"The slave trade?" Fang Yu asked unexpectedly.

Princess Rupert's tone was very calm: "To be exact, I want Mr. Ed to help me investigate a case related to slave smuggling. ”

Fang Yu blurted out: "Why us?" ”

He imagined that they were just a group of passers-by who were passing by, and they were not enemies of Her Royal Highness the princess, but they were not very close. At best, he took a hand in rescuing her sister from danger, and inadvertently did her a favor.

Could it be that Her Royal Highness the princess does not have someone she can trust by her side, and even this kind of thing has to be entrusted to a strange adventurer, this is unjustifiable in any case.

But Princess Rupert was unhurried, and replied:

"Because I trust you."

"Trustworthy?"

Princess Rupert looked into his eyes, and her eyes showed extraordinary calmness:

"On the one hand, Mr. Eddard reproached Afifa for his remarks and let me know that you will not be complicit in these people. But more importantly, you have no connection to Estonia. ”

Fang Yu was confused when he heard this, and only reacted after a while: "What does this have to do with the slave smuggling case?" ”

The other party did not answer him directly.

Then Princess Rupert turned and took from her maid a sabre with a sheath, the worn scabbard covered with scratches, and one end inlaid with a red crystal. The other party gently stroked the knife with his hand, his eyes were soft, full of reminiscence, and said:

"Let me tell you about the history between the Penelope royal family and the slave traders."

Fang Yu nodded blankly.

Her Royal Highness the eldest princess said slowly:

"My grandfather's generation, the Kingdom of Korin signed the Stargate Declaration with you, and as members of the Korin-Ishurian Alliance, we signed the contract with the dwarves and the Elves of Evan Quinn at that time. Soon after, Istania completely banned the slave trade. And that's where my grandfather, my father, and I came from—"

"Is Her Royal Highness the princess saying that the slave trade will be banned and slave traders and smugglers will be cracked down?" Fang Yu asked.

Princess Rupert glanced at him appreciatively, nodded, and asked, "Are you curious, why the three generations of the Penelope royal family have to get along with the Istanian nobles, even if they break with everyone and make the desert country divided into two, and they are the same as water and fire, and they still have to carry out these meaningless things?" ”

Fang Yu thought for a moment and replied, "I don't think it's a meaningless thing. ”

Princess Rupert smiled lightly: "It may be true for you, but it is meaningless for us. The sand above the silver sand sand sea is like sand in a huge hourglass, and it will never dry up. Therefore, the millennium of Istania is also moving forward slowly, and this ancient kingdom has long been accustomed to the same life, so the nobles will question, why did my grandfather, my father, have to turn this peaceful country upside down? ”

Her eyes flashed with a bright and determined light: "Actually, not only the nobles, but also the commoners sometimes do not side with us. It's funny to say that some people are not affected much by this turmoil, but those who used to be under them are now on an equal footing with them, which makes them resentful. ”

There was silence in the hall for a moment. Those who are sitting are either too mature or have not been deeply involved in the world, Tianlan and Ai Xiaoxiao's eyes are shining when they hear such a statement, and they look incredible.

Fang Yu wanted to say something, but he couldn't say it for a while. He can understand such feelings, but he is disappointed that some things in this world are not as good as they should be, and they cannot always go as they wish. He thought for a moment, and finally comforted the eldest princess:

"What you did today, but one day people will remember you."

Princess Rupert smiled, but instead of accepting his comforting smile, she smiled with some meaning at Fang Yuan's embarrassment. There was a hint of apology in her bright eyes, and then she replied with a smile:

"I'm sorry, Mr. Ed, you may have misunderstood something. I did not expect such a thing, and those who sit in the position of ruler are not qualified to flaunt their morality, because it is a generous gesture to others. My grandfather, my father, and I are called rebels for three generations of Penelope's family, but do you know why my grandfather, my father, and I made this choice? ”

This answer surprised Fang Yu a little, and after he paused for a moment, he couldn't help but shake his head.

"After the signing of the Stargate Declaration, the nobles of Cowlin admired your civilization and the novel picture you showed, but in fact my family is the real beneficiary of that provision." Her Royal Highness stroked the saber with one hand as she said these words slowly.

But she knew that Fang Yu would not understand, so she added: "The policy of banning the slave trade has indeed caused an uproar in Istania, and several princes and local nobles are almost unanimously opposed, and there are disagreements within the royal family. At that time, the king of sand was in a dilemma. Only my grandfather is firmly on your side, because he knows that when the voices of division within Istania rise above the noise, the opportunity will come. ”

During the feast, Sylvid gave an interesting look.

"Sure enough, Kaulin-Ishurian will not sit idly by while Istania is once again in turmoil, and my grandfather, who has the help of the royal family of Kaulin, has not long been the successor to the throne of the former King of Shah. So to this day, there are still many people who don't understand why my grandfather, my father, and I insisted on going our own way, but in fact, it was only because we were born in this position. ”

Princess Rupert stopped at this point: "Of course, it's not just that. Having seen enough tragedy, I also know the blood and tears behind the slave trade, and now my father and I have forgiven their past sins. But even so, there are many who defy the Kingdom's decrees in private, and this will not be tolerated. ”

She looked at Fang Yuan: "Mr. Ed, I am telling you this, firstly, to show that the matter of banning the slave trade was proposed by you, and I am your natural ally in this regard. Second, I apologized for Afifa's young and ignorant remarks, but she is very kind-hearted in nature, even more innocent and naïve than me, who is a sister. ”

Fang Yu listened to the silence for a long time before asking, "But this still doesn't mean what this has to do with us?" ”

The Stargate Declaration was signed by governments and included a clause prohibiting the slave trade, and it was up to Stargate to intervene – in an era when commercialization was becoming more and more common in every corner of Aitalia, people were becoming more interested in their own interests, so there was a growing market for such a statement.

But Fang Yu didn't mean that, he just tried to figure out why Her Royal Highness the eldest princess needed to rely on their identities.

Princess Rupert only bent the corners of her eyes slightly when she heard this, and smiled politely:

"Please wait a moment and let me show you something."

With that, she beckoned a lady to come to her side, and handed her a box to the latter, and then ordered it to be delivered to Fang Ou.

Fang Yu looked at the box, the black wooden box was only two feet long, the wood seemed to have been eroded for a long time, the lacquer surface was very mottled, and the workmanship itself was also very rough, not as exquisite as the royal utensils used by Her Royal Highness the princess he had seen before.

It was only at the signal of Princess Rupert's eyes that he opened the box and found several pages of parchment neatly contained inside. But only one or two of them were still in good condition, and most of the others were broken, dry, as if they would break at any moment.

There were some crooked words and symbols written on the parchment, and he felt some familiar feeling in his heart at first glance, but when he looked closely, he found that he did not know the words and symbols on it, and only felt that he was still reading a book from heaven.

Most of these words and symbols have been mottled, and the corners of the parchment are even moldy, and they are not easy to read. Behind the text on the first page, there are several pieces of parchment with pure patterns, a bit like some kind of magic circle, but it is completely different from alchemy.

Fang Yu inspected it for a while before he raised his head and looked at Her Royal Highness the princess suspiciously.

"This is the Yuanhai handwriting, of course, not the original, but the hand-copied text of later generations." Princess Rupert replied, as if she had anticipated his expression.

When Fang Yu heard this, he was so frightened that he almost threw out the box in his hand.

Since the Hall of a Thousand Gates, he has specifically learned about the 'Seventh Prohibition', which stipulates that the Electors shall not have any degree of contact with the cultists and cult organizations in Aitalia.

It is also forbidden to collect evil things, summon evil spirits, communicate with the Dark Realm (the Dark Saints), or perform any burnt offerings related to living creatures.

Among them, in the column of evil objects, the long scroll of the deep sea and its manuscript are ranked above, and they are in the third place.

Fortunately, for some reason, the ancient alchemy that originated from the long scroll of the deep sea was not forbidden. Otherwise, he would have left the Hall of a Thousand Gates, and he would not dare to meet with the military.

"Why did Her Highness give me this?"

"Because it's incriminating evidence." Princess Rupert replied unhurriedly.

"Incriminating evidence?"

Princess Rupert pressed her hand lightly on the saber:

"Not long ago, my guards rescued an escaped slave in Bargo, and they carried this box with them. But it was certainly not his, but he stole it from a gang of slave traders—

I only learned that there was smuggling in Tansnil. I was also told that the slave traders were staying in Tansnir, where they had recently taken over with a group of mysterious men and had received a batch of such boxes from each other. I asked him to describe what the jointers looked like, and coincidentally, I happened to know one of them. ”

The smoke in the hall was slowly spreading, with a faint hint of incense. Princess Rupert paused for a moment:

"About a year ago, a gang of sand pirates attacked the Garden of Illusions, which is located in a sea of silver sand......"

She shifted gears and talked about something that was a little further afield.

The Garden of Illusion is the garden of the Penelope royal family, in which the star flower is planted to make the original liquid of 'gin', and there are some secrets of the Penelope royal family, which has always been the most secret place of the royal family.

Due to the quicksand, the location of the Garden of Illusion in the sea of silver sand changes every year, and the law of this is known only to the royal family of Penelope.

Therefore, only a handful of people in the whole of Istania know where it really is in the desert.

“…… So I always thought that the attack on the Garden of Illusions was not a coincidence. But there is someone in the royal court who has betrayed me and my father, and this person may even be close to us. ”

Princess Rupert's tone suddenly became a lot lower, with a hint of silence:

And the attackers at that time, the leader of which was named Makhazar Ishf, was the most notorious thief in the desert. And he also appeared in this connection with the slave traders. By the time I led the men back to Tansnir, the slave traders had disappeared without a trace. ”

After hearing this, Fang Yu finally understood what Her Royal Highness the princess meant.

The eldest princess of Istani apparently suspected that someone in the royal family was in collusion with this Makhazar-Ishf, which is why the attack on the Garden of Illusions occurred. And this so-called 'slave trade' case has become less simple because of the appearance of this sand thief leader. There may also be people in the royal family involved behind it.

That's why she sought help from people outside of Istania.

And the other party's previous words are not difficult to understand. They were outsiders who had nothing to do with Istania and showed hostility to the slave trade, making them the best candidates for the princess.

It's not an easy task. But the Celestial Princess's offer was just as lucrative - the opportunity to use the Royal Dockyard to build the Seven Seas Traveler was a real deal.

It's just that he still has some detailed questions, Fang Yu was about to ask, but the other party took the first step to answer:

"Besides, does Mr. Ed know the identity of that slave?"

Fang Yu was stunned, how could he know about this kind of thing?

However, Her Royal Highness the princess obviously would not make fun of him at this time, which means that he must know the identity of the slave. He couldn't help but think silently for a moment - first of all, the other party would definitely not be the one who was elected, only the aborigines. Among the natives, the Korin people and the inhabitants of other places are unlikely to become slaves, and don't forget that this is a resurrected world, not to mention that no matter how bold the slave traders are, there is no need to offend the kingdom of Cowlin, which is even more behemoth than Istania.

So after ruling out these two possibilities, only the natives of Estania remained. But he didn't know many native Istanians, and most of them could not have been enslaved.

The only one who has anything to do with it is Pasha. At the thought of Pasha, Fang Ou's heart flashed with inspiration.

He raised his head and said, "Could it be the one who was snatched by the Blood Shark Air Raiders?" ”

Although the Blood Shark Pirates were completely defeated in Idus, some of them were rescued by the descendants of Flor. But some of the people they had taken captive from other parts had not yet reached Idus—they had disappeared mysteriously after hearing that the excavations had failed.

If the only thing that has anything to do with you is about this one.

Princess Rupert listened to his answer, and her eyes could not help but shine with admiration:

"Mr. Ed seems to be not only accomplished in alchemy, but also has a clear mind, which makes me more confident."

She nodded again:

"Yes, these slaves are supposed to be from the Blood Shark Air Pirates, but it is unclear what connection those slave traders have with the Blood Shark Air Pirates. But I also inquired about another thing—"

"I want to hear about it." Fang Yu said in a deep voice.

I have to say that if this matter has anything to do with the Blood Shark Sky Pirates, then they must not sit idly by.

In the battle of Idus, the wanderers escaped with serious injuries, and Rollin disappeared without a trace, and the only people who had a connection with the two and could still find them were probably the only Blood Shark Sky Thieves. Although it is very unlikely that these people will know the whereabouts of the wanderer, the wanderer should be at their weakest at this moment, so no matter how small the opportunity, it should not be easily missed.

In addition, the Blood Shark Air Pirates must also have some connection with the Dragon Worship Sect, whether it is for their own reasons or the commission of the military, he will not ignore any information related to the Dragon Worship Sect.

In fact, he instinctively felt that there might be a shadow of the Dragon Worship Sect behind this incident, and he already had such a premonition in his heart when the slave mentioned that the sand thieves were connected with the slave traders, and handed over a batch of manuscripts of the long scrolls of the deep sea.

Princess Rupert pondered for a moment before saying, "I don't know if this has anything to do with Mr. Ed, but those people seem to have mentioned that they seem to be looking for clues about what 'obelisk' is in the manuscript. ”

Fang Yu was originally looking down and thinking, but when he heard this, he couldn't help but let out a 'chuckle' in his heart.

Not long ago, Tang De and Karatu discussed with him about the elven relics. Among them, the obelisk pointing to the Holy Grail is an important clue.

Unexpectedly, only a few weeks later, he would run into such a thing again.

He immediately raised his head and said to Princess Rupert, "I have a request. ”

"Please."

"I want to meet the escaped slave."

……

When leaving the estate.

The crowd was also discussing about the famous sand thief 'Makhazar Ishf'. In fact, this person himself is not an unknown person, they have heard of him long before this.

After all, he is one of the most famous thieves in Istania, who has been in the silver sand and sand for more than ten years, and he will never be unknown.

Like all legendary bandits, there is a group of vicious men under his wing, who come and go like the wind above the sand sea, and even escape from the royal guards a few times.

It is naturally impossible for them to deal with such a legend. Fortunately, their mission was only to investigate the whereabouts of the slave traders.

But when I got back on the 'Bergo'.

Sylvid turned back coldly and asked him with a smile, "Captain, do you believe that the princess just asked us to investigate the whereabouts of the slave merchants?" ”

Hearing this, Fang Yu was silent for a moment and shook his head.

That eldest princess didn't look like such a simple person, was her purpose really just to investigate a slave trade case? Then why did the other party intentionally or unintentionally mention the matter of the wandering alchemist?

The attack on the Garden of Illusions a year ago shows that this task is not simple.

But since he agreed, of course, he also had his own considerations.

……