"Anatole is about to catch up! We must speed up!"
The second prince shouted to Joshua: "Can it be faster?!"
Joshua shook his head: "It's already extremely fast."
Bang!
The warship suddenly shook violently and made a heart-breaking noise from one side. Everyone hurriedly steadied themselves and ran to the side of the ship to check. They found a big hole on the side of the ship and the river water was pouring into the bottom of the ship crazily!
"Not good. Not good!"
A sailor hurried onto the deck: "The steam compartment is leaking!"
Ma Wei's heart sank. Without the power of the steam engine, the speed of the huge Dicky warship would be slowed down many times. It was already difficult to escape Anatole's pursuit, and now it was even more impossible.
The cabin was filled with water, and the mermaids sneered underwater. They were afraid of Archbishop Brandon, but they were smart and knew to sink the cabin. In this way, it would be impossible for the Maweji people to escape Bonaparte along the river. The first empire.
"Mad! How can these mermaids be so smart!" Levin scolded angrily: "They actually know how to sink the cabin, just like they know Anatole is chasing us."
As he spoke, Levin widened his eyes and looked at Ma Wei, finding that Ma Wei was thoughtful, obviously being reminded.
yes!
Why didn't the mermaid wait until they sailed to the surface before destroying the warship?
If a warship sinks in the sea, they will become lambs to be slaughtered
On the contrary, if it sinks in an inland river, at most one warship will be lost!
The mermaid acted as if she knew Anatole's existence
Who passed the information to the Siren tribe?
"So that's what it meant."
With his eyes narrowed, Mavi remembered the last words Maria said to him, and suddenly realized.
"Nicholas, what do you think we should do?"
While thinking, Archbishop Brandon asked Ma Wei for his thoughts. There were not many people on the ship who could discuss it. The second prince was almost scared out of his wits. Joshua didn’t know the inside story. The only one who could really help was Ma Wei. .
Ma Wei thought for a while and said: "Abandon ship."
Anatole will catch up at some point. Since he can no longer reach the high seas, he might as well make a decisive decision and abandon the ship and enter the interior of the empire. This way, he still has a chance to escape back to London!
"Abandon the ship?" Joshua frowned: "You can't abandon the ship! I am the captain and I have to live and die with the warship!"
"Are you crazy!"
Hearing Joshua say this, Ma Wei yelled angrily: "It's just a warship, what's the big deal? As long as people are still there, ten or twenty ships can be built! The ship is dead, but the people are alive. ! Without people, what’s the point of having a ship! A ghost ship?!”
Ma Wei scolded everyone, and everyone was frightened. The second prince and Archbishop Brandon had never seen him get so angry. Joshua was scolded into silence, and his lips wriggled, as if he wanted to say something else. But Mavi stopped him in time.
"Abandon ship! Did you hear that! I said abandon ship!"
Joshua gritted his teeth, clenched his fists tightly, and his scars twitched, intending to resist the order. But when he raised his head and saw Ma Wei's extremely serious eyes, the anger in his heart suddenly deflated.
"well!"
Joshua slammed the side of the ship: "Abandon ship!!!"
"Abandon ship!!!"
The sailors passed on the captain's orders one by one. Living and dying with the ship cannot be regarded as tradition, but at least it is a spirit of sacrifice. But in Ma Wei's view, this fearless spirit of sacrifice is not necessary, and it is not a moment of life and death for human beings. Someone has to be Stay and die!
More importantly, it is Joshua who has to live and die with the warship. If it were anyone else, Mavey might respect the other person's decision, but as a comrade who lives and dies together, Mavey would not just watch Joshua and A ship sinks together!
Even if he uses violent means, he will take Joshua off the ship!
He had seen too many of his companions die in the water, and he was afraid that one day when he lowered his head and looked at the water, he would see Joshua's face again.
After receiving the order to abandon ship, the first mate directly turned the rudder to the left and steered the Dickey to rush onto the right embankment. With a violent vibration, the Dickey warship stopped on the shore.
The boarding board fell, the sailors quickly disembarked, cut down the trees, and cleared a clearing.
"We have entered the Upper Normandy region of the empire. Through this jungle, not far away is the city of Vernon, but there must be many church spies there."
Taking the map, everyone began to discuss the retreat route. They were located in the northwest of the empire, not far from the Kingdom of Windsor. As long as they headed northwest and then crossed the Perea Strait, they would be the territory of the Kingdom of Windsor.
But the problem is, everyone has lost their last means of transportation and only relies on one pair of legs. How long will they go?
"No, you can't go into the city." Ma Wei said: "There are churches in the city. We have special looks and will be recognized immediately. We can't run away. My suggestion is to avoid the city and walk through this area." Forest, looking for a small village to settle down.”
"I agree." Archbishop Brandon said: "First of all, you have to change these clothes, they are too conspicuous, and secondly, the number of people traveling with you cannot be too large. Colonel Joshua, you and the sailors stay here, waiting for the empire's rescue. They shouldn’t make things difficult for you.”
"Okay." Joshua nodded: "Does the second prince also want to accompany him?"
"I must go!" the second prince said hesitantly: "What if I get caught and Anatole uses me to threaten Nicholas and the others!"
Several eyes focused on the second prince, extremely strange, as if asking him if he meant what he said.
"actually."
Ma Wei said word by word: "Your Highness, it might be better for you and Archbishop Brandon to stay."
"Ah?!" The second prince looked shocked: "Nicholas, are you serious? Without Archbishop Brandon, what will you do if you are in danger?"
"I still have some means of self-defense." Ma Wei was very tactful. He couldn't just say that Archbishop Brandon and the second prince were a burden, right?
If he said this, Archbishop Brandon must be curious about where he got the confidence and how he would explain it then.
"Although the fewer people there are, the lower the risk of exposure, but I must accompany you." Archbishop Brandon said: "I am the only one who can use magic. I need to protect your safety, Nicholas. As for His Highness"
"Archbishop! You don't want me to stay too!"
Looking at Ma Wei, Archbishop Brandon sighed: "Then just follow, Your Highness."
After deciding on the companions, the topic returned to the route. Daniel believed that they should head east and circle back to the Kingdom of Windsor from the Kingdom of Frederick.
Anatole knew that they were going back to the Kingdom of Windsor. After discovering the stranded warship, he would definitely set up checkpoints on the road they must pass. Only by surprise can they avoid being exposed.
Levin was more prudent. He proposed to abandon the Perea Strait, march towards the south of the empire, enter the Roman Republic, and return to London by ship from the Mediterranean area, ensuring that Anatole would not think of their route.
The direct route to the northwest is the most dangerous, and there will be many ambushes encountered along the way. Daniel's suggestion is more reliable. It is safest to take a detour to Frederick's Kingdom, but it will lengthen the journey, and it may take a month to return to London.
The most unreliable one is Levin. Just listen to his suggestions. It’s a shame he can think of a detour to the Roman Republic!
If he really returned to London from the Roman Republic, it would be at least three months before he got home!
After much deliberation, the Maweijians finally decided to combine Daniel and Levin's proposals and head south first, avoiding the blockade of the northern church, bypassing Paris from the south, and then heading north into the Kingdom of Frederick. From there return to London.
In this way, although it will take an extra week, the security has been greatly improved. As Levin said, no matter how smart Anatole is, it is impossible to think that they will give up Perea who is so close. Strait, heading to the southern part of the Empire.
After finalizing the plan and designing the route, Mawei and the others decided to set off immediately. After bringing some necessary food and drinking water from the ship, they set foot on the road to the southern part of the empire.
As soon as Ma Wei and others left, Anatole caught up with him. Just when Joshua was leading the sailors to try to repair the warship, he suddenly appeared in the crowd, looked at the military rank, and grabbed Joshua's arm. Neck, asked in a deep voice: "Where is Nicholas von Manstein?"
Anyone could hear the anger in Anatole's voice. Joshua looked at him indifferently and said nothing.
Anatole's eyes turned cold, and just as he was about to strangle Joshua's neck, he heard a sailor shout: "They are not here, they have left!"
"Which direction?"
The sailor raised his hand tremblingly and pointed to the forest on the right. Anatole threw Joshua to the ground, jumped into the air, looked at the dense jungle in front of him, a golden light flashed in his eyes, and soon, all the believers' His voice rang in my mind.
"Seal the border and offer a reward for Nicholas von Manstein. Anyone who provides clues will be rewarded heavily!"
After receiving Anatole's order, the church, the Knights of the Holy Silver Cross, and the believers took quick action, joining forces with the local police to set up blockades on the main roads. Members of the Knights of the Holy Silver Cross even held Maweji. Their photos were found in newspapers and magazines, and their reward information was published. Within two days, the entire empire would know the appearance of the Mawei people.
After giving the order, Anatole did not enter the jungle directly, but waved his arms towards the sky. In an instant, the stars flickered, several stars lit up, and projections fell down in succession, and small insects with a strange light shining all over their bodies were blue. Appeared next to Anatole, each one was the size of a fingernail, constantly flashing its wings and making a buzzing sound.
Astrology Magic - Star Bug!
Taking out a piece of clothing worn by Mavey and giving it to Starworm to smell, Anatole waved his hand: "Go find Nicholas von Manstein!"
Buzz buzz.
The starworms scattered in all directions, rushed into the jungle and quickly disappeared. Anatole's figure also disappeared, disappearing and disappearing like starlight.
Seeing Anatole summoning the starworm, Joshua felt a little anxious, but he had no way to remind Mavey and the others. He could only pray that they could escape the pursuit and return to London safely.
Paris, Champs Elysee Palace.
Maria walked into Napoleon's study wearing a black dress and said softly: "Your Majesty, the nobles who intend to rebel are all aware that this is a list of rebels found in their homes, many of whom are army generals."
Napoleon did not take the list, but said to Maria: "Take this list to the military district, burn it in front of all the generals, and tell them that bygones are bygones."
Maria smiled and said: "As you command."
"What's going on with Nicholas? Has he escaped Paris?"
"According to the informant's report, Nicholas escaped Paris by boat last night, but this morning the boat they were on ran aground in the river near the city of Vernon. Anatole has issued an order to block the border and put a reward on Nicholas."
The pen tip that was dealing with government affairs paused. Napoleon raised his head, frowned and said: "It seems that Anatole is really anxious. He has never controlled the police and army of the empire beyond me before."
"Are we going to stop Him?"
"No, let him go." Napoleon said: "Although this goes against Nicholas's personal wishes, I still hope that Anatole can keep Nicholas in Paris. The empire needs him, and I also gave Nicholas a personal letter. , the people of the empire will not embarrass him."
"What about the delegation from the Kingdom of Windsor?" Maria asked: "The priests, witchers, and saints who stayed in Paris have been imprisoned by Anatole, can we just watch? If things continue like this, I'm afraid it will trigger a diplomatic incident."
"Anatole should not harm them. Regardless of whether Nicholas is caught or escapes back to London, Anatole will eventually send these representatives back and notify the prison. Don't treat them as prisoners. Take good care of them."
"Yes." Maria nodded: "One more thing. The demons invaded last night. They used the slums on the south bank of the Seine as sacrifices. According to incomplete statistics, the death toll has exceeded 12,000."
Putting down his pen, Napoleon walked to the window and looked across the Seine. He didn't speak for a long time.
"Your Majesty, on the bright side, at least we don't have to worry about rectifying the chaos in the slums." Maria smiled: "You have been worried about this, haven't you?"
Napoleon turned around and looked at Maria calmly: "Why do you think so?"
"Am I wrong? You were telling me a few days ago that you wanted the slums to disappear. Now they have really disappeared. Aren't you happy?"
"Happy?"
Napoleon's eyes turned cold: "Why am I happy? The poor people are also the people of the empire! Since they are the people of the empire, I must be responsible for them!"
"Their poverty has nothing to do with themselves! Don't they work hard enough? Don't they work hard enough? They are doing the work that the upper class despises! Their efforts have not received the rewards they deserve, and the empire is ashamed of them! I also Shame on them!"
Realizing that his emotions were a little out of control, Napoleon quickly regained his senses and his voice became calm again: "What I want to do is to let them live a better life, be able to build their own houses and own their own property, as long as they live a good life In good times, how can there be slums?”
"But they are dead now. They are all dead. Many of them did not see the prosperous age of the empire that I promised until they died! They did not even have a full meal. I am very sad."
Napoleon's eyes were slightly red, and he pointed to the hill outside Paris and said: "Bury them on the top of that mountain. I want each of them to have their own independent grave, and each of them has an independent tombstone. I want... "
"Let them watch Paris become the center of the world!"
(End of chapter)
