“345... 346... 347...”
Grom squatted on the ground, counting the Black Crystals one by one.
His coarse fingers picked up each crystal, bringing it close to his eyes to examine it carefully.
His gaze was focused, and he even held his breath slightly.
Beside him, Balin stared blankly at the small mountain of harvest, unable to speak for a long time.
Naturally, this amount couldn't compare to the tons of cargo transported when he personally led the team,
but it was still enough to modify four magic crystal cannons.
The key was...
From departure to return, it had taken less than two hours.
The kid had already "hauled" so many out of the Blackwater Forest.
Although it was boosted by the flying vessel's ridiculous speed,
this was simply too fast.
Had the lord-level demons in the Blackwater Forest... really not noticed anything?
Balin looked up, his gaze shifting to the busy Lin Gui.
“Did you... not run into any Epic demons on the way?”
At this moment, Lin Gui was working with Theia and Eve,
using thick iron chains to secure the last few supply crates to the back of the flying vessel.
The flying vessel could only hold three people at most, so any extra items had to be towed behind like this.
With this vessel, their travel speed for the upcoming journey would skyrocket.
Lin Gui decided to travel light.
The hundreds of bulky wooden reply boxes were all left at the Shield City post office,
and with the dwarves looking after them, he felt perfectly at ease.
He only brought three crates containing the essential supplies and tools needed to cross the wilderness.
After locking one of the crates securely,
Lin Gui paused in his movements upon hearing Balin's question.
“I did,”
“but I managed to avoid them all.”
In truth, it wasn't exactly "avoiding" them.
He had simply fired up the wind pressure cannon and zoomed right past a certain Epic demon, just dozens of meters above its head.
The creature had been napping in a mountain hollow at the time, snoring like thunder,
only blankly lifting an eyelid to scratch its neck before falling back into a deep sleep.
By the time it belatedly realized something had flown past—
Lin Gui was already several kilometers away, his wake completely dispersed.
Moreover, with his faint High Rank aura, it was hard to trigger any real desire to attack from an existence of that level.
As for low-tier demons, they couldn't perceive any fluctuations beneath the Shroud of the Gloomy Night at all.
Just like that, it took him barely tens of minutes to fly to the mining area.
If he hadn't spent some time searching for the mine entrance, which the dwarves had deliberately hidden and disguised,
and if he hadn't needed to meditate on the spot to recover the mana exhausted during his earlier test...
Lin Gui estimated he could have completed the round trip in half an hour.
Balin stared intently into Lin Gui's eyes.
He could tell that there was more left unsaid beneath the young man's calm tone.
Lin Gui met his gaze calmly, without flinching or looking away.
“Now that we have the Black Crystals,”
“Lord Balin, you can let us go now, right?”
Balin instantly deflated like a punctured leather bag, his shoulders slumping.
In the end, he nodded helplessly, his beard looking limp and lifeless.
“Alright then...”
“It seems I've truly failed to keep my promise to that kid Copperhammer this time.”
It was just that...
his gaze was a bit restless, his thick fingers rubbing together unconsciously,
as if there were still words stuck in his throat that his pride wouldn't let him say.
Lin Gui understood perfectly.
He took out a small cloth pouch from his waist bag,
and gently placed all the remaining Barrier Stones inside—sixteen in total—into Balin's palm.
Balin took them. The stones felt heavy, carrying the lingering warmth of a human body.
He coughed twice, a flush of embarrassment passing over his face.
“Come! Let's go to my private treasury right now!”
“Anything inside, as long as you take a liking to it—”
“pack it up and take it all! I won't feel a shred of regret!”
“No need,”
Lin Gui shook his head, his tone gentle yet firm.
“We are already fully prepared on our end. It's time to set off.”
He stepped aside, pointing to the flying vessel behind him with a slight smile.
“As for the reward...”
“If this vehicle breaks down in the future or needs upgrades and modifications,”
“I hope the Fortress Lord will lend a hand then.”
Balin took a deep look at Lin Gui, his gaze complex.
Then, he straightened his back, his expression turning solemn.
He struck his right fist heavily against the armor on his left chest, making a dull thud,
performing the highest etiquette a dwarf reserved for close friends and benefactors.
“Kid Lin Gui.”
“I, Balin Heavyhammer, will remember this favor.”
“From now on, whenever you need help—”
“come to Shield City to find me anytime.”
“The gates of this city will always be open to you.”
A solemn promise from an Epic powerhouse.
Lin Gui felt this was more precious than any divine artifact or treasure.
He smiled and said no more, leaping nimbly onto the flying vessel.
Behind him, Eve curiously sized up this sleek metal creation
while extending her hand, her palm glowing with a soft white light.
Warm and pure mana, like a trickling stream, began to slowly flow into Lin Gui's body.
Theia, the last to board the flying vessel, let out a soft sigh as she stood by the gunwale.
She turned back, looking reluctantly at this magnificent city built within the mountain.
Layered rock walls, lights like stars, and the faint sound of furnaces could be heard.
Here, she was fully accepted for the first time, without having to hide her pointed ears and lineage.
For the first time, she could walk with her head held high without feeling anxious,
and without having to hide in post offices and mine pits like she did in the Carter Royal Capital.
After waving a final farewell to Balin and Grom,
the flying vessel slowly rose into the air and smoothly turned around.
The wind pressure cannon at the stern glowed with charging light as the runes lit up one by one.
“Buzz—Boom!”
A pale green torrent erupted violently, drawing a long tail of light in the sky!
The flying vessel, like an arrow shot from a bow, suddenly accelerated, tearing through the airflow ahead,
turning into a blurry gray shadow,
heading toward that hazy, mysterious land of legends beneath the northern horizon.
It shot through the air, heading toward the Wall of Sighs.
【Scan complete.】
【Weekly Commission updated!】
【Destination: Avalon, the Land of Freedom】
【Letters collected: 0】
【Total letters escorted: 0】
【Time Limit: 31 calendar days】
【Route: Shield City → Blackwater Corridor → City of Bounties → Wall of Sighs → Avalon】
【Since the number of escorted letters is 0, there will be no Weekly Commission reward upon arrival.】
------"May every thought cross the darkness and reach the other shore"------
【Note: 57 days remaining for the long-term commission to escort the half-elf ranger, Theia.】
Meanwhile, hundreds of kilometers away.
Deep within the palace of the Carter Royal Capital.
The once magnificent bedchamber was now filled with the bitter smell of medicine and the aura of decay.
The King of Carter lay on a wide velvet bed, his face haggard and his eyes deeply sunken.
The gorgeous silk quilt draped over his skeletal body, looking empty and heavy.
An old chamberlain knelt by the bed, reporting in a trembling, extremely low voice:
“Your Majesty... last night, Duke Joseph's carriage was attacked.”
“The duke himself was heavily injured, and his eldest son... is dead.”
“This morning, a tax collector under the Eldest Princess was found drowned in his own bathtub.”
“On Prince Charles's side, three knights 'accidentally' fell from their horses...”
The old chamberlain's voice grew softer and softer, almost carrying a sob.
“Now, the upper class of the Royal Capital is in a state of panic.”
“Even the council has ground to a halt. No one dares to make a public statement...”
The king turned his head with difficulty, his cloudy eyes staring at the magnificent ceiling.
He knew that the struggle between Charles and Diana had risen from the undercurrents to the surface.
Assassinations, framing, purges... The once-concealed methods had now become naked and frequent.
The entire upper class of the Carter Royal Capital was sliding into the abyss of chaos because of this succession struggle.
And he, this king in name only,
had long since lost the power to control the situation.
To obtain the Saintess's prophecy, he had almost emptied the royal family's centuries of savings.
To exchange for the support of the great nobles, he had handed over real power piece by piece.
Now, he was merely a figurehead king.
Even if he were to force an imperial decree to name an heir now...
that decree probably wouldn't even make it out of his bedchamber doors.
Even if it did, it would be "polished" and "interpreted" by his subordinates until it was completely unrecognizable.
A rattling sound came from the king's throat, like a worn-out bellows.
The old chamberlain quickly stepped forward, only to hear him squeeze out a few words with all his might:
“...They are all a bunch of beasts...”
“Their own father... is about to collapse...”
“yet they only care about fighting for power and profit.”
“They used to wish for my death, but now, even without me dying, it won't be long before they force me to abdicate.”
The old chamberlain lowered his head, fell silent for a moment, and finally said:
“Your Majesty, the Seventh Princess... is just outside the door.”
“She requests an audience.”
The Seventh Princess, the daughter born of his one-night stand.
The King of Carter was puzzled.
Weak as she was, shouldn't she have left the Carter Royal Capital long ago to avoid the impending purge?
Why would she come to see him at a time like this?
Rate on N.U.
