About 1,600 years ago, Emperor Charlemagne, who was more than 200 years old, almost unified the entire continent and established the Empire after a series of battles. That was the golden age of human beings. Charlemagne was the emperor of human beings for 400 years before he announced his abdication. Before he abdicated, he established the Kurfürst system in order to settle the disputes among the tribes about the successor.
The system of the Imperium was changed from centralization to enfeoffment. The vast territory was enfeoffed to the twelve Kurfürsten, and the emperor ruled the capital of the Imperium and the most prosperous plains on the entire continent near the capital. After the previous emperor passed away or died in battle, the twelve Kurfürsten and the Church of Justice, the Church of Life, and the Church of Magic would vote to elect the next emperor of the Imperium from several candidates for the throne. The Kurfürst system was still in use today.
"Speaking of which, Mr. Oliver, the Empire is a powerful country with centralization of power. Why did it establish such an Kurfürst system? Isn't the eldest son inheritance system also an option? " Laing looked at the scenery in the wilderness. In the distance, the pine forest was quietly standing on the mountains under the cover of snow. The cold air made the horses snort. Marther, the guard in the front, was carefully watching for possible movements. Focker was not very good at driving because he was not the one driving the carriage. The driver had died in the battle.
The weather was cold enough. It would only be more uncomfortable if they did not talk.
"If the Empire has no external enemies, and we are on an isolated island, no one will come to visit us, and we will not trade with others, then the eldest son inheritance is fine. However, the Empire is almost surrounded by enemies. Yes, now we have the Brittany knights as our allies, and we also have the dwarves who are close to us. But what about other places? There are enemies everywhere. His Majesty Charlemagne is using this method to hope that the most capable successor can lead the Imperium forward, instead of raising a bunch of spoiled losers because of the stupid discrimination of bloodlines. " The merchant of the Empire said in a tone full of admiration, "Emperor Charlemagne has never been shy about his past. He directly told the ministers that he used to let cows loose and was proud of it. Isn't His Holiness Ludwig also from a small noble in the countryside? Birth is not important. What is important is strength, bravery, and love for the Empire. "
"That makes sense." Laing nodded and did not say anything else.
After a few hours of trekking, they finally arrived at the harbor city of the Kingdom of Nords — Karcen Haven.
Compared to Ulan Town, which only had a few hundred households, Karcen Haven was much bigger. There were about eight hundred households living in the city. Looking from afar, one could roughly estimate the size of the city by looking at the black smoke rising into the sky. Although the gray walls were not very tall, they had been replaced by sturdy stone walls. The guards on the city gate were obviously better equipped. The guards of Ulan Town were all wearing breastplates, but the guards of Karcen Haven were wearing full sets of scale armor. They held spears and halberds in their hands and looked healthier. The captain of the guards was even wearing a full set of chain mail with a longsword on his waist, a shield in one hand, and a black robe on the other. From afar, he looked quite imposing.
"This medium-sized port can accept more than ten medium-sized merchant ships or large merchant ships. It has all the necessary facilities for a port. There are one hundred and fifty standing soldiers and one royal knight stationed at the port. If necessary, a maximum of six hundred militia can be recruited — if the lord of this place doesn't care about the consequences and costs." Leon turned around and introduced the port to Theresa.
"Have you been here before?" The sorceress looked at the medium-sized port city and asked curiously.
"There's no place in Nord that I haven't been to. I've even been to Skydome Castle, let alone this harbor." Laing was a little proud of himself. He had indeed traveled to many places. At least he was much better than Teresa who only appeared in a few major cities and stayed at home all day.
There were cargo ships sailing along the river. They seemed to be transporting goods. The soldiers at the port also looked very serious. They didn't know what was going on. In addition, Ryan noticed that there was a caravan at the city gate arguing with the garrison officer.
"Liars! Liars! You lied to me! Since we can't go out to sea! Why didn't you tell us? Why did you charge us entry fees? We don't want to stay any longer. Refund! "
It was chaos at the city gate. An entire group of merchants was dragging several carts of goods and arguing with the guards at the gate. Judging from the situation on both sides, it was obvious that the outcome was not good. Many of the guards had already reached for the hilts of their swords, and the spears of the guards were slowly tilting.
Since the group of people was not moving forward, the mercenary group's entry into the city had to be delayed. Laing was a little impatient. He was still waiting to enter the city to find traces of Berdt.
The royal knight got off his horse and walked up to them. "What happened?"
The rest of the people didn't move. Seeing that many of the guards had already grasped the hilt of their swords, the experienced vice-captain Wayde knew that this was not the time to provoke the nervous state of the guards. Everyone shifted their gaze to Theresa, wondering what they should do.
"Let's wait. At this time, only Laing is suitable to negotiate with them." Teresa rode on her horse, her long coat almost covering her long legs. Only the tips of her high-heeled boots were exposed.
The Garland Council was only a recognized organization. They did not have the power to directly interfere with the affairs of the kingdom. Strictly speaking, Teresa was not a noble of the Nords Kingdom. It was better to settle matters within the system.
A guard stopped Laing. "Good day, sir! You need to pay five silver denars to enter the city. We will issue you a pass for five days. Good morning! Lord Knight! "
Ryan flashed the badge of the White Wolf Knight, and the guards immediately saluted.
"What's going on?"
The guard lowered his head and whispered, "This … Lord Knight, the lord of the city announced a ban on the sea yesterday. No ships are allowed to go out to sea."
"There's no way to go out to sea here?!" Laing faintly thought of something. He frowned and scolded the guard, "Then why didn't the lord of the city inform us or post a notice? He only let us know that we can't go out to sea after collecting entry fees? Why can't we go out to sea? "
Even so, five silver denars was still too much. Laing thought to himself that the lord of the city was really ruthless in collecting taxes.
After collecting such an expensive entry fee, he still forbade us from going out to sea. It was obvious that he was trying to extort money from the merchants who wanted to go out to sea. After all, the money was already in his pocket. If you can't go out to sea, then you can't go out to sea. This is my territory, so you have to follow my rules, right? If you don't like it, then don't come!
This was the most typical of the lawful evil faction.
"Are there any hotels open?" The quarrel at the city gate had nothing to do with Laing. He did not want to get involved in this mess.
"Yes, sir. Because there aren't many customers, many hotels have lowered their prices. If you want to stay, the city is basically full because of the ban on going out to sea. There might be rooms available in the Butter Beer Inn in the city center. The luxurious rooms there are definitely suitable for your status as a knight. Of course, you can also inform the lord of the city …"
"Swoosh!" The sound of something tearing through the air could be heard. Leon subconsciously looked at the city gate. The caravan and the guard captain were already in a heated argument. After the guard captain gave the order, the guards on the city gate tower nocked their bows and shot an arrow into the soil in front of the caravan.
The guard captain was proud. He thought to himself, You people don't even know where you are standing. Is this a place where you dare to be presumptuous?
"Swoosh!" At this moment, a man in a cloak pulled out an arrow from the quiver on his back and nocked the arrow on his bow swiftly. In an instant, the helmet of the archer on the city wall flew into the sky while the archer remained unscathed. However, he was so frightened that he fell on his butt on the city wall.
This strength! This was an elite ranger! And it was very likely that he was an advanced elite! Laing's interest was piqued. He pulled his horse and stood like this, looking at the farce at the city gate with great interest.
Under the cloak, the Ranger's slightly pointed ears and slender face showed that he was a half-elf. The Ranger's face was full of arrogance, and he even smiled disdainfully at the guard captain. The guard captain subconsciously took a step back, and his face was very ugly. He was only a person with the strength of a beginner elite. Facing this powerful Ranger, he didn't have the confidence to take him down with less losses.
If the fight really breaks out and I lose my life, or a dozen of my subordinates' lives, then when the Lord blames me, I won't be able to keep my position as the Guard Commander!
Collecting taxes is a small matter, but my life and future are more important.
The guard captain subconsciously looked around and quickly noticed Laing who was watching the show.
A Royal Knight!
"Sir Knight! These unscrupulous merchants don't abide by our country's laws! They openly flouted the city lord's rules! " The guard captain immediately confirmed that this was a Royal Knight, so he immediately went up to Laing for help. Not only did he bow deeply, but he also flattered Laing with a face full of flattery. At the same time, he looked at the group of merchants with resentment. It sounded as if he had been greatly humiliated.
Laing raised his eyebrows. The merchants were busy quarreling, so they didn't notice him until now. Many of the guards saw that a Royal Knight had appeared here, and their eyes were filled with vigilance and uneasiness. The half-elf ranger clenched the longbow in his hand and looked at Laing unkindly. The merchants' guards all clenched the hilts of their swords, and the mercenaries looked a little hesitant. After all, no one wanted to offend a Royal Knight.
As a Royal Knight, Laing did have the duty to uphold the laws of the Kingdom of Nords, even if the laws weren't that reasonable. Seeing that the matter had spread to him, Laing gently raised his warhammer and said to the guard captain in an unfriendly tone, "Oh? Five silver denars to enter the city? Is that the law of Nords? Your city lord is really ruthless in collecting taxes. Even I, a Royal Knight, almost had to fork out this sum of money. "
"I'm very sorry, Sir, but this is the city lord's order. We can only obey!" The guard captain hurriedly apologized.
"That's right! Sir Knight, we came here because the taxes on commodities are lower than other ports. But now, after collecting such a high tax from us, you're telling us that we can't go out to sea?! What you said is not fair at all! "Oliver also came up to argue.
In the end, under Laing's mediation, everyone settled with three silver denars as the entrance fee. The entrance fee for the mercenaries was paid by Teresa, but she didn't care about a few dozen silver coins. As everyone entered the city one after another, Laing greeted everyone and rode towards the lord's manor in Karcen Haven.
The lord of Karcen Haven lived in a large wooden house in the middle of the city. It was a three-story building. The first floor was used to receive guests and serve as a dining hall, while the top two floors were personal spaces. Most of the building was made of wood. Laing notified the guards at the city gate, and soon found the clerk to check the records of the voyage.
"Yes, Mister Leon. Yesterday, there was indeed a tall and skinny man who rushed into the town right before closing time. He didn't stop and immediately requested to take a ship to Marlin Castle. The ship owners didn't want to do it at first, but this guy took out 15 gold denars and requested to go out to sea. This was already several times the normal price of going to Marlin Castle, so one of the ship owners decided to accept the money." The count's clerk flipped through the records and said to Leon.
"Gosh, I lost him!" Laing said grumpily. He had a premonition that he wouldn't be able to catch up with Belter after being slowed down by the Orcs.
"Why can't we go out to sea?" Laing asked.
"This morning, the High Priest of the Sea Temple informed Lord Sherlock that there were a large number of sea monsters gathering in the nearby waters. The Barbarian fleet in the North was plundering Merchant Convoys. For safety reasons, Lord Sherlock ordered that we're not allowed to go out to sea," the clerk said.
"Alright, I understand." Laing knew that he wouldn't be able to catch up with Belter. Even if he could convince Lord Sherlock to arrange a ship for them to go out to sea, the risk was too great. He had to plan for the long term and report to Archbishop Innocent first.
It was noon when they came out of the tower. It was rare for the dark clouds to recede, and a few rays of sunlight stubbornly broke through the clouds, bringing some warmth to the land. It was still November, and it was already so cold. If they waited until the Winter Veil Festival, who knew how long it would be before they could see the sun.
"Archbishop Innocent, I lost Belter," Laing said helplessly as he pressed the gemstone on his bracelet.
"I know. Belter took the opportunity to leave Nord on a ship yesterday. It's not your fault. When I notified you, it was already two days after the incident, and …" The dignified voice sounded tired. "Now is not the time to pay attention to Belter. The Barbarians in the North are making a big move. At least 20,000 Barbarian soldiers are gathering. Let's put this matter to rest for now."
What? The Barbarians in the North are heading south again?
This wasn't good news at all.
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