The Amber Sword

============= Firburh ============

The seasons within the Dark Forest changed frequently, but the harsh winter in Firburh in the Year of the Sword was just over, and the temperature had not gone back to its warm state.

It even snowed heavily twice in January, but it also seemed to hint that the city was going to have a wonderful harvest.

The cold winds were still biting in the streets, and there was hardly anyone passing through.

The only bar within the city was a different sight, and the fireplace in it was burning strongly to fill the bar with light and warmth.

Adventurers would gather in this place during autumn and wait for the snow in the forest to melt. Every one of them who came into the bar would take out their robes that were covered fully with snow, observe the entire hall, then took out their hat to show their respect to a young woman who was sitting far away at the corner of the hall.

That girl’s forehead was very high, and it was smooth as a crystal. The light from the fire would make it shine brightly, and her eyes were large and showed a little wisdom in them, and they glittered as she looked at the people and goods around her curiously. She wore a beautiful formal dress, and though she could not be considered to be a full adult yet, her chest was maturing amply. Her dress was tucked in at the waist and perfectly accentuated the girl’s slender body form. It was just that the lady-like dress was not very fitting for her as her actions were a little thief-like; she acted as if she had stolen the dress from somewhere.

“Lady boss, this is the deerskin that you wanted. The forest has completely frozen up and we spent a great deal of effort to chase after a herd of deer. Harduo even suffered a little frostbite. You can’t be overly stingy with our rewards—”

There were a few people who were clearly hunters standing before her and negotiating. The leader was apparently a nearby villager living in the hills. He wore a thick fur coat and there was a longbow on his back.

“Hoh, Harduo has frostbite? That’s really unlucky for him.” Romaine blinked her eyes and asked curiously: “Are there no more deer herds in the forest?”

“It’s because of those damned Subterrane Dwellers. They scared away the animals.”

“Hmm, I heard that the Subterrane Dwellers stopped doing that before it snowed.”

“That’s...... In any case, it has something to do with it.”

“I want these deer hides so I can make a coat for Brendel. Are two hundred silver coins fine?” Romaine carefully poked the deer hides with her finger as she looked up and asked.

“We’re definitely pleased to help our Lord and make him a large coat. I’m sure he will be even more fond of you, lady boss.” The leader’s face did not show that he believed the lady in front of him would be able to make a coat, but he still spoke respectfully: “But this amount is too little. Lady boss, please take into account that Harduo is frostbitten.”

“But this deer hide is clearly from last year. Look at the top here. There are worms that bit through this section,” the merchant girl innocently lifted up the deer hide.

“What—”

“An experienced merchant is in front of us—”

“S-surely it’s not too important how old it is, right? Besides, we really went to the forest. Harduo really has frostbites.” The leader coughed as the other adventurers showed embarrassed looks.

“Which is why these deer hides are not worth a lot of money, and you know it well, right? The remainder of the money is for Harduo, okay? Don’t go off and gamble away your money to that gambler Mano. I’ll send someone to check on Harduo,” Romaine glared at them, “if he didn’t receive the coins, I’ll send the Subterrane Dwellers on you and have them feast on your flesh.”

The hunters obediently received the money and left after being scolded. Even though they did not deceive that lady, they did not show any dissatisfaction as if they were used to such haggling.

Romaine restlessly touched her leather shoes, and she looked around with her large eyes constantly as if they never stopped while holding on to a large steaming mug of beer. She looked like she was waiting for someone.

Ever since it was winter, the self-proclaimed great merchant had been sitting on that particular spot, working on official business or working to buy the natives’ hearts. It was not without reason that she was being respected. Not only was she the lord’s fiancee, but she also had half of the territory’s money and was a goddess of wealth. But the biggest reason was that she was friendly and would never use her status to oppress someone, and instead spent an afternoon to bargain over a few copper coins.

Strangely, it was because of that reason that the natives did not feel the difference in status. The lives of the adventurers were not easy.

Money was a very important thing, and they actually looked down on people who arbitrarily spent coins. Amongst Brendel’s advisors, only Freya and Romaine understood this point. Freya knew it because she was born in a poor village, but Romaine did it because she was simply fond of shiny things.

As the winter days passed, Romaine had interacted enough with the adventurers to be recognized by them. Even though they were not very close, she was able to gain enough news that Brendel’s men did not get.

The doors to the bar were pushed open once again, and there was a moment of hushed silence.

The Silver Elf princess, Medissa, stood in the snow. She was wearing a dull silver fur coat and she placed both hands over lips and sighed. Her eyes looked at the packed hall a little tensely.

Humans were a little strange to her. The Elves did not like to gather in large numbers. The definition of a friend was like a mental attachment of sorts. With time passing slowly for the Elves, their display of emotions was perceived to be one of slight indifference.

But it was not the first time that she came here. She was here to transmit a message from the lord’s squire, the wizard Ciel, to Romaine.

The people who saw the little Elven princess backed away to create a path made from an unspoken agreement. There were people who teased her the first time they saw her and nearly caused the long-eared girl to blush.

In the end, a rumor spread out. ‘The shy second fiancee of Lord Trentheim’ was Medissa’s new title, and she could not help but glare at Romaine with every muttering and whispering that came at her.

“Medissa, do you want to drink beer?”

“No!”

“Fruit wine?”

“No!”

“How about mead?”

“No!”

Medissa knew that Romaine did not drink wine. The latter held a mug of steaming beer to get warm, and she was stingy enough not to switch for a new mug. Every time it got cold she would request for reheating, and if she could, she would do it until the second day. But perhaps it was because of such a stingy person, that the finances of the city were dealt in such an orderly fashion.

In fact, Medissa had a headache when she first saw the city’s account book.

The finances of the city were gradually moving on the right path. The money from the silver mines was continuously delivered to Romaine, and she redistributed the money to the refugees.

This act was not a charity movement, but a planned result to have the forest in the north cut down into usable land. Seeds had been planted onto the farms and were sleeping underneath the snow. They would germinate once the snow melted.

Ciel and Bosley discussed how to receive more refugees from the north, while the operation to build a road to the Dark Forest was slowly progressing. The population of Firburh was not significant, and even if they added the natives from Fort Minst and Port Gris, they were still unable to meet demands. Odum was still repairing the city and the workers could not be spared. Even the White Lion Army was lacking in soldiers.

Food was the cornerstone for all their plans, and Romaine’s maturity and composure in accomplishing her tasks had surpassed everyone’s imaginations. It was just like how Ciel had claimed it would be.

She had a natural sparkling talent in logistics.

It was something one could only be born with, and it allowed her to prepare everything in detail and order without any panic.

The food that was bought from Ampere Seale was transported by sea, but Romaine did not hand them out directly and instead passed them to the merchants. This method allowed her to recoup the money that was handed out to the citizens.

After an unknown number of years under Graudin’s rule, the grain market was rebuilt in just a few months, and she won the hearts of the citizens over from the shortsighted former ruler.

The merchant girl was currently considering to relax the amount of money to recruit people.

Brendel required more bodies, and she had to show a certain sincerity. Food was not a problem at all in her eyes. As long as there was money to be made from Firburh, then the merchants from Ampere Seale would be like sharks who got the whiff of blood and gathered around her.

In truth, the first batch of merchants had arrived, though the group was not very big. The merchandise that they had were sold to the city and quickly ran out, but it was fine since there would be even more merchants in the future.

The money did not just attract merchants. The nearby refugees from Madara’s invasion were starting to flock to Firburh. Free-flowing currency was even more delicious than a cake, as stated by Romaine’s aunt.

Medissa handed over Ciel’s report to Romaine. The merchant stared fixedly at Medissa and asked: “Where’s Brendel?”

“My Lord hasn’t said anything about returning yet.”

“Then I want to talk to him.”

“No,” Medissa immediately refused. It was not the first time Romaine had used her as a messenger, and she explained in detail: “Ever since my Lord entered the Loop of Trade Wind, my connection with him was somehow cut off.”

“Haaaah—–” Romaine let loose a long disappointed sigh: “Then that Ciel fellow has other things that he wants me to do?”

“Yes. He wanted to ask you why you spent so much money on a strange mission, and if you have something planned.”

Medissa looked at the batch of deer hides on the table, wondering a little if Romaine was doing it purely out of fun. But this thought quickly passed. As an Elven princess, the importance of property was very faint. If it were Scarlett or Freya, they would have stared at Romaine with great suspicion.

“Ah, I wanted to talk about this,” Romaine showed an expression of surprise, “there are no more deer in the forest. Do you know anything about it?”

As someone who lived before the War of the Holy Saints, and one who was raised as a Silver Elf commander, Medissa’s expression became stern upon hearing Romaine’s words.

The animals in the forest would not disappear without a reason.

It was clear that the enemies have started moving. She looked at Romaine and understood that the latter was sending out the adventurers to different areas in order to scout for unnatural things:

“What exactly did the adventurers report?”

“A few adventurers said that they spotted activities of the undead nearby. I think these bad undead things from Bucce have reached this area. Brendel previously said that they are near Trentheim, right?”

It was Madara—

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