"Young people nowadays are truly remarkable!"
ACE and his group couldn't help but exclaim after listening to Logos recount how Flandre Scarlet received Talulah's mission to hunt down a traitor, and then how she attracted the Ursus people's attention, allowing another accomplice to successfully detonate the armory.
Such a feat would earn Flandre Scarlet a legendary reputation anywhere. It's just a pity that this matter became an open secret. It's "open" because everyone who knows, knows; it's a "secret" because everyone tacitly agreed not to speak of it. After all, Ursus still had its pride.
As for the rejected invitation, Logos didn't mention it, because it was Logos's spur-of-the-moment idea, and since it was rejected, there was no point in bringing it up.
Meanwhile, Flandre Scarlet found Ch'en. At this time, Lungmen's team was packing up, preparing to return.
Why the rush to leave? Because although autumn had just begun, this was Ursus, and winter came very early in Ursus. If they delayed any longer, once the snow fell, they wouldn't be able to leave. They had originally brought a large amount of grain to support the Reunion Movement; if they were trapped here by heavy snow, they would probably have to eat most of it themselves.
Although Ch'en wanted to stay, a Shadow Guard found her and stated that Governor Wei Yanwu had said:
If you are willing to return, Lungmen will continue to provide support to the Reunion Movement and is willing to help share some of the pressure from Ursus to a certain extent. But if you insist on staying here, then this batch of aid will be the last resources Lungmen will provide to their sisters.
Upon hearing the Shadow Guard's words, Ch'en's expression stiffened. Only then did she understand why Wei Yanwu had let her leave so readily; he was waiting for her here.
Indeed, with mobile modules, the Reunion Movement could be self-sufficient in many aspects, but the biggest problem was medicine. As more and more Infected joined the Reunion Movement, the demand for medicine grew. No matter how professional Rhodes Island's doctors were, they could only use limited medicines to ensure everyone's safety as much as possible. But they couldn't conjure medicines out of thin air.
The Reunion Movement currently had no way to obtain large quantities of medicine from anywhere other than Lungmen. Therefore, the Lungmen connection absolutely could not be severed. This immediately put Ch'en in a deadlock.
Staying here would indeed show sisterly affection, but after cutting off Lungmen's supplies, the Reunion Movement's strength would not be able to bear the medicine supply for so many Infected, ultimately turning into a bubble, and even Talulah's Reunion Movement would vanish like smoke. Returning to Lungmen meant she couldn't constantly help Talulah, but she could continuously provide her with various supplies to ensure the Reunion Movement's development, and then she could visit Talulah every now and then.
This was a multiple-choice question that actually offered no choice. After struggling for a while, Ch'en still chose to honestly agree. And Flandre, upon learning the news, said she also wanted to go back with them.
"What? You're going back too!" Ch'en asked in surprise.
"Yeah, I just came to help. Now that I'm done, of course, I have to go back!" Flandre said as a matter of course.
After all, the big house in Lungmen was warm and spacious. Plus, the Reunion Movement would probably be busy all winter. There was nothing fun for her here, so she might as well go to Lungmen. She heard that the Great Yan's Spring Festival was extraordinarily lively, and she missed it last year, so she had to enjoy it thoroughly this year.
Ch'en was speechless at this. "But Sister Talulah and Sister Alina are both here. Won't you feel lonely going to Lungmen by yourself?"
Flandre looked at Ch'en with an expression that seemed to say, "Are you stupid?"
"Why would I be lonely? Are friends in Lungmen not friends? And it's not like I can't come over. Besides, it's not like we'll never see each other again after this meeting. Even Big Sister wouldn't keep Flandre by her side every day; that's not love... that's... 'control freak'! I remember Patchy taught me that. Only those who try to control others want to keep people by their side every day."
Flandre Scarlet's words left Ch'en stunned. After a long while, she rubbed her forehead and said that she had lived so many years in vain, not seeing things as clearly as Flandre Scarlet.
"Alright, then we'll go back together."
After telling Talulah about their impending return, she, though reluctant, expressed understanding. The Reunion Movement would indeed be busy for a long time and couldn't host people from Lungmen. Moreover, the Reunion Movement didn't have many special products to trade with Lungmen. Coupled with the fact that all the people from Lungmen were non-Infected, there was a natural barrier between the two sides.
Although the visitors wouldn't persecute the Infected like the Ursus people, occasional fear and worry would still stimulate the sensitive and fragile hearts of the Infected community. So, rather than keeping them here and letting the relationship between the two sides worsen, it was better for the Lungmen people to return early.
Two days later, the convoy departed from the Reunion Movement, leaving Ursus under the watchful eyes of the Infected and Rhodes Island personnel.
"Huh, isn't this the direct route back to Lungmen?"
After crossing the Ursus border, Flandre Scarlet noticed that the convoy was not heading east, but continuously going south.
"No, it's not. We came here under the guise of a merchant caravan traveling between Ursus, Zwillingstürme, and Lungmen. Otherwise, such large quantities of goods entering and exiting would easily cause unnecessary trouble. Now, to return, we must also make a stopover in Zwillingstürme." Ch'en said, looking at the golden maple leaves outside the window.
"Zwillingstürme!" Flandre Scarlet knew this place. The capital of Leithanien, and the burial place of the Witch King. The Twin Queens built two tall towers here, symbolizing the end of the old era led by the Witch King.
What interested her more about this place was its university. Because the knowledge in the academies of other countries, even Great Yan, was accumulated over successive dynasties. But here, the students' teachers were true Liches. So their knowledge could be said to be the most orthodox of Runecraft.
She remembered the leader of the Liches was a goatee-wearing Fremont. In terms of academics in this world, he should currently be the top expert in Runecraft. Thinking of this, Flandre Scarlet wanted to communicate with him. For no other reason than to witness the skill level of this Lord of the Witch King's Court.
She inquired about the process. Ch'en told her that the convoy would stay in Zwillingstürme for about three to four days for rest and loading cargo, and then return to Lungmen.
Three or four days, that's enough. Flandre Scarlet originally thought the convoy would just pass through Zwillingstürme quickly, in which case she wouldn't be able to meet that Lich King... well, that's what he could be called, Fremont. But if they were stopping for three or four days, she would have plenty of opportunities and time.
As for how to meet him, Flandre Scarlet had an excellent calling card. That was all the video footage of the "surgery" performed on Talulah not long ago with Logos and Pith. She had asked the other three, including Talulah, if the video could be made public for research purposes. All three had agreed.
However, Logos reminded her that Banshee spells were very different from ordinary Magic, and trying to force a fit might be more trouble than it was worth. Flandre Scarlet stated that she wasn't trying to dismantle and learn Banshee runes, but simply felt that since this surgery was rare to be recorded, it should be shared with those who could study it. Perhaps someone could come up with a perfect method to deal with the Immortal Black Snake.
At the time, after Flandre Scarlet finished speaking, Logos also took two copies, one for Rhodes Island and the other to take back to the valley for his mother to examine. Even if it wasn't to save Talulah, gaining more knowledge from his mother would be a profit for him. And this time, Flandre Scarlet planned to use this material as a calling card to meet Fremont.
Three days later, the convoy arrived in Zwillingstürme. After getting out of the car, Flandre Scarlet looked at the golden town before her with a surprised expression. Of course, it wasn't that the city was actually made of gold. Rather, there were many maple trees within and outside the city, and in autumn, golden leaves covered the entire city, turning it into its current appearance under the sunlight.
After entering the city, everyone settled down in the place arranged by the merchant guild.
"Do you want to go out for a walk?" Ch'en asked with a smile, seeing Flandre Scarlet constantly looking out the window.
"Mhm!" Flandre Scarlet nodded. "Can I?"
"I'll take you out! After all, we are in a foreign land, so it's better to be cautious when traveling. Especially since this is the capital of Leithanien."
Ch'en took Flandre Scarlet's hand and led her out the door. Soon after leaving, Ch'en realized something awkward. Her Leithanien language skills were average. If she were given a text to read, it would be no problem, but speaking with local Leithanien people would be a bit troublesome. Fortunately, her appearance clearly marked her as a foreigner, so tolerance was high.
The two stumbled their way to a nearby park and sat down, and only then did Ch'en wipe a bead of sweat from her forehead.
"Phew, I'm exhausted!"
"Hehe, I didn't expect Sister Chen to have something she's not good at!" Flandre Scarlet said with a chuckle.
"Uh, it's mainly because I don't usually interact with Leithanien people. Don't look at me like this, I actually learned Leithanien quite well when I was in school." Ch'en felt she couldn't appear too embarrassed.
"Actually, Sister Chen's Leithanien is quite good, just a tiny bit worse than mine." Flandre Scarlet's words made Ch'en's eyes widen.
"You speak Leithanien?"
"I learned it in Lungmen. Since I didn't have much to do, I liked to read books related to Magic. And there are particularly many of them from Leithanien in that regard."