A week later, the First Army expedition team and the witches finally arrived in Border Town. From the day of departure, this mission had taken almost half a month, which was five days later than expected.
The main reason was that when the fleet set foot on the way back, the stronghold agent Pérot Hull sent a messenger to report the cause of an unknown disease in Longsong Stronghold.
Since Roland had already warned Pérot, when the disease was discovered, he tried his best to take quarantine measures, completely closing off the entire urban area, and immediately sent a message to Border Town.
After receiving the epidemic report, Roland let Maggie set off at top speed, along the Redwater River all the way to the east, looking for the fleet carrying the soldiers of the First Army, and then let them change their route to Longsong Stronghold at the fork of the Redwater River, and then return to Border Town after eliminating the demonic plague.
Roland led the remaining members of the First Army and the families of the expedition team to the dock to welcome their smooth return. Accompanied by the familiar army march, the soldiers excitedly saluted the Prince, many imitating the Knight salute, kneeling down on one knee and shouting "Long Live the King". After walking down the dock, they tightly embraced their loved ones, while Echo timely fired a gun salute. The atmosphere was unusually lively, attracting many serfs and fugitives to watch.
After returning to the castle, Iron Axe gave a complete report of the mission.
"You mean, there are witches among the enemies who attacked the First Army?" Roland thought for a moment, "It is unlikely that they were sent by the Rats."
"Theo also thinks so, he even thinks that the Rats were also sent by other forces, otherwise this group of scum would rarely leave their nest. In King's City, besides Timothy, only the Church can control the Rats and have witches. " Iron Axe said, "Even those great nobles can't take out a bargaining chip that could make the largest local Black Street organization turn out in full force."
"But Timothy himself is in the Eastern Region, and daring to send witches to fight alone, I think the Church is a bit more suspicious." Roland thought of the experience of Vendy and Ashes, and felt that it was not strange that the Church had a group of secretly trained witches. "Are you sure she's dead?"
"She was hit in the chest by Nightingale, and her chest cavity was broken." Iron Axe nodded. "We buried her in the wheat field, where we found the remains of the sentry soldier."
On the last day, the team of three hundred people had encountered a night attack by a large number of mice. In the end, one person died and four were injured. The only victim was killed by the enemy witches. The four wounded were all wounded by the crossbows of the enemies who managed to get close to them. The continuous fire from the revolving rifles ended the battle before it even reached the melee stage. The wounded were also properly bandaged. After returning to Border Town, they immediately received treatment from Nana. Because of Lily's existence, the wounds were almost never infected. As long as the crossbow didn't hit the vital organs, after the bleeding was stopped, the chances of the wounded surviving were extremely high.
In general, Roland was very satisfied with the results of the First Army's first expedition. As for the possibility of someone sneaking into the sentries, he didn't know much about it. He only knew that it was necessary to set up sentries to monitor each other. As for the specifics, he would leave it to Iron Axe to figure out.
"Thank you for your hard work. Tomorrow, I will hold an award ceremony at the town's central square. Go and inform all the members of the First Army."
After Iron Axe left, Roland let out a long sigh.
"You did a good job." He took out a bag of grilled fish from the drawer and put it on the table. "If it weren't for you, I'm afraid they would have been in danger."
Nightingale appeared and accepted the dried fish with a smile. "Before we set off, I told you that I would take care of everything."
"How was the opponent's strength?"
"She was agile and very decisive. She should have gone through several years of training. If I hadn't entered the Mist at the same time she turned around and tried to resist, I might have been hit by the choking powder she threw. " Nightingale shrugged and casually recounted the fight, but he knew that it all happened in a flash. "I didn't want to kill her … but when I saw her stare at Vendy, I understood that nothing could stop her except death."
"…" Roland was silent for a moment. "Do you remember what you said to me when we returned from Stronghold after defeating Timothy's militia?"
Nightingale thought for a moment. "It wasn't your fault?"
"That's right," he nodded. "If she was a witch raised by the Church since she was a child, she would only regard you as traitors and degenerates. Without several years of getting along with her, it would be difficult to turn her rigid thinking back to the right track … At least, you saved the lives of Vendy and the others."
Nightingale laughed. "Are you comforting me?"
"Uh …" Roland coughed twice. "I really think so."
"Rest assured, I won't feel sad for the enemy. Although she is a witch, the path she chose is completely different from the future I want to see. I understood this on the ship when we came back." Nightingale took out a piece of dried fish and stuffed it into her mouth. "I defeated the enemy and protected my sisters. I was just doing my duty."
"It's good that you can think like this," Roland said with relief. It seemed that he had underestimated her. He had thought that she would feel lost and confused about killing a witch with her own hands. He didn't expect that she would be able to adjust in such a short time. It seemed that whether it was her mind or faith, Nightingale was approaching maturity.
"But there is one thing I want to ask you," she said after swallowing the fish and hesitating for a moment.
"What?"
"These days, did you and Anna do anything?" Although Nightingale's voice was getting lower and lower, her eyes were still staring at the Prince. "… You know what I'm talking about."
Roland almost knocked over the cup in his hand. "Ahem, why do you ask this … I've been busy these days with the refugees. I didn't even have the chance to be alone with her."
Her eyes suddenly lit up. "You didn't lie."
"Of course not, I …"
Before Roland could finish the second half of his sentence, Nightingale suddenly disappeared in front of him. Then he felt soft lips on his own. The touch was fleeting, leaving only the salty taste of dried fish. After a long time, he realized what she had done.
"Wait …"
But before he could say anything, two slender fingers sealed his mouth. Although he couldn't see her, he knew that Nightingale was right beside him.
"I know what you want to say …" Her whisper came into his ear. "I don't want to change anything, nor do I intend to be in front of Anna. I just want to stay by your side, that's all. Please forgive me for not daring to show myself, because right now I don't know what kind of expression I should use to face you. Your Highness, you don't hate me, do you? "
"…" Roland opened his mouth. It was impossible for him to say that he hated Nightingale. The obstacles in his heart came from the past twenty years of cognition, and not from a simple preference. On this point, he couldn't deceive himself.
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