*Tch*

  Peter groaned inwardly once again when he found the heavy vehicle tilt and sway by the effects of the badly maintained roads at the outskirts of the city but once they left that area it was just a vast expanse of sand and the road was like always completely covered by these mischievous dunes, "Our journey would've been much easier had we brought a couple of our off-road vehicles instead of this elephant," He muttered while looking at the GPS to confirm that he's heading in the right direction, "Kelvin. Are you sure about the air-pressure in the tires? Last time you didn't defte them enough and we got ourselves stuck in the sand so boss had to clean your mess but... This time we have company and we can't expose our secrets in front of them." Peter asked while turning to look at the giant who opened a small notepad and showed the driver the childish drawing with numbers in front of each side to show him the reading on the air-pressure of all the tires.

  "It had to be this one because we needed to attract their attention, us slipping under their nose might've caused them to suspect our intentions since we're a bunch of foreigners who approached them to do trade in a time where they're invading their neighbors, let's not forget that they're at the peak of their glorious power at the moment and apparently don't ck anything and don't need us so... Like I said before just keep your mouth shut and stay close so you could react quickly once you receive my signal." Bryan said while looking at the road behind where two off-road vehicles are following them and keeping a fifty meters distance.

  "They really didn't waste a second and made their way straight towards our meeting point, Caleb's reputation has made it all the way to the people of the Narren Country... These foreigners don't dare show disrespect to him." One woman said in the small radio in her hand while smiling widely.

  "They could also be in a hurry to get this meeting over with so they could get back home as quickly as possible." The man behind the driver's wheel shrugged.

  "Maybe they're worried about not finding the meeting spot in time and they can't have that happen because they're desperate or something like that." The other woman added while smiling as she saw her friend cringe in the passenger seat of the other car.

  "Just stay focused everyone, who knows when their Bus would succumb to the eternal embrace of our sand... Why did it have to be so big? I bet getting it out would be such a pain and a great waste of time!" The other man frowned while shaking his head as he looked at the big Bus which slowly made its way on top of the sand.

  While the four were talking and having a friendly conversation, Peter was extremely focused on moving the heavy vehicle without using any excessive force while relying on the assistance from the GPS and Vincent's expert opinion after reading the map in his hand.

  Bryan was in his small cabin in the back ying on his bed and watching the sight of the city as it gradually disappeared behind the dunes.

  Thankfully Peter did a perfect job navigating his way by staying clear from the nasty zones which would've sunk this nd-ship in the desert.

  "Concentrating the mind can be very exhausting too... Drink some water and have a snack to recover." Bryan patted the driver on his shoulder and followed Kelvin who was the first to leave the door.

  There in the distance were a few tents using the cover of a high dune to shelter from the wind.

  The two off-road vehicles which were following them parked on both sides of these tents after passing Bryan's Bus.

  Bryan on the other hand walked between the two giants and slowly made his way to the smallest tent before giving the respectful signal of greeting while saying : "Breezy and blissful evening to owners of this sand."

  Vincent, Kelvin, and Peter didn't understand what he just said but, the men and women inside the tent, who were tense and wary while looking like they're a split-second away from pointing their weapons at them, suddenly revealed surprised expressions while some of them smiled and rexed.

  "These are welcoming sands, strangers from foreign nd."

  Bryan and everyone both inside or outside these tents turned to look at the man who pulled the cover of the biggest tent and stood there barefooted in the sand and opened his arms wide after saying that.

  Bryan was shocked because that face is one which he saw in the st few weeks of his life within the original timeline where Linnet was not his own his his fate was to be just another employee buried daily in work while ter he'd be tormenting mentally and emotionally by having to listen to his neighbor having fun with strangers while he's too weak in character and personality to say anything.

  'What's the thirteenth Prince doing in here?' Bryan thought while approaching the man and following the traditions of these Sandarians by opening his arms and doing a weird arms movement by acting like a bird fpping its wings while leaning left and right.

  Vincent, Kelvin, and Peter were gawking from surprise because this was such a childish action unbefitting two grownups which almost caused them to really ugh if they didn't hold themselves back at the st moment.

  "Greetings... Prince Caleb Aagaard." But once Bryan ended his actions he looked at the man right in the face and offered his hand while adding : "I'm Bryan O'Neal from the Narren Country, these are my bodyguards Vincent and Kelvin while that one at the back is my driver Peter but he was the middleman between me and you for the past week."

  The atmosphere which had just calmed after the two did the traditional greeting, immediately became heavy and tense once Bryan exposed the identity of the man standing right in front of him.

  "Get back!"

  "Move away from the Prince."

  "Who are you?"

  "How do you know about Caleb's dignified bloodline?"

  Almost immediately a multitude of weapons which belong to all calipers were pointed towards Bryan and his three followers but he just raised his hands slowly while taking steps back and away from the man yet his eyes never looked away and maintained eye-contact as if whatever is happening is nothing worthy of his attention.

  "Since these are welcoming sands... I thought it'd be disrespectful of me to hide that piece of information from my host, I never thought it'd cause such a misunderstanding." Bryan muttered while shrugging his shoulders before adding : "The reason I know about your identity is because I once read about a news article of a woman in the Axedominn Country in the west who cimed to carry the child of the thirteenth Prince of the Sandar Kingdom while showing a picture of the two of you together at the beach... If my memory isn't failing me it was night at that time!"

  Caleb Aagaard squinted his eyes before gesturing with his finger for his people to lower their weapons then smiled : "She was lying because I never spent the night with her... I spent the night with Aislinn and Anaya over there while Alvin and Kiaan over there took care of pying with that whore."

  Bryan shrugged again, "I never believed the news," He looked at the two women who raised their noses while sticking their chests out to show their own assets, "I was just exposing the source of my knowledge to clear the misunderstanding, not to mention that even if it's the truth it's none of my business since I'm here for business not gossip."

  "Then let's talk business over some tea, I've recently acquired it from the Ardernds in the far south." Caleb said while sitting cross-legged on a round cushion and gesturing for Bryan to sit in front of him which he did.

  "Much appreciated your highness." Bryan didn't dispense with the honorifics and maintained a respectful attitude because he doesn't want another misunderstanding to happen between them since it'd only dey their negotiations that's all.

  Caleb had a shadow of a smile at the corner of his mouth but he opened his mouth to say : "To be honest I wasn't expecting to be approached with your people at all," He gestured for the two women to start preparing the tea and nodded inwardly when Vincent and Kelvin stood outside the tent without trying to enter like their leader, "What makes you think that we'd need your food?" Caleb Aagaard asked while looking at Bryan then waited to hear from him.

  Bryan immediately noticed that he's being tested so he took a deep breath before saying : "Because my honest opinion is that your Kingdom choose the wrong direction to initiate the attack."

  "Hoh~" The thirteenth Prince acted dramatically before leaning forward while smiling then asked : "Then are you suggesting that we should've attacked your country instead?" Afterwards his expression hardened while continuing : "We know about the armory your current President ordered the army to build near our western borders and we also know that she has been spreading the news about our suspicious movements in the political courts of the Rivermen and Sembiaar Countries so... Let's hear your "Honest opinion on what we should've done."

  "I'm aware that the decision was made by the Crown-Prince and the majority of your siblings supported him so there was nothing you could've done to stop the advancement of both sides of the army," Bryan expined that he's not saying that Caleb made the wrong decision, "And I'm not saying that the army should've invaded towards the west because I'm the one who owns the nd closest to the borders between both of our nations so... I'm pointing my finger south because the terrain is familiar to your people so the casualties would've been minimized while the ground gained would've been higher." After saying that he added : "The far south of the Sandaltur Country does have very fertile nd which is worth an entire state in size, the right move would've been to take the weakest in the territory and assimite that valuable piece on the board first, that way once an economical siege is forced on your Kingdom when you decide to order the army to head west, north, or east in the future... You'd have sufficient means to feed your people once the war is prolonged." Bryan gave the thirteenth Prince a chance to think about what he said before continuing to say : "Once the surprised Rivermen are no more and the shock wears off from the Sembiaars and they regroup there's bound to be a stalemate on the frontlines, we both know that any dey between the two frontlines is bad news for the citizens of your Kingdom... Which is why I'm here your highness."

  Caleb squinted his eyes before asking : "Are you not afraid of me reying this information to my big brother? All it'd take from him is just a single order and the troops would be called back before the night is over!"

  Bryan shrugged once again, "A leader can't show weakness in front of their followers," He looked at the Prince then accepted the cup of tea, "But what would be worse is showing a ck of foresight in front of members of the royal family on top of insufficient wisdom plus an abundant stubbornness since I'm sure you must've expined everything I just said but was ignored in the end."

  *Sigh*

  Caleb Aagaard released a sigh then shook his head before raising his cup of tea to drink as he closed his eyes as if to say goodbye and eternal farewells to all the souls which are going to depart from this world.

  "Still... You can't be disrespectful to my big brother in the future, next time you do show disregard for our Crown-Prince's dignity is when we become enemies!" Caleb gave Bryan a stern gaze when he said that.

  Bryan just nodded and smiled while raising his cup of tea then opened his mouth to say : "Then I hope my host wouldn't bme me for keeping certain opinions to myself in the future." After saying that he drank his cup then smacked his lips before adding : "Of course I'll voice them if asked to do so but I hope I won't be bmed for my honesty when I do!"

  "Hahahah... No one should be that unreasonable!" The thirteenth Prince ughed and all those who were listening to this conversation ughed too because so far Bryan was being as aboveboard as possible which is a quality people of this Kingdom appreciates greatly, "Now let's see what kinds of products do you offer to sell for us." Caleb requested and Bryan nodded before looking towards the Bus.

  "We brought enough samples of everything we're going to provide and I made sure to keep a wide variety in the quality and types, that way the food we offer becomes suitable for all kinds of demands... We can also provide clean water, drinks, beverages, and special orders of delicacies if needed." Bryan gestured for Peter to go bring the big box which he left in the Bus's belly where the bags are stored then added : "All you need to do is make a list and we'll take care of preparing it, transporting it through the borders, and delivering it to the location of your request." He stood up and opened the lid of the box before emptying it in front of everybody then asked : "Can I have some salt and dried roots?" Bryan opened the package and revealed two sps of raw meat which were chilled but not frozen then looked at one of the women and gestured with his hand like a knife since he need to cut them in half to share with Caleb.