If you had to put one word on your first impression of the fortress of Vavasika, then "white" would be the best choice.

Built 170 years ago and funded by the West Waliers to resist the infestation of the Loans on the other side of the Grigley Rift Valley, the castle is based on the large amount of easily shaped limestone produced in the Tambur Mountains, as is the case with any other castle.

Although it expanded the castle over the course of more than a century to include a watchtower, watchtower, and a series of other buildings, the romanticism of the Kingdom of Knights never left the city, as the name imbues with the Sivalier flair of the friendship between the two countries.

The designer's ingenious small-angled slope not only increases the castle's ability to resist the threat of nearby landslides, but also makes the castle's polished façade reflect the light when exposed to sunlight.

Set against the backdrop of mountains and deep blue forests, the holy white castle resembles the light of the palm of the god's hand, hence the name Vavasika - meaning great white.

But even with such a glittering name and appearance, the fortress itself is not easy to find.

The kingdom of Avenella is located in a protruding part of the middle of the Tambur Mountains, and compared to other countries on the west coast, it faces the mountains and is very close to the coastline.

While this gives it the advantage of making it easier to climb mountains to find all kinds of rare monsters and minerals that other countries don't have, it also makes it difficult to access a city like Vavasika deep into the mountains.

Henry and his party stopped.

It's hard to find a castle hidden in the middle of a rough road, it's not hard to say it's not difficult because you just need to know the direction and go straight ahead, but it's hard because you walk and find that there is no road ahead, or you go around and go back to the same place.

But no matter what, the dusty crowd finally reached their destination along the way.

The weather-beaten white castle sparkled in the morning sun, and Henry looked at it, then looked down at Loan Lori, who had hair of the same color in his arms.

Mira was keenly aware of the sage's aura, and she raised her little face, a hint of doubt in her bright blue eyes.

"Nothing, just remembering something," Henry said with a smile, the castle was originally built to keep the Roans at bay, but it was through this place that millions of exiled people fled to the West Coast when the Loans died 20 years ago.

Feng Shui rotates, and there is almost nothing in the world that can remain the same forever.

"Go—" Henry flicked the reins and drove his horse forward, following Bernie in front.

As the group approached, the already dazzling Vavasika became more dazzling as it approached, and when it was close enough to see the mountain lion emblem of the royal family of Avenella on the door frame of the gate, it returned to its original color, revealing the gray-white surface that had accumulated a heavy layer of color in the years of mountain rain.

The huge city was not inhabited by many civilians because it was a border fortress, and the rough roads and the sparse pedestrians made Henry's arrival so conspicuous that the sentries on the city walls noticed the group early, and unexpectedly and unexpectedly, after getting close to a certain distance, they sent a whole cavalry to meet the crowd.

This would have been a bit of a fuss on a normal day, but Henry's eyes were half-narrowed, and he thought of some possibilities.

The two who were left behind because of a slight pause looked at the cavalry team and Bernie in front of them, and after a few words, Bernie took something out of his arms, and the other party immediately let down his vigilance, and then nodded and let the group go.

'As expected,' thought Henry with a slight smile, a group of heavily armed and bloodstained mercenaries in a military town like Vavasika would inevitably be interrogated even if they were to enter the city on a normal day, but the sage never worried about this because he had already deduced Bernie's identity.

No matter what Arvenella's soldiers said, they would not stop their own family.

The blonde leader nodded and led the group back on, while the small group of cavalry stayed where they were and waited for the group to pass before following back to the city.

The gray-haired Mira more or less attracted the attention of the cavalry, but there were also a small number of Loans in Vavasika, so their eyes did not linger long.

The sound of the horses' hooves falling from soft earth to hard stone slabs made a crisp sound, and the first impression of Henry and Mira as they entered Vawasika was that the whole city was very dull.

The white-haired Lori looked around nervously and curiously, the streets were full of heavily armed soldiers, and the doors and windows of some houses that seemed to be used for civilians were tightly closed, judging from the dust on the stone walls of the houses on both sides of the road, it might not be a matter of one or two days.

Bands of soldiers ran from the front, and the squad slowed down. To the right of the gate, a line of Arvenella soldiers approached, and Henry noticed that the man at the head was wearing more ornate armor and intricately colored coats of arms - it was clearly a noble knight of Avenella.

Bernie dismounted, whispering something to the knight, who nodded his head and for a moment had a slightly excited look on his face.

Mira was still curious, and the rest of the team dismounted one by one. The two were still talking, and Henry also rolled over and got off the horse, and he reached out to help Mira, but the stubborn girl insisted on dismounting alone.

This made Henry smile slightly, and the white-haired girl responded with the same expression.

The warm and harmonious atmosphere was broken by the cold metal in the next moment, and the knight raised his long sword and pointed at the tall black-haired sage and the petite white-haired Lori, and shouted, "Guards, arrest them"

The sudden change froze Mira in place, but Henry's expression was as calm as ever.

"Father?!" Minna, with a strip of cloth wrapped around her head, said to Bernie in disbelief, heavily armored guards holding spears in a circle around the two.

"Hand over your weapons," the knight in the green burqa with ivy as the emblem said to the two of them with a serious face, and Henry shrugged his shoulders before unleashing his greatsword in cooperation.

"Listen to them," he patted Mira's little head lightly, and the white-haired girl reluctantly unslashed her dagger.

"Those daggers too" The two guards stepped forward to take their weapons, the knight spoke again, Henry shrugged again, and then untied the belt around his waist.

"Put your hands up, and don't try to resist," the knight shouted, and Bernie and Minna behind him argued before the blonde girl strode away in a huff.

The leader of the sturdy squad looked at Henry with a complicated look on his golden eyebrows, and after half a ring, he walked over and spoke after a moment's silence.

"I'm sorry, you know, it's my job. Bernie said this in a sincere tone, and Henry glanced at him, then shrugged his shoulders for the third time, "I'm sorry I just got distracted and wasn't listening, because I'm trying to forget that you were once my friend." ”

The sage's tone was calm with a hint of ridicule, and Bernie let out a long sigh and turned away.

The clash of metal and the sound of neat footsteps sounded regularly, and the two men were locked in a musty-smelling dungeon, escorted by a dozen heavily armed soldiers.

Even the walls of the empty cell showed a clammy and cold aura, and the stone floor covered with only a few dirty black rags and a pile of wheat straw made it impossible to sleep soundly. The stout wooden fence was tightly locked with iron locks, and Mira sat down on the ground in an instant with her feet limp.

"They...... Why do you want to do it?"

The white-haired Lori's eyes were distracted, and the crisp sound of her muttering echoed in the empty dungeon where only the two of them existed.

Henry sat down next to her, and the girl unconsciously turned her head to look at him.

"Why did they betray us...... "The childish and simple words welled up with tears the size of beans, and Henry wordlessly reached out and touched Mira's little head, and then slowly spoke.

"Because of me"

His words were simple and clear, and Mira was stunned, and then she reached out and wiped the corners of her eyes, the back of her hand, which had become dirty from a few days of traveling, had left a stain on her face from tears, making the girl look like a little cat.

"I'm too dangerous for them, and there's a possibility that their purpose will be exposed. They didn't want to gamble and try to trust me, so they chose a safe and absolutely controllable way. The sage talked about the reason for the betrayal as calmly as if he were analyzing it from the perspective of a third person, and as if infected by this calmness, Luo An Lori also stopped her sadness and looked at him seriously.

"What purpose...... Aren't we here to report on the invasion of the West Valiers?" asked Mira earnestly, her tendency to think about these questions made the corners of Henry's mouth curl slightly, after all, they had free time at the moment, and he wanted her to use it instead of crying.

"That's just one of them, my lovely Mira, and it's just a new decision made after meeting us with new information. ”

"Have you forgotten the first time we met them, when they were already targeted by the Sivaliers, and apparently had their own destination. Henry said this, and Mira listened attentively, she was not thinking much about it in a daze at the time, but now she remembered a lot of details when the sage mentioned it.

"And the knights and sergeants of West Valier a few days ago, if they were only to be sentinels to inquire about it, they could have denied us entry and better concealed their identities. ”

"But instead of doing that, they chose to bring us in. Henry said.

"It's possible that they felt we had to stop it because they felt we were going to Vavasika to report the news, but I personally prefer the second possibility," Mira listened intently to the sage's layers of dissection, and then began to learn this way of thinking in earnest in her heart.

"For the knights were not carrying real heavy armour, and because they were few in number, and there were no more Sivalier armies in ambush nearby. ”

"Even if they are all the elite of Sivaliers, it is because of this that they do not act recklessly. The fact that this man and his equipment had chosen to act decisively when confronted by a group of us who were heavily armed and not a small number of them was quite a testament to the importance of what Bernie had to the West Waliers. ”

"It's important that each of these elite warriors has been told Bernie what they look like, and will fight to the death to reclaim it. Henry held up a finger and spun it around.

“...... So, is it because of this 'important thing' that they betrayed us. Mira was silent for a moment, then said in a low tone, "What is so important that a man can betray his daughter's savior." ”

She didn't seem to understand, and Henry shrugged.

"The same thing may have caused the loss of hundreds of lives throughout the war and up to now, don't you think?" said the dark-haired sage in a relaxed tone, and Mira raised her face again, her surprise unmistakable.

"Clues can be strung together, as long as you pay careful attention to them. Henry smiled and said to Mira.

"Why Bernie and the others took Minna and Lysa with them, you can see a little clue from the fact that the clothes they were wearing were obviously not suitable for walking in the wilderness. He said.

"If we consider the fact that they knew nothing about the attack on the caravan, it follows that Bernie's party was pursued by the West Waliers, and the West Waliers attacked and occupied Fort Ellen and blockaded the surrounding area. ”

"And in connection with the recent public statements made by King Ahirbon II of Avenella, all of these clues point to an object. Henry cocked up the index finger of his right hand, "An item important enough to start a war and recapture." ”

"The original text of the charter of the Kingdom of Sivalier. The black-haired sage said, but this unfamiliar term only confused the white-haired big Lori.

"What's that?" she asked, and Henry smiled.

"That's proof of qualification as a king, little one. In order to maintain the purity of the blood of the nobility and the royal family, every newborn noble child was recorded in the genealogy, and the charter of the Kingdom of Sivalier, as the foundation of the kingdom, clearly marked the orthodox royal family of the kingdom today. ”

"As we know, the royal family of Avenella and Sivalier have a kinship that is still in turmoil, so there is no need to explain the reason why Ahibon II, who claimed that the throne of Sivalier also belonged to him, wanted to get a charter. ”

"......" Mira nodded, and Henry continued.

"Bernie took the women with them in order to infiltrate West Valier and steal the charter in order to disguise themselves as ordinary travelers. It's easy to be suspicious if you're only a team of men, but if there are more than one woman, it's natural to think it's just a big family. ”

"As soon as the original text of the charter fell into the hands of Avenella, Ahibon II had a legitimate reason to claim the throne of Sivalier. Regardless of the reaction of King Philip II of West Valier, a bloody political upheaval is inevitable between the two countries. Henry said, and Mira nodded and continued—she was at all shy and calm as an eleven-year-old girl.

"So they chose to strike first" The girl sighed after speaking, and then looked at Henry deeply with complicated eyes: "I finally know why they chose to betray us, you know so much, teacher, just such a few inconspicuous news can deduce so many things, no wonder they think you are dangerous." ”

Mira's salutation made Henry smile slightly, and then he tilted his head: "But isn't this danger what you yearn for, to be a man with a lot of knowledge." ”

He said, and the girl glanced at the sage with disdain again, "I'll have to live before then." ”

She said, and Henry shrugged again.

"There's nothing to worry about, it's not over yet. ”

He said this, and the great confidence contained in the calm words calmed the restless heart of the white-haired Lo Anda Lori, and she looked seriously at Henry, who was sitting on the ground with a big grin, and was silent.