Lord: Starting with Summoning the Regular Army of Earth

Chapter 86 The Young Lady of the Alchemy Family

"What happened?" Conrad's heart tightened, realizing that things were definitely not simple.

"The royal hounds have caught up here!" Austin's voice was even lower, his eyes filled with anxiety and determination. "Their target is Miss Eleanor Lannister. I must distract them and give Miss Eleanor a chance to escape."

"Lannister?" Conrad was somewhat surprised. The Lannister family was a magical family famous for alchemy and the making of magical artifacts. They were also nobles of the Kingdom of Augustus and were extremely powerful. How could their young lady be hunted down by the royal family?

"What exactly happened?" Conrad asked, somewhat confused.

A flash of grief and indignation crossed Austin's eyes as he quickly explained, "After Robert ascended the throne, he fabricated a charge of colluding with heretics and plotting treason, and had the entire Lannister family executed. This was because the old Earl of Lannister had supported the second prince and refused to hand over several secret magical potion recipes to the Royal Alchemy Workshop."

Conrad gasped.

House Lannister is one of the kingdom's most prominent magical families. Although they are not known for their martial prowess, they wield immense influence in the fields of alchemy, magic scrolls, and the creation of magical items.

Robert resorted to such a ruthless act in order to eliminate his rivals and seize the secret formula.

"Lady Eleanor is the only remaining member of House Lannister," Austin continued, his voice heavy with sorrow. "You know, after I was wounded and left the capital, I served as the captain of the Lannister guard. On the day the city fell, the old Earl risked his life to let me and the young lady escape disguised as commoners—we lived in hiding, concealing our identities, and finally managed to reach this Whitewood in the North, hoping to use the chaos here to hide—but we were still discovered!"

He paused, looking at Conrad with a pleading look in his eyes: "Conrad, the old count saved my life, and I swore to protect Miss with my own. But the hounds are too close now, and with Miss in tow, I'm too conspicuous to shake off. I need—I need to distract them. I hope you can take Miss away—Conrad, my brother! I trust you more than anyone! I entrust Miss to you! You're recruiting for Emberstone Ridge, aren't you? Take her! Disguise her as a refugee, take her away! Take her to Emberstone Ridge, and let her live!"

Conrad instantly understood Austin's intention. Although it would be risky for him, he couldn't refuse the request of his best friend, even if it cost him his life.

"No problem, but you—" Conrad looked into his old friend's resolute eyes and knew that he was prepared to make a sacrifice.

"Leave me alone!" Austin said firmly. "Listen, my brother, Miss Eleanor may be young, but she is the most outstanding successor of the Lannister family, a true genius in alchemy and magical artifact crafting! She will be a great help to Prince Matthew!"

He quickly pulled a dirty little cloth bag from his pocket and stuffed it into Conrad's hand. "These are a few trinkets and some notes that Miss keeps close to her body; they might prove her worth. She's currently disguised as a mute boy, hiding in that abandoned mill west of town. This is a token. Take this and say the code word—"

Inside the cloth bag was a seemingly ordinary wooden buckle, but with a special serrated pattern carved on its edge.

After saying this, Austin hugged Conrad tightly without waiting for a reply: "Take care, brother! Miss Lannister—I'm entrusting her to you!"

After saying that, he shoved Conrad aside, pulled his hood up tight, and disappeared into the alleyway like a ghost.

Conrad stood there, clutching the wooden button tightly in his hand, his heart churning with turmoil.

He never expected to encounter his old friend here in this way, nor did he expect to be drawn into a crisis.

But Austin entrusted him with his life, and the trust he held, along with the immense value Miss Lannister might bring, made it impossible for him to refuse.

He frowned, made a decision, carefully put the wooden buckle away, and his eyes became firm again.

He quickly found old Sam, whispered a few words to him, and told him to continue to be in charge of purchasing vehicles and heading to the next destination.

He then made up an excuse and quietly headed towards the abandoned mill in the west of town.

The abandoned mill stood forlornly beside a nearly dried-up stream, its weathered wooden walls leaning precariously, its roof riddled with holes, and the air thick with the smell of dust and mold.

Conrad cautiously surveyed his surroundings, and only after confirming there were no ambushes did he quietly step inside.

The interior of the mill was dimly lit and cluttered.

Conrad stopped, lowered his voice, and uttered the code that Austin had taught him, even though he didn't understand what it meant.

Sure enough, before the words were even finished, a very slight rustling sound came from behind a pile of tattered sacks in the corner.

After a moment of silence, a seemingly frail figure cautiously peeked out from behind the sack.

It was a "boy" who looked about fourteen or fifteen years old. His face was smeared with mud and ash, his hair was cut short in a mess, and he was wearing a coarse cloth outfit that was extremely ill-fitting and full of patches. His big eyes looked particularly bright in the dim light, but they were full of fear and scrutiny.

This is Eleanor Lannister.

Conrad felt a pang of pain in his heart, finding it hard to believe that this once noble and beautiful young lady would now have to disguise herself like this and hide in such a filthy place.

“Auston sent me.” Conrad tried to make his voice sound gentle and believable. “I am Conrad, loyal to His Highness Prince Matthew, and also Austin’s best friend. He asked me to take you away from here to Prince Matthew’s territory.”

Eleanor stared intently at the wooden button in Conrad's hand, then quickly glanced at his face and attire, her wariness lessening somewhat.

She had naturally heard the name Conrad from Austin, and knew who Matthew was—the former king's illegitimate son who had captivated many noble ladies and was so handsome that even Robert was jealous, and who was later exiled to a remote place.

"Where's Austin?" she asked cautiously as she awkwardly crawled out of her hiding place.

Conrad didn't answer, but simply said, "Come with me, and be quiet."

He gave a brief instruction, gesturing for Eleanor to follow behind him.

The two left the abandoned mill quickly, one after the other, and caught up with Old Sam and his men along a hidden path. Eleanor then blended into the group of refugees they had recruited.

Old Sam simply exchanged a glance with Conrad and asked nothing.

Eleanor sat in the carriage, hidden among the crowd.

Conrad drove the carriage silently, his heart filled with anxiety, worried about Austin's safety and fearing that royal pursuers might appear at any moment.

However, as they moved away from the town and headed towards the next place where there might be a large number of refugees, the sound of horses' hooves and the clanging of metal armor plates coming from behind made Conrad tense up instantly.

He cautiously turned around and saw a group of about ten well-equipped knights wearing cloaks with the coat of arms of the Royal Guard galloping past on the official road not far away.

Their expressions were stern, and their armor was covered in dust, as if they had just been in a chase or a battle.

The lead knight had a blood-soaked, head-shaped object wrapped in cloth hanging prominently beside his saddle.

Conrad immediately recognized that the blood-soaked cloth was the cloak that Austin was wearing.

In that instant, Conrad felt as if his heart was being gripped tightly by an icy hand, or as if someone had stabbed him in the heart, the pain so intense that he could barely breathe.

He clenched his teeth so tightly that he didn't make a sound.

His eyes instantly welled up with tears, and his vision blurred, but he forced his eyes wide open, etching the cruel scene into his mind.

The head of a close friend was so casually hung beside the saddle by the enemy, like a trophy of war.

Eleanor, hiding in the crowd, covered her mouth tightly, but tears streamed uncontrollably from her eyes.

She clearly recognized what it was and understood why Austin had entrusted himself to Conrad.

Conrad's arm trembled slightly from the exertion; he had to use all his willpower to suppress the urge to rush out and fight the enemy to the death.

He knew that doing so would not only be a pointless death, but would also betray the trust Austin had placed in him with his life.

The knights did not linger; they quickly disappeared at the end of the road, leaving behind an aura of blood and death, clearly returning to report or continue their search.

Conrad only slowly released his grip when the sound of hooves had completely faded into the distance, as if all his strength had been drained away.

He looked up at the gray sky, letting two streams of hot tears silently slide down his weathered cheeks.

The man did not shed tears, but he did not go to the sad place.

Austin, his brother of many years, who had shared life and death with him, never expected that their long-awaited reunion would turn into a final farewell.

Eleanor covered her mouth tightly with both hands, her shoulders heaving violently as she let out a silent, desperate cry.

Although Ella, who was standing next to her, didn't know what had happened to Eleanor, she patted her shoulder sympathetically, trying to comfort her.

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