Chapter Summaries

Brando hesitated over Kowen’s offer, unwilling to risk another challenge but tempted by the chance to obtain a rare Fate Card. Roman unexpectedly arrived, and when the arena called her as a new challenger, Brando prepared to face the danger with her rather than let her stand alone.

• Brando rejected Qian’s offer to take the challenge, deciding he would not risk her life for a card.
• Roman entered the arena with Audum and reunited with Brando, explaining that she had come secretly because she was worried about him.
• The arena called Roman as a new challenger, and Brando warned her to give up.
• Brando decided to protect Roman even if it meant turning to stone, while Medisa urged him not to feel guilty about leaving her behind.
• Brando drew his sword as Kowen withdrew his offer and the others watched him prepare for the challenge.

Kowen gave Brando his card, hoping Brando would accept his goodwill even if it could not change the outcome of the challenge. Brando recognized Kowen as the future Lord Kvana, then Audum arrived and recognized the Sword of Earth, which was tied to a Rune Dwarf legend.

• Kowen threw his card to Brando and explained that helping him might let Kowen share in Brando's future legend.
• Brando admitted that receiving the card would not change the challenge's likely failure, but Kowen said he did not care about the outcome.
• Brando learned Kowen's full name and realized that he was the future Lord Kvana, whose rise to power had not included a recorded death in Shafrund Mine.
• Brando told Roman to give up the challenge, but Audum objected that retreat would dishonor the Rune Dwarves.
• Audum recognized the Sword of Earth and told Brando it was connected to a legend and to the treasure he had sought beneath Shafrund Mine.

Brando lent Audum the Sword of Earth, and the Rune Dwarf used the True Word of Order to open a way out of the sanctuary. As the group was transported, Brando saw cryptic visions and decided he would keep Roman close from then on.

• Audum explained that Rune Dwarf blood could let him use the Sword of Earth to open the sanctuary, and Brando handed it to him.
• Audum accepted the ancestors’ challenge and answered their questions, then spoke a passage from the Sacred Covenant that made the space tremble.
• Brando collected the Fireclaw Lord Fate Card and saw visions of a black moon, a tower, and several cryptic lines about lost generations.
• Brando teased Roman for bringing them good luck, pinched her cheek, and told her he would take her with him to prevent her from wandering off again.
• The sanctuary darkened, and Brando sensed that the group had returned.

Test traveled under the protection of a squad of knights when Grand Duke Anlek’s men ambushed them, but the knights defeated the attackers. An Emerald Knight then appeared, petrified the captain and the rest of the squad, and approached Test.

• Eleven knights escorting Test stopped at a stream when their leader detected an ambush.
• The knights killed many Noble Private Soldiers with crossbows, hand axes, and swords, forcing the rest to flee.
• Test identified the attackers as Grand Duke Anlek’s men and warned the captain when a green light appeared.
• The green light turned the captain into stone, and the Emerald Knight emerged from the forest.
• The Emerald Knight repelled the knights’ attacks, petrified their weapons and the knights themselves, then stood silently before Test.

Tastert surrendered the Lionheart Sword to the Emerald Knight, who threw it into the river and condemned Tastert for letting himself be used. At the Royal Knight Academy, Nemesis gave Freya a letter from Brando and asked whether Count Beckberg’s Second Son had bothered her again.

• Tastert handed the Lionheart Sword to the Emerald Knight after asking why it had spared him.
• The Emerald Knight called Tastert weak for allowing himself to be used and threw the Lionheart Sword into the river.
• Freya reflected on her training, the passing seasons, and her feelings for Brando at the Royal Knight Academy.
• Nemesis gave Freya a letter from Brando, and Freya blushed when Nemesis guessed his name.
• Freya and Nemesis watched a white carriage bearing a violet emblem from Lantorilan enter the academy grounds toward the princess’s residence.
• Nemesis asked Freya whether the Second Son of Count Beckberg had approached her again.

After the Shafrund Mine crisis faded, Brando tightened his control over the mine and handled its accounts while waiting for a chance to settle them openly. Tiger Sparrow then brought news that Grudin’s private mint had surrendered after Sir Mintai’s defeat, leaving Brando poised to move the silver and currency plans forward.

• Nemesis warned Freya that trouble was brewing in the north and said the free port of Ambersell faced a covert war.
• Brando transferred authority in Shafrund Mine to Augins, kept Augins’s secretary under guard, and sent Kuran to Fir City.
• Roman examined the mine’s account books and identified embezzlement and accounting loopholes, while Brando planned to delay a full reckoning until the spies and new soldiers were less of a threat.
• Kowen refused Brando’s offer to join him and planned to leave Shafrund with Joka and Maher, while the old dwarf continued appearing around Brando.
• Tiger Sparrow arrived to arrange the secret transport and smelting of the stored silver ore, and reported that Grudin’s private mint had surrendered after Sir Mintai’s defeat.

Pallas's scouts confirmed Sir Mintai's crushing defeat and split up, with one group heading to Fir City and the other carrying the news back to Lord Pallas. Charles, Vern, and Clencia watched from hiding and followed Brando's order to capture the scouts entering their territory while letting the others go, suggesting Brando planned a major move.

• Pallas's scouts inspected the battlefield and concluded that Sir Mintai had been utterly defeated in an ambush.
• The veteran scout ordered most of the group to return to Lord Pallas with the news while he and one companion continued toward Fir City.
• Charles, Vern, and Clencia watched the scouts from concealment, and Charles discussed Caglis's skill and his challenge to the commanders.
• Charles credited Tajip for discovering the scouts and ordered that the group heading into their territory be captured while the group returning to Pallas was allowed to leave.
• Charles reflected that Brando intended to make a very big move.

Princess Griffine met with Master Livuz, Aiko, Macaro, Bruga, and Count Baly as the northern dukes’ allied army pressured Ambersell. As Bruga prepared to escort Princess Magdal on a mission, Livuz revealed that a delay on their journey involved the Golden Apple, drawing Griffine’s keen attention.

• Princess Griffine received reports of Sir Mintai’s defeat and the northern alliance’s efforts to persuade Ambersell’s merchants.
• Griffine welcomed Aiko, Macaro, Bruga, and Count Baly, while Count Baly noticed her interest in the reports on her desk.
• Macaro warned that Princess Magdal could be ambushed, and Griffine said Nemesis would escort her but had waited for the guests to arrive.
• Bruga volunteered to lead Princess Magdal’s escort, and Griffine agreed.
• Griffine asked Livuz about the delay on his journey, and he said it was related to the Golden Apple.

An urgent dispatch from Sir Pallas alerted Count Jandernel to new information about Tonigell, while Princess Griffine learned that Brando was a powerful young swordsman connected to the Silver Elves and the Golden Apple. Griffine proposed winning him over and suggested that he might be someone they already knew.

• An urgent first-level dispatch reached Count Jandernel while he was hearing a hill tribes envoy's request for lower taxes.
• Count Jandernel learned that Sir Pallas had sent new information concerning Tonigell and reacted to the name Brando.
• Princess Griffine's advisers described Brando's Silver-level strength, his ties to the Silver Elves, and swordsmanship resembling Sword Saint Darus's.
• Master Livuz confirmed that the Golden Apple in Brando's possession had not bonded with his soul, prompting Griffine to consider what it could mean for her younger brother.
• Griffine asked whether they could win Brando over, then handed the others a letter and suggested he might be someone they already knew.

Princess Griffine and her advisers discussed Brando’s letter claiming temporary authority over Fir and challenging Count Jandernel’s conduct. Hearing how Brando had invoked the Former King’s ideals, Griffine reaffirmed her own oath and asked her advisers how they would confront the difficulties ahead.

• Macaro read Brando’s letter to Princess Griffine, including its accusations against Count Jandernel and its claim that Brando had taken charge of Fir’s defenses and administration.
• Aiko defended Brando as a true knight, while Master Livuz called his actions a challenge to the Kingdom and its noble rules.
• After Aiko mentioned the divine artifact’s response to Brando’s rebuke, Macaro explained that Brando had asked whether they remembered the Former King’s ideals.
• Count Baly and Macaro recalled the old knights’ oaths, and Griffine silently renewed her own vow to lead the people and uphold the spirit of knighthood.
• Griffine said Brando was right but that ideals had to confront reality, then asked her advisers how they would face the challenges ahead.

Princess Griffine’s advisers debated Brando’s letter and concluded that he was offering goodwill without joining their faction, while positioning himself as an independent player against Count Jandernel. Oufwell urged the Royalists to smooth things over and let Brando act, and Griffine wondered whether Sir Mintai’s crushing defeat at Tonigell explained his confidence.

• Macaro, Baly, and Griffine interpreted Brando’s letter as a request for tacit acceptance and a way to pressure Count Jandernel without forcing the Royalists to openly defy him.
• Macaro argued that Brando intended to become a chess piece and make Jandernel reconsider siding with Grand Duke Anlek.
• Baly said Brando was taking a side because he believed Jandernel would not join the Royalists, while remaining independent enough to play a balancing game.
• Oufwell arrived and declared that Brando was not merely a chess piece but a chess player, so the Royalists should accept his proposal and smooth things over.
• Griffine studied a report stating that Sir Mintai had suffered a crushing defeat at Tonigell and considered it a possible source of Brando’s confidence.

Count Jandernel investigated the rebellion in Tonigell and concluded that someone powerful was behind it. He planned to use Madara’s Dark Nobles and the mountain tribes to crush the revolt without exposing his family to a reckless show of force.

• Count Jandernel learned that Sir Mintai had been defeated in Tonigell and suspected the uprising was directed by someone with a hidden motive.
• Andre arrived, showed little concern for his brother’s fate, and offered to lead an army against whoever was behind the rebellion.
• Count Jandernel warned Andre against acting without knowing the culprit and said the Jandernel Family needed greater independence above all else.
• Count Jandernel suspected the princess’s faction but decided not to intervene personally, even as he doubted Pallas could defeat the rebels.
• Count Jandernel ordered letters to the Dark Nobles of Madara and the mountain tribes, offering benefits in exchange for their participation in the war.

Count Jandernel prepared to draw the mountain people into the coming civil war while Brando traveled to Fir City and recruited Audum to help build a fortress complex. The story left Brando and Audum confident in their plans, though Audum’s architectural skills were untested.

• Count Jandernel ordered letters that would bring the mountain people into the conflict, setting the southern border on course for war.
• Brando traveled overnight from Shafrund to Fir City, unaware of the approaching army from Jandernel.
• Brando confronted Audum for following him, and Audum struggled to explain why he wanted to work for him.
• Audum admitted he knew a little about architecture, prompting Brando to ask whether he could build a city.
• Brando persuaded Audum to oversee a massive fortress complex by appealing to the glory of the Rune Dwarves, and Audum agreed.

Brando returned to Fir Castle after taking Shafrund Mine and felt that the castle had become a home and a responsibility he meant to protect. He found Charles still in his room and considered how to build a capable leadership group from the people around him.

• Brando arrived at Fir Castle, where the mercenaries recognized him as the young lord who had taken Shafrund Mine with a small force.
• Brando noticed Furo's changes to the castle and felt a new sense of belonging there.
• Furo told Brando that Lord Charles was still in his room.
• Brando reflected that the Myriad Manifestations card had raised Rubis's mercenaries to the upper Silver rank, but their summoned status complicated their use as officers.
• Brando assessed Antitina, Yuta, Clencia, and Fern, weighing their strengths and weaknesses as he searched for capable people to lead his forces.

Brando returned to Fir Castle after learning that Qian’s condition had worsened, and he prepared to visit her despite his exhaustion. He reassured Audum about his role as chief architect, then went with Fro to see Qian.

• Brando recalled that God's Blood was overtaking Qian’s soul despite Charles’s efforts to delay it.
• Brando assigned Audum responsibility for repairing the city walls and directed him to consult Clencia, Master Beru, and the castle library.
• Audum feared he lacked the skill to build a fortress, but Brando’s advice about drainage and waste disposal helped him find a practical direction.
• Brando noticed Clencia and Fern nearby, then told Fro to take him to Qian without resting.

Brando returned to Qian’s bedside and found that God’s Blood was spreading through her body, leaving her less than twelve hours to live. With no way to cure her, he told Otales that he had a desperate method that might temporarily ease her condition.

• Brando entered Qian’s room, where Romane, Antitina, and Medisa were keeping watch.
• Brando saw that black patterns from God’s Blood had spread from Qian’s chest up her neck and toward her face.
• Brando concluded that destroying God’s Blood would also kill Qian and that its instinctive nature made other remedies impossible.
• Otales confirmed that Qian had no more than twelve hours to live and asked Brando whether he could help her.
• Brando said he knew a stupid way to treat Qian’s symptoms, though not the underlying cause.

Brando explained that Qian was nearing death as God's Blood consumed her life, and that sealing her into a Fate Card carried the risk of losing her consciousness. He described a brute-force method that would require impossible amounts of power or holy water, then Qian awoke and recognized him.

• Brando told Charles, Antitina, and Medisa that sealing Qian into a card could preserve her but might let God's Blood replace her consciousness.
• Brando explained that God's Blood was reclaiming Qian's power and would consume her life once the process was complete.
• Brando proposed replenishing Qian's life potential, but Charles estimated she would need a year's output of Tonigell or 1,300 bottles of Holy Water No. 7 every day.
• Antitina realized they could not sustain the proposed treatment, while Medisa also regarded the method as impossible.
• Qian awoke, remembered Brando's promise not to abandon her, and weakly called out to him.

Brando returned to find Qian gravely weakened by the God's Blood, and she asked him to fulfill a final wish from her homeland. He gave her a Golden Apple instead of the kiss she expected, briefly restoring her strength while leaving her fate uncertain.

• Brando returned to Qian's bedside, and she asked whether she would survive; he could not honestly promise her that she would.
• Qian told Brando that she had heard the others say her condition was hopeless and asked him to be the person closest to her just once by kissing her forehead as her homeland's farewell tradition required.
• Brando agreed and told Qian to close her eyes, but pressed a Golden Apple to her lips instead.
• The apple's life force flowed into Qian and relieved her pain, while Brando feared it would only prolong her life and strengthen the God's Blood.
• Qian realized she had mistaken the apple for a kiss and, embarrassed in front of Antitina and Furo, fretted that she would die of shame.

Brando used the Golden Apple to save Qian, leaving her alive but with her depleted life force crisis only temporarily resolved. As Medisa asked how he would find a lasting cure, Otales said she had thought of a way.

• Qian recovered after Brando used the Golden Apple to mend her depleted life force, while Antitina reflected on his choice and her suspicions about his noble origins.
• Medisa and Charles discussed the risks of relying on the Golden Apple, and Charles joked that Qian would have to offer herself in marriage to repay Brando.
• Brando struck Charles for his joke, then told Qian to live well and prepare for a coming battle in Tonigell.
• Medisa asked Brando whether he had a lasting solution for Qian's condition, and Otales said she had thought of a way.

Brando learned that Leto and the others had seized most of the Mintai region, then met Yuriol, who was struck by how much his strength and bearing had changed. Yuriol reflected on why she had supported Brando’s order and stood ready to devote herself to his cause.

• Otales told Brando that strengthening Qian’s soul with the Golden Apple might delay God’s Blood’s takeover, though Qian would need to reach the level of an Elemental Envoy of the Enlightenment Element within two years.
• Brando left Qian to rest with Antitina and learned from Charles that Leto and the others had captured Minsburg and seized control of most of Mintai.
• Brando praised Leto’s success and learned that Yuriol had arrived from the mercenary group.
• Brando met Yuriol, who was astonished by his changed appearance, master-level swordsmanship, and seemingly unfathomable strength.
• Yuriol recalled supporting Brando’s order to seize Mintai because she had come to believe in the ideals and faith he inspired.