It's a small city, less than a hundred years old, and doesn't even have an orthodox name, and the merchants lazily call it the small city of Monton, but it's this little city that is less than 1,500 steps longitudinally, less than 2,000 steps horizontally, and has only one main road, but it has a deformed prosperity no less than that of the White Tower, and the reason why I say this is because the trade between "tobacco" and slaves here is in accordance with the law and completely open— Slave traders rented the town's squares as slave sellers, and on both sides of the main road, the original blacksmith shops, carpentry shops, dough dough shops, etc., have been transformed into strange houses with only a small door to enter and exit, which hide prostitutes and "tobacco" In order to attract guests, there are always a few scantily clad women with small hookahs and slender cigarette sticks, constantly spitting out sweet scents different from other spices from their mouths, and they are so attentive and eager that the street scene is as if shrouded in mist. Their main role has also changed because of "tobacco", from comforting men with their bodies to guiding and serving them to enjoy better hospitality, and only those men who have not received "tobacco" for so long will embrace them under the uplifting effect of "tobacco".

As the number of people in need of "tobacco" grew, the houses were constantly widened, and as there was little room on either side, they had to stretch into the middle of the street, so that the road, which had previously allowed two horses and four pedestrians to walk side by side, became a maximum of one horse and two pedestrians, which forced Cremar and his party to dismount and lead the horses, and they had to put their arms at their sides, because if they raised their hands, they would touch the overly towering parts of the prostitutes— Although they didn't mind, or didn't have time to pay attention at all, they blew the smoke at the ugly chicken, Kerribben, Eloch and others, Afra's outfit was too distinct, these women with vicious eyes could guess "his" identity at a glance, and it was impossible for the eunuchs of the Dragonfire Islands not to know "Tobacco" Lucieu is still a girl, and it is rare for such a young girl to appear among mercenaries, and of course the prostitutes can also see that she is still a virgin, which means that she is not a lover of a mercenary, more likely, she is the sister or daughter of an important member of the mercenary group, and if she is harassed, then her guardian is unlikely to ignore it; It can be seen clearly through the gap in the brown cloak, it is a spellcaster, and it is also a person that prostitutes are not willing to provoke easily, because the heart of the spellcaster, especially these mercenary groups, is not only unpredictable but also most of them are very violent, you annoy a warrior, you may be knocked out of a tooth or two, but if you anger a mage, then the next moment you may cry in the flames and turn into charred ashes.

Trailmar and the others were followed by about fifty mercenaries, although their outfits were as chaotic as the other mercenaries, but in fact, they were all summoned by Afra, and they were also a small part of the power that Afra had sought for herself during her time as an agent for Crefa, and they had hardly ever seen Afra in person, and they were not very clear about the situation of Kremar and the others- So maybe they won't be so loyal, but it also means that the enemies of Kremar and others can't learn much more from their mouths (even if a lich casts a high level of probes on them), and it wouldn't be too guilty to abandon them if something irresistible happens.

However, these mercenaries were not allowed to enter the town, the town was too small, and they could only live temporarily in tent areas outside the city, which were set up by merchants who did not want or could not get a place to live in the town, and they also sold and rented the goods in the tents, including "tobacco" and prostitutes, and perhaps more abundant, varied, and cheap, at least until the arrival of Cremar and his party, the tent area here had even exceeded the size of the town. If there's one reason for that, it's probably that the lord here is proudly holding a jousting tournament.

Tournaments are very popular on this continent, which can not only show personal bravery, but also boast of the wealth of the owner, and also have the effect of publicizing something important. For example, when the old king dies and the new king ascends the throne, and when the lord or lord makes a marriage contract, someone's eldest son is born, or someone's father dies, it can be used as the name of the jousting competition, but this jousting tournament is inevitably a bit nondescript, because there are few knights with illustrious lives, and there are not some exiles with no name, or so-called knights who are armed with counterfeit shields and broadswords that have been picked up from the battlefield or purchased at low prices from merchants, and a few slaves as servants and servants, and more are mercenaries in the name of knights, in fact, they are warriors at allThey walked about the roads in a mess, humiliating the poor prostitutes, the little craftsmen, the wandering merchants to show how dangerous and inviolable they were, but in reality they were as timid as flea's eggs, and the ugly chickens were rude to kick one of them away, and pushed away two or three, and glancing contemptuously at the others, when they saw the tall orc-like stature of the ugly chicken, and the fur armor that was still tightly wrapped and the curly beard that covered most of its face, even in the heat of the weather, even the birds with their tongues cut off were no quieter than them。

Of course, they were soon noticed, and several richly dressed merchants crowded through the crowd, but before they could say anything, there was a sudden oppressive commotion among the people, and a man dressed in half-leather armor and a silk shirt appeared before them, and he raised a hand and placed it on the brim of his broad hat, which looked as if he was preparing for a salute, but in fact he was showing off a tattoo on his finger, which circled his middle finger like a ring, crisscrossing the lines like a fishnet, but established by the Grenadasaurus thornThe "Fine Net" tattoo is different, it is not a dull dark blue, but a silvery-white color, which indicates that he was once a member of the "Fine Net", and after the "Silver Finger" controlled by Gülen swallowed the "Fine Net", not only was he not killed in the chaos of the invasion, but was lucky to be favored by the new owner. He bowed straight to the crowd, and then asked respectfully, "May I ask if you just got here?"

"Yes," replied Kerryben, his voice low and hoarse, like those thieves who drank the sea and the sea breeze, in keeping with the mercenaries of the Dragonfire Islands, "little one, is there anything you want to say to me?"

"Honorable guest," said the thief politely, "I am Monton's little tongue, ah, people call me that, and I am just a mediocre meck, but if there is anything worth taking, it is that I am quite familiar with this place, and I can find the most mellow wine, or the sweetest roast meat, or the softest girl, and I know some people, and I know some things that others may not know, and I can push open some seemingly tight doors, and talk to some difficult people...... And these ......"

"These?"

"Just a hundred gold coins," said Little Tongue, bowing again. Maybe you think it's a little expensive, but I swear, you have me, it's like a bearing with grease, and water goes into a ditch, and you will find that everything is smooth and sound, and you save time, you don't have unnecessary expenses, and you and your subordinates don't have to be affected by needless battles, and at that time, you'll feel that a hundred gold coins are really worth the money, and if you don't feel so, you can also cut off my hand, or my head, as compensation. ”

"If you're that familiar with this place," Afra said in a shrill but crisp voice, "who knows if you're going to sneak away when we can't see you?"

"Or we can pay you after the matter is over," said the ugly chicken, "thief, gold or sword?"

"It's not in order. "Little Tongue" argued: "In all places, every thief takes money first and then does things, and without gold you will find yourself unable to move an inch." ”

"Give it to him. Kerry Ben said, while looking at Cremar, the otherworldly soul immediately caught the look of the elven ranger's eyes, and he stepped forward and said in the "little tongue" Before he could react, he held his hand, and the thief's face immediately became ugly, he didn't even know how this mage came to him, obviously there were several people between them, a dozen steps away, and he was wearing the priest's rune, he couldn't help but curse loudly in his heart, because the rune was like dead, motionless, not reacting, it didn't look like it had the protective role it should play. But by this time, it was too late for him to regret it, because he could feel a sharp cold breath from his palm to his arm, then from his arm to his shoulder, and from his shoulder down, into his heart.

"Just an innocuous little joke," said the spellcaster, and then placed a heavy bag of gold coins into the thief's hand, "Don't be too nervous. And at this time, the damned eunuch even giggled, apparently he thought it was funny.

Fortunately, the thief "Little Tongue" was originally tasked with bringing these people to the lord here, and the gold was just an extra reward for him to be allowed to blackmail, but the curse was really unnecessary, and the "Little Tongue" had already decided, and when these people met the lord, he had to ask them to lift the curse directly in front of the lord, thinking that these mercenaries would do this if they didn't want to offend their own gold lord.

With the "little tongue", the actions of Cremar and his party are indeed much simpler, perhaps because of the curse, the worried "little tongue" directly brought them to a small but complete fortress, it can be seen that the former lord here is also a knight or general who is good at military affairs, the walls and main body of the fortress are huge stone bricks, the moat water is connected to the river, it is almost impossible to drain it or evaporate it with flames, the guards know the "little tongue", " But the lord is still resting. One of the knights said, "He has seen hundreds of men today." ”

"These people are very strong," said Little Tongue, "and they also have a mage." ”

This moved the knight slightly, "Wait a minute," he said, "I'll go and report to my master." ”

They didn't wait long, but it wasn't short, and when they were brought into the square, the lord was waiting behind a long table full of food, but it didn't look like he would be rewarded to anyone, because he could be said to have casually picked up the pie or sausage with his fingers, and put it down with a random bite, so to speak, he should have been fat if he had eaten three meals, but what Cremar and the others saw was a thin and haggard fellow, who looked like he was enjoying a good meal, but he did not show any relief or pleasure in the deliciousness of the food。

"Come to me," said the lord feebly, "stranger." Then he struggled to open his eyes, looked at the newcomer, and then shook his head: "You don't look like mercenaries. He said, "More like a bunch of idle bards, except, of course, the ......," he pointed to the ugly chicken, "and the venerable mage." ”

"That's because of the blood," replied Kerryben, "because of the bloodline, we are to be stronger and more attractive than mortals, and there is nothing wrong with us, and if possible, you can see how effective these seemingly useless outward things can be when necessary." ”

The lord laughed, and his laughter was very ugly, like the voice of a broken bellows being pulled with all its might: "Demon, or devil?" He paused, "Or elf?"

"Remove the last one. Kerry replied.

"Sounds pretty good. "Then I suppose you're ready—I'm preparing to recruit some wise and powerful knights, warriors, or whatever," he nodded, and the attendant on one side kicked open a chest, the lid opened, and the glittering golden light inside immediately stung people's eyes, "I will pay you a rich reward that you could not have received before, of course, after I have fulfilled my long-cherished wish." ”