Four days later, the Port of Amethrin appeared in the distance.
Aire said disdainfully, "This place is too small. Look at how small the port is. It's not even a tenth of the size of Hidden Gold Port."
Laurist laughed, "How can this place compare to Morunte? This was originally a small fishing village. If not for the Duchy of Lulm being established, no one would have come here. After all, there was six years of war. It's said that the Trade Alliance and the Crisen Empire used this sea route to smuggle goods. Now that the war has stopped, this place has developed into a small town. In a few years, this place will become a prosperous port city. "
"No matter how prosperous it is, it has nothing to do with us. My lord, where do you think Fatty and the others are? "Aire asked.
"The letter said that they will set up camp outside the town. We'll know when we get to the docks." Laurist was not sure.
They could see the Port of Amethrin in the morning, but it was only around three in the afternoon that the ship stopped at the pier. The main reason was that the waterway here was curved, and it was easy to run aground without a pilot.
Laurist, Alyssa, Schneider, Redi and Padt got off the ship. They strolled around the pier, but no one came to greet them. They could not help but feel puzzled. Strange, Fatty Shi should have sent people to guard the pier every day. Why wasn't there a single person?
Aire nodded at Laurist, and silently walked towards a house with a picture of a wine glass and a fish. It was a tavern on the pier, and it was the place with the most information.
Laurist waited for a while, and the local official in charge of collecting taxes came down from the ship. Thurkamp followed behind him. Laurist waved at him, and the official hurriedly came over respectfully, "My lord, what are your orders?"
"Ten days ago, more than three thousand people arrived here from Nubit Port. Do you know where their camp is?" Laurist took out a gold coin and shoved it over.
The official's face lit up, and he quickly took the coin, "I do. They set up camp in the pine forest south of the town. They should be your men, my lord. The symbol of the Raging Bear on the flag is exactly the same as your insignia. "
Laurist nodded.
The official said fawningly, "My lord, your men might be in trouble. They camped close to Slov's camp. I heard there was a conflict and your people have been trapped in the camp for four days. "
"Oh, then who is Slov?" Laurist asked.
"This …" The official hesitated.
Laurist shoved another gold coin into his hands.
The officer looked around and whispered to Lollister, "My lord, Slov is the leader of a famous mercenary band here. He has a lot of influence and has close ties with Nubit Port. If it's possible, why don't you send someone to apologize, send some gifts, and shake hands? That's the best solution. "
"Oh, okay. Thank you for your guidance." Laurist remained calm.
The official bowed. "You're welcome. I'll take my leave first."
…
"Everyone return to the ship. Redi, get Terman and Yuri here," Laurist ordered.
…
Aire quickly returned to the ship as well. He reported to everyone the information he received in the tavern. Slov, who was said to be the leader of a mercenary band, was actually the leader of a slave-catching group. He was one of the most evil forces in the area, and even the lord could not do anything to him. As long as Slov and his slave-catching group did not cause trouble in the area, did not interfere with the trade, and did not affect the local taxes, both sides would be at peace.
Fatty Shi's group had arrived at Port Ametland eleven days ago and set up camp in the pine forest south of the town. It was very close to Slov's camp. For some reason, Slov had set his sights on them, and the two sides had clashed. Fatty Shi's group was at a disadvantage because they had the advantage in numbers and no weapons. They could only cut down the trees and defend themselves. It was said that dozens of people had been captured, and there were even casualties.
Slov's slave-catching group was very strong. There were three Gold-rankers, more than forty Silver-ranked swordsmen, and more than two hundred Iron-ranked and Bronze-ranked subordinates. That was why the lord was very wary of him. There was also a rumor that Slov had a brother who was a Great Swordsman, but he rarely showed himself.
Everyone fell silent. No one had expected to run into such a powerful obstacle on the first step of their journey to the north. They could not think of any good ideas at the moment.
"How about this, Padt, Reidi, and Thurdkamp. Stay on the ship and take care of Schwald and Eliza. Yuri, take twelve people to guard the ship and ensure the safety of the weapons and equipment. Although these three ships all fly the flag of the Peterson Merchant Group and no one dares to provoke them, we still need to prevent any accidents. Bring the ballistae and chariots onto the deck. Four to a ship. If anyone attacks, immediately counterattack and kill them. "
At this moment, Laurist was filled with killing intent. "The rest of you, put on full armor. Knight Terman, prepare five carriages and carry a batch of spears, crossbows, and arrows. Follow me to the camp to take a look. Kill anyone who dares to block our way."
There were a total of 38 students from Dawn Academy who were willing to follow Laurist to the Northern Lands. Fatty Shi took 12 with him, Yuri stayed behind, and five of the remaining 14 chose full body knight armor, just like Terman. The other seven and Aire all wore the light cavalry armor of Dawn Academy. Each of them brought a crossbow and five javelins. Laurist chose a set of scale armor that only covered his chest and abdomen. He moved around and found that it did not affect his reaction and speed, so he was satisfied. Laurist did not bring a crossbow. He only hung a bundle of twelve javelins on the back of his horse.
Terman hired five carriages at the docks and paid a large silver coin for the coachmen to follow him to the camp in the southern suburbs. He promised them that if there was any conflict, they could stand by and watch. If the goods were lost, it would not be their fault.
Six knights in full armor opened the way. Terman took the lead, and behind him were five carriages. Laurist, Aire, and the seven old students escorted them on both sides. The group quickly passed through the town and turned towards the main road in the southern suburbs.
There was a checkpoint in front of them. A simple railing made of a few trees blocked the middle of the road. There were thirty to forty people standing on both sides, and someone in front of them waved for them to stop.
Terman did not make a sound. He only put down his lance and aimed it forward. The four riders behind him lowered their lances at the same time. Only the lance in the middle was still pointed in the air. The flag with the image of an angry bear fluttered in the wind.
The blades of the five lances flashed with sword light at almost the same time. Five Silver-ranked knights! None of the people blocking the road dared to block in front of them. They hurriedly dodged to the sides, and a few of them cursed as they charged at the dozen or so mounts that were gnawing on grass.
Terman's lance was the first to touch the wooden railing. With a bang, the wooden railing shattered, and the road ahead was clear. The five carriages rumbled as they sped past.
Some of the people blocking the road pointed at the carriages and cursed, while others prepared to chase after them. There were also a few who had bows and arrows and were venting their anger at the carriages. Just as they were in a mess, a cold voice suddenly ordered, "Throw your spears and kill them all."
Screams rose and fell. It was Loriste returning with Aire and the other eight. They used crossbows from afar and javelins from close range, killing those who were blocking the way. Over a dozen of them fell the moment they met. The archers were the first to suffer, followed by the two mounted horses. They were nailed to the ground by the javelins, the horses neighing and the men screaming in agony. It was a tragic sight to behold.
Laurist's horse was at ease. He held a javelin in each hand, and when he saw a target, he threw them at lightning speed. Not long after, twelve people blocking the road lost their lives to the javelins. One of the people blocking the road was a Silver-ranked swordsman. He had been lying on the ground pretending to be dead, but when he saw that Laurist had lost his javelin, he got off his horse and went to him. He suddenly roared and leaped up from the ground. He raised his sword with both hands and slashed down with all his might, wanting to kill Laurist and escape with his horse.
That Silver-ranked swordsman's two-handed sword flashed with an inch-long sword light. Seeing that his opponent on horseback had pulled out a longsword from his back to block, he couldn't help but be overjoyed. He was a 3-star Silver-ranked, but his opponent was only a Steel-ranked. If his sword fell, his opponent's sword would definitely break and he would die. If he immediately rode his horse away, he would definitely be able to escape with his life.
Unexpectedly, when the two swords clashed, his opponent's sword did not break. Instead, there was a tremor, and the two-handed sword in his hand was lifted high into the air. The Silver-ranked swordsman could only watch as his opponent's sword pierced his throat like a spirit snake. His vision turned pitch black …
Looking around, the ground was littered with corpses. More than thirty people were lying on the ground, and there were four or five people running away quickly in the distance. The nine of them were unharmed. Laurist was very satisfied with this result. He didn't think that he would be able to kill thirteen people by himself. There were still twenty or so people left, but a dozen or so had fallen in an instant. The remaining ones weren't even enough for Ayer and the others to split one each.
An old cadet rode his horse to Laurist's side and bowed respectfully. His eyes revealed a look of worship.
"Check if there's anyone alive. Give them another blow. Pack up the spoils of war, and we'll go back in a bit," Laurist ordered indifferently.
The spoils of war referred to the mounts, weapons, armor, money bags, and other miscellaneous items that these people had brought with them. Laurist felt that he was very kind. At least he left them with underwear. If Fatty Shi had been here, these people would have come here naked and gone out naked.
"Yes, sir," the old cadet replied and left.
"Ayer, when we return to the camp, hand over the horses, weapons, and armor. You guys can split the valuables. Don't forget to give Terman and the others a share," Laurist said to Ayer.
"Sir, this is against the rules. Terman said that the spoils of war had rules for distribution. Fatty Shi had already decided on how to reward them. You can't just casually break it, "Ayer said.
"Uh, sorry, I forgot. Then let's follow the rules," Lollister said.
--- Dividing Line ---
After turning a corner on the main road, he saw the campsite with the flag of the Furious Bears fluttering in the wind. There was another campsite about two hundred meters away from this campsite. The campsite was piled up with soil. It looked much sturdier and neater than the one he had dug trenches to build with mixed wood. That should be the camp of the slave hunters.
The gate of the camp was already open. Seeing Lorist and the others return, cheers immediately sounded. Many people had gathered at the gate of the slave hunters' camp in the distance, and they were all looking in this direction. There were even a few people who were riding their horses towards the checkpoint on the road. They were obviously wondering how five carts of goods could pass through the checkpoint and be transported to the camp.
Loriste got off his horse and said to Terman, "Keep watch and distribute the spears and crossbows."
An old student with a bandage on his head hurriedly came over and bowed. Laurist recognized him; he was one of the twelve students who had set off with Fatty Shi.
"You're Dolles, right? Why are you hurt? Is it serious? "Laurist asked with concern.
Dolus said gratefully, "Don't worry, it's just a scratch. Lord Locke, you're finally back. Brother Shi is slightly injured, and he's lying in the tent over there. Knight Bofinger was patrolling last night, and he's resting now. I've already sent someone to inform him. "
"Alright, then take me to see Knight Shredder first," Laurist said.
… …
Opening the tent's curtain, they saw Fatty Shi sitting there with his upper body bandaged like a dumpling. He was watching Laurist and Aire come in.
"Hey, fatty, why don't you look fat after you've bandaged yourself?" Aire joked.
Fatty Shi looked at him and curled his lips. "I knew you'd come along. It's a pity that no one bet with me, or else I would've won money."
"F * ck …" Aire was speechless.
"How's your injury? Is it serious?" Laurist asked.
"It's nothing. I just got stabbed a few times and lost a lot of blood, but it's nothing serious. Lempard said that I'll recover in twenty days. Lord, I didn't think that we'd be so unlucky. " Fatty Shi said that Lempard was a beginner apothecary.
Lunmed was a junior pharmacist. Somehow, he was tricked by Fatty Shi into joining the same boat as them, and was going to follow them to the north. He was also one of the twelve students who followed Fatty Shi to Nubit Harbor.
Aire sat down beside Fatty Shi and patted his thigh. Since there was no bandage on it, it would be difficult to bandage the other parts of the body. Aire said, "Fatty, who hurt you? Let's see how I'll avenge you."
"You? Forget it. That's a Golden Swordsman. I fought him for half a day and only managed to get seven wounds. If it were you, you would've been covered in blood already, "Fatty Shi said.
"F * ck, don't forget that you were defeated by me. Let's see how I'll avenge you." Aire wasn't convinced.
"Alright, Fatty, tell me what's going on," Lollister said.
It was simple. After Fatty Shi and Bofinger arrived at Nubit Harbor, they contacted a few of Bofinger's comrades. One of them happened to be a slave trader. Through him, they were able to purchase more than seven hundred strong slaves. What was worth mentioning was that all seven hundred slaves had awakened combat energy. Most of them were Steel-rank, while a few were Bronze-rank. Many of them were former soldiers or garrison members of the Crimson Empire. They had been captured during the civil war and sold to the slave traders. Because they were burdened by their families, they were unable to escape or resist.
The price to purchase them was very high. An Iron-rank slave cost twenty gold fords, a Bronze-rank slave cost fifteen gold fords, and their families, regardless of gender or age, were each given one gold coin. The slave traders were also very smart. Slaves like these were usually sold as a package to reassure the slaves. Once they had something to worry about, they wouldn't escape or resist, and they could make the most out of it.
Fatty Shi tried his best to lower the price to sixteen thousand gold coins. He then bought a batch of food and clothes. After paying a large deposit for the food, he realized that he only had around four thousand gold coins left. He still had to pay for the food and transportation, which would cost around two to three thousand gold coins. That was why he didn't want to buy weapons for the slaves. Since Laurist would bring weapons and equipment to meet up with them, he didn't care too much about it. In the end, because the slaves weren't equipped with weapons, they were targeted as soon as they arrived at Methrin Harbor.
The Slov Slave Hunters observed Fatty Shi and the others for two days after they set up camp. They determined that Fatty Shi and the others were slave traders, or perhaps they were slave traders who used the name of a noble. Since they were in the same trade, how could they not pay their respects to the Slov Slave Hunters when they arrived at Methrin Harbor? On the third day, they sent someone to notify Fatty Shi and the others. First, they had to pay five thousand gold coins as a toll. Second, they had to leave half of the slaves in the camp. That was the only way to ensure their safety.
Fatty Shi, of course, refused. He explained that this was the Norton Family's army, but the few people who came were rude and unreasonable. They claimed that they had never heard of the Norton Family. Even if the nobles of the Norton Family came, they would have to bow their heads obediently.
If it wasn't related to his family, Fatty Shi was still talking to them nicely. However, when they started speaking arrogantly, Fatty Shi immediately turned hostile. The most arrogant one was cut down on the spot, and the rest were beaten up and chased away. At this time, Fatty Shi realized that the situation wasn't good. He wanted to bring some people to the town to buy some weapons, but he realized that the people in the town viewed them as enemies. They weren't even willing to sell a kitchen knife, let alone weapons.
Having no choice, Fatty Shi went back to the camp and immediately started cutting wood for weapons. At least, every strong slave was given a wooden spear. More than three thousand people only had a few dozen weapons. In the end, they were surrounded and attacked by two to three hundred people from the slave hunters for three days. If not for everyone risking their lives, they wouldn't have been able to hold on. Fortunately, Boffinger and his two comrades were able to hold off the three Gold-tier swordsmen of the slave hunters, as well as the twelve old students who fought with all their might, causing about twenty to thirty casualties to the slave hunters. Only then did the slave hunters retreat with some hesitation.
During these three days, the camp was besieged. Seventeen slaves died, and more than fifty were injured. More than forty people were captured. Seven out of the twelve old students were injured, and they were still fighting with injuries. The slave hunters also changed their strategy and began to surround the camp. They were ready to wait for Fatty Shi and the others to run out of food. Then, they would easily and effortlessly catch them all in one fell swoop. Seeing that there wasn't much food left in the camp and that they wouldn't be able to hold on for long, Lorist and the others finally arrived.
At this point, the tent flap moved. Bofinger brought two burly men into the tent.
Bofinger was relieved to see Lorist. "My lord, you've finally arrived."
He then introduced the two burly men beside him to Lorist. "My lord, these are my former comrades. This is Rod Wales, a two-star Gold-tier Swordsman. This is Mons Malek, a three-star Silver-tier Peak. They also want to follow me to the north to have a look. "
Bofinger's meaning was simple. These two might want to find a family to be loyal to, but they didn't know much about Lorist. They couldn't resist Bofinger's persuasion, so they decided to follow Lorist and the others for a while. If they got along, they would join them. If not, they would leave. Bofinger hoped that Lorist would make them stay.
Lorist stood up and bowed to the two. "Thank you for your help. Without your help a few days ago, this camp would have been breached. The Norton Family will never forget your kindness. If you have any requests, the Norton Family will do our best. "
Rod Wales, who was shorter and more muscular, was more forthright. He smiled and waved his hand. "No need to be so polite. Just based on our friendship with Borg, we can't just stand by and watch. It's only right for us to help."
Mons Malek, who had a more serious expression, was a man of few words. He didn't say anything and only nodded.
Just as Lorist was about to speak, he saw Dolles rush in from outside. He looked a little nervous. "Lord Locke, the other camp is preparing to attack us again …"
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