Located on the north side of Oni Castle, the majestic Hanir Castle was originally the center of Oni but became the edge of the city as the lower town expanded south.
The owner here is a sixty-year-old master, and the years are not forgiving, and the lord who liked to hunt the most in those days can no longer ride a horse and cannot go to the mountains and forests. At this time, the old earl was meeting a special guest in a secret room.
From a thousand years ago, the church of many powerful gods such as the god of the sun, the god of justice, the lord of the dawn, and the goddess of agriculture jointly declared that the eastern continent across the strait Felaman had been infected by the evil forces from hell, and the easterners had become devil believers who needed to be purified, and the connection between the two continents was almost broken.
Green eyes and black hair are characteristic of the Felamans, and it is said that this is because they have devilish blood in their veins, and the guest sitting opposite the Count now has this distinctive Oriental characteristic.
"Dear Earl, your tea here is so good, I want to drink a few more cups every time I come. These drinks from the magical country of Great Xia, in the faint taste of bitter wormwood, can also make people taste a sweetness, it is really a good thing, the most peculiar thing is that these dried leaves that have been drained of water to make dark brown have preserved the fragrance of the plant when it first sprouted, drinking tea is really a rare enjoyment, I really envy you nobles!"
Bactria is a country farther east, and it is said that it can be reached by crossing the endless desert east of the Ferramane continent, but people have explored a relatively safe route in the process of conquering the sea, which has allowed the two sides to have more commercial exchanges, and also allowed the tea, porcelain, silk and other things more valuable than gold produced in Bactria to be passed on. The Count's guest seemed to know the mysterious and distant land of the East, but now the Count was in no mood to brag to him about how much gold he had spent to get tea from Port Roches, and that the theft of the previous two days had left him without a good night's sleep. Naturally, the thing that was lost was not only a jewelry box, but the most important thing was what was sealed inside, the item that was sold from the Oriental people in front of you.
"Stop talking this nonsense, my biggest fear right now is that thing will be found by the people in the church who have noses that are smarter than dogs. Do you know what would happen if they found out that I was connected with the devils of hell?" said the Earl, angrily.
"What consequences?" said the Oriental, "to burn you, the master of Oni, at the stake, they won't be so stupid, and even if something ends up in their hands, who can prove that it wasn't brought by the thief?
"Hmph! The devil believes you. And it was only a few days before it was stolen from me, dear Lord Tatakus, I would love to hear your explanation. "
"Explain, you suspect me of colluding with that thief, oh, my lord, Lord Asmodeirs, who can come to my rescue and prove my innocence?" the Oriental man bowed his head as if he had been hurt by the Earl's distrust. But soon he recovered, smiled lightly, and turned sharply to Count Haniri on the other side, "How do you prove that you did not make up this theft by yourself, Lord Earl? "
Hearing this, the Earl was speechless, as if he had been told something in his heart.
"Tatax, how dare you doubt my integrity! Aren't you just a hundred pure maidens? As soon as the thief is caught and the things are recovered, I will send someone to you at once!"
It is said that the devil is the most shrewd businessman, and their believers are naturally not stupid, so Tatakus will not fall into the trap of the earl, if the thief is not caught, and the thing is not recovered, is it possible that he will not give it if he does not make a sacrifice?
"Dear Count Haniri, your words really chill me. I thought you would be a devout Asmodeus, but the faithful who are not in debt will not be blessed by our lord, on the contrary, my lord will be angry with any believer who breaks the order and does not keep the contract. "
"You... You threaten me!" the Count's voice trembled, his figure was so tall in the candlelight of the secret room, but it felt so small and humble.
"Speak carefully, my lord Asmodeus is watching. Think about it, Lord Earl. It's just a hundred maidens, it's nothing to you, and in the wilderness of Oni City, there are robbers from time to time, and it's not normal for a peasant to lose a daughter once in a while?"
....
It was Austen's second day in the sewers, the cave was stuffy, the pervasive stench lingered like the most annoying flies, his hand was always nervously gripping the hilt of the sword, since he knew that the weapon had the mysterious magic mark left by the mage, and the reinforcements used it to locate themselves, and only holding the sword would make him feel more at ease.
None of the seven were in the mood to speak, and after they had finished munching on the black bread together, they each found an open space and squinted against the wall, except for Pete, who occasionally stood up and jumped up, or walked to the mouth of the cave to look at the sea of dung in the darkness.
They didn't know what happened to the other 28 people, whether they were found and slaughtered by the thieves, or if they had found a rat hole and hid like themselves. Austen was hoping to hear some loud noises, like the troubadour's description of the battle of the mighty, with lightning flashes, thunderbolts, and landslides, all to prove that the thief had been found by Eric, the morning knight, of which Ritter had spoken.
Thinking of Eric, Austin is actually not so relieved, this knight, who is known as the most promising knight in Oni City, will he be a useless person? He has been prejudiced against those guys who look like a little white face since he was a child, this Eric he has seen, he looks like a standard little white face, the body is thin and like a woman, not to mention, the face is white like an apprentice in a bakery, no matter how you look at it, he looks like a third-rate knight who can only put on a show.
Although the blond hair looked good, and with the golden armor of the Church of the Lord of the Dawn, it looked like a god descending from the heavens, but it could not dispel Austin's worries. Tavern brothels fight, being pressed to the ground and beaten to the ground are all such guys, and those who are burly with their nostrils facing the sky are the winners of the fight!
But this strange calm did not last long in the sewers, and the goddess of luck Motella did not seem to pay much attention to the filthy place, and just as Pete could not sit still again and get up to move, a scream suddenly came from a distance.
The thief is nearby!
Pete's legs shook like a sieve, but he didn't dare to move, or even sit on the ground, for fear that such a movement would make a noise and draw the Grim Reaper.
Austen's hand gripping the hilt of his sword trembled, and the sweat in his palm flowed uncontrollably, because he didn't hear the fierce fight he had imagined, and the scream was only a symbol of slaughter, not a fierce battle. In fact, Ritter and Austin were a little optimistic and naïve, the master Jersey who attached the magic mark to their weapons could sense their position, and it was not wrong that he would receive a warning once the weapon collision mark was shaken, but he could not directly tell if it was the thief who was fighting the criminals. What if it's a pack of ferocious man-eating rats? You can't just send Eric out at the slightest moment, right?
He knew very well that there were a few of the criminals who could fight the thief a few more times, and a few clever ghosts who could grind for a few more seconds, so only a sustained, at least ten seconds of vibration, would make him make a decision to inform Eric and the others.
But a day passed, and the mark shook a dozen times, but none of them lasted long, and often disappeared in a flash, either because some unfortunate fellow was slaughtered with a knife, or an idiot who couldn't even hold a sword dropped his weapon to the ground, and he didn't pay any attention.
The mage's time was precious, a great deal of knowledge to learn, complex formulas to calculate, and experiments to do, and Jersey, despite the task given to him by the Earl, did not leave his own business, while he was quietly transcribing the scroll in a corner inn room by candlelight.
A large washbasin-like plate sits on a triangular stool next to the desk, carved with intricate textures, like the annual rings of a tree when it is cut, and there seems to be a little star flickering on it, counting carefully to exactly 35, but some of these stars are scattered, occupying one place alone, and some of them are clustered in a heap.
The mage only glanced at the plate beside him once in a while, and then went about his business. Finally, when the pile of starlight that had gathered seven from beginning to end flickered violently, he silently counted the time to confirm that it would be a fierce confrontation before picking up a crow feather that had been prepared on the table.
He recited a series of low and short incantations, and then threw the feather into the air, and something magical happened, the feather began to shine, as if an invisible hand had torn it apart, and then kept kneading, and finally took shape into a living crow, except that it looked a little illusory and transparent, and it was not much different from the real thing.
After the mage reported a coordinate to the crow messenger created by the second-level spell communication technique, the crow 'quacked' and immediately flew out like a sharp arrow, and the wooden wall did not hinder it in the slightest, and its phantom-like body scattered and gathered, easily passing through.
At this time, the mage also packed up a scroll that had just been copied on the table, although he was a little tired, but in order to get the high reward promised by Count Haniri smoothly, he did not delay at all, blessed himself with a flight operation, flew directly out of the window, and hurried towards the predetermined coordinates.