Chapter 673: Act 35 – Another Opportunity VI
“What’s wrong?” Brendel noticed her expression. “Feel free to speak, Lady Knight. I’ve heard of your reputation, so I won’t equate you with some others.”
“Miss Delphine volunteered to go herself, and Lady Veronika has no idea about the matters between you two. I only happened to notice it later. I just didn’t expect her to be so resolute. Actually, this is all my fault; I shouldn’t have been complacent about such an important matter,” Laurena sighed and replied, a bit self-reproachfully.
Brendel became curious at once. “How so? Do you know what’s going on?” It was hard not to be curious; anyone would feel unsettled being targeted by a seemingly crazed woman. In fact, even now, he felt quite uncomfortable recalling Delphine’s vengeful gaze.
That feeling was as if he had done something unforgivable to her, but with Martha involved, he had nothing to be ashamed of. Brendel remembered clearly that the only interaction he had with her was a mere passing glance while he was fighting against the wolf disaster in the Black Forest.
“The thing is,” Laurena felt a bit awkward when it came to this matter. She sorted her thoughts and explained in detail about Delphine.
“…Although Viscount Alman perished at Andisha’s hands, Miss Delphine has always believed that it was you who deliberately left them behind. Plus, it’s well known in the Empire that she has long harbored feelings for Viscount Alman, so his death was a heavy blow for her…”
“That’s truly an unwarranted calamity, Lady Laurena.” Brendel forced a bitter smile, feeling at a loss for words after hearing this absurd story. This was simply a disaster that had fallen from the sky; had he known he would offend such a neurotic lady, he would have certainly taken care to send this Viscount Alman out of the territory and not given Andisha any chance.
“I’m sorry, my lord… Miss Delphine, she…” Laurena seemed to want to further plead for the Chancellor’s Daughter. But Brendel had already interrupted her: “I understand what you’re saying, Lady Laurena. But even so, she should not lay hands on innocent people. This isn’t revenge; it’s merely an outlet for her anger.”
He thought for a moment and added, “I will consider your words, but not now. It’d be better to let that lady calm down for now. You wouldn’t want her to ruin Lady Veronika’s plans, would you?”
Laurena was taken aback, and she suddenly realized that there was indeed a possibility of that. Given Delphine’s current mindset, she would probably risk everything for revenge, even if it meant jeopardizing the Empire. After thinking it through, she could only sigh and say, “I understand.”
“Then let’s continue,” Brendel replied. “Since not many people in the Empire know about your actions this time, it should mean that the Azure Legion sent only a small team, right? Can I know how many of you there are?”
“This… I’m sorry, that’s a secret, Lord Earl.” Laurena felt a bit awkward but still refused Brendel’s question.
“It’s fine, I was just asking casually.” Brendel narrowed his eyes, already certain that the Azure Legion had likely only infiltrated Erluin with just a small elite force. As mentioned in the intelligence he received, it could be a good knight order under the Azure Legion, but there was no need to delve into it further. He asked again, “The letter said that the Temple of Fire suspects that the fragments might be with Duke Anlek. Is that true?”
The lady knight nodded and said, “Yes, ever since Lady Veronika entered Erluin, the information has aligned with that hypothesis. It’s possible that it was Duke Anlek colluding with cultists and demons to smuggle the fragments of the portal away.”
“I’ve heard that Duke Anlek has formed an alliance with Count Rendener recently, which means that those fragments might have already been transported to Mergitan?”
“There is that possibility,” Laurena frowned. “However, the messages from the Temple of Fire indicate that those fragments might not have stayed in Mergitan but have instead been moved northward.”
“Do you have any way to track the location of those fragments?” Brendel paused. He turned to look at the lady knight, thinking the Crusian people couldn’t possibly be here to amuse him, could they? If they had the ability to locate those fragments, then what were they even doing here?
But Laurena’s answer immediately satisfied his doubts: “No, it’s just some trivial divination and prophecy, my lord.”
Brendel finally understood: “So it’s north. What direction north?” he suddenly asked.
“Uh…” The lady knight was momentarily at a loss. How could she possibly know such things? However, her inherently serious nature compelled her to reply: “I’m sorry, I don’t know either.”
But to her surprise, Brendel interrupted her, saying, “It’s alright. Perhaps I already know.”
He turned his gaze back to the giant map marking the location of Mergitan. Directly north would lead into the vast Misty Forest, then further north into Lantonrand’s territory. His eyes quickly moved up: Ansela Forest, the Golden Sparrow Mountain, the mountains along the northern shore of Valenden Lake—
A bolt of lightning struck through his mind, as if igniting a spark called wisdom. He suddenly raised his head, realizing what those demons or cultists, or even Duke Anlek, were after.
To rebuild a portal, a significant amount of magical power would be essential.
Ideally, an energy core.
The Crusian people have the Flame Gem.
What about Duke Anlek?
Brendel’s gaze finally fixed on a part of the map where a line of fine text was scrawled: Needle Hills Road.
Needle Hills Road, Frosted Forest Maze, Dragon’s Heart.
…
“Your Highness.”
As soon as Brendel left the hall, he discovered Princess Grifian standing at the entrance. The half-elf maiden was perched by the stone window, gazing at the scenery of the hills towards the Gels Riverbank. He was taken aback and quickly bowed his head in greeting.
The princess turned her head. It seemed she had been waiting for him here for quite some time. After silently looking at him for a moment, she slowly asked, “Lord Earl, how should we handle our relationship with the Crusian people moving forward? Should we assist them this time?”
“This time, we must help, Your Highness.” Brendel answered truthfully.
“Hmm?” Princess Grifian turned back, slightly surprised. “Why? I remember you weren’t very fond of them?”
“In fact, I have some insights now,” Flour followed Brendel out of the hall, allowing him to take the coat and cloak from her hands. Brendel glanced out the window; the undulating ridge was covered in lush green trees, with snow-like clouds and a cerulean horizon above. Watching the flock of migratory birds drift away, he said, “It’s a good opportunity right now. Let’s persuade Duke Vieiro to join our side.”
“If we’re lucky,” he added, “perhaps Golan-Elsen could be swayed as well.”
Grifian was no fool; on the contrary, her wisdom was prominent among the royal family of Erluin. She could certainly understand Brendel’s implication, but as she looked at the cloak in his hands, she curiously asked, “Lord Earl, where are you planning to go?”
In her memory, this young man, who had now become Lord Earl, was known for his lack of decorum. Unless he was undertaking a long journey, he rarely wore a coat, let alone a cloak or shawl.
Thus, she keenly sensed something from Brendel’s subtle actions.
Brendel had no intention of hiding it; he nodded. “I suddenly have an idea.”
“An idea?”
“Yes,” Brendel replied. “It seems that this time Lady Martha is still on our side. If all goes well, Princess Margadale may awaken soon.”
Princess Grifian paused in surprise, and extreme joy filled her silver eyes, causing her to forget to maintain her composure and blurt out, “Really!?”
“Have I ever lied to you, Your Highness?” Brendel felt quite at ease, as if all the problems that had troubled him recently had suddenly been resolved. It must be said that this time, Duke Anlek and Count Rendener had inadvertently done him a great favor.
In fact, he had already discussed with Berun and Antinna that reviving Margadale would be easy in some ways but hard in others. The nun princess was not human; her injury was actually due to the disruption of the magical source that drove and maintained her bodily functions—Alorze had indirectly confirmed this point.
To restore the magical source, the simplest method was simply to replace it with a new one.
There was someone in his territory who possessed this technology. Brendel had not forgotten that Alorze had implanted the Titan core into his body. However, finding a new magical core was indeed a problem.
But Duke Anlek’s current movements instantly provided him with an answer.
Having been preoccupied with participating in and planning the internal conflict in Erluin, he almost forgot that he used to be a player. Needle Hills Road, Frosted Forest Maze dungeon, was just the perfect place to find a magical core.
Dragon’s Heart.
Duke Anlek was clearly going after that, though Brendel had no idea how the guy had found out about the Dragon’s Heart’s existence there. But now what he needed to do was clearly to find this treasure before the other party did.
Moreover, if those foolish people really built a portal there, he certainly wouldn’t mind conveniently destroying it. That way, he would not only complete Lady Veronika’s task but also clear up a mountain of issues on his end; nothing could be more profitable for Brendel than that.
Seeing the confident look on his face, Princess Grifian took a gentle breath and cautiously inquired, “Are you going now?”
“No,” Brendel shook his head. “Before that, I still need to resolve one matter.”
“What matter?”
Brendel flashed a smile, replying, “Personal matters.”
…
(PS: Today’s three updates total ten thousand! Also, I strongly recommend the novel by the audacious Fengyue, titled ‘Heaven Drive,’ with the book number being… um, 2493250! An unabashed introduction follows—
This story is about how a young man, treading upon the bones of countless, reaches the peak of this world.
…
Alright, this is really a tale of a young man accompanied by his own senior sister and loli, stepping cluelessly onto the ‘Magnet King’ path, leading many capable ones to wealth, prosperity, and a bright future…
) (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
