Viscount Finn from Narey, accompanied by several Knight in dark blue battle robes, ascended a high ground near Fort Bunuo. He raised the monocular in his hand and observed the smoke-filled Northern Acropolis of Ampere Seale from afar.
At the end of the narrow line of sight through the telescope, a corner of Fort Bunuo had completely collapsed. Some of the broken rocks had completely melted into crystals, and billowing smoke rose from the city into the air. According to his years of experience, the other party should have used fire elemental magic to break the city wall and break into the city. More than a hundred Coast Guards in the Acropolis fled into the countryside without resistance.
Viscount Finn did not say a word. Was this the impenetrable city defense of Ampere Seale that the Coast Guard officer had boasted to him? The city wall had been in disrepair for a long time, and its defensive capability was less than half of some of the northern fortresses. Some of the battlements were obviously covered with moss. If it were not for the broken flags with anchors that were thrown under the city wall, he would have thought that this was an abandoned castle. Not to mention the weak combat power of its soldiers.
Soon, the scouts in front of him came back with news that confirmed his opinion. The princess's army should have passed through this area at 8 to 9 pm. The information returned by the Wyvern Knight also supported this evidence. However, the cavalry scouts still found some injured Coast Guards. According to these soldiers who witnessed the scene, a small team under the princess sneaked into the vicinity of the castle. Two women, or to be exact, two powerful sorceresses, used Fireball to break the city wall. Then the light cavalry swarmed in, and the Coast Guards' resisted to the death 'and were defeated.
However, Viscount Finn received a more reliable description: In fact, it was indeed a small team of the enemy who attacked, but it was not a powerful sorceress. It was two elves, one tall and one short, who looked like they were still children. At first, the enemy seemed to want to use Fireball to test the city's defense. Unexpectedly, the city wall of Fort Bunuo had been in disrepair for a long time, and it had accumulated water in the storm. Suddenly, it encountered high temperature and exploded. More than a dozen Coast Guards died at that time. This was the only loss of the Coast Guards in this battle.
Then the light cavalry of the Royal Knight Academy swarmed in through the gap. The Coast Guards immediately disarmed and surrendered. Only a few people escaped into the wilderness.
"The kingdom is full of trash," Viscount Finn replied angrily.
However, he was too embarrassed to raise his voice because the Black Blade Squad's performance was not any better. In fact, this was the reason why he was so furious. In the afternoon, Baron Warren, who had promised that he would restrain the princess's army, led a whole group of Highland infantry to deliver a feast to the enemy. Not only did they lose their lives, but the most important thing was that less than three hundred of them came back alive. He did not know how to explain this to Count Vitokin.
Viscount Finn was filled with resentment. Those highlanders, who used to flaunt their prowess and gang up, were all beaten up as if they had seen a ghost. They could not even speak clearly. More importantly, Baron Warren's misjudgment had indirectly affected his judgment. The mountain folk's nonsense made him miss a good opportunity. Of course, Viscount Warren was too embarrassed to say that he was also frightened at that time, thinking that Her Highness was going to turn back and devour his regiment. Thinking about it, it was not impossible. As a result, he panicked and called back the Wyvern Knight, and the consequences were obvious.
At this moment, looking down from the high ground, it was clear at a glance that the princess's army had cunningly turned around and attacked Fort Bunuo, sweeping away all the food stored inside. What made him even more embarrassed was that the other party had also set a torch and set the nearby noble manors on fire.
Those nobles were now angrily looking for trouble with his immediate superior, Count Vitokin. The local nobles in Erouine were deeply rooted, and even a big shot like Vitokin dared not offend them easily. However, he had caused trouble for this lord, and presumably, this lord would not be so magnanimous as to let bygones be bygones.
Fortunately, he was not left empty-handed. He put down his copper binoculars and held a sheepskin report in his other hand. This report was first sent by the Wyvern Knight, and it was the testimony of the Fort Defense Officer. The other party confirmed that the princess did have a group of Mercenaries of Lopes.
This was consistent with the information sent from the rear.
Viscount Finn put away the information and carefully observed the messy Bunuo area, then wiped his sleeves and walked down the high ground. Accompanied by several Knights, he got on his horse and galloped towards a pine forest not far away.
Count Vitokin was waiting for him.
Vitokin was standing in an open space in the forest at the moment. In front of him were Yoakam, Duke Seifer, the old Knight Captain Leider, Marquis Balta, and several other high-ranking members of the Northern Legion. If they were all wiped out here, it was estimated that the collapse of the Northern Coalition Army near Ampere Seale would be imminent.
Unfortunately, a total of ten Knights of the Holy Cathedral wearing golden-red flame-patterned robes and holding flaming greatswords surrounded the woodland would not let this possibility become a reality.
Vitokin looked at the report on the paper, curled his pale knuckles and flicked them gently. The expression on his face was neither happy nor sad. In fact, it was not that he deliberately wanted to maintain this expression, but the loss of a large group of Highland infantry was really not a big deal to him. After all, they were not his direct subordinates. Although his fief was the Grey Mountain Territory, the Highlanders had always been rebellious and had always maintained their independence.
It was good to let the barbarians suffer a little. It was just that the death of his loyal retainer, Baron Warren, made him feel a little pained.
He passed the sheepskin to the others and then looked up at the middle-aged man in a red robe who was standing in the middle of the group. It was obvious that he had a more respectable position. The middle-aged man was wearing a red robe and silver gothic plate armor. This person had a unique appearance. His face was sharp and long, but two curly beards decorated this face with a unique majesty. Under a pair of thick golden eyebrows, sky-blue eyes were bright and spirited, like a pair of sharp swords.
"Lord Williams, it seems that the White Lion Legion's judgment was not wrong. The princess does have a trump card in her hand that we did not expect. In fact, it is far beyond our expectations. " Count Vitokin did not pretend to be respectful at all. Even when he faced Archbishop Moros, the expression on his face was at most respectful. But when he faced this middle-aged man, it was like a mouse seeing a cat.
This man was the leader of the Knights of the Holy Cathedral, the Knight Reserve Instructor of the Holy Cathedral of Fire, the Deputy Head of the Holy Cathedral of Fire, Duke Dolenc (1) of the Cruz Empire, Grand Knight Williams.
If Brando was here, he would also recognize this person at a glance. This person's status in the Cruz Empire was similar to that of the Goddess of War Veronica. It could be said that he was far above the Archbishop of Ampere Seale. However, his strength was also a little higher than Veronica's. It was said that he was in the late stage of the pinnacle of the Law and was only a step away from the Ultimate Realm.
However, this person was a complete chauvinist and a pure-blooded Cruz noble. He probably did not care about Erouine at all. Although he also knew that the Kingdom of Erouine was different from the other small duchies and had a special meaning to Cruz, he was only here to get rid of some insects and welcome back the Flaming Blade Oderfeiss.
Williams nodded arrogantly, but did not answer.
"But we have almost finished our investigation. The princess's army is not her own private army, nor is it the power of the Royal Faction. The Royal Faction has indeed parted ways with her, and the power in her hands is most likely from a young man called Brando. "
"Brando?" Williams raised his eyebrows. "I have never heard of such a noble in your kingdom. Is he from the Holy Cathedral of Wind?"
"Somewhat related." Count Vitokin smiled coldly. "This person is about 20 years old. The first time he appeared was in Bucce …"
Hearing the two words' Bucce ', the deputy commander of the Holy Cathedral Knight Regiment raised his head and frowned.
"… Then he gathered a group of outlaws in Tónigel and stirred up trouble. In fact, we mistakenly judged that this person was just a spy for Her Highness, but we later found out that we were very wrong."
Count Vitokin glanced at Marquis Yoakam, who quickly replied, "The first time I saw this person in Ampere Seale was in the Holy Cathedral. He has the strength of a Gold rank."
"Wait, you said that this person is only 20 years old and has the strength of a Gold rank?"
"Yes, when I first saw him, he was just promoted to a Knight of the Holy Cathedral by Archbishop Wood. My men fought with him once, and the Archbishop can testify for me." Marquis Yoakam continued to answer.
"Okay, I believe you. But since this person is willing to convert to the Holy Cathedral, he is also a talent. "Williams replied calmly.
"If that was the case, it would be fine. But I didn't expect that it was just a conspiracy within the Holy Cathedral. Later, there was evidence that this person supported Her Highness behind the scenes to instigate the rebellion, and organized the heretics to attack the nobles in Ampere Seale."
"In other words, this person is actually a spy for All For One or Tree Herders?"
"I'm afraid it's not just that, my Lord." Marquis Yoakam bowed respectfully and said, "The second time I saw him, he was with Count Yanbao. But at that time, I suspected that he was Count Yanbao. "
"Oh, that Sword Guardian Family?"
"Yes, but it turned out that I guessed wrong. Later, according to the investigation of our informants on the Princess' side, we found that this person's origin was very suspicious. Not only did he collude with the heretics, but he also secretly formed an alliance with the Nagas. From the latest news we just received, the Mercenaries of Lopes were also his men … "
"And earlier, I'm afraid it was this person who used the Heaven's Armor in the city." Marquis Yoakam smiled coldly and replied word by word.
Everyone knew that the Mercenaries of Lopes came from White Harbor and the city-state of Lopes, and whether it was White Harbor or Lopes, they belonged to the Ten-City Alliance, which was the sphere of influence of Fanzin of the Kingdom of the Holy Cathedral. And Brando had both the Mercenaries of Lopes and the Heaven's Armor under his command. The implications of this were a bit thought-provoking.
Williams' face darkened at once. "Hmph, the Holy Cathedral's reach is a little too far." He glanced at Count Vitokin and the others again and said with some teaching tone, "But I think it's just to tie down the hands and feet of the Holy Cathedral. For them, it's just an enclave. Don't forget who is closer to the Empire."
The few from the Kingdom did not answer, but only Leider's face darkened. In terms of seniority, he was not inferior to this so-called deputy commander of the Holy Cathedral's Knight Regiment. The two had fought side by side during the November War, and their positions were similar. It was just that Williams was lucky to be born in a big empire like Cruz. If the old Knight had such strong financial support behind him, his achievements would not necessarily be limited to Elemental Power.
What's more, he represented the White Lion Legion, which was a natural enemy of Cruz. The old man simply snorted and did not bother to look at this guy.
Marquis Yoakam did not expect that his words would cause a ruckus on his side. He hurriedly changed the topic and said, "In fact, it's not just that. Sir, there is more important news that has been missed."
"It's enough," Williams looked at the man with some disgust, "I know what you want to say, but the crime of colluding with the Holy Cathedral is enough to destroy him. I know you want to ask the Holy Cathedral to take action, but if you want me to do it, I have a condition. That is, your princess must be escorted back to the Empire."
He did not mention the matter of the cultists. The deputy commander of the Holy Cathedral's Knight Regiment was not a fool. He had long seen that there was something fishy about it. However, nobles more or less had some dark relationships. As long as they did not completely stand on the opposite side of the Order, then they could tolerate it.
Anyway, he knew that these guys were just using each other.
Marquis Yoakam was slightly startled. He did not expect the other party to raise this suggestion. To be honest, Princess Gryphine was a member of the royal family after all. At most, they would dare to poison her and assassinate her. But to be escorted back to the Empire, the nobles of Erouine would have nowhere to put their faces.
But the deputy commander of the Holy Cathedral's Knight Regiment was obviously not reasonable. He just replied lightly, "Since the Holy Cathedral is involved, then the Holy Cathedral must have a sinner with enough weight to give an explanation."
"But that person has enough weight." Duke Seifer, who had been silent all this time, suddenly replied.
"Hmm?" Williams snorted in dissatisfaction.
"The Highland Knight's previous speech has already exposed the other party's identity. If I'm not wrong, the one following the young man should be The Shire of the Peloche Family. So, the identity of the young man who has been hiding in the dark is obvious at a glance. Who has such influence in the Kingdom? It would be his descendant. "
"Cardiloso Darius."
As soon as the name was said, Williams's face immediately changed. He turned his head and coldly stared at Duke Seifer. It was as if the other party was not a duke of a country, but his subordinate.
At that moment, Duke Seifer had the illusion of being coldly stared at by Brando. It was as if his whole body had fallen into an ice cave.
"You better not joke around. Even if you don't know the seriousness of this matter, you should know the bottom line of the Holy Cathedral."
"No, my lord, what we said is true …" Marquis Yoakam also felt the sudden cold murderous intent and could not help but stutter as he replied.
"No, this is just your guess." The old Knight Leider suddenly frowned and interrupted them, "As Duke Dolunk said, you should know the seriousness of this matter. Before you are 100% sure, you must not speak nonsense!"
"Old Captain Leider, you know best! Benninger said before that the person holding the Lionheart Sword is the descendant of the Earth Knight. That girl is Freya Everton. Everyone knows best who took the descendant of the Earth Knight away. Since she has appeared, why can't he appear? "
"All the clues point to the truth!" Marquis Yoakam shouted at the top of his lungs, "Mr. Leider, I know your feelings. You should know what choice is best for the Kingdom! "
The old Knight was slightly startled, and then he could only sigh and shake his head.
Williams' expression changed. He stared at these people and finally nodded, "Very well, it better be true. I can't make the decision on this matter, but I will inform the Holy Cathedral immediately."
After saying that, he closed his eyes slightly. A moment later, he opened them again, and those sky-blue eyes were full of murderous intent. "Darius is dead, but he did leave behind a descendant. However, it is better to kill a hundred by mistake than to let one go."
The deputy captain of the Holy Cathedral Knight Regiment looked at them coldly, "You'd better be responsible for your words and deeds. You should be responsible for all the souls that died here today. As long as they followed him, they will die."
"The Holy Cathedral will never repeat the mistakes of the past and repeat the mistakes of today. I will do it myself, but you'd better keep your mouths shut. "
Marquis Yoakam and the others felt their hands and feet go cold for a moment, and they could not say a word. Only the Knight Leider seemed to have aged decades in an instant, turning into an old man. He shook his head and sighed deeply.
Williams turned his head and asked his subordinate Knight, "I need help. Tell Archbishop Wood if he has found any trace of Mephisto."
"Sir," the Knight replied immediately, "there should be news, but he won't be back for a while. These are Archbishop Wood's exact words. "
"Old cunning man." Williams could not help but raise his eyebrows.
But he raised his head, and his eyes were firm and cold, "Where is the princess?"
"They went in the direction of the Mar Highlands, sir."
"Want to enter the Arreck Mountains?"
"It's not that easy —"
…
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Background note:
(1) Dolenc, a Grand Duke located in the northern part of the Cruz Empire. At the same time, Duke Dolenc is also one of the Grand Dukes with real power in the Cruz Empire.
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PS: I finally finished writing before going to bed. It's a 5K chapter, so I didn't go back on my words. I'm so tired. I'm going to bed early and ask for votes. (To be continued.) If you like this work, you are welcome to come to qidian.com to vote for me. Your support is my biggest motivation.)
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