It was as if in the blink of an eye, the betrayal of the six northern provinces of the Empire under the leadership of Princess Constance had turned from a rumor that could only be discussed in whispers to public news. On the streets and in the marketplace, almost everyone's topic had turned to this matter. The people anxiously discussed the situation before them, asking for the latest intelligence, and switching from one unreliable intelligence source to another. They discussed the motive of the princess, discussed the goal of the six northern provinces, guessed the changes in the frontlines and His Majesty the Emperor's response. But the most worrying thing was the battle that took place a few days ago at the Copperus River, and the small village that was destroyed in the battle. People could not help but worry, because that place was not far from the local area.
According to the latest intelligence, it was an unexpected encounter. A group of Broken Blades and their squires who were heading north to answer the princess' call were discovered by the Knights of the Ebon Blade before they crossed the river, and both sides engaged in a chaotic battle. The Broken Blades were only a tenth of the enemy's number, but both sides were evenly matched, and the battle was inconclusive. Both sides chose to retreat after paying a heavy price, and there was no victor. But in the long run, the commander of the Knights of the Ebon Blade would definitely be restless, because the Broken Blades had disappeared after the battle, and no one knew if they were already heading north, or still roaming the land …
And the most direct effect was that every town had to step up their checks and questioning of passersby.
It was easy to leave the town, but it was not so easy to enter the next town. A temporary checkpoint stood in the way of Greenway, and a large number of fully-armed imperial soldiers were checking every passer-by to prevent them from being disguised Broken Blades or other traitors loyal to the Princess. There were even figures of the Ebon Blades in front of the checkpoint. They were fully clad in black steel armor, and their faces were shrouded in dragon-shaped helmets. The magic-guided mechanical swords at their waists hummed softly, and together with their masters, they were on guard against all passersby.
Hao Ren opened the curtains and looked at another group of travelers who were being interrogated in front of his caravan. His eyes lingered on an Ebon Blade for a moment before he turned back. "Looks like the interrogation is pretty strict."
"The situation is developing faster than expected," Charlemagne said with a frown. "The news of the rebellion in the north should not have spread so quickly. At least the imperial corps and the local officials should have been prepared before the news was released in a planned and guided manner."
"So those who spread the news may not necessarily be working for the emperor." Vivian was not surprised. "It seems that the Dragon Empire is not as united and loyal as you said. At least six provinces in the north responded to the call of rebellion, and there are many unstable factors in the south as well."
"Our understanding of the Dragon Empire is limited." Awenna's face was still calm, and she did not feel embarrassed at all. "Even the most stable country will have unstable factors. His Majesty Berentine has ruled this land for thousands of years, and he cannot guarantee that everyone in this land will be absolutely loyal to him, especially when there is a princess whose reputation is second only to his."
Lily gritted her teeth. "This is a classic example of a daughter betraying her father. His Majesty must be bruised by now."
"Huh?" Charlemagne and Awenna were dumbfounded.
"Don't mind her," Hao Ren said, waving his hand. "She talks nonsense when she eats something wrong."
While they were talking, the caravan had arrived at the checkpoint. Several imperial soldiers waved their hands and stopped the caravan, asking for a routine inspection.
Charlemagne instinctively reached for the saber at his waist and his other hand touched his chest. He wore the royal emblem of the Ancient Kingdom of Izzo, and if the situation really got out of hand, this emblem would be his last resort.
But when he glanced at Hao Ren and the other three who were sitting in the back of the caravan, he was surprised to find that the four of them were not nervous at all. They even had the mood to chat and laugh together, which puzzled him.
The Basilica of the World Tree had been isolated from the world for so long that the people who came out of the temple did not have the most basic sense of crisis?
At this time, the imperial soldiers had come to the front of the caravan. Charlemagne took a deep breath, and his expression instantly became humble and nervous. He opened the door panel, drew the curtain, and poked half of his body out. A moment later, his voice came from outside. "We are a caravan heading to Greenway. Here is the pass and the goods list. They are all very ordinary handicrafts and cloth. "
A moment later, the imperial soldier's loud voice was heard. "The original destination on the pass was Graymountain? Why did you change to Greenway? "
"Graymountain is not a place we dare to go!" Charlemagne quickly replied, sounding like a frightened merchant. "I heard that there are rebels in the city! The Knights of the Broken Blade are a bunch of murderous fellows, we dare not deal with them. Greenway is guarded by the imperial army, it should be safer there. "
Hearing the commotion coming from outside the caravan, Hao Ren was stunned. He did not expect the seemingly paranoid prince to have such acting skills. Could it be that he was also an actor?
But an excellent performance did not affect the imperial soldiers' inspection. Hao Ren heard the imperial soldiers outside shouting, "Everyone who goes north will say the same thing! Open all the carriages, we want to check all the goods and everyone! "
Charlemagne could not refuse the request, or else everyone would be detained the next moment, so he had to open the curtains.
A few imperial soldiers went to check the goods in the other two caravans while an Ebon Blade knight in black steel armor, accompanied by another imperial soldier in light armor, boarded the modified caravan.
The heavily armored Ebon Blade knight made the bottom of the caravan sink a little.
The knight, who looked like a black tin can, scanned everything in the caravan. His expression was indiscernible from his black visor, and even the holes for his eyes showed nothing but darkness.
Hao Ren had long been curious about such a famous knight, so he took the time to observe every detail of the Ebon Blade knight. His first impression was that the knight seemed to lack vitality and vitality, but it did not feel like a revenant.
The Ebon Blade knight was undoubtedly a living person, but it did not seem to be completely alive.
The imperial soldier behind the knight bowed his head respectfully. "Sir, this caravan is a little strange. The magitek device makes a very faint sound, and the axles seem to have been modified …"
The Ebon Blade knight nodded slightly and took a step forward, and under some strange intuition, his eyes met Rheia's.
Rheia looked up from her homework, and she looked at the black tin can before her. "We are a merchant caravan heading to Greenway, safe and legal. Can we go now?"
The Ebon Blade knight nodded, and a deep voice came from under his visor. "You are a merchant caravan heading to Greenway, safe and legal. Can we go now?"
The imperial soldier was stunned, but at this checkpoint, the Ebon Blade knight's orders were unquestionable, and so he quickly nodded and jumped out of the carriage as he yelled at the other soldiers, "Let us go, let us go! These caravans are fine!"
After passing through the checkpoint and stamping Greenway's pass, Charlemagne and Awenna finally calmed down. They then looked at Rheia, who had shrunk back into the carriage and seemed to be in a daze.
Rheia had been in a daze for a long time, and the siblings thought she was an autistic child.
"What's wrong?" Noticing the stares, Rheia once again popped her head out of her sea of learning and asked curiously.
"What did you just do?" Awenna was shocked. "How could the Ebon Blade knight let us go so easily? He's already suspicious of us!"
Charlemagne nodded slightly. For a moment, he had sensed the suspicion of the Ebon Blade and the murderous aura that was about to be unleashed. He had even prepared himself for a fight, but he did not expect that after the little girl's words, the unusual aura of the Ebon Blade disappeared.
"It's nothing, just telling the truth," Rheia said solemnly, but she did not finish the second half of her sentence: turning the truth into reality.
Even though she was just a projection, and she was not familiar with it and could only unleash a little of its power, the power of a true god was not something a mortal like the Ebon Blade Knight could defend against even if she was just a projection.
Whatever she said with divine power was the truth.
Of course, due to the unstable connection of the projection and the lack of thought threads due to her obsession with learning, Rheia's ability was not omnipotent. If it was not an Ebon Blade knight but an entire army, then what she said would not have worked.
Charlemagne and Awenna did not know these details, and they naturally thought what happened was some sort of mental spell, and a secret technique from the Basilica of the Yggdrasil, and that made them even more incredulous. Awenna touched a strand of hair on her chest. "… I've never heard of an Ebon Blade knight being affected by a mental spell. They're almost immune to this kind of spell …"
While the two of them did not have anything to say, Hao Ren was intrigued by Awenna's words. "Immune to mental spells?"
"Yes, the Ebon Blade knights have extremely resilient minds, and are immune to most spells that involve the soul and mind. They also have a power called the Dragonsider, and once the Dragonsider is activated, they are like the dragons of legend, resistant to all sorts of magic, and their abilities will increase. So while they are not as powerful as the Broken Blades, they are still the most powerful unit in the world. But I did not expect you to be able to move so easily under their noses … "
Hao Ren nodded and did not say much, but he could not help but remember the strange feeling he had when he faced the Ebon Blade knight …
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