Alves wore no armor, his upper body was wrapped in a bearskin cape, which was made of bursa and cotton, and he rode a naturally short mare, just tall enough for him to ride and jump to the ground. It looks like a child riding a pony. However, no one dared to laugh at him, he was now the head of Blackhammer Castle, and in addition to finances, Rhodes handed over almost all the big and small things of Blackhammer Castle to him. It is equivalent to the lord's right and left hand.

The team that sent to Dulong City was neither large nor small, it consisted of seventy-five soldiers and two affairs officers. Bogur, the butcher, led the way as a guide through the snowy land. On this trip, although he was in the team of Fort Black Hammer, Bogur joined the team more as a close friend of Rod. In Dulong City, he had almost no friends, not because he couldn't be a man, but because the disaster at the beginning made him lose all his friends, and since then, he has cut off contact with Dulong City and become a butcher.

The other officer who went north with Alves to Dulong City was Celta. As Bogul's comrade-in-arms and mouth cannon, the combination of the two can be described as a pair of living treasures. I don't know if Rod arranged it on purpose, or if there was no one left to take over the task. In short, the more the two people who love to quarrel, the more Rod arranges for them to travel together.

Alves wondered if there really was no one left. Diego seems to be doing some special work to help Rod rid the hidden chaos forces of Blackhammer, while Yeskovich is busy teaching the faithful and training Ersun warriors. Caroline was busy with official business in Heidelberg and had no time to separate. It seems that only this short man of about the same height as himself is free, and even Celta forcibly pulled away and went north together, and he and Virgil were in charge of the very difficult Noscan immigrants in the territory. Pull him out, and Virgil is once again the only one left in the territory.

What does Virgil say? There is force, and loyalty can be absolutely assured, following Rhodes for more than ten years, the ancestors swore allegiance to the Laune family, and there is nothing to doubt. It's just that chivalry is too heavy, it is difficult to be flexible and flexible, and there is still a slight lack of management.

Alves thought it would take a long time to achieve the synergy and talent of the various departments in the Ruder Finn plan.

As the group moved, the chain mail and leather armor clanged. This is considered very good equipment in the north, and throughout the entire north, the only ones who can really equip the plate armor are the soldiers of the watch fort.

In the ice and snow, Alves saw the gate of Dulong City, and the shock was self-evident, like a hollowed-out mountain, standing in front of him. It is really puzzling that the dwarf is only a little taller, but to build such a huge city gate. In fact, Alves had only glimpsed the stories and history of Dulong City in ancient books. Now I am lucky to have witnessed this spectacular sight.

What puzzled Alves was that it was clear that Black Hammer Fort and Dulong City were not far away, only about half a month away, but the climate was very different. Also in summer, Black Hammer Fort has plenty of rain and moderate temperatures, but here, it looks like a cold and snowy place. It seems that out of the Black Forest, the climate begins to change. Before leaving, Rhodes persuaded himself to wear more and give him his exclusive manticore cloak, but he refused. Although I knew that the temperature had plummeted out of the Great Wall, I didn't expect it to plummet to this extent. It seems that there are still many things in the world that he doesn't know, and Alves has to sigh so much.

Sogard, the lord of Dulong City, received Alves on the day he arrived. This came as a surprise to Alves, who had thought he would have to spend the night in a dimly lit dwarven bunker to meet the High Lord. Even, the worst plan is not even seen by the lord himself.

But the truth is the opposite, as soon as the dwarves heard that it was the people from Blackhammer Castle who came, they immediately received them with the highest standard.

The guards lined up in two columns to welcome Alves into the main hall to meet the lord himself. Even though Alves had made countless imaginations before, he would never have imagined that the main road to enter the Lord Hall of Dulong City was actually paved with silver...... This is in Kislev, and you can buy a castle.

Upon entering the main hall, the ceiling decorated with sapphires shines with a mesmerizing light, which is breathtakingly beautiful. The wealth of the city is truly unrivaled...... Alves was thinking that Rhodes didn't know if he was in the same mood as himself when he first came here, and was deeply shocked by the scene in front of him.

"Your Excellency Alves Antonio, welcome. Hahaha......"

Before Alves could speak, Lord Sogard burst out laughing to himself. His face was resolute and resolute, he was dressed in heavy jeweled armor, his white beard was scattered to his waist, and his eyes were blazing.

"Honorable Lord Sogard......"

Alves was about to introduce himself, when he was directly interrupted by Sogard-

"I know what you're doing here, didn't you already tell my men? Rhodes asked you to come and asked me for someone. Hahaha...... What about Rod? Why didn't he come himself?"

Sogard's cheerfulness made Alves a little uncomfortable for a while. Previously, in Kislev, he had always dealt with human nobles, and flattery on various occasions was very flattering, and talking to human nobles was as simple as eating and drinking. So, suddenly dealing with straightforward dwarves, I couldn't adapt to it for a while.

"He's in Blackhammer Castle, and he's got something to do. Lord Lord......"

"Call me Sogard. ”

"Yes, Lord Sogard. ”

There was a look of displeasure on the dwarf's face, but it quickly dissipated beyond his eyebrows. Sogard stepped straight down from the throne.

"I heard about Rod's story, and he really wasn't easy. You're with the right people, even if I haven't been on that battlefield, but I know that saving an army with one person is not something ordinary people can do. It requires both force and courage. We dwarves have the greatest respect for warriors, and those who keep their promises. Your lord is such a man. ”

Sogard said, placing a hand on Alves' shoulder. Doesn't seem to care at all about the fact that he's a dwarf.

"In the past two years, Black Hammer Fort has transported countless ice peppers to Dulong City, healing how many of my compatriots. Moreover, the price that Rhodes gave us was very generous. There has never been a shoddy situation, I remember it all. I remember it clearly. ”

Putting Alves on his shoulder, Sogard continued.

"I will prepare the technicians and techniques he wants, and I will let people prepare them at the market price. In the meantime, all you have to do is eat and drink in the castle. Try our dwarven-brewed bar, it's definitely a taste you'll never forget. ”

Sogard's enthusiasm left Alves confused...... It wasn't until the end of the meeting that Bogur told Alves the reason in private - the dwarves value integrity the most, and in the two years since the establishment of diplomatic relations with Dulong City, Rhodes has not owed Dulong City a cent of goods and payments. Rhodes once saved an entire dwarven caravan in Dulong City, and Ice Pepper cured many dwarves of their diseases. That's why Sogard attaches so much importance to it.

It's not that the trade volume between Black Hammer Fort and Dulong City is very large, in fact, with the size of Black Hammer Fort, it accounts for only a drop in the proportion of the annual trade volume of the entire Dulong City. But the dwarves never looked at the wealth of their trading partners, but on integrity and keeping promises. Even if you're a billionaire and don't keep your word in trade, the dwarves will blacklist you. If you are honest and kind to the dwarves, then they will naturally be very friendly and warm to you, and the dwarves are a race that will repay kindness and revenge......

After understanding this, Alves suddenly realized that it turned out that this journey, Rhodes didn't ask him much effort, all the foundations had already been laid, let him come, the biggest purpose is just to show his face, get familiar with his trading partners, and in the future, he will maintain the trade relationship with Dulong City, and continue this trade road.