[I was urged by the editor to write something. I definitely won’t be able to update it twice today, and there will only be three updates tomorrow.]
Aini patiently burned the bodies of the five mercenaries, disassembled his magic weapons, and took back his backpack. WWw. QUanbEn-xIAoShUo. COm
"Salin, you can't stay here for a long time, and the town ahead is not safe." He was afraid that Salin didn't understand the situation of the Qin Yin Empire and its affiliated principalities, so he patiently explained: "Even if the town is not destroyed by the black magician, we encounter the army If so, we may be forcibly recruited. We have to try to avoid everyone."
After hearing this, Salin did not dare to stay long, so he grabbed the five horses left by the mercenaries, and the four of them hurriedly set off on the road.
Aini's health is not good, but fortunately he has excellent riding skills, which he has practiced since childhood, otherwise he would not be able to support himself. The group did not dare to take the main road and hid. It took them five days to approach the border of the Principality of Phoenix.
There were only two roads from Phoenix to Qin Yin. Seeing the city from a distance, Aini stopped his horse.
He jumped off the horse, walked to Salin's horse, took out a badge from his arms, and handed it to Salin. Salin took it in his hand and looked at it carefully. This badge is silver, a bit heavy to hold, and much smaller than my own mysterious badge.
In the center of the badge is a lion totem, which is the symbol of the Clyde family. The Clyde family did not have a fiefdom, but they were earls, hereditary. This silver badge is only issued to direct bloodlines. Anyone with a silver badge has the opportunity to become the leader of the family, and may even become the next patriarch.
Although Aini lost the magic string and had no development prospects, his bloodline could not be wiped out, and the family did not take back the badge. Salin was a little dissatisfied. If Aini took out the badge, Baron Cook might not kill him.
Aini smiled and said to Salin: "This badge is just a souvenir for me now. As long as I become a necromancer, my family will create a golden badge for me again. The badge has the alchemy mark I left on it. You take it with you and go to Karen County. My uncle's name is known to everyone in the area, it's Lance. He will give you the potion after reading the alchemy mark on the badge."
Salin frowned, jumped off the horse, grabbed Aini, and asked, "With your physical condition, why don't you come with me?"
"It doesn't matter. There are people in the family in this city. I have to stay and Baron Cook cannot be allowed to return to Qinyin. You three, give up your horses and cross over the mountains to avoid causing trouble."
Salin was silent for a long time before he smiled, picked up the badge given to him by Aini, and then took out a gem. This gemstone is crystal clear. Under the sunlight, there are black filaments inside like smoke and mist, as if they are still floating gently.
He put the gem into Aini's hand, patted Aini on the shoulder and said, "Take care."
Aini was in a daze. He looked at the retreating figures of Salin and others. He held the perfect black crystal in his hand and suddenly shouted loudly in the direction where Salin left: "Salin, become a great magician." Master, remember to find me..."
Salin heard Aini's shout. He did not look back, but waved his hand towards Aini.
If Aini was ten years older, Salin would not dare to get close to him at all. Only now, Aini's thin body and sickly face reminded him of his childhood. Two people, so similar.
After climbing dozens of mountains in a row, Salin and others finally entered the Qin Yin Empire. The border city of Phoenix is very small, but the Qin Empire has stationed heavy troops on the border. It's not that the emperor doesn't trust Archduke Phoenix. This regiment was left behind at the beginning of the founding of the country. Its main purpose is to prevent the resurgence of black magicians.
The city is huge, and this is the first time Salin has seen such a majestic tower since he left Scotia.
Looking from a distance, the city tower itself glows with copper-colored light, and the top of the city tower is covered with seven-color colored glaze. Salin was dazzled. Such a big deal was not from a nouveau riche. Seven-color colored glaze is a product of alchemy. With this stuff on the city tower, the mages under the magicians can't even perform magic locking.
The city walls that are tens of meters high are all made of huge blue steel bricks, which shine brightly under the setting sun. Obviously, in order to prevent the city walls from being corroded, they will be brushed frequently (similar to European castles, only on a larger scale).
The closer he got, the more Salin could feel the tremendous pressure brought by the city wall itself. There must be a solidified magic circle inside the city wall. The magic core has not been embedded yet, otherwise it might immediately activate the defensive magic on Saleen's magic robe.
With such a powerful pass, even hundreds of thousands of black puppets can't do anything about it.
Salin suddenly understood why the Qin Empire dared to fight against the Holy See and did not allow the Holy See to build any churches in its territory. Even priests did not dare to blatantly enter the empire area.
The foundation of the Magic Empire is so profound that even a city is so thrilling.
The disaster in the Principality of Phoenix has obviously not affected the empire. It is estimated that the Duke of Phoenix can still control the situation. The border city is still open, but there are many more soldiers patrolling the city.
If Grand Duke Fenix did not ask for the emperor's support, the Qin Yin Empire would not enter the country with large numbers of troops.
There are soldiers at the city gate checking passing merchants, but it is a bit deserted now. It is estimated that few merchants are willing to take risks at this time, and there are quite a few mercenaries.
Salin's identity as a magician allowed him to enter the city smoothly, and he was exempted from the city entry tax like a soldier. He just looked at his mercenary badge in passing. Salin sighed when he saw that the soldiers at the city gate were all wearing stainless steel armor and carrying the Qin Yin Eight-sided Sword. Those soldiers in Ceylon City are just a bunch of shit compared to here.
Guderian City, Salin remembered the name. This should be the name of a certain person. Naming a city after a person is a very common thing on the mainland. This man must have been a momentary hero and played an important role in history.
Salin had no intention of stopping at Guderian. He directly found the Professionals Union and hired ten mercenaries. This time he also rented a carriage, and without even stopping to rest, he walked through the city and quickly left the border.
The carriages were large and comfortable, and not cheap.
Saleen was lying on the large soft chair, opposite Nailis and Sikka.
"Nelisse, how are you doing with your Common Language?"
"Master, I don't even have time to study." Nailis held the book Salin gave her, which was full of phonetic notes. Sikka hugged her stick and seemed to be falling asleep. The carriage is extremely stable and may have some parts made by alchemists.
"You have three months to learn it. Otherwise, you will not be allowed to speak in the future." Salin said unceremoniously. During the decisive battle with the Headless Horseman, Nailisi dared to be passive and slow down, and almost killed Sikka.
"Yes, Master." Nailis replied with a grimace. Saleen felt regretful. If the little devil had grown up, he could have taught her memory magic, and there would be no need to go to such trouble. It's a pity that Nailis seems to be far away from adulthood. Who knows what harm tens of thousands of years of imprisonment will do to her.
There was peace in the empire. The carriage drove on the road for more than two months without encountering a single group of bandits. The mercenaries hired by Salin are very professional and do not talk to their employers. They just protect the carriages loyally and do not relax their vigilance even when they are resting in a big city.
For more than two months, Salin has been cautious and did not dare to use the badge for training. The mysterious badge can increase his mental power, but after using it, it will cause the body to lose control. Salin was frightened all the way and did not trust the mercenaries. However, Sika's injury was completely healed, and she was a little agitated in the carriage every day.
Fortunately, when he woke up that day, the mercenary knocked on the window of the carriage outside and whispered: "Master Mage, Kushui County has arrived."
Salin opened the carriage window. The sun was shining brightly outside, but it was still a bit chilly. It's already winter, this is still the middle of the empire, and it's going to snow.
"It's nine days ahead of schedule, let's call it 10 days." Salin smiled.
"Thank you, Master Mage." The mercenary was very polite.
"What? You won't follow me into the city?"
"No, we can't receive tasks here, and we have to collect taxes. Master Mage, there will no longer be danger here, we..."
Salin knew that the mercenaries did not want to enter Kushui County. He jumped off the carriage and looked up. He could already see a simple and solemn city in the distance.
"Brother, I would like to ask, what should I do if I want to see the princess?" Seeing that the mercenary refused to enter the city, Salin did not force him. It was only a few minutes away.
"You are a mage, just come to the door."
"Well, you can take this." Salin took out a deposit check from the Scotia Imperial Bank and said, "I don't have anything else with me, so I'll give you this."
This is a deposit check with a denomination of 100 gold coins. If exchanged in the Qin Yin Empire, it can only be exchanged for 90 gold coins. The loss in the process was quite large, but the price agreed upon by both parties was only 50 gold coins, and the extra 40 gold coins was a reward. Before hiring these mercenaries, Salin said that if they could arrive early, they would receive an additional four gold coins for each day they arrived in advance.
10 mercenaries worked hard for less than three months, and each of them could get 9 gold coins, which was a considerable income for low-level mercenaries. Moreover, there is peace in the empire, so this kind of escort mission is the easiest. Even if there is a secret group of thieves, they will not attack such a target.
The mercenary happily took the gold coins and went away, but Salin and others wanted to walk into the city.
This city is a bit weird. It is built on a mountain and is in a desperate situation. If attacked, the people in the city can be trapped just from the front. Of course, the pressure on defending the city will also be reduced, and only a quarter of the force of an ordinary city is needed to resist the enemy's attack.
What's even more weird is that the city wall is not built with bricks, it is vertical, with a surface as smooth as a mirror, and no gaps can be seen. There are no Qin Yin-style crenels at the top of the city, which is flat.
The city gate is beautifully built. The wooden gate opens to the inside, and the patterns on the gate are corroded by magic. It's just that such a gate will probably be broken by a siege ram.
The three of Salin strutted towards the city. A thick arm blocked them in front of them, and a thunderous sound sounded.
"That little mage, pay your taxes!"