A faint smile immediately appeared on the face of the young noblewoman. She glanced at the tent behind Brand and said, "I can tell, Lord, you really like Miss Roman." She mouthed the words.
He indulged the temperament of Miss Merchant not only because of the affinity he felt for her carefree nature that might have stemmed from Brand's soul, but also because Miss Roman was the first close acquaintance he made in this world. He had a special affection for her.
Moreover, this merchant lady was both intelligent and free-spirited; very few people would dislike her.
This life of Brand, although only nineteen years old, was decided by his dual soul within his body that he was no longer the shy young man he used to be. He knew what he should pursue and what responsibilities he should shoulder. He lifted the corner of his tent door, and sure enough, saw Miss Merchant smiling charmingly at him from behind.
Both Roman and Antitina nodded.
Brand looked up, and as if responding to his action, more than a dozen figures simultaneously emerged from the dozen-odd tents surrounding them. Without exchanging words, they silently began packing up their tents. Although these mercenaries were fully armed, their belts loaded with various metallic weapons, they didn't make a sound as they moved.
It was Antitina's first time witnessing Brand's 'card-summoned' subordinates in action. Her bright eyes quickly flickered with a trace of amazement: what a well-trained group of mercenaries! Where did he find these people?
The reputation that Rubis Mercenaries have left in history was by no means empty. The beings summoned by the Destiny Cards symbolized a conceptual collective. In other words, these twelve mercenaries were the best representation of the Rubis Mercenaries' virtues: loyalty, honor, high morale, strict discipline, and unlike real beings, they did not fear death and pain. They were probably the finest soldiers this world had ever seen.
Unfortunately, Brand thought their numbers were still too small.
But even so, it was enough to leave Antitina speechless. She soon couldn't help touching her cheek, then looked at Brand, suspecting she was dreaming.
This noble lady was not entirely unacquainted with mercenaries. Nobles, due to their estates, more or less had dealings with these guys. Aside from those ruffians and scoundrels, most mercenaries were somewhat associated with the military.
The best mercenaries Antitina had ever seen were the Gray Wolf Mercenary Group, with their leader, the 'Mane Wolf' Macaro. Naturally, they were no pushovers, but compared to the twelve people Brand had, they were worlds apart. The inherent slackness of mercenaries was absent in these men; they seemed to possess something rarely seen in typical mercenaries—
The girl frowned, unable to immediately identify what it was.
But then a spark of insight hit her; it was their pride and sense of honor. She took a deep breath. It was rare for mercenaries who lived by fighting to maintain a sacred sense of honor about their profession. That was more akin to a knight's honor. She couldn't help glancing at Brand again, convinced that these people were not mercenaries but house servants he had brought from his family.
Her conviction grew stronger.
A young noble leaving his family to carve out his own path; it was like a scene straight out of a legendary tale. So when she first heard Brand say it, she felt a small longing—after all, everyone harbors a spirit of romance and adventure. Even someone like Antitina, who had received the most orthodox education from a young age, was no exception.
To assist a young knight building his realm from scratch, such a story was an irresistible allure for a girl of her age and education level.
However, it now seemed that this Lord wasn't entirely starting from nothing—
Discovering this secret, she felt a hint of delight but wasn't discouraged by it. On the contrary, the noblewoman felt relieved. She convinced herself that at least Brand was prepared, not blindly acting out of a fervent desire to emulate the ancient, hot-blooded knights.
However, Brand didn't expect his subordinate, Antitina, would come to so many conclusions just by seeing his 'card soldiers.' If he knew what she was thinking, he would have found a way to show it a few more times, potentially gathering a loyal force without lifting a finger.
But he had no time to worry about these things now.
He quickly realized he was facing a minor problem. The twelve Rubis Mercenaries swiftly cleaned up the camp, but just as they gathered and awaited the next order, Brand noticed two figures approaching from the Gray Wolf Mercenary Group's camp. He frowned, identifying one of the figures—
It was the white-haired youth Redi.
Brand immediately wondered if the other side had detected the commotion from his camp, but he quickly dismissed the suspicion. The two figures were not walking directly towards them. He calculated their route; they were headed to the area between their camp and the Gray Wolf Mercenary Group's camp. He was slightly taken aback—were those two planning to go outside the camp? Googlᴇ search novel-fire.net
Brand immediately thought of a possibility.
(PS. Monthly tickets are not coming in strong, feeling a bit discouraged here.) (To be continued, for insights on the , please visit www.qidian.com. More chapters available, support the author, support legitimate reading!)