"As for you asking me why I chose Scarlet ......," Eric replied thoughtfully. "Maybe it's some kind of intuition, I feel that she is different from other people, probably because her eyes are more resolute. Of course, choosing a girl is also less likely to attract attention from others......

"No...... It should be said that there seems to be some kind of firm belief in Scarlet's heart. She wants to do something, and she wants to do whatever it takes. "It's Neil who speaks this time. "You two don't look at me like that. Although it was only a one-time meeting, I was a little confident in observing girls. ”

That's the end of the topic. Neil poured Eric a glass of wine, who picked it up but didn't drink it.

"May I meet the Baron?" asked Eric suddenly. "He's not here?"

"It seems like every new person is going to ask for that. Neil spread his hands with an innocent expression, "Still, all I can say is I'm sorry." And he really wasn't here. ”

Eric groaned, but instead of continuing to ask, he silently drank his own wine.

"Can you tell me, then, how did you get so many strongholds in Istria?" asked Eric suddenly.

"It's actually quite simple, because it's hard for people here to survive under human rule. Nick replied. "So Baron Pinold became the last choice. They pledged allegiance to the baron, and the baron would protect them, at least not from the tax collectors and soldiers who would come to the villages. ”

"Then why are you following the Baron for?" said Eric's eyes were fixed on Neil. "And for the mystery of eternal life?"

"I'm for a little personal reason. Neil Ha laughed, blurring the subject.

"Who are the lords of Sivania?" Ashruphat asked Neil, frowning.

"A newly developed, vast, but less populated territory, with all sorts of strange and dangerous gadgets and unknown plagues...... Who do you think would be the people who would be sent to be lords in such a place? either nouveau riche or degraded! In fact, there are good people among the nouveau riche and the degraded nobles, but there are three bastards in this place!" Neil replied.

"Three bastards?" Ashrufat asked curiously.

"You must have heard of the Earl of Cassik of Meno. Neil replied. "It's just a mercenary, and because of chance and luck, he became a nobleman. That bastard gambled and lost a huge debt, and at the end of all, his people were unlucky...... The lord of Istria was named Tomizawa, and it is said that he was a merchant who became a lord by donating large sums of money to the country...... Where did so many prisoners come from in the excavation site? At least half of them were brought over by him from all over the country and sold to the church excavation site! I can think of it, since he has done all the things of human traffickers, what else can't be done? As for the lord of Via, it seems that his name is Hassel! Compared to the other two places, he is a little better, but only a little better. He seems to have been degraded, so the goal is to return to Tiberius, except for the back door of the relationship, he does not care about other duties at all, as long as there is a fixed tax in hand, he will let the rest go, let his subordinates do nonsense, and make a miasma. ”

"So!" Neil snorted coldly. "People here would rather seek refuge from vampires! At least, vampires will only drink one person's blood at a time!"

"No wonder Baron Pinod had little effort to organize his allegiance to him. In her mind, Carrie whispered. This is not because of Pinold's charisma, but because the gang is forced to defect to him. Now it seems that Pinold's gathering of these men was probably just a coincidence.

But even if it's accidental, this group of people is quite capable. If nothing else, at least the preparations for this escape were well done. Although the village is not large, there are many empty houses, and there is even a small barracks (although Ashrufat did not ask, but he guesses that this matter has something to do with the trafficker lord, or maybe it was originally a stopover to escort prisoners). All of this, plus a few tents, barely managed to accommodate the fugitives.

According to the experience of previous years, in early summer, that is, when the rainy season comes, it can rain for more than half a month. This year, however, things were a little different, and by the fourth day, the sky had a rare glimmer of clarity. However, this is not to say that the heavy rain ends here, but just a rare gap between the two heavy rains.

The spies have brought news from the excavation site these days, or there is no news at all. The gate may have been repaired, but the people of the church also knew that it was futile to search for it. So they simply didn't do anything, but the patrols on the city walls did increase, and some people did see patrols in the heavy rain.

The thing that has happened to Ashrufat these days is to stay in the village bored, waiting for the evacuation. During these days, Pinod's men and escaped prisoners were evacuating in orderly batches in the rain, and now there were not many people left in the village. Although Pinold's terms were generous, the results seemed quite good, and a large part of the population was willing to join the ranks of the rebellion.

It's rare that it hasn't rained today, so it's time for the rest to evacuate. Ashrufat sat in a small house on the edge of the village, bored thinking. He should be able to see Pinod when he returns, and he has thought about it repeatedly, and in fact, this is the only thing he has been able to do for the past two days.

Someone pushed the door open. Ashrufat noticed that a stranger had come in. However, there are a lot of strangers here, so Ashrufat doesn't pay much attention to it.

"Are you Ashrufat?" Although they were strangers, the other party did not look inhibited at all.

"It's me. What, we're leaving?"

"That's right, Master Cade wants to see you. The stranger said. "In the afternoon, the rest of the people here will disperse, and Lord Cade would like you to meet him at the mill by the river. There are some things he would like to talk to you about privately. ”

Cade Ashrufat immediately remembered the man who had once been a holy knight. To be honest, Ashrufat didn't have much of a good impression of him, and he didn't know why the other party wanted to know him privately.

"I'll go. He replied. The other party was very satisfied with this answer, so he immediately took his leave and left.

After a short while, another person came, this time Neil.

"Ashrufat, we're going to leave in the afternoon. All the rest are leaving. Neil didn't seem to know that Cayde was looking for him privately.

"Cayde doesn't seem to be in this village, is he?"

"He's in charge of the other way...... Why, why did you suddenly ask him?" I don't know why, obviously they are companions, but when it comes to Cade, a trace of vigilance flashes in Neil's eyes.

"May I ask where Cade came from?" Ashrufat asked, pretending to be very casual. He was keenly aware that Neil's vigilance was a little unusual, or rather excessive, and it looked like the three of them were ...... It doesn't seem to be a heart!

"I don't know. Neil replied. "You can come with me in the afternoon, and of course you can leave on your own. Anyway, we met at the same place where we last met. ”

"Mimilu!" Ashruphat called softly as Neil left. Mimilu slipped out of the ceiling of the cabin. Taking advantage of the opportunity that he couldn't move his nest in the rain these days, Mimilu had already found him. Not only Mimilu, but also the Nightmare Pony has made its way to the nearby woods.

"Master, what are you looking for Mimilu?" Mimilu asked.

"That guy just now...... It's not Neil, it's the one earlier, help me follow him and see where he's gone. Although Ashrufat didn't feel that there was anything wrong with his safety, he didn't want to get involved in a power struggle and become an awkward character. Before meeting Pinold for the first time, it would be better for him to completely disconnect from the rest of the people.

Mimilu jumped out of the open window and was gone.

"That's interesting, master. Carrie whispered in her head. "It looks like maybe we don't need to rush to Pinod. ”

"Oh, for what?"

"To form an alliance with Pinold, it may not be enough to show goodwill. It would be better if it could be a threat, as they often say, 'carrots and sticks'. This thing seems to be an opportunity to cut in. ”

"Carrie," Ashrufat whispered in his mind, "sometimes I wonder why I came to Pinod?"

"Because he's a man with whom you have common interests...... When it comes to companions, there is nothing more reliable than companions who have common interests. You can help him gain power, and he can support you in times of crisis in the future. With his help, you will be much more secure in this worldly realm. ”

"Do I really need all this security, as long as I can guarantee that my identity is not discovered...... I remember you said in the past that I could be a merchant or a landlord in a remote area......"

"What you need. Carrie replied. "Well, although the probability is very small, even if your true identity is not revealed, you are still in danger. Maybe your property is coveted by someone, maybe your prestige is envied by someone, or maybe your woman is favored by someone else...... In short, maybe an order from someone in power will have an army surround you when you are not looking, or you will fall into a trap...... This is something that is likely to happen in the future. Even with your abilities, this situation is extremely dangerous. The best way to deal with this danger is to have power!"

"Besides, don't you think it's nice that there is an existence in the world world that can get along with you on an equal footing and communicate with each other? Carrie further added.

"Master!" Mimilu jumped in from outside, interrupting Ashrufat's train of thought. "I came back, he went to the mill by the river, and then he was there. ”

"The mill? Is there anyone else over there?"

"There's another person, just two people. There was no one else, and Mimilu looked around carefully. ”

It really looked like it was just a private meeting. Indeed, you should go and see him and see what kind of medicine he sells in the gourd.

It was the afternoon, and the sky was once again cloudy. The short gap is over, and another heavy rain will visit the area before nightfall.

Ashrufat rode on the Nightmare Horse, and the Mill of which the messenger spoke was not far ahead.