Chapter 137: The Whisper

Chapter 137: The Whisper

After Niels received the message from Zoya, he was so excited he couldn’t sleep all night. This was a great chance to revive the family, and he had to act immediately. Taking the lead now would mean staying ahead every step of the way.

He understood the situation in Northland City very well, because his daughter Zoya was there, living in Bran’s City Manor. Bran’s open attitude would eventually spread across this land. When Wizards swarmed in, those who were among the first, as long as their luck wasn’t too bad, would secure a place for themselves.

He knew he didn’t have much time left. Perhaps when Bran told Zoya, the news had already started to spread. His only advantage was that he didn’t need to be careful or suspicious. By the time those who were watching and testing the waters reacted, they would only be left sighing at their backs.

He couldn’t help feeling a bit smug. When everyone else chose to wait and see, he had sent his daughter to Bran’s side. Those sarcastic remarks now only turned into envy. The voices of opposition within the family finally disappeared completely after Bran’s last great display of power. People began to show him Reverence. He was no longer the Niels who hesitantly brought his daughter into the Northlands. The entire family began to listen to his voice. This feeling was good!

Zoya, now the whole family’s eyes were on her. Niels firmly stopped any attempts to influence her. He firmly believed that as long as Zoya stood by Bran’s side, that influence was irreplaceable.

From the messages that came back, Zoya had changed quite a bit. From a Warrior’s perspective, this was a welcome improvement. But from a father’s perspective, it seemed a bit troubling. His daughter was starting to become bloodthirsty. That girl who used to yell in the Duelling Ground, “Give him a weapon, give him a fair fight!” felt strange to Niels now.

Friends!? How could becoming Bran’s friend be an easy thing? His daughter—Zoya, what kind of pressure was she under to start acting like this? Or had Zoya already felt she could never return to her former home? It wasn’t like this at the beginning, but now, who still wished for her to come back?

No one! Even he, her father, no longer wished for her to return.

The news spread as if it had grown wings, flying far faster than Niels expected. But one thing was still within his calculations: these people, used to schemes and tricks, began hesitantly and carefully testing the waters. By then, his men were already on their way to Northland City.

He completely overlooked the Dragon Riders, though.

…

The Dragon Riders also didn’t hesitate at all. Perhaps out of understanding of the Northlanders, or out of their understanding of power, they believed Bran had no need to use tricks in this matter.

However, Hall, who received this news, fell into a frenzy. What were their previous actions? What about those who died? What had he done!?

Under the temptation of his old friend Grew, he led his companions to their Deaths. They died without value, died without dignity.

He, who had been somewhat calmer, fell into a low point again. The Dead began to appear in his dreams. Each one whispered to him, telling of the joy of Death. The voices were full of temptation—the temptation of Death.

Hall was now insignificant. He even started to miss the times when people questioned him repeatedly. At least back then, people still looked him in the eye. He couldn’t go on like this. He needed to prove himself again.

By the time people realized it, Hall had been missing for days. He went alone to Sandstone City; that was where things had started to change. Before all this, he had still been fantasizing that Bran and his daughter might have a good future together. As a father, how could he not see what was on his daughter’s mind?

He was Hall, a Dragon Rider with a strong mind. How did Grew’s few words affect him? Things couldn’t be that simple. The Dead in his dreams seemed to be hinting at something. Even though he was already deaf and utterly exhausted, he was still the Dragon Rider Hall. He still had the ability to find the truth.

…

The Scholars stationed near Sandstone City were now in a difficult situation. The Camp here was quite crude. The arrival of winter had halted their construction. The only place nearby that could provide them with labor was Northland City. But labor was tight there too, and Bran obviously wouldn’t offer help in this regard.

Large-scale mobilization required ample time for preparation, which meant reinforcements were slow to arrive. Research on The Dead also showed no new progress. Matters involving The Dead, things closely related to Mana, clearly required the help of Wizards. Of course, it would be best if Bran, the Great Wizard, took action himself. Maybe everything would become simple then. But they didn’t dare ask.

Bran had already expressed dissatisfaction with their failure to fulfill the agreement so far. Who would dare ask for trouble now?

…

Bran looked towards Sandstone City more and more often. He thought everything there had temporarily ended, but now changes were happening.

The commotion of The Dead gradually quieted down, but clearer whispers began to sound. This time, only he could hear them. Perhaps Huahua could too, judging from the slightly puzzled reaction of the Black Cat. The Ancient Tree was somewhat confused by Bran’s reaction. He truly couldn’t hear anything, even though he tried very hard, which made him feel a bit anxious.

Bran stopped the Ancient Tree from trying further and told him to focus on growing his face first. After hoping for days, the Ancient Tree’s face hadn’t even shown a Shadow yet.

He would handle this on his own!

Things were getting interesting. The whispers were a promise, a promise to give Bran great power. Bran never considered himself powerful, though he feared no challenges around him. But he was afraid. He feared he was only the stronger one in a rabbit hole. He feared one day he would meet a real wolf.

But these whispers made Bran feel ridiculous. Feeling ridiculous also made him realize that his previous guesses about Sandstone City were probably wrong. But it didn’t matter. This power couldn’t affect him yet. He was Bran, the Bran who was always wary of this World. His Mana protected his surroundings at all times. He never relaxed his own defenses.

He still needed to wait. The things the Scholars promised hadn’t arrived yet. Next time, when he went to Sandstone City, he wouldn’t mind turning the place upside down. So, he told that side to prepare the promised power. He would be there soon.

Yes, he would go to claim it soon. It wasn’t only humans who could gain abilities. All kinds of creatures had the chance to gain abilities. Last time, he was influenced by his own emotions and overlooked many things. This time, he wouldn’t. He was just curious: what kind of creature possessed such a strange ability?

This might be another way of feeding, or perhaps Bran’s… richness had stimulated it. There were too many possibilities, too many “maybes.” The one thing it shouldn’t have done was—expose itself.