The morning light swept across the continuous fields, and the black shadows of the fir forests were as tall as giants in the mist that penetrated the shimmering light. On the nearby wilderness, the withered yellow grass is covered with thin snow, fluctuating with the wind. The horse's iron hoof stepped on the gravel and withered grass, making a rattling sound, and milky white air mass exhaled from the horse's nostrils.
Archbishop Rodrik was summoned by the Queen, and when he came up from behind, he saw the Queen stopped in front of a bush of thorns.
The queen is wrapped in a cobalt blue hooded cloak, almost ink-dark, with silver thread rolled around the edge. The Xiule steed, known for its violent temperament, was as gentle as a lamb in her hands. When Archbishop Rodrik's hooves approached, the tall white horse snorted lightly to remind its owner.
She turned her head.
A pair of drop-shaped dark blue gemstones fell on her small earlobe. As she turned her head, the light reflected by the gemstones danced on her cheeks and the corners of her eyes. In the cold weather, her face was so pale that even the snow on the branches beside her could not compare.
Archbishop Rodri relaxed his hand holding the rein for a moment, and then he galloped forward and arrived at the Queen's side.
"You shouldn't be out of the carriage for too long," said the archbishop, "the cold will make you sick."
"Mrs. Kelly wanted you to advise me that way, right?" Adele smiled slightly upon hearing this, "She almost wished she could bring the fireplace from the palace to the carriage."
"I think Mrs. Kelly is right."
Archbishop Rodri's lips were drawn straight, and he looked at the queen unhappy.
When the archbishop was in the seminary, he studied medical skills—although medical skills in this era are always linked to theology. Mrs. Kelly did not specifically mention the Queen's situation, but with Mr. Bishop's eagle-like eyes, it is not difficult to guess what indelible "gift" the Queen's assassination has left her.
"Mr. Bishop," Adele wrapped the reins around her white-gloved hands, "I am the queen."
In traditional parades, kings ride at the head of the procession along with nobles.
In the age of horses and spears, the king's duty was not only to deal with state affairs, but also to be the commander of the battlefield. They were the dual representatives of knights and politics. During the palace tour, the king and the nobles hunted together and rode forward together, which deepened the personal image of the monarch on the one hand, and deepened the connection with his courtiers on the other hand.
"What a king can do," Adele said softly, "so can a queen."
The corners of Archbishop Rodri's mouth became straighter, which made him look more severe: "Do you still need to care about the words of those idiots?"
Adele smiled, steered her horse and walked along the avenue.
Archbishop Rodri followed her, pulled something out from under his cloak, and handed it to her.
Adele held such a small thing, and her hands felt warm, like a small sun. She lifted it up and put it in front of her eyes. It was a small copper ball hanging from a long silver chain. It was riveted up and down with delicate gears. She didn’t know what was filled in the middle. There was a steady stream of heat radiating out. It won't burn people.
On both sides of the flat copper ball, there is a sun relief.
"Elmia's sun pattern." Adele recognized the sun relief on it. She raised one long eyebrow, which was thin and long. "A pagan thing is hidden under the robe of a Mr. Archbishop?"
Archbishop Rodriguez looked at her without saying a word.
"I'm glad you finally found out that heretics are no different from believers. Both have good and bad points." Adele stopped teasing Archbishop Rodri. The attendants and nobles moved a little further, "The White Tower of the Root Empire caught fire, and the Root royal family declared that Prince Arthur was 'seriously ill'."
Hearing "Prince Arthur", Archbishop Rodri frowned, showing a look of disgust.
When Prince Arthur came to negotiate the marriage on behalf of Emperor Root, Archbishop Rodri also watched the duel between Dalton and Prince Arthur, and the marriage proposal that almost became a scandal between the two countries. As for the prince who was full of sin, Archbishop Rodriguez always believed that he should be poured with mercury and nailed into a coffin.
"He may come to Roland."
After a moment of silence, the archbishop spoke coldly.
"I hope Orsis's assassin is still capable, otherwise he will be troublesome if he appears in Roland's public."
"Since Orsis claims that his brother is 'seriously ill', it is up to Orsis to explain if Prince Arthur appears in Roland." As the central figure of the rumor, Adele was exceptionally calm.
When Prince Arthur was around, she was not stingy with the intimacy and ambiguity, but now her voice was ruthless as if the Prince was not a crazy suitor for her.
"What if Orsis asks us to assist him in the execution of Prince Arthur?" Archbishop Rodri asked.
"He will not."
Adele glanced at Mr. Bishop with a half-smile.
Mr. Bishop himself would not mind sending a few Templars to help Root's assassins and killers. Hell to hell, gods to gods, a devil as sinful as Prince Arthur, it is better to go to hell as soon as possible.
Just as Archbishop Rodrik was about to say something more, the sound of horseshoes caught up with him from behind.
He reined in his horse and put his hand hidden under the cloak on the hilt of his sword.
The Queen also reined in her horse and turned to look back.
In the misty air, Heinrich rushed up.
He wore a long dark cloak, with silver chains at the neck linked by a double-headed serpent emblem, and the low-key obsidian buttons on the cloak occasionally reflected light. After catching up with the queen and the archbishop, he didn't look at Archbishop Rodri, but only bowed to the queen.
"Port urgent report."
Heinrich said succinctly.
The Queen frowned and held out her hand to Heinrich. Heinrich took out the secret letter from his arms and handed it to the queen. After a quick glance, the Queen restrained her expression and put the letter away: "Go back to the carriage."
Heinrich steps aside.
When Archbishop Rodrik passed by him, he suddenly pulled the rein and turned his head. Heinrich sat upright on the horseback, and the eyes of the two collided coldly in the air.
Neither of the two men spoke, they quickly looked away and followed the queen.
……………
The queen's twelve-wheeled carriage is as spacious as a small mobile office study. There are soft cushions in gold and silver, and a deep red velvet carpet in the carriage. The glass windows of the carriage are covered with black curtains with red patterns. Craftsmen specially designed shock-absorbing measures for it, so that the queen and her courtiers can carry out necessary offices here during the journey.
Except for Heinrich and Archbishop Rodrik, all the courtiers who were able to enter the carriage were pale. No one dared to hit the Queen's muzzle at this time.
The matter is related to two newly implemented port regulations.
Trade goods in the ports of the Roland Empire are prohibited from being transported by foreign ships in the "Navigation Regulations".
And just two days ago, a caravan from a free commercial city known for its transit trade violated this prohibition at a port named "Sarago" in the Roland Empire, involving a huge number of fleets and trade—they argued I didn't know the existence of the new regulations at all, and refused to pay the fine on the grounds that the goods were shipped to the Papal State and were not restricted by ordinary regulations, and even refused to transfer them to the ships of the Roland Empire.
A malicious temptation.
The temptation from traditional maritime commercial forces.
After leaving the Port of Sarago, head south and you will arrive at Rose Strait, which is not far from the Queen's party at this time. I am afraid that the caravan of its own commercial city deliberately chose such a delicate port and important strait to test and provoke the majesty of the Queen and the Roland Empire.
They used this fleet as the stone thrown into the lake, and examined Roland's attitude from this—are Roland's two regulations a dead letter, or are they tough new regulations
The reaction of the Port of Zarago will determine what measures and attitudes these traditional maritime forces will take to deal with the changes in the Roland Empire.
The exasperating thing is that the governor of Puerto Zarago is nothing short of an idiot. He was afraid of offending the Pope, so he didn't dare to take substantial tough measures against the caravan. He just gave a simple warning and let them leave from the port of Zarago.
"This Mr. Oldovey is really very pious," the Queen laughed back in anger, her tone became softer. "Why doesn't he just go to the Papal State, kiss the Pope's instep, and exchange his own blood for the Pope's life?"
—The behavior of the stupid governor of Port Zarago was almost equivalent to tearing off two regulations from the wall, throwing them on the ground and trampling on them.
"Throw him on the guillotine for 'treason'," the queen pulled out a piece of paper, quickly wrote the death sentence, and stamped her own seal, "Also, hunt down that merchant fleet immediately."
"It may be difficult for our fleet to catch up," someone showed a distressed look, "The merchant ships in their own commercial cities have always been well-armed... If you want to intercept them, I'm afraid you can only intercept them when they reach the Rose Strait .”
It's just that the fleet sailed freely on the sea for a day, and the two regulations of the Roland Empire were trampled in the dust for a day.
"Someone will stop them."
said the queen.
The curtains of the carriage were only half drawn, and the curtains blocked the sunlight and cast a half-slanted shadow on the queen's face.
……………
The waves on the sea were rough, and a fleet sailed through the rocky bays and headed towards the Rose Strait.
The fleet's sails bear the emblem of a hydrangea—the Union of Free Commercial Cities.
Free commercial city is actually just a general term.
In many countries and regions, there are some cities with autonomy. However, when it comes to "free commercial cities", people's first reaction is the area between the Kingdom of Yager, the Principality of Tuva and the Empire of Root. A federation of boroughs known throughout the world for maritime trade and banking.
"What the hell kind of weather is this?"
The captain of the fleet stood in front of the rudder, frowning as he watched the dark clouds hang down from the sky, and the sea surface in the distance merged with the clouds, like a mass of thick ink spreading.
The fleet is traveling on the undulating sea, and it must be extremely careful to prevent itself from hitting those deadly reefs. The joy and pride of getting out of Zarago Port smoothly dissipated a lot before the storm, and the captain raised his voice to cheer up the sailors.
Lightning began to roll through the clouds.