Nodas had a dream. In the dream, he was surrounded by a tide of undead creatures. In the boundless and empty wilderness, those skeletons with calcified, grayish-yellow bones and crimson flames dancing in their empty eye sockets pounced on him wave after wave from the darkness.
In the dream, his comrades fell one after another. The battlefield was filled with arrows. He looked around and saw corpses everywhere. Erouine's broken war flag drooped down in exhaustion and remained motionless.
Until the last moment, the world seemed to have fallen on him.
Then, he woke up with a start from the dream and sat up on the bed covered with soft reeds. The Dark Forest was still chilly in the early morning, but when Nodas touched his back, he found that it was drenched in sweat and his pale forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat.
Panting, he sat on the bed for a while before he came back to his senses. He looked up and saw a ray of morning light flowing into the small room from the windowsill. The window was actually a hole dug out of a tree trunk.
The furnishings in the room were simple. Most of them were made of wood, and the whole room was a hole dug out of a tree trunk. Some vines hung down from above, forming a natural and simple space.
Nodas held his forehead and remembered that he was no longer on the battlefield. It had been a few months since he was rescued by those strange people and sent here, but he still had nightmares like this.
He took a deep breath and stood up. He was a little shaky. Then, he suddenly heard a noise outside the window. He could not help but feel strange.
This village had always been quiet.
Did something happen?
Or did the revival ceremony begin?
Nodas came to the window and looked out in confusion.
…
The settlement built by the druids at the periphery of the Loop of Trade Winds was a town called the Green Tower. It was called a town, but there were thousands of people living there. There were also many centaurs, tree elves, and some Tanians.
The druids had lived a mixed life with other races in the Dark Forest for a long time. They built many villages in the forest. They planted a kind of fast-growing ancient tree and lived in the trunks of these magical trees.
The villages were built about twenty to thirty meters above the ground from these towering trees. The whole town was connected by suspension bridges. The suspension bridges were formed by intertwining magical vines with wooden planks in the middle. They were even sturdier than the strongest stone bridge.
Countless suspension bridges shuttled between the ancient trees, forming a strange landscape of the city in midair. The druids worked at sunrise and rested at sunset, but the centaurs had an opposite schedule. They liked the brightly lit market and even installed lights on the suspension bridges. They were a kind of lily of the valley with huge buds like lanterns that could shine in the night.
But more of them were thick vines that spiraling upward. They led to the upper level of the town where the druids gathered and the nest of the giant eagles.
The druids and the giant eagles had been allies for hundreds of years.
Brendel followed the Great Druid Gray Crow and the others as they slowly climbed up the lush green vines. There were huge birds of prey with huge wingspans flying up and down between the gigantic tree trunks.
The huge canopy was like a layer of clouds, allowing them to shuttle between the green clouds.
Of course, Brendel also saw the centaur guards patrolling the area. They wore shiny armor and wore a stern looking sentry's helmet. The centaurs and druids had a long history of living together. They were a race of warriors, and their individual strength was even stronger than the Subterrane Dwellers.
But in the Dark Forest, they also relied on the druids to survive.
Apart from them, there were also a large number of tree elves, Tanians, and bear monsters in the town. There were also pegasi and unicorns. Anyone who worshipped the Goddess of the Forest, Niya, was a guest of the druids.
However, the druids weren't in charge of the daily operations of the town. In fact, the Green Tower's defense was in the hands of a centaur leader called Zenia. The daily operations were managed by an administrative council made up of tree elves, Tanians, and bear monsters.
The druids lived in the upper level of the Druid District. They had their own independent organization called the Deadwood Council, which dealt with the internal affairs of the druids.
Of course, their main task was to monitor the Loop of Trade Winds and any changes in the Dark Forest.
The upper level of the Druid District was much simpler than the lower level of the town. The druids used thick vines to form a square between six ring-shaped ancient trees. In the center of the square was the holy statue of Goddess Niya. The hollow branches of the six ancient trees formed six halls, and the hall in the west was where the Deadwood Council was located.
Two ancient tree elves were squatting at the entrance of the hall. They were about three stories tall, and they were dozing off with their palms supporting their upper bodies. These tree elves seemed to be the guards of the hall, but they didn't fulfill their responsibilities.
When Brando and the others approached them, the tree elven on the left opened one of its eyes. It glanced at Big Druid Gray Crow and slowly closed it again.
The other tree elven was snoring, its voice sounding like a song from an ancient forest.
"Please follow me." Big Druid Gray Crow gestured to the two tree elves and turned to the others.
Brando nodded and followed him into the hall. The youths under him were left in the town, and the friendly Tree Elves were there to receive them. Kodan and Ropar were with them to prevent them from causing trouble.
At this moment, only Scarlett and Amandina followed behind the young lord. They had never seen such a place before, and their eyes were filled with curiosity. Even the noble ladies who were more reserved could not help but look around.
The hall was no different from the usual architectural style of the druids. It was simple and natural, and there were no extravagant decorations other than the statues of the ancient druids and spirit beasts. The walls of the hall were hollowed out, and only a few pillars were left, making the hall look like it was exposed to the wind.
Of course, the vitality of the Ancient Magic Trees was very strong, but even so, it did not affect their growth. From here on out, the ancient tree was still lush with leaves.
Brando saw a circle of people standing in the hall.
The Druid Elder he met the first time was among them, and there were a few other elders. There were a total of seventeen people. Brando sensed that there were only two of them who had the same aura as Big Druid Gray Crow.
This meant that the three Great Druids of the Green Tower were gathered here.
"They really think highly of me." Brando could not help but think. Suddenly, he saw a small figure rushing out from the side of the room, her long green hair fluttering in the wind as she threw herself into his arms.
"Brother Brando!" Sifrid cried out happily as she buried her head in Brando's embrace.
As the chosen one of the Forest Goddess, she knew that Brando had left the Abies for this place. She had been waiting for this day for more than a month, and this day had finally come.
Brando was stunned for a moment before he recognized the little girl. Sifrid had grown a little taller in the past half a year, and her complexion had also become a lot rosier. It seemed that the Druids had taken good care of her.
But he did not know that there was a misunderstanding. The Druids did not know how to take care of people, and Sifrid's daily life had been taken care of by the Tree Elves. Since they were entrusted by the Great Druids, the Tree Elves did not dare to be negligent.
Brando stroked Sifrid's head and looked up at the Druid Elders: "I like people who keep their promises. I'm very satisfied that you did not lie to me."
Sifrid seemed to understand that Brando was about to get to the point. She tilted her head in response to Brando's hand and obediently stood to the side.
Amandina squatted down and held the little girl's hand with a smile.
Sifrid responded with a sweet smile in return.
"My lord." The oldest Great Druid standing in the middle of the seventeen Druid Elders spoke up. He was leaning on a walking stick and had a long cloak of leaves draped over his shoulders. His eyebrows and beard were completely white, and his face was filled with wrinkles, but his eyes were sharp and spirited.
But before he could speak, Brando politely interrupted him: "Great Elder." He said: "I am a noble of the Erouine Kingdom, but my identity is meaningless outside of the human world. You don't have to address me as such."
"You are the elder here, and I am the younger one. You can just call me Brando."
The Great Elder was slightly taken aback, but his expression softened as he nodded. Then he looked at Andellu and asked him to speak to Brando: "My lord, let me speak."
Brando knew that this was the Great Elder's way of repaying his respect. He nodded and did not object.
"What the Great Elder wants to ask is, my lord, you said that you understand the Ancient Druid Magic, and even the secrets of the Black Forest. He wants to know how much of that is true."
[These Druids really don't know how to interact with people. Why would a guest come from afar and not let them rest first, and directly come over to discuss business?] Brendel thought in his heart. [Hmph! The impression that he gave others was a little too cold and unreasonable.
But he liked this style. If he had to stay here for three days and slowly discuss the important matters after the banquet, he would not be able to enter the Loop of Trade Winds for at least half a month.
He did not have that much time to squander.
He thought for a moment and replied: "I only know a little about Ancient Magic, but it doesn't mean that I understand it, let alone that I'm good at it. As for the Black Forest at the border of Tónigel, I do know some inside information. "
"For example, you said that the ruins in the forest are Valhalla. Is this true?" A tall Druid asked.
"No," Brando looked at him and confirmed that he was a Druid of the Beast Spirit Circle: "I only said that Valhalla is in the Loop of Trade Winds. As for whether it is the ruins or not, I can only say that the location of the ruins is very close."
The Great Elder nodded. Brando did not like to boast, but he also did not jump to conclusions easily. This made the Great Elder feel that he was somewhat trustworthy. But he did not reply, and the other Druids only looked at each other.
… …
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