Then she shook her head and said, "The elders are all preoccupied with big things like restoring the magic network. They don't care about the outstanding young people. After all, the oldest elders have more than a dozen generations of descendants. I am just one of Elder Mustafa's countless female relatives."

Emiya pressed her brows with a headache: "...In other words, we even have to pay attention to the condition of mother and baby first...I will contact Halayahe now."

Other things may not be urgent, but if this matter is notified late, it may cost the lives of dozens or even hundreds of mothers and babies.

Just as Emiya pulled out the crystal ball and established contact with Naif of Halayah, the carriage, which had been silent for quite some time, finally trembled. The beautiful woman, Olma Edelhorst, still pale, finally lifted the carriage curtain and said in a trembling voice, "...I heard from my sister that it was you who heard her plea for help and saved me at all costs..."

She hesitated for a moment, then said, "And my child's life, is that right?"

-----------------

"...My husband and the father of my child, Aenata, is an assistant to an elder. He now lives with the elder in Haligard."

"You don't live together?" Sig asked curiously, "because Haligad is too expensive?"

"...You could say that, or rather, I found it myself." She pointed at her sister in front of her. "Among us sisters, I'm the only one with arcane talent, and I'd even say quite good... I was a first-ring mage at the age of thirty, and my husband is even better, now a second-ring mage. This achievement would have been unremarkable in Halruaa of yesteryear, but it's considered exceptional in modern Halruaa. However, after all, low-ring mages don't actually produce much, and in the now-restricted Halruaa, they don't earn much..."

Having said that, the meaning is actually very clear.

She encountered a common dilemma for Faerun mages—without a breakthrough in magic, there would be no substantial income. Without a substantial income, it would be difficult to achieve a breakthrough.

It was obvious that the couple had chosen to push forward the path of arcane magic, even if it meant cutting costs. So now, whenever they were forced to go into the city, their family members had to drive them themselves.

Having said that, Olma sighed softly and glanced at his daughter whom he had just taken from his savior.

The swaddling cloth woven from salamander scales was obviously incredibly expensive; she couldn't possibly afford either the materials or the labor. Thinking of this, she could only force a smile: "I wonder if my daughter is one of the lucky nine."

Only one-third of the Halruaans can learn the arcane arts, and only one-third of this third can become first-ring wizards.

In the following, at every stage, countless people will stop for various reasons: excessive cost, lack of interest, family pressures, and the cruelest lack of talent.

Yin glanced at the swaddled child and replied, "He still has talent, but not very good."

This answer could even be said to be unexpected, or even a blessing - after all, this was something that was decided at birth, and no matter whether she said good or bad things now, it would not affect the final result.

Then, Yin said seriously, "It's much worse than Larloch, Iollum, and Karsus."

The new mother, who was originally trying to smile, was stunned for a moment, then she was amused and fell backwards. Her original restraint was immediately swept away. She laughed for a long time before realizing that something was wrong. She restrained her smile a little and kept bowing to express her gratitude: "Thank you for your good words, thank you for your good words..."

What a joke! Those three great arcanists were among the few great arcanists in the long history of Netheril civilization. Even though Halruaa has produced many talented people over the past few thousand years, perhaps only the former Mage King Zarathon, who successfully predicted the Spellbane, could say that his talent could be compared with theirs.

As soon as these words came out, everyone else in the team couldn't hold back - if one's talent was only slightly worse than that of a 21-year-old eighth-ring mage, then this talent was generally known as outstanding.

Worse than these shocking names? This sentence was simply the highest compliment. She had never expected that this girl who looked quite rebellious could speak so... so comfortingly. It was truly unexpected for Olma.

At this moment, Emiya finally had the chance to turn around and said, "Ms. Olma, what kind of research is your husband doing in Haligard? We have decided to escort you to Haligard, but we still need to know where to send you."

This topic made Olma silent for a moment. She hesitated for a moment, then finally nodded. "...You all don't look like people from around Haligad. You look more like outsiders who migrated to Halayach from the outside world. This matter is supposed to be kept secret, but I'm not qualified to do so."

She said: "His job is to study the geological samples brought back by those expeditions."

"Expedition team?!" This question immediately shocked everyone, "Which expedition team are we going to?"

Olma pinched the corner of his clothes and said, "This is an open secret in Haligad..."

"An expedition beyond Mount Talas to Halruaa."

Emiya's face darkened.

Foreign exploration, which was still a taboo in Halayah, had already been practiced in Haligad—even for many years!

Twenty Blood Sacrifices (I)

"...I thought Halayach was outrageous enough." Sig raised his head blankly. "So Halayach has restrained himself before?"

They were probably still nearly ten kilometers from Haligard. At this distance, Haligard's most outstanding, physically outstanding buildings had already appeared at the end of their sight.

Naturally, those buildings are all wizard towers without exception.

However, the scale is even more excessive than that of Halayach!

As they got closer to Haligard, the city's most distinctive buildings appeared before them.

Countless mage towers rose from the ground, their spacings pitifully small, their heights staggered—as if each mage hoped their tower would surpass their neighbor's. And these uneven heights were the echoes of the incredibly fierce battles between mage towers.

Or perhaps, when they were completed, these wizard towers were already the most magnificent wizard towers in the vicinity or even in the entire city, but with successive generations, they were eventually buried in the dust of history.

Countless wizards came one after another to make their wizard towers the tallest buildings in the entire city, and this process may have lasted for thousands of years.

The end result is that the height of the wizard tower in Haligad is much higher than that of Halayach.

Emiya frowned. "It seems... the damage to Haligard was relatively small?"

At this point, Eliser blushed and whispered, "No... From what I understand, it's because the people of Haligad have just recovered some of their strength, and the first thing they did was renovate the Mage Tower and restart the height competition. In fact, since everyone's financial resources are almost at their limit, the hope of suppressing others has increased, which actually makes them more motivated."

Olma blushed with shame and murmured, "After all, if the Mage Tower is too low, I really won't be able to hold my head up high, and it will be difficult to do anything..."

"Seeing these wizard towers, I can probably guess why Master Zarason insisted on moving the capital to Halayahe." Mars snorted coldly.

Halffont said calmly: "He admitted that he just couldn't stand the atmosphere in Haligad——"

At this moment, their internal drama was already in full swing. Sig mocked them harshly, saying, "On the one hand, they squander their wealth for the sake of their own dignity, while on the other hand, they secretly engage in all sorts of shameful activities. The Church of Shadows and the Gods of the Non-Gods have already been heavily infiltrated—what kind of insects are the Haligad people!"

Although, for Emilia, these two things may be causally related.

Emiya said, "Anyway, while we're helping the Sassan and Olma sisters settle down, don't forget to observe carefully and hint at things. Sassan isn't a mage, and her status in Halruaa isn't high, but she's heard of the Gods Not Gods Society. There are two most likely reasons. One is that the Gods Not Gods Society's influence around Haligad is so widespread that everyone knows about it. The other possibility is..."

The couple's family had a close connection with the Gods and Non-Gods, so much so that even ordinary people like Sasan, who had no talent for spellcasting, knew a thing or two about it.

He hoped it was the former—he had just helped her deliver a baby and saved her life, and then sent her to prison or even killed her. Even if they hadn't lost anything morally, it would still be a grudge.

Unfortunately, the direction of this matter was already determined in the past.

At that moment, Olma, who had just become a mother, seemed to have made up her mind and poked her head out of the carriage again. "Everyone! You saved my life and my daughter's life. As you can see, I truly cannot repay you enough. I wonder if I could once again be so bold as to ask you to name my daughter?"

Emilia felt a black screen before her eyes.

If Olma's magic power was not strong, he would definitely not be able to read their minds silently.

This time, the request for a name really put him in a dilemma.

As a result, when he was still hesitating about how to respond, Yin had already jumped onto the carriage and took a look at the baby still in the cradle.

During this period, the baby's lanugo had gradually fallen off, and the flames on her body also gradually dissipated.

However, the baby's body temperature was still terrifyingly high, like a small bonfire - even without the flame, her body temperature was at least ten degrees higher than that of an ordinary person.

Yin did not answer the question immediately, but gave the little guy a light slap. The baby, who was originally smiling foolishly, immediately burst into tears.

Miss Yin poked the baby's forehead again and said to her in all seriousness, "If you become a wizard, your name will be Igni. If you don't want to be a wizard, then just pretend you've never met me. I don't know you!"

She doesn't understand - Emiya couldn't help but mutter in her heart.

The child's mother, however, quietly let out a sigh and replied with a smile, "There's no Halruaan in this world who doesn't want to be a mage."

"Oh?" Yin raised his head excitedly, "If she really doesn't want to."

"...Heh." A smile appeared on Olma's face. "If she clearly has good talent but refuses to learn the arcane...the treatment for these rare rebellious children is uniform in Halruaa—beat them until they agree. So, she is now called Igni Edelhorst."

Just as Emya was sweating profusely, a series of crisp horse hoofbeats echoed from the front. A group of fully armed Halrua warriors slowly approached along the avenue, with their backs to the towers of Haligard. "The convoy ahead, please slow down. If you plan to enter Haligard, you must submit to inspection!"

The gentle atmosphere just now disappeared without a trace, and Emilia was stunned for a moment, casting inquiring glances at several people who had been to Haligard.

They all looked calm - this was indeed the norm.

The Halegaard patrol cavalry drew closer. However, the Halruans were naturally incredibly experienced with magic, and their originally high-pitched voices fell silent the moment they saw the Phantom Horse.

Phantom Horse.

It is said that this third-level spell was once ubiquitous in Halruaa, as true mages simply looked down upon those odd-toed ungulates that required so much effort to care for.

However, in today's Haligard, a wizard who could unleash the Phantom Horse already held considerable weight. If still young, they would likely secure a seat on the Council of Elders.

They tacitly ignored the wings on the Phantom Pony—now there was no Halruaan wizard who could release the most perfect Phantom Pony.

——However, the fact that they could cast an illusion on the Phantom Horse to recall the glory of the past meant that there was a very important person in this not-so-big caravan.

They immediately swallowed their pride and politely made way, but still asked, "...Sorry, we were a little loud earlier and may have disturbed you. I apologize. However, the inspection is still necessary."

Emiya raised her eyebrows slightly.

He didn't think he needed any special privileges, but he did have some understanding of the Halruan people's character—in fact, the Halruan people were extremely competitive. Although they did follow the rules, unfortunately, they didn't uphold justice. Instead, they strictly observed the distinction between superiors and subordinates outside of magic.

This "up" and "down" has many meanings: social status, magical power...

Therefore, even though Emiya and his group were dressed unusually and were obviously not typical Halruaans, they were still very respectful for the sake of Phantom Pony.

In this case, when it is clear that they are quite powerful, but we still insist on checking, then they are most likely not here to blackmail us.

"What happened?" Emilia asked, "Or is it just a routine checkup?"

The cloaked captain of the Halruaan cavalry hesitated, then said, "...according to regulations, we must complete the inspection before disclosing the details."

Emiya sighed: "What specific items should be checked? You can't ask me to open the Dimensional Hole Spellbook..."

"No, no, no." The captain was sweating. "We are just looking for someone."

At that moment, Orma, holding the child, squeezed out of the carriage with Sasan and said, "Everyone, we are guests who have been fortuitously protected by a few... seniors. We want to visit relatives in Haligad, that's all. There is no one else in our carriage."

The captain stared at the emblem on Olma's body, took a deep breath, and replied, "Visiting relatives? Who in Haligard are you visiting? This is just routine."

Olma said very skillfully: "Go find my husband, Aenata Edhorst. This is my sister, Sasan Edhorst, and the one in my arms... is my newly born daughter, Igni Edhorst."

Apparently she had said this several times.

But the captain didn't answer immediately. Instead, he took a deep breath and said, "...Well, ma'am, congratulations on the new addition to the Edelhorst family. I wish your child a smooth journey on the arcane path. I'll get in the carriage and do a quick search, and you can all go. Please pack your personal belongings. I repeat, we're only looking for someone."

"Ok."

Just as the captain dismounted his horse, a cavalryman covered his stomach in due time: "...I'm sorry, Captain, I think I ate too much yesterday, and my stomach is a little rumbling."

"Damn it! If you do something like this again while on duty, you'll be in for a real show when your monthly salary is reviewed." The cavalry captain whipped his whip. "Get out of here! Get out of here as far as you can! If I even smell anything, I'll whip your ass!"

"Yes, yes, yes!" The soldier immediately turned his horse around.

At this moment, Sig narrowed his eyes slightly. "Something's wrong! The whole team's heartbeat suddenly accelerated! What the hell, they're looking for Olma!"

Emilia hesitated for a moment.

Olma's identity was unknown, and he was unwilling to stand up for her in such a matter - that would be like being used as a scapegoat by a stranger.

He took a few steps forward, lowered his voice, and asked, "Hello, we just met Miss Olma by chance. Now that you have completed the search, may I know what you were searching for?"

The population of Haligard was also not large. For a criminal to warrant the city's massive cavalry hunt, he must have caused a truly devastating mess—by now, Haligard was probably in complete chaos.

It was their team's favorite environment for fishing in troubled waters.

The captain was still laughing: "...There's only one step left. I'll go in and search the carriage and then I can tell you. Please wait a few minutes..."

Emiya wasn't interested in beating around the bush, so she had Haverfonte use illusion to quietly transmit a voice into the captain's head: "Are you looking for someone from the Edelhorst family?"

The captain's voice paused, and his heart, which was already beating rapidly due to surprise and nervousness, suddenly accelerated to the point where the myocardium was almost bursting. He even subconsciously drew the sword at his waist.

Before he could react, Emiya had already extended her hand: "—Group Human Immobilization."

In an instant, the entire cavalry squad, including the soldiers who had turned around and were about to gallop away, were instantly frozen on their horses as if struck by lightning.

Emiya didn't make things difficult for them. She simply made sure they realized they were immobilized before removing the spell and clapped her hands. "... Mass Human Immobilization, a seventh-level spell. Halayach didn't have a single seventh-level mage until a few days ago, and I'm guessing neither did Haligad. My point is simple—I'm powerful enough, but I'm not interested in making things difficult for you."

"I have only one request: Stop playing those little tricks on us and tell us what you should have told us anyway."

At this moment, Oerma was still completely unaware of the situation: "...Huh? Did he just start a fight?"

The cavalry captain's reaction was completely different. He was so shocked that he almost fell off his horse: "...You...you are a Seventh Ring Mage?!"

"We'll talk about this later." Emilia had introduced herself countless times in the past few days, and her lips were almost covered with calluses.

Now, he just wanted to ask one question: "What exactly are you investigating?"

The captain was silent for a moment. After a moment of internal conflict, he said bitterly, "The prophecy family Theodore reported... a prophet elder reported Aenata Edhorst and his mentor Jonah van der Vaart. During the search, we found evidence. The entire Mage Tower is now under a full-scale wanted order from Haligard."

"And Ionata Edelhorst has been arrested and is being tortured—actually, we are looking for anyone connected to the Vandervaart Mage Tower."

These words instantly made the two women of Edelhorst's family lose all color from their faces.

Sasan supported his sister, glaring at her. "This is clearly a false accusation! My brother-in-law's only job is geological research—how could such a job be involved in a crime that warrants a nationwide arrest warrant? Even if he did commit a crime, there's no reason to implicate his family!!"

Seeing that Emiya and her group showed no signs of trouble, the cavalry captain breathed a sigh of relief and finally spoke with confidence, "The Vandervaart Mage Tower openly used blood sacrifices and desecrated corpses within the tower, shaking the ethical foundations of the entire Halrua. Even if you are from Halayah, I can say without hesitation: This pursuit is absolutely correct—but I must revise one point."

He glanced at Igni and said, "The only sacrificial materials Halruaa is allowed to use are non-intelligent creatures, and every sacrifice must be reported in advance and supervised by a dedicated person. And the Vandervaart family..."

The cavalry captain's eyes flashed with rage. "They're using babies and children as sacrifices! What's even more terrifying is that some lunatics are even sacrificing their own children!"

Olma was stunned for a moment, then fainted like a falling leaf.

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