A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

"Sea creatures aren't particularly skilled in crafts."

"In short, the equipment crafted by demons and angels is far superior to that made of black iron. Although the Five Rings are very powerful, in terms of craftsmanship, they are actually not as good as those made by demons and angels."

"I originally planned to send you to Heaven to see if there was any useful equipment."

“Anyway, you don’t need weapons, but you can definitely find plenty of armor,” Nicol Bolas said.

However, his tone suddenly changed the next second.

"Unfortunately, Heaven disappeared not long ago, probably not long after your wedding. The artifacts are still there, of course, but the place has vanished."

“…” Bray did not answer.

He knew that the Bronze race currently resided in three places: the seabed, the abyss, and paradise.

"A silver one?" After a long silence, Bray voiced his guess.

"Yes, just like the Eastern Continent, Heaven has also been invaded by the Silver Race."

"And this might not even have much to do with the 'Alliance of the Gods'." The Silver Race's actions have always been involved with the "Alliance of the Gods," but Nicholas knows that this won't be the case now.

Countless silver beings were freed from their shackles, and the power was no longer solely that of the "Alliance of the Gods".

Many silver-level individuals without any power will also emerge.

However, regardless of the type of Silver, it's unlikely they'll try to maintain the balance of Kapras like Nicol Bolas did.

We should be grateful if they don't cause trouble; expecting them to protect Kapras's "world wall"? Don't be ridiculous.

“Is there nowhere else?” Bray sighed.

Knowing that Silver Seeds were beginning to emerge, Bray became even more eager to improve his combat strength.

As for sword skills, it's impossible to improve them in a short time.

It will probably take another ten years or so to catch up with Bai Mian.

As for the sword, he was even less likely to change it.

He didn't want to get any more tattoos, so he could only consider protective gear.

Even if heaven is gone, there should be other places where usable protective gear exists.

"It's a pity that all I know about is heaven."

“I’m probably not as familiar with the Abyss as you are.” Nicol Bolas spread his hands, making a helpless expression.

"..."

“But if you want to try your luck, that’s not out of the question,” Nicol Bolas said casually, stroking his ahoge (cowlick).

"Then forget it." Bray refused decisively, without even a moment's hesitation.

The last time they searched for the crystal ball, Nicol Bolas said the same thing, and then he almost got himself killed in it.

Having dealt with Nicolaes for a long time, Bray figured out some patterns on his own.

One of the things is that Nicol Bolas always tricks himself silently, and after tricking himself, he still has to count the money for him.

"Really don't want to?" Nicol Bolas drawled, looking at Bray in surprise.

“No,” Bray said.

"I just got married and have a child, and I don't want things to fall apart just yet." He gave a very damaging reason.

Even Nicolas had to admit that this reason was very compelling.

Nicolaes furrowed his delicate brows and fell into deep thought.

“Actually, you might not necessarily die.” Nicol Bolas curled his lip.

However, after thinking about it for a while, He seemed to have figured something out.

"Alright, this time I'll provide you with the information for free."

"free?"

“After all, you still owe me a long-term commission, so giving you some intelligence is no big deal.” Nicholas indicated that Bray was going to work for him long-term anyway, so giving him some benefits wouldn’t hurt.

Bray frowned, realizing that things were not so simple.

But Nicholas ignored Bray, put down his cup, and clapped his hands.

The cup that was set down remained suspended in the air, without falling.

After Nicol Bolas clapped his hands, a screen of light was projected into the air.

"Heaven is made up of the 'holy mountains' that the angels speak of."

"Due to the struggle among the Silver Race, two sacred mountains fell directly from the sky, resulting in the destruction of a city in the Western Continent and a place in the Northern Continent being turned into a meteorite crater."

The screen displayed the locations of the two fallen sacred mountains, along with detailed views of the surrounding landscape.

"At the same time, many angels died directly in the aftermath of these struggles."

"However, naturally, there were survivors, but their numbers were extremely small."

“You can get what you want to know from these angels.” Nicholas circled the blurry angel figures on the light screen.

The surviving angels have gathered near the fallen holy mountain; once you reach your destination, you will naturally find the angels.

However, how to negotiate with the angels is up to Bray himself.

"So where are you planning to go?" Nicol Bolas was curious to know which holy mountain Bray would choose to go to.

"The Western Continent, perhaps," Bray said, looking at the scenery on the light screen.

"What's the reason?" Nick Boras looked at Bray with interest.

"The scenery is nice, and most importantly, it's not cold." Bray was seriously admiring the scenery on the light screen.

"..."

“I’ll use it for a vacation,” Bray continued, gradually forgetting that he had come for the “artifact.”

“…” Nicolas suddenly understood why Bray made that choice.

“Don’t you think these sacred mountains look like scenic spots?” Bray said to Nicolaes, pointing to one of the white sacred mountains.

“Yes, it does,” Nicolaes replied curtly.

The holy mountain is indeed beautiful, but the initial topic shouldn't have been tourism, right?

"Also, can I have this light screen?" Bray thought it would be incredibly convenient to use this light screen as a map.

"Here you go..." This was the first time Nicol Bolas had ever heard someone ask for a "light screen."

However, this light screen can indeed be given away.

Nicol Bolas pinched his index finger and thumb together, and the projected light screen was continuously compressed until it condensed into a bright blue cube the size of a sugar cube.

“Squeeze it and it will come back to normal. Once it’s back to normal, it’ll be like paper. You can crumple it up yourself and it will turn back into a cube.” Nicol Bolas flicked the cube to Bray.

"You wouldn't be thinking of going to the Western Continent for your honeymoon, would you?"

“Yes.” Bray nodded solemnly. It was time to get married life back to normal.

“This is necessary.” He said in a very serious tone.

“It’s necessary…” Nicol Bolas was too lazy to even complain. Bray examined Nicol Bolas’s cube and curiously squeezed it.

As expected, after being pinched, the cube instantly disappeared, turning into a light screen projected into mid-air.

He reached out and touched the light screen; its texture was similar to that of paper.

"..." Bray even discovered that this thing could actually be kneaded.

Knead it into a ball, and when you squeeze it in your hand, it becomes a deep blue cube.

"Wow!!!" Levy exclaimed in genuine surprise at the magical scene.

“Thanks,” Bray said to Nicolaes after a moment’s thought.

“I don’t care if you’re going on a trip or looking for protective gear, take it and use it as you like,” Nicol Bolas said helplessly.

Nicolas had originally planned to trick Bray, but when he heard that Bray was going on his honeymoon, he changed his mind.

But did Bray really not consider the dangers of going on vacation near the holy mountain?

---

On the outskirts of the capital, Naruko used a whip to bind a monster in the form of a wild boar and dragged it toward the city gate.

Although Naruko accepted many requests, they were all very simple and the areas were all near the capital.

There's no way around it; I can't exactly say I'm going to do a commission from another city.

"Ah~" Nia opened her eyes wide and looked at the wild boar being dragged by her mother.

For some reason, Nia gets especially excited when Naruko is fighting with monsters.

She was more than twice as excited as when I gave her toys.

This reminded Naruko of the time when she had Nia catch the treasure.

Back then, she and Bray lost many things in their home to Nia, such as a certain star, a camera, and even a certain sword.

Finally, Nia kicked the star away and hugged the camera and Bray's sword to her chest.

What is this? Is Nia's future destined to be a swordsman who wants to be a journalist?

“Nia, you should have been even more scared when you saw your mother fighting the monster,” Naruko said earnestly.

"Oh~" Nia didn't understand her mother's words at all and just responded casually.

"Good girl, you understood." Naruko said with a satisfied look, believing that Nia must have kept her words in mind.

After mistakenly believing that she had successfully educated Nia, Naruko hurriedly dragged a large monster through the city.

However, she was caught and scolded by the guards more than once on the way.

If this monster gets away, the city will be in chaos.

Left with no other choice, Naruko, who had been captured two or three times, could only use the magical power she had been using to smash the monster to death with a single punch.

Logically speaking, the reward for keeping someone alive is higher than the reward for killing them.

However, Naruko didn't want to be fined by the guards, so she had no choice but to take this alternative.

The guards didn't fine Naruko the first time, simply because they all recognized her.

Back when Naruko was in the chaos in the capital, she managed to become a captain. Even after she lost that captaincy, people could still recognize her.

Nia was visibly overjoyed when she saw steam billowing from her mother's arm armor.

If she hadn't been tied to Naruko, she would have definitely tried to touch Naruko's arm armor.

"Naruko, it seems like Bray wants to see you." Just as Naruko was about to deliver the monster to the client, Yuu suddenly appeared behind her.

When Nia saw Xiao You, she couldn't help but giggle.

Xiao You glanced at Nia without leaving a trace, and casually touched her face.

I can't give my concept as a gift to Nia, but I can at least touch it.

It's a bit slippery... soft, and feels quite nice.

"Oh, it's You. What are you doing behind me?" Naruko looked at You calmly.

“I’ve been near you all along,” Xiao You said coldly, brushing her long hair aside.

"It's just that you're too weak to notice me."

“emmmmmmmm” Naruko hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but then stopped.

"Then what have you been doing with me all this time?"

"..." Xiaoyou originally wanted to say that she was there to protect her, but after thinking about it carefully, she realized that Naruko probably wouldn't want that kind of treatment, so she changed her words.

However, this is a bit too difficult for the silly dragon.

Xiaoyou simply adopted a cold and aloof demeanor and refused to answer Naruko's question.

“Brai is waiting for you at the Adventurers’ Guild. He probably has something to tell you,” He said to Naruko. He had been caught by Brai, who came from his grandmother’s house, when he was passing by, and had become a dragon to deliver a message.

"That's it then, I'm leaving." With that, he turned and left, and with a gust of black sand, his figure vanished without a trace.

"Wow!" Naruko exclaimed. If she didn't know Yu, she would definitely think she was some kind of aloof and mature woman.