"If you have Matthew contact the Tade Church, and if you really need one of their Holy Knights to guard the territory, rember to request a woman. I've already asked Matthew—the Tade Church has female Holy Knights. A man would inevitably try to seize power, and you might not be a match for him. Besides, I'd worry about any man they send having... other intentions."
"You're very ambitious and have great aspirations. In fact, you have a drive that's rare even among n. There's nothing wrong with that, but being a woman will create many obstacles for you. Learn to hide your true intentions. You can be tough, but you can also use a softer exterior as camouflage to protect yourself."
Fang Zhen spoke these words in a calm tone.
But the more Dalia listened, the redder her eyes grew, and it was clear from her expression that she was deeply moved.
As Fang Zhen gave Dalia this advice, he sighed inwardly.
'Matters of the heart are complicated. He and Dalia had grown so close largely out of mutual need, and much of their connection was carnal desire. It couldn't be called pure love.'
'But now, he couldn't deny that so genuine affection had grown between them.'
'People... they really are complicated sotis.'
He shook his head, feeling that if he stayed any longer, he might impulsively make so promise about the future.
He gently patted Dalia's shoulder and said, "I'm leaving. Wait for ."
In front of everyone, Dalia maintained the last shred of her noble composure.
"Alright. I hope you keep your promise. Otherwise, I'll…" Dalia wanted to say sothing threatening, but she couldn't bring herself to say it.
Fang Zhen released his hand.
"Father Matthew, I'm leaving Dalia in your care. Don't disappoint ," Fang Zhen said.
Matthew nodded.
"I'm off." Fang Zhen turned, mounted his Jue Ying motorcycle, and started the engine.
Dalia watched his retreating figure on the motorcycle, saying no more words to hold him back, her eyes simply glistening with unshed tears.
Against the setting sun, Fang Zhen raised his left hand and waved without looking back.
Just like that, without a single backward glance, he gradually disappeared from the view of Dalia and the others.
「A few hours later.」
「The real world.」
「Fang Zhen's ho.」
A figure erged from the white Light Gate, and Fang Zhen wheeled his motorcycle into the living room.
Seeing the familiar surroundings of his ho, he let out a long sigh of relief.
"I'm back."
He parked the Jue Ying motorcycle in the living room. Feeling sowhat drained, he walked over to the sofa and sank into it.
After leaving the Ashton Territory, he had ridden at top speed—the fastest he could safely handle—and returned to Redstone Town in just a few hours before entering the Light Gate.
The speed helped him shake off the sorrow of their parting. After riding hard the whole way, Fang Zhen's mood had finally stabilized.
He shook his head slightly, pushing aside the wistful thoughts that the parting and the night had stirred up.
'As the possessor of the "Instance Life Ga," he was destined to travel through different worlds. Every experience, every emotion, every feeling... it was all just part of the complete package.'
Once he had composed himself and recovered so of his energy, he walked over to the motorcycle.
Strapped to the Jue Ying motorcycle, besides his weapons, were the material gains from his trip: two large leather bags packed full of Gold Coins.
The supplies he had brought to the Ashton Territory were trade goods. Although he had a romantic involvent with Dalia, the trade itself was more like official business for the Ashton Territory. For him, it was a separate matter from their relationship, and he tried his best to keep the two from affecting each other.
And this trade had been quite profitable.
The two DJI agricultural drones went for eight hundred and fifty Gold Coins each. The diesel generator, counted as an accessory, was eighty Gold Coins. The eight barrels of gasoline and diesel totaled forty Gold Coins.
As for the silk, porcelain, tea, and other goods, Dalia gave a rough estimate of their value. This valuation, however, already exceeded Dalia's current financial capacity. The solution was to sell them on consignnt.
Dalia would be responsible for selling these luxury goods, and the profits would be split fifty-fifty with Fang Zhen. One supplied the goods, the other handled the sales channels.
Before that, though, Dalia had paid an advance of one thousand seven hundred Gold Coins, which would cover Fang Zhen's costs for purchasing the next batch of goods.
In truth, Fang Zhen was taking a more long-term view on this matter.
He had accumulated enough Gold Coins from this trade to cover his needs for now.
His agreent to split the profits fifty-fifty with Dalia wasn't driven by emotion.
He wanted to invest in Dalia, and in the Ashton Territory.
Dalia was an ambitious woman—or rather, a woman with great aspirations. To beco a Countess, and perhaps even rise a step further in the future, she would need vast resources, with financial power being a crucial component.
Fang Zhen wasn't particularly concerned with how many Gold Coins he made from a single transaction. He was more interested in seeing how far Dalia could go, and how high she could climb.
The money earned from the luxury goods trade was an investnt for him.
The higher Dalia's status, the greater his own influence and access to resources within the Zambein Kingdom would beco—and the more efficient it would be.
Fang Zhen felt that once he had enough money for his current needs, it was better to take a long-term perspective. After all, money was just one way to acquire resources, not the only way.
Especially in a world that hadn't yet entered a comrcial age, there were several more efficient thods.
Finally, adding in his fee for acting as a guard—One Hundred Gold Coins for two days of labor—the total number of Gold Coins he brought back from the instance world was three thousand six hundred and twenty.
This huge sum was packed in the two large black leather bags on the back of the Jue Ying motorcycle.
Three thousand six hundred and twenty Gold Coins. It sounds like a lot—so much that you might think you'd need a car to transport it all—but in reality, the space required was much smaller.
A single Gold Coin weighed only about six grams. Three thousand six hundred and twenty Gold Coins ca to a total weight of 21,720 grams, or 21.72 kilograms—a little under fifty pounds.
It wasn't light, but Gold is naturally dense, so it didn't take up much space.
With these Gold Coins, in a world where Gold was still hard currency, Fang Zhen wouldn't be short on money for a while.
Moreover, this would also help him alleviate his own imminent financial crisis.
His spending had been rather high recently, and he was almost out of money in the real world.
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