It is said that it is already snowing heavily on the plains outside, and the Red Maple Castle and Boulder Castle in the west are dyed white by snow.

Adhering to the railing of the terrace, Andessa slowly paced to the edge of the terrace, where she stood on the top of Thorin Castle and looked out into the distance.

It must be snowing over there at Winterwolf Castle, right? There is also a long branch manor...... Scholars predict that the north of the continent will be generally cold this year, and this war will ...... I'm afraid it will bring an even colder winter.

She looked up, but she couldn't see the snow falling in the sky, all she could see was the endless greenery, and the towns and outposts scattered among the vines, canopies, flowers, and green grass, all kinds of artificial lights twinkling on the earth like stars, and the dim areas between the lights were full of strange plants that glowed.

Unknown birds burrow through the canopy of giant trees, occasionally flutter their wings from the sky, or dare to land on the top of the castle's towers and mottled walls.

A small sound came from beside her, and Andesa looked for a voice, and saw a small beast with bright red fur, slightly larger than a squirrel, climbing up to the terrace from nowhere. The little beast had a rose-red fruit in its mouth, and when it saw Andessa, it lifted the fruit with its front paws very humanly and handed it forward—and even wiped it with its paws.

Andesa was stunned for a moment, and after staring at the little beast for a few seconds, she hesitated to reach out and take the fruit—a fruit she had never seen anywhere else, with a bright red skin that was shiny like a gem and exuded a strange sweet scent, which looked very tempting.

She remembered the name of the fruit: the Thorin Fruit. It is the fruit of the Thorin Giant Tree, a "crop" endemic to the region and a source of food for many cities in the eastern part of the Whitsundays. It was perhaps the strangest and most wonderful specialty she had ever heard of in her life, but what could be unthinkable under the Thorin tree, which was a miracle in itself?

Andesa picked up the fruit and took a bite, and while the sweet flesh stimulated her taste buds, a slightly thin voice suddenly came from the side: "I hope you like it, after all, I don't have much to entertain guests here." ”

Surprised and curious, Andesa searched for the source of the sound, and finally saw a small flower swaying in the wind near the wall tiles where the little beast had landed, and the sound was so weak that it was somewhat distorted from the bud.

"Lady Bertila," Andesa greeted the bud earnestly with a strange mood, "uh...... Thank you for your hospitality. ”

This seemingly thin bud is actually an extension of the Thorin Giant Tree, and it is the will of the giant tree that makes a sound through the bud. Andesa didn't know much about this powerful lifeform, except that everyone here, including her own father, called her Lady Bertila, a powerful ancient druid.

The Thorin Tree is the culmination of the cataclysm of the old Ansu, and as a Titrich commander who has been following Ansu for many years, Andesa has certainly investigated this matter, but her investigation is destined not to know too many details.

What kind of changes does it take for a human being of flesh and blood to form this miracle that covers the entire region? What is the origin of this powerful lady Bertila? She was very curious about it, but she didn't know who to ask.

Father probably knows something, after all, it all has to do with the dark sect that has disappeared into history......

The buds in the cracks of the wall tiles swayed, and many small vines gradually gathered around them, and finally a female figure condensed in the flower vines, and Bertila stood there, as if she was seriously studying Andessa's appearance, although her face lacked expression change, and her eyes looked dull and wooden, but this look of looking up and down still made Andersa feel uncomfortable for a while.

"Excuse me......" she couldn't help but break the silence, "is there something wrong with me?" ”

"It's nothing, it's just that it's been a long time since I've paid attention to a Typhon like you......" Bertila shook her head, "especially after being a plant, it's harder for me to move around at will." ”

Andesa didn't know why this powerful ancient druid was suddenly so emotional, she only felt that the other party was talking a little strange, and lowered her eyelids without knowing how to answer: "Yes...... I'm embarrassed to see a wretched Typhon like me. ”

"Embarrassment? It's not embarrassing to be wounded on the battlefield, and my posture is the real embarrassment compared to you," Bertilla laughed, saying something that Andessa couldn't understand even more, and then just as Androsa was about to ask something, she suddenly glanced in the direction of the entrance to the terrace, "Ah, it looks like someone has come to visit you...... Maybe I should shy away from it. ”

Andesa wanted to stop the other party, but before she could open her mouth, the woman in front of her suddenly turned into scattered petals and vines, and quickly left the terrace, Andesa could only frown, and looked back at the entrance of the terrace - she saw her father appear there, pushing the door towards her.

Once upon a time, this was a scene she could never have dreamed of, but today it appeared in front of her so naturally.

"You've just gotten better, try not to move for too long," Bard said with concern as he looked at his daughter, "How are you feeling today?" ”

"Much better," replied Andelsa, "I'll get up and move according to my physical condition." ”

After a simple question and answer, there was an invariably silent silence between father and daughter, and an awkward silence remained on the terrace.

Facts have proved that the separation of more than ten years is not so easy to completely eliminate after all, especially after the two people have experienced too many things in the past ten years and have gone through unimaginable life trajectories. On the day they first met, Andesa and Bud talked a lot about things, but every time they met after that, they inevitably fell into this awkwardness - they didn't know what to say or what to ask, and what they could ask was clear on the first day, and after that...... They were two strangers.

But both father and daughter are trying to make a difference.

"I was talking to Ms. Bertila," Andesa finally broke her silence after thinking hard for a long time, "she gave me this ......"

She showed the half-eaten fruit in her hand, and Bud glanced at it, but there was a strange look on her face: "Has she recently started to like giving fruit to people again...... It's not a bad habit. But Andelsa, you still have to pay attention on weekdays, Beltila her...... It's best if you have reservations when dealing with her. ”

"Why? You don't have a good relationship with Ms. Bertila? Andesa asked subconsciously.

Bud quickly waved his hand, "Not really, at least we're on good terms now - it's just that she's far more powerful than you think, and she's a person with a very complicated past." ”

“…… In my opinion, being able to grow into a giant tree that shades the plains is powerful enough, but could there be anything more complicated and bizarre than such a life experience? Andesa smiled, and seeing that her father seemed reluctant to discuss the secret behind Lady Berthira, she quickly brought up the topic in a joking manner, "I am more curious about your life over the years than Lady Bertila's life. ”

The conversation was going on, and at least the conversation didn't look so awkward, and it was a good start—Andesa and Bud thought almost at the same time.

"I thought you wouldn't want to listen to it the last time I told you about my membership in the Dark Cult," Bard said with a slight laugh, a little self-deprecating, "It's not a good story. ”

"I was only shocked last time that I didn't think to ask anything, but anyway, it's all in the past," Andesa looked at her father with a serious look in her only remaining eye, "Of course, if you don't want to talk about it again, we can leave it ......"

"There's nothing you want to do, like you said, it's all in the past, and it's just old stories now," Bud waved his hand, looking very relaxed, "and it's all boring old stories...... For the first few years, I spent the first few years in the lab, and I showed you the traces of those modifications, artificial hearts or something...... These things have continued my life and completely separated me from the God of War faith. And in the years since...... I've basically been moving around as a dark cleric, mostly in Ansu. I've done pretty much all the evil things you know about the dark cult.

"I don't mean to justify myself, and I don't think that doing something good later on will undo those horrible acts...... I was guided by fanaticism in those days, and now that I think about it, if all the crimes were tried, I am afraid it would be enough to be hanged several times. ”

Andersa listened to her father say these things with an indifferent attitude, and finally couldn't help but interrupt the other party: "What about after that? The days after you left the Dark Sect and worked for the Cecil...... How did you get here? ”

“…… It's not a long time, it's a very short time compared to more than a dozen years of dark days, but it's incredible," Bard smiled, "I became a researcher, sometimes participating in research, sometimes receiving research as the only sample of dark clerics, and other leisure time...... It's basically a problem. ”

Andesa was surprised: "Do the question? ”

"There's math and runes, and there's the mechanical stuff of magic—people always have to find something to do when there's nothing else to do, and I'm interested in them," Bard said, suddenly looking at Andessa, "Are you interested in them?" ”

Andesa was suddenly a little embarrassed, she recalled the books that Matilda brought to herself, as well as some classic "topics" mentioned by the other party in the letter and herself, and her eyes wandered: "I ......"

"You should give it a try, Andessa, it's not just a matter of interest to you," Bard continued, "you should understand that these things will be very useful in the coming times, even if not personally, as a general, you must have enough knowledge to be competent - in the past, this knowledge may have been only knowledge of marching and fighting, combat experience, knowing how to organize armies and issuing and executing all kinds of orders, but now you need to know more than that......

Andesa listened, her face couldn't help but show a little embarrassed, she actually recognized her father's teaching at the moment, she is not an ignorant and dull person, she is also very clear about the changes of the times and the challenges of new weapons and new tactics to contemporary commanders, but people and people cannot be generalized, she remembers that when she was a child, she once challenged a mathematical problem in an extremely angry situation, and she was even more angry if she didn't do it for a day......

It's still infuriating to think about it now.

Bard didn't seem to notice the subtle change in his daughter's eyes, or maybe he had finally found a topic to talk about with her, so he couldn't help himself. He began to speak with gusto, about mathematics and runes, and about the interesting problems he had faced as a "researcher" here—except, of course, the secret project.

Andesa stood across from him, from the initial embarrassment to thoughtfulness.

She looked at her father, and the already faded and vague memories in her mind gradually overlapped with the scene in front of her...... Father, is he such a preachy person?

She doesn't remember.

Bud finally put an end to his whim-induced tirade, and he came to his senses and looked at his daughter with some embarrassment: "I seem to have said something that seems boring to you. ”

"It's boring indeed," said Andesa at once, without showing any hint of mercilessness, "but I'm a little relieved to see that you're doing well here." ”

“…… It's okay, it's okay. Bard said dryly, and then he looked at Andesa with a sudden hesitation.

Andesa was keenly aware of this: "What do you want to tell me?" ”

“…… I did have one more thing to come to you today," Bard said as he organized his words, knowing that what he was about to say might be a bit difficult for his daughter to accept, "Listen, this may be against your current principles, so you can refuse it from the beginning—but I think you still need to think carefully because it's important to both Typhon and Cecil. ”

As if she had a premonition, Andesa looked at Bard with serious eyes: "If you want to persuade me to fall completely to Cecil, then you don't have to speak. I understand that your position today is the result of more than ten years of wind and rain, and I understand this, but I myself ...... I'm going back to Typhon. ”

"I know you're going to say that," Bard shook his head, "don't worry, no one is going to force you, it's just that His Majesty Gawain wants me to convey something to you." ”

"Him?" Andesa frowned, "What does he want?" ”

"Cecil is trying to train a special soldier who can be used to combat the spiritual contamination of the gods, who are essential to the current catastrophe caused by the runaway gods...... He wanted to get Typhon's mass-produced Transcendent technology. ”

A gust of wind happened to blow, and there was a soft whirring sound from the canopy of the giant tree of Thorin, and in the sound of the leaves rubbing against the branches, Andesa was stunned for a few seconds before opening her mouth slightly: "Ah??? ”