Godrian led them to an open area that, according to the topography, was supposed to have been pre-dug in the original sewer plan of Downwind Harbor, but was left unused due to changes in plans during the eventual construction, which provided a good shelter for the defecting slaves.

The light of the torches appeared, and they came to a space similar to the hall, and on the stone steps in the distance, an old man was sitting on a chair, and beside him stood two strong wrestlers, each with burns on their necks, presumably former slaves, but with the locks removed from their necks.

Godrian bowed respectfully to the old man and withdrew.

The four of them stepped forward slowly, and finally saw the old man's face clearly.

Judging by the wrinkles on his face, it should not have exceeded fifty, but by this time he had white hair, as haggard as an old man, his neglected eyebrows were about to be strung together, his eyes were slightly narrowed, and the perfume was already asleep.

"Sagisan?"

Hodge stood still and asked.

Sagisan was kind-eyed, not impressed by Hodge's slightly rude and brutal words.

"Yes, it's just Sajisan, not the slave king you imagined. ”

Hodge thought that the leader who could start a rebellion in one of the largest slave city-states of the empire must be the kind of revolutionary who was full of resentment against the old system and was full of enthusiasm for overthrowing the existing system, and he should be the kind of person who showed a strong attitude to overwhelm the other party at the moment of meeting.

But Sajisan is not.

When he spoke, it was no different from ordinary small talk, plain, as if it were really just a few small talks.

If they hadn't met in such a place, and hadn't known his identity beforehand, perhaps Hodge would have really thought of him as an ordinary old man.

He took a deep breath, his previous frivolous and reckless attitude vanished, and asked the biggest doubt in his heart.

"Well, dear Sajisan, first of all, we are very grateful to you for helping us at this critical time, otherwise it would have taken a lot of effort to solve it. Secondly, I would like to ask you a question. ”

"You ask. ”

Sagisan responded with a smile.

"Why are you sure we're going to be stuck in that alley?"

"Hodge—that's your name, right?"

Hodge's brow furrowed, he was sure that he had never spoken to Godrian about his name, and even if he did, Godrian had always traveled with them, and when he arrived in this hall, he would not have a chance to let Sagisan know.

So how did he learn his name?

"Hodge. ”

Seeing that Hodge did not refute, Sagisan nodded and said, "Do you know the existence of the prophecy?"

"Prophecy? You mean prophecy tells you that we're going to be there, a trick that astrologers like to use?"

Hodge didn't believe in such claims, and it was true that astrology was quite an amazing discipline in this world, but he was always in a state of doubt when it came to astrological views of the future.

After all, there was no shortage of astrologers in the Stone Castle, but no one predicted the arrival of an unusual cold wave and the monsters lurking in the wind and snow.

Sajisan shook his head: "No, I'm not talking about astrology, but something more direct - the prophecy of the gods. ”

Hodge smiled, "God, I always thought there would be no religion here, so could you please tell me how the god's prophecy came about?"

"Kids. Sagisan smiled kindly, directly taking advantage of him in terms of seniority, "No religion does not mean that gods do not exist, at a certain time, he will still guide the future direction for devout believers." ”

Before Hodge could refute again, Sagisan continued: "It was a wonderful feeling, not a verbal prophecy, but a direct 'seeing' of some images with my eyes, witnessing the events from the perspective of a bystander. ”

Hodge paused, and suddenly he heard his own experience, just like Sagisan said, the images that did not happen to him were seen by him from the perspective of a bystander, except that he saw the "past", while Sagisan saw the "future".

"Can you tell me what you saw. ”

There was a clear tinge of vigilance in his words.

"If you're going to ask me if I saw that fight on the street corner......" Sajisan still just laughed, "Then I saw it, even—I saw more than you expected." ”

Hodge couldn't help but want to bend down and take out the dinner knife from his boots, as countless previous experiences have proved that the dinner knife is the most reliable partner for him, and witchcraft will always fail one day, let alone face a mysterious person like Sagisan.

"Don't be impulsive, I have no ill intentions. Sagisan reassured, "Otherwise, even if I saw it, I wouldn't have had to rescue you, would I?"

Hodge restrained his actions and looked at the two slave wrestlers beside him: "I think the topic that I will enter next should not be suitable for the sixth person to hear." ”

Sagisan whispered something to the two beside him, and the two immediately withdrew with their waist knives.

"This is my sincerity, now that I am unarmed, you can rush up and kill me at any time. ”

Sagisan stood up, his arms raised in a line, indicating that he had no weapons on his body.

"But like I said, I'm not malicious. I understand what you're trying to figure out, yes, I saw the Lady Phoenix next to you using flames to burn those two soldiers, and I know that the two ladies you're carrying with you are witches and one is a slave. ”

"Is that what the prophecy tells you?" Hodge asked.

Sajisan nodded noncommittally.

"Then I would like to ask you why you came up with the idea of rescuing us after guiding us in this identity. ”

Hodge's eyes narrowed, but no matter how hard he tried, it didn't seem to reach the level of Sagisan's squinting, and he doubted that the old man could really see what was in front of him.

"Because of empathy. ”

"Empathy. ”

"Yes, the shared feeling of being hunted and persecuted, whether witches or slaves, is not right that we are all forcibly labelled by the world's ideas and hunted for no reason. ”

"What I want is to eliminate this unequal treatment," Sajisan said. ”

Hodge thought for a moment, then understood.

"Got it, you want us to help you achieve that. ”

"Yes. ”

"What if I don't agree. Hodge paused, "Are we all going to be able to get out of this hall?"

Sajisan shook his head: "Choice is the right of the individual, and we will not make such a move to create new inequality in order to overthrow it." ”

"Well, what do you want us to do for you? ”

"Don't do anything, don't interfere with anything. ”

Sagisan's eyes deepened, like a corner of the starry night: "The headwind harbor is already changing, and the intrusion of a powerful person like you may disturb this change, so I beg you, don't do anything." ”

"Then let your men slaughter in the city, kill all the slave owners and officials, and get rid of all the opponents, and you will be able to get the results you want. ”

Hodge looked at Sajisan with a sneer.

"In fact, what we want is peaceful coexistence. ”

"Killing only creates more brutal injustice, and what I want to do is to reconcile with the slave owners and officials to survive in the city," Sajisan said. ”

"I understand why you have such a question, but I must tell you that even in the organization for the liberation of slaves, I am not the only one, you should know that there are factions in any organization, maybe now I am the most conspicuous group of slave forces, but I am by no means the only one, I can only restrain my own people, but I cannot govern other factions. ”

Hodge remembered the scene in front of the city gates, when a dozen or so slaves created chaos and fought against the city defense legions, and asked, "But the killers said, 'Greetings to you, Lord Sajisan.'" ”

Sagisan was stunned for a moment, then smiled wryly.

"Sagisan, Sagisan...... I don't know when my name no longer belongs to me, but has become a symbol that will interpret its actions in my name, whether it is a faction that obeys my orders or not. ”

The same is true of the town hall, where even ordinary tavern disturbances are said to be instigated by the "Slave King". ”

"But I'm really just Sagisan. ”

Hodge saw that Sagisan's narrowed eyes gradually opened, and the bottom of his eyes was as clear as water, without any superfluous emotions.

"Sagisan, my name, that's all. ”