Joseph, Darren Dorbank, and Master Hun were taken away by the puppets to place them in the only prison of Dorbank city for the time being.
Alex was handed all the possessions that those three were carrying with them.
The only thing that stood out from them was Joseph's Interspatial Storage Ring. Since he has inventory for himself, Alex can use it as a cover-up for it.
Unfortunately, Alex was not able to open it to see what was stored inside. He tried using his Qi but it did not respond to it. When he tried to use his spiritual power, it faced strong resistance from inside the ring.
"Only Joseph can open it with his Qi as he had imprinted it with the mark of his soul. You can either tell him to open it up for you or you can force him to lift his soul mark from the ring." Master Clayton who was standing by Alex's side said after he saw his disciple unable to open the storage ring in his hand.
"Is there no other way," Alex asked.
Master Clayton thought for a moment and then said, "There is indeed another way to open it. The ring recognizes Joseph as his only master because it has a wisp of his soul branded on it. The way is to wipe that soul wisp using your spiritual force or sense to make it masterless but that is no easy feat. Your spiritual force depends on the size and power of your soul. That is why you need to have a soul that is more powerful than Joseph's by at least three to four times or sometimes even more than that as it also depends on the type and grade of spatial storage treasures. "
Alex tried to destroy the soul wisp in the ring a few time but his spiritual sense was not powerful enough yet so he kept it in his inventory for the time being.
Darren was smart enough to transfer his wife and son with some of his guards and servants to a secret place near the harbor of the Dorbank City so that they can escape when Darren has lost all his cards.
Alex did not know that at first but they were also quickly captured by the puppets who were patrolling on all the routes that a person can use to escape.
Other than Darien and his mother who they found by coincidence as they were patrolling the western shore of Dorback city, they also captured some spies related to the Merchant Union and Lord Frey that are on the northern border of the Dorbank's territory.
The merchant Union army on Dorbank's territory border was keeping Darren's army that was stationed there to guard the border busy so that they cannot return back to help their Lord in any way.
The merchant Union was also keeping the Frey's on its north-east border from interfering in the Dorbank's civil war.
...
In a huge hall inside the largest building of the Merchant Union city, six out of seven people were sitting on a round table with a serious look on their faces. They have been discussing for a long time on a matter that put their mood off for some reason. These people make up the Merchant Union and each of them has a stake in it. They all rule the Merchant Union city together.
"Mr.President, why were we not informed about the deal you made with those outsiders to help Cole Jordan in his coup. Its a serious violation of the rules that needed to be followed by each and every member of this union." A middle-aged man with a trimmed beard who was garbed in a luxurious robe shouted in anger at the old man sitting at the helm of the round table.
A mature woman with a huge bust sitting diagonally to the middle-aged man said right after him "He is right. Mr. President, you should have at least informed us all before choosing any side or even making any move in this situation. How will this Union of merchants work properly in the future if you make such decisions without consulting or getting our consenses at all?"
Two other members also agreed with them as they also said the same thing.
The old man who everyone called as Mr.president quietly listened to what others had to say in this matter and only after everyone said their piece did he finally open his mouth.
"I know what I did was wrong by the rules, we had together established for our Merchant Union. But first, hear what I have to say. Three days ago, a letter was sent to me through the hands of a messenger. The sender of the letter was Merchant Henry from the Belmont subcontinent. You all know about him right. He requested our assistance in helping Cole Jordan by keeping Darren's army from returning back to the city and also keeping the Frey's at bay so that they cannot take any advantage in that situation."
The old man stopped for a moment and then continued.
"Those outsiders which you mentioned just now are disciples of the Riverland Mountain Sect in the west of Belmont Subcontinent. Not someone we can afford to offend. They asked Merchant Henry to send us that letter as we are familiar and also frequently do business with him from time to time. Now asking a merchant to do a profitless work is definitely out of question. That's why in that letter Merchant Henry promised to reserve seven seats for us in the Rockefeller Academy situated in the Dukedom of Sorres."
The Dukedom of Sorres was located a little inland from the eastern shore of the Belmont Subcontinent.
Rockefeller Academy is a famous institution that Duke Sorres had set up in his territory for teaching and possibly recruiting youths with potential in his army and administration.
Many rich merchants and nobles send their kids there to study in that academy for a better future. It's similar to a sect but it focuses more on other things than just cultivation.
Several people's eyes lit up when they heard that.
"Is that really true? What if Merchant Henry goes back on his words?" a member sitting on that round table asked suspiciously.
"Merchant Henry will not risk his reputation by going back on his words. You know how important that is to a Merchant to survive there. Also, we all know that Mr.Henry is capable of reserving seats for us if we do his work. He has a lot of say in that Academy"
"Mr.President, if what he says is true then we can drop this matter here today but why did those Sect people not come directly to us. Also, how did the patriarch of the Jordan family come in contact with such personalities? This matter should also be taken seriously." While frowning his brows, a fat-bellied middle-aged man asked in doubt.
"Your concerns are also my concerns too. We need to have our guard up all the time. But as Merchants its in our nature to gamble. Is their not a risk in the businesses you all handle. Don't you remember how many times you had suffered loss because of bad deals but we always learned from them and see how far we have reached? Its all because of the risk we have taken in the past. This time I am betting on Mr. Henry's promise. I believe that he will not go back on his words as it does him more harm than to us. Plus, after the war, if they do not keep their words, then we will go and destroy Cole Jordan and what remains of his army after waging war with Darren Dorbank." The old man said briskly.
The six people finally nodded their heads in agreement. Now they just have to wait for the result to come to them.
If Cole Jordan wins then they can send one of their kids to study in a famous academy.
If Cole Jordans loses to Darren Dorbank despite the help they provided then they can treat this matter as a bad deal on their part.
...
In the middle of Dorbank City Square.
A huge crowd could be seen gathering in that place under the direction of some armed men. Dorbank City square is just in front of the Manor at which the Darren Dorbank resided with his family. And also the place where Joseph and the old man Darbon Dorbank fought fiercely to kill each other.
The crowd that filled the City square to the brim was mixed with all types of people that have been living in this city for years.
All the guards that defected or were forced to defect from the armies of the Jordan's and the Dorbanks were also present in that area unarmed.
Some were standing with their families while some who have families residing in other villages outside this city or the orphans who did not have anyone to call as a family, both of these types of people stood together in their respective familiar groups.
Mercenary groups that survived the war, shop owners and merchants with or without their families were also present in the crowd.
Of course, the city square was not spacious enough to hold the overflowing crowd. The excess of them filled the streets extending in different directions.
No one was allowed to stand on the roofs of the houses or the shops near that place as the puppets with bows and arrows were standing atop them to keep an eye on the crowd from a high elevation.
Some of them did not know why they were told to assemble here. Some people had a vague idea of what was about to happen.
Some had eyes filled with hope, some were standing in the crowd fearing for their future. Everyone was discussing between themselves about the war, what they experienced till now.
One thing that everyone knew was that the war has ended, though most of them still did not who was the final winner.
