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Xiao Bai was surprised and said, "How can someone who can be easily assassinated become a hegemon?"
Dwarf: "Yes, you think orcs don't know how to assassinate? The most powerful orcs are either strong and cunning, or cunning and strong, so the new overlord must have killed hundreds of blind assassins on the way to dominance."
Wang: "Anyway, let's not worry about Monrovia's affairs for now. We have a few things to do when we get to Minoan City. Let me list them first. The first is to visit the Royal Institute of Architects to see if anyone recognizes the architectural style of the headquarters of the Order.
“If no one recognizes it, we will go to the Bards College and ask the most knowledgeable teacher in the college to see if any of them recognize it.
"Then, I think we can add one more thing. We go visit the Shadow Thieves and see if they have any clues. I am impressed by their intelligence work capabilities."
Elizabeth added, "Can we ask the Military Intelligence Department, the official intelligence agency in Monrovia?"
Wang frowned. "Don't be like that. If we ask them, the cult will probably know... Hmm? If the cult attacks us, it seems like a way to catch them by the tail?"
Marika: "Only if we can withstand the attack. The last cult minion who came looking for us was a seventh-ring wizard."
Wang: "Don't be afraid, we now have a four-ring pastor!"
Dwarf: "Are you kidding me?"
King: "And the Elf Ranger!"
Nini: "I'm not sure I can kill a seventh-ring mage with one strike."
Wang: “Okay, one more thing, that is to buy powerful scrolls. We need scrolls that can efficiently annihilate high-level enemies, like the Banshee’s Wail.
"And we can't leave behind any equipment. We have a lot of money. After we exchange it for equipment, it can make up for the lack of combat power to some extent.
"Minos City is a more prosperous trading city than Landon City. After all, it is known as the crossroads of the continent. We should be able to have a satisfactory harvest."
Elizabeth: "Don't we still have the letter of introduction from the Earl of Border? Should we go find this... uh, Mrs. Williams?"
The daughter of the Border Earl of Bradford married Mr. Williams, a big businessman in Monrovia, so she is now known as Mrs. Williams.
Wang: "We can go visit her. After all, her husband's Williams Chamber of Commerce is so famous that they should be able to get a lot of props that we urgently need. For example, scrolls of powerful spells."
Marika suddenly said, "Shh, someone is coming. Don't talk."
A few seconds after the words fell, someone knocked on the door.
Elizabeth: “Who?”
"We've got dinner delivered."
Wang: "Okay, I'll continue teaching Nini after dinner. Elizabeth, do you still want to sit in?"
"Yes!" Elizabeth said firmly.
Wang: "Last time you fell asleep and drooled all over the table."
"I'm just drooling, not a table!" Elizabeth yelled.
The person knocking on the door asked again, "Excuse me? Can I come in?"
Elizabeth: "Come in."
So Marika opened the door and the maids filed in.
Xiao Bai shouted excitedly: "Big ham! I want it!"
**
After a day's delay at the Border Earl's castle, the Star Chaser sailed downstream again.
The king followed the advice of the Border Lord and headed straight for the city of Minos without stopping.
On the fourth day after entering Monrovia, Nini reported loudly: "There is a huge white city ahead!"
Elizabeth excitedly lay down beside the railing at the bow and looked forward: "Where is it? Where is it?"
Wang: "What she saw on the mast is that there are plains all around. The view from the mast is very good, and you can basically see everything around. Because of the curvature of the planet's surface, we can't see it for the time being."
Elizabeth: "What is the curvature of a planet's surface?"
"It's just...it's a long story." Wang changed his mind and suppressed his urge to teach others.
At this moment, Nini on the top of the mast shouted again: "Thick smoke! There is a manor on the plain burning!"
Wang: “What the hell?”
He also lay down beside Elizabeth and leaned forward to look out.
Elizabeth said in a teasing tone: "Because of the influence of the planet Quli, we can't see it now."
Wang corrected, "Planet curvature. There are basically no bandits in the core area of Monrovia, and it's summer now. The air humidity is so high, the possibility of natural fire is also small..."
Nini's voice came from the top of the mast for the third time: "Wolf Riders! The riders are a race I have never seen before!!"
The king shouted upwards, "It's the orcs! They're starting to plunder!"
Nini: "The ferry ahead is on fire! A group of wolf riders are setting fire and shooting rockets at passing ships!"
Wang: "Battle alert! Captain, get your sailors ready! And call Flint and the others up from below the deck!"
Chapter 108 An unexpected welcome
There was a favorable wind at this time, and the Star Chaser was moving very fast. It didn't take long for Wang and Elizabeth on the deck to see the smoke from the ferry.
The fire had obviously just started, and the smoke wasn't particularly thick yet.
There were wolf riders running on the shore. The king couldn't see clearly what they were doing with his current eyesight. They were probably shooting at the ships on the river.
The king heard a whoosh sound above his head. He looked up and saw Nini holding the bow, but the arrow was gone.
Looking at the wolf knight team again, the leading wolf knight suddenly fell off the wolf's back and was nailed to the ground.
Nini drew the bow again, using only her legs to keep her stable as she drew the bow with both hands, as if she was glued to the lookout at the top of the mast.
Another wolf rider was shot to the ground. Without the restraint of the rider, the wolf went into a frenzy and actually bit the neck of the wolf next to it!
The other wolf riders looked confused. They formed a circle and kept watch in all directions, apparently not noticing where the attack came from.
Nini continued shooting and knocked down three wolf riders in succession.
At this time, the orcs decided to escape, and the remaining wolf riders ran downstream along the road by the river.
The king turned to Xiaobai, who had just run onto the deck with a half-eaten ham in his hand, and said, "Fly! Follow the wolf riders and see where they come from."
Xiaobai turned into a conventional white-headed sea eagle, grabbed the ham before it started to fall, and flew into the sky.
Elizabeth: "Does she have to bring a ham? When we were in Langdon City, she was carrying a big ham behind your dragon. We were all stunned."
Wang: "The mission must be completed, but the ham cannot be lost."
At this time, the dwarf ran to the wizard breathlessly: "What happened?"
The dwarf was blocked by the side of the ship and could not see what was happening on the shore.
Wang: "Wolf cavalry, but they have been defeated by Nini, about a thousand meters away. I really don't understand why she wants to improve her archery skills. How strong is her teacher?"
Flint frowned. "We just heard from the Border Lord yesterday that the orcs have created a new overlord and are about to go to war. How come the marauding wolf riders have reached such a deep place today?"
Elizabeth: "Yesterday, I was chatting with the Border Earl's little daughter at the banquet. At that time, a little boy who was fostered by the Baron's family kept chattering and trying to attract the little girl's attention with these things."
Nobles often sought out their superior lords as guardians for their children.
These children who are sent here will generally become playmates of the next generation of heirs of the superior lord, so that when the children grow up and inherit their father's territory, they will have closer ties with each other.
In this way, the nobles consolidated their rule.
So there were many children of lower nobles living in the border earl's castle.
The little boy Elizabeth was talking about was probably one of them.
Elizabeth continued, “From what the child said, we know that the current overlord unified all the tribes last autumn, but winter came soon after, and the grassland also needs to spend the winter.
“There have been reports of Wolf Rider attacks this spring. The Wolf Riders can feed their wolves with livestock from Monrovia and hunt, so they don’t need any supplies and can keep moving forward.
"Moreover, wolf cavalry is particularly effective against human cavalry, because war horses will be afraid of wolves, so for a long time humans lacked effective means to counter wolf cavalry."
Wang: "That kid really knows a lot."
Elizabeth shook her head. "No, the boys kept talking, but the key information was all provided by the Border Earl's little daughter. I always feel that this little girl will achieve great things in the future."
Wang: "I don't like red clothes, I like weapons. There are many female generals in Monrovia's history. They even have a wheelchair-bound general.
"The bard's poem says that he used his wheelchair to knock down the capital of the leader of the lower river states, and the river states have never formed a confederation since then."
Flint looked at the wizard: "Your knowledge is almost as good as that of a bard, so do we really need to find a bard?"
King: "I only know the story written in the bard's ballad, and our Mage Tower is supposed to collect that ballad. In fact, it has been a long time since anyone from our Mage Tower came to this plane to study. I am actually tasked with updating the information on this plane, and I can get credits for it."
“Credits?” Flint shook his head. “The last time I heard this word was from a wizard from the Union of Arcane Law.”
Elizabeth suddenly patted the king on the shoulder: "There is a group of cavalry on the river bank."
At this time, the rider leading the cavalry on the river bank shouted, "Excuse me, is this the Star Chaser of the Duchess of Langdon? Thank you for repelling the wolf cavalry for me! I am the lord of this ferry. Would it be convenient for us to have lunch at my castle? I would like to express my sincere gratitude."
Wang muttered in a low voice: "This shows that the real purpose is not to drink. Do you want to go?"
Elizabeth shouted directly: "No need! I appreciate your kindness, but we have an urgent mission and can't stop at will. Goodbye!"
Flint could not see the cavalry on the shore, but that did not prevent him from saying: "You put it too mildly. You should say, I am a duke after all. What rank do you have to want to have dinner with me?"
Elizabeth pretended not to hear the dwarf's words.
The man on the shore still did not give up: "My father and mother are eagerly looking forward to your visit."
Elizabeth: "Give my regards to both of you. I will visit you again after the crisis is resolved."
After saying that, she raised her hand and waved.
Wang turned to the captain at the helm and said, "Full sail, full speed. Keep the left rudder away from the shore."
"Okay!" The captain immediately steered the ship, and the Star Chaser gradually left the shore.
The horse team on the shore could only slow down gradually and watch the Star Chaser go away.
Almost two hours later, when the sun began to set, Xiaobai, who had turned into a white-headed sea eagle, flew back.
As soon as it flew closer, the king asked, "Why did you take so long to come back?"
Xiaobai was probably in a hurry to reply, because he turned back into a human before he landed on the ground. He rolled on the deck before standing up, dusting himself off and replied, "The wolf riders ran very far away. They have a raiding camp deep in the forest. I came back because I saw the camp."
King: "The orcs have built a camp in the heart of the human empire?"
Xiaobai nodded repeatedly.