A company of men marched through the Plegian wasteland, mounted knights on wyverns and pegasi flying above them. At the head of the company was Lantus, who rode a black, armor-clad warhorse. After hours on the march, the Ylissan men reached a river just as night began to fall, and Lantus ordered the march to halt. The army began to settle down for the night, but Lantus stayed up in the command tent, supervising the aerial scouts that he'd sent out to find the Shepards while planning out the next day's march. 

After a few more hours of planning, Lantus began calling officers in and giving them orders for the next day. A squad of soldiers were dispatched to investigate the nearest town for any sign of the Shepards as well as acquire supplies, while the aerial scouts were given a wider range to sweep. The rest of the army would march south, towards Castle Plegia. 

Speaking of which, Lantus reflected that he'd have to treat with the Plegian king, lest he ignite a war for having his men on Plegian soil. Oh, he would have no reservations in battling Plegia a second time, but he had his orders. The Shepards had to be hunted down. And there was the fact that his daughter was still out there, and she was far more likely to be killed if war swept the land. Ordinarily, Lantus would have gone himself to treat with the Plegians, but he doubted that they would receive him well. After all, he had been the primary architect of Plegia's loss in the last war. No, Xanxus would be a better choice. Plegia had no reason to despise the man, and the Saint of Swords was a one-man army. He'd be able to fight his way out if anything went wrong. 

With that in mind, Lantus turned to Xanxus, who sat next to him. 

[b]"General Xanxus, it's occurred to me that we still need to open negotiations with the Plegian king. You know as well as I do that I wouldn't receive a warm welcome, considering my actions in the last war. Can I trust you to inform Plegia of our presence? No one else besides us in this army has the authority to negotiate with rulers, after all."[/b]