"You don't have to think about it so much. Carrie replied. "It's too early to think about that, at least half of the time. Hey, master, anyway, through Cayde, we can meet Pinold. If CaedaLand hadn't lied to us, then we'll know if Pinod really existed at all. But whether Pinod exists or not, I suggest you consider my previous proposal. ”

Ashrufat did not answer, but silently continued on his way.

"Master," Mimilu suddenly pulled Ashrufat's clothes from behind. "That wolf just now...... That kind of monster, it's really kind of scary. Mimilu doesn't like this kind of thing. ”

"They're just puppets. Ashrufat touched Mimilu's head and comforted her. "It's just being manipulated by the dark arts. Just like the swords themselves, they are not to be feared, but the people who drive them are the ones who really need to be feared. ”

"Mimilu still doesn't like this kind of thing. Mimilu shook her head. "Is that what the dark arts are? I thought they were all like this horse. ”

"This nightmare horse is specially treated. Ashrufat replied. "None of them stench of corpses, and they don't tell it's not a normal living thing. This effect can be achieved with careful treatment, but most of the time, there is no time for such careful processing. Ashrufat still remembers the process of making the Nightmare Horse, and it took half a day to deal with it, even if it was well prepared and all kinds of items were complete. Even the horse's eyes were put back to make it look very much like a living thing.

"That guy just now...... Hein, too, knows the dark arts, right?"

"Yes. Ashrufat replied. In this world, ordinary magicians have been widely rejected and hostile by people, let alone black magicians. They are called "necromancers" and are highly hostile. In this case, the cultivator of the dark arts had no choice but to stay away from the crowd and use the dark magic to gather an undead army to protect himself. However, this behavior further strengthens the hostility of ordinary people.

Of course, with the exception of the Dark Mage, the other mages are doing well. The church has played a huge role in this. In fact, in a sense, the greatest significance of the church is to be a refuge for magicians (except for black magicians). When religion and magic were combined, the hostility of ordinary people to the magicians who possessed supernatural powers was greatly diluted. A high-ranking priest who is proficient in magic is not ostracized, but rather respected.

The Church has been working tirelessly in this regard. In addition to propaganda, they also held magic academies in various places, teaching students, and even many students with mediocre talents, in order to alleviate people's hostility towards magicians. As a consequence of this behavior, most of the magicians in this world were incorporated into the Church, and they in turn became a strong supporting force for the Church. No secular regime can turn against the Church as long as their armies still need the support of magic. During the previous Cold War between the Shem and the Church, and even without a public turnaround, the Mana of the Shem army was almost completely lost.

"But Mimilu heard in the city that black magicians are crazy. That's what the people in the city say. Mimilu asked again. "But this Hein doesn't look crazy at all. ”

Ashruphat smiled. In ordinary people's perceptions of black magicians, they are basically full of prejudice and hostility. It is a common belief that dark magicians learn the art of manipulating the dead in their quest for power and power, and eventually transform themselves into a terrifying form or live in an eternal curse. Regardless of the original intentions of the dark magicians, the magic of the dark arts will eventually inevitably distort their minds, that is, when a person begins to learn the dark arts, then he is not far from madness.

"Mimilu, not many people agree, that's how things are. Ashrufat replied. "You see, aren't I also an evil, crazy, bloodthirsty and selfish vampire in the mouth of an ordinary person?"

"That's right......" Mimilu replied. Suddenly, she seemed to remember something. "Master, can you play the piano for Mimilu to listen to? ”

"Is the journey boring?" said Ashrufat, who did not refuse. He pulled the silver wings out of his saddlebag. After Carrie's fruitful teaching, although he is not yet a master of the piano, he has no problem playing. Ashrufat's fingers brushed over the strings, and the music sounded melodiously.

......

Summer in the south has arrived, and the weather is getting hotter by the day. At this time, the rainy season was over, and the noon sky was blazing, and even Mimilu was lying motionless on horseback. Because of the constant drinking water, Mimilu's hair is wet.

"Master, it's too hot...... "Although Mimilu has a very good physique, it seems that she can't bear it at the moment. The current situation is that even if Mimilu does nothing and lies on the back of the horse and sticks out her tongue, the sweat still keeps pouring out. Ashrufat's cloak (i.e., the loot he received from Karl) was invulnerable, but it was very ineffective in shading the sun, and it was basically unable to block the light of the poisonous sun.

"Hold on, Mimilu. We went to the city and bought an umbrella to cover the sun. Ashrufat encouraged. His words were not pure consolation, for Istria was already in sight by this time.

Due to its proximity to the city, the roads here have become very different and have become decent, and it is clear that they have been well maintained. The sides of the road are no longer as desolate as they used to be, and farmland and villages are now visible. At the same time, Ashrufat was no longer alone on the road, but there were carriages, riders and pedestrians.

Ashrufat didn't want to delay here, but wanted to get back to Meno as soon as possible, the base where the rebels gathered. But the scorching sun made him feel a little uncomfortable as well. I didn't sweat, but I felt a burning sensation on my skin.

It should be a good idea to buy an umbrella or a sunshade cape for travel.

Istria looks okay on the outside, not as blatantly ostentatious as Mill City, but much more shabby than Meno. The whole city is decent, and there are no obvious shortcomings in terms of character. In terms of size and management, it is one of the best of the three cities in West Vania. The local lord's name was Tomizawa, and he was a merchant nobleman. Although there are many rumors that this lord has a bad record of human trafficking, he is clearly superior to the other two lords of West Vania in terms of the construction and management of the city. Perhaps because of his background, he paid great attention to the development of commerce, not to mention the city, there is a large trading market on the outskirts of the city.

It took little effort for Ashrufat to find a stall selling travel goods in the market. The owner of the shop, a middle-aged man with the appearance of a profiteer, saw that Ishrufat was interested in his goods, his eyes lit up, and he did his best to sell Ashrufat a special umbrella that could be attached to the saddle, saying that it was "to give shade to both people and horses from the rain". However, it must be said that although this umbrella has a peculiar shape and beautiful appearance, it is obviously unable to withstand the wind. As long as the horse gallops fast, the umbrella has to fall apart. So Ashrufat chose to buy a sunshade cloak suitable for children.

"That's it. Ashrufat picked up his cloak and took a silver coin from his wallet and handed it to the merchant. The merchant was reluctant and frustrated that he had not been able to sell his special umbrella.

At this time, someone patted Ashrufat on the back.

Ashrufat almost subconsciously wanted to draw his sword—the long sword from Rolle was given to Scarlet, and he bought another sword—but his movements stopped before he could see who it was.

Behind him was Dr. Oliveira, a university scholar who lived in Meno and a master of history and geography. In fact, Ashruphat had forgotten about Oliveira. He initially bought maps from the Doctor to make it easier to search for the rebels' locations, but then Mimilu solved the problem, so he never went to the Doctor.

"Young man, it's you. The Doctor greeted him happily. "We meet again. ”

"Ah, Doctor, I'm sorry, I haven't been able to go to you because of something......" Ashrufat suddenly remembered the original agreement, when he had promised to buy a map from Dr. Oliveira. "But ......"

"It's nothing, it's nothing. There was no dissatisfaction on the doctor's face, on the contrary, he grinned. Ashrufat immediately noticed that the Doctor was looking very good, and he was no longer in the same embarrassment as he had been when they had last met. In fact, Dr. Oliveira was now dressed in high-end silk clothes, with a pipe in his hand, and was full of the characteristic urbane air of a scholar, and there was no trace of poverty. "I just wanted to ask you, do you still want a map, and if you don't want it, I can give you the deposit back. ”

"Ah......" This time it was Ashrufat's turn to be surprised. It seems that this doctor doesn't know why Lu Dao made a fortune, otherwise he would definitely not be like this.

"Do you still want a map?" the doctor repeated as he took a leisurely puff of his pipe.

"Yes, of course. Ashrufat replied. Either way, it's always nice to have a detailed map, and maybe one day it will work. "But, Doctor, why did you leave Meno?"

There is a long way between Meno and Istria.

"It's not easy to talk here, go sit over there, let's talk about it. I'm in for a treat. Oliveira, who was visibly in a good mood, spuffed out a puff of cigarette and gestured to Ashrufaat to a small shop, or rather, an open-air tavern not far away.

The two of them quickly sat down at a table, and the waiter brought a chilled liqueur.

"Doctor, how are you ...... Now like this?" asked Ashrufat curiously.

"Half of it is thanks to you, young man. Oliveira took a sip with a smile on his face. "Remember the money you gave me that day? I paid the rent, paid the debt, and waited for you there for a month. Eventually, because of your delay, I chose to leave Meno and eventually found a reliable patron in Istria. ”

"Patron?"

"It's Count Tomizawa here, who, though he was a merchant, was very enthusiastic about academic research. He and one of his friends are now my patrons. Thanks to his generosity, I am planning to go to the north to finish compiling historical materials. In this way, my research here can be brought to a successful conclusion. Oliveira gestured to several wagons in the distance. "See, those are my cars, and I'm about to go. If you show up a little later, I'm afraid we won't see each other. ”

"Congratulations. Ashrufat congratulated sincerely.

"By the way, here's your map. The Doctor pulled out a scroll from his package and handed it to Ashrufat. The latter opened it and glanced at it slightly, and immediately took out the agreed five gold coins from his wallet and handed them over.

The conversation between the two seemed to be finished, and there was still more than half of the sweet wine in front of them. Oliveira looked around, trying to find a topic to continue discussing.

"Hey, young man, is that your coat of arms?" Oliveira gestured toward Nightmare Pony's body. Ashrufat realized that he was talking about his shield. The shield given to him by Thomas was always carried by him, although he rarely used it.

"Yes, this is my Blood Dragon Crest. Ashrufat replied.