VI

The flagship of the river fleet docked at the docks of Port Lenni before dawn on the 23rd.

As Lieutenant General Klad López and Admiral Vena Betsy talked and walked down the gangway in the first rays of morning light, it happened that a reporter from a second-rate newspaper was dozing off in a dilapidated wagon nearby. He was awakened by the shouting of the pilot, rubbed his eyes and cursed, got up and tried to go to the river to find a place to wash his face, but he happened to catch up with this scene. As a Fathes, the reporter recognized the three large stars on the epaulettes of General Redbeard with just one glance. Before the sturdy sergeants of the guard company could catch up, the black carriage of the newspaper office disappeared into the fog of dawn. By breakfast time, the newspaper with the news was already spread out on the dining tables of thousands of households.

His Excellency Venus Betsy, Commander-in-Chief of the Fates Military District and the only general officer of the Free Army, arrived at Lenny early this morning!"

Commentator: The statements of the military and parliament of the Republic of Phates will have a decisive impact on the attitude of the joint councils of the provinces. We'll see: Will Admiral Betsy bring peace or war?"

"Editorial: We must not allow a coup d'état to become a precedent to follow. A moment of appeasement will pry a crack under the towering foundations of our government. Every serviceman who betrays the constitution must be punished with the severest punishment!"

There is a reason why public opinion is so excited. In the past two weeks, the main war parties and the newspapers supported by the main peace party have divided into distinct camps, using the written word as a weapon against each other. Conservative, liberal, and provincial parties are adamantly in favor of a quick fix, while realist and federalist parties struggle to keep hope of peace alive. A large number of centrist MPs are hesitant, and the votes in the Provisional Parliament have fluctuated between one-third and two-thirds for a long time, and no one can gain an advantage. A decisive stimulus awaited – either a peace envoy from Kengrad, the capital of the Juloks, or a draft resolution from the Pallo, the capital of Párlo.

And it was the latter that eventually arrived. It is not known exactly which side Admiral Betsy decided to take, but it is known that he brought the decision of Fates.

“...... Finally, the showdown is coming. Reese sighed, closed the last of the newspaper, and tossed it on the empty chair beside her. There were already eight newspapers, and she was still the only one at the edge of the huge elongated dining table. The blonde girl looked at the breakfast on the table: the milk was already cold, and the bread no longer smelled of baking. Her sister went to Kengler, and it's been a week. The half-elves who used to sit in the second position at the top are now on the Metributi River, guarding the capital's docks from the bombardment of the rebel fleet. Since recruiting a group of trainee alchemists to help with the research, the hostess of the mansion has been working later and waking up late, rarely coming over for breakfast. So, Rose Seiffel was the only one left here for breakfast.

The most powerful magician of this era picked up the cold bread stupidly, hesitated for a moment, and did not ask the maid to take it to revisit, but directly put it into his mouth. Cold bread and cold milk have little taste, but they are enough energy to provide enough energy for a busy morning's work. She now has the role of a strict, reliable, loyal, and impartial steward, representing the entire consortium and its majestic and proud mistress. She is in charge of the group's decision-making, her hostess represents the authority of the group, and her sister is in charge of the group's running – as it should in theory.

"Theoretically ......"

Rose smiled wryly. She can take charge of the decisions of the entire group, but she hates the constant hassle. It is her sister Bonnie Seiffer who likes to watch assets grow, technology advances, and scale up, not her. She believes that Lesa doesn't like the cheesy nickname "Golden Daughter" either, so she will always be obsessed with her research. Luckily, as a spiritual leader, Ressa doesn't need to be seen as often, and Ress and Bonnie have been careful to shape the alchemist's supremacy in the group so that the entire consortium doesn't collapse when they leave Lenny—a role they know as Resa Helmont. The lowest-ranking staff only knew about Raysa Helmont, not about the Sephir who were the actual manipulators.

The bell of the parliament building rang again. Seeing that it was already ten o'clock in the morning, Rose rose from the table, shook the rattle, and called the maid.

"Tell the cook to make a new breakfast and bring it to Ms. Helmont's room. Eat the breakfast on the table. ”

Hearing Ms. Helmont's name, the maid shook his head and trotted all the way to the kitchen. Rose looked at her figure and nodded in satisfaction: everyone was in awe of Ressa, and they could be sure that everything would be fine even without the Sephirs. She's staying here just to supervise the money-making machine that must be functioning properly.

Does that mean that it doesn't matter if she leaves, and even if she and her sister aren't here, shouldn't everything be normal?

As she pondered for a moment, she suddenly felt a wave of magic pulseing through her fingertips and blood. Lately her magic has been getting unchecked, and gradually starting to go wild, no longer as precise as it used to be—or two and a half centuries later. There were not so many theories of magic, knowledge of magic, and experiments in magic in this era, and the world of the mind was not as large, complex, and perfect as it would have been. That feeling...... It's like a slight electric shock, or the pleasure of speeding up the magic that envelops the body. She told herself that in this critical moment of chaos, there might be something more important than waiting for news and taking care of the day-to-day.

It's just not yet. The situation is not yet completely clear, and we cannot act rashly. Reese Sefir's personality is action-oriented, and she doesn't have the vision and ability to make plans like her sister.

"Let's go to the Magic Items Branch today, today's new information will definitely be sent to Bonnie. Tell her that war is imminent. ”

*** ***

Reese set off after a little grooming, pinning a coat of arms with a white rose to her chest. Before going to Kemele, Bonnie had told her this repeatedly.

"Sister, you use white roses, and I use black roses. In the future, if it is difficult to reach us, it is good to use the real rose or logo as a signal. ”

She could roughly guess why Bonnie was so insisting: it was a memorial to a secret organization. That secret organization was called the "Blood Roses", and in their time it was a huge secret women's organization that manipulated the direction of the world. There was only one thing she didn't quite understand: there were only six people in charge of that organization, the three primary colors of red, yellow, and blue, and the three colors of orange, purple, and green, and there was no white or black. Rose didn't know why her sister chose these two plain and inconspicuous colors. She had thought she would have chosen blue, representing Miriana Quilahia's own blue. Rose knew her sister liked the color blue, as she chose a blue logo for the group's magical items division: a diamond that shimmered blue.

The hollow diamond, bent in silver wire, shimmered on the northernmost side of Lenny's ramparts, next to the tributary of the River Metbysie, known as the River of Kings. During the day, the faint blue light emitted by the silver filaments is only faintly visible, but at night, the blue light of a diamond is enough to penetrate a block. In order to show the strength of the trading house, the guards who defend this place are all covered in magic light, and the house is covered with alarm magic and detection magic, and various traps are arranged with magic items. Far from damaging the trading house, the constant sounds of sirens and the clashing of blades helped the "Blue Diamond" to fame with the help of rumors and rumors, and it only took two weeks for the "Blue Diamond" to become one of the best magic goods trading houses in Lennie - only a few people knew about the relationship between this opulent looking magic goods trading house and the not-so-famous "Solid Gold Lingerie Store". The foreman on duty today didn't recognize the blonde girl in front of him, but he recognized the white rose crest that represented the supreme agent, and immediately gave way to the back of the counter.

"Thank you, you don't have to inform the manager on duty. ”

With a business smile on her face, Rose walked into the trading house's first storage room and sat down in the only chair. A tingling sensation came through the backrest, soothing her fatigue for days. Infused with magic from the East, this chair can soothe sore muscles through mysterious "acupoint control", making it one of the rarest and most useful magical items they have ever collected. After only sitting for a while, she didn't want to stand up again—she was so tired.

"Ah, I kind of understand why she's moving the intelligence center here......"

After lamenting the luxurious life that her sister enjoys on weekdays, Rhys finally cheered up and began to flip through the mountains of reports that had been piled up for a week. Most of the information could be thrown away just by reading the title, and it wasn't worth as much as the "history books of the afterlife" they carried with them. The most important thing was the information related to Admiral Betsy and the Phathes Legion, which she had singled out and packed into a metal cylinder. The cylinder was a little small compared to the amount of information, and she used a transfiguration technique to turn it into the shape of a toilet paper roll and shoved it in.

The next question is how to get this information to Bonnie, who is 300 kilometers away. The amount of information is too large to be possible with a technique such as the "soundboard transmission method", and in an era when there is a lack of transmission of coordinate data, it is very inappropriate to use teleportation to transmit it. As for the use of carrier pigeons, crows, bats, owls and the like, it is full of danger and uncertainty. While these things may seem like the legendary Grand Mage, they are simply unreliable: a slightly more specialized archer or sniper can take down the mage's pet and intercept this valuable information. In Sephir's time, mages generally relied on absolute teleportation and airmail, but in this day, she was a little overwhelmed.

"That's right...... In this era, the plane protection barrier has not yet been established, has it?"

Rose suddenly remembered this and felt a pang of ecstasy. She dove headlong into the pile of magical items, searching for a summoning medium to use, until she unearthed a staff decorated with feathers and green gems. In her time, these magical items for summoning had lost their usefulness and had been reduced to mere ornaments, but in this time, they still possessed true magical powers.

"The starting phrase is probably "Fly, Wind Elemental Spirit...... Something vulgar and rotten. ”

Rather than bothering to speculate on the activation spell, she infused the staff with activation magic using the forcible activation method that was common in later generations. With a slight flick of her wrist, an almost transparent wind spirit appeared in front of her. In the face of her power, the wind elf did not and could not make any attempt to resist. Rhys nodded in satisfaction, pushed open the window by the river, and pointed to the north.

"Go, go down the river to find my sister's convoy. I decree to you in the name of Reese Sephir that you will not be free until you finish it. ”

The spirit of the wind shuddered, and flew north along the King's River, in the direction of Kengrad.

"Wish Bonnie all the best. ”

*** ***

Kingrad, the capital of the Julok Republic, takes its name from the King's River, which flows south of it. Unlike the Metbysie River, it is difficult to sail on the King's River. The real navigable waterway, the short stretch north of Lenny, and the section from Kengal to Dragonia, known as the "reef turbulence", is completely unsuitable for ordinary boats, except for very small boats. Because of the difficulty of the waterway and the thorny land route, Lenny was founded much later than Kemele: it was not until the First Dynasty of the Coman Empire that Lenny was established as an outpost for the southwestern conquest.

The original meaning of the name Kengal was "City of Kings". The people of the Juloks have always been proud of the rich history of their capital: long before Lennie, Deresa, and even the Elven Empire did not exist in this world, Kemler was already the largest city-state south of Luxinhai. However, as time shifted to the point where the zigzag region from Rama and Lenny to Forteburg and Pyro – commonly known as the "35th parallel" – became the richest region of the free state, the Kengola region declined significantly. For this reason, the Rulogs and the Lennies have always despised each other, and there is a deep chasm between them. In Kengler's comedies, there is always a money-worshipping, snobbish Harlequin of Lenny, and in Lenny's comedies, the arrogant and braggadocio is not uncommon. For Kengler, it was only natural for Kengel to choose to support Marshal Radetz Govar, who was born in Julock. As soon as the two sides broke up, the road from Lenny to Kengal was completely cut off.

"Still can't cross the river? How long will this last...... I knew that I should have rushed to clear the customs when there were not so many troops in the first two days. ”

"I heard that from north to south, all the fields of the King River have been blocked. The government's Fifth National Guard Division also blocked several passes to the north and east, claiming that not a single soldier of the coup army would be allowed to approach the outskirts of Lenny. ”

"Not to mention a single soldier, not even a single soldier will be allowed to pass by! The west bank is a coup army, the east bank is a government army, and every ferry crossing and field is the same!"

"The Royal Highway to the north has also been blocked, and countless bandits have haunted the area controlled by both sides, and it is said that they have slaughtered several villages as bases. ”

Lots of merchants and travelers were blocked on both sides of the cordon, and rumours raced like wild horses through the town along the Royal Mile. Every town was crowded with hoarders, mercenaries looking for opportunities, and prostitutes sniffing out business, and even with the 5th National Guard Division of the government army and the 6th division of the coup army, the "Metbysey Division", blocking the main roads, it would be difficult to prevent the flies of outsiders from congregating in the area. Most of the locals were happy to talk about it, except for the agents at Lenny's factory. People do not feel the imminent crisis, but are simply immersed in the immediate benefits.

Of course, a caravan laden with scarce supplies can't be stopped here forever. The caravans tried their best to get through the lines of defense on both sides and the middle area where the bandits were entrenched. From bribery, seduction, threats to disguise, the soldiers of the Free Army, who guarded the field and blockade lines, have seen enough of the ever-changing capitalists these days. At the Dann Fatus site, which is closest to Kengler, there was a caravan that painted the carriage with the blue insignia of the Free Army two days ago, and found a few veterans in an attempt to disguise themselves as a logistics column of the Free Army to blend through the lines of the two sides. They did succeed in mixing up the militia and reserve officers of the National Guard, but they were spotted on the side of the "Metbysie Division", and all the supplies were confiscated—it was a large batch of muskets and firearms. This incident made the commander of the Fifth National Division regret all his intestines, and since then the inspection has become more and more strict.

"Don't let it go even if it's a little suspicious, check it carefully! Don't let the guys of the coup army get a little more oil and water from us!"

Thinking of the regimental commander's order, the guard company commander who was involved in the field rubbed his nose. The team in front of him is not only a little suspicious...... It's just too suspicious. But he just couldn't find even the slightest evidence that the other side was smuggling strategic supplies. There was no food, no weapons and armor, no magic items, and no fire yao. The team consisted of only people and wagons, but they were not carrying suspicious items.

"Mr. Steward, you mean you're a ...... Troupe?" He asked again hesitantly, hoping to find contradictions in the other party's answers.

"Yes, we are a volunteer troupe for peace. My young lady, Métie Crosso, is a well-known and talented pianist and organist, who has made a name for herself at home and abroad, having given concerts at Lenny's Union Theatre. She was even more full of patriotism, and when she heard that our great motherland was facing a split, she insisted on holding a goodwill concert in Kengrad despite the opposition of her family. Such a respectable lady, you should let her stay in such a country place where she could not even take a hot bath for three whole days, three days! My lord has a great position in Lenny, but don't let him know that his favorite only daughter is treated like this by you. ”

The chief had a neat face, well-dressed, a black wide-brimmed top hat and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, and a very high pitch, and a menacing appearance, so that the company commander could barely speak. The company commander felt an urge to pull out his gun and kill the man in front of him, but he could only forcibly suppress it.

"Sorry, we're just doing a routine check to make sure you really don't have any prohibited materials or magical items with you. There are so many speculators who have gone to Kengrad to join the coup army that we can't catch them......"

"You've been checking for thirty minutes, have you found anything? Even your mages have gone into battle, and they've been knocking on that probe rod for a long time, have you knocked out anything? You can't even use a probe rod, it's really anxious to watch!"

The company commander looked at the apprentice magician who had not yet been taught with a pleading look, expecting him to give a satisfactory answer. The apprentice grabbed the probe rod and spread his hands helplessly: "There is nothing in the convoy except for the organ, piano, tuba, trumpet, violin, etc. There was no magic reaction on the instruments or carriages, so there was nothing suspicious. ”

The company commander gritted his teeth and took one last look at the emblem of the "Croso Brothers Bank" on the carriage. Everything corresponded perfectly, without the slightest flaw.

Even so suspicious.

Reluctantly, he spat out the word between his teeth: "Let go." ”

The disgusting steward glanced at him and went back to direct the wagon across the river. This high-profile man was full of hateful self-confidence, and the company commander believed that he would definitely be able to pass the cross-examination of the "Master of Mattebysh" on the other side. An hour later, the Scout proved it for him.

In the end, the company commander did not believe that the general managers of these capitalists could do public welfare. "What the hell are they smuggling?" he asked the adjutant with some irritation, but he couldn't get an answer - he still couldn't get an answer until many years later, when all the wars were over.

*** ***

After passing the cross-examination of the Metbysie division, the convoy continued north, and the annoying chief returned to his carriage. As soon as he got back into the carriage, he took off his heavy broad-brimmed top hat, revealing his short, neatly trimmed brown hair. An iron cylinder sealed with a white rose coat of arms was already waiting for him in his seat, along with the Wind Elemental Spirit who had accidentally fallen into the Sacred Protective Barrier. The steward smiled and waved the poor summoned creature back to its original world. After reading the information sent by her sister, the beautiful girl dressed as a man frowned.

"Betsy is back...... Hopefully, it's still too late. Why hasn't Kengler's envoy arrived at Lenny yet? If we don't, we're running out of time for what we're smuggling......"

Bonnie muttered to herself, destroying the cylinder along with the information.

She doesn't smuggle strategic goods, she smuggles pipe organs: huge pipe organs cast from a mixture of pure and white gold. Pure and platinum enough to solve Kengrad's financial crisis, as long as she feels the situation is appropriate.

And, of course, the best pastor of our time, and the world's most astute speculator, Bonnie Seiffir, herself, were smuggled. The young virtuoso she travels with is no slouch – she is the only one who knows that. Rose hadn't read the history documents of "Blood Roses", and she didn't know the weight of the name Maidy Crossive on the back of history.

"This is the third flower...... It is also our first flower. ”

The girl dressed as the chief swatter closes her eyes and adds new information to the plan. There is still half a day to go to Kengrad.

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Welcome the majority of book friends to come and read, the latest, fastest, the hottest serialized works are all here!