Chapter 348: Act 114 – The Border of the Black Forest (Part 3) (Second Update)
Brendel understood Tam’s thoughts.
The Black Forest was an untamed land that had never been developed, rarely trod by humanity. The chaotic influence of the forest meant that its rules would periodically reset, creating bizarre phenomena within. Beneath the surface lay treasures unimaginable to human beings.
Additionally, due to the influence of the Month of Magic, not only were there various magical creatures in the forest, but magical plants also thrived. In some areas, magical energy gathered, even forming vast open-air Magic Crystal mines—where the streams flowed with sparkling gems and fountains spouted gold coins. This was not merely a poetic description; here, it could very well become reality.
The Black Forest was not only a forbidden zone for civilization, but also an unknown treasure trove in the eyes of humans. However, ever since the Second Holy War, many races on the continent had exhausted their strength through internal strife, and the glorious era of Pioneer Knights venturing into the jungle was no more.
Nevertheless, the strange legends from history persisted. It was said that the forest produced rare materials—rivers flowing with moonlight that could resurrect the dead, the red veins beneath the earth that held the blood of sages capable of turning iron into gold, the dragon graveyards where dragon bones more precious than diamonds lay, and leaves that, when ignited, could create illusions of paradise.
All of this was the greatest treasure in the eyes of alchemists; acquiring just one of these materials could create a legendary item that would earn them eternal fame. Every alchemist longed for the Black Forest, but most who dared to enter it themselves ended up being devoured by beasts.
Another fact was that the Black Forest was also the region with the highest concentration of magical creature nests.
“Master Tam could have directly commissioned me,” Brendel shook his head, “I also neglected to mention that the Black Forest is the treasure trove most longed for by every alchemist.”
“Actually, I think Master Tam has his own concerns,” Antinna suddenly smiled faintly and said this.
“What do you mean?”
“If you ask Diya, you’ll know,” the noble girl teased.
Brendel immediately looked at Flour.
The elder sister among the Wild Elves turned her head expressionlessly and shouted to her younger sister, “Diya—”
“Elder sister?” The younger sister quickly ran back, but as soon as she saw her elder sister’s stern expression, she swiftly kept her distance, cautiously asking, “What’s the matter, elder sister?”
“The lord wants to ask you something,” Flour replied.
“Lord?” Diya turned her head, widening her eyes to look at Brendel, as if her elder sister was far scarier than this lord—indeed, compared to Flour, she felt much closer to this lord who often told her stories during their journey.
In this regard, Flour was not fulfilling her role as an elder sister.
“Diya, why did Master Tam call for you?” Brendel asked.
“To collect materials, Lord!”
Wasn’t that quite normal? Brendel glanced at Antinna, who covered her mouth with a smile. She gestured for him to continue asking.
Brendel paused for a moment, then continued to ask, “What materials?”
“Master Tam said this,” Diya began to recite, shaking her head and swaying her body, but was soon shot a stern glare from Flour. The young girl shrank her head slightly and obediently responded in a softer voice, “It should be easy to find secondary Magic Crystals in the forest, so we should collect as many as we can. There are Moon Crystals, Gold Crystals…”
“And magical plants, Bloodspot Roses and Whip Flower…”
“As for minerals, finding an open-air Mithril mine would be the best, but Saint Silver is also good, along with Cold Iron and Nasar Ore…”
“I’ve heard there’s a spring in the Black Forest that can grant eternal youth, Wings of Archangels, the Song of Dragons, and the Heart of Gold…”
“Stop, stop, stop!” Seeing that Diya seemed to have no intention of stopping, Brendel quickly called her to a halt. This list of materials started off fine, but as it progressed, it grew increasingly unrealistic—eternal youth springs were already mythical items.
What were the Wings of Archangels, the Song of Dragons, and the Heart of Gold, if not divine artifacts? Did Tam really think of the Black Forest as a Dwarven treasure vault, where one could just open the door and start collecting?
If it were that easy, humanity would have surged in long ago. The Black Forest, while teeming with treasures, was also fraught with dangers.
The outer regions of the Black Forest were less dangerous and not as mysterious, but the variety of minerals and rare magical plants were also scarce, so the latter half of Tam’s list was obviously daydreaming.
However, Brendel could understand Tam’s thoughts; after all, not everyone had the opportunity to enter the Black Forest and return alive, let alone bring anything out. Just safeguarding oneself there was a luxury.
Not every lord would dare toss their golden power into such an endless abyss, as no one could predict whether they would lose troops and not even see bubbles afterwards. The reason Brendel dared to do so was that he was familiar with the area north of the Karanjar Mountains.
After all, he had once been a player, and only players could risk their lives exploring the Black Forest.
But as the young man pondered, a sudden idea came to him. He had been struggling with training plans for his promising young men, and now with Tam’s list, it became simple—he intended to spend most of his time on the road each day and use the remaining time to search based on the map.
He further considered dividing these people into three groups: one for him, one for Xi, and one for Kuran. Then, after camping each night, they would score based on their performance and the items they found, which would foster competition between groups and develop teamwork within each group. It wouldn’t be a bad idea.
Brendel mentally drafted this plan and turned back to inspect his promising young men, but before that, he heard an excited call:
“Meria!”
Brendel recognized it as Carglis’s voice. He turned around and saw the young man in a flowing red robe, Moding, quickly weaving through the crowd toward a young man stepping down from a coach.
“Carglis? What are you doing here?” The young man initially looked confused but then widened his eyes, blinking at this familiar friend.
Brendel noticed the young man had a head of rare golden hair, with blue eyes reminiscent of the sea—more like a northern ethnic group. However, he wore a travel outfit similar to Brendel’s, with a long sword that had been confiscated from his belt, making him appear slender and somewhat feminine, standing there like a woman with long hair cascading down her shoulders.
However, even if a woman, she was still a lady of high social standing.
“I understand now,” the young man reacted and exclaimed, “Your father was defeated, so you followed him too.”
“Hey.” Carglis looked at his old friend and smiled nonchalantly.
“I had thought you wouldn’t come; unexpectedly, with you here, Sir Minate also lost,” the young man expressed concern with his blue eyes slightly furrowed, “You’ve sided with them, Carglis?”
“Yes,” Carglis nodded nonchalantly, “By the way, how did you end up here, Meria?” He certainly knew where these young people came from, but he was surprised to see his friend appear.
“I was captured by those mercenaries; I was just passing through with my retinue—” Meria’s face flushed.
“Were you sneaking out?” Carglis quickly saw through his friend’s predicament.
“I-I wasn’t.”
“Alright, alright, we all know about your situation, so don’t pretend. Don’t worry; I’ll protect you here. But I must say, you’ve really gotten yourself into a big mess this time, my lady. You’re going to the Black Forest; are you prepared?” Carglis suddenly looked gleeful.
“Don’t call me that!” Meria suddenly got angry, glaring at him, but then widened her eyes, “I’m going to the Black Forest?”
“Didn’t you think you came here for what?” Carglis looked up at the forest, “Oh right, I forgot to tell you, this is the border of the Black Forest—”
Meria’s face paled, and her body swayed, but Carglis grabbed her, “What’s wrong, it’s just the Black Forest, besides, I’m here too!” He whispered, reminding her to be cautious around the surrounding mercenaries.
“I-How can I go to the Black Forest,” Meria said helplessly, “Carglis, you have to help me.”
“No, I think this is an opportunity, Meria.” Carglis shook his head.
“What opportunity?” Meria was confused.
“Don’t you want to get rid of that bastard father of yours? This is your chance! I think my new lord probably won’t hold your father accountable—” Carglis mischievously smiled, suddenly thinking this idea was quite good.
“But what can I do staying here?” Meria still didn’t understand, “Besides, I don’t want to go to the Black Forest; there are magical creatures there; we’ll die!”
Carglis held his forehead, lowering his voice, “My lady, you’re a backup priest; are you really that timid—” He suddenly realized something and cautiously looked around, further lowering his voice to whisper something in Meria’s ear. Meria initially looked bewildered, but her eyes soon brightened as she nodded vigorously.
Brendel noticed Carglis and the young woman walked aside, and their voices gradually became softer, eventually fading to inaudibility. However, he didn’t eavesdrop. After all, once they entered the Black Forest, even if these two were conspiring, it wouldn’t cause much turmoil, especially since he had plenty of time to slowly observe their backgrounds. However, what intrigued Brendel was that Carglis’s friend must have been a noble, and the young man’s aura further confirmed this. But why were there nobles among the young people he recruited?
Brendel certainly wasn’t arrogant enough to believe that at this time, the nobles of the Cold Fir Baron territory would start supporting him. After all, unless they were seeking death, facing Count Rendener’s reckoning would be enough to make them quail.
He turned back and looked at Antinna with a puzzled expression, “Who are those people?”
“Nobles. I heard they are offspring of estates.”
“Does that mean there’s more than one?” Brendel felt the situation was becoming increasingly peculiar. He didn’t want unknown individuals mingling in his close knights’ group, although the backgrounds of these estate offspring might be considered clean. Perhaps the gentry around Firburh still wouldn’t support him, but he believed that time would not be far off.
This situation, in any case, was still a bit strange.
Antinna nodded.
“How did they get here?”
“They came out secretly, according to the mercenaries,” the noble girl replied. “They seem to have come out of admiration; Lord, your reputation has already spread—”
“How interesting,” Brendel couldn’t help but touch his cheek, somewhat shamelessly asking, “Am I that famous?”
Antinna looked up and shot him a disapproving look.
…(To be continued. For more chapters and to support the author, please log in and support legitimate reading!)
