"My lord, we've caught a bunch of crooks. ”

In the cold winter of Blackhammer Castle, Alves sat in his office, next to the charcoal basin to keep warm. As usual, the guards reported on all sorts of miscellaneous events. Alves is used to these trivial things, he can leave some things to his assistants, but he is still energetic and often handles these things by himself. After all, the age of thirty is an upright prime for a human being.

"Oh, who did they deceive, commoners or nobles? Cheating money or sex, how to deceive? Deceiving tricks?"

Alves didn't even lift his head, just buried his head in front of the charcoal basin to warm himself. Routinely asked.

"They didn't cheat specific people, they didn't cheat money, they didn't cheat sex, adults ......"

The guards reported.

"No specific person, what do you mean?"

The guard's answer intrigued Alves, who looked up at the guard with a smile on his face. There is still such a liar in the world, not for money, not for sex, so what is the purpose and motive of his deception?

"Uh...... Well...... They didn't lie to anyone specific, but they showed trickery in front of people, claiming that they could foresee the future. ”

The guard replied in a slurch.

"Can you foresee the future?"

Alves smiled even more happily, no one in the world could have foreseen the future, and if he could, he would not be a man, but a god. Wait a minute...... Alves suddenly remembered that there is a kind of divination in Moorish religion called the Calamity, which can predict the future death of a child. Since Moorishism is not seen in Kislev, most people do not believe in this kind of thing, and even regard it as an evil trick. But the Moorish cult was wanted by the Ice Queen, and had escaped from Blackhammer Castle under the cover of Rhodes a year ago, so how could they have returned? But it didn't. Was this a new science, a new sect, or, as the guards say, just a liar? Alves couldn't help but wonder from the bottom of his heart.

"Yes. They gave divination to people in the tavern for no fee, and if anyone liked what they said, they would give them a few small sums of money. ”

The guards continued to report.

"Don't take money? It's very unusual, liars usually see money when they say it. ”

Alves frowned and pondered, he thought about what kind of group this was, not for financial gain, but simply for people to divinate their fate.

"Where are they now?"

"In prison. ”

"Take me to meet them. ”

Alves commanded.

......

When Alves limped to the prison, several "crooks" were being locked in the outermost cage, waiting to be released because they were not significantly harmful to society. The dangerous prisoners were kept in the innermost part of the prison, which was blocked by iron gates, each of which had guards changing in turn. Wails could often be heard from the depths of the cells, and the priest would visit the prisoners from time to time to see if they were willing to repent and change their ways. However, when the prisoners learned that their sentences could not be reduced even if they repented, most of them responded with indifference and even kicked the priest out. For them, it is better to let an old man babble to himself through the bars than to call a prostitute to the cell to make themselves happy.

Alves watched several prisoners through the bar. It can be said that this is the most honest group of prisoners accepted by the Black Hammer Fort since its establishment. They sat quietly in the corner, silent, silent. Like statues, a few people were still silently reciting something. Alves reckoned that it was a prayer, because it could never have been a spell, otherwise there would have been chaos in the cell.

"Tell me, a few of you, where are you from?"

Alves looked at the strange people, most of them were old people, only one was a young man, and he also seemed to be a little nervous, with strange eyes. There is an indescribable feeling that seems to be a fear of the unknown and the mysterious.

"Empire, Rick, Talabek, Midden, Nord...... We've been to many, many places. ”

The old man said. Alves noticed that the clothes he was wearing were very shabby, the old man's face was wrinkled, and a string of skull pendants hung from his chest. Alves knew that in the Empire, many people would wear skull insignia as decoration, wear it on their clothes, or inlay it on their weapons. So, there is nothing wrong with the words of these people at the moment.

"I'm asking where you're from, not where you've been. ”

Alves rebuked.

"Where are you from? That's a lot, I'm from Nunn, and next to me this young Sangras is from Middenheim, and I'm from the capital, Aldolph. ”

The old man replied.

"What are you doing here? My guards say you're liars. ”

Alves asked calmly.

"Liars are your contempt for us. Dare to ask your lordship, what are we deceiving you? The people are happy to get the answers they want, we just did what we were supposed to do. ”

"No one can foresee the future, except gods, but it seems that you are only mortals. ”

Alves said.

"My lord, the future is not unforeseeable. On the contrary, fate can be peeked into, it is like a mirror that allows you to see some fragments of fragments, which can be both from the future and from the past, what happened in the past. ”

The old man said slowly. He was unhurried and didn't seem to be worried about his situation at all. It seems that this is not the first time he has been put in prison.

"Tell me, then, what was my past?"

Alves leaned over and asked with a wicked smile.

The old man glanced at Alves and was silent, "My lord, do you really want me to do this?" After a while, he asked coldly.

"You have to do it. ”

Alves said in a commanding tone, dispersing the left and right guards at the same time. Divination and prediction can also be made through iron bars, and there is no need for guards to watch over them.

After the left and right had withdrawn, the old man gathered his companions and began a new round of divination rituals.

Alves was half-lying on a wooden chair and watched a few homeless people begin to "cast spells" with a comfortable expression.

"Think clearly, if you are wrong, then I will condemn you as liars and send you to work in the deep pit mine for a month. If you're right, I might be able to introduce you to the lord. He's interested in all sorts of weird professions. ”

Alves said leisurely, chewing on the nuts on the warden's table.