The black stray horse, almost submerged in the night, looked deeply at Oliver, and Oliver looked deeply at himself—this is what Nemo saw just as he stepped out of the space crack with one foot.
where is wrong. Nemo clenched the small cloth bag in his hand and instantly became vigilant. He couldn't remember the last time Oliver made this look to himself.
Mr. Demon King opened his senses very cautiously, but he did not find that the two had knives on their waists, or any other threat glaring at them in the dark.
"How is it?" Oliver asked nervously.
"According to Delia, there are people checking the storage room every day. I can't destroy them directly, I just touched the magic circle above. Those bone and jade bombs can't blow up, don't worry - if you give me more In time, I might find a way to disarm them and turn them back into pure energy."
Knowing that there would be no problem with his perception, Nemo couldn't help but craned his neck to confirm whether there was an unknown creature hiding behind Oliver.
"Nice job," Oliver responded quickly, pushing the approaching horse's face aside.
"What about you?" Nemo leaned up and kissed the other's cheek briskly.
"I found some information." Oliver cleared his throat, and after a kiss, he seemed to be relieved from the unknown tension. "About my father."
It seemed that there were no potential enemies, and Nemo breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing that Oliver had no intention of returning to the barracks, he skillfully used the shadow to clear the space and grab the wood. A small bonfire was completed in a blink of an eye, and it was spitting out orange-red sparks into the dim night.
"I got some food at the abandoned market in the city." Nemo shook the cloth bag in his hand, his voice relaxed. "It's still a little distance from the camp. The dry food for the march is not delicious. I guess you may want to change your taste. Let's talk while you eat."
"Okay." Oliver looked equally relieved, returning to the Olly that Nemo knew well. "Need help? I'm the honorary logistics of Clement College."
"Fuck you. It's just a simple snack. It's quick to make. Just talk about that information seriously." Nemo shook his head with a smile.
The shadow rolled into the fire with a small potato wrapped in it, while he himself stripped the bark of the branch, pierced a block of goat cheese, and baked it carefully on the fire.
"I know the origin of your gold pendant." Oliver said calmly in the sweet fragrance that gradually spread.
Nemo's movement stopped.
"Father made it at Tristan's house, a shop in the capital." Oliver stood up, stretched out his hand, slipped his fingers down Nemo's neck, and gently pulled out the golden pendant. "For various reasons... I just met the owner and chatted for a while."
"Hmm." Nemo's voice was muffled.
"The pendant he took away when he set off on the expedition, he said he wanted to ask for good luck, and when he came back, he would give it to his mother as a talisman. You know, that superstition—the token of the survivors of the expedition can protect people's life in peace and prosperity."
"So it's signed 'Your Flint,' but it's got a portrait of your mother inside?"
"Yes, I think he originally wanted to give her a blank pendant. He just… made it his own amulet first."
"He shouldn't have given it to me so easily." Nemo sighed very lightly, turning the branch and turning the goat cheese over.
"It should be the most precious thing in him, father, he must have had a good reason to do it at that time."
"But the pendant isn't on you. How did you talk to people about this?" Nemo picked up the cheese from the fire, dragged out a baked potato with the shadow, and cut it sharply through the middle with the shadow blade.
"That's what I'm going to say." Oliver watched the shadow change into the shape of a blade and began to slice the melted cheese into the potato's groove. He couldn't help sniffing. "The original order he made with the owner was like this... If he doesn't return it from the abyss, after a while, the Tristan family will make another one for his mother."
Nemo dressed the burnt cheese potato with a stick and handed it to Oliver. "and then?"
"As Mr Medes told us, my father was in a very bad state of mind after returning from the depths of the abyss. He left the capital in a low-key manner directly with his mother - I guess he was too low to pay attention to it. But when he came back to the capital later... you know."
Carefully wrapped in shadows, the potatoes were handled very cleanly. Seeing Nemo's uncomfortable expression, Oliver blew a few times and took a big bite. "Awesome! Nemo, you never said you would do this."
"Do you still want the snacks that I used to coax my younger brother and sister?" Nemo's attention was indeed taken a little bit.
"Hmm." Oliver chewed on the baked potatoes, "Don't mind, I'm not trying to drag you back to the past. When my father canceled the order, he was carrying a coffin - the owner remembers it very well because of this."
"Mr. Meders mentioned this too." Nemo began to bake the smaller goat cheese again.
"But Mr. Meders didn't know, he wasn't alone at that time." Oliver tugged at the hot cheese and exhaled. "There was a very strange man with my father. The man had white bandages all over his face, and he looked very scary. The owner has been describing it to me for a long time—does this look familiar?"
"The gatekeeper's man?" Nemo nearly dropped the cheese into the fire.
"That's what I thought too, so I asked a few more questions. But after all, it was more than 20 years ago, and the owner doesn't remember too many details. I only remember hearing them mention 'butcher shop' by accident."
"In Mr. Medes' memory, your father mentioned this to Mr. Medes. I remember Mr. Close had a conversation once."
Looking at his lover's dazed look, Nemo thoughtfully reminded: "The Church of the Abyss has relevant records, similar to the place where the superior demons and the surface are linked—you know, after all, superior demons cannot be summoned directly, they are all flesh and blood, Smuggling with low-level or intermediate-level demons by summoning."
Saying that, Nemo made another baked potato, and he carefully fixed it in mid-air with a shadow.
"The people at the butcher shop will help the two sides reach an agreement first. They will introduce the mages with sufficient qualifications and suffering from desires to the superior demons, and tell the mages the race and abilities of the superior demons. If both parties are satisfied, then the superior demons will carry the blood and flesh. onto the designated lower-level demon, and the mage will then summon the lower-level demon."
Nemo picked up the branch with little cheese left and licked the remaining grilled cheese: "It's basically a matchmaking transaction like this. The 'butcher shop' shouldn't be a secret in the upper layers of various major religions, and Mr. Cross knows that it's normal. "
"It will evaluate and monitor both demons and mages. In a sense, it has a disgraceful control effect - plus the location of its headquarters is a mystery, and it is very likely to be related to O'Lore. All the forces open one eye and close the other."
"What about Bagelmore? Nobody should have made any agreement with it." Oliver looked away from the other's wet tongue.
"This is an accident." Nemo explained, "If there is no butcher shop, the higher-level demons will blindly try and force qualified people to make a wish after they get to the surface. Now there is a butcher shop and O'Lori's shock, generally A superior demon with a brain will not take risks."
"Is that so." Oliver lowered his eyes.
"how?"
"Medeth's memory should not be falsified. My father's arm was restored by a butcher shop, that's right."
Oliver shoved the remaining baked potatoes into his mouth, his voice a little muffled.
"The owner remembered 'The Butcher' because he met his father near the shop. He heard this when he came up to say hello - the 'horribly and weirdly dressed man' asked his father to send the memory backup to the butcher as soon as possible '. After finding him, they stopped talking about it."
After that, he rushed through the potato branch and stared blankly for a while: "Nimo, what do you think the butcher shop wants to back up his father's memory?"
"I don't know much about the butcher shop. But the butcher shop has always been close to the abyss, and since they are so interested in what your father knows, I think it has nothing to do with the truth at the bottom of the abyss. It makes sense, even if you Father is a great hero, and the butcher wouldn't be kind enough to provide compulsory medical treatment... This part of your father's 'knowledge' should be a bargaining chip."
"It's a coincidence, that's what I thought too." Throwing away the bare branches in his hand, Oliver took the roasted potatoes handed by the shadow. "But since its location is a mystery..."
"Eurore is Vance," Nemo said suddenly.
"Yes."
"If O'Lori has been involved with the butcher's shop, it's a matter of 'knowledge' at the bottom of the abyss. I think we have a breakthrough - when things are over on Ann's side, we'll have to go and find Delaraine. kindness."
"He's always been interested in you, ahem, your situation." Oliver spoke faster. "Nimo, I do want to know the truth, but don't forget, you risk exposure... Della Layne isn't the kind of good-natured demon who's happy to keep a secret."
"I know, I don't want to leave you either." Nemo lightly flicked his lover's forehead, showing an inevitable smile.
"It's alright, Ollie. Whether things will go well or not depends on who we're looking for, Delarion. To tell you the truth, I've been wanting to go to the Mercenary Guild headquarters since the Black Badge test started. ."
The next morning.
"Your Highness, your current behavior has a tendency to be disordered, please reconsider." Marshal Gallagher said politely.
At this moment, they have arrived outside the city walls of the capital Doru, and the huge city gate is closed. The captain of the tumbleweed is waiting outside the city with his lover, guarding the commoners and maintaining order - the princess of Alban seems determined not to let her companions get involved in the final battle.
She even made a ridiculous proposal just now.
"I'm sober—by the way, you're the first person I've ever seen who says 'you're crazy' for such a long time." Ann tightened the leather buckle. Unscrew the thin copper cylinder containing the magic scroll, and arrange it neatly on the belt around the waist. She stroked the hunting spear in her hand, as gentle as she was stroking her lover's skin.
"I'm going alone."
"Okay, you're insane," said Marshal Gallagher. "Listen, we've got to put our forces—"
"Not all civilians have evacuated." An said calmly, "Believe me, people in Xiacheng are reluctant to leave now. Many old people will not leave, and there are at least one third of the population in Wangcheng. You have to lead the army. Go in? . . . My good brother is going mad and never mind stinking your reputation with these lives, dear Mr. Wild Dog."
She swung her hunting spear a few times.
"If I'm alone, whether it's an army, or a large-scale attack against magic, these will become meaningless. As long as they attack me, they are betraying the blood of the Alastair family. This will minimize the damage."
"The premise is that you survive. It's full of princely troops!"
"If I survive and make it to the palace and beat my dear brother to the floor, that's the least costly option, you have to admit."
Ann pulled the corners of her mouth. "And if I die—bah, that's unlikely—you'll have the best reason."
"What are you talking about?!"
"You didn't need a real heir anyway, did you? They never imagined that I was still alive and wouldn't destroy the body immediately. Maybe they were waiting to use it to add a charge of 'supporting a fake heir and despising the royal family'. But you are a royal confidant, and you naturally know how to prove that it is the blood of the Alastair family."
The female warrior calmly spread her hands.
"Killing your blood relatives in the street in the royal city, you can use this to deal with the prince. And you just promise me that Delia can survive well - this is a perfect plan."
Marshal Gallagher stared at Ann silently, as if seeing her for the first time.
"Hold the communication crystal and wait for my news - anyway, I will open the communication all the way, no matter what the situation is, you will know. When I enter the palace, I will find a way to prove the death of the emperor. The prince has not really grasped it. Real power, the nobles of Alban will definitely be in chaos, you show up at the right time, don't let me die in the panic of a group of idiots."
"I see..." The Marshal patted the dust on his front and sighed.
"really obedient."
"...I mean, I see, I'll go with you both."
"Are you an idiot?"
"The Salt family is always loyal to the emperor's order, and I am not the only descendant of the Salt family. If I see the princess die in front of me, one person is not as good as two people - it would be good to make the 'criminal' of His Royal Highness more important. ."
"you… "
"Like you said, you're unlikely to die, but I prefer the term 'zero chance'. If you don't mind, please go out for a while - I need to change into my armor."