Act XL: The Summer War

When the dust settled, Brando's first sight was a card the size of his palm lying on the ground. He picked it up. The front was painted in a colorful style, depicting a tree, tall and magnificent, with mysterious veins extending from its trunk to its crown. The number VII was written in the upper left corner, but there was no elemental attribute crystal marking. He paused for a moment, but now he knew how to handle these things and immediately opened his attribute data to scan it.

The card's description changed:

Sacred Tree Secret Realm

(Elven Forbidden Zone VII)

[Basic Land - Forest]

Generates 1 Water Element into the Elemental Pool each week.

Tap: Create Forest terrain.

"My soul returns, returning to its homeland."

"This set of cards is called Elven Forbidden Zone?" Brando blinked, the card's description didn't explain the conditions for its activation. Did it mean that as long as it entered his deck, it would naturally generate one Water Element per week? But what if he didn't have an Elemental Pool?

The part about tapping the card to create forest terrain was also debatable. Of course, he wouldn't experiment here now. Although once the Golden Demon Tree fell, its demon servants would scatter like birds and beasts, and soon wither due to the loss of magical supply. Perhaps one of the Treants could re-root in another forest, continuing this ecosystem, but that had nothing to do with Brando.

What Brando worried about was that after the Stone Cone Worm absorbed the scattered Earth Elements and magic below, it would come to trouble the three of them. Elemental beings never felt full.

He put the card away, recalling the magic resonance from before. He figured there must be another card belonging to the Knight set here. Unfortunately, magic resonance was a natural phenomenon and couldn't be repeatedly triggered. Otherwise, he could use this method to search. Brando instructed Freya and Romane to collect some acorns from the Golden Tree. Ripe acorns could be used to make high-level magic potions, which were considered the most luxurious consumables in the game.

It was a shame that a Golden Demon Tree could at most produce seven or eight ripe acorns. It was impossible to solve the problem once and for all.

He walked to a spot, flipped over some leaves, and found a pair of gloves wrapped around an aerial root. He recognized them as protective gloves from their style. Protective gloves provided 2 points of protection in the game, but they had a strength requirement. Brando vaguely remembered it was 2.5 Energy Levels. As soon as he touched them, he felt their weight, confirming his guess was spot on.

He tossed the gloves to Freya to try them on, hoping she could be a bit more of a tank. Unfortunately, as soon as the ponytail girl took them, her hands sank downwards. They were too heavy. It was no use. The future Valkyrie returned them with a look of regret.

"What a shame," Brando shook his head. "If you put these on, along with the Empress of Wind Half-Plate, most Swordsmen below the Iron rank wouldn't be able to harm you."

"I'm sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry about. Even among the guards, I think only a few could wear these." Brando said as he put on the gloves himself. The ponytail girl noticed this detail and couldn't help but be slightly startled – did this mean Brando was already at the level of an elite in the guard?

Of course, she had no idea that even Bresen would be no match for Brando at this moment.

The three of them searched clockwise around the fallen tree crown. Romane found a Swift Short Sword with +0.1 Energy Level, and Freya found a priceless 22Oz enchanted ring. By consuming a little mana to activate it, she could imbue her sword with a layer of flame.

As for the rest, most were scrap metal with their magic long since drained. Brando used the Elven Treasure Sword to peel away the Golden Demon Tree's bark and found the Golden Tree Heart. To his great disappointment, because of the three-year difference from the game's timeline, this Golden Tree Heart was still in the form of tree crystal.

Of course, it was much purer than ordinary tree crystals.

But materials were materials, and equipment was equipment. There was an insurmountable gap between them. This unexpected discovery made Brando vigilant. He couldn't view current events with the perspective of many years later in the game.

After all, this was a real world, and history moved forward slowly.

And as Brando took out the Golden Tree Heart, he felt a gust of wind sweep through the valley – the Golden Demon Tree was dead. He looked up and saw eight silver light orbs fly rapidly out of the trunk and merge into his chest.

800 experience points.

Brando couldn't help but be stunned. For an over-level kill and a BOSS, 800 experience points wasn't much, but it gave him a real impact. After all, experience in this world was real, a power that could make him continuously stronger. Therefore, compared to the game, he was more excited every time he gained experience.

He could clearly feel himself growing bit by bit through each battle.

He was lost in his thoughts when he saw the merchant girl run over as if presenting a treasure, carefully holding something in both hands to show Brando. Before, all the equipment they found was appraised by Brando. The young man could tell at a glance what it was, its origin, how to activate it, and whether it still had magic.

At this moment, Brando had become synonymous with omnipotence in Romane's heart.

"Brando, you were looking for this, right?" she asked, carefully holding the card.

Brando followed her hand and looked at the card. The pattern on the card was gray, depicting a tall knight and his robed attendant. The color of the card was the same as his Sacred Sword card. Brando immediately realized this was the card he was looking for. He took it and looked – sure enough!

Highland Retainer

(Knight IX)

Water Element 1

[Creature - Human/Scholar, Level 8 Creature]

When Highland Retainer enters the battlefield, provide 1 Reputation per week.

Upkeep Cost: Pay 1 additional Water Element for each day this card remains on the battlefield.

"Courage of the Plateau."

This was a summoning card. Even if Brando was dull, he guessed it at this moment. This Highland Retainer, with the Scholar profession, and the card description below being "Courage of the Plateau" – it must be referring to the apprentice retainers of the Karasu Plateau. The wizards and knights of Karasu had been allied for two centuries.

A Level 8 Scholar wasn't particularly strong. But if used well at a crucial moment, it could be a great help. He couldn't help but look at Romane, who was looking at him with anticipation, and smiled, "Thank you, this is very useful for me."

"You're welcome," the merchant girl said happily.

But at this moment, Freya ran back from the north alone, her face full of worry, and said, "Brando, Romane, I saw the Stone Cone Worm coming from the north. Should we avoid it?"

"Stone Cone Worm?" Brando was startled. He had originally planned to let everyone rest for a while, but he didn't expect the Stone Cone Worm to arrive so quickly. Although the Stone Cone Worm might not necessarily attack them, in such a situation, most people would choose the safer option.

He nodded, "You guys go first. I'll set something up so that thing doesn't catch up."

Stone Cone Worms locate their prey through magic scent and tremor sense. Therefore, scattered magical items can attract their attention. After Romane and Freya left, Brando took out the bottle of Holy Water No. 5, made a hole in the bottom with the Gleaming Thorn, and placed it in a rock crevice nearby. Then, he looked around to ensure there were no omissions before retreating westward alone.

He thought that because of the previous magic resonance, Madara might send a small team to investigate the situation here. But by then, the Stone Cone Worm left here would teach those skeletons an unforgettable lesson, which would also be considered revenge for Brasen's group.

*********

The time was June of the Year of Flowers and Summer Leaves, and history was progressing in an orderly fashion, just as Brando knew it would.

The Madara envoy arrived at Winterclaw Castle. King Obergu VI of Eluin, following Marquis Klug of Thornflower's advice, refused to meet the envoy. Thus, the First Black Rose War quickly entered its second phase.

On the main battlefield, Karasu Province is facing a severe threat from Madara's 'Winter Solstice' and 'Black Raven' legions. Grand Duke Ougkin has even sent a messenger in tears, pleading that if support is not received in the short term, morale may face a complete collapse.

Meanwhile, further north, between the Kaelman Mountains and the sea, an undead army is advancing secretly in light armor.

And in the southern Golan-Elson Province, Vanmir Fortress is under constant attack from the Instaron Army day after day. However, the flank of the Bucci region has fallen into an eerie silence. Commander Count Plar had sent a message to the 104th Swordsman Regiment stationed in Ridenburg, and the last reply received was:

"Everything is fine."

The date is June 1st.

At this time, Brando and Freya's group had passed through the secret tunnel beneath the Forbidden Orchard, rushing to Ridenburg, seizing every moment. In fact, they had already discovered traces of undead activity along the way, but on a small scale, appearing more like undead scouts approaching Ridenburg.

This made the atmosphere in the group tense. They were one step ahead of Madara's main force, but no one could say for sure how big that step was.

At midnight on this day, Brando, Freya, and Romane passed through the final section of the Xavier Mountain Pass. As they pushed through the jungle and reached a small hill called Findex Mountain south of Ridenburg, facing the night mountain wind, ahead lay the boundless Yusong Valley formed by the confluence of the Yusong River and the Weishi River. Ridenburg's lights were like a brilliant gem embedded in the darkness, quietly lying a few miles below in the valley, illuminating the entire riverside.

Seeing this scene, Freya and the merchant's daughter were both breathless. They had imagined what Ridenburg might be like, but they never expected that the spark of civilization in the darkness could be so beautiful.

However, at this moment, the merchant's daughter poked Brando's back and whispered, "Brando, there's an army behind us."

"An army?"

"Yes, looking north from here. In the valley we passed through this afternoon. Do you see it?"

"That's over ten miles away, and it's so dark, how could you possibly see clearly! My dear lady, don't joke with me at a time like this!" Brando was startled, then said irritably.

"But I saw it."