"Are you trying to escape? mercenary...... Mr. Henry Mayer?" stood in front of the two men, and behind him stood a whole line of heavily armed Sivalier knights.

Alain stood diagonally behind the meaty Jazz with his arms crossed, and the playful look and smile on his face were palpable.

"The battle is over, please get out of the way. Henry did not use the honorific title at Jerémi, although he said "please", but his tone was very stiff.

The gray-blue pupils showed a sense of inorganic and dangerous like the stormy sky under the shadow of the long black eyelashes, and the corners of Gerémi's eyes twitched, and he looked directly into the eyes, which, though coarse in appearance, were not arrogant without common sense.

In the face of the aristocrats' stubbornness that they would not grovel, and in connection with the fact that this person had judged the tactical maneuver of the Luoan people before, he was indeed not a person to be underestimated.

- But.

So what?

Jeremy thought to himself.

The power possessed by the nobles can crush the commoners, no matter how much potential and ability this person has, he will not be his opponent.

"Huh—" He raised a hand and pulled away, and the knights and sergeants in plate armor behind him drew their weapons.

They surrounded Henry and Mira in a semicircle, and the mercenaries who were cleaning the battlefield on the periphery stopped to watch, but in front of the power of the nobility, no one dared to ask even a single question.

Ann covered her mouth with a worried expression, while Jeanne looked at Alain, who was standing next to Jerémi, with disdain.

"......" Henry did not speak.

He just stood silently, holding Mira in both hands, without even reaching for the greatsword.

This made the Sivalyers a little jealous, and the knights and sergeants watched the sage through the narrow gaps in the helmet and armor, and for a moment they hesitated to go up or not.

No one would stand up for them, more than thirty warriors in full plate armor were surrounded like this, and with their well-trained and well-equipped forces, even if they fought against more than a hundred mercenaries, it was naturally easy to deal with one person.

But even Jeremi's heart was a little hesitant.

He couldn't figure out the details of the tall green-card mercenary - Sir had met a lot of people, many of them who were very good at talking, and even nobles. In a peaceful day, the head is boastful, and when the battle is actually encountered, the saddle is wet (1).

When there is a crisis, there are people who are nervous, there are people who panic, and there are people who turn and run away.

He has seen a lot of people who are good-faced and vain, and who pretend to be calm and say things that they think are handsome in times of crisis—but this person is different.

He didn't brag about how strong he was, nor did he pull out his weapon and start wielding it to hide his inner tension.

He just stood there quietly, as if the group of people in front of him did not exist, as if these highly armed West Valier elites were not worth mentioning.

This is different from the arrogance of the ignorant, a calm look that Sir has only seen in the face of one man before.

"Proud ......" The words that were thinking in his heart were shouted out by someone behind him, even Jeremy was stunned for a moment, he turned his head and looked at a certain junior mercenary with a sudden expression of realization and stretched out his hand to this side.

"He knows 'pride'. The mercenary shouted in a loud voice, and then as if a pot had exploded, many people around him shouted.

"Yes, yes, the mercenary guild in Prospel the other day. I'll just say how familiar it is! The person who dared to talk to that 'arrogant' person had never seen such a person in his life. ”

The bustling discussion echoed everywhere, and Alain, who was standing behind Jerémi, was stunned for a moment and then began to look a little complicated, while Sir raised his head and looked deeply at Henry.

"Are they telling the truth?" he said.

Henry was noncommittal.

"The myth of the mercenary world that single-handedly kills the earth dragon...... With a ...... that is unique in the world," Jerémi paused: "Long silver hair." ”

"Proud Erica. ”

"One of the Red Thirteen (2) who is one of a hundred against a hundred, do you know such a character?" Sizz's eyes began to flicker at something, and he then raised his hand and waved it, causing everyone behind him to retreat.

"I have a hunch, mercenary, Henry Mayer. Jeremi stepped aside and glanced at the sage with a meaningful look: "You and I will meet again in the future." ”

He said this, and Henry still didn't open his mouth, just hugged Mira in his arms and walked away.

"Uh......" Alain behind him stretched out his hand, but he didn't know what to say after only one word, he turned his head again, met Jérémie's gaze, and Sir glanced at him, then turned his head, and left the place with the group of Sivalier elites.

"......" Alain, who was standing in place, lowered his head and shook his hand into a fist in the air.

......

Time passed slowly, and the two did not ride on horses when they went to Montenegro, so Henry only walked towards Lazar on foot with Mira in his arms.

Strange to say, perhaps due to the rabbit's psychology of not eating the grass next to the nest, even though it is close to the town, the Luoan bandits of Montenegro have not entered, let alone attacked the inhabitants of Lazar, for more than ten years.

Whether it was because they were too poor or because they were worried that they would be at odds with the locals and that they would not be able to survive - or both, the Luoan bandits of Montenegro had always targeted passing caravans and never plundered the local towns during the years they had been stationed here.

The notorious bandits and civilians in close proximity did not interfere with each other, but instead the great nobles of Prospel, who were dozens of miles away, clashed with them and were determined to make the Roans disappear from the land.

After today, perhaps the official government of Sivalier will publicize all this as the glory of Archbishop Prospel, who will send troops from dozens of miles away to eliminate the harm of the people, and these Luoans will kill themselves for their own injustice, and so on, and at the same time solve the great problem of their henchmen, and at the same time further enhance their reputation.

The truth of the matter is only known to the mercenaries who have actually shed their blood and died in this cold autumn land overgrown with Eka black pines.

In the end, everything is nothing more than profit. Being able to skillfully use honor as a superficial decoration also shows that this country is the strongest on the West Coast, not only in terms of military strength, but also far better than Avenella's side, even if it is already the best Prince Edward.

But is it a good thing, for the nobles, bishops, and merchants of a kingdom are so adept at playing with authority—Henry thought about it for a while, and Mi, who seemed to have finally come to his senses, stretched his hand and patted him on the back, motioning for the sage to put himself down.

"Take-" Henry pulled out the cork, and handed her a water bag made of lambskin.

"Gollum. The girl took a big mouthful into her mouth, then looked at the ground in distraction, doing nothing but in a daze.

"Smack. The sage unsheathed his sword, leaned his back against the trunk of the tree, and looked at her calmly.

He didn't rush to start talking about any big truths, what to be kind to, what you have to be strong. He just stood there quietly, within the corner of Mira's eye, to show her that he had always been here.

Other than that, Henry didn't do anything - he was silent from the moment she was hurt until now.

-- This hurdle must be overcome by herself.

Purity of the heart, though precious, is not something unique in the world - in fact, at some level, all people have been gentle and full of kindness.

But as long as they exist in this world, people will inevitably be influenced by other people.

What you have seen, heard, tasted, and felt, everything will not disappear with the passing, but will leave a unique imprint, shaping you into a different shape step by step.

This is how all people grow up - the difference is that some people are able to absorb what they need from the experience to improve, while others lose themselves because of the ordeal.

became drifting, discarding his original heart and original intention, and when he suddenly realized and looked back, he found that everything was completely different.

Henry has seen many, too many people become like this.

In the world of children, in simple and straightforward fairy tales, the whole world is always black and white.

There are good people and there are bad people -- good people are always good people, and bad people are always bad people.

But the truth is far more complicated than that, and in the real world, the line between good and bad is very, very blurred.

The difference is only that the former has always adhered to his true heart, while the latter, in the face of suffering, has compromised and chosen an easier and easier path.

It's not fair to distinguish between good and bad people, because everyone is the same person, breathing the same air, looking up at the sky that is no different, but they just make different choices on one thing, which leads to different results.

At first it may be a small thing that shakes you, then you start to compromise, and finally again and again. Before you know it, you've become a completely different person.

It's easier said than done, and more people in the world often choose to compromise.

- So.

So, which one is she?

Mira looked back at Henry, and the corners of the sage's mouth curled slightly.

The answer goes without saying, just by looking at those eyes, you can understand it. The horror and helplessness experienced firsthand was the most profound, and this girl, after truly seeing what cruelty is, was still able to recover, be herself, and make her own choices.

"What about people. ”

"A lot of times you don't have a choice. There was some sadness on Mira's face, she must have remembered something, so she said this. Henry: "Hmm. He knew she wasn't done yet, so he waited for the girl to continue.

"Obviously they are the same human beings, but because of their different choices, they have become such people who are very different. The white-haired Lori stroked the cold earth with great attention, and the words she spoke, as always, always made people forget the fact that she was only 11 years old.

"The guy just now...... If he wants to be rescued, someone will save him. She said this, and the sage didn't nod until now, "Yes." ”

He paused for a moment before he continued, "But without leaving here, his life may not be easy." ”

"The Luo'an people are now unpopular on the entire West Coast, and they are wanted bandits, even if they are rescued, they will not live on the run, they will die on the run. ”

"Even if you leave Montenegro, it's only a matter of time before you get back to your old business. Henry took a long breath, then exhaled it slowly.

"Luoan......" he said slowly.

"It's a proud people. ”

"Refusing to engage in professions other than combat, even if nobles wanted to hire them as private soldiers, they were often reluctant to send them to the fence because of the pride in their hearts. Henry continued: "It is for this reason that they fled their homeland, conquered by the Ottolo Empire, and came to the West Coast. ”

"But because of this arrogant existence, even if it is a different place, what difference will there be. The sage let out a long sigh, and Mira stroked her neck wrapped in white cotton.

"Maybe it's not enough to just be the fate of one person......"

"I want to change the ...... more people"

She muttered to herself in a whisper, and Henry naturally didn't hear it, but he smiled slightly, but he pretended not to hear clearly, "Huh?"

"Nothing. Mira didn't want to continue, she shook her little head, then stood up, and put on a stubborn expression again.

"I have to work harder. ”

The determination revealed in the shiny pale blue eyes shone like the sun that afternoon.

......

Notes: (1): Sivalierian colloquialism, from a poem from a century ago. Since the kingdom of Sivalier required all nobles with fiefs to serve in the military for the king—that is, to become knights—everywhere they went, and among the nobles were the honor-minded brave and the cowards, the poem describes an incompetent man who was bombastic but wet his saddle when he first went into battle. And this idiom, which became popular, is also commonly used by the West Waliers to describe cowards who talk on paper.

(2): Red Thirteen, another name for red-card mercenaries on the West Coast, one reason is that there were only thirteen red-card mercenaries when the Mercenary Guild was originally established, and the other is because the ruby mercenary card itself is worth about 130,000 denos. In addition, the number thirteen also represents the existence of bad luck and must be kept away to a certain extent, which reflects the image of the red card mercenary in the minds of ordinary people to a considerable extent.