Chapter 269: Departure
All of this was because of Leon Merlin...
Throughout this journey, who in the United Exploration Team didn’t know? The greatest contributor wasn’t Sylas West, the Title Archmage, nor Lance, the team’s organizer. The real credit belonged to that young Archmage who joined with only two followers, yet demanded first right to select magical materials.
To be honest, at first, it wasn’t just Fran who objected—several factions in Seaview City were against it too. But now that the Gilded Rose dominates Seaview City, none dared cross the young Archmage. No matter how much they disagreed, they could only accept it, comforting themselves that losing a little here was worth staying in the Gilded Rose’s good graces.
Yet, as the United Exploration Team ventured deeper, everyone suddenly realized that giving him first pick of magical materials wasn’t unjustified at all.
That young Archmage truly saved the United Exploration Team more than once—from the initial Beast Tide to the final Thunderbird siege. Without his intervention, the team would’ve been wiped out long ago.
By now, everyone’s attitude had shifted—from silent resentment to genuine respect. Otherwise, back in the vault, when Fran tried to seize first selection rights by virtue of his Title Archmage status, why would so many stand with Leon Merlin?
It’s precisely because of this that William Merlin and Hubert—those two persistent troublemakers—were tolerated time and again. Otherwise, they’d have been kicked out of the United Exploration Team long ago.
Yet this time, nobody saw it coming...
At this moment, the first to step forward was—William Merlin.