Nova’s hands were tightly clasped beneath the table, his mind racing as he frantically reviewed every past detail, trying to figure out exactly where he had slipped up.
He clearly remembered that when he had used the Heartwood of Genesis fragment in the dungeon, Inanna’s transformed pink Puchi had already been carried to the tenth floor by Nightowl. There was no way it could have witnessed that moment.
Had someone come down later and analyzed the Flame Demon remains?
But that didn’t add up. A bit of residual energy proved nothing.
And after that mission, he had never used the artifact again.
Could it have been exposed even earlier?
Or… someone in the team had leaked it…
The thought barely surfaced before he forcibly crushed it. If he couldn’t even trust teammates he lived and died with, Silver Thorn would have fallen apart long ago.
He looked up at Aidin, who remained calmly seated across from him, and asked, “What do you plan to do?”
The value of the fragment in his hand far exceeded a mere last-resort trump card. He couldn’t just…
Three S-grade magic crystals were gently placed on the table. The moment they appeared, they instantly drew in the surrounding mana!
*Gulp—*
To his shame, Nova had only seen S-grade crystals from afar during the ambush on the demon duke in Oath City.
This was his first time seeing them up close.
Even more shocking was their size; each was fist-sized. He had never imagined S-grade crystals could be this large.
Even the one embedded in the staff of the Relic Society’s vice-president seemed a full size smaller.
Nova couldn’t help inwardly marveling at the Saint-Clair family’s wealth.
And this was clearly just the opening offer; there was room to negotiate.
Lady Inanna’s sincerity in this matter was truly moving.
Thinking of the consequences of refusal, Nova’s resolve began to waver.
He carefully chose his words and said in a negotiating tone, “This kind of thing… I need to discuss with my teammates before deciding. Could you…”
Aidin nodded, reaching to retrieve the three S-grade crystals one by one, movements unhurried.
Only when the last crystal vanished into his pouch did he lift his hand to dismiss the obscuring mist veil, gesturing for Nova to go ahead.
Watching the crystals disappear, Nova knew at least old mage Ivan would go mad over this.
…
The four gathered in the side hall of the lord’s mansion. The moment Nova finished recounting his meeting with Aidin, Nightowl was first to leap up.
“Are you sure your eyes weren’t playing tricks?” She leaned on the table. “Someone didn’t fool you with illusions?”
Nova sighed helplessly. “Aidin is a known figure. How could he openly impersonate the duke’s envoy? You’ll see the crystals yourself later! The question now is: trade or not?”
“Trade! Of course trade!” Ivan nearly knocked over the ink bottle in excitement. “S-grade crystals! Fist-sized! Do you know what this means? If we had these against the Flame Demon, I wouldn’t have needed that broken branch! Not to mention…”
Nightowl narrowed her eyes. “You idiot, you’re not thinking of tasting S-grade crystals, are you?”
“H-how could I waste them like that…” Ivan’s gaze drifted, throat bobbing.
Nightowl clicked her tongue and sat back, arms crossed, but didn’t oppose further.
Just when Nova thought the discussion was settled, the always-silent half-dragon Gar gently pushed over a note. “But turning S-grade crystals into staves or items takes time, right? I think you should read this first.”
The note was simple, but it sank everyone’s hearts: Earthpeak Fort, between Threehill City and Redstone City, was besieged by demons.
Since the human army retreated to Threehill City and activated the grand defensive array to buy time, the demons had begun systematically clearing surrounding strongholds.
Earthpeak Fort was just a normal fortress; it probably wouldn’t hold long.
More worrying: once Earthpeak fell, demon forces would point straight at Redstone City; only a matter of time.
At this critical juncture, they had no time to turn S-grade crystals into actual combat power.
“Keeping the branch now, we can at least try decapitation strikes,” Gar said. “Or trade and run? To the archipelago…”
Before he finished, Nightowl kicked him. “I’m not spending the rest of my life at sea!”
Unlike the earlier choice to rescue Inanna or not, abandoning duty then would only offend Duke Alama; fleeing the kingdom would be safe.
But now, as Redstone City’s lord, deserting in crisis without fighting; even elves and dwarves wouldn’t take them. They’d truly be stuck drifting the archipelago.
Nova thought for a while and made a decision.
He returned to the office and told the waiting Aidin, “We’re willing to trade, but not now.”
He handed over the intelligence, continuing, “Church reinforcements are nearly at Threehill City. The situation will definitely change then. Until that happens, we still need the Heartwood.”
Nova didn’t say how the situation would change, because in his heart he wasn’t optimistic about the Church aid.
When the time came, either the Church helped Threehill repel the demons, resolving Redstone’s crisis naturally.
Or they failed and were defeated together.
Then abandoning Redstone City would be far more justifiable. Even if blamed later, it wouldn’t mean the gallows.
Of course, that assumed Redstone City held until then.
Aidin read the note, somewhat surprised. What bad timing.
If he had arrived sooner…
After leaving the lord’s mansion, Aidin entered an inn, went to his booked room, but didn’t rest.
He quietly climbed out the window, slipped into an alley, and after confirming no tail, entered a dilapidated house.
Then his figure blurred and vanished, leaving only a device in his chest that fell into the hands of the real Aidin.
A high-grade illusion item made from finger-length S-grade crystals; indistinguishable from reality. It could activate the item and even cast simple spells through it. Even death was perfectly mimicked; only close inspection revealed anything.
For dangerous matters, Aidin never risked his real body.
In the room sat the true decision-maker of this trip: a scout Puchi.
“Boss, what do you want to do?”
(End of Chapter)
