"Of course I brought it with me. Such an important item is always by my side." Roland took the Wordless Book from the Moonlit Silver Armor and handed it to Sura.

Seeing Roland place such importance on the Wordless Book, Sura's expression softened a bit.

He took the Wordless Book, gently caressing it, and after a long time, he slowly said, "This Wordless Book not only records history but also has many hidden functions, such as maps."

Sura led Roland to a secluded alley, opened the last page of the Wordless Book, and covered it with his hand, activating the hidden map.

The territory of the Magic Empire suddenly appeared, but now these places are all divided among different countries.

As the inheritor of the Magic Empire, the Magic Association can only exist underground.

According to the agreement, they can enter human cities, but must hide their identity. If discovered, they face fines or even imprisonment.

The existence of the Magic Association itself is a secret, accessible only to top elites.

Opportunities to meet them are rare, preventing destitute civilians from joining the Magic Association.

Unable to eradicate the Magic Association completely, human countries opted for peace, hoping they never rise again.

Trading with key figures in the Magic Association, like Roland, also presents risks if discovered.

Sura looked at the map's borders and those place names lost to history, remaining silent for a long time.

Roland knew how he felt, and softly comforted him, "I can understand your feelings."

"No, you can't." The usually gentle Sura suddenly became agitated, unable to control his emotions.

A moment later, he sighed.

"The era of the Magic Empire is gone. Even if we find the best Magic Crystal Ore Vein, we can only expand our living space, not restore past glory."

Roland nodded, speaking softly, "It's cruel, but indeed other nations don't wish for you to return to the surface."

"And how about you?" Sura asked quietly.

Roland didn't answer.

Sometimes silence is also an answer.

He had benefited from the Magic Association and was willing to reciprocate, but this didn't mean he wanted to support their return to the surface to rebuild the Magic Empire.

After all, Roland was a descendant of the "Barbarian Race," the ones who buried the Magic Empire.

People mourn the Magic Empire and miss that highly developed era of magic civilization, but it doesn't mean they want them back.

"I understand. During the reign of the Magic Empire, they similarly didn't want the Barbarian Race entering the core zones of the continent. Now, the situation is simply reversed," Sura said self-deprecatingly.

Even discovering a Magic Crystal Ore Vein, the Magic Empire cannot be reborn.

The population of the Magic Association is too small.

Even with living space, for everyone to open up and procreate, full recovery would take several generations of effort.

The underground cities simply can't hold too many people.

To increase the population, they must return to the surface.

But the countries of the surface Barbarian Race would never allow that to happen.

This is a deadlock.

Unless a miracle occurs, the people of the Magic Association can only remain underground forever.

The underground cities have everything but no sunlight.

The artificial suns created during the Magic Empire can sustain several large cities, but what happens when the artificial suns extinguish?

Thinking of this brought a wave of despair over Sura.

Seeing Sura's expression gradually twisting in pain, Roland softly asked, "Sura, have you ever thought about how you would mine the Magic Crystal Ore Vein even if it's discovered? Previous wars proved you can't surface, and we can't descend."

"There will always be a way."

Roland smiled and asked, "Are you planning to use special means to open underground passages and secretly mine Magic Crystal Stones below?"

"That doesn't violate the agreement." Sura neither denied nor affirmed, but emphasized the mutual treaty.

Roland slowly shook his head, "A contract is only effective until it is broken. Sura, people are willing to follow contracts not because the cost of breaking them is too high."

"Breaking a contract would mean being despised by civilized society, losing reputation, money, possibly everything."

"If the benefits of breaking it outweigh the damage, someone will definitely do it."

Roland's meaning was clear, a contract is not absolute.

The nations of the "Barbarian Race" are willing to respect the agreement based on their interests.

If the Magic Association believes this contract allows them to safely gather Magic Crystal Ore veins without interference, it's somewhat naive.

Seeing Roland's calm smile, Sura sighed, recalling his teacher's words.

"Sura, don't try to restrain Roland with contracts or emotions. Offer a condition Roland can't refuse. This is a disadvantageous trade for us, so raise the stakes."

Indeed, his teacher judged people accurately.

Sura hesitated for a moment, then slowly said, "Roland, are you interested in doing business with us?"

"Let's hear it."

"My teacher predicted that the largest Magic Crystal Ore Vein lies near the Val City State, maybe even within White Mountain. We need your help."

"In return, we can offer you an equivalent amount of money and resources."

Roland slowly shook his head.

"It's not enough."

Sura looked at Roland in astonishment, "Even equivalent trade isn't enough?"

"That's not equivalent. The relationship between supply and demand determines the value of goods. According to the exchange rate of the Magic Empire, where can you buy Magic Crystal Stones?"

Now it was Sura's turn to be silent.

Roland was right; at past prices, Magic Crystal Stones simply couldn't be bought.

Large-scale mining would inevitably be discovered.

With the strength of the Magic Association, they are no match for the surface countries of the Barbarian Race.

Only Roland could cover for them and naturally had the right to demand a premium.

After a moment of silence, Sura slowly asked, "What do you want?"

"The full support of the Association!" Roland said resolutely.

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