She paused: "I heard that Istania has been relatively calm lately, it's good for you to stay there, but make sure not to separate too far from each other, it's best to keep in contact."
She finished speaking at a rather fast pace, her tone somewhat hurried.
But this seemingly random comment left Fang Hong feeling a bit puzzled, he couldn't help but fiddle with the Light Page, thinking there was an issue with the simultaneous interpretation system, but all the information displayed normal.
He then asked: "What do you mean?"
"It's hard to explain," Sicape replied: "This time, I didn't use the public communication channel of Stargate Port, instead I found a private line to contact you, the confidentiality is not that high... But this is a necessary action, in short, remember my words."
"I might not contact you for a long time afterward, but don't worry, there's nothing major here..." Sicape organized her words: "Once things stabilize, Kroid and I will actively get in touch with you, but during this period, you must carefully protect yourself."
Fang Hong was utterly confused, asking: "What do you mean by stabilize?"
Sicape gave no answer: "You'll understand when the time comes, did you remember my words, you little fool?"
Fang Hong hesitated for a moment, but still nodded—Miss Sicape's words were not difficult to understand, literally speaking.
But he opened his mouth, intending to ask her about the Abyssal Sea Scroll from thirteen years ago, whether the Morning Dawn Star was indeed the one he knew. However, just as he was about to speak, the video suddenly "clicked" shut without any warning from that side.
So much so that Fang Hong's mouth stayed open for quite a while.
In the past, the Miss Sicape he knew, although decisive, wasn't this rushed. He sensed that there seemed to be some trouble the other party encountered, and couldn't help feeling a bit worried, why did she contact him with a private line, inexplicably?
Could it be that the Morning Dawn Star encountered some trouble officially?
He knew she was still in Stargate Port, if she really was being watched by Stargate Port, there wouldn't be many places to hide.
Fang Hong hesitated several times, unable to confirm whether he should inquire Su Changfeng about this matter, although Morning Dawn Star is currently under the jurisdiction of Russia's national Stargate Office, Stargate is still part of the United Nations Joint Administration Zone, the military shouldn't be completely in the dark about this.
But Fang Hong's hand reached halfway, and he pulled it back, after all, he couldn't confirm which trouble Sicape had exactly gotten into, acting rashly might instead plunge her into danger. Miss Sicape telling him not to worry, might be hinting him to not act impulsively, to patiently wait for things to resolve?
Subconsciously, of course, he trusted Sicape unconditionally, but emotionally, he couldn't help but worry. Then he glanced at Sophie's communication number, seeing her avatar was still dim, indicating she wasn't available — but after thinking for a bit, he made a decision, deciding to first inquire the Little Princess of Silver Weslan, sure that she wouldn't betray him.
Having made a decision, he felt a bit more at ease, not in a hurry, and put down the Communication Crystal—though things were a bit chaotic in his mind, he couldn't resist the onset of sleepiness, preparing to fall asleep soundly.
Yet at this moment, surprisingly, the Communication Crystal began to vibrate again.
Fang Hong was slightly startled, thinking Miss Sicape had sent another message, quickly accessed the Light Page—only to see, this time, the avatar was dim, similar to the 'R' at that time, showing a silhouette of a man, with a 'question mark' above it.
Then, a piece of audio information came from behind the silhouette.
"Mr. Ade, do you remember me?"
Fang Hong slightly paused, because it was a man's voice, clearly not Miss Sicape. He couldn't help but look at the other person's ID, discovering the ID written 'Shana' in English letters,
He immediately recalled that person, although due to the 'Margin' skills test, he hadn't managed to pass, hence the last contact with these people was nearly half a year ago. But for this mysterious person who gave him the 'Multiple Parallel' and 'Margin' skills training software, he remembered quite clearly.
However, speaking of it, they had always communicated through private messages in the community, this was the first time the other party proactively reached out to him, and even used voice to send a message.
After a bit of surprise, he quickly regained composure, and asked: "What is it?"
Shana chuckled slightly, asked: "Mr. Ade, how have you been doing with the 'problem' resolution?"
"There's been some progress," Fang Hong thought for a moment, answered honestly: "But the latter part is a bit too difficult, I don't have any leads yet."
"That's okay," the voice said: "'Margin' is a very cutting-edge field in the world of Combat Artisans, Mr. Ade doesn't need to rush."
Fang Hong was slightly taken aback. Although he had expected it, he was still quite surprised when the other party actually said it. It seemed those people knew exactly what the items they gave him signified.
But why would they so easily provide him with such important knowledge?
He replied somewhat uncertainly, "Thank you."
At the same time, Fang Hong vaguely felt that the way this Shana spoke to him was somewhat different from before, always giving him the feeling that the two might not be the same person.
"You're welcome, but this time I would like to ask a small favor from you," Shana replied. "Because I can't find a suitable person at the moment, I had to turn to Mr. Ade. Of course, you won't have to help for nothing; we will offer you compensation equivalent to the market price."
Fang Hong remained expressionless, only slightly furrowing his brow. The other party had been in contact with him for almost a year now, still with unknown intentions.
Or perhaps, was the other party finally about to reveal their true intentions?
He asked again, "What kind of favor?"
"A small favor," Shana emphasized. "Could you help us deliver some items to a designated place?"
"What items?" Fang Hong immediately asked, almost naturally recalling the issue about the Rain Listener, who also helped a mysterious person escort some items to Fenris Isle.
Although all the clues later pointed to Rain Listener's employer possibly being Toragotos or one of the Wanderers, other possibilities were not excluded. Fang Hong was very wary of this matter, almost instinctively thinking of it.
But unexpectedly, Shana said, "Mr. Ade is an Alchemist, right? Could you help me make 120 sets of 'Drake' I, II, and III type suits and 'AA' type Magic Guided Reactors, and then deliver them to Coldwater Port."
"Which port?" Fang Hong was shocked—why Coldwater Port again, was it that he could not shake off his ties to Scepter Coast? 'R' also wanted him to go to Coldwater Port, and now this 'Shana' whom he had never met wanted him to deliver items there as well.
Moreover, the 'Drake' suits and 'AA' type Magic Guided Reactors are actually newcomer equipment for the Invokers, with Type I being Strength Type, Type II being Agility Type, Type III being Intelligence Type, and additionally, a Type IV Craftman Specialty.
Was the other party planning to establish a new guild at Coldwater Port with such a quantity of newcomer equipment?
"Coldwater Port." Shana confirmed it once more.
Fang Hong pondered for a moment. To be honest, although this person was immensely mysterious and their purpose unclear, they had indeed provided him with great assistance—whether it was 'Multiple Parallel' or 'Margin' skills.
For him, this is indeed just a small favor. The materials for 120 newcomer sets and AA type Magic Guided Reactors are simple and inexpensive, and the other party promised market-value compensation. Besides, he himself needed to travel to Coldwater Port, so this seemed like a handy task.
After thinking about it, he didn't refuse outright but only asked, "What's the exact ratio, and what's the timeline?"
Shana replied, "Within four months, and here's the list with the ratio."
With that, the other party sent him a list through private message.
Fang Hong glanced over it and did not find anything unusual. With a timeframe of four months, constructing the Seven Seas Traveler should be more than sufficient, although they were also tasked with investigating the incident involving Princess ten years ago, which wasn't something to be resolved overnight.
Those wandering Alchemists might not necessarily stay in Istania, so the Princess hadn't set that requirement. In fact, if such a condition existed, he would not have agreed back then.
Therefore, after considering it for a while, he slowly nodded.
"If this is all there is, I can consider it."
"No problem," the other side replied. "I'll wait for your response, Mr. Shana."
Fang Hong watched the Communication Crystal dim and couldn't help but let out a light breath.
That night, the series of communications left him with a subtle premonition, as if everything was falling into place. Coupled with Miss Sicape's words, it felt as if a storm was brewing.
...