The kingdom of Dordor, the city of Ascending Rock. lā

Lord Eckert sat in the rest room of the sheriff's office, quietly waiting for the sheriff, Lord Vamond Wemick. The servants of the police station removed the pine nut tea that had been left untouched and had been cooled, and served a new cup of steaming, fragrant pine nut tea.

This is the ninth cup.

Before that, Eckert had already drunk seven cups of pine nut tea and went out three times. This is enough time for the sheriff to finish the business at hand and sleep soundly. However, compared to the five days that the caravan spent in Ascending Rock City, this time was nothing compared to the five days that the caravan had spent in Ascending Rock City.

The more the sheriff behaved, the more patient Eckert became.

Ascending Rock is the main city of the Dwemick family, one of the seven great families of the Kingdom of Dordor and ruling the southeastern part of the kingdom for more than 700 years. As the sheriff of Ascending Rock City, Vamond Wemick has 4 midshipman knights and 600 security soldiers under his command, and he does have the qualifications to be arrogant.

However, the Wimbledon Chamber of Commerce is also not weak.

The Wimbledon Chamber of Commerce had a monopoly on the trade in barley, jaggery, and purple cane wine, and its caravans traveled between the kingdoms. In terms of wealth and influence, the Wimbledon Chamber of Commerce is still above the Dwemick family.

Eckert's caravan was in charge of the trade in Rock City, and he maintained good personal relations with the mid-level officials of the Dwemick family, spending no less than 1,000 gold soles a year just for the sheriff's office.

Take people with short hands and eat people with soft mouths. Vammon had received so much from Eckert that he should not have been so cold to his old friend. The sheriff's unusual behavior convinced Eckert that he could find the answer to his question here, except that he really didn't want to drink pine nut tea anymore.

Sunlight poured into the office through the west window, and one of the guards walked into the lounge and bowed, "Your Excellency, Lord Vamont is waiting for you in the office. ”

Ekter nodded, picked up the long wooden box on the table, and followed the guard through the cloister to the door of the office. The guard raised his hand and knocked twice on the oak door, pushing it open and motioning for Eckert to enter.

On the wall facing the main entrance of the office hangs a specimen of the head of a giant bear, whose owner is sitting behind a desk.

"Eckert, I thought you were going to leave on your own. Lord Wamon, the sheriff's eyebrows were intertwined, and he made no secret of his helplessness and dissatisfaction.

"My lord, it's not that I'm ignorant of current affairs. The caravan still had more than a hundred wagons of goods undelivered, so I went back like this, and my four months of hard work were in vain. Eckert smiled and shoved the long wooden box in his hand in front of the sheriff.

Vammon opened the wooden box and took out a long sword from it, the blade of the sword was cold and sharp, and the purple-gold sword body was covered with swirling lines, showing a dragon-like brilliance under the reflection of the sun.

"Is the pure gold sword made by the hundred forging method the work of the master craftsmen of Bernardau? It seems that you have spent a lot of money. Vammon stroked his sword and said with joy.

"I heard that your eldest son is about to have a coming-of-age ceremony, and this is a gift from me. Eckert said lightly.

"Good sword ......" Vammon nodded with satisfaction and said with a smile: "Eckert, we are old friends for more than ten years, just say anything straight!"

"There are 58 merchants in Dengshi City who specialize in picking up my goods, and this time, three of them have died, and eight have even sold their shops, and the remaining dozens are unwilling to continue to receive goods. And not a single of the more than 600 shops in Boulder City dared to do business with us. ”

"I investigated, and then I learned that Rock City has recently changed three hyena leaders, and they sent people to coerce the traders, and no one was allowed to take the Wimbledon caravan. Eckert shook his head and smiled bitterly, "I thought this was what you meant." Now, I just want to know...... Is this temporary, or will it be the case in the future?"

Vammon pondered for a moment and said, "It's not that all shops don't dare to do business with the Wimbledon caravan...... I've got a list here, so take a look. ”

Eckert took the parchment scroll that Vammon had handed him and opened it to reveal that it was full of shops run by the vassals of the Dwemick family, including the sheriff's own three general stores.

These were old acquaintances of Eckert, and in fact they bought out sixty percent of the caravanserais, but they bought less than half the price of the Freedmen traders, and shipped twice as much as the Freedmen traders.

The Wimbledon Chamber of Commerce had its own charter, and all shops with vassal backgrounds belonged to official merchants, while freeman traders were referred to as private traders. Private traders faced common people and small lords in remote areas, who were the main source of profit for the caravan. The officials and merchants served the great lords, and their share of trade and the prices of goods had to be taken into account the needs of the major powers, and the Marquis Sophia personally negotiated them, which could not be easily changed.

Unable to accept the sheriff's suggestion, Eckert handed the scroll back, shook his head, and said, "You know, I can't break the rules of the Chamber of Commerce. ”

Vammon took the sheepskin scroll, stuffed it into a drawer, and said regretfully: "This is the only place I can help you, if you don't agree, then drag the goods away, there is no point in consuming it like this." ”

"What the hell is going on?" Eckert couldn't help but ask.

The sheriff was silent for a moment before speaking, "Now, all the freedfolk traders in Ascending Rock City can only do business with the South Wind Chamber of Commerce!"

"Nanfeng Chamber of Commerce? ”

"It was originally the Ephesus Chamber of Commerce, but now it is under the control of the Peter family of the Borui Kingdom, and the head of the Chamber of Commerce seems to be Raymond Peter, the eldest son of Duke Peter. Vammon sighed helplessly: "This is all arranged from above, and I can't help it." Eckert, I'll tell you frankly that if the Wimbledon Chamber of Commerce wants to do business with the Freedmen at Denstone Fort, it must be negotiated first. ”

Eckert frowned and said, "You mean, my lord and the Marquis de Vedmick have a face-to-face interview?"

"No!" Varmont shook his head, stretched out his index finger and nodded upward, and said, "Lord Marquis Sophia will personally convince His Majesty the King." ”

Convince His Majesty Friedrich, that is, that the entire kingdom of the Dordor freedfolk traders do not do business with us?

Eckert was startled, and was stunned for a long time before he said bitterly: "I know...... Sorry, I have to hurry back to Gambis. ”

Just as Eckert was about to leave the door, the sheriff stopped him.

"Old friend, make plans for the future. ”

"Thank you. Eckert barely tugged at the corners of his mouth and walked out of the police station in despair.

As the sun sets and the streets of Rock City are bustling with people, Eckert wraps up in a light, breathable fine linen coat and boards a carriage heading for the hotel.

When he arrived at the hotel, Eckert climbed up to the second floor with a calm face and locked himself in the room alone, and several deputies of the caravan did not dare to come forward to ask him when they saw his solemn expression. After a while, Eckert walked out of the room again, and handed a piece of parchment to his assistant, and commanded, "Send the red-eyed letter crow and deliver this letter to Lord Sophia." ”

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The sun has set, and the silver moon has risen.

The night in the eastern suburbs of Xiangye Town was dim and hazy, and more than two dozen figures walked on the deserted path by the pale moonlight. The artemisia grass on both sides of the road is half a man tall, and the blades of grass sway and rustle in the evening breeze. Suddenly, a strange cry came from the depths of the artemisia grass, and the blades of the grass shook violently, parting like water waves. The strong man in the lead was taken aback and lay directly on the ground.

"Pete, a wild cat can scare you like that?!" mocked a gray-haired man over half a hundred years old.

The strong man got up from the ground, his muscular arms clasped together, and his face that looked fierce because of the scar showed a flattering and fearful expression, and he snorted, "I...... I was intimidated by those guys......"

"Alright. The gray-haired man stopped the strong man's explanation and asked impatiently, "Where is Sween?"

"Soon, soon, walk through the grove in front of you, and walk another mile to see the abandoned pasture. Boss Sveen and his brothers were hiding inside. The strong man said with a stiff head.

"Continue to lead the way. ”

"Yes, yes, Lord Balor. ”

The gray-haired man is none other than Barol, the head of the Randall family's secret agent. He was ordered by Victor to develop the mercury perimeter in the kingdom of Dordor.

Four months ago, Barol supported a shadow son in Xiangye Town, that is, Pete's boss Swayne. Later, Barol received orders from the Randall family, and Victor asked Mercury to provide logistical support and intelligence support for the Kestrel Mercenaries and the Bears. With the help of mercury, Fermi's kestrel mercenary group infiltrated the mountains with a dozen freeman traders, searched for mountain villages, opened up smuggling routes and mercenary strongholds, and Barrett's bear group also got sufficient supplies and was heading for the Wharton Prairie.

Balor completes his mission and returns to Momiji Town, only to find that Svien's forces have been uprooted by a group of outsiders, and Svien and several of his henchmen are missing. Just as Barol was about to investigate the identity of the outsider, Swayne's thug Pete contacted him, and Pete said that Dwayne was hiding on the outskirts of Ribbon Town, and offered to take Barol to Svean.

There are many irregularities in the changes in Ribbon Town, how can Pete's little tricks hide from the cunning Barol. According to the custom of the secret agent, he should kill Pete on the spot, erase all traces, and quickly evacuate. As for Dwayne, it was just a makeshift shadow for mercury, and his life and death were insignificant.

However, the town of Spice is very important to mercury.

Large merchant groups use the radiation effect of the major main cities to complete the circulation of goods and the distribution of materials throughout the territory. Victor did the opposite, and the Randall family's smuggling caravans first controlled the cottages and homeless camps, and then affected the related villages, and the village chief would pull the goods to the town's market to sell, and the local caravans would naturally sell the goods to the main city.

To put it bluntly, it is the difference between the city influencing the countryside and the city surrounded by the countryside.

Located on the southeastern edge of the Kingdom of Duoduo, the town of Fragrant Leaf is a 12-day walk west to the Dwemick family's Rock Castle, with vast mountains to the east and north and four of its seven villages related to mountain villages. Rich in spices, flax and iron ore, the town of Xiangye is remote from the city, but it is full of caravans, with a permanent population of more than 20,000.

With its remote location, abundant products, thriving trade, large population, and connection between the main city and the countryside, the conditions of Xiangye Town fully meet the needs of the outer line of mercury development.

Svien is a villain born and raised in Momiji Town, and Barol helps him replace the original boss, and although he has been in power for a short time, he has also been recognized by the sheriff. Although the sheriff will not care about the change of local underground forces, it is impossible for the sheriff to sit idly by and watch the change of two gang leaders in a few months.

Balor smelled something extraordinary, he didn't know who his opponent was, but he was sure of three things.

First of all, the villain has no discipline to speak of, and Swayne, even if he is still alive, must have sold him to the bottom, and the thug Pete is leading them into a trap. Secondly, the opponent is not a fellow agent. Because the secret agent's style of acting is low-key and cautious, two bosses are replaced in a short period of time, and the blind can see that there is a problem. The third and most important point is that if the sheriff wants to deal with mercury, he can organize a capture in the town, and there is no need to set a trap at all.

The opponent is neither an agent nor a sheriff, so there is no need to worry.

Barol decides to take the simplest and most brutal approach: crush the trap, catch two live mouths, and torture each other's whereabouts. The elite guards of the Randall family are his confidence.

The road became narrower and narrower, and the shadowy dwarf forest was not far away, and the red wolf suddenly stopped and whispered, "Head, don't go." There is danger ahead. ”

The thief Red Wolf has an unusually intuitive sense of danger, and Balor is well aware of the Red Wolf's ability, he made a gesture to signal the team to stop where it is, and sighed: "Pete, do you know why I didn't light a torch?" Without waiting for Pete to reply, he pointed to the low woods and said, "If there is a team of crossbowmen hidden in the woods, we will be a live target when we carry torches." ”

Pete's face changed drastically, and he twisted his waist and shrank to drill into the pile of artemisia, but was pinched by a strong man beside Balor. The sharp pain of the cracked shoulder bone and the fear of death caused Pete to howl loudly and struggle desperately, but the hand was cast of iron and could not be shaken.

Balor said to himself, "This distance is just not enough for the range of the crossbow, if you have a military heavy crossbow...... his voice suddenly turned higher, "I don't admit it either!"

"Wow"

The flock of birds in the low forest rose to the sky, and then there was the sound of swords colliding, trees collapsing, ** splitting, and screaming miserably.

"Go 10 more people, support the brothers inside, and remember to leave a few alive. ”

Ten figures swept out of the ranks, like arrows from the string shooting into the woods two hundred meters away, and the sound of the battle became more intense.

It took a quarter of an hour for the grove to calm down.

Five people came out of the woods one after another, and the strong man at the front carried a prisoner curled up in a ball, and said in a deep voice: "Kill 39 enemies, break one brother, and only catch one alive." The rest of the brothers are cleaning up the battlefield inside, searching for enemies who have slipped through the net. ”

Balor was surprised and asked, "Only one alive mouth, and one brother sacrificed, is it difficult for the opponent to be entangled?"

"Well, they fought very tenacious, there were two people who were particularly good, they teamed up to kill one of our brothers, and then one was killed, and only this guy was caught. He wanted to kill himself, but we had to break his limbs and spine, and he was already in shock and could not be tortured for the time being. ”

Barol couldn't help but furrow his gray eyebrows. The combat effectiveness of the elite guards is not inferior to that of the senior cadet knights, and they are especially good at night battles in complex environments. It wasn't a surprise that eighteen elite guards annihilated forty enemies in the dense woods, but these enemies would rather die than surrender, and they were no ordinary gangster thugs.

In Baror's impression, only elite soldiers, or top mercenary groups, have such a tenacious will to fight.

Elite soldiers don't need to ambush us, someone has hired a mercenary group to deal with us?

Barol thought for a moment and said, "Take these two guys with you, and let's go into the woods to have a look." ”