"Lord Xiao, the situation is very bad. I'm afraid we are trapped. Almost all the slave camps have been breached and the slaves have been released." Cohen stood on the tower, looked around for a long time and said to Xiao Chen.
"How many strong slaves are there in this market?" Xiao Chen asked.
"I'm afraid there are more than 3,000." He pointed to the west of the city and said, "The gate leading to Suero has been captured, and many people have gathered there. The other gate out of the town has also been blocked. There are still many groups of thugs in the village sweeping back and forth across the camps."
Xiao Chen narrowed his eyes, pointed at a well-fortified fortress near the center of the village, and asked, "What is that fortress? It seems to be relatively quiet around here."
"That is the fortress of Juan's family, the most heavily defended building in the entire village. It is probably the only one in the village that has not been conquered yet. Old Juan had one leg chopped off in the last slave uprising, so he was particularly careful about saving his life. I guess the slave traders close to him may have hidden inside." Cohen replied.
"Just now, several groups of people tried to attack the fortress, but were repelled by the archers inside. Now the slaves are busy grabbing money, and I guess no one will go for a head-on confrontation." said Kalanda.
"Maybe taking shelter inside is an option..." Cohen suggested carefully.
"No. I don't recommend that." Roger immediately retorted, "My suggestion is to find a wall with few people around and break through it directly."
"But this will easily lead to casualties. Isn't the fortress closer and safer? We just need to hold on until the surrounding lords come with their troops..." Cohen asked back.
"But how long will it take for the reinforcements to arrive? Are you sure?" Roger asked. Cohen was speechless for a moment. Everyone knew that the lords were unwilling to do such a thing as suppressing the rebellion, and they would definitely shirk responsibility on the issue of sending troops. The Suero City Defense Force was thankful that they could protect themselves. If they really hid in the fortress, they would be trapped and starved to death.
"That fortress is a dead end. Now the slaves are fighting on their own. In order to survive, they will always gather together. When people gather together, they will have a leader. Once they choose a leader and gather their men, it will not be difficult to capture the fortress. We don't have much time. If we want to leave, we must leave early while there is chaos." Luo Ling said, looking at the wall in the distance. After she said this, both Cohen and Roger looked at her with more surprise. They all realized for the first time that this woman in a robe seemed to be very insightful.
Xiao Chen had been keeping his head down, listening to their discussion in silence. Suddenly he asked, "Luo Ling, there are many benefits to us in the outer city of Suero, right?"
"Three quarters of our industry is in the outer city. Why, you can't bear to part with these bottles and jars? Saving your life should be the most important thing now, right?" She retracted her gaze and walked in front of Xiao Chen.
Xiao Chen raised his head, looked at Luo Ling and said, "That's all your hard work, and it's also the help we need for development. If it's all gone, how much time will it take to start from scratch? Besides, Li Jia, Lao Chen, and Xi Luo should all be active in the outer city today. What if they don't have time to evacuate when the slaves plunder the outer city?"
"You want to stop this riot?" Luo Ling's eyes were full of surprise. She understood what Xiao Chen meant by his eyes and his persistence. She knew that Xiao Chen was a bold and careful guy. Although he might do things in a rough way, he did have his own reasons. So she nodded and said, "Tell me about it."
Xiao Chen drew out the Spark Sword and drew circles on the wooden floor of the clock tower. The power it represented was written on the edge of each circle. "You see, things have developed to this point now, and it is clear what each party wants. The slaves want to get rid of their identities and gain freedom, and of course it would be best if they could make some money. Those slave traders who are still alive probably just want to save their own lives, and it would be better if the property losses are smaller. The people in and outside the city of Suero hope that the slaves will not rob them. The kingdoms and lords hope that the riots will be quelled as soon as possible to save them some trouble. Right?"
"That's right, and then what?" Luo Ling asked.
"Originally, this riot could have ended in a loss for all. For example, among the slaves, there would be some masters like Ralph. These masters would control the slave team in the next few hours and turn the ordinary slaves into cannon fodder to attract attention. In the end, most of the slaves would be killed by the encircling army, and only a few masters would escape with the treasure." Xiao Chen drew another small circle in the circle representing the slaves, representing the masters and leaders. Then he crossed out the large circle of slaves with a horizontal line.
Although the others didn't know what cannon fodder was, they all understood what Xiao Chen meant.
"Then, all the slave traders here will probably die. Many people in Suero will lose everything. There will be many refugees and famine in the kingdom, and even more towns will be looted." Xiao Chen continued to draw a horizontal line on the circles representing slave traders, Suero merchants, and surrounding lords. "Everyone is in trouble."
"But." He drew a small circle in the gap between the four big circles, "We are here. We don't have any deep conflicts with any of the four parties, but we are in the middle of them. More importantly, we have a certain combat capability, which gives us a chance to resolve this incident."
"Sir... But why do they listen to us?" Cohen asked puzzled.
Xiao Chen pointed at Cohen and asked, "Why did you listen to me and offer up the treasure?"
"Because... I want to save my life?"
"There are many ways to save your life. Why did you choose to follow us in the end?" Xiao Chen asked.
"Because you are a magician and have powerful subordinates..."
"So it's the same for slaves." Xiao Chen shrugged.
"But there are so few of us and so many of them!" Cohen still couldn't understand.
"No matter how many scattered grains there are, they can't defeat a single fist." Luo Ling answered for Xiao Chen.
She looked at Xiao Chen and sighed, "Xiao Chen, Xiao Chen, I never thought you could be so brave. I hope you're not just being a hero."
“Sometimes, a so-called hero is just someone who has nowhere to retreat.”
"But you have a way out."
"Is that really a way out? Considering our situation and the threats in this world, I feel that we have been pushed to the edge of a cliff. The other side of the cliff is quite far away from us. Our choice is nothing more than a desperate leap or a helpless leap."
Luo Ling looked at his serious expression and slowly revealed a smile, "I forgot to tell you that there is no word 'helpless' in my dictionary."
"I know, I know." Xiao Chen also smiled.
"However, there is still a small problem." Luo Ling pointed to the large circle of slaves, "The slaves are not a whole yet, and the leaders will not give up their positions easily."
"Then let's help them become a whole! We..." Xiao Chen stabbed the small circle representing the slave master with a sword, "Start solving the problem from here."
———————————
At the edge of Suero's outer city, Silver Leaf Priest Roland and Apprentice Priest Ganuo were riding horses, looking at the slave fortress in the distance, which was emitting black smoke and flames. Many merchants around them were already terrified, and people were crowding out of the city with large and small bags of property. Some went to the inner city, while more rushed to the main road and fled to other towns for refuge.
The slave uprising was so terrible that many old people still remembered it vividly. The outer city of Suero was actually just a huge market, without walls or towers. The city defense army would definitely only defend the inner city, and the people in the outer city would have to fend for themselves. In front of hundreds of thugs, a little martial arts was of no use at all. So most people chose to run away.
The quiet figures of Roland and his companions stood out in the chaos. Many people would look at them in surprise when passing by, but when they saw the priest robes on them, they would respectfully and carefully avoid them. A huge monster like the Temple of Nature is sometimes more terrifying than a rioting slave.
"How far are the Knights of the Wind from us?" Roland asked.
"According to the agreement, they should be escorting the baggage 'passing by' just after noon. In another hour, they should be almost there." Ganuo was obviously a little uneasy. He couldn't help but ask, "Should I go to meet them?"
"If you are impatient, God will not bless you. If you think calmly, great things will come to you. You are really like your father in this matter of impatience. The most important thing for us now is to observe how the situation develops."
"Yes, sir."
"Earlier, what you said to Miss Luo was also about this issue."
"I... I think that if a mage like her is trapped in the camp, it will increase unpredictable variables." Ganor whispered.
"You are worried about her safety."
"No, oh, no, she is also our partner, you said she is important."
Priest Roland smiled and looked at him and said, "It is human nature to pursue beautiful things. There is nothing to be ashamed of. However, you underestimate Miss Luo Ling. Not to mention that she is deep-minded and her strength is unpredictable, let's take the female mercenary Kalanda and the male mage Xiao Chen, who is easy to deal with? At most, they will suffer a small loss. As for us, as long as the slaves start to riot, we will achieve our goal. The bread is now in the oven, and we will take it out and eat it when the time comes."
Ganuo's face flushed and he nodded without saying anything.
"On the contrary, you went too far by scolding her for buying slaves. Not to mention that she would doubt it later given her intelligence, this is not a good thing for your small goal. Who would like someone who scolds them unreasonably?"
Ganuo grunted and couldn't answer, so he changed the subject and asked, "From the looks of it, the fighting inside is very intense. Are there too many deaths?"
Roland said, "Nature is ruthless. This ruthlessness may be cruel to individuals, but it is a gift to the whole. It allows us to do the right thing without getting entangled in details. Mortals are short-sighted and cowardly. They will be afraid of death and shed tears because of sympathy, but these are nothing in front of nature. The only difference between these people dying now or in fifty years is that they will offer a gift to the God of Nature, a gift made of blood."