Mericel says "Yes, a new plan would be good. Cutting your way through an army isn't a plan."
"Shush you. Alannis, how many troops on the other borders?"
Alannis says "Five thousand on the border with the Free Union, and ten thousand on the border with the empire."
Mericel says "Wait, that can't be right! The army is only ten thousand troops in total!"
Alannis says "The king has been increasing the army since the day he took the throne. He ordered that you be kept in the dark."
Mericel says "Just how big is the army then?"
Alannis says "The regular army is around twenty-five thousand troops, plus another ten thousand conscripts in training at a secret camp."
Mericel says "Thirty-five thousand troops? The kingdom can't support that many troops! How is he paying for this?"
Alannis says "He raised taxes and he controls the slave trade."
Mericel says "He is bleeding the kingdom dry, he can't sustain that for long."
