On just the second day of departure, Henry and his party encountered a lot of trouble.
The flatbed carriage they used to disguise their identities and carry supplies was purchased casually from the material merchants in Wawasika. It was a simple model, and they did not do much inspection before setting off. They had just walked a distance, and the wheels were turning. It made an unpleasant noise when passing a bend.
A group of people who stopped for inspection found that the axle connecting the two wheels at the back was bent and cracked. At this time, Mira and Mingna, who had slept together on the flatbed truck last night, also frowned and said that they had heard some gnawing sounds at night. .
Upon inspection, as expected, traces of insect infestation were found in the axle.
This carriage is already quite old, and many of the woods on it have turned into a very dark color due to years of sun and rain. The axle is a very important load-bearing part of the carriage, so the carpenters will select it again and again when making it. Insect-free wood.
In addition, it has been used for many years without any problems, so it seems that it was recently laid by wood-eating beetles.
Wooden products that are often used outside are often treated with insect repellents. Considering that exposure to the sun and rain will render the surface insect repellents ineffective, theoretically they need to be re-applied every few years. But because of the price, many people only use it once when it is newly built in order to save costs.
The problem has been roughly analyzed, but right now in the Great Rift Valley, the group has no way to deal with this problem.
The flatbed carriage carries a lot of supplies. In addition to being used as a disguise for identity, there are also some things that need to be used along the way - these can be replaced on pack horses for them to carry, but there are not many in the Great Rift Valley. The green grass can be eaten by the horses, which makes the burden on the horses higher, and the speed of the group will inevitably be slowed down.
Avenella and Silvalier are now facing each other on the border between the two countries. Although Silvalier should gather enough troops to launch an attack, it is only a matter of time.
Coupled with the fact that the Padrosi Empire on the other side of the Mobigas Inland Sea is watching with eager eyes, every minute and every second at this juncture is crucial.
There was not much time to waste, and there was no way to find an axle that could be replaced in such a place where birds do not lay eggs. Edward considered taking a chance and reluctantly moved forward, while Henry stopped.
There was a bush with many red berries growing on the cliff a few meters high on the right front. The sage stared at it for a while, then lowered his head, found a stone, took aim, and threw it away.
"Teacher?" Mira looked at him strangely.
"Bang -" The stone hitting the bushes made a loud noise. Some people in the caravan in front turned back to look at them, but then continued to be busy with their own things.
"Crack-"
"Hiss-hiss-"
"Woo-" Because of the interference of the stone, an innocent reptile that was basking in the sun fell to the ground. The colorful scales gave Mingna behind him goosebumps, and Henry struck out with one hand like lightning. Covered its head.
"Hiss!" The poisonous snake made a threatening sound and wrapped its body around the sage's arm, but its small body was unable to cause any harm to him.
"Bring the horn cup." Henry turned to Mira and said. The white-haired Luo An lowered her head, searched the carriage for a while, and then took out the drinking horn cup from the leather bag. .
"Click." The black-haired sage took it, then pinched open the venomous snake's mouth with his index finger and thumb, and then expertly placed its upper jaw on the edge of the cup.
"Hiss--!" The poisonous snake made a threatening sound and then tightened its body further. Drops of golden venom flowed out from its two huge fangs and dripped to the bottom of the cup. Henry waited patiently until the poisonous snake took all the venom. After spitting out all the venom, he casually discarded it on the ground.
"Hiss--yeah!" The snake crawling on the ground frightened Minna so much that she jumped onto the carriage. Several others also took a step back. Only Henry did not move, while the innocent reptile twisted The body quickly got into the cave washed by the rain at the bottom of the canyon.
"Give me the kettle." The sage spoke again. After taking the kettle, he mixed some water into the horn cup containing the venom, and finally squatted down and got under the carriage.
"I see." Edward nodded. It was impossible for them not to guess what Henry wanted to do. The sage wrapped a piece of linen cloth around the moth-eaten area, then sprinkled the venom mixed with water evenly on it and let the linen cloth absorb it. Finally, he cleaned the horn cup and threw it back into the car.
"Uh..." Mira looked at him, there seemed to be some hesitation in her eyes.
"It has been cleaned and the snake venom is harmless to drink. It will only cause an attack if it penetrates into the skin and blood vessels. As long as there are no wounds on the lips or inside the mouth, there is no serious problem if you drink it directly." Henry explained in short words, in the absence of materials Under the circumstances, reinforcing the axle was something that even he couldn't do, but the sage thought of a way to kill the moth, and then everyone could only pray that the situation would not worsen further.
The day passed peacefully like this. The linen wrapped around the axle allowed the venom to gradually seep into the wood. That night, Mira and Minna no longer heard the sound of moths.
Two or three days passed in a peaceful manner, and they chatted a lot with each other on the way. They did not communicate with other businessmen, they just kept moving forward.
The current situation of Avenella behind them was unknown. Unable to obtain information, they could only hope that they could catch up in time.
Time passed peacefully, and in the blink of an eye, one week and one day passed.
The interior of the long and vast Grigori Rift is as alive as anywhere else.
Although some supplies that humans rely on for survival are difficult to obtain here, among the potholes washed out by millions of years of rain and the shrubs at high places that humans cannot reach, tiny insects and nameless scale tribes form a world. An ecosystem that enjoys itself.
There is never a shortage of chirping insects and birds, and the wind blowing from the distant sky brings fresh air, which refreshes the spirits of travelers.
Time passed to the morning of the ninth day. Edward sat on the carriage and opened the small map. They had already walked most of the distance. In a while, they should be able to reach the Otolo side.
The Great Rift Valley is really long and crooked. In some places, there are multiple large and small holes at the bottom of the rock walls on both sides. Although most of the creatures living here are relatively harmless, some are relatively large. They also prey on humans.
After all, humans are just passers-by here. People who follow this path adhere to the unspoken rule of not disturbing each other, and to a certain extent they maintain peace.
- But this obviously can't last forever.
"Did you notice?" They did not rush at a high speed. Henry walked next to Edward and whispered looking straight ahead.
"Yeah." The prince also didn't look back. Mira and Ming Na behind were a little confused about what they were talking about. The white-haired Luo An Loli subconsciously wanted to look behind her, but the sage seemed to be I noticed it as if there were eyes on the back of my head.
"Don't look back and pretend nothing happened." Henry continued: "Get your weapons ready."
"Stop slowly and check the axle." He said. Edward nodded, then flicked the reins and controlled the packhorse in front to slow down. There were much fewer businessmen in this section than before. Because of the damage to the axle, the group did not dare to go too fast, so they were overtaken one by one - only the black carriage behind had been far behind since yesterday. Far tailgating.
- Being followed.
It is not clear whether it is Silvalier or Padrosi. The news of their trip is strictly confidential, but Avenella is only a small country after all, and the two opponents who are more sophisticated in this regard are able to detect the news. As expected.
Judging from the time when the black carriage appeared, the leak of the news should have occurred after they set off, and because the damaged axle slowed down their speed, they were overtaken by the opponent here.
Returning to the original place——
Parking is an excellent way to verify whether you are being followed. If you happen to be a businessman walking behind, you will usually move on when you see them parking.
"..." The black carriage stopped, and the people in the car looked at each other, seeming to be discussing something.
"Coming over." Edward pretended to squat down to check the axle, while Henry beside him said.
The three guards got off their pack horses and leaned on the flatbed carriage. Their weapons were hidden among the goods and supplies. Mira walked aside and stood with Henry.
"Can I help you?" The leader was about 175 centimeters tall and thin, but his eyes were bright.
"Uh... our axle seems to be broken." The other party asked, so Edward followed suit.
"Oh, that's really unfortunate. We can't help with this kind of problem." The thin middle-aged man showed a smile, and several people next to him also walked over with good intentions, their movements were ordinary, as if they were just Came over to see what was going on - but Henry drew his sword.
"Stop right there." The sage stuck the shining sword on the ground and said.
"..." The thin middle-aged man narrowed his eyes slightly: "For a blue card, you have a good taste."
"It's just the most common tactic of encirclement and attack. There's nothing obvious about it." Henry's tone remained calm, but the other party took a step back.
Their plan is exactly what the sage said: to approach with ordinary, natural and unsuspected movements, form an encirclement and close the distance to a fatal blow, and then immediately attack and kill the opponent's active force - this It is a technique of assassins, usually used in situations where enemies need to be eliminated quickly.
At the moment, Henry and his team were much more vigilant than expected. Unable to successfully launch a surprise attack, they decisively chose to distance themselves.
"If you don't resist, I will give you a pleasure." The thin man said, his tone was calm and confident, and then he and several other people lifted up their cloaks and drew their weapons.
"Purple Brand..." Mira took a deep breath, as did several people behind her.
"...Elite-level mercenary, it seems this is a free mission." Only Henry's expression remained calm. He stood in front of the opponent with a big sword in one hand, even when he saw a mercenary two levels higher than himself. , the sage showed no signs of wavering.
"That's right, the reward is generous. We are the first to arrive, and we are also -" The thin mercenary leader pulled out a half-handed sword inlaid with magic crystal from his waist, and then continued.
"The one to complete this mission." He said this, and at the same time struck Henry with a sword in a resolute manner.
"Big words." The sage responded calmly, drew his sword and faced the opponent.
"Crack-clang-!"
Sparks flew everywhere, and the sound of gold and iron echoed in the Grigori Crack and spread far away.
