"Jia Lan..."

Seeing Loran Hill suddenly stand up, Westena was a little surprised. She actually had other plans for this girl, such as going east to search for the Branch of the Seeking Tree.

Because from Huadelin's words just now, she learned that this witch of the stars not only has influence in the Western Continent, but also has a noble status even in the distant Eastern Dynasty. It would be a waste to let such a good candidate go to the Northern Continent.

But if she asked for it, it would be difficult for Westena to stop her.

Looking at Westena, Loran Hill blinked and said that he would explain it in detail in private later.

Next, everyone in the courtyard discussed how to deal with several other tests.

The second task, to find the Jade Branch, was to send a fleet led by an elf sage to the East Continent.

The third item, the Cloud-Splitting Horn, was searched for by a team organized by Huadlin, the leader of the Tricolor Feather faction. Their team was the strongest among the several currently available, with approximately three elven sages participating, out of respect for the powerful fantasy beast.

The fourth task, completing the poem of leaves, will be completed by many members of the "Basket Flower Crown", "Green Flower Crown", "Gold Leaf Flower Crown" and "Book Door Flower Crown". They will explore the major libraries, ruins, ancient families, and inherited murals and stone carvings of humans and elves to find clues and traces, and also place their hopes on the envoys visiting the north.

The fifth item, the Seven-Colored Golden Flower, was not discussed at all. The leaders of the various factions seemed to have reached some kind of tacit understanding long ago to keep it secret to avoid the information being leaked in advance and known to the opponents.

After finishing the discussion, everyone gathered again for a while before gradually dispersing.

Back in the round pavilion, Westena asked Loran Hill why he had volunteered to go to the north.

"I know, Westena must want me to go to the East." Looking at the elven sage, Loran Hill spoke as expected.

"Indeed." Westena nodded. After hearing the girl say this, she slowly felt relieved.

"Actually, there's no need to look for the jade branch of the sacred tree." As he spoke, Loran Hill smoothed his hair with his hand, then took out a wooden box from his arms.

Slowly opening the wooden box, a deep purple fruit was revealed, emitting a strange scent.

"This is the fruit of the Xun tree, but the Xun tree actually withered more than a hundred years ago." The girl recalled what Granny Gro told her.

The center of the Sunset Mountains is where Xunmu once stood. However, due to the subsequent chaos in the cave and the pollution of magic, Xunmu has long since withered. Even if one goes to look for it now, there will be no gain.

"This..." Westena blinked and looked at Loran Hill in disbelief.

She originally thought that to complete this test, she would have to travel to the vast East Continent to search, but the result would probably be a long way off. Even after the time limit of this duel was over, it would be hard to say what she would gain.

Unexpectedly, it was suddenly accomplished. Once the fruit was planted, it wouldn't be difficult for the many high-level natural sequences within the forest elves to cultivate it. Soon, they would obtain a branch bearing fruit to complete the test. This also meant that they had already won this duel from the start.

"Really, I don't know how to thank you." Westena stroked the fruit in her hand, raised her hand and put it down again, and finally held the girl, hugged her in her arms, and thanked her sincerely.

"Thank you for your help, Loran." Loran Hill was a little flustered when he was suddenly hugged by the elf big sister, but fortunately he calmed down quickly.

"It's nothing, just a coincidence. I didn't know you would set this as a test target. In fact, Xunmu is not very famous in the East, it's just that it is indeed rare." The girl said modestly, which made Westena feel cute.

This guy is still like this, afraid that others will be too grateful.

Releasing her arms, Westena carefully kept the wooden box before looking at Loran Hill.

"I will preserve it well, and the fruits and branches I grow will be left for you."

"Thanks to your good luck, we now have more manpower to do other things, so we can even perform some little tricks." As she spoke, Westena seemed to remember something and showed a special smile.

——————

A week later, a white airship took off from the Emerald Garden, carrying a group of people to the far north. They would cross the cold wind, snow and ocean to the continent where the ice elves lived.

In the sky, Loran Hill sat at the table under the round window, looking at the letter in her hand. This was the report she had recently received from Fairywood.

The situation in the empire is now in an extremely delicate balance. The two queens, as the nominal rulers of the empire, rule over their respective fiefdoms and the nobles surrounding them.

The empire is divided into two major regions, with the former central capital, Titaneia, as the boundary. One side obeys Queen Teslin, who wears the white rose and griffin emblem, and the other side obeys Queen Evelyn, who wears the red rose and unicorn emblem. Although the two sides have not yet engaged in a large-scale war, friction on the border has never ceased.

Neither side was satisfied with the outcome. The two queens were the first to be retrieved by the Griffin family. They could have used this to unify the entire empire and suppress the Landsworthy family in the east with righteousness. However, an accident that was close to scandal and shame occurred in the middle. The two heavily protected queens were unexpectedly taken away by an unknown assassin, and the Griffin family's dream of a great achievement that was almost accomplished was shattered. It is said that when the Griffin Duke heard the news, he was furious and could not sleep for several days. He destroyed and smashed countless things, and could not suppress his anger.

The Landsworthy family, which had inherited Queen Evelyn, could not tolerate the actions of the Griffin family.

It is true that the Landsworthy family was alienated from the royal family because of the coup more than ten years ago, but this does not mean that they can tolerate the Griffin family replacing the royal family, riding on their heads and giving them orders.

The Eastbound nobles, represented by the Lanzworthy family, were mostly of mixed elven and human descent. They were part of a group of nobles that grew and expanded after the union of humans and elves in the early days of the Empire, and they possessed inextricable ties to the Imperial Family. In the eyes of these nobles, the Griffin Duchy was ultimately a faction alien to the Empire's core, an alien faction even more difficult to accept than the North. In the eyes of the Eastbound nobles, who valued elegance, poetry, and art, the Griffin family, hailing from the western mountains and forests, always carried an air of barbarism.

It's okay to be a member of the empire on a normal day, but to be recognized as the new royal family is as uncomfortable as eating a mosquito.

"How can such a barbaric and vulgar person from the Western Territory become the ruler of the empire?" This is probably the voice of many nobles in the Eastern Territory.

Now, with the righteous reputation of Queen Evelyn, the nobles of the East quickly gathered together and began to discuss the strategy of counterattacking the West and taking back Queen Teslin.