not doing anything. They’ve stopped attacking other Factions too. Just seem to be reading Messages. ]

  Gilgamesh read the message and continued to fight a slowly losing battle.

  [ Green: Waiting for something? ]

  Old Man’s mocking tone was clear even through the plain letters.

  [ Green: They’ll never come. ]

  It was practically a boast that he now conspired with Aristocrat Woman. And by extension, Ambitious Man.

  [ Purple: Why are you not attacking? The path is open! ]

  Gilgamesh messaged Aristocrat Woman, but got no response.

  [ Green: It seems the rest have finally seen that you are unsuited for this alliance. You shouldn’t have been so arrogant. ]

  As Old Man gloated over his inevitable victory, a large force suddenly attacked his Guard Wall, one led by a Noblewoman with elegant poise and a Nobleman by her side.

  [ Green: You dare set me up?! ]

  Old Man roared a message at Aristocrat Woman as he rushed to commit much of his attack to bolstering his defense against her.

  [ Yellow: That’s not me, you fool! ]

  Confusion and mistrust slowed Old Man’s response, but he soon realized that the new force against him was not nearly as large as a full Faction. Unfortunately for him, that realization came too late.

  Gilgamesh used the opening his deception had made to push through the Guard Wall personally with Sereth by his side.

  From the start, he had expected Aristocrat Woman to betray their arrangement. He had also expected her, or rather, Ambitious Man, to expose his scheme to Old Man. And that false belief that he had seen through Gilgamesh’s intentions would only serve to add more fuel to that fire called overconfidence.

  Gilgamesh made a straight line for Old Man, while Sereth aimed for the Vassal who had the most Prestige. Sereth entered the range for a clash but did not stop, and her every intention suggested that she aimed for only one thing.

  “Challenge!”

  Both of the Allies shouted out. One of them defeated Sereth’s Scepter with a Crown, while the other lost to Gilgamesh’s Ring.

  [ Gained 3,407 Prestige]

  [ 12,702 Prestige. ]

  Gilgamesh gained the blue mask and the luxurious attire of a Marquis, but he did not slow his stride in the slightest.

  “Treason!” The Vassal who defeated Sereth yelled, and whisked them both before the King.

  “Look, this is your limit!” Old Man gloated his superiority over Gilgamesh, proven by his victory. “Kill him! Everything he has belongs to me!”

  But when the light shone on Sereth, it revealed no Dagger. And as the Executioner turned his axe on the hapless pawn, Gilgamesh sank his Dagger into Old Man.

  [ Gained 12,938 Prestige ]

  [ 25,640 Prestige ]

  Sereth returned from her accusation in that moment, and Gilgamesh simply shook her hand.

  “Green is dead! Reform the ranks!” Gilgamesh ordered his Guards to flow into the opening and form a Guard Wall around him, and the enemy Guards let it happen.

  Temptation clearly flowed within them, but no one made a move. It was a 50-50 chance whether he or Sereth now had the Dagger, and the risk of getting it wrong was certain death. That would make even bold Nobles hesitate, and no truly bold person would stand in a Guard Wall.

  “Your Liege is dead. Join my Faction and rise under me instead.” Gilgamesh spoke to Old Man’s remaining Faction as soon as he secured his Guards' protection, and most of them submitted to his offer of Vassalage.

  Just then, an unfamiliar Faction attacked his own.

  [ Jungle Post: A Faction is attacking them. ]

  [ River Post: They’re being attacked by a random Faction. ]

  [ Desert Post: Someone’s attacking. I don’t think it’s a member. ]

  [ Mountain Post: He’s getting attacked by two Factions. ]

  [ Mountain Post: No, three. It’s a huge battle. ]

  Chaos erupted as all members of the Alliance became embroiled in battle.

  “Conceited Boy’s doing.” Gilgamesh was certain. “Guards, hold firm. Soldiers whittle down the Prestige of these attackers!”

  [ Desert Post: Someone else just attacked. A huge Faction. ]

  [ Tundra Post: He just attacked a big Faction already in a fight. ]

  [ Desert Post: Desert has withdrawn everyone. Going full defense. ]

  [ Desert Post: No wait. He’s rushing right past now. ]

  [ Tundra Post: Now he’s leaving. ]

  [ Tundra Post: He’s attacking Red. ]

  “So his aim was Ambitious Man all along.” Gilgamesh thought. He glanced out at his own battle and saw that the enemy had started to retreat.

  “All Vassals, follow me!”

  Gilgamesh moved with his Faction towards the other side of the Alliance’s territory. It did not matter to him whether Conceited Boy or Ambitious Man won, only that he would be there to plunder the victor.

  Just as Gilgamesh reached close enough to see the battle for himself, he received a warning.

  [ Desert Post: Some of them are moving. ]

  [ Desert Post: I think they're heading for you. ]

  Moments later, a band of Stoic Man's Soldiers surrounded him. But they did nothing but stand in his way.

  “Stalling for time?” Gilgamesh’s eyes sharpened. “Push through them!”

  His Soldiers did as ordered, but waiting for him a few moments further was another stationary line. The safe thing to do was likely to approach this ploy defensively, but Gilgamesh wasn’t interested in safe. He wanted to win.

  “Push through!” He roared, with a trace of excitement.

  Conceited Boy barreled through Ambitious Man’s forces up ahead. If there was one thing to observe from the outside, it was that the Boy’s fighting tactics were superior to his target’s.

  Things looked dire for Ambitious Man, but he did not teleport away. Instead, he rushed for the Hallway alongside his inconsequential pawns. To his credit, the rotating Wall of Guards that followed with him kept Conceited Boy at bay.

  But Conceited Boy was one step ahead. All at once, what seemed like nothing more than disjointed loners formed into an army right in front of Ambitious Man’s retreating Faction, and smashed into them.

  The new attackers did not manage to break through, but they did bring Ambitious Man to a halt. That was all the time Conceited Boy needed to break through. With nothing else standing in his way, he rushed straight for Ambitious Man.

  “Traitor!” Ambitious Man shouted.

  Both were brought before the King, and the light of judgement shone on Conceited Boy. But it found nothing. With the swift chop of the Executioner’s axe, Conceited Boy appeared back in the Ballroom with all of Ambitious Man’s Prestige, and he laughed.

  It was the mocking, arrogant, fervent laugh that could only come from someone whose calculated risk had just paid off. It was a laugh that was cut short by a Dagger that plunged into his side by a random Guard of Ambitious Man’s Faction.

  At that same time, a dozen other Guards assassinated Conceited Boy’s loyal band of personal Guards, and teleported away. But the first Guard merely shook hands with the Liege Pawns and sent a Message to the other members of the Alliance.

  [ Red: Everyone is to meet in the Lounge at once. ]

  Patreon is 20 chapters ahead. We've finally reached one of the my favorite batches of chapters in book 1. Some major reveals for the worldbuilding, a glimpse of the power system ahead, and another major step for Gilgamesh.