Locke felt the dagger in his boot and the roll of linen that had been soaked in blood for many years wrapped around the dagger. It was as if he could see his sister, Lia, smiling at her naughty brother in front of him.
Knowing that everything was fine at home, Locke felt much more relaxed. His communication with Henry and Bruce was also quite harmonious. During this period, Locke casually revealed his advancement to a low-rank Knecht, which received a lot of compliments and compliments from them.
Locke also learned from them that almost all the caravans sent out by the baron had been recalled. It wasn't difficult for Locke to guess that Cardoj, who had regained his strength and achievements, had given up on his previous plan to focus on economic development. He was ready to reap the benefits in the final battle with Shalor.
After saying goodbye to Henry, Locke temporarily canceled his plan to look for Suzanne. This was because he heard from Henry that Glace, Laffey and Kristin had also come. Locke planned to look for them first. Although his relationship with the three women had always been lukewarm, they still helped Suzanne through the difficulties when he was in trouble.
Locke saw Glace and the others from afar when he walked to a carriage somewhere in the transport team. The maid, Laffey, was dressed in a nondescript leather armour, reprimanding an unkempt man in Shalorian clothing. Kristin was sitting in the carriage, swinging her legs as she looked at the strange scene around her.
As for Glace, who Locke had always been drooling over, she stood quietly beside the carriage in a ladylike manner. As the sun set in the west, the bright sunlight, the graceful noblewoman, and the colorful clouds formed a beautiful picture. Locke didn't even dare to disturb this beautiful scene.
Just as Locke was staring at Glace under the setting sun, Kristin, who had nothing to do and was looking around, noticed Locke not far away. Her face lit up with joy, she jumped out of the carriage and ran towards Locke.
Kristin ran closer and jumped into Locke's arms. Due to the series of twists and turns and the fatigue of the journey, Kristin was much thinner and smaller than girls of her age. Locke, who had become much stronger after advancing to a low-rank Knecht, easily picked her up.
Seeing the little girl running over excitedly, Locke even threw her into the sky a few times. Kristin wasn't afraid at all when Locke lifted her up. Instead, she kept giggling.
"Did you miss your brother?" He had always treated Kristin as a younger sister, and he had asked her to call him brother back in Farlans.
"Yes!" Kristin didn't have the shyness and reserved personality of a little girl at all. Instead, she answered casually.
Locke and Christine's giggles attracted Glace and Laffey's attention. This was Faustian's joint military camp, and there were many powerful people here, so Lafite didn't notice his arrival.
Seeing Locke's arrival, Laffey stopped scolding the man who had been nodding and bowing. Grace looked at Locke calmly.
"What's going on?" asked Locke. He still didn't dare to look her in the eye because her mature and calm gaze made him uncomfortable. In front of her, he could only use his strength and muscles to subdue her. Just like when he had forcibly taken them away in Fareins.
"This guy picked the wrong goods!" Lafite pointed at the man beside him.
Looking at the man's dirty clothes and thick Shalorian accent, it wasn't difficult for Locke to guess that he should be the group of Shalorian refugees that Suzanne had taken in. She had taken in a large number of refugees from Giza and brought them to trade with Cardoj's caravan. Even a shrewd businessman like Henry was impressed.
"Forget it if it's not a big deal. Henry will give me face!" Locke said to Lafite. It wasn't that he pitied the unkempt leader of the Shalorian refugees, but he didn't want to waste time on such trivial matters.
Lafite didn't expect Locke to say that. He was stunned for a moment, but he immediately nodded in agreement. Grace, on the other hand, gave Locke a meaningful look.
The leader of the Shalorian refugees, who couldn't even raise his head after being scolded by Lafite, looked at Locke gratefully. He was a refugee who had fled from the southeastern border of Shalor. Because of the taxes imposed by the lord of the territory and the shadow of war, they had no choice but to leave their homes and flee because they didn't have enough food for the autumn harvest.
When they fled to Giza, it was just in time for Suzanne to recruit labourers. Although she only provided them with a full meal, these Shalorian refugees had no other choice but to live. Because this middle-aged man was honest and dutiful, Suzanne even gave him a certain management authority.
It was also his bad luck. The wheat that had been counted properly in Giza was actually a little less when it was transported to the joint camp. He didn't know which unscrupulous fellow had secretly hidden a part of it. In the past, whether it was Suzanne or Henry and the other businessmen, they would turn a blind eye to such concealment.
Because a little bit of food was really not worth much, but it was different this time. Just the countless Faustian soldiers guarding outside the huge military camp alone made the Shalorian people's legs go weak. The middle-aged man was really afraid that Lafite would hand him over to the Faustians because of his mistake this time.
Although Faustian was the invader of Shalor, the Shalorians were more afraid of the Faustian soldiers than they hated them.
Of course, Lafite wouldn't hand this middle-aged man over to the Faustian soldiers. As a Shalorian, he was extremely dissatisfied with the matter of helping the Faustian army's caravan. If it wasn't for Glace forcing him to help Suzanne, he wouldn't have cared so much.
In fact, Lafite didn't like any Faustian except for Locke. Especially Henry, this vampire, who had actually intended to make the Shalorian refugees work for him with half a chestnut cake a day. If it wasn't for Suzanne's timely objection that made Henry change his mind and use a piece of rye bread instead, Lafite couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't have been able to stop himself from slashing this Faustian.
After sending the Shalorian refugee away, Locke finally calmed down and took a good look at Glace and the others. It had been almost two months since he last saw Kristin. She hadn't changed much in height, but she had lost a lot of weight. Locke planned to get Corey, the cook in the logistics department, to give her some nourishment.
Lafite, on the other hand, had a valiant aura about her. Although she wasn't holding a longsword, she was wearing strange leather armour. Just by standing there, she exuded an extraordinary aura. He didn't give her a weapon because she was, after all, a Shalorian. Henry didn't want such an unstable factor in his caravan.
As for Glace, she was still wearing the same robe she'd worn when he first met her. The wide hood covered her beautiful hair and face, but it couldn't hide the noble temperament she exuded.
When it came to temperament, among all the women Locke had met, only Angelina could beat her. However, Angelina had a more youthful air, while Glace was full of maturity and intellectuality. Locke, who had always thought of himself as a boorish man, was not used to it.
"Are you guys alright?" asked Locke casually, seeing that he couldn't find a topic to talk about.
Lafite didn't say anything. She had always had a relatively low presence among the three women. Locke also knew from their daily conversations that she was like a maidservant. At this moment, Kristin was still hanging from Locke's neck, having a lot of fun.
Glace continued, "Not bad."
"Where's Aunt Suzanne?" Kristin, who was hanging from Locke, suddenly asked. She had been very close to Suzanne for the past two months.
Due to the lack of love from her parents since she was a child, she had always been very close to her aunt Glace. Later on, she met Suzanne. Suzanne, a mature woman, liked little Kristin very much. She even hugged and kissed Kristin to sleep at night. Suzanne gave Kristin a motherly love that was different from her aunt Glace's.
"Aunt Suzanne is on the other side. Let's go, I'll take you to her! " Locke kept the little girl hanging from his body and led the three of them to where Suzanne lived.
Halfway through the journey, Glace stopped him when there were fewer people on the road.
"What is it?" Locke had always been curious about this mysterious and rational woman.
After pondering for a long time, Glace finally raised her head, looked at Locke, and said, "I hope you can find a way to take me to Audis."
At this moment, both Kristin, who was hanging from Locke's shoulder, and Lafite, who was following beside her, looked at Locke expectantly. It seemed that the three of them had thought about it in advance.
Locke was surprised by Glace's request, but he didn't think too much about it and rejected her. "Let's not talk about whether I have the ability or not. Why should I do this?" Locke questioned.
Locke had always felt distant from the three women. Other than Kristin, who was closer to Locke, Lafite and Glace had only spoken to him a few times since they met in Farlans. Locke wouldn't take such a huge risk just because they were helping Suzanne.
"I can promise to be your woman!" Glace's words were shocking. Even Lafite and Kristin were surprised. It seemed that they hadn't discussed this condition before.
"Even if you don't agree, you'll still become my woman!" Locke said arrogantly. No matter who Glace used to be, now that she was in Locke's hands, she couldn't run away.
"Then all you'll get is my corpse," Grace sneered. She would rather die in glory than live in dishonor.
"Haven't you always wanted me?" Glace pressed forward and looked at Locke with a burning gaze. "As long as you promise me, I'm willing to be your woman."
Locke was a little dizzy from this sudden incident, but he was still sober about one thing. He couldn't agree to this request.
"I don't have the ability to do this. It's useless even if you ask me!" Locke said directly. He put down Kristin and strode away.
Was Audis a place where he could enter as he pleased now? The entire barracks and more than 70,000 Faustian troops surrounded Audis. Unless Locke turned into a mouse and burrowed his way in, there was no other way.
Locke estimated that as long as he dared to bring people near the gates of Audis, they would be shot full of arrows by the Faustian army behind them. Not to mention that Locke had saved the princess, even if he had saved the king, he believed that Kenzir would not hesitate to order the arrows to be fired. The feeling that Kenzir gave Locke was the same as the feeling he had when he was an ordinary soldier, Cardoj. Locke admired this kind of person.