Heart of the Castle

Chapter 518 The General Manager Comes Again, The Northern Territory

The sky was gloomy, and thick clouds of the color of lead plates hung low above the head. After the golden face of Flandara penetrated the clouds, only a faint white spot was left.The bitter cold wind howled from the north, bringing with it ice and snow particles as hard as sand and stones, violently tearing at the high walls of Firmeyer, the city of glory, so powerful that even the city walls seemed to be shaking. Shaking slightly overwhelmed.

"My illusion, it must be an illusion." Bamilian, the court chief, grumbled and pulled the cloak tighter on his body. The fine mink fur should be thick and warm, but the eunuch still felt the chill all over his body. , it seems that the cold is not only invaded from the outside world, but also from the depths of the heart.

The last time he walked out of the north gate of Firmeyer as an envoy of the kingdom, he was riding a steed, with the banner of the crown and double swords flying above his head, and he was accompanied by more than a dozen heavily armed guard knights.However, this time, although he was still dressed in sable fur, he could only trudged forward alone.

"On foot and without entourage, we can make Li Weiston think that we are at the end of the road and have to beg for peace with a low profile." This is the righteous and stern order of Grand Duke Raul, but Director Bamilian doesn't even believe a word.

"Hey, don't you want to embarrass me on purpose? Does this cunning poisonous snake know how to maintain the dignity of the kingdom?" Director Bamili Yang muttered to himself, walking out from the north gate of the City of Glory, and then rubbed the winch on the hinges There was a creaking sound, and the two heavy oak doors closed heavily behind him, making a low, muffled sound.The heartstrings of the court chief trembled heavily, and a pale expression appeared on his fat face.

The feeling inside and outside the city wall is completely different. Without the protection of Firmeyer's thick city wall, he now feels as if he has been abandoned by the whole world. The desolate scenery outside the city rotates and presses towards him, making him stop involuntarily. I tried my best to resist the panic and dizziness from the bottom of my heart.

A mutilated corpse lay dead in front of the city gate. It could be vaguely seen that it was a jailer of the Dreadfort wearing a black iron ring armor. The black blood was congealed under his body, and he fell from a height of 20 meters and broke. Most of his skeleton, with his head angled sideways at a horrible angle, looked like a broken doll.More corpses were scattered on both sides of the city gate, shrouded in the shadow of the city wall, which was the trace left by the battle the night before—or the unilateral killing of the defenders of the capital by the Griffin Lord.

"Sharp arrows made a hissing sound and struck from outside the dark city. The arrow clusters easily pierced armor and shields, penetrated into the body, and snatched life, making people feel as if they were naked; the watchtower burned like It was an extra-large candle, and another one was lit shortly afterwards, and the flames lit up half of the sky; there was no safe place for the entire north gate except for the shelter under the battlements; People escaping under the rain were terrified to death, but that feeling soon disappeared. There was a voice in my heart calling me. Death is not terrible, but a comfort of compassion. I should stand up and meet the long sleep guide. The kiss attached to the flying arrow... I saw some people really did this, and after they fell down, there was even a serene and gratified smile on the corner of their mouths."

Director Bamili Yang recalled the terrifying night described to him by the eyeliner arranged by Sleepless Eye in the Royal Guard Army, and couldn't help but flinch slightly, deciding to pass through this terrifying battlefield as fast as possible.

Director Bamili Yang didn't go far, when he saw a two-meter-high log fence blocking his way, he stopped cautiously and observed carefully.This fence still looks very new, with the sharpened end facing the sky, and there are traces of being scorched by fire on it, which strengthens the ability of the spikes to kill those who try to climb over.Two extremely simple watchtowers were built behind the fence. There were no parapets or baffles on them. There were a few archers standing there. Their sharp eyes, which were hundreds of meters away, still made Director Bamilian feel a sting on his face.A dozen soldiers stood guard at the foot of the watchtower, among them were two knights in armor.

Director Bamilian took a few steps forward cautiously, always keeping himself out of the range of the watchtower's archers. As the distance approached, the scene in front of him became clearer.He saw that the two knights were wearing a full set of heavy metal armor, their faces were hidden under the visor of the full-face helmet, a few long griffin feathers fluttered above the helmet, and a golden griffin was inlaid in the center of the breastplate coat of arms.

It seemed that he was a direct subordinate of Levi Stern. The eunuch breathed a sigh of relief, and then walked over quickly. As he walked, he waved his empty hands up and down, indicating that he had no weapons.

The soldiers guarding the fence were all motionless, which gave Chief Bamilian a deeper understanding of the discipline of Li Wei's army. Although the head eunuch had never commanded an organized army, as the controller of the Sleepless Eye, He knew far more battles than any general.By analyzing the process of these battles, the eunuch learned a very important point. Although there are many factors for victory, almost all battles have a common feature, that is, when there is no decisive difference in the strength of the two sides, the soldiers of the lower ranks The more disciplined side will win.

A knight stepped out from behind the fence and walked towards Steward Bamilian.The eunuch quickly ended his contemplation, and greeted him with a signature sweet smile. "Master Griffon Knight, I am Reinhardt Bamilian, Chief of the Court, and a friend of His Excellency Leviston, Lord Griffon. This time I have brought news that will definitely make him happy. A peaceful message from an important minister of the kingdom. ask!"

Manager Bamili Yang has always been proud of his eloquence, but when he saw the Griffin Knight nodded without saying a word, and then waved his hand to let the soldiers pull the fence, he couldn't help but slapped himself on the cheek .

"I want to see His Excellency Levi Ston as soon as possible, Lord Knight, as you may know, some information is extremely precious a moment earlier, but it is worthless a moment later." Director Bamili Yang quickly got rid of the trouble, and continued Ask with a smile. "Can you please escort me to see His Excellency the Griffon Lord? It can also reduce some notification and waiting delays."

The Griffon Knight nodded again, "Follow me." His words were very concise, and his voice through the visor seemed a bit dull.Manager Bamili Yang followed with a smile on his face, lowered his posture and said a lot of courtesies and pleasantries along the way.However, that Griffin Knight seemed very indifferent, usually answering questions with nodding and shaking his head, and only spit out a few hard words when he had to speak.And the right hand was pressed on the hilt of the sword from the beginning to the end, and did not let down any vigilance because of the friendliness of the head eunuch.

It wasn't until the camp of the Northern Allied Forces appeared in the distance that the eloquent Chief Bamilian closed his mouth. He really admired the cautious response of the Griffin Knight. He conducted three trials, hoping to obtain some information about the strength of the northern coalition forces from the Griffin Knight's answer, but all he got from the three trials were silent shakes of the head.

The mouth is the door of the heart, as long as you open your mouth to speak, it means opening the door for people to peep. A master who observes words and expressions can get the information he wants from seemingly meaningless answers.Manager Bamili Yang is such a master, but when he meets such a taciturn opponent as the Griffon Knight, he also feels helpless, and he can only return in vain after repeated temptations.

The camp of the Northern Allied Forces occupies quite a large area. A semicircular log fence is the first line of defense outside the camp. Every 30 meters, a watchtower is built behind the fence. Standing on each watchtower Five majestic sharpshooters with longbows on their backs stretched to the depths of the distant dense forest on both sides.It was noon when Chief Bamilian came, and smoke as thin as gray fingers rose from the campfire, and the scent of mutton soup and toasted oats was faintly carried by the wind.

Manager Bamili Yang silently estimated the number of smoke columns, and found that there were at least a thousand, his eyes flickered slightly.The soldiers who survived the battle the night before were almost frightened to the point of madness. They were ambiguous about the number of incoming enemies, ranging from three to five thousand to more than one hundred thousand. The number I got was that there were more than [-] soldiers from the Northern Allied Forces. Although the strength of a single soldier was better than that of the King's Capital Guard, the total number of soldiers was far inferior. In addition, Firmeyer's so-called indestructible high wall made many The nobles of the royal capital are full of confidence.

However, after estimating the amount of cooking smoke, Director Bamili Yang guessed that this number must be at least doubled, which means that the number of the Northern Allied Forces must reach more than [-].This number obviously far exceeded the previous estimate, which made the palace chief's confidence in completing this mission shaken.

Due to the disastrous defeat in the four counties in the south, the traumas suffered by the northern regions were also quite serious. 1 people were already the maximum force that the entire northern region could muster after including the [-] defenders of the Ice Wall Great Wall.This force originally firmly guarded the northern border of the Kingdom of Arthur, but now it is like a sharp knife piercing the heart of the Kingdom of Arthur. The gap is so big that Director Bamili Yang can't help but feel a little emotional.

They shuttled through the tents, and each of those tents that were as big as houses could accommodate twenty soldiers to rest, like giant leather mushrooms that protruded and grew.The entire camp of the Northern Allied Forces is composed of tents of this uniform standard and simple style, even knights or lords are no exception. The only difference is that those tents will be marked with shields painted with the family coat of arms. .Director Bamili Yang lost his mind when he counted to close to five hundred, and then almost tripped. Then he looked at the still large number of tents in front of him and sighed.Give up this unrealistic idea.

There was a loud noise, it seemed that hundreds of people were shouting, hundreds of swords were clashing, and dozens of horses were galloping.Director Bamilian Yang slowed down his pace and turned his head towards the direction of the sound. There was a flat field surrounded by dozens of tents. Several troops of the Northern Alliance Army were conducting routine exercises on the open field: Armed soldiers lined up neatly, or wielding swords and knives to confront each other, or holding spears to pierce grass handles; several heavily armed knights leaned against the tent, one of them was wiping the long sword in his hand, and the others were Comments were made on the performance of the soldiers; on the other side of the open space were some arrow targets made of cowhide, and a group of white wolf guards galloped past with a long howl like a wolf. With a sharp howling sound, the cowhide archery target more than 30 meters away was torn to pieces.

"Ahead is the lord's tent." The griffin rider said, and at the same time pointed his finger at the Chief Bamilian.

The guardian of the north, the important minister of the kingdom, one of the Nine Pillar families, and the head of the Griffon Knights, Viscount Levi Ston's tent is several times larger than ordinary tents, but the style is equally unpretentious, only the side next to the tent The blue and white griffin flag is a little special. Under the strong north wind, the golden griffin on the flag soars in the sky as if alive, and a unique power rushes towards the face, which makes Director Bamili Yang feel unreasonable. An uneasy feeling rose up.

The Griffin Knight told Chief Bamilian to wait outside, then opened the curtain and went in to report.Almost as soon as he went in, he turned around and came out, and said to Chief Bamili Yang, "My lord, please go in and talk."

The appearance of the tent looked very simple, but after entering, Manager Bamili Yang realized that it was not simple. The tough cowhide was sewn with fine stitches without leaking a single gap. The material and workmanship alone were valuable. The firepit was dug out as usual, but a black iron brazier was placed around it. The charcoal fire inside was burning vigorously, but there was no pungent smell of smoke. Although it was cold and windy outside, the tent was warm as hell. early summer.

Director Bamili Yang shook the snowflakes on his body, glanced slightly, and couldn't help but feel a strange feeling in his heart.Northern County has always been a good place to exile the losers of political wars. For Bamilian, who is the head of intelligence, more than half of the lords present in the tent are familiar faces, and many of them have provided evidence because of sleepless eyes. And was exiled.

It is conceivable what emotion is contained in the gazes that are shooting at him from all directions.Director Bamili Yang even thought that if it weren't for the great achievements made by the Griffon Lords in the past year, which had convinced these rebellious northern lords, he might leave his head in the next moment. Inside this tent.

As for the body, dragging it out to feed the dogs should be a good choice.

"Your Excellency, Griffon Lord Levi Ston, I am very glad to see you so soon, the anti-magic hero of the Kingdom of Arthur." Director Bamilian quickly stopped thinking about his tragic death, and expressed it with the best of his permission. Said in the most gratifying tone.

"Yes, we meet again, my lord." Li Wei's voice came from the front. His position in the tent was very special. Although he was not at the front seat facing the door, he was clearly sitting at the front seat. The more distinguished one on the left, and the burly old man in heavy armor sitting on the right is Lord Cedric, the former commander of the Northern Territory.

"I've already guessed some of your intentions for coming this time. What I want to know more now is, what are the opinions of the important ministers of the kingdom on who is the kingslayer?" Li Wei said in a flat tone.

Director Bamili Yang raised his head and looked carefully at the young face of the Griffon Lord. On that face, he didn't see the high spirits that he just won the victory, but looked a little lonely and tired - these emotions are rarely seen in teenagers. on people.

A very slight smile flashed through the eyes of Chief Bamilian Yang, "Lord Li Wei, just before I left Firmeyer, the ministers of the Kingdom started a dispute over whether you were related to the death of His Majesty the Dragon King. I Of course, he is firmly on your side, His Excellency Cardinal Enoch Sebasta also questioned the so-called evidence, and claimed to have detected the smell of a demon at the scene. As for the others..." Bamilian The steward's voice lowered, "Master Griffon Lord, you should know that the Marquis Osiris and Marquis Reeves must have doubted you, not to mention Grand Duke Raul, and as far as I know, Fire Magister Juno Ameriste is also very hostile to you."

"Jono Ann Merister?" Li Wei frowned strangely. He had very little impression of this great magister with fiery red hair, but the crimes committed by the heir of the Merister family were quite Let him have an ally hidden in the dark.

"Why is the fire magician hostile to me?" Li Wei muttered to himself.He never thought that anyone would be able to answer him, but Manager Bamilian narrowed his eyes and smiled, then pointed to his head, "Master Li Wei, isn't this simple? If you are interested, it doesn't matter to him whether you kill the king or not. What he wants to get is actually the secret of your ability to cast magic. If you can tell him the secret, I think you will be the important minister in the kingdom. There will definitely be one less enemy, and one more important helper."

Li Wei shook his head almost without thinking, "My lord, don't mention this matter, what is the content of the peace request made by the important ministers of the kingdom you mentioned?"

Director Bamili Yang blinked his eyes pointedly, "The batch of painting leaflets you distributed to the capital yesterday is really a wonderful idea, and now the content on it has spread to every corner of the capital Fermeyer, The battle-hardened troops of the Dreadfort Jailor and the Knights of Ashes have not been weakened, but the Royal Guards are far behind. In addition to the terrible long-range attack on the North Gate the night before, the Regent is now Grand Duke Raul can no longer control the situation in the capital, so he has no choice but to make a peace request to you."

(End of this chapter)