The rain poured down and never ended. The gray-white rain curtain connects the sky and the earth into a blur, as if returning to the chaos at the beginning of creation.

The road leading from the city of Visa to the plains of Collins had become muddy in heavy rain. A two-wheeled cart full of goods unsurprisingly got stuck in the thick mud, and the middle-aged man who had given up the attempt still lingered, as if hesitating to move on or stay and guard their cargo.

A carriage that was struggling to move stopped beside him, and someone shouted at him from the carriage, "Do you want help?"

The man was blinking desperately in the rain, and a young man with black hair was waving at him in the carriage.

The man glanced at the miserable two-wheeled bicycle and wiped his face fiercely.

"Let that pile of pumpkins rot in the mud!" he finally made up his mind, "Can you take me to the village of Karnak on the other side of the Collins Plains, if it's convenient?"

"Of course!" the young man cheerfully opened the door, "just on the way." ”

The carriage was spacious, but not very dry, with dark water stains on the expensive velvet cushions and a mess on the wooden floor.

"I just couldn't help but open the window. The young man said apologetically. His forehead was a little high, his wet black hair stuck to it, and his dark blue eyes were large and deep, not particularly good-looking, but very flattering.

"It's okay," the tall man who had just gotten into the car grinned, closing the doors and windows firmly.

Ed Singhal looked up at him with a bright smile.

"You live in Karnak? I haven't been there in a long time. He said.

He is almost twenty years old, and he has spent most of the past three years traveling south with his father to learn how to do business. As Naria said, it was more in line with his nature. Vala just sighed at his choice. She still lives in the castle of Chrissus, which is slowly under repair, and seems to have made up her mind to make it her permanent home.

Ed still liked Christus, but he didn't want to stay in that place for the rest of his life.

As soon as he returned to Visa a few days ago, he received a letter from his mother. Vala wished he could make a trip to the castle as soon as possible, but didn't say why. He wanted to leave immediately, but the sudden heavy rain left him in Visa. Early this morning, when the sun finally appeared from behind the thick clouds, he hurriedly stuffed all kinds of gifts into the carriage and set off, but he was still hit by a torrential rain on the way.

The man didn't seem to intend to answer his question.

"I'm sorry," he grinned at Ed, "you're a good boy, you shouldn't mind sharing anything other than the carriage?" His left arm slammed against Ed's neck, squeezing the young man firmly against the bench with his weight, the knife in his right hand dangling in front of the blue eyes that suddenly widened.

"Don't worry," he said in a reassuring tone, "I won't kill you, I like your brain, it's like mine." ”

Ed's gaze drifted to the man's heavily receding hairline, and his heart trembled inexplicably.

"I'm not even going to take everything you have. The man continued to babble patiently, "Share! means you have some, and I have some." I prefer things that are small and valuable, but not so special. You know what I mean, I don't think you like to wear any jewelry?" he glanced at the young man's bare fingers, "You're not even married......! But that's none of my business. Gold coins, or silver coins, you can keep the rest for yourself, how about it?"

Ed shook his head effortfully under his shackles.

"No? Do you prefer me to draw a gold coin on your face with a knife? I really don't know how to draw. The man regretfully pointed the tip of the knife at Ed's face, but suddenly felt an unbearable tingling sensation in the wrist holding the knife.

Ed quickly caught the knife that almost pierced him in the face, and the knee of his left leg pushed hard against the man's lower abdomen, and with a sharp force, the man who was half a head shorter than him but stronger was flipped to the floor, and the knife was gently pressed against the other party's throat, and he smiled proudly: "I think I can teach you." ”

This trick was learned from Tess. He didn't have any mental barriers to learning self-defense with a female thief - people in business had to be practical.

The man lying on the floor quickly raised his hand in surrender without any psychological barrier: "Hey, hey, son, well done! Well done! If I had a child, I would definitely throw it into your hat." His brown eyes swirled with the knife that moved as the carriage undulated, "Why don't you talk about it next time?"

"When? I don't know how long you'll be in the prison in Visa. Ed said with a grin.

"Don't bother with that, kid, don't you know how popular the prison in Visa City is right now? ”

Ed was a little incredulous: "Is the security in Visa so bad?" "Visa is a port city, and many people come and go, but the lord of the city, O'Ayer, is a man of considerable influence and skill, and it has always been well governed. When he was a child, he used to run around the streets and rarely encountered any danger. Even though the ice dragon flew out from under the temple of the water god three years ago, Visa City was suddenly filled with adventurers of all stripes, and it quickly calmed down under the control of the paladins and did not cause much commotion.

"It's getting worse, it's getting worse. The man sighed and replied, "The floods of a few months ago washed away the old West Bank, and there are not many rich people living there. The rain was always falling, and people said that the god of water was still angry. There are no more boats on the Vinez River. To make matters worse, the dwarves are showing up less and less often, and there is simply no cargo to get out. People who don't have money and a place to live have to find a way to survive. There was real worry on his face: "And I heard that Lord Ayir is sick and dying." ”

Ed paused for a moment and put away his knife.

The main goods of the city were the precious metals, precious stones and jewelry made by the dwarves from the deep underground of the northern mountains, and people came from distant places to bring all kinds of goods to exchange for those beautiful and expensive small stones, so that the city prospered for nearly two hundred years. River Singer's business, on the other hand, is dominated by spices, and in recent years has turned more to southern cities and shipping.

He spent less and less time in Visa, and although he had heard about it in Stonebuch and had to travel back to Visa by land, he had hardly spent the days in the city going out because of the heavy rain. The servants, trained by the stewards, were quiet and discreet, and even occasionally talked about the situation in the city, they always understated it. He had no idea it was so serious.

"My name is Ed, Ed Singh. He stretched out his hand to the suspicious man on the floor, smiled and introduced himself, "Actually, I'm not very good at drawing. ”

"Dunn Brown. The man said dumbfoundedly, as if he had not expected such a development.

"I'll come up with two gold coins to buy your knife, Dunn," Ed tossed the knife in his hand and caught it, "deal?"

"Of course!sure!deal!" The man who came back to his senses nodded vigorously, ripped the worn-out scabbard from his waist and threw it at him: "This should be included." His thick dark eyebrows were furrowed, and his smile was quite hearty.

Ed pulled the gold coins from his pocket, and couldn't help but ask, "Didn't anyone go to the dwarves?" He knew that the elves were quietly leaving, but he didn't know that even the dwarves were like this.

"I've heard that Lord Ayr has sent people to look for them, but you also know the dwarves, who never let humans into their mines. Dunn took the coin, looked at it with a smile, put it away carefully, and sat down comfortably, "We can only wait for them to come to Visa, or trade with them in their town below the mountain, but the people who came back said that there was not a single dwarf in the town below, and it was as eerie as a dead city." They searched for a long time but could not find the gate of the dwarven kingdom, so they had to return empty-handed. ”

Ed's melancholy appearance surprised him a little.

"Don't worry, kid, even without those dwarves, we'll always have a way to survive. He couldn't help but comfort.

"Perhaps," Ed looked out the window with a wistful look, "but it's always different." ”

When the rain was getting lighter, Dunn got off the bus at Collins Plains, saying that there was always a way to get back to Visa. Ed looked at the man's lonely back in the rain, and was stunned for a long time.

He remembered what his father had told him: Different lives have different difficulties.

He remembered the life he was about to choose—a life that would be very different from what he was now, and he had no idea where that path would take him.

qidian.

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