"Master Wiggins, you have to know... The principality is currently in a very dangerous situation. We must ensure that every corner here is safe... No, no, no, you can't reject us for such superficial reasons. The search... We are not the lackeys of the nobles! We are here under the orders of Lord Carlos..."
The time has reached noon, and Tania's library seems to be gradually getting warmer as the sun rises. Readers from all over the city and with various identities begin to gradually appear in this luxurious and mysterious library. in the library. Duan Qing, who has been here for several hours, has no time to pay attention to who these readers are. He can only see the figures from the backs of those who pass by in a hurry, and occasionally in the gaps between the bookshelves. In his figure, he could see some people dressed like mage or bachelor, and he was not in the mood to pay attention to these - at this time, he was sitting on the second floor of the library, on a long table next to a bookshelf, While constantly flipping through the piles of books piled next to him, he kept copying onto the piles of blank pages in front of him.
Excerpting the main contents of these books - that was the job he had just been given.
"Old guy..." After stretching his sore arms, Duan Qing looked at the old man who continued to sleep in front of a guard down the corridor, and waved his fist with some hatred: "I was deceived by him again... "
Since dawn, there have often been waves of shouts coming and going outside the library, accompanied by large groups of fully armed guards and every messy place they passed. Such a large-scale search has been going on for half a day, and there is no intention of stopping. It seems that the all-round martial law was triggered by the injury of an important figure in the principality. However, in Duan Qing's mind, such a search probably has no effect. What's the meaning? It's just a clear attitude and warning. Let's not talk about whether those people have the courage to continue to follow. If the murderers of the attack really sneaked into the city, they probably have some methods. able to evade such an overly obvious search.
And now...these warriors, all covered in shining armor, have arrived at the door of the library, but they seem to have encountered difficulties in front of the old man.
"Wiggins! We can't allow any hiding place in Tania City! If you don't cooperate..."
As if sensing that the old man who had closed his eyes and meditated, he still had no intention of cooperating, the captain with the golden armor finally couldn't help but started to drink loudly, attracting several frowning readers on the first floor of the library to him at the same time. , and successfully made the old man open his eyes. However, Duan Qing, who saw this scene, shook his head, and then returned his attention to himself. It seemed that he did not intend to continue watching the fun, because he knew that the old guy with an unattractive appearance would not be afraid at all. This level of threat.
"But you shouldn't lie to others."
Looking at the unfinished books that he and Qian Zhihe had finished halfway through last night and were still piled in the corner, Duan Qing shook his head helplessly, and then continued to record the work amidst the noise - -According to his malicious guess, the old man must have thought it was too easy for them to make money, so he made up an excuse of "it's already done" to excuse himself, and then logically assigned this more troublesome and boring job to himself. superior. Judging from the situation he had copied so far, for this seemingly endless job, he had to ask the curator for a big lion's money, but he was a little too impatient at the time and was deceived by the old guy. , so now I have no choice but to fill the deep hole myself, sighing and using the original price promised by a certain girl to finish this boring matter first.
Fortunately, during this process, he could also see some different things.
"The Kovar tribe is an ancient race. They often live on the edge of dense forests and make a living by hunting jungle beasts and picking jungle fruits. Due to the characteristics of their lives, they are very good at making jungle tools. and weapons, and are also very good at surviving in the jungle. Therefore, every member of the Koval tribe is a natural jungle survival expert and combat master, and is not someone who can be underestimated. However, as time goes by, on the Free Continent, The jungle environment has become less and less, and the space left for this tribe to survive has also become smaller and smaller. By the time I described, we can only live in the north of the Andaqier Mountains and near the Hulan Mountains in the south. , found some of their figures..."
“How should I excerpt this book?”
Angrily, he threw the history of ethnic minorities that he had read before on the table. Duan Qing leaned back helplessly, raised his head and let out a sigh of relief. His hands gradually dropped to the floor, swinging He looked like he was hopeless: "Each race is a story. Do you want to copy them all..."
Looking at the thick pages in front of him and the pile of books piled next to him, he covered his forehead with his hand in pain: "God, why do you punish me like this? Is it because I didn't pay Old Wang back?" First of all, so..."
"If you're tired, you can rest for a while."
An old voice suddenly appeared next to Duan Qing. He turned his head suddenly, and what came into view was the figure of the old man who was arguing with the guard captain below.
"You, you, when did you come up?"
"It is common knowledge that the principality is in a bad situation."
The old man did not answer Duan Qing's question, but dragged his black robe and walked to the other side of the table a little tiredly: "So... such a routine inspection is really not of much significance."
"Hey, I think so too." Duan Qing muttered in a low voice: "And these things in front of me are meaningless... Ah no, no, no, I mean... I like this job very much , This makes sense, but... can we... um, reduce the weight a little bit?"
"This is my private matter." The old man's eyes fell on Duan Qing: "I like these books very much, so I want to write them down. As people get older, their memory is not as useful as you young people... "
Then you should do it yourself... Duan Qing shouted in his heart.
"I have been waiting here for eighteen years." The old man slowly raised his head and looked at the height of the bookshelf: "It's very nice here, very quiet. I like this place very much, and there are books stored here. . It’s a pity that people’s energy is limited, and I can’t read all the books here. There were many books before, but I just glanced at them and put them down..."
"Now that I think about it, I regret it very much."
The old man stretched out his hand, as if he wanted to touch some books high on the bookshelf, but as soon as he straightened his arm, he seemed to cough violently due to some physical discomfort. After a while, he gradually subsided: "Alas... …”
"you……"
"I'm fine, it's just..." The old man waved his hand at Duan Qing, and then looked at the sky outside the library: "Winter... seems to be coming soon."
The atmosphere gradually fell silent between the two people, and then heated up again with the old man's movements - it was like returning from the cold winter to the warm spring. The white-haired old man's body slowly straightened up, and his face originally looked old. He also gradually became energetic, as if some kind of vitality of life had been injected into his body again. He exhaled heavily, then patted his robe and walked to Duan Qing's side: "I'm kidding you, but... I just want you to know that I like reading books."
"Oh..." Looking at the curator who had obviously changed, Duan Qing subconsciously responded: "I, I understand..."
"So……"
The tall old man touched his gray beard, stretched out his head to look at the book in front of Duan Qing, and a smile gradually appeared on his face: "Where did you extract... Oh, is it the history of races in the Free Continent? ? Haha, I also like this book very much. This book tells many interesting stories, many of which I have never experienced at my age..."
"Ah? You, you all..." Duan Qing's face immediately became constipated: "Have you seen it all?"
"Oh? Have I ever said this?" The old man rolled his eyes, then suddenly turned around and generously patted Duan Qing on the shoulder: "Don't get me wrong, I just...well, I I just know a little bit about, yes, a little bit about some stories. You have to know that people of my age, even if they have not read anything related to the records in this book, must have seen many similar things. After all, I ...Well, I used to be an adventurer. I have been to many places and heard many ancient legends... What, you don't believe it? Don't look at me with that look. I know you don't believe it, so why not... …”
In Duan Qing's somewhat strange eyes, he picked up the book and then took a photo of Duan Qing's chest: "Just use the things on it to test me. I promise that I can say it word for word." .”
"Then, wouldn't that be more proof...that you have read this book?"
"...You are so smart, no one will like you, little guy." Then black lines appeared on the old man's face: "Just ask."
"Okay, okay..."
With a long tail, Duan Qing reluctantly took the book that was clasped on his chest, and then flipped through a few pages at random: "Well, the name is... Tolia."
"Tolia?" The old man kept his eyes open: "What you asked is really accurate... That is the last name of a race. It is a group of people who are not very powerful, but always perish with pride. They were once distributed in the Free Continent. The southwest region of the country was gradually isolated and then disappeared. There are many theories in history about the reasons for their demise. Of course... it would not be an exaggeration if you regard it as the sum of many reasons..."
"Wait, wait, wait." Duan Qing hurriedly interrupted the old man: "Why are these things you said...different from what is written in the book?"
"Of course it's different." The old man blew his beard confidently: "Otherwise, how can I prove that I already knew it? How can I prove that... I know more clearly than what is stated in that book?"
"Uh..." Duan Qing was speechless, then scratched his cheek: "Then, what if you are still lying to me?"
"I'm very unhappy with your choice of words." The old man, who was obviously getting a lot more excited, stared at him: "What do you mean you're still here? Have I lied to you before? We should have met less than twice in total. Well, if you have been deceived by me, how could you forget an old liar like me... Bah, bah, bah, what am I talking about? I am so angry with you!"
"..."
"Anyway, I didn't lie to you." Looking at Duan Qing, who had a weird face because he was suppressing laughter, the old man straightened his robes and showed his serious face again: "Tolia has long been proven to be the leader of the times. mistakes, so they were gradually eliminated! Because..."
"They are Fleur's dependents."
"Fulei?" A familiar name suddenly rang out, and Duan Qing's sitting posture suddenly straightened up: "Is that Emperor Flei? Why is it still related to her?"
"Of course, because her name is Tolia Fleur." The old man showed a confident smile: "Those who once followed her were later collectively called - Tolia."
"Nani?" Duan Qing opened his mouth wide: "Is there still such a thing?"
"These are also things that are not in the book." The old man said with a smile: "Of course, it is useless for you to know these things, because those people have long since ceased to exist, and their descendants... there are probably not many left." Today, the only family members of the great emperor, probably the Roland family and the Cabras family, who once swore to follow them to the death, are still living well in the land of the empire..."
The old man's voice became lower and lower, as if he was caught up in some kind of nostalgia for history. This made Duan Qing become somewhat calm, and at the same time, he gradually accepted a lot of his previous statements. Duan Qing shook his head with some regret. Looking at the old man, Duan Qing casually turned over two pages again, then lowered his head and read out the next name: "What about this one? This one is called Mian..."
"Mian? They are a group of people living in the southwest of the Free Continent. They are rare representatives of a minority group who stand at the pinnacle of the secular world. They are one of the rulers of the Anderson Independent State. That group has strong combat capabilities and is extremely xenophobic. There is a kind of It is said that they were once one of the branches of the ancient Kovar tribe, but I don’t agree with this unless evidence can be found..."
"This, this is called Gompa?"
"Oh, the name is very nice, and it is also a very powerful race. Their people are natural sailors and tidemakers on the sea. They are all over the eastern coast of the Free Continent and rule almost half of the East China Sea. In the hearts of the civilians there, the principality and the The empire is all child's play, Gompa is the ruler there, the king who rules the world..."
"Then...why have we never heard their names?"
"You must have heard of it, because they are pirates!" The old man blew his beard: "In the battle report of the principality, there is news every day that your adventurers are fighting them on the east coast!"
"Pfft -" Duan Qing coughed twice, and then said hoarsely with some embarrassment: "Okay, I made a mistake, let's continue... Well, the next one is called Tadaya... Huh?"
"I think I've heard of this..."
"Of course you have heard it too." For some reason, the old man's originally exciting voice dropped again: "Tadaya..."
"It is the title of the founder of the principality."
