RNP Chapter 377 Small Detachment
Chapter 377 Small Detachment
Chapter 377 Small Detachment
Dick hauled a cartload of ore away from the mine.
He avoided the crowds and came to the wasteland not far from Moonstone Castle.
After hiding the horses and carriages, Dick went to Moonstone Castle alone.
After informing the soldiers guarding the city of his purpose, Dick was able to see Count Morgan again.
However, when Count Morgan saw Dick, his eyes showed considerable disdain:
"You shouldn't come looking for me anymore; it might make that old fox suspicious of me."
"I've only met you once before, this is the second time," Dick replied.
"Never be careless, knight. You never know how strong your enemy truly is," Morgan said. "But I know very well how cunning and perceptive Gulvig is."
main idea?
Upon hearing this assessment, Dick immediately realized that he had been complacent.
He doesn't underestimate any opponent in battle, but he's not good at recognizing battles that require more than just fighting.
But Lord Hubert was different; he could calmly deal with all the deceit and treachery.
Hmm, Dick sighed inwardly, "I still have so much to learn."
Dick immediately bowed to Earl Morgan: "I am ashamed, Sir, and—I have learned a great deal."
But Morgan smiled and said, "I really like your attitude, knight. Such a humble warrior is a rare sight these days. Ha! I believe you will become a valuable asset to Duke Cassius!"
A capable assistant? Dick thought—I only made a deal with Cathy.
But there's no need to explain; this person is a supporter of Casey, and how to deal with him is Casey's business.
Morgan then asked Dick, "So, Sir, what brings you here so abruptly?"
“You still haven’t told me how moonstone is used,” Dick said. “It’s said that moonstone is a popular luxury item, a substitute for candles in the homes of nobles and the wealthy. But if moonstone could explode, it couldn’t be so popular, which proves that it must be very stable under normal circumstances.”
"Brilliant! Sir!" Morgan exclaimed. "Indeed, and this is a secret known only to Moonstone Keep. Oh! Of course, Duke Casey may have heard of it, but the Lanes family has never learned of this method."
Dick nodded.
In that case, it's fortunate that he was cautious and came to Moonstone Castle again.
Morgan said, "Sir Dick, do you know about exotic iron ore?"
Dick nodded; he had just heard Cathy talk about it not long ago.
The weapon made from that iron ore was able to easily break through Dick's defenses.
“That makes things easier,” Morgan said. “Iron is a magical iron ore with special powers, and moonstone is essentially a special kind of iron.”
Dick was startled: "You mean—moonstone is iron ore?"
“That’s right,” Morgan explained, “but the iron content was low, and it reacted with other substances to form moonstone.”
Upon hearing this, Dick believed that the information about the moonstone's ability to explode was no exaggeration.
If that iron was strong enough to cut through the supernatural, then it must possess explosive energy, which is not surprising to Dick.
Dick hadn't forgotten his purpose: "But how do I make it explode?"
"As you said, moonstone is very stable, otherwise it wouldn't be a bestseller," Sir Morgan said. "And breaking that stability won't be an easy thing to do. It needs—a catalyst."
"What trigger?"
"That's not hard to guess, Sir," Morgan said with a smile.
Dick thought for a moment, then blurted out an answer:
"You said—iron!"
"That's it!" Morgan laughed happily. "Moonstone is, in the end, a special kind of iron. Its full energy naturally needs to be drawn out with an iron token." As he spoke, Morgan pulled a dagger from his pocket.
He tossed it into the air, then grabbed the head of the dagger and handed it to Dick:
"Take this."
Dick took the dagger and, at Morgan's nod, pulled it out.
He recognized at a glance that the dagger was made from a foreign iron ore.
Morgan said, "Generally speaking, moonstone can emit light of various colors, such as blue, yellow, and purple, but it will not emit red light."
"And once it turns red, that means it's definitely going to explode! Sir, use this iron dagger to strike the moonstone!"
Once it turns red, quickly throw it into the moonstone pile; all the moonstones will explode at once. —By the way, how much moonstone ore did you collect?
"A whole truckload."
"Oh! That's more than enough to blow up a simple stone tower."
"I understand," Dick nodded. "Then, this dagger..."
"—Here you go," Morgan interrupted with a smile, "Since you work for Lady Casey, giving you a small dagger isn't a particularly generous gift."
Although Dick is a "fighter," having witnessed the power of the Iron, he doesn't refuse to carry an Iron dagger with him, hoping it might play a crucial role in a critical moment.
"Thank you, sir," Dick said with a grateful bow.
At that moment, he suddenly remembered something:
"By the way, sir, I've heard that moonstone doesn't glow easily?"
"That's right. Just like iron ore can't be used directly to make weapons, it needs to be processed before it can be used for more purposes. But if it's just for explosions, moonstone ore is enough."
"What I mean is, those moonstone ore deposits are glowing."
Upon hearing this, Morgan's eyes widened immediately:
"What did you say—"
Dick told Morgan everything that had happened in the mine:
"...But before coming to the castle, I touched the moonstone ore again and found that it no longer glowed."
Morgan fell into deep thought; perhaps because this was something his family depended on, his expression was unusually solemn at this moment.
"This has never happened before—why is that?"
Dick didn't interrupt as he watched Morgan mutter to himself.
He simply stood silently to the side, watching Morgan.
Dick also thought about it for a while.
The key point is that he could make the moonstone ore glow when he was in the mine, but he couldn't do that just now.
Is there any difference between him at the two times?
This also puzzled Dick.
However, Morgan, like Dick, seems to have come up with no answer.
Dick could only attribute it to the fact that the iron was so magical that it still held undiscovered secrets.
He did not linger at Moonstone Castle, and Morgan did not try to persuade him to stay.
After leaving the castle, Dick retrieved the hidden carriage and began his journey towards the stone tower.
Dick was actually quite worried about leaving Peggy there, but it was still better than having her with him.
If only she had stayed in the library.
However, since Miss Harriet has come, Peggy can only receive treatment if she comes along.
It seems that there is no solution to this problem.
Just then, Dick spotted a small troop advancing in the same direction as him.