Amber Sword-Chapter 39: Scene 13 Brand’s Qidian_2

Dust flew in the air.

"It looks like I've convinced you." Brand withdrew his sword and said lightly.

Frey lifted her head, an expression of disbelief on her face.

It wasn't just her; among the nine members of the Buqi Militia Squad present, except for Romantic who seemed unsurprised, everyone else was dumbfounded. Was that even militia swordsmanship? It could rival the old hands in a regular army.

"How could this be?"

"It's not surprising. I was the first in swordsmanship among the thirty-third batch of Buqi militia." Brand answered casually, "Now, for you, Little Phenix, let's solve your problem."

Little Phenix looked panicked and quickly shook his head, "I, I won't go, you guys go."

This kid. Brand couldn't help but shake his head.

...

After agreeing on the rendezvous time and place with the others, Brand set off with Frey and Essen. Time was of the essence, forcing them to hurry.

Qing Village was approximately to the east of Che Lake, not too far away. As they ventured deeper, through the dense canopy, they could see the sky to the east growing darker with several columns of grey smoke—the sky at the horizon was gradually blackening, which was not a good omen.

Following Brand's memory and advice, they approached the area possibly occupied by Madara from the north of the village. It turned out his guess was correct; the Undead Army had just swept through here, leaving nothing but scorched earth.

Looking at the village below, with flames rising and thick smoke billowing amid the embers, even Frey's last glimmer of hope was dashed. The Madara army clearly had moved ahead of them, making reaching Ridenburg in time an impossible luxury. She couldn't help but glance at Brand, wondering what the young man was thinking.

But Brand was hidden in a thicket, watching skeletal soldiers passing outside the woods and meticulously counting the trees in a small copse. He counted to the twelfth tree and noted its appearance—

Qing Village, the twelfth beech tree south in the small grove. He remembered very clearly there should be a key buried beneath it. In the game, it was an independent mission leading to a tomb in the village.

He recalled who might have discovered the mission—possibly a Priest. But that didn't matter now, for he knew it was a Holy Temple Knight's tomb. If everything matched the game's development, there would be some good loot inside. But his goal was the sword in the tomb—Azure Light Piercing.

It was a sword infused with the Power of Light, and at his current level, it would be akin to a mini Undead Slayer. Of course, he could only imagine the legendary Divine Artifact for now.

Having confirmed this, Brand turned around and pointed outside the woods at the two beside him, "Did you see that?"

"See what?" Essen and Frey were both puzzled.

"The number of patrolling skeletons, twice, four times, looks like there are two Madara squads in the village now." Our protagonist answered expertly, "Twenty-two to twenty-four skeleton soldiers and two Corpse Witches."

"That many!" Essen was startled.

"It's manageable, but the key is they've taken the graveyard and the plaza. The Corpse Witches left behind will use the Soul Summoning Technique there, continually replenishing their forces. That's what we need to be careful about." Brand continued.

"That's desecrating the dead!" Frey clenched her fists in anger.

"Indeed, though they have the right to." He sighed, then pointed to the distant woods, "See that there? The pasture? You can use the shadows of those fences and shrubs to sneak in. There's likely a cellar under the barn; it hasn't been burnt down and shouldn't be hard to find. You can hide there and wait until it gets darker to act."

The girl nodded subconsciously but suddenly realized something was off, "How do you know?"

"I stayed here for a while." Brand answered without hesitation. He wasn't lying, just not entirely in this world.

"Then, what do we do next?" Essen asked.

"Wait for me there. I'll come for you in the evening. Those monsters should be focused on summoning skeletons and won't trouble you for now. If they do notice you, watch your breathing and heartbeat—the undead can see your life force." Brand instructed carefully.

"Wait, you won't stay with us?" Frey keenly caught this detail.

"I have my own matters to attend to."

"You—" She started, but saw the young man pat his sword, meaning—remember, you've been persuaded by me. How could that count? Frey opened her mouth to argue, but Essen pulled her back, signaling her to be wary of the Madara patrolling skeleton soldiers below.

"Do you trust me?" Brand asked quietly.

Frey shook her head, but after a moment's hesitation, nodded.

"Then that's settled. Go now. Don't worry, I'll come back safely." He answered seriously.

Frey looked at him, wanting to speak but ultimately held back as Essen pulled her away. Brand watched them go through a colorful forest, sneak into shrubs, then move along a fence, cross a long meadow, and finally enter the pasture successfully.

Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

Brand turned back, looking at the small copse below. A sense of tension immediately enveloped him. This would be his first solo adventure in this world. It might seem no different from before, but here, there was no failure, only death.

He actually preferred acting with Frey and the others, but how could he explain the key? He couldn't say he buried it before; even Essen wouldn't believe such a clumsy lie, let alone the meticulous Frey.

Weighing his options, he decided to act alone.

"No difference, old chap. Just consider it starting over." He rubbed his forehead and couldn't help but cheer himself up.

...

(PS. It's almost New Book 12. Can we have three Chapters today?)