Some of the councillors bent over and vomited, and the Speaker's expression changed from unease to a coldness bordering despair, and when the people around him were no longer so keen on creating foul-smelling waste, and the Black Iron Golem had turned away, he turned to them and asked, "Do you understand?"

Among the people he asked, almost all of the councillors showed blank expressions, while the mages around them showed uncertain expressions, they exchanged glances, the speaker looked at these people with some disappointment, first the mages, then the councillors, and finally he seemed to have understood, those who knew the answer would not say it, others did not mean what it meant at all, he took a deep breath: "This means ......" There was real sadness in his eyes: " It means that they are not here to invade or occupy, they want to destroy. ”

"How is that possible?" exclaimed one of the councillors in surprise, "this is the Beacon Fort!" Who would want to destroy the pearl of the former Falun, which any lord or king could grind merchants and ships out of silver and gold like a millstone, and even if the fortress had held on too much and consumed too many troops by the invaders, then he should have executed those who dared to oppose him (not them, of course), and at most exiled some people, so that he could be so extravagant as to care about the benefits that the city might bring him?

"To the Emperor of Falun, the fortress is just a city. "Ever since I heard that someone had unfurled the banner of the silver dragon of the Falun Empire, the speaker of the fortress of Bi Lun has once again searched for books about the Falun, but fortunately such records are found in the temples of Rosada or Tyre, and as the speaker of the Banner of the Pier of the blue headland, he can still be allowed to enter and inspect - the result is not so satisfactory, the blue head of the fort certainly has a "pearl" during the reign of the silver dragon The problem is that even if the ruler is an ancient and kind silver dragon, human beings are still quite inferior in the world and cognition of dragons, except for a few outstanding people, and it is not an exaggeration to say that even if they are kind metal dragons, they will eat humans, just not so often - how much respect will you give your food? Not to mention, the people who can be strong enough to gain the respect of dragons are almost no longer human, and they generally have an unconscious, condescending attitude towards mortals, they treat mortals like dragons, the only difference is that they do not treat mortals as food, but as houses that can be consumed in large quantities

In the later stages of the War of the Gods, the dragon is gone, his direct descendants are slaughtered by the demigod lich, the Falun collapses, and it is divided into dozens of principalities and states, and the fortress of Cape takes the opportunity to become a free city, and the autonomy and consciousness of humanity reaches its peak in the castle, just like Harvey once forcibly dissolved the council with swords and soldiers because of the need for strong monopoly to resist the invasion of Gredi and poisonous herbs, and became the Grand Duke, but after the crisis has passed, he will still give up his authority, Let his heirs kill him as a traitor and a wicked man to deter those who would come after him—everyone in Cape Fortress had become accustomed to governing rather than dominating, paying no taxes for the king, nor providing knights or armor for the Grand Duke, but only buying and selling, and having no idea of becoming a courtier or a slave again.

The most excessive, but I only imagine that I can use the power of the "emperor" to become an archduke, or a lord, and manage Grenada on my behalf, maybe just like the previous times, things that can be solved by paying more gold coins and goods- This kind of thing is not unheard of in the history of the fortress, the southern kingdoms and the lords of the White Tower have tried to take possession of this gorgeous and rich city, and they have almost succeeded, but once the merchants have a chance to breathe, they will use their connections and money to create countless enemies and allies, like thorns growing out of flesh, and then forcing the beasts to spit out the food that reaches their mouths.

But this army is different, they are here to destroy. They don't care at all what the city will end up being.

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The banner of the silver dragon made a rustling sound in the wind, and a walking silver dragon was embroidered on a black background like late night, with its wings raised high, which was different from the Falun more than a thousand years ago, but you can also think of it as a dark mockery, after all, the founder of the Falun was originally a silver dragon of the good camp - The walking silver dragon indicates that it is almost all infantry, and the soldiers are carefully divided into three levels, the front is the outcasts, the slaves, the middle are the civilians and mercenaries, and the rear is the Warlord, that is, the real army of the Emperor Falun, who not only has mages, golems, and dragons, but in this battle, the leader of the army does not think that the dragon needs to be dispatched.

The slaves were still toiling in the middle of the night, assembling the siege machines that the gnomes had built in the dark underground, in addition to the common trebuchets, siege towers, and ladders, there were also huge ballistas, rams, drilling machines, and even drawbridges that could be connected to the siege towers and could be rotated and lifted in small increments. At the dawn of dawn, every soldier who attacked the city first was given a cup of piping hot fake honey, and it was impossible for anyone who had not tasted real honey to tell the difference between honey and cane sugar (some of them had never tasted sweetness at all), but the heat still warmed them from throat to stomach.

The leader of a detachment, who had only been the leader of a poor little mercenary regiment about a hundred days ago, but now he was a lord, though only the lowest baronial title, but it was enough for him to be satisfied, and he was still wearing the silver armor given by the emperor, and the position of the armor was a hideous dragon head, in his eyes, it was exactly the same as the legendary silver dragon guard, he carried the ceremonial sword he was not very accustomed to, hung his short axe at his waist, and with the help of the servant turned over the horse, he rode this beautiful horse, galloping in front of the slaves and outcastsThe silver metal armor and the gems set in the scabbard of the rapier left countless spots of light on those dull faces.

"Look at me, fools!" cried the baron, making sure that at least half of them were looking at him, and he couldn't help but feel an itch like a mosquito crawling through him, a little uncomfortable, but more comforting and pleasant, "look at me!" he repeated, "look at what this is!?" He lifted a bag, and then exaggeratedly plunged his hand into it, and when no one spoke, it was so quiet that everyone who approached him heard the jingling of coins, which did not look very large, but it was large enough to fit into a human head, and then, with a very abrupt motion, the baron reached into the pouch and grabbed a small shiny silver coin— This silver coin was issued by the Castle of Bille, much smaller than the silver coins of other countries and regions, containing a certain amount of iron, worth about ten copper coins, one-tenth of a gold coin, and was one of the most common coins used by merchants when they walked out, and many people knew it—especially the kind of soldiers who were not originally slaves and outcasts, and when the small silver coins rolled and hit their foreheads and eyes, some of them did not understand what had happened, but a few wise men had caught them quickly.

"Just yesterday night. The baron continued to exclaim, in that vain tone, "I was approached by a merchant from the Castle of Cape with some money, hoping that we would spare his life—but look, ladies and gentlemen, he took out these cheap little silver coins, and he thought we were all idiots, and knew nothing of their riches and absurdities, and that the money, my soldiers, was not enough for them to go to the prostitutes for a night, or for a day of gluttony and booze—I don't care about the little money, and I could give it to you now," As he spoke, he sprinkled a large handful of silver coins on the outcasts and slaves, and the reluctant soldiers were in an uproar, and they laid down their weapons, and groped and clung frantically on the ground, and there was no despicable riot, only because they had the overseers and the whips in their hands around them, and after a few small pushes, the so-called soldiers looked at the baron, and the half-empty skin in his hand, hoping for more.

"Do you still want it?" asked the baron aloud.

"Of course!" the soldiers shouted.

"Really?" the baron rode from side of the line to the other, tossing silver coins that glittered in the air, taking away the humans' breath.

"Really!" they cried out in a haphazard manner, hiding the silver coins they had caught in their mouths for no skin, so that the reply was a little slurred, but the mixed harmony was louder than before.

"Then go and rob it!" called the baron, "look at the city before you, which is full of such merchants, fat, and covered with silk, running slower than a pig, and struggling less than a rabbit, and their daughters and wives whiter and softer than any prostitute you have ever seen, and all you have to do is to climb over the walls, and open the gates, and enter into the city, and feast on their fears, and sip their tears— These fellows, these bastards who used to be on high and did not look at you, but because they lost one or two gadgets that were of no use to them, worthless, they were going to cut you off, and your children's hands and feet, and poke you out of the eyes, and hang you in walls and cages, and the time has come for them to be punished!"

"Is the wine delicious? The wine in the merchant's cellar is ten thousand times tastier! And the dried meat, the cheese, the salted fish, the chickens and ducks marinated in wine and onions, which are piled up in their kitchens, and fill the cupboards and walls, which they cannot eat, and would rather put them to rot and stink than give them to us, and now we must not only fill our stomachs with their food, but also taste their meat and fat! Drag their children out and put them on the fire, and throw their babies into the soup pot! Let them see how we get back what they owe us! My valiant soldiers, you have been humiliated and tormented by these shameless people, and now we want them to repay it a hundredfold! Show your courage, Ladies and gentlemen, do as you please, and no one will condemn you or punish you...... As long as you can get into the city, it's yours!' well," he tossed the last bit of silver, "let me hear your voices!"

Then the people of the fort heard the howl of the beast.

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Once again, the sun covered the fortress, but the people of the fortress could only feel a chill.

The councillors gathered in the hall of the council, their expressions hurried and full of anger, and several mages stood among them, their eyes unusually determined, although a little ashamed, "You should be pleased," said one of the mages, "You see, we have come to resign to you after all, and we have already paid you the commission you promised, on the contrary, those colleagues who have not yet appeared...... Do you think they've decided to live and die with Cape Fort?no, they've long since fled, with a commission and all the things you've given them, and if you don't believe me, send someone to see them, their room might be a little cleaner than the dishes the dogs have licked and sipped. ”

The Speaker waved his hand tiredly, because out of respect for the caster, and for the last bit of apology to Master Alva, the mages recruited by the merchants did not live in ordinary people's mansions, nor occupied Alva's mage tower and rime hut, but were given one or more spacious and comfortable rooms in the consul's residence, so those who went to check on him soon returned, and without listening to him, only by looking at his pale face, the people of Cape Teike knew that they had indeed fled despicably and secretly.

"We can give more money!" said one of the merchants, "and the materials for spellcasting, we can give you whatever you want, even if you want a mage tower...... As long as the war is over......"

"The war will not end," none of the spellcasters are stupid, "only destruction, and you cannot even guarantee your own lives, let alone your promises," said the mage. " We're sorry too, but I don't want to face dragons and golems, maybe you don't know yet, but this kind of golem has appeared on other battlefields, it is not afraid of fire, it is not afraid of freezing, it does not care so much about lightning and acid, although it is large but very agile, it can think and plan like humans, there is already more than one caster in their hands, we don't want to be the next one, so ......"

"Can't you just give it a try?" pleaded one of the councillors.

"It won't help us to stay here," said the other mage, "and I can remind you for free, that no sane man would save a man who is in a quagmire, and I don't think that in such a situation, anyone would be supported by money and materials, and even if he was, he must be a poor creature of inferior ability...... Don't be in a hurry to contradict me, I can only say that if there is a mage or a warlock who bravely stays, you should be careful, listen to all of you present, everyone's head is worth a lot of money in front of the Falun Emperor, and the emperor seems to be willing to recruit spellcasters, everyone, it is not only the city that is in danger, but also you. ”

There was a look of fear on the faces of the councillors, and now, no one dared to keep these mages, and no mages stayed because they were shaken - there were not many benefits to staying, there were many dangers, and they were subject to unwarranted suspicion...... No one can be that stupid.

When the last mage disappeared outside the hall, a councillor couldn't help but cry, this is the reason why every free city, city-state, principality and country must have a mage, the army is of course the fangs and claws of the rulers, but when one side has a spellcaster, the other side does not or is too small in comparison, even the hardest and sharpest minions will be easily broken, the caster is like a deterrent weapon of another plane to mortals, which can bring people the greatest sense of security and oppression.

"What about priests and paladins?"

"It has been determined that the followers of the gods such as Rosada, Tyre, and Suron will help us defend or fight together," said the archon of Cape Fortress, with a bitter smile: "But ......" Everyone knows that when it comes to warfare, it still depends on the warlock and the mage, and the other thing is that since the incident with Harvey, the councillors have been wary of the consuls and the army, and they have repeatedly curbed the rights and development of the first two, if it weren't for the Speaker's insistence, maybe they would have done the stupid act of canceling the army and recruiting mercenaries.

Therefore, the army of the current fortress is much worse than that of the Hawi period, the soldiers are short of equipment, lack of food, and are listless in training, such an army has to deal with the thugs outside...... It's really, too reluctantly.

"If only Alva were still around," one councillor muttered. Because of the bare nature of human life, some of them have not even met the old man who is said to have devoted decades of precious time to the peace of the Castle, but if Master Alva had remained at the Castle, then it would have been possible for him to take in disciples and apprentices at the Castle - after Alva left disheartened by Harvey's death, there were indeed a few of his disciples who had stayed because they were from the Castle, but ...... It was also because of Harvey that they were not trusted by the council, so after the councillors continued to push their needs and spent a lot of money to recruit mages and warlocks from the outside world, they also left Cape Fortress with their families when they couldn't bear it anymore.

Now the councillors deeply feel that the departure of Master Alva is indeed a great loss for Cape Cause, although this mage has a lot to do with Harvey, but his character is well known to the world, if he encounters a crisis like today, not only his disciples, but even he will not retreat, not to mention, he also has many mage friends, and also has close ties with Crefa, Highland Norman and White Tower, maybe he can call reinforcements for Cape Cause.