The sound of frantic hoofbeats approached quickly from the distance. Han Shuo was at the top of the city wall, monitoring the progress of the construction, when he saw Commander Knight Faulke rushing over anxiously on the back of a warhorse.
Faulke leapt from his horse and ran to the foot of the wall where Han Shuo was standing. Panting heavily, he looked up at him, "Your Lordship, the caravan transporting the war chariots and other equipment from Seamist City has been robbed by several bandit groups. They say they will only release the merchants and the goods if we pay them fifty thousand gold coins.
The bandit groups along the road from Seamist City to Brettel City weren't big. Han Shuo had ordered this equipment from some of Phoebe's merchant guild contacts. Not only had he reminded them to be on the lookout for bandits along the way, he had even had Faulke send people to escort the convoy. These small bandits certainly shouldn't have had the guts to make a move. Han Shuo's face darkened when he heard the news from Faulke, "You're saying that several bandit groups have teamed up to make a move?"
Faulke's expression was quite ugly as he replied with a nod, "That's right. One bandit group alone wouldn't dare to do such a thing. But this time, five groups of bandits joined forces. The caravan guards simply couldn't stand up to them. Your Lordship, these damned bandits are looking for death. I'll immediately lead the knights in the city to destroy them all!"
"Wait!" Han Shuo shouted to stop Faulke's impulsive action. He thought for a moment before asking, "Our purchase of war chariots and equipment this time, how many people knew about it?"
"The soldiers who were to escort the goods all knew. Why, my lord?" Faulke was confused, not knowing why Han Shuo had suddenly mentioned this.
Han Shuo asked with a cold snort, "How could it be a coincidence that these bandits knew which day the caravan would arrive? How could they suddenly band together and even dare to demand a ransom after robbing the caravan? Don't you see how abnormal this is?"
Faulke was shocked to hear these words. He shouted, "My Lord, are you saying that there might be spies among our people?!"
"Not maybe, but definitely!" Han Shuo suddenly shouted loudly, "I will not pursue your dereliction of duty for now. You have half a day to find the spies and execute them! On the other hand, don't just accept anyone for the next recruitment. Throw out all those whose backgrounds aren't clean!"
"Yes, My Lord!" Faulke replied loudly. His face was icy as he jumped on a horse and rode away quickly.
Since this matter had been his duty, he wasn't going to shirk responsibility for such a major incident, no matter what. Lawrence had made it clear that his life and death would depend on Han Shuo when he set foot in Brettel City. Having witnessed Han Shuo's mighty strength, Faulke knew full well that this city lord was definitely not the benevolent, lenient type. Faulke cursed the traitor as he quickly thought of a way to capture him.
An hour later, three hundred bulky knights in shining armour were neatly lined up on a wide marble plaza in front of the lord's mansion, according to Faulke's orders. Judging by their posture and presence, Faulke's training had indeed produced knights with the demeanour of a regiment of knights. This truly demonstrated Faulke's abilities as a superior knight officer.
Han Shuo sat in the city lord's mansion, not caring what methods Faulke would use to find the spies. He was thinking about how to wipe out these bandits and clear the way from Seamist City to Brettel City as soon as possible.
Han Shuo had focused all his attention on the possibility that the Seven Grand Duchies would send out a raiding force at any moment. However, he'd forgotten about the small and large bandit groups along the way. There were more than a dozen forces, either small bandit groups with over a hundred members, or groups with only a dozen members that didn't even deserve to be mentioned. These groups were constantly scurrying around Brettel City and the seven grand duchies. They weren't on the same level as the big groups with thousands of bandits.
After killing Troda the last time, Han Shuo had thought that these petty bandits wouldn't dare act rashly, so he hadn't paid any attention to them. He hadn't expected them to stab him in the back and steal a hundred thousand gold coins worth of battle equipment at such a crucial moment. This awakened a killing intent in Han Shuo so fierce that he wanted to wipe them out of the world.
The road between Brettel City and Seamist City was the most important channel connecting Brettel City to the Lancelot Empire. If Brettel City was to develop, there were no words to describe the importance of this road. If immigrants were robbed before they could even reach Brettel City, no one would dare to settle there, no matter how eloquent Han Shuo was.
"They're asking for it. It's not that I don't want to give them a chance to live!" Han Shuo had cleared his mind and his fingers unconsciously tapped on the arm of the chair as he spoke resolutely.
Faulke had not failed to earn Han Shuo's trust. It only took him two hours to find the spies. Han Shuo didn't actually see who they were, but he could hear mournful, hair-raising wail after wail echoing from outside the city lord's mansion.
The scalp-tingling, tragic wails lasted only a moment before fading away. Five minutes later, Faulke entered, filled with trepidation. He humbly paid his respects to Han Shuo and said in a low voice, "Sir Count, I have been derelict in my duties."
Straightening his somewhat lazy posture, Han Shuo indifferently cast a sharp glance at Faulke and asked, "Did you get anything out of the interrogation?"
Nodding his head, Faulke replied, "Three new recruits in total. Because their bodies were strong and we were short of men, I didn't examine them carefully and let them join our knight regiment. It was all my fault! I ask your lordship for your punishment!"
It was as Faulke said, Brettel City used every person to the utmost. Talents like Faulke, who could train soldiers, were truly too rare. Faulke's temporary carelessness could be considered dereliction of duty, but Han Shuo had no candidate to replace him.
Han Shuo was silent for a while before he said with a cold smile, "I will take note of that for now. If you can contribute successes to make up for your mistake when we exterminate the bandits, I will overlook your negligence this time."
Faulke nodded heavily. He solemnly assumed a ceremonial posture and said in a loud voice, "Rest assured, Sir Count! This will never happen again. None of the bandits involved in this robbery will escape! I give you my word as a knight."
"Very well. Gather a hundred knights. We will visit their hideout and see if they are qualified to take fifty thousand gold coins from my hands." Han Shuo narrowed his eyes and stood up. Faulke could clearly sense the thick killing intent radiating from his body. He understood that the bandits who had acted in such a wanton manner would pay a painful price soon enough.
Night fell. A moonless night, the pitch-black sky like a canvas smeared with a thick, thick layer of ink, reducing the line of sight to a bare minimum. Torches burned brightly as they moved in a direction where the air was damp and wild weeds grew.
A dozen huge rafts lined up on a long river shaped like a willow leaf. Many strong, sturdy men stood on these rafts, their hands also holding torches. The noisy sound of an argument echoed from these people.
Faulke rode a warhorse, a torch in his hand. He frowned at the bandits on the rafts on the distant little river and grumbled in a low voice, "Cunning bandits, they chose this place unexpectedly for the transaction. That makes things a bit difficult."
This place was very far from Brettel City, and it wasn't anywhere between Seamist City and Brettel City. Instead, it was in the area that connected Brettel City to the seven grand duchies.
The last time Han Shuo had captured Helen Tina, he'd used this very river to transport the six magic crystal cannons back to Brettel City. However, because the six cannons were so heavy, it had taken him two days to return from that place. This time, it only took Han Shuo's group of knights half a day to arrive here at night to meet the deadline.
There was no denying that these bandits had chosen a good place this time. Once they took the fifty thousand gold coins, they would be able to use the rafts to escape quickly. Han Shuo's party were all knights, they simply could not follow them down this small river. By the time they informed Han Shuo of the location of the transaction, it was too late for him to make any preparations. They had involuntarily fallen into a passive state.
"This group of bandits really isn't easy. They've arranged everything very well and have even taken advantage of us. They can easily escape on the rafts after taking the gold coins. The knights can't follow them. It seems that we have encountered some difficult bandits to deal with." Han Shuo looked at the flashing lights of the bandits in front of him and spoke to Faulke.
"Sir Count, how should we handle this? Even if you are a necromancer, the dark creatures can't move in the water." Faulke spoke worriedly to Han Shuo. He was ready to make up for his mistake with all his enthusiasm, intending to make a big move this time.
"There are some light mages on their side. It seems like these bandits have been planning this for a long time. These light mages must have been arranged especially for me. Could it be that things aren't that simple? That there are people who are secretly plotting against us?" Han Shuo's voice was soft but surprised. The Yin Demon he'd secretly released had caught sight of two low-ranked light mages.
They were a light journeyman mage and a light adept mage. These ranks of light mages had limited influence against high-ranking creatures such as evil knights. However, even a mid-level holy light spell could cause considerable damage to the gargoyles.
Therefore, when Han Shuo saw the two light mages, he immediately became cautious. He waved his arm at Faulke, "Stop for now. Let me assess the situation first. If this is a trap, we'll retreat immediately."
Han Shuo was now left with only one Yin Demon. His observation was not as quick as before, and he had no way of covering everything at the scene. He'd begun to consider whether he should spend some time in closed training to refine the higher-ranked mystical demon.
As he circled the rafts on the river, the Yin Demon had indeed discovered the war equipment Han Shuo had procured, and even Fabian and Jack of the Boozt Merchant Guild among them. The bandits had tied them up tightly and placed two shiny steel knives at their necks. Their faces looked pale and forlorn, obviously terrified.
A dozen merchants and some thirty guards from other merchant guilds were tied up next to Fabian and Jack. The bandits surrounded them and watched them closely.
After winning the game against Cameron, the Boozt Merchant Guild had naturally become the richest merchant guild in the Empire. Cameron had fallen on hard times and lost the trust of his guild. The Boozt Merchant Guild had taken advantage of the situation to develop and gradually become the most active of the major merchant guilds.
The war equipment Han Shuo had purchased was being transported by Boozt along with several other merchant guilds. If they didn't have a good first experience, it would negatively affect their impression of Brettel City. It would be difficult for them to continue working together.
Therefore, it was not only Fabian and Jack's safety that was important, but also the safety of these merchants and guards. If their safety wasn't guaranteed, it would be hard to make up for the losses later on, even if the bandits were all killed. Han Shuo's head was spinning just looking at the tight security of the bandits.
"Dorcus, what should we do next?" A rough looking burly man over two metres tall, obviously the leader of these bandits, was asking a young man sitting on the raft. This young man had a determined face, his eyes burning with wild ambition.
This young man was dressed as a small bandit's lackey, almost one metre ninety centimetres tall. He stood tall, like a straight pole that wouldn't bend or break, and the colourful bandit outfit couldn't hide the wild light of ambition in his eyes. This young man's name was Dorcus. He looked at the bandit leader and said confidently, "Rest assured. I've made careful preparations. The fact that I didn't let you kill those prisoners will worry them, not to mention the fact that we have the advantage of rafts on this small river. We even spent a lot of money to hire two light mages to stop the Gargoyles' attack. This plan is absolutely safe, they have no choice but to bring the money."
"Dorcus, the civilian genius from the Imperial Academy of Strategy. So it's him. No wonder!" Han Shuo muttered as he overheard the two of them talking through the Yin Demon that was circling around the young man.