"I apologize Cardinal Caius, but I know nothing of this 'Edevin' you speak of".
"it's okay. I was just asking to see if you have heard of it, I never said it was mandatory for you to have heard of it, so you have no reason to apologize to me".
Caius reached out for the jar with cookies, and tossed it inside his mouth.
"Edevin is a city in Bregogon Kingdom. Months ago, the city was attacked by a monster of an unknown rank, and I was assigned by the Emissary to handle the case".
He picked another cookie shaped like a star, and again tossed it inside his mouth.
"if the Holy Congregation decided to send you a Cardinal, then this monster you speak of must be a force that cannot be underestimated".
"he is powerful alright. Killed a bunch of thousand in Edevin city without even trying to".
Caius being so casual with the death of thousands as he chews the cookie in his mouth.
"you being here and asking for control over my military, am I to assume that the monster is near my territory".
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"right on point. I tracked him or her? Whatever gender it is, I tracked it down from Edevin, all the way to this place, specifically the thick ominous forest miles away from your city".
"if I may ask, can you not fight the monster without the need for my military. You said you were dispatched by the Emissary, if so, they must have faith that you would be capable of handling the monster alone".
Thomas was reluctant to give away his troops to Caius so he can take to go and face off against a monster he does not know what level category it belongs into.
Depending on the amount of forces Caius takes, there is sure to be casualties resulting from it, thereby diminishing his city's defenses by several folds.
Thomas felt the need to know why his forces are being sacrificed, and why his city's defenses would be put in jeopardy. If there is a way to prevent Caius marching his military into the forest, and at the same time exterminate the monster, Caius is willing to bargain for such opportunity.
"me wanting your military forces is not so I can make them go against the monster".
Caius was done chewing the cookie in his mouth. He stretched his hand out to picked up another one to start chewing on.
"but, you just asked for control of my military".
"yes I know what I asked for, I am not dump you know".
Thomas really wished Caius would stop with the suspense of using the time he is supposed to be using to explain things to him to eat cookies, and get on with what he has to say.
"then why did you ask for my military".
"why else? So I can stop the monster".
Caius eating the cookies while in the middle of a conversation with Thomas, greatly disturbed Thomas's concentration from being fully immersed in what they were both discussing.
"Cardinal Caius, if you would please focus on my questions and not care too much for the cookies, I would very much appreciate that".
"believe me, I will also like to do that, but this cookies of yours are just too mouth watering for me to ignore. I can feel them melting in my mouth all the way down to spreading itself in my insides. How do you make such delicacy".
Caius crunched on the cookie in a very uncouth way, serving only to further irritate Thomas who sat there, listening to the annoying sound coming out of his mouth.
"if you are that enamored by the cookies, I can have the one that baked it make many more for you to take on your way when you complete your mission here. But first, can you please concentrate more on what we are talking about".
"what about mine".
Ignatius who had only sat on the table and eating as much cookies as it could, floated up and went near Thomas's face, reminding him that it is also present, and also in need of more of the cookies.
"do not worry, i will make sure to have enough ready to satisfy you both".
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmIgnatius flew to Caius's face with its expression glistened at the sound of them both getting enough to satisfy them withm
"you heard the man. Caius, do not get yourself distracted by the cookie ever again. Get done with the conversation, finish the mission, and then we can have all the time we want to feast on the sweet, delicious cookie".
Ignatius moved closer to Caius's face, telling him of what to do while using body signs as demonstration.
"i have heard you, just get your tiny self off my face".
Caius stretched his hand forward and used it to pushed Ignatius aside.
"like I was saying, I do not need your military forces to help me fight the monster, i need them to stop other monsters from interfering in our fight".
Thomas gave Caius a look that shows he does not understand the point he was trying to make.
"the forest the monster has chosen to hide in, I sense a lot of other monsters inside of it. If I were to engage the monster while the others are present, they are sure to interfere and that could tip the balance of my engagement with the monster. I want a face off uninterrupted fight against it, and that is where your forces come into play".
"a forest with a lot of monsters? Are you referring to the forest of Anjonu? It is the biggest forest near my territory and also the one having the most inhabitated monsters".
"i have no idea what it's name is, but I do sense a lot of monsters in it. I need your forces to keep the monsters in the forest busy, if possible to exterminate them all while I deal with the monster i came for, uninterrupted".
Thomas thought hard and well of Caius's plan, and saw that it was a good one. Not knowing exactly how powerful the monster is, puts Caius at a disadvantage in a battle.
By taking with him Thomas forces, he is reducing the risk the monster will pose to him with their presence there. It was a good enough plan, but it still worried Thomas nonetheless.
"Cardinal Caius, your plan is indeed wonderful, but I am not so certain that my!!".
Thomas about to explain his worries to Caius, was interrupted by the entrance of Butler Robert who had someone else's company with him.