Twenty-second year after the opening of the Dark Gate.

One day in the middle of the year, from the highway leading to the western wilderness, a wagon was rushing. It was a huge caravan. More than ten fully loaded four-wheeled carriages lined up in a long queue and craddled through the lush jungle. More than twenty fully armed soldiers guarded the sides of the convoy, their vigilant eyes skimming the swaying branches and leaves of the trees from time to time.

In fact, they don't need to be so guarded. Because the section before reaching the West Spring Fortress was still very safe, except for those wild wolves behind the dense hazel trees, no one dared to attack the travelers, but for the jungle gray wolves, this caravan was still huge, and it was not something their appetite could swallow.

However, these guards were obviously a little excited, because their generous lord had bought a war horse for everyone in the escort team out of his own pocket, of course, not a precious breed from the East Valley, but an ordinary war horse. But even so, it was enough for these team members to be grateful to him, you know, the mercenaries have always relied on a pair of feet to walk, when did they have the luxury of riding horses to catch such a journey?

Speaking of which, riding tall horses and wearing Diego's custom-made uniforms, this escort looked refreshed and heroic, a little bit like when they were still serving in the Legion.

The uniform is still in the same style as gold on a blue background, except that instead of a golden lion, the chest is outlined with a black shield with bullet holes, which is the family crest of the Aznar family. Although Diego is still single now, not a family in the strict sense, but Diego is still confident that he will create a family, you know, the Kingdom of Stormwind does not advocate family planning, on the contrary, the kingdom's laws have always encouraged childbearing! Although it is not as crazy as a person to create a nation, Diego thinks that it is not a big problem for him to marry a wife and give birth to one or five dolls.

In Azeroth, though. The family crest of the nobility is never designed at will, and if you don't understand the coat of arms and design it indiscriminately, it is very likely to bring disaster to the family instead of glory. For example, the crown represents the royal family. If an ordinary nobleman with no royal blood adds a crown to his family crest, I am afraid that it will not be long before the king's crusade army appears on him.

Diego's family crest was also not scribbled out, but was designed for him by one of Stormwind's most knowledgeable heraldic masters. This coat of arms is very complex, and each color and pattern on it has its own unique meaning.

The dragon's scale-like shield and bullet holes on it are a testament to Diego's current feats of fare - banishing the dragon! The overall color of the badge is black. represents loyalty and steadfastness, while the blue underneath the coat of arms remains the same color as the kingdom's flag, indicating his Stormwind Kingdom origins; The crescent moon in the upper left corner of the coat of arms and the misty ripples below represent Diego's fiefdom, the town of Moon Creek; The fire with a bayonet crossed in the lower part of the coat of arms indicates Diego's hunter profession; The silver-white cross in the upper right corner of the coat of arms and the winding path below it illustrate his most outstanding feat, the protection of Reginald? Wendell's return. In short, even a person who does not know Diego can see his profession, territory, origin, and even the merits and honors he has made from this badge.

Of course, the family crest is not static, and if Diego has received other merits and honors worth mentioning, it can be added to it, but if he changes his profession or is deprived of a certain honor, the badge pattern must be changed accordingly. Of course. It is also possible that the coat of arms will no longer be needed - if the king takes back the domain or deprives the nobility.

Before dark, they rushed to the West Spring Fortress.

This fortress guards the western border of the El Forest, protecting the area from gnolls. Originally, the location of this place in the kingdom was not that important, but after the situation in the western wilderness began to collapse, Stormwind had to strengthen its garrison. In case the Brotherhood of Defia, who roam the Wild West, infiltrates the El Forest.

The convoy did not enter the fortress, as none of the forts would allow civilians to enter at will. But on the side of the fortress's walls, the legions stationed there had already cleared a field for passing caravans, and the ready-made camp was surrounded by a fence of giant logs, outside which a trench had been dug and pointed stakes were planted that sloped outward.

But out of prudence. Larry? Still, Bogard ordered the convoy to form a circle about a meter from the wooden fence. This distance allowed the wagons to serve as both a second line of defense for the camp and to prevent attackers who had climbed over the fence from jumping directly onto the wagons.

After this qiē, the caravan and the guards began to raise a bonfire in the center of the camp and set up their tents. And start preparing dinner. Coachmen, merchants, fellows, and unscrupulous guards sat along the campfire, talking loudly, looking at the boiling soup pots on the campfire, and sniffing the aroma of the hot food. For travelers after a long day of trekking, a satisfying and serene atmosphere arises.

Diego sat with his friends, around a smaller campfire. There is a cauldron on the campfire. A hodgepodge of boiled hard jerky, bacon, wild boar ham and sun-dried porcini mushrooms. But this dinner wasn't cooked by Diego, since Bart? After Leibi proclaimed himself a squire of the lord, he took all these jobs.

"My lord, please pay attention to the decency of the nobles, how can you do these menial work yourself?" He persuaded more than once.

However, although he was a little embarrassed by Leiby's hospitality, Diego had to admit that he still enjoyed such thoughtful care. The process of a diligent man's degeneration into a slacker is perfectly embodied in him. It seems that nobles can also be cultivated.

After dinner, the camp began to have more people. Due to Stormwind's overstretched forces, there are a few mercenaries stationed here in addition to the soldiers of the regular legion. They are also a bunch of guys who like to be boisterous. After a while, some people who were not on duty rushed over from the fortress. They have been holding back for a long time, and they can't wait to jump out and listen to the sound.

But in fact, some of the caravansera's cargo was actually intended for these people. The merchants immediately opened their stalls, and several wagons were opened, revealing a dazzling array of goods, from liquor and poison, tobacco, salt, fruit, and meat, to all kinds of clothing made of flax and wool, and weapons and armor forged from steel, and Diego saw bottles of poison inside, apparently for the thieves who were acting as scouts in the fortress.

A simple open-air bar was soon set up, and the mercenaries sat on a dozen low benches, chatting with wine glasses. A blacksmith even removed a makeshift furnace and anvil from the wagon and began tinkling to repair weapons and armor for his customers.

The camp was even more lively. There was a clamor of selling and haggling everywhere, and Diego was dumbfounded.

"It's ......," he felt he didn't know what to say, these merchants were really good at doing business, and they wouldn't let go of any copper plate that flowed between their fingers.

"They ...... nothing but women," Diego exclaimed with admiration, but at this moment, he saw Bart beside him? Leibi was looking strangely at a corner of the camp. There was a lonely green tent, the curtain of the tent was closed, but there was a long queue outside the door, and a somewhat balding lewd middle-aged man was collecting money from the mercenaries who entered the tent one by one.

"What's that?" He asked, a little surprised, but didn't wait for Bart? Leibi replied, and he understood, because there was a faint snapping sound and a woman's ** sound coming from that tent.

"What the hell is this......" Diego was completely speechless. (To be continued.) )