The silver moonlight covered the roof of this dome-shaped building with a typical Sivalier romantic style, although it has been criticized by many designers as a flashy design that makes the building structure fragile. style, but this three-story building with dozens of rooms has still existed for more than two hundred years.
It was already about 11 o'clock in the evening. Time always flies when you are busy. After all the escape and fighting experiences along the way, it was already midnight before you knew it.
The idea that a day is divided into 24 hours was originally proposed by the Yetina sect, a branch of the White Holy Church - its other name is the Padrosi Anglican Church. The huge bronze bell forged by skillful gnomes is said to still exist at the top of the Holy White Cathedral in Aurora - although it is no longer part of the Padrosi Empire.
On the day it was hung up 1,116 years ago, for the first time in human history, we had the concept of time accurate to minutes and seconds.
This concept of time, which rose up together with the church and spread to many countries in the Rigal continent due to extensive preaching, has become deeply rooted in the hearts of the people in the past ten centuries. Even outside, people still judge based on the eight bright moons that rise in sequence. Approximately what time is it now.
11 o'clock is the time when the Magic Moon of Sifink, the largest and brightest moon that can be seen in Rigal at night, rises. This name was given because the ancient Lamanites observed that as it rises And the tides falling on the coast will also rise and fall accordingly - they believe this is because there are mysterious and powerful creatures living on them that have the ability to control the heaven and earth, so they are also called "venerable magical creatures" in Laman language. 's moon".
We still don’t know whether it has magic power, but the silvery white moonlight shining through the gaps in the stones blocking the window really caught our little Mila’s attention.
The group of people ran to the second floor. The horses remained below and they all arrived approximately where the castle master's bedroom used to be. It is said to be a bedroom, but in fact it is spacious enough to be used as a competition ground.
The rotten and tattered big bed was bare, and it seemed that even the expensive silk quilts and curtains used by the city lord to sleep had been swept away by the enemy. Henry and the others smashed the big bed and selected some wood from it. Most of them were broken or even rotted into powder, but after two hundred years, some were still intact and could be used to make fires.
Combined with the firewood that everyone had collected before, the fireplace that had not been lit for two centuries started burning brightly again.
The hot smoke passed through the fireplace pipe that penetrated the front wall, and the slight chill of the autumn night deep in the forest was immediately dissipated.
More than two hundred years later, black smoke slowly emitted from the chimney in the bleak castle.
The former owner of the castle has probably disappeared with the wind, and the one who now occupies it is not even a human being. I wonder if those who built it two hundred years ago and the people who live here looking up at the magic moon of West Funk just like Mira is doing now, have ever thought that such a scene will happen one day in the future.
There is a proverb in Rigar's world whose origin cannot be verified - which just proves its content -: Time is the greatest force in the world, it can both create everything and erase everything.
Everyone is equal when facing it - let's get back to where we are. On the cleaned marble floor, everyone enjoyed a not particularly rich but very satisfying dinner by the fireplace: mainly sliced bread, which after being lightly toasted, the aroma of wheat came out, making the day full of fun. The hungry people had great appetites.
Paired with some dried bacon and plenty of ale, this belated dinner can be considered refreshing.
Like sailors, mercenaries and adventurers traveling long distances often carry wine instead of water. This is because they are easier to preserve and alcohol can also be used to disinfect wounds and food.
Probably because of drinking some ale, Mira was a little absent-minded. She was now away from the fireplace and sitting on the ground on the right side of this huge room, hugging her legs, just staring at the silvery white ground quietly. The moonlight was in a daze.
"What are you thinking about?" Henry originally planned to walk over, but someone was one step ahead of him.
The blond young lady who had become friendly during the previous joint actions - Henry now knew her name was Mingna, and she was Bernie's biological daughter - tilted her head and asked the white-haired girl, and she continued sat down next to him.
The two chatted quietly, and Henry turned his head away. He was not the rude person to eavesdrop on the chat between ladies - although one of them was far from a "lady".
The sage's move made Bernie, who was sitting next to him in front of the fire, smile. Henry shrugged noncommittally. Bernie set up an iron pot that was burning in the fireplace, poured a bowl of something hot into the wooden bowl next to it, and handed it to Henry.
"What is this?" Henry frowned and sniffed with the tip of his nose.
"Spruce tea, I folded it on the way to escape. The Avenella people can't live without this thing all day long." The blond leader of the team said this and took a sip. Several servants beside him Bing also came over, picked up the iron pot and poured it into his wooden bowl.
"..." Seeing Henry's hesitation, Bernie laughed out loud: "Haha." "An Xin, after such a long time, I trust you, how could you put poison in it? And you see, I don't Have you drank it too?"
He said this, but Henry shook his head: "No, I'm afraid of getting burned."
The sage said this, and several mercenaries who had already started drinking were stunned for a moment by these words, and then burst out laughing.
"You... you are really unpredictable, hahahaha." Bernie, who seemed very open-minded after opening his heart, patted Henry on the shoulder hard and said, and then he said "Oh--" and sighed. Then he changed his tone: "When I first started, I actually planned to let you be the scapegoat."
He said this, and then looked at Henry. The sage did not respond, but blew into the wooden bowl seriously.
"Because to be honest, when I saw a person carrying such a weird sword and a little girl, I just thought you were a fool."
"Although I'm a little sorry for her." Bernie looked at Mira who was talking to Mingna, and then looked back at Henry: "But you should be blamed for that. You shouldn't bring someone with no ability to protect herself. People come out"
"So at that time, I just wanted to say something nice to trick you into rushing up to fight with them and buying us time to escape."
"But I didn't expect you to open your mouth and say: 'Follow me'..." Bernie shook his head: "You are really an unpredictable person, Mel." He said, and Henry took a sip of spruce. Tea, a slightly sour drink made from fresh plants blanched in boiling water, made the sage frown. He tasted it carefully, and then said to Bernie: "Just call me Henry."
As he said this, Bernie nodded, and the older archer on the side, Ivan, asked at this time: "So Henry, why did you enter the forest? , you don’t look like a member of a mercenary team, and that girl doesn’t have an employer-employer relationship with you.”
The calm old scout spoke to the point, and Henry also judged some information from his words.
'Sure enough, it was two different forces that attacked the combined caravan convoy and those who attacked them. Henry, who confirmed his previous doubts, shook his head and answered the question: "We did not encounter a small force like you. I am the escort of the joint convoy of the Ashenil Chamber of Commerce. What we encountered was a powerful force." A regular heavy cavalry team operating in coordination with infantry.”
he said, and the news immediately made everyone, including Bernie, frown.
The expressions of the several mercenaries became quite serious. After being silent for half a minute, Bernie looked at Henry seriously and asked word by word: "Is everything you said true?"
The mercenary leader asked, and Henry took another sip of spruce tea. He found that he seemed to like this thing a little bit - the sage nodded: "The thing hanging on Ellen's Fortress is already a spruce tea." Valier’s flag was stolen, and I survived because I was at the front of the team and saw this before running away.”
Henry did not shy away from telling the story of his escape during the battle, but several senior mercenaries did not react at all - they were not knights and did not need to follow any chivalry, and a heavy army with infantry coordination They also fully understand how deadly the mounted cavalry is.
"Are we careless...or is this premeditated..." Bernie hit his forehead with a headache: "We must change our schedule now." He looked at Ivan, his face full of wrinkles The old scout nodded in agreement: "The fastest journey between Ellen's Fort and Ashenil is two and a half days. Supplies and inspections usually only happen once a month. If the Sivaliers just ambush anyone, If those close to here do not advance further, the kingdom may still be in the dark about the attack.”
Ivan's conversation was completely unlike what an ordinary mercenary should be - but Henry was not moved by it, because this had been expected by him.
"They should be planning to lay down the outpost first." Bernie picked up a piece of wood that was charred black at one end, shook off the flames with "whoosh" twice, and immediately started drawing on the ground.
"Ellen Fortress is the closest to Inznil, and with the forests on both sides nearby, it can hide a large number of people. After the Ellen Fortress is captured, it will be used as an advance base to mobilize more troops to besiege Asnil. ." The simple and clear map combined with the words to figure out the intentions of the Sivalier people, Bernie frowned, and then he sighed again.
"We must change our itinerary, change our destination, and go to Wawasika." Bernie said, and Ivan nodded: "Wawasika is an important military town. If the news is conveyed to the past and the defenders set off, they may be able to wait until they arrive in Asia. Vennella was intercepted on the plain before.”
"Well, that's it." Bernie nodded, and the young archer on the side - the one who almost shot Henry with an arrow - said with fear: "But, we have to go to Wa As for Vasika, shouldn’t he have to head west? There are probably Sivalier’s troops everywhere outside the forest now..."
"Jericho, this is a major matter that affects the city-state and even the survival of the country. How can you give up because of such a trivial matter!" Ivan scolded him with an angry face, but Jericho immediately lowered his head, his face The look of fear and retreat is getting stronger.
"We can just move covertly. Taking advantage of the darkness, this number of people will work hard. We should be able to run over before the Sivaliers find out..." Bernie said this, and his eyes suddenly turned to Henry again - several other people. is also like this.
"Ah——" The sage drank the rest of the spruce tea that finally became less hot, and then exhaled with satisfaction.
"Henry... I would like to ask you to serve as our guide again." Bernie said to Henry very seriously, and the sage immediately stretched out his hand holding the empty bowl to him.
"?" The blond team leader was stunned for a moment, and then he realized that the other party was asking for reward, and he immediately laughed again.
"Hahahaha, so you are really unpredictable. You obviously have special skills, but in many things you are just as innocent as a child." He shook his head, and then took out a small leather bag from his body. Bao Bao: "Don't most people show their intention to die generously at this time? It's like dying for honor."
"Two Avenella gold coins, with a face value of about 3,200 Dannos, what's the price?" He asked, and Henry nodded and took the gold coins, but still did not retract his hand.
"Isn't it enough?" Bernie's face became a little unhappy. The high price of two gold coins was already trying to win over people's hearts. If this person continued to push the envelope, he would be a little ignorant - he thought like this, And Henry nodded, then shook his head.
"Spruce tea, not enough, give me some more." The sage said, and then Bernie was stunned again. He shook his head angrily and amusedly and then looked, but at this moment the iron pot was empty.
"Rodney!" The blond team leader stood up and called out to the pudgy mercenary in charge of managing fresh water.
"Rodney!!" Bernie shouted, but there was no sign of Rodney anywhere. He thought of something for a moment, and then turned his head. Sure enough, Lysa's figure was not there either.
"This guy." Bernie sighed and shook his head helplessly, and at this moment everyone heard a thumping sound from the ceiling.
"Dong dong dong -" The dull sound made Mira and Mingna, who were talking quietly on the other side, also raise their heads and look there, and Bernie raised his voice again and shouted: "Rodney!! Yes!" You! Now is not a good time to fool around!"
"Zhizhi——"
"squeak--"
"..." Silence fell in the bedroom.
"Oh, that's not Rodney, damn it." Ivan and Jericho stood up from the floor with weapons in hand and looked around, while Mira and Minna instantly ran to stay near the stove. Henry's side.
"We should have blocked all the doors and windows, how the hell did these things get in-" Till, who was resting next to him, covered his injured arm and cursed, ran over and picked up the weapon, while Henry wrinkled at this time frowned.
"Didn't you block the ventilation ducts?" he asked. Just like the previous soldiers' resting place, Baroque buildings always have many ventilation ducts. Till, who was in charge of the third floor, turned around and asked in a daze: "You mean those small square openings that are only three palms wide? Man, the size of the rat dragon is no less than that of a shepherd dog. How can they get through it?" Gotta come in-"
He said, and Henry stood up silently.
"It makes sense that they are called rat dragons..." The sage picked up his big sword from the wall next to the stove: "They are not called rat dragons because they look like mice, but because of their life. Their habits are almost the same as those of rats - they have the same amazing fecundity, and they also like to live in various sewers."
"Especially the sewers of castles, because they are spacious enough and cold and damp. Many modern castles are designed with iron fences to prevent rat dragons from entering and breeding, and the kingdom even has a special hunting team that regularly enters the sewers to clean them... "
"The most mouse-like thing about this hybrid dragon is actually its powerful ability to penetrate all corners. Like mice, rat dragons can contract their ribs to make the chest cavity smaller, which allows them to get into all kinds of narrow places. A place to escape from larger predators. Therefore, the only thing that determines whether it can get into a place is the skull that cannot deform. As long as the head can get in, then it can get in completely." Henry spoke slowly, and the one in front Bernie nodded when he finished.
"Thank you for spreading this knowledge. Now, we are ready to fight."
