Amber Sword

The demon invasion quickly became the most serious situation at hand, and everyone clearly understood the weight contained in this information.

Wood hoped that the Princess faction could first release the prisoners of the Flame Temple and allow the Knoelia fleet to at least regain some combat strength to deal with the upcoming war with the demons. However, Brand did not immediately respond to this request. Although time was pressing, it did not mean he needed to hand over his previous achievements.

After a brief pause in the battle, both sides needed rest. The demons couldn’t appear right before them immediately, as these creatures from beneath the River of Sulfur would be hampered when moving under the storm. Even with the worst estimate, he had more than ten hours to negotiate with the Cruz people.

Brand’s demands were simple, yet somewhat exorbitant.

The Northern Alliance should return all the prisoners belonging to the Princess faction, which naturally included the young Prince.

Subsequently, the Flame Temple would bear all the losses caused by this war, as Brand presumed that the Northern nobles were incited by them to start the war—he didn’t care whether this was the actual truth or not.

This included compensation payments and a trade compensation agreement.

Of course, the compensation payments were carried out privately, to save face for the Cruz people. Brand was happy to accommodate this small request, as he only cared about tangible benefits.

The trade compensation agreement was a method of compensation proposed by Brand, appearing as a trade concession from the Cruz Empire to the Erune Empire. However, it included many detailed conditions, among which were two important technology transactions.

The drawings for the Magic Transmission Device and the manufacturing technology for the Empire’s ’Dreadnought-class’ first-class battleship.

This was downright extortion.

Upon seeing these two conditions, Wood’s expression darkened like the clouds over Ambeser’s Outer Sea, and without a word, he turned and left in a huff.

He then sent an envoy to negotiate with Brand.

The envoy bluntly declared that if Brand did not cooperate, the Holy Temple would abandon Erune. For the Cruz people, the most they would lose was face. But for Erune, the best outcome would be a grievous blow, and the worst would be the eradication of the nation.

If this statement were presented to other Erune nobles, it would undoubtedly be a massive bombshell. Even the Princess might be swayed by this. But after Brand heard this, he just laughed dismissively and had Medphis throw the guy out of the camp.

Ridiculous.

He was well aware of the Holy Temple’s weaknesses. The Cruz people not only wanted to save face but were more importantly concerned about the secret of the Flame Gate not falling into the hands of the Unity of All Things. He knew there were several permanent Flame Gates within the Cruz Empire. Should the secret of the Flame Gate leak, the Empire would become yet another gateway for the River of Sulfur to the surface world.

Possessing this secret, Brand naturally wouldn’t easily compromise. However, he also felt uneasy; if that old fox Wood truly dared to hold his position, Brand might end up having to approach him to compromise.

Because only he, Antitina, and Frey knew—Romantic was still in Ambeser Port.

And once the Cruz people gained the upper hand, Erune would likely be stripped to the bone. Brand gritted his teeth and held out for an hour and a half before Wood couldn’t resist and approached him, as the Great Priest had no comforting information at hand.

Wood’s arrival brought Brand relief.

The Cruz people conceded.

In just half an hour, Brand signed a temporary peace agreement with Wood, taking advantage of the Cruz people’s concession. Brand was relentless; alongside the visible agreement, both sides also signed a secret agreement.

The Flame Temple privately acknowledged the Kerkova Royal Family’s right to pursue the rebellion charges against several major Northern nobles, including Duke Sipah, Marquis Belta, Count Vitojin, and Marquis Youxi.

However, this second agreement was not made public. Firstly, it wasn’t the right time to shake the confidence of the Northern nobles. Secondly, the Great Priest had long discovered that Duke Sipah, Marquis Belta, Count Vitojin, and Marquis Youxi were missing, most likely with Prince Haruz in the hands of the Unity of All Things.

Therefore, even if the Holy Temple wanted to fulfill this provision, for the time being, they didn’t have the capability.