"However, I soon found out that I was wrong! Because in the next ten days, news came from all the fortresses of the empire, all of which were invaded by mercenaries from all over the country. The mercenaries who could do everything, as long as they gave money, not only robbed all the fortresses and injured our companions, but also burned down our houses before leaving. ”

"And just like that, our brethren of the Thorn Rose came into violent clashes with them. In this way, the Imperial Guard, stationed near the fortress, completely razed our fortress to the ground in the name of suppressing the mob. Today, many members of the Thorn Rose are still trapped in dungeons across the Empire, subjected to torture and inhuman treatment. ”

Hearing this, Ace's face twitched, his fists clenched, and he made a gurgling sound.

"Soon, all of our Thorn Rose's strongholds will be taken, and our companions will face prison." Alice couldn't help but sigh as she said this.

Alice sat up slowly again and said, "Ten days ago, I took the lone wolf to the last stronghold in the northern part of the empire, and after I learned of the accident at the stronghold, none of this has happened. I want to do my best to protect the last hope of the Thorn Rose. As you can see, we failed. Most of the injured companions downstairs were brought back from there. At the time, I was worried that it would involve you, so I didn't tell you, and I explained it to the bartenders at the tavern and asked them not to tell you about my itinerary. “

Hearing this, Ace finally came back to his senses. Before he went to the Mystic Forest Trial, he once went to the Wilderness Tavern to find Alice. At the time, the bartender only said that Alice had taken the lone wolf out on a mission without revealing too many details. Now it seems that the bartender's twinkling eyes at that time were indeed suspicious.

"Normally, we at Thorn Rose originally had 85 strongholds throughout the Empire. I don't think everyone knows the exact location of all the strongholds. I don't think traitors have a low place among the Thorn Roses. Ace guessed.

Alice smiled bitterly, "Yes, I never thought he would betray our Thorn Rose!" ”

"Who is the traitor?" Ace asked coldly.

Alice was silent for a long time. He seemed to be adjusting his emotions and then said, "His name is Nava-Keelung." He joined us when our Thorn Rose was first formed. I trusted him a lot, but I didn't expect him to become a hidden pawn buried by the nobles of the Empire in our Thorn Rose. ”

At this time, Alice's eyes seemed to be in a daze, as if recalling something: "More than ten years ago, after the Battle of the Dragon Slayer, the empire was severely damaged by military power, mainly because the noble realm could not be well managed, and the entire empire fell into chaos. As long as any nobleman has more mercenaries, he can have great power and even expand outward. “

"In this case, the empire naturally wants to intervene in management, but is unable to do so. At that time, the Dragon Slayer had just ended, and the power of the Imperial army was severely damaged. Even if you want to manage, you don't have the ability, after all, you can't disperse your forces to suppress it. ”

"By chance, I met Nava Keelung, who was chased and killed by mercenaries. It rained heavily that day. He was exhausted and shivering in the damp bushes. A team of mercenaries chased him to the nearby area and is carefully searching for his whereabouts. ”

"I think he's really pathetic. When I thought that our Thorn Rose had just been established, and we were in need of manpower, I pulled him on my horse and led him away from the pursuit. ”

"And just like that, I brought him back to the Imperial Capital and joined the Thorn Rose. He worked hard, made rapid progress, and soon became the central figure of our early Thorn Rose. Later, as our Thorn Rose expanded throughout the empire, there were more and more strongholds. In order to facilitate management, he took the initiative to leave Thornrose to go to the imperial capital, and then to the outlying strongholds. ”

"At the time, I had a high opinion of his abilities, so I trusted him to manage all the outlying strongholds. Over the years, he has not let me down. Our Thorn Rose is growing in size and covering every corner of the Empire. ”

Alice's eyes couldn't help but moisten at this time: "I really think of him as my partner, but he chose to betray me and Thorn Rose. So far, I can't believe it's true. ”

Ace finally understood why the traitor had so much information about Thorn Rose. It turns out that he is the second-in-command of the Thorn Rose.

After a long time, Ace asked, "What are you going to do next?" ”

Alice smiled wryly and shook her head: "To be honest, I don't know what to do. Now, apart from the Wilderness Tavern, I'm having a hard time rescuing the other brothers in the Imperial Dungeon. For now, I can only protect myself for the time being. Thornrose had an accident. We didn't want to make a public announcement, so we had to temporarily close the tavern and couldn't function properly. ”

After that, Alice hugged the back of her head in pain and pressed her head very low. He didn't seem to want Ace to see his embarrassment and helplessness.

"At the moment, are there any clues? Is it the whereabouts of Nava-Keelung, or is it information from other forces behind the scenes? Ace knows very well that this incident involves a wide range of issues, and it cannot be caused by Keelung alone. After all, the local guard has been warned that there must be some support from power.

Alice shook her head slightly: "After the accident, I tried to contact Keelung many times, but I found that he was missing. However, when I went to the last stronghold, some members of Thorn Rose said that they had seen Keelung before the accident and saw him with the Imperial Guard. ”

Seeing Alice's face hurt, he didn't know what to do next, so Ace didn't ask anymore.

He helped Alice get out of the car slowly and said, "You have a good rest." This is the matter of the Thorn Rose. You can make a plan until you've healed completely! ”

After that, Ace walked out of the room. Just as he was about to walk out the door, Ace stopped, turned his head and said, "After your injuries heal, you should get back together as soon as possible." After all, we still have a lot of buddies waiting for our salvation! ”

Ace squeaked the door shut and walked down the stairs.

Lone Wolf looked at Ace and didn't say anything, but his expression was very painful.

Ace walked up to him, returned the purple dagger to him, and said, "Now, you need it more than I do." Oh, thank you so much for the gift. I killed a level 6 flame mage with him. Without this dagger, I probably wouldn't be here today. ”

The lone wolf hesitated, then picked up the dagger.

When Ace left the Wilderness Tavern, he left only one sentence: "Take good care of Alice, Thorn Rose hasn't disbanded yet!" Give me six years, and I'll make the Thorn Rose rise again! ”

With that, Ace walked out of the Wilderness Tavern without looking back.

Looking at Ace's distant back, the lone wolf always felt very familiar, and always felt that he had seen him somewhere.

Suddenly, the lone wolf's eyes shone brightly. He knew that this was Alice's motivation to build the Thorn Rose. At that moment, the lone wolf seemed to see hope for the future.

"Brothers, don't keep sinking. The Thorn Rose hasn't disbanded yet! After closing the door to the bar, the lone wolf turned around and shouted to his brothers in the bar.

On the way back to the blacksmith's shop, Ace felt heavy.

This time, the Thorn Rose suffers a catastrophe that must have involved the big men of the Empire, who are likely military figures. It was impossible for ordinary nobles to mobilize local guards.

Ace will soon follow the Imperial army to the Vein of the Warcraft Mountains. This trip will not only improve his strength in battle, but also secretly investigate who attacked Thorn Rose. As for his father's baronization, he will wait until later to investigate slowly.

Along the way, many people recognize the young hero, who has been on the rise recently, but when they see Ace's cold eyes, they all give up on the idea of greeting him.

When he returned to Stark's blacksmith's forge, he found Alexander arguing with Stark. Neither of them would budge. Stark's beard was about to fly into the sky.

Alexander was still arguing with Stark, but when he saw Ace's expression of wanting to kill, he immediately closed his mouth in understanding. During his time with Ace, he basically learns about Ace's personality and knows that when he is in a bad mood, he can't be provoked.

Stark also noticed that something was wrong with Ace, but he just frowned and didn't ask.

Ace took out the core of the earth from the mysterious forest: "Teacher, the core of the earth should be enough to make a few good magic staffs." With my current level of blacksmithing, can I do it? ”

Stark picked up the core of the earth and looked at it carefully in front of him for a moment. "It's really the core of the earth, and it's of good quality. Can be used to make at least an intermediate magic wand. If the level of the smith is high enough, it can also be made into a high-level magic staff. ”

Ace said, "At my current level, I think I can only make an intermediate magic wand at most, and this will take at least three or four days. However, I have to leave the imperial capital early tomorrow morning, so it must be too late. So, I need to ask the teacher to make me a high-level magic wand. Can it be done tomorrow morning? ”

Alexander's eyes widened: "Do you want Stark to make you a high-grade wand all night?" You are crazy! ”

Before Ace could speak, Stark shouted angrily, "Shut up! ”

Alexander didn't dare to continue mistreating now. Now it's between Ace and Stark's apprentices. As an outsider, it's really not appropriate for him to talk much right now.

Stark frowned and said to Ace solemnly, "Ace, if you want to make a high-level wand from the core of the earth, you'd better have a high-grade dark magic stone. If you set a low-level or mid-level magic stone on a high-level wand, it would be a waste. ”

Ace said, "That said, does the teacher have the ability to help me build a high-level magic wand overnight?" ”

Stark's gaze was firm and he nodded, "No problem!" ”

Alexander's face was full of suspicion. A blacksmith who can forge a high-level magic wand overnight? What level of forging is that! Alexander certainly didn't know that Ari Stark was a well-known blacksmith in the New Delhi Empire.

"That's good. You don't have to worry about high-grade dark magic stones. I'll go to Black City and get it. Ace said.

Stark knew very well that a five-series attribute high-grade magic stone would require at least tens of thousands of gold coins, not to mention the extremely rare high-grade dark magic stone? Black City? Not necessarily.

Ace was about to go out again, and Alexander hurried after him. This time, Ace didn't stop him. Leaving Alexander here will only cause trouble for the teacher. So it's best to let him follow him to the Black City to see the world.

With that, Ace left the blacksmith with Alexander, leaving Stark alone to contemplate over a large chunk of the Earth's core.

"Ace, isn't there a lot of gold coins in the old fox's memory card? Otherwise, how can you afford a high-grade Dark Magic Stone? On the way, Alexander asked curiously.

In this regard, Ace did not respond positively: "In any case, there should be no problem in buying high-grade dark magic stones. ”

"Hmph, I know you've made a lot of money this time. There's definitely a lot of gold in the card! Alexander muttered to himself, "I don't care. I'll go to Black City later. If I like good things, you must buy them for me! ”

Ace glanced at him and said, "Aren't you ashamed of yourself?" A man who carries a few high-grade Holy Light Philosopher's Stones with him actually wants to blackmail us civilians? ”

They quarreled and soon returned to the Black City.

"Oh, Brother Ace, how did you get back? Missed your sisters? "A group of pompous women began to flirt desperately again.

"Oh, this time I also brought a white and tender sister. Come and play with my sisters! ”

When the women said this, they turned at Ace and her.

Alexander had never seen so many bewitching women, and he immediately hid behind Ace.

"Hey, yo, you're so shy. You must have never tasted a woman. Cluck, cluck, the sisters liked it more. ”

Alexander hurriedly grabbed Ace and walked towards an alley.

After entering the alley, Alexander patted his chest and said, "Wow, the Black City is extraordinary. Why are there so many strange people? It's okay to wear so few clothes on such a cold day. They had to come out one by one. Really ......"

Ace looked at him quietly, his eyes a little pensive: "As a nobleman, have you never seen a woman?" ”

Alexandron straightened his chest: "How, how is it possible?" I was surrounded by a lot of women since I was a child. How could I have never seen them......" Finally, his voice was barely audible, apparently out of weakness.

Ace didn't laugh at him.

After some investigation, they soon learned the location of the merchants of the Black City.

It's a very humble store. There was an iron bucket full of firewood at the door. The flames burned. Two rows of cut bacon hang on top. It is estimated that the owner is preparing to eat.

The store is small from the outside. If there was no one to show the way, who would have thought that such a small shop would actually run a black city business?

When they reached the door, a big man stopped them.

"Little ones, are you here to buy something? What do you want? If you want something ordinary, go to another place to buy it. We don't have it here! The man's hoarse voice was uncomfortable.

In the face of such a strong attitude, Ace did not flinch and said calmly: "Don't worry, what I want is not simple. Maybe you don't have it here. ”

"Oh, this little guy is not young, and his tone is not small! I can assure you that there is no item here that we can't buy! The man's face was full of confidence.

Ace smiled, then asked in a low voice, "Do you have a dark philosopher's stone?" ”

The strong man was visibly stunned, and then his expression changed greatly. He lowered his voice and said, "I really don't know if I have what you want here. I'll have to go in and ask. Do you want it today? ”

Ace shook his head. "It doesn't matter. Even if you don't have one here, that's okay! ”

Alexandron was stunned. What does that mean? They will leave the imperial capital tomorrow. Master Stark is already crafting a high-level wand. If they can't buy a high-grade magic stone today, isn't that wand useless?

The big man pondered for a moment, then said, "Then you can go and ask our boss first, and then determine if you need this item." ”

Ace could also understand the big man's hesitation. After all, not everyone has access to the Black City. This man has lived in the Black City for many years. He'd seen so many people of all kinds. Some people look smart on the surface and look like big fish, but in fact, they can't even afford to buy a fart when they enter the Black City. Accustomed to such people, the businessman became more and more cautious.

However, what Ace needed this time was not simple. This is a dark philosopher's stone that is completely banned by the Empire. How could ordinary people need such a rare thing? After careful consideration, the big man decided to let Ace and Alexander in.

As soon as he walked into the room, a musty smell came out of his nostrils, and Ace immediately felt a little crowded. In the not spacious room, there are all sorts of things, and the walls are covered with the bones and skins of various animals. In the room, which was not spacious, there was also a large old wooden table with stuff piled up on it. The corners of the room were also full of clutter.

This is completely different from the black city that Ace imagined.

But I heard the big man say, "After passing through that door, you can enter the Black City!" The big man pointed to a small door a few steps away.

There was a small unknown door in front of him, and the path behind him was completely blocked by the big man. Alexander couldn't help but grab the corner of Ace's clothes.

Ace's previous vision was suddenly lowered by this guy. Luckily, he turned his back to the big man and went unnoticed.

The reason why Ace pretended not to care was to pretend that it was not the first time he had come to Black City, and he didn't want to be regarded as a novice by the other party.

You know, the black city is too deep. If you act like a newcomer, the other person may kill you.

But now, Alexander is now acting too nervous, which makes Ace anxious. I'm afraid that the other party will see through his disguise.

Ace grabbed Alexander, hurried to the door, and opened the small door.

As soon as Ace entered the door, he felt that the door suddenly lit up. There is only a flight of stairs leading down before the meeting. At the lower entrance of the staircase, a long street stretches outward. From there, there are at least two or three hundred meters. The streets are lined with stalls and shops of various sizes.

Looking up, one can see that there is a dome made of countless stained glass. Under the dome there are huge chandeliers every ten meters.

At this time, the sky is pitch black, and the light is reflected on the stained glass, making this mysterious place even more strange.

Ace looks as calm as an old dog, but his inner world has set off turbulent waves. It turned out that the black city was hidden underground, which surprised him.

Ace slowly brought Alexander underneath. The shopkeepers around him cast different glances, including scrutiny, caution, vigilance, and ridicule, but they were not as friendly and flattering as ordinary merchants.

Feeling that there were so many bad eyes around him, Alexander's heart, which had been a little nervous, suddenly became even more nervous.

Ace frowned and whispered, "Can you be so timid?" As a nobleman of the Yama Empire, how can you be so timid? ”

Under Ace's encouragement, Alexander, who was originally timid, immediately straightened his back, his eyes changed, and he walked like a big boss in the black city, inspecting his own industry.

Ace followed closely behind, and when he saw this, he couldn't help but laugh. The guy was almost speechless.

They walked down the underground street for a few minutes and were surrounded by several shirtless men.

"What do you two little things want to buy?"

"This is the Black City. The price of things is naturally high. Do you have that much money? ”

"Is Ludo crazy then? How dare he put these two hairless little things in there? ”

For a moment, laughter rang out all around.

Alexander was at the forefront with great prestige. Now, in the face of so many murderous people, he quickly revealed his true form and immediately returned to Ace.

After all, this is not the Yama Empire. No matter how high his status in his empire was, he could only admit that he had come to the New Delhi Empire. After all, this is not his territory, let alone the Black City in the capital of the Empire. The people on the Black City are usually very cunning and treacherous. If they are not careful, they may be eaten by the other party, and there will not even be any bones left.

Just as everyone was laughing at them, a loud voice came: "Okay, that's enough." Let's go. I'm sure that since Narudo chose to let them in, he must have had his own reasons. ”

They all turned to look in the direction of the sound, but saw a tall, middle-aged man standing there.

The man is tall, estimated to be around two meters. His body felt very strong and dark, and his rough muscular lines accentuated by the ever-changing and flickering lights.

He has a square face, a high forehead, and a short hair as an inch. The eyes are deep and give a feeling that is difficult to guess.

After the man spoke, the originally noisy black city suddenly fell silent.

The man walked slowly towards Ace, looked at Ace and said, "My name is Raya Noah. Come here, what do you need? ”

Obviously, this person has a high status in the Black City, and may even be the boss of the Black City.

After a while, Ace said, "You don't necessarily have what I want. ”