At noon the next day, all the thieves came to the central square. Some of the thieves looked left and right tremblingly, and some held weapons in their hands, looking desperate at any time.

Originally, they were not so nervous, but this morning news came that the Empire's army had been deployed in Bracada and might be about to go to war here. The thieves were overwhelmed by the news. Originally, they wanted to get the stolen goods as soon as possible and leave, but now they can't advance or retreat.

In front of the square were several large piles of goods, and three middle-aged people stood in the middle of the goods, one of whom was hanged yesterday, and a few ogres next to them. The three middle-aged men dressed as officials were holding pen and paper to record, and from their skillful demeanor, which only occasionally flickered a few glances to see the details of the goods to be seen, and then flew to write a book, they knew that it must have been accumulated over many years. The goods next to it were all valuables, some spices, some silk and some handicrafts, and the discerning thieves could tell at a glance that they were the stolen goods they had coveted for a long time. Immediately, some people became excited, whispering to each other.

A middle-aged man saw the thieves coming, came out and said, "You're all here." ”

No one dared to say anything. It's a very polite wording, but it's too polite for the thieves who are now allergic, and it looks like a cat is in danger of teasing a mouse. The most treacherous and slippery Buddha Duolen also nested in it without saying a word, because the thieves didn't trust him much because of yesterday's conflict, and now he naturally didn't need to stand up.

"Yes, it's all here. Seeing that no one was silent, Asa answered. He didn't really want to come out, but he didn't want to be here without saying a word.

The middle-aged man nodded and said, "Okay, everyone here should all be from the Ironfast Empire, right?"

This time, no one dared to speak up. The Empire has been slaughtering the orcs for more than ten years, and the old thief Fodoleng told everyone not to tell them that they were from the Empire, so as not to provoke the anger of the orcs and tear them up alive. And now that the Imperial army is even more obsessed with this place, they are now more likely to be considered spies.

"Yes, yes. We all are. Asa actually opened his mouth very simply and admitted that almost all the thieves were so excited by his answer that even Xiaoyi poked him. But he felt that since others had asked like this, most of them would have indeed known, and there was no need to continue to hide it. He's always liked to be very straightforward.

Luckily, the ogres over there didn't rush over to kill them because they heard their identities. The middle-aged man also continued calmly: "We also probably know the reason why you came here. Someone has told us that you want to buy the stolen goods looted by the big-eared monsters, which means that you are all black marketeers who want to resell the stolen goods, and the person who was executed yesterday is also your companion. Right. ”

"yes. "Asa is now the spokesperson for this gang of thieves. The others were already nervous to death, and the few ogres standing there had huge axes hanging from their waists, and the sheer weight of the sheer size could crush even the dead. Many people are already imagining their tragic death under such a horrific weapon after doing it indiscriminately.

"Then I'm sorry to tell you that it can't be as you wish. We didn't know the Big-Eared Monsters were looting these goods, but since they were going to join our city, they had to obey our laws. We are hostile to any nation, and we welcome all legitimate merchants, so we will return all the goods to the looted caravans, and naturally we will not be able to deal with you. As for your troubled friend, we also regret that whoever he is, if he violates the laws of our city-state, we will have to act according to our laws. I hope you all remember that the penalties for breaking the law in our city are severe, so be careful. ”

'Law'. The thieves had been used to the despise of the word, but now it felt unusually weighty. Most of the thieves swore in their hearts that if they could survive this difficulty, they would become the most law-abiding people in the city, and even the inscriptions on the stone tablets would be memorized word for word, and reviewed from time to time so as not to inadvertently offend.

But the middle-aged man's words suddenly turned to an unexpected aspect. "Whatever you want to do, since you haven't violated our laws, you're our guests. In order not to disappoint you, the first guests of Ironfast, we have decided to send you a small portion of these shipments. ”

The loaf of bread that fell from the sky stunned the thieves. Just now, they were still trembling in the fear of execution, and they were honored as guests again, and the long-awaited goods arrived, this big ups and downs made them dizzy, and they didn't react for a while.

The middle-aged man continued: "The goods that are being counted here are all the ones we are going to return to those merchants, and your gifts have already been placed in the city hall, please select a few people to check and then take them." ”

Again, Asa was alone asking, "But isn't the Empire already sending troops to prepare for war, and how can we go back even if we take the goods?"

The middle-aged man smiled and said very gently: "We do not have the slightest hostility towards all countries here, and we are not ready to fight any enemy. Your country's move must be only a temporary allergy, and we will soon send an envoy to contact your country. I believe that our act of returning your goods is enough to express our sincerity in our hope for peace, and I believe that your country will not like to go against the grain and misery of human life. We are very confident that we will be able to fully reconcile with your country in a very short time, and this small gift to you is also a little bit of our heart to the businessmen of your country, and I hope that you can convey it to your friends when you return and introduce our situation here to you. ”

The thieves slowly got used to the surprise and immediately became a sensation and excited.

"What a powerful method. In the midst of the commotion of the thieves, Xiao Yi, who had been silent just now, whispered in Asa's ear, making Asa feel that his ears were itchy. "Grace in the case of intimidation. The thieves who have benefited will go back and make a big deal about the order and friendliness of humanity, and the gossip that comes out of their mouths is somehow more convincing than the official announcements. Moreover, if they return these goods to the merchants of the Empire, even if they are a little less, it will be unexpected good news for those merchants, they will also be unwary of this orc city-state, and the Empire's hostility to this place will be greatly reduced. So even if people know that there are a lot of orcs here, they will still be convinced that this place is orderly and friendly to people. It was originally located between trade routes, and countless merchants must have flocked to it, and in the long run it would gain more than the value of these goods. ”

Asa nodded. But all he cared about was the book that was mixed in with the goods, and if that was the case, everything would be settled.

After deliberation, it was naturally the spokesman Asa who had been fearless just now to act as a representative, and he led a few people to the city hall to check the goods. This is also what Asa himself expected, and it is necessary to first see if the books will be mixed in this small part of the cargo.

They followed a middle-aged man to the city hall. The City Hall is undoubtedly the most magnificent building in the city. Although it is still made of huge stones, it is more than ten times the size of the ordinary buildings here, and it looks more like a castle with fewer floors. The central hall was large enough for a man to gallop through on horseback, and the huge stone pillars required several people to hug each other, and the rest of the surrounding area was divided by stone slabs.

It can be seen that many orcs and humans are busy going in and out, talking to each other with papers in their hands, ignoring their alien humans, it is completely a busy scene of a market exchange.

The goods are in the corner of the hall. An old man and a young man were next to the pile. The middle-aged man introduced the old man as the city lord of Cedlos in Oufu City. It was he who decided to give the goods to the thieves. The young man next to him was General Gru, who commanded all the Orf troops.

The old man's waist and back were straight, and his thick silver-white hair and beard would look good if he could be grown, but it seemed to have been trimmed short at will so as not to get in the way. The casual and sleek silver hair glistened in the sunlight from the window, and even the wrinkles on his face looked so vibrant, as if they were just ornaments for age and experience. The wrinkled eyes are clearly unique to young people, black and white, shiny and full of vitality. This is an old man who doesn't have the slightest taste of 'old' at all. He was dressed ordinarily, and if he mixed in with the crowd, he was inconspicuous, and it was difficult to associate with the powerful position of the 'City Lord', and it was such a strange city full of orcs.

General Gru was about thirty years of age, and his appearance did not seem to be befitting his position. His face was a little thin and pale, a little overly defined outline, showing the calmness of a sculpture, and a pair of dark eyes under his long eyelashes were so black that it was difficult to even reflect the light, and there was a bit of elf-like elegance. When Asa first saw him, he suddenly had an inexplicable sense of familiarity, but when he thought about it, he really didn't have much of an impression.

Asa casually looked at him twice, but the more he paid attention, the more he was attracted to him. The skeletal muscles and skin that were exposed to the outside of the clothes turned out to be so perfect that even the most skilled sculptor could not express the combination of streamlining and texture. At first glance, it's hard to believe that it's also flesh, and it's actually something made of flesh and blood, as if only some essence can be squeezed into that.

If this body is full of the essence of battle, then this person is definitely a person who lives for battle. Asa suddenly had this feeling.

General Gru turned his head suddenly, his dark eyes flashing at Asa's gaze. Asa subconsciously twisted his head away.

Although there were not many goods left to them, they were definitely not a lot, accounting for about a tenth of the total goods, and they were all made up of a little bit of each batch of goods. Although it is insignificant compared to the total number of these goods, it is worth hundreds of gold coins.

Several thieves stepped forward to pack up and count the goods. These things are sold upside down and divided equally, and everyone can also share a dozen or so gold coins, and this expected wealth makes the thieves fall into great excitement, and the sycophant top hat keeps flying out of the mouth of the clumsy eloquence, and is full of praise for the strict system of the city and the noble standard of living, saying that the one-eyed dragon is guilty of doing evil and killing him, and hanging him is completely for the people, and the food specially prepared for them by the hotel is simply a rare delicacy in the world, and all of this naturally belongs to the wise management of the city lord.

"If you think this place is not bad, I hope that when you go back, you will truthfully relay the situation here to your friends in the Empire. The Lord of Cedlos smiled as he watched the thieves pounce on the goods, looking at a pack of cats and dogs excited for a pile of bones with a compassionate expression. "You don't need to pay much attention to the news of the war, I am almost certain that this war will not be fought. The relaxed tone seemed to be genuinely confident.

"No problem, you're the most talented leader I've ever met. "If I have the opportunity in the future, I will definitely come to live in your city." The thieves' gratitude was palpable.

"Hey, how can there be such a thing. A thief suddenly cleared out a package from the cargo, opened it and saw that it was full of makeup, fat powder, knick-knacks, jewelry, and other girls' belongings, as well as a book.

Judging from the color, this is a very old book, but it is not very shabby, soft, made of some leather, and the few large characters on the cover are square and strange, and it is not a generic text.

"It was supposed to be the merchant's belongings, and the big-eared monsters had sent it along after the robbery. We're going to have to get it back into the hands of the merchants. The middle-aged man walked over and picked up the book and package.

Asa spun around to keep his slightly agitated look from being seen. Although he was already trying to calm down, the ultimate goal of this whole journey was in front of him, which made him even breathe out a lot rougher.

It is now almost certain that the book is in hand. Just wait until they return the goods, go to the caravan where Chrissy is and show the Bishop's appointment papers, and then go back to Sandru and report to Bishop Ronis, and then it's all over.

He had always hated the 'must-do' thing, and the freedom to do what he wanted was his preferred way of life, and when Bishop Ronis gave him the task, he felt obligated but not very comfortable. And this undulating and intricate task was successfully completed so unconsciously, as if the burden that had been on his back suddenly disappeared, and a sense of calm and ease made him very happy.

"Wait a minute. The city lord of Cedlos beckoned to the middle-aged man, cutting off Asa's pleasant feelings. "Show me the book. ”

The city lord of Cedlos took the book in his hand and only looked at the cover and the first few pages, and his face began to change, and there was no doubt that he could understand what it was. Of course, it was Asa next to him who had become more serious, but no one noticed.

"How could it be such a thing?" the city lord shook his head in surprise and handed the book to General Gru next to him. "It's very dangerous for this stuff to run around, so put it in your place. ”

"I took it back and put it under my pillow. The young general's tone was indifferent, as if it were the safest and safest place in the world. His voice was very good, very clear and clear.

"Oh, that's good. The city lord nodded, obviously acknowledging the level of insurance in this place.

General Gru reached out and took the book. His hands are neat, his fingers are long, and the shape of his hands is elegant, and together with his chiseled face, he forms a very graceful and elegant image. Asa noticed a faint scar on his hand, from the tiger's mouth to the edge of his palm. It is as if a straight palm pattern runs diagonally through the palm.

Asa suddenly had a vague premonition that things had come to this point, as if he had to use the methods he was good at to achieve his goals.