This is the strangest team that Ryan Medd has ever seen.
On the square table in the hall on the first floor of the castle, there is a detailed map of Longsong Fortress.
There are six people around the square table. They are the commander of the First Army, Iron Axe, the police captain Vader from Border Town, the current leader of the Fire Gang, Crackbones, the head of the Security Bureau, Nightingale, the black-haired witch Ash, and For Earl Elk himself.
Ren never thought that he would need the help of mice one day, let alone cooperate with witches.
"My lords, there are about seven or eight gangs in the fortress at the moment," Cleft Bones showed a pleasing smile and bent over, "The most members are the Sickle Gang located in the northern district of the outer city, with about five or six hundred members, but The strongest is the death knell in the inner city. Most of them are composed of fugitives and mercenaries. They hardly accept the participation of ordinary civilians. There are many swords and armors. Fattest spot."
"East of the city is the site of Carrion and Vulture Gang. With the convenience of the dock area, their main business is to sell slaves and dream water, and their methods are also very cruel. I heard that these two rat organizations are standing behind the Ben Wolf's house. And the Maple Leaf family, but when they were beaten to pieces by our Fire Gang a few years ago, I didn't see any great nobles come out to help them." He said a little proudly.
"As for the western part of the city, the gangs are much more complicated... Because they are all small gangs, I have only dealt with their leaders at most. They are respectively"
"The news of the gang is not important, so there is no need to elaborate here," the tall Mojin man interrupted, "I just want to ask, can you take us to the lair of these underground mice?"
"Ahem, this lord..." Cracked Bones nodded at him, "As the saying goes, rats build nests, and there are ten caves and nine holes. I know the main gathering places of the gangs, but it is impossible to even have every one of their refuges. Clearly, especially those hiding places constructed using dry wells and basements, only the leaders and cronies know the exact location."
"He's not wrong about this," Ren sighed. "If you have to face it head-on, the mice are not vulnerable at all, but if you want to wipe them out one by one, I'm afraid it will be difficult to do it."
"If there is a sudden attack, there is still a chance, but now that the notice has been issued, by the time of the action, the leaders should have been hiding long ago."
"Hide?" The black-haired witch sneered. "Unless he hides in Chishui City, as long as he stays in the fortress, there is no one we can't find."
"Yes, you are right." Cleft Bone wiped the sweat from his forehead and stopped arguing.
The pressure of this witch named Ash is really amazing. Ren has been on the battlefield, and he has also fought against evil beasts in Hermes. He knows what a real warrior looks like... But even those who have experienced many battles The Judgment Army will also be eclipsed in front of her. The other party doesn't need to look scary, just standing there can make people dare not look directly.
There is no doubt that she has not only seen blood, taken the life of the enemy, but also hovered on the edge of life and death, so that she can have such a domineering aura.
"According to His Highness's wishes, we still have three days to prepare. After the first batch of rations are distributed, the army will start from the north city gate and clear the rat gangs in each area in turn." Iron Axe said solemnly, "This strike is only for For the organizers, strive to disintegrate the black street in the shortest possible time."
"But... Will this really work?" Seeing the other party walking towards the entrance of the hall, Ren couldn't help asking, "There has never been a city that can eliminate rats. As long as there are people, they will not be cut off."
Tie Axe turned his head and glanced at him, "Really, there are no mice in Border Town."
…
After everyone left, only Vader stayed.
"Lord Count, has anyone declared a police position to City Hall?"
"Not yet... But I heard from Peiro that dozens of people from the Second Army have signed up." Ren held the square table and sat down slowly, the words of the iron axe still echoing in his mind. After a while, he whispered, "Is there really no mice in this town?"
"If you say that there is no black street organization in the usual sense," Vader shrugged, "there is no shortage of food, no worries about housing, and both men and women can find a suitable job. Even for handymen, the salary is sufficient. Full stomach. To be honest, before I got to Border Town, I wouldn’t believe that there is such a place in the Kingdom of Greycastle.”
"Why?" Ren asked involuntarily.
"I don't know, my lord..." Vader spread his hands and said, "His Royal Highness Roland's actions are far from any nobles I have ever seen."
"You don't have to call me your lord," he waved his hand, "His Royal Highness asked us to work together to handle this matter, and we can put the title aside in private."
The other party nodded and did not refuse. Such a straightforward character made Ren quite admire, "Do you think His Royal Highness can really eradicate all the rats in the fortress and make the entire Western Region a clean place?"
"I'm not sure either." Vader's answer surprised him a little. "After all, I used to be a patrol captain, and I have dealt with mice for several years. They exist like shadows under the sun. It's hard to do anything by tough means alone. His Highness has said that if it is a big city with a million people, he may not be able to manage everything, but if there are only 100,000 people, it is not impossible to remove these bottom-level scum. Simple. It is enough to make people feel that it is too expensive to be a rat, and there are many more suitable alternatives."
"The price... Is it too high?" Ren automatically skipped the statement of the city of one million people, and a hundred thousand people alone is already an unbelievably magnificent city. "This is not something that can be done in a short time."
"That's right, fighting mice, or fighting crime, is not an overnight thing," Vader nodded. "The police is the institution set up by His Royal Highness Roland for this matter. It is completely different from the patrol team. I have already told you this. Pass."
It is completely different, they receive the salary of the city hall, rather than obeying a certain noble, they maintain the law and order of an area, rather than complicity with the criminals.
"And, most importantly, His Highness also said something to me."
"What?"
"In fact, I mentioned your doubts to him before," Vader smiled, "In the end, His Highness told me, won't you do it if you can't do it?"
Ren Made suddenly felt a sudden movement in his heart, as if something suddenly became clear. Why don't you do it if you can't do it? If that's the case, he won't be running on the road of the knight forever. Although he has now taken over the position of earl, it seems that he is getting farther and farther from the life he likes, but as long as he can continue to fight on the battlefield that protects the people, he will not be far from the path in his heart. Instead, it just gets wider and wider.
"I see... I see." He took a deep breath.
"I was also quite shocked at the time," Vader said with emotion. "It's just the last sentence His Highness said. I still don't understand what it means."
"Anything else?" Ren asked expectantly.
"Well," Vader recalled, groping his chin, "you'll feel so full after drinking this bowl of chicken soup. But... what does this have to do with chicken soup?"(.)