Amber Sword

"Why don’t you go over?" The Merchant Lady seemed to still be sitting on that rock, hugging her bag with both hands resting on her leather-skirted knees, her round-toed shoes swinging back and forth in the air.

"They don’t like me."

"Why?"

"In their eyes, my aunt and I are both weirdos; besides, how many ordinary girls want to become merchants? So it’s normal not to be liked."

"I’ve never met them. Ever since I can remember, my aunt has been with me. Aunt said, Little Roman, when you grow up, you must repay me well!"

"So you want to become a merchant?"

"Yes."

"What a strange idea."

"It’s okay—"

From that moment, he realized he had fallen deeply in love with that eccentric girl. Because they shared some similar trait, he was just as peculiar in others’ eyes, yet they both had a common pursuit.

She wanted to become a great merchant, and he wanted to save his beloved Erune, both bizarre goals unimaginable to ordinary people, but it didn’t matter—

As long as they agreed, it would be fine.

"Brand, Roman she..." Frey also realized it; this simple-minded girl from Buqi countryside started worrying about her best partner even before Brand.

But Brand gave her a reassuring look, though his heart was filled with chills, "Wood Main Priest, do you think the Unity of All Things can control those Flame Gates?" He asked, still harboring a last bit of hope.

"Mr. Brand, there’s no need for speculation; just before we got here, we had already lost them. The Unity of All Things connected them to the underground of Jogen Digan; you should know what that place is."

"River of Sulfur," Brand replied through gritted teeth. "So what should I do, order to stop pursuing the Knoelia Fleet and turn back to fight the demons of Jogen Digan, here, on Erune’s territory?" he couldn’t help but curse, "Look at what you’ve done, Cruz bastards! What bullshit Flame Temple!"

It was the first time Frey had seen Brand so furious, scared pale; the last time was in Ridenburg, but she wasn’t present then.

"Well said," Mephisto answered, "Now that’s more like a man."

Wood was speechless; the Flame Temple—even the Four Great Sanctuaries had been infiltrated by cultists, an indisputable fact. But the situation had never exceeded their expectations as it did today; this time, the Flame Temple truly lost a colossal face. Even more significant than the Cruz Fleet being defeated by Brand. "We will fight alongside you," he could only say this.

Brand sneered lightly; he did not trust these Cruz people at all. If he had known from the start that Moros was a lurker for the Unity of All Things, then he might have guessed their intentions upon seeing those teleportation gates for the first time. Unfortunately, in history, Moros missed this opportunity, Ambeser did not experience a great war, and the Cruz only began building Flame Gates in Erune after his term.

Later, Moros returned to Cruz, and Brand also headed north to Saint Ausor with Fanzan. After that, news about the Flame Temple gradually faded from his memory.

And he forever missed the opportunity to identify Moros.

"Alright," Brand finally said, "I will persuade Her Highness the Princess to order the cessation of the chase of the Knoelia Fleet, but you must also persuade the Northern Alliance to join our ranks. If left unchecked, what kind of situations might occur near Ambeser, Lord of Priest, you know better than I do."

He pointed at Wood again, "Hope Lord of Priest remembers what you said today, or you will regret your words and actions previously."

Brand’s heart burned with raging fury, but now he only worried about Miss Merchant’s safety; if Roman had even a scratch in Ambeser, he would make the Flame Temple pay for it.

This is by no means an empty threat.

As he turned, Wood vaguely heard Brand mutter something like ’Hopefully, the number of demon armies teleported by the Unity of All Things won’t be too many,’ made the high priest of the Flame Temple seem momentarily stunned before he reacted.

This young man seems to know too many things?

...

(PS: 4000, also thanks to everyone who made the character tables, I will use them as a reference to verify and make character cards myself, this makes it much easier for me, much appreciated. Also, today includes the second group’s LOG.) (To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation and monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation.)