Chapter 110 Unexpected situation, news from the village
"My lord, you can see your village after climbing over the hillside in front of you." Arati rode his horse leisurely beside Isabel and introduced in a relaxed tone. As a subordinate who had traveled all over the territory in person not long ago, he naturally had to take on the responsibility of this amateur guide.
"It's Sebastian's village, my dear Mr. Arati." The girl smiled slightly and corrected her softly, as if inadvertently.
Looking at the surrounding scenery from a distance on horseback, Isabel lowered her head and silently compared it with the half-open map in her hand, and frowned with some dissatisfaction. The ancient map kept in the castle that records the surrounding environment is too rough. The several obvious landmarks along the way are only roughly marked, and the word "detailed" in the mouth of the data administrator It doesn't match up at all. Sighing silently in her heart, the girl who was acting as a lord for the first time had decided to add one more item to her schedule immediately after returning: hiring an experienced cartographer.
"The nearby fiefs are surprisingly far away." Isabel turned back and glanced at the guards behind her - although the young men still maintained their upright posture, there were unconscious expressions between their eyebrows. There was a trace of tiredness, and his breathing became a little faster. "I thought I could return to the castle before sunset, but now it seems that I may need to spend the night in the village."
"Haha, the training of these little guys is still far behind, and they haven't had time to familiarize themselves with the weight they carry, which is what slows us down. After a period of training, their marching speed should be able to be improved. Increase it by a few percent." Arati seemed to be dissatisfied with the performance of these newcomers, but still explained patiently, "Of course your words make sense. The area near Fubo Castle has always been a place between the Grabo family and your family. It is a buffer zone between the two families. Once the two families go to war, this place will bear the brunt. In the eyes of other nobles, it is not a good place for long-term development. If conditions permit, they will naturally find ways to change to a more suitable territory. Therefore, and other areas In comparison, this place is naturally a bit empty."
"It would be good if we could make good use of the surrounding resources." Isabel shook her head and said regretfully, "It's a pity that I don't have the extra labor on hand to reclaim the wasteland. After all, if the autumn harvest is delayed, The timing is not worth the gain, so we can only wait for a while. I just hope that this winter will not be too cold. If even the underground soil is frozen, it will be a headache. "
"These are not the only things that give you a headache." When it came to territory construction, Alati did not intend to make any presumptuous suggestions, but sincerely mentioned the area he was responsible for. "As far as I know, before the cold winter comes, Previously, the vast majority of thieves groups, monster groups, etc. would fight for one last time before returning to their lairs. Before that, I will try to train your escort team into shape, hoping that it can play its due role. But For safety reasons, it would be safer if you could have a rough defense plan.¡±
"Haha, I'm not worried about the thieves group." Isabel smiled proudly and said lightly, "As long as their leader doesn't have his brain eaten by zombies, they won't think about invading a territory where two magicians are stationed. Stupid decision. As for the monsters I really need to be more careful. I don't care about the damage that one or two lone ogres can cause, but if the goblins and kobold tribes break into the village, that's it. It's a disaster. Now in these villages, there are no knights with superb martial arts who can effectively organize defensive manpower." At this point, the girl paused, thought for a moment, and quickly made a decision, "Let's do this , after returning this time, you pick up a few skilled guards with keen eyesight, equip them with horses, and patrol the surrounding areas of the entire territory in rotation. If there is really any danger, even if you can get the news a quarter of an hour earlier, This gives us an extra advantage. At least, if we really can't hold on, we can buy enough time to transfer the people."
"As ordered." Arati said loudly, stroking his chest with his right hand. As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly raised his head slightly, squinted his eyes, and stared at somewhere in the distance, "Sir, something seems to have come down on the hillside ahead."
"Maybe he is a traveler from somewhere." Isabel looked around and saw that there was indeed a hazy figure sliding down the slope, bringing flying dust along the way, but because there was no sense of danger in her heart, She didn't care either.
"No, he is coming in our direction. Sir, please forgive me for being presumptuous." After observing carefully, Arati suddenly reined in the reins, stopped the horse, raised his right hand high, and made a gesture.
? ?The guards behind seemed to pause for a moment, but immediately stopped following the master assassin's gesture, and quickly removed their spears and shields from their straps. There was no need for Arati to give any additional orders. The team behind them split into two and quickly moved forward from both sides to surround the two people on horseback and protect them in the center.
Isabel had already stopped her horse following Arati's movements, looking at this scene with admiration on her face.
"It's a man." As the figure in the distance gradually approached, it was determined that the other person was not a monster, but Arati still did not order to lift the alert.
In the continent of Akaron, because there are no real roads in the wilderness, and there are threats from monsters everywhere, people generally don¡¯t like to travel far. Even large-scale chambers of commerce that often have this need will only conduct long-distance transportation transactions with the company and protection of a large number of mercenaries. If the lone travelers encountered in the wild are not powerful adventurers, they are likely to be criminals on the run in fear of crime. Therefore, it will never go wrong to be more careful in everything.
The man in the distance seemed to have noticed the situation on Isabel's side. He seemed a little hesitant. The pace of his feet had slowed down for some time. Perhaps he was hesitating whether to continue walking over, or maybe he was hesitating. Take a long way around to avoid this group for now.
"Ete, go take a look in front." The man in front of him didn't make much movement for a long time. Arati was not willing to waste his and his group's precious time on this meaningless stalemate, and ordered in a deep voice.
"Yes, sir." A young guard at the front of the array responded loudly.
"Compared with Baron Wamborn's guards, Sebastian's guards are undoubtedly much brighter in dress. The linen sleeveless short-breasted burqa covering the silver scale breastplate well isolates the sun's rays that directly shine on the metal, preventing the wearer from overheating and heatstroke. The chest area is clearly marked with a blue pattern on a white background. The family emblem of Lord Sebastian. Although based on the status of a knight, allowing private soldiers to use emblems is actually somewhat beyond their authority, but the heraldry officers of the Heraldry Review Board would not have the guts to comment on the actions of a magician in person. Four.
Compared with the other companions, the dress of this guard named "Ete" is more eye-catching. In addition to the well-fitting uniform, he also wore a three-finger-wide satin shoulder strap slanted on his shoulders, and a colorful brocade rope that was half loose and half loose around his waist. Although it is purely a decoration, ordinary people generally do not spend money on such expensive materials.
Yes, Etter is the young man who first responded to Sebastian's back wrestling training game. Because of his bravery and loyalty, he was fortunate enough to be appointed by Isabel as the first squad leader of the escort team. Of course, the girl's move somewhat meant to set a benchmark and win over people's hearts, but for this group of passionate young men, the effect was quite direct and effective. Because there was the first person to successfully become the team leader, everyone had intuitive goals and motivation, so they all worked hard in the subsequent training and strived for the title of second team leader. The training effect was naturally increased. Quite a few.
Putting the spear in his hand on the ground, Aite stepped out without hesitation. It is his duty and his honor to serve the beautiful Miss Warmburn.
Under the gaze of Isabel and the others, Ete quickly approached the man in the distance. The conversation didn't take much time. Soon, Aite turned around and trotted back. The man then slowly walked towards the team.
"My lord, there is no danger. That man is the messenger from the nearby village. I have known him for many years and I will not admit his mistake. He is going to the castle to report the latest news from the village to you. I have already called him over. "Ete put his feet together, raised his head and chest, and reported quickly.
¡°Did something happen over there in the village? Isabel was confused and just said "hmm" lightly without saying anything.
Under the command of Eter, the guards at the front of the array let the village messenger into the circle array. The courier looked very nervous. Obviously, this kind of scene had no precedent in his mail delivery career. But after all, he was much more knowledgeable than those farmers who rarely left the village, and he quickly determined that the young girl on the sacred white horse was the eldest lady of the Wamborn family, who was famous nearby. . As for Arati, it was because he had been to the village before. He had already seen it from a distance and remembered it firmly in his mind.
"Good day, my lords." The messenger obediently knelt down on the ground and put his forehead close to the ground in a polite manner as a commoner would do to a noble.
"Get up." Isabel said calmly, "I am Isabel Warmburn, the acting lord of this land. What do you have?What information needs to be reported to me? "
"Sir, the situation is like this" The messenger got up from the ground, and said hurriedly without bothering to tidy up his clothes, "I am the messenger who has been responsible for liaison with the villages near the castle. I just came from Fasta Village. There. The village chief asked me to tell you that traces of monsters were found near the village."
"Monster?" Isabel frowned slightly and subconsciously turned her head to glance at Alati beside her, seemingly surprised by the timing of the news.
Shrugging his shoulders and spreading his hands helplessly, Arati could only secretly sigh that there was such a coincidence. As soon as he suggested paying attention to monster attacks here, news of monsters came from the village over there. It is normal for Isabel to have this reaction. Fortunately, he was open-minded and didn't take it too seriously. After dealing with girls for a long time, he also understood that the girl's conditioned reflex just now was not really doubting him.
"Mr. Messenger, now, I need you to tell me everything you know." Isabel leaned down and ordered calmly.
"Yes, yes, of course, sir" the messenger responded hurriedly.