"Alright, Lord Rein, I'll report to Major General Tatia immediately. Given your current status, if you decide to go, I believe the headquarters will pay great attention."

"Moreover, the situation in the Ferdinand Forest is still unclear; you should be cautious if you decide to go." Before leaving, Olena added.

"Thank you, I will." Rein nodded.

...

After Olena left, Rein thought for a moment and decided to quickly advance his tannery skills to level 7 to gather 11 Skill Points.

However, he still needed to visit old Henry to find a new style of leather armor.

Because when his skill level in tanning reached level 4, the improvement speed of the engraved leather jacket was not as fast anymore.

He roughly estimated that upgrading from level 4 to level 5 in tanning required making over a hundred engraved leather jackets, and the experience required after level 5 was even greater, slowing the improvement significantly.

Thus, Rein took the carriage once again to visit old Henry's tannery workshop, spending half an hour to learn a new leather armor style, 'Thick Leather Chest Armor.'

This chest armor was also engraved on both sides, but its thickness far surpassed that of a typical engraved leather jacket.

And this is precisely where the difficulty lies.

Firstly, six layers of mature cowhide were pressed together using a special glue, and compressing each layer of the cowhide was already laborious for an ordinary tanner.

Secondly, once the six layers of cowhide were piled together, the difficulty of sewing was enormous; threading the needle was exceptionally challenging and easily led to misalignment.

However, the thick leather chest armor made in this manner had protective power comparable to lock armor while being only about half its weight, making it very popular.

Of course, these were challenges for ordinary people, but for Rein, it was naturally a small task.

When it came to the actual production process, it only required a sufficient amount of mature cowhide, glue, and tools, so once Rein loaded a large amount of mature cowhide onto the back of his carriage, he returned to his residence.

Just as Rein arrived at his residence and arranged for people to move the materials to the storage room, Olena and Major General Tatia arrived together.

Major General Tatia stated frankly upon meeting, "Lord Rein, I heard from Olena that you plan to go to the Ferdinand Forest soon?"

"Yes, Your Excellency Tatia, I do intend to. By the way, I heard that headquarters will not dispatch personnel for the time being?" Rein nodded and replied.

"Previously, no. However, since you've decided to go, the situation is different. The headquarters will assemble logistical personnel and arrange for an airship to investigate cult activities in your name."

"Thank you, that will indeed make things more convenient." Rein smiled.

"In fact, the headquarters was initially planning to dispatch two to three squads of Fine Gold Swordsmen to accompany you, Lord Rein. However, due to some special reasons, there are differing opinions on this plan at the top level."

"So, General Augustus would like me to seek your personal opinion on this matter."

"Oh? Differing opinions?" Rein couldn't help but look curiously at Tatia.

"Lord Rein, let me first introduce some confidential intelligence about the Ferdinand Forest that the headquarters has gathered."

"Alright!" Rein nodded.

"It is like this: the incident in the Ferdinand Forest is rather complex this time. A high-ranking traitor has emerged within the Ferdinand Forest Elves, reportedly tempted by the Mother Tree Sect and converted to the legend of the Void Mother Tree."

Tatia explained in detail.

"Even the Elf Ambassador here in the Imperial City cannot contact the high-ranking elves. Although we have reported on the specific activities of the cult, as the Empire's core decision-making level, we have not yet received a formal request for aid from the elves, so we are mainly observing the situation."

"I understand, so in simple terms, while the elves are internally in turmoil, other cults are also trying to seize the opportunity." Rein nodded and continued asking:

"What are the Empire's subsequent plans? To intervene or continue to observe?"

"There is still debate on this matter, but the Empire has already dispatched two Guardian Lords to secretly go to Donne Province and Guillemont Province."

These two provinces, Rein knew, were located to the east and north of the Ferdinand Forest, respectively.

This means that the Empire is actually prepared, but has not yet formally intervened.

"The Marshal's opinion is that, due to the activity of the cult, Swordsmen should intervene early, but there has been difficulty finding suitable candidates."

"Because if it's nominally a reconnaissance mission, the number of personnel must not be too large; otherwise, it would change the nature of the mission, likely causing the Elf Clan to be nervous, leading to diplomatic incidents or even conflict."

"But with too few personnel, as we understand, multiple cults have dispatched quite powerful individuals, which makes safety a significant issue."

"Therefore, upon hearing your intention to go, the two Lords want me to confirm with you and also to inform you of the related confidential intelligence."

Rein nodded, knowing that some of the confidential intelligence from headquarters was unknown to a level like Olena, which explained why Tatia personally came this time.

However, his main purpose for this trip was to confirm Anna's situation, and going along with other Sword Bearer colleagues would be inconvenient.

The two under his command, Claire and Beyonce, were relatively weaker in strength.

If it were a general mission, it would be fine, but given the current complex situation in the Ferdinand Forest, they would likely encounter very strong enemies, making it unsuitable to go together.

"Your Excellency Tatia, please relay to the Marshal and General Augustus that I confirm my intention to go."

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