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Chapter 87 – The gathering storm (1)
writer:Fei Yan      update:2022-07-25 14:23
  ================ Brendel’s POV ===============

  The silver obtained from Schafflund restored some life to Firburh.

  At the same time, the gains that Brendel received from the Rune Dwarves’ Haven were beyond his expectations, and the youth believed that he had enough strength to take on a bigger challenge.

  At this point in time, his eyes were cast to the north and he was prepared to give the nobles an announcement—


  A new force is on the rise.

  [The letter to Gryphine should reach her any moment now, and so is the news of Lord Macsen’s defeat to Lord Palas. Count Randner will get the news of the defeat in a few days.]

  Beneath his palm were a few written pages assessing the number of troops that he had and the terrain around Firburh.

  [The things to consider next would be Randner’s reinforcements to Lord Palas. He might send in ten thousand men from his own region, but he’s unlikely to send in Gold-ranked fighters since that would be his core strength; what he really wants is to show his hand to the other nobles so he will present a large army. There’s also the consideration that Madara worked with Graudin, so I should expect undead enemies. In addition, when I look at the Palas region on the map —]

  His eyes narrowed. There were densely populated areas consisting of Highland natives.

  [The plan is certainly to have an all-out war, but there’s the possibility of my men being outnumbered ten to one…… In conclusion, there’s a need to secure more men of my own. Delaying for a while would be good here. Hmm, doable.]

  His mind began to spin as he began formulating an overall strategy and the plans to support it.

  In order to prove to himself to this old kingdom, he needed to have a complete victory in order to warn his future enemies and gain the trust of his possible allies. It was also imperative that he did it as soon as possible.

  ================== Gryphine’s POV =============

  Gryphine was sitting down on a comfortable chair with a high back that was decorated with laces before a mahogany table covered with documents.

  She wore a set of specially made army uniform that was silver in color. While it gave her a strict and sharp look, it also brought out her lithe figure that could only belong to a soft and gentle girl.

  Her thin but dense eyelashes were flickering quickly as she scanned through the two documents in front of her; a letter and the day’s report on the important information—


  Gryphine tapped the table’s surface thoughtfully as she blinked her silver eyes, and finally lifted up her head. It was rare for her to put her full attention to read.

  Maynild and Oberbeck were not there. It was another group of people, and she knew only one of them.

  “Teacher.”


  An elderly man who wore a scholar’s long robes bowed respectfully before the princess. He was the royal court’s archmage Fleetwood, and he currently did not have the arrogance when he faced Brendel.

  Gryphine was his best disciple and also a hope to revive the kingdom. Even though he was strict during his lessons when he taught her, he was now respectful to her as a courtier.

  “Your Highness.”


  Gryphine smiled in return, and her eyes moved on to the others. Even though she did not know personally, she was able to guess their identities.

  The only young man in the group who had a rosy appearance and a little lost would be Eke.

  Beside him was a middle-aged man. Even though he had a weather-beaten appearance, he still kept an air of nobility to him. She recalled meeting him when she was very young, the cunning fox Makarov, and the person who once led the royal faction.

  The third person was a man who had a robust figure with hands full of calluses. She thought it was certainly Buga.

  The final person was undoubtedly the lord of the Matthiola region, Count Barre. Even though she had not seen him before, she heard that he was a noble who did things in a unique way.

  Her eyes paused on each of them for a few seconds, using the information she had gleaned from the reports she received in the past and managed to guess all her guests’ identities with her own eyes.

  Fleetwood did not even need to introduce them.

  [Today’s guests are quite famous. Duke Lantonrand’s son, the Cross Sword’s successor, the leader of the former Royal Faction, and the next person to be called Cunning Fox after Makarov.]

  Even though the Lantonrand region was small and situated beside Ampere Seale and the Arreck region, Duke Lantonrand’s support was critically important to the princess. It was good that history of the past Dukes of Lantonrand and Dukes of Arreck did not get along, and this generation’s dukes were sworn enemies.

  Her gaze landed on Eke for a while longer.

  The young man’s face started to turn red when he felt her eyes. He still had not adjusted his identity— perhaps anyone who turned from a nameless mercenary to the son of a duke would be stunned even now.

  Eke had not expected the princess to be this beautiful.

  As a half-elf, she was touted as the brightest gem on Aouine’s crown. Her aloof elegance that came from her Elven blood seemed to be mixed in with a human’s warmth, and anyone who met her for the first time would easily be infatuated with her.

  Even though she was young, she already possessed the potential for anyone to fall in love with her appearance.

  “Lord Eke, Lord Barre, Lord Makarov, and Ser Buga. I’m pleased to meet you, and I thank you for still supporting the Corvado royal family.”


  The group was quite surprised to see her point their identities out correctly.

  Makarov was feeling slightly glad. The princess was just as excellent as the rumors had stated. Hope was not transient as it appeared when the Corvado royal family had a successor like her.

  He believed that talent was the most important thing, but loyalty and resources were equally as important. The first prince was aggressive and impulsive, and Makarov disliked him. However, he was feeling much more relieved with the princess.

  But he suddenly recalled another youth and the oath that he made. He quickly shut his eyes and shook his head inwardly, tossing out the memories of the past.

  Count Barre, on the other hand, did not get moved by the princess’s polite attitude, neither was he interested in it. The rumors about her capabilities would be grossly inaccurate if she did not have this amount of insight.

  He instead glanced at the two reports on the table. She had been focusing it with strange intensity when they came into the room. The strangest thing was how she looked at it and smiled at the same time, and he was certain that she did not notice it herself.

  Naturally, he did not point that fact out, nor was it his turn to speak. He turned his gaze to Fleetwood.

  “There’s no need to be so polite, Your Highness. We should apologize for being late— There was something that we encountered along the way,” Fleetwood bowed and raised his head, “may I ask what is the situation to the north?”


  “The dark clouds are filling the sky.”


  Gryphine turned her head and looked past the window, describing the movements of the northern armies of the various dukes.

  “Their speakers have reached Ampere Seale and they are starting to convince the greedy merchants.”


  “Are there no plans made to counter them?” Makarov asked.

  Everyone’s eyes fell on him. After becoming a mercenary for a decade, he had become more practical and cared less about the rules amongst the nobles. Under normal circumstances, it was not yet the turn for him to speak.

  But Gryphine’s silver eyes glinted. She was more appreciative of people who spoke up instead of holding back.

  “I’ve asked Princess Magadal to assist in this matter and she would be setting out soon. She has close ties to the Cathedral of Flames and her contacts are many. There’s a chance to turn things around,” she said.

  “Would it be the princess who’s very devout?” Fleetwood asked.

  “Does she have proper guards? At this stage, our actions are closely watched to the point where they might as well be transparent to the enemy. Once Princess Magadal leaves, she would most likely encounter assassins.”


  “Naturally. Maynild is the leader of the guards protecting her.”


  Buga’s eyebrow was raised. Maynild was Lady Ida’s daughter and had family ties with Duke Lantonrand. He had met her when she was still young, but her talent in the sword was already blossoming and he was certain that she had become an excellent swordsman.

  He nodded slightly to Makarov’s questioning looks. The latter had also heard of her name, but he still questioned the princess’s decision: “Even though Lady Ida’s daughter is an excellent swordsman, but she is still someone who has not left the Academy. I believe that you need a more experienced leader.”


  Gryphine nodded: “Which is why I waited for everyone to arrive here and delayed Magadal’s departure.”


  Makarov’s eyes widened slightly at her answer and exchanged glances with the rest of the group. They bowed their heads to the princess.

  “We’re grateful for your trust and would be glad to escort Princess Magadal,” Fleetwood said.

  The room turned silent.

  There was still a secret contract to be settled between Duke Lantonrand and the Corvado royal family, but the group felt that it should be the princess who should initiate this topic. While it was possible for them to talk about pleasantries, no one had the mood to do so when the pressure from the north was so great.

  In the end, the princess spoke again with a small smile:

  “Everyone should take a seat. Perhaps we can talk about things that are more relaxing. I’ve been hearing bad news day after day. I believe Lord Eke was a mercenary for a few years? It is quite remarkable and interesting even amongst the nobles.”


  Her eyes also went to Makarov for a moment, bringing him into the topic.

  Eke was suddenly taken aback as the attention focused on him. He started to stutter several words out before the princess spared him.

  “Ah, yes, and I also recalled that teacher Fleetwood said that you encountered some trouble. You have always been on time when it comes to appointments, do you mind telling me what delayed you?” She continued to ask.

  Fleetwood nodded and said: “Yes, to tell the truth, this has to do with the Golden Apple!”


  Gryphine’s felt her heart beat violently and her pupils dilated a little. While she still kept her expression, as usual, Count Barre saw that minute reaction.

  volume 1 - 41

  TL: TSTBGAM will be up soon. I cleared my 2 pt perspective assignment pretty quickly.

  CH 41 – Spy

  He looked back at Romaine, and found that she was looking back at him. Her eyes which were full of curiosity made people feel uncomfortable at times, but Brendel was truly fond of her and found her mannerisms to be cute.

  He contemplated for a while before replying: “Let’s stop here for a while.”


  “Stop for a while?” Freya asked: “But the Madara’s forces are right behind us, and they would arrive about two or three hours later. We don’t have much time, Brendel.”


  But he shook the Seal Ring in front of the girls and answered: “It is now midnight. The city will be on full alert, and just having this alone does not really say anything. If we are treated as the Madara’s scouts, everything would go wrong, understand?”


  “T-then, what should we do?” Freya thought that all her efforts that she put in should have a little use.

  He glanced at her. In his mind, he knew clearly he was full of crap. Fortress Riedon did not notice Madara’s invasion? That might not be true! The nobles would not neglect their own safety, what they wanted was to hide inside the fortress and stubbornly defend until reinforcements arrived.

  He remembered in the Year of the Hidden Beasts (Year 342), the undead army swept across the east of Karsuk, leaving the entire region void of life. The governor of City of Silver Horses ordered the gates to be shut, ignoring the pleas of the eastern region, causing the refugees to flee to the west. In the end, that stretch of land was still empty even until now.

  Even so, these city lords did not receive any censure or blame, or perhaps the royal family had no power left to rebuke the lords since the ascension of Aouine’s previous king. The girls did not understand what happened to the Karsuk region, but he knew what happened.

  His true intention was to rescue Romaine’s aunt, and possibly a few others if he could, but reporting to the army of Fortress Riedon? He had never placed hope in this aspect, and he certainly did not think himself as a messiah.

  Rather than hoping the nobles would listen to reason, he would rather bet on pigs flying in the air as a better possibility. There were many clashes amongst the players and the arrogant nobles in the game, and even until the political changes in the twelve month, they were still fighting it out.

  He did not even have one good impression of the bastards at all.

  When he considered the pieces in his mind, he realized that Freya might see things differently. He spied on her with the corners of his eyes. She was staring vacantly at the campfire — The countryside girl still believed in this country. It was not a bad thing, but he was worried that she would be impulsive when it came to the critical juncture.

  And even if displayed the facts before her, she might not believe him. This would only lead to a rift between them and he did not wish to argue with her. He continued to mull things over, then a sudden idea hit him.

  [There are some moves I need to consider in advance for this plan.]

  He pretended to think a while longer, then answered: “I have thought things through. It seems like we don’t have much of a choice. We are still Aouine’s citizens and we cannot avoid the dangers here.”


  “But,” He paused: “We need to prepare for every situation.”


  His logical and grand speech made the girls nod in agreement. Even Freya’s attitude softened. She looked at him with appreciative eyes, suddenly finding that he was not such a shameless lout.

  Only the Gods knew that Brendel felt relieved after his speech. He realized that he finally found a way to bridge himself to his past and the current Brendel. He was never a person to be mired in rules, but the recent days made him feel that there was a huge hand continuously pushing him from behind, and that made him feel breathless at every turn.

  But with his growing strength and the baptism from the Golden Demonic Tree’s dream, he finally felt the carefree feeling from the past returning to him. This made him feel like things could be solved easily. His thoughts also had the addition of the former Brendel’s flexibility.

  He took out the black gargoyle statue which still had a small crack on it.

  He said: “You need to be prepared as well. Turn your ring to face inwards, Freya. Your fire agate is too conspicuous. Little Romaine, you need to keep your dagger close to your body. The lazy guards won’t search too close for it.”


  “Do I need to turn my ring too?”


  “That’s not necessary, nobody will want your cheap ring.”


  “Brendel, these people are the guards of the fortress! Why do you look like you don’t…… trust them too much?” She asked.

  “.…… I had never trusted them in the first place. Once we reach there you will understand what I mean. In any case, just follow what I said for the time being.”


  Freya had never entered the city and felt that he was overdoing things. But she could only choose to believe since he was the leader of such things now.

  Brendel took out various trinklets while he explained. The only thing that he had not identified was the trinklets from the fallen noble. He found that the pipe was only a common item and he he threw it away. He did not know what the dark gray colored stones were, but there was bound to be something that he did not recognize since there were thousands of different materials.

  But the crystal beads were interesting. He discovered they were the containers of a spent soul gem, or more accurately, a storage spell item. The spell inside them should be a silencing spell, an appropriate magic to use for going around the monster’s nest during adventuring.

  But what made him feel awkward was the inability of activating the storage spell items since he was a warrior. He hesitated for a while before keeping the cards and the items away, so the greedy guards would not take them away later on.

  He checked the night sky. It was still early.

  They started to leave Vendeck from the east, and there were signs of bright stars illuminating the buildings in their path. They were mostly farms distributed on the two shores of the Pine Forest, one after another. There were also inns in the outskirts, which only adventurers and illegal merchants would patronize these buildings. Many NPCs treated the players like they were grave robbers, since it was true that the majority of them had done something similar.

  They walked in the wild for approximately an hour, and suddenly Fortress Rideon appeared right in front of them. There were fire baskets at the towers, which lit the surroundings dozens of meters away. Brendel told the girls to slow down, and to gradually walk out of the darkness into the edge of the light.

  The guards were chatting with each other, and there was even a faint snoring sound. He was particularly sensitive to the noises, and he furrowed his brows. There were approximately seven or eight of them in the tower.

  Once the three of them appeared, the chatting ceased.

  “Identify yourself!” The guards looked warily at them for a while, and one of them revealed himself with a helmet and demanded them to answer. Romaine squinted and looked up, finding a black pine symbol on the helmet’s top.

  Brendel had once explained to her that the black pine symbol represented the local forces, while that white-mane something army was a symbol of a wolf. ‘Brendel really knows everything’, she thought.

  “A men and two women. We came from the forest. Sir, we saw something strange there. Me and my wives are completely scared, and we want to seek refuge in the fortress!” Brendel raised his arm and shouted loudly.

  Freya who was behind listened in fury and embarrassment, what was ‘a man and two woman’, the crudeness of it all! When she heard him saying they were his wives, she finally stabbed Brendel’s back with the sword’s hilt, this damned bastard must have done it on purpose!

  Romaine looked like she was fine with it, perhaps even feeling that it was a good thing to be Brendel’s wife.

  Brendel could only suffer in silence. This was the only way to make the guards lay down their vigilance. They did not look similar to each other in appearance, and he could not possibly say they were siblings.

  “Are you carrying weapons?” The guard asked again.

  Freya tensely held on to her sword when she heard that question, but Brendel calmly answered: “We dare not set foot in the forest without weapons, sir, and we also trained as militia in the past.”


  The tower became silent, and there was a long pause.

  After a while, a basket was let down from above, and the guard shouted: “Take off your weapons and place them in the basket. We will receive you one by one.”


  Brendel nodded to Freya to let them do the same. Even though the ‘Thorn of Light’ was more elegant in appearance, without activating the sword it did not look like a Magic Sword. Once the weapons were handed over the basket lift was sent down. Brendel was the first to go up in case something happened to the girls up there. Freya allowed Romaine to go next, and finally she was the last one to be pulled up.

  She sat down on the lift’s seat as she was pulled up, but when she reached the top of the tower, she saw that Brendel and Romaine were restrained with swords on their necks. Two of the guards pulled out their swords and walked over to her.

  “What is this?” Freya asked in astonishment. She cast her gaze at Brendel, but he looked away and did not answer her query.

  She panicked a little. Brendel was always the leader of the group, but now it was as if she became the decision maker. What should she do? Let the guards restrain her? Was this the way how they did things?

  [Brendel, answer me, what the hell are you thinking, damn it!]

  “Take them away, these people are Madara’s scouts!” At this moment, she suddenly heard someone barking orders from the corner. She was greatly taken aback, and spoke without thinking: “You knew that the Madara’s army was attacking?”


  Brendel’s expression was one of tragedy. Even though she had grown, she was a still a naive lass who had not seen the various aspects of society. A few mere words was enough to make her lose her composure. She might feel there was nothing wrong in her question, but the guards in Fortress Riedon was afraid of people from Bucce reporting the situation.

  They wanted to suppress this information in order to shirk the responsibility.

  Brendel knew that all too well. These people thought they could rely on Fortress Riedon’s tall and sturdy walls, but none of them knew the war was going to advance in a direction beyond their wildest dreams.

  “Wait, we’re not Madara’s scouts!” Freya argued: “We’re Bucce’s militia, we have the Seal Ring of the Bucce’s guard captain!”


  But the voice completely ignored her and yelled: “Restrain her now, what are you waiting for?” The person walked out from the darkness, bearing a dark armor, with the feather on his helmet indicating that he was the leader of the guards.

  The perverted middle-aged man stared lasciviously at Freya, his mind thinking that he had gotten something good. He believed that Freya was telling the truth as she was still wearing the militia’s armbands, but he had other plans in mind.

  [How interesting. To think there’s such a fine woman in that poverty-stricken Bucce.]

  He stroked his chin.

  volume 3 - 77