Amber Sword-Chapter 863 - 163: Anman
The forest was already shrouded in thick fog, and looking up, the sky was entirely invisible. The figure of the Holy Multi-Headed Dragon was long hidden behind layers of mist, and no one knew if it still stood in the valley. But Brand suspected that at least part of it had vaporized; otherwise, the forest wouldn't be so misty.
Through the fog, the silhouettes approached quickly, causing Brand a slight pause—it was not the misty knights that came, but actual humans. The knights wore red-gold cloaks with Fire Crow emblems on their chests. Among them, the priest wore a red-gold silk robe, topped with a triangular bishop's crown, and the strap hanging down had the red Kruz word 'Flame' embroidered on it—wearing such splendid attire indicated he was a regional priest of the Flame Temple.
Brand recognized the other party from the shriveled face resembling an eggplant, identifying him as Eink's High Order Priest Anman. He frowned inwardly—this fellow was not easy to deal with—but outwardly maintained a very humble demeanor. Brand sheathed his sword, placed a hand on his chest, and bowed slightly, "Lord Priest."
However, in his heart, he thought: That damned bastard, why would the Holy Temple send such a notorious guy? Aren't they afraid of offending the Druids?
Anman looked at this suddenly appearing young man, feeling satisfied. His attitude was a thousand times better than those mercenaries he had encountered before. "Nobles are indeed nobles," he mused while examining Brand, thinking, "at least educated and reasonable—although this seems to be an Erune?" Anman did not realize that in the game, players were quite adept at dealing with such high-level NPCs, and Brand's response was merely second nature.
Even Qian cast a strange glance at her lord, wondering if he perhaps was not 'rebellious' enough.
Anman and his men had gathered in the forest mainly to confirm if there was any monster like the previous ones. Without a single Templar and only these Reserve Knights, Anman was extremely cautious. Earlier, Knight Raymond had perished in the battle with the Holy Multi-Headed Dragon, shocking everyone. Since the November War, the Holy Temple had not lost a high-ranking knight to the 'Holy Flame' in many years; such a loss was simply dreadful news.
Nevertheless, Anman felt the object placed on his chest and thought that Knight Raymond's sacrifice was not entirely meaningless, thus he gently exhaled a breath. The Lord Priest raised his head, displaying a kindly expression, "Young man, you are quite impressive. Which noble family are you from? What is this place? How far is it from Wolf Pass?"
Anman asked three questions in one breath, trying hard to maintain control, but Brand could still detect the tension in the man's heart.
Why would a dignified High Order Priest be nervous?
Brand was puzzled; could it merely be due to that monster? But it's unlikely that the Holy Temple people would become so frightened after losing a hundred men. Those people were all thorough fanatics, and while Anman was incompetent, it was more of a character flaw. No one who becomes a High Order Priest lacks firm resolve.
He kept his head down, not thinking more, to avoid arousing suspicion from the other side: "I am Baron Lengshan. The esteemed Lord Priest may have never heard of Tonyger, this remote and desolate area, hence my insignificance is not worth mentioning—yet Lord Priest, I also do not know what place this is, but we are not far from Wolf Pass."
Brand spoke in a flattering manner, hoping to quickly get rid of this guy. He was worried that Veronica might catch up at any moment, and those from the Flame Temple certainly wouldn't be on his side then, but Brand dared not show urgency easily to arouse suspicion; being accused of disrespect to the Temple would be amusing. Though this guy now appeared to be all amiable, Brand knew exactly what he was dealing with.
Anman nodded. The news that they were not far from Wolf Pass invigorated him, withered wrinkles fading from his face, clearing away much of his fatigue. However, just leaving like this felt too impersonal, and though the Holy Temple was esteemed, leaving people with an impression of arrogance was not good. Thus, the Great Priest retracted his step and said to Brand, "Baron, we are in a hurry to leave this area. Would Your Excellency like to join us?"
