Daniel kept his eyes on the valley.

From up here, the Iron Tide looked almost peaceful. Campfires were spaced with deliberate care, their glow steady and controlled. The lines were too clean to be accidental, too patient to be mindless. Whatever they were doing, it was intentional.

That bothered him.

It sort of pisses me off how popular you are,Ethan said.

Daniel huffed softly.You’re upset about that, of all things? Of all the things to be worried about, that’s the one you settle on?

I’m multitasking,Ethan replied dryly.You walk into a room and half the leadership wants to throw themselves in front of swords for you. It’s unsettling. Are you sure you’re not a demon or a charm talker?

Daniel’s mouth twitched despite himself.Says the guy who lives in my head and pretty clearly has access to at least some of my memories. And no, I am not a demon. Besides, you’re the charismatic one. I’m just efficient.

That is a bald-faced lie,Ethan shot back.Your competence makes people follow you into terrible decisions without them even realizing how terrible they are.

Daniel didn’t argue. He watched the Iron Tide shift again, a subtle realignment along the ridgeline, as if acknowledging his presence without reacting to it.

You notice how they’re not reacting?Daniel said.It’s like they are ignoring us, simply waiting to see what we are doing.

Which means they expected the downtime,Ethan said.It’s like they are waiting for something to happen. Like they are as indecisive as we are.

Daniel’s fingers tightened on the stone railing.That makes sense, but it just begs the question. Why are they here?

The wind moved through the valley below, carrying the distant crackle of fire.

They don’t look like an army that’s here to conquer,Ethan said finally.They look like an army ready for a fight, but one that showed up early.

Daniel nodded.Or one that doesn’t want to be the first to make a mistake.

A brief pause settled between them.

You know,Ethan said, quieter now,if this goes badly, they’re going to write songs about how brave you were.

Daniel snorted.I’d rather they write reports about how boring it was.

You’re terrible at appreciating your own legend.

Our legend, really. It’s your face that’s going down in the history books.

Daniel glanced down at the valley again, at the careful spacing, the restraint, the patience that didn’t belong to creatures everyone insisted were driven by rage alone.

Legends don’t bother me, especially if they’re written after the fact,he said.What bothers me is assumptions. Assumptions get people killed.

Then stop feeding them,Ethan replied.Walking out there like this makes you both a legend and an assumption. We survive this, and your name is going to be all over the Empire again.

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Daniel straightened slightly, the decision already made.Yeah. There’s a thin line between genius and idiocy.

Ethan was quiet for a moment.

I’m going with idiot,he said at last.If we die virgins, I am never going to forgive you.

Who said I was a virgin? And weren’t you married for like a decade?

Ethan didn’t answer.This life, Daniel. This life.

In the distance, the Iron Tide held its ground.

And somewhere between the campfires and the stone walls, the space where words mattered more than weapons was waiting to be tested.

I maintain my position. This is a bad idea,Ethan said flatly.

Daniel kept watching the distance.Your objection is noted.

I’m serious,Ethan continued.You walking out there is strategically indefensible. It violates every principle you claim to care about.

It violates only one—give me some credit,Daniel replied.Basic risk distribution. Right now, we don’t actually know what they want. We have no idea where their intentions lie.

They brought an army. I think that’s pretty clear evidence of intent.

That’s evidence they intend to fight someone. That doesn’t mean it’s us.

That’s what you’re going with? Are you serious?

Do you have a better plan?

Yes. You get your ass back into the fort and wait until they attack.

Ethan, there is a real chance they’re here for something else. But everything we know about the Iron Tide suggests that waiting for an attack will lead to one. We have to get them to interact in another way.

Ethan fell quiet for a few seconds, which Daniel knew meant he was recalculating rather than conceding.

You are making yourself a single point of failure,Ethan said finally.If something happens to you, everything you’ve built fractures. Framework or not.

Daniel exhaled slowly. The wind tugged at his coat, carrying the faint scent of ash and old blood from the battlefield below.

If something happens to the Princess, or Vivian, or anyone else who actually has a chance of pulling off something diplomatic, it creates the same problem,he said.It fractures anyway. At least out there, we learn something before it does.

That’s bullshit and you know it. You and I both know what happens.

Daniel almost smiled.That we do. But I cannot let any of those people die. Not the people who actually matter. And I don’t trust anyone else to pull this off.

You really piss me off sometimes.

He shifted his weight, boots scraping softly against stone.

You think this is about proving something,Ethan said.About being seen.

No,Daniel replied.It’s about removing ambiguity. They’re watching us because they want a reaction. Walls and silence tell them nothing. A man walking out to meet them tells them everything.

It tells them you’re reckless.

It tells them we’re not afraid to talk.

Ethan scoffed internally.Those are not the same thing.

Daniel glanced sideways, as if Ethan might somehow be standing there with him.They don’t need to be.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Below, the Iron Tide shifted slightly, a ripple through the outer lines.

You’re not expendable,Ethan said, quieter now.Stop pretending you are.

Daniel closed his eyes for half a breath.

I’m not pretending,he answered.I’m accounting.

You’re accounting like a machine.

And you’re objecting like a man who doesn’t want to die again.

That hit.

Ethan went still.

You don’t get to use that,he said after a moment.

I get to use it because it’s true,Daniel replied.You know what it looks like when fear hides behind logic. This isn’t that.

Then what is it?

Daniel opened his eyes and looked at the distant fires.

It’s a bet,he said.That they want something more than blood.

And if you’re wrong?

Daniel’s jaw tightened.Then we are wrong, and we deal with it. But we were never going to survive this by playing it safe.

Ethan let out something like a breath, a mix of sigh and resignation.

You’re still an idiot.

Daniel smiled faintly.You’re still riding shotgun.

Another pause.

If this goes sideways,Ethan said,I’m not letting you freeze up.

Daniel’s smile sharpened.If it goes sideways, I expect you to be unbearable.

Deal.

Daniel straightened, squaring his shoulders as movement stirred behind him. Voices. Footsteps. The plan locking into place whether he liked it or not.

Whatever the Iron Tide wanted, they were about to find out.

And if this was the wrong move, it would at least be an honest one.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com