Originally, as someone striving for perfection, he should stay behind and clean up every benefit, but the tumultuous situation inside Brags City and the hidden presence of the All Things Return to One, made him realize this place was not suitable for a long stay.
The moment this alarm arose, Brand made the quickest response.
He had already decided to leave this place, heading either East or South, deep into the mountain ranges of the Dener Region, or passing through Tosandka Forest, along the northern ridge of the Kalanja Mountain Range, to find his treasure.
"Where are we going?" Although Batom initially clamored to leave this troublesome place, he felt a bit uneasy when it came to actually departing. Though he was a mercenary, the furthest he had been was Karasu— but according to Brand, they might have to traverse Dener to the coast of Star Sea, where they would see the mountain sung by poets, towering to the clouds—along the way, they would also enter the Barbaric lands.
Legend has it that when passing through Tosandka Forest at the foot of the mountain, or following the silver beach to the east, one would reach an endless desert. The Su Clan lives there, and in their stories, there are countries to the east of the desert: such as the famous Land of Pearl, Nine Phoenix Country.
"We will split into two groups. Batom, you bring Limp Man back to the troop, and have Reto take everyone to a place called Griss. To reach there, you need to hire a guide; the safest route recently is the northern path of Dener. In name, you just need to raise the mercenary flag and won't cause much trouble." Brand thought for a moment and replied.
"Griss, what kind of place is that?"
"That is the easternmost port of the Kingdom," Brand smiled, "The scenery there is nice, the local girls are simple and passionate, Batom, you might meet a girl you fancy there."
Batom's old face reddened, muttering, "I'm a wandering mercenary, Lord."
"That was before, now you are my house servant." Brand responded indifferently.
Red Beard's mercenary quickly fell silent, but his face still showed longing. Even though he had some reluctance before, now he already seemed eager to try.
"What about you, Lord?" he thought for a moment and asked again.
"I have some personal matters——" Brand remembered his Azure Light Piercing left in the auction house, feeling very regretful. But that sword gradually lost its luster after Level 20, so trading for a new Weapon was necessary.
In fact, in the past month, his equipment and strength showed hardly any progress, which was far off from his original plan. Of course, all preparations in Brags were necessary, as the saying goes, sharpening the knife doesn't delay the cut. Brand's actions were actually fast enough, but he himself was still unsatisfied.
Especially after encountering Test, he felt increasingly urgent to enhance his strength. Hence, he prioritized this adventure in his schedule.
His main target remained the sealed Kingdom, but before that, he needed to verify the seemingly ambiguous words from the White Knight Albton.
Regarding the Lion Heart Sword, Brand dared not be careless.
However, to make the Stone Sage speak, he needed the Sage Stone Tablet. A few days later the tablet from Brags, Brand was no longer hopeful about it. Not to mention, time was tight, and he couldn't find fifty thousand Thor easily.
But it didn't matter, if so, then let's get a Sage Stone Tablet first. At least he knew from the game that several 'instances' produce that thing. The closer ones included Mist Forest at the intersection of Dener, Golan-Elsen, and Anlek; Holy Temple Ruins; and Dragon Canyon. Official source is novel-fire.net
These places all fit his Level for adventure, just needed some preparation. Originally, Brand also realized he needed to improve his strength, so it's a win-win.
Brand mentioned having personal matters, naturally, Batom couldn't ask more, and his thoughts had already flown to Griss. Brand's description of that place made him itch for it; he had never seen the sea in his life.
Then Brand turned back and asked: "Roman, what about you? Any plans, will you join me or stay to organize the celebration?"
Miss Merchant tilted her head and replied naturally: "Of course I'm following Brand."
But the sparkle in her eyes clearly said—— Of course, it's for adventure! Roman wants to adventure!
"You're not making money anymore?" Brand was surprised and couldn't help but reach to touch her forehead, checking if she had a fever.
"Of course not," Roman swatted his hand away proudly and said, "Lord Roman has already arranged everything here, I handed it to Su, what's left just waits for the funds to be injected, that's all."
"Su?" Brand was stunned, recalling that girl with a cold face as if he owed her a million Thor, "Isn't she Reto's daughter?"
"Yes." Roman nodded, "She came to find Frey, and as Frey's best friend, I naturally could ask Su for some help."
"You really trust people readily——" Brand couldn't resist patting her forehead, a habit he had developed recently.
Roman immediately smiled like a little fox.
"In that case, I'll stay here too." Antitina suddenly said from the side: "Originally, this is part of my duty."
But Brand stopped and glanced at her, replying: "You can't stay." He thought, Martha above, now his most valuable assets might be Antitina and the future Alchemy Master Tama. He couldn't leave these two in unstable Brags for safety; he had to take them.
Tama had to carry his heavy alchemy props, thus he would go with Reto and others. Following the principle that eggs shouldn't be placed in one basket, he had to let Antitina go with him.
Well, with Roman joining, it's better for taking care of Antitina.
"Test is still here, you know his identity. The All Things Return to One is not ordinary, it's too dangerous for you to stay here. Come with me, I'll have Roman take care of you." He thought for a moment and answered.
"How can that be?" Antitina was stunned, feeling a faint yearning for an adventurous life in her heart, but she knew she might not adapt to such a life. For a girl like her, adventure was a beautiful fantasy existing only in dreams.
Some people follow their impulsive thoughts, but the clear-headed Antitina was not . Just when she started to hesitate, the future Miss Merchant shattered her reserve with one sentence: "Of course you can, Antitina. Adventures are very interesting."
Antitina could not help but look at Brand.
Brand nodded: "No need to say more, let's all prepare. We'll enter the city separately, I'll be alone, afraid Test might cause trouble again. Before the last star disappears at dawn, gather at the east gate."
Everyone nodded. (To be continued, for more chapters, visit www.qidian.com, support the author, support genuine reading!)