Many hurried over and helped Flora up from the stairs. The princess' body was very light, so Many helped her up easily. However, it was obvious that she had fallen to her knees. Her legs were slightly curled up, and she was biting her lips. Her eyes were staring angrily at Many.
"You … You're looking for a woman like that!"
The princess couldn't figure it out. She had seen Sylner before. That beautiful elf was much more beautiful than the prostitute just now. But Sylner was holding such a beautiful girlfriend in his arms. How could he look for a prostitute in such a pub instead of being intimate with her?
Flora knew about the "special services" in the tavern. When she was in Sevair Palace, some rich nobles would sometimes talk about the new courtesan in the tavern. Then, they would tell their lustful stories with sparkling eyes. Flora, who was hiding in a corner, blushed. "That's right. That's right. That's right.
Now that she had encountered such a thing, the princess' impression of Many became even worse!
In the face of the princess' doubts, he was too lazy to explain. He shrugged, not knowing if it was okay or not, and helped Flora to a small private room on the first floor without saying a word.
The small wooden room looked exquisite. Many waved at the waiter to serve breakfast. The waiter happened to be the one who had been taken advantage of by Many yesterday. However, it seemed that she was willing to let Many "take advantage" of her again. After placing bread, milk, and bacon on the table, she unconsciously pulled down the front of her low-cut dress. She stood beside Many and bowed slightly. Flora blushed when she saw her white cleavage.
Many sighed. She felt that she was really cheap … Why did she pretend to be rich?!
He took out a silver coin and flicked it with his thumb. The silver coin fell accurately into the waitress's bottomless ravine. The waitress smiled charmingly, turned around, and left.
"Lewd!
Shameless!
So … so shameless! "
Flora's face was red. She looked at Many's expression as if nothing had happened. She was so angry that she swung her fists around. She looked very cute.
Many's eyes twitched. She raised her hand and made a "stop" gesture. The princess finally reacted and stopped. However, her chest was still moving up and down. She was obviously very angry.
"Your brother has come to Sith Court."
Flora was stunned by the first sentence that came out of her mouth.
Her body moved slightly, as if she wanted to stand up, but then she leaned back on the chair in disappointment. Her big eyes also dimmed, and there was not the slightest bit of excitement.
"Oh."
Her hoarse voice was slightly better, but it was still very weak.
"What?
Does Your Highness dislike Prince Stu? "
He raised an eyebrow and poured a cup of hot milk for Felora. He pushed the cup to the princess.
Flora lowered her head and raised her eyes slightly. She saw a lot of milk being handed to her. She bit her lip, but still accepted it. She held it with both hands and took a sip. She wiped the milk off the side of her mouth and pouted. She seemed to be thinking about something that didn't make her happy.
"By the way, why didn't I see Her Highness's doll?
I remember that you always had it with you, and that it never left you. "
Many lowered his head and buttered his bread. He asked casually.
Flora froze for a moment, then went silent. She held the cup of warm milk with both hands, but in her heart, she thought of all the things that had happened to her because of the doll, and her mood immediately sank.
"Forget it. I just want to say one thing. His Highness has arrived at Sith Court, and this place will be attacked by the undead soon. He won't be able to leave the city in a short time. Because of this special situation, you can go to Pajal Palace and ask your brother for help. I think he's here to save Her Highness.
I only have one request, and that is to not tell anyone about me. "
"Eat something. Your body is still very weak."
Many added as he handed over the buttered bread. The things that Her Royal Highness had experienced were indeed not something that someone of her age could endure. The fact that she could still maintain her composure even now was already very admirable of her.
She was just a little naive little girl. What she needed at this time was comfort and care. She had escaped from the hands of the undead and trolls and almost "killed herself" in the end. This experience would be a lifetime nightmare for anyone of her age. Many felt that there was no need to provoke the princess anymore. At this time, what she needed was mental relaxation and rest.
Flora held the milk cup in her hand. She looked up and saw the bread being handed to her. Her lips trembled a little.
Inexplicably, she suddenly felt like bursting into tears.
Sometimes, a person would be moved by a word or an action for no reason. After so many years, this was the first time Flora deeply felt how wonderful it was to be cared for.
Ever since she was young, Flora had never paid attention to the servants around her who served her well. She thought it was their duty to do so. But now, she suddenly understood that there was no such thing as love without reason in this world. The reason they worked so hard was because of her father, Emperor Charnak's love for her.
Flora didn't have any special feelings towards many people. However, this appropriate action at the appropriate time made her nose tingle a little.
Wasn't this a kind of sorrow?
The seemingly glorious royal family, the seemingly noble princess of the empire, wanted to cry because of a caring action from someone she did not like.
Putting down the milk, Flora took the bread and began to eat slowly. She also prepared a piece for herself and ate with the princess as if there was no one else around.
Many years later, Flora would still remember the time when she had a meal with this unknown baron in this shabby inn.
"I'm not going to find him."
Flora wiped the yellow oil off her mouth. "I'm not going to Pajal Palace. I don't want to go anywhere."
"I will leave in three days, so I suggest Your Highness to go to Pajal Palace. Otherwise, you will have to live here alone."
Many people inadvertently glanced outside. The hall was not as noisy as it was at night, but there were still many people sitting sparsely. Everything looked very normal.
Hearing this, Flora's hand that was holding the cup stopped in mid-air. "I … live here alone …?"
* * *
"Alert!
There's a situation! "
A loud shout came from the guard tower. The alarm bell immediately rang. The busy people in Panbo Village immediately started moving in an orderly manner.
The mercenaries and soldiers quickly rushed to the areas they were responsible for. They unsheathed their weapons and climbed up the city walls to look into the distance.
The "new recruits" that Henry was training did not participate in this operation. However, they also changed into formal armor and weapons in the shortest time possible. These people were new to weapons, so they did not know how to use them at all. When they held the weapons in their hands, their movements were very awkward.
Henry had no choice. He waved his hand and ordered the new recruits to stand at attention. He walked towards the guard tower and prepared to inspect the situation himself.
Sylvia's figure ran in the distance. She carried her longbow and jumped onto another guard tower. Noda led the newly formed reconnaissance team and prepared the horses. They did not move and waited for orders.
Dao Gen was assigned to the mercenaries' warrior battalion. However, he was too short, so he couldn't see what was in the distance while standing on the battlement of the city wall. Therefore, he simply moved a wooden barrel and stood on top of it. He hung his war hammer behind his waist and looked into the distance while muttering something.
"Sir!"
All the soldiers immediately saluted when they saw Henry. Before they left, Henry was given the title of "Supreme Military Commander of Panbo Village in Odietore Territory". The title was not really a military rank because the army was mainly stationed in Odietore Castle. Most of the people in the village were mercenaries and militia.
In other words, this title was "Commander". He had absolute leadership power in Panbo Village's military affairs.
After jumping onto the guard tower, Henry looked into the distance. His eyes flashed. He turned around and said to the soldiers beside him, "The reconnaissance team will go confirm the identity. Soldiers, get ready to welcome us. We have a guest."
After giving the order, Henry jumped off the guard tower without looking back. He then walked towards the wooden house that was specially arranged for Becky.
Becky was a bishop. After the refugees settled down, Becky began to preach to the commoners under Henry's suggestion. This was a way for these displaced people to seek peace of mind. More importantly, along the way, this beautiful, goddess-like bishop had saved many people's lives. Facts were often more convincing than preaching. More than half of the commoners had begun to believe in the God of Light.
In fact, the God of Light was considered a mainstream religion in Saint-Rames. However, the churches were usually built in large cities and had not had the time to expand into villages or small towns. The monarchs before Emperor Charnak were all opposed to the Church. It was only a few decades ago, under Charnak's initiative, that the noble councilors formally voted to adopt the God of Light.
As for the effect?
Only Charnak knew.
Not only did this decision get rid of those talkative charlatans, but it also brought Saint-Rames a powerful ally on paper — the Church of Light.
And at this time, Charnak's bill, which was opposed by many nobles and passed by a "small" margin, finally showed the world its effect.
"Your Eminence."
Henry bowed. Becky hurriedly helped him up.
"You are always so courteous." Becky was still wearing her black bishop's robe. "Are we going to fight?"
"There is an army outside the village. Speaking of which, they might be your friends."
Henry's fingers twitched, as though expressing his hesitation.
Becky paused for a moment and then looked towards the entrance of the village. Noda had just led a scouting team of fifteen people out of the city gate.
"I saw the flag of the Inquisition."
Henry sighed and said, "Maybe it's not suitable for me to appear in front of them. I'll leave the temporary command to you. The appearance of this army must have something to do with the undead, so —"
"Thank you for your trust, Henry."
Becky made a salute to the Holy Church and nodded solemnly. Henry said that he would give her the right to command, which meant that he really gave it to her. This was a true trust — Becky believed that everyone in this mercenary group had this 100% trust in each other. This kind of trust always inadvertently warmed people's hearts.
To be able to gain this trust, Becky felt that this was the greatest gift that the God of Light had given her.
After the conversation, Henry disappeared from the entire Panbo Village. At the same time, the news of handing over the command to Becky was immediately reported to all the soldiers and mercenaries. These people had no objections to this. They knew that they only needed to listen to orders. There was no benefit in talking too much nonsense.
Noda gripped the horsewhip with a grim expression. Behind him were a few mercenaries. These people's riding skills weren't too good, but they could be considered the strongest among the dwarves. However, they didn't have any formation to speak of. Not long after they left Panbo Village, they formed a long line. This team was the first scouting team in the entire Panbo Village.
At this moment, their faces were a little stiff. The scouting team, to put it bluntly, was walking at the forefront of the war. They were also the first team to come into contact with the actual battle. In the Empire of Saint Reims, the scouting team had the highest casualty rate and the highest number of cancelled records.
To put it bluntly, in this era where people could only rely on their eyes to investigate, the scouting team not only had a lot of work, but it was also extremely dangerous.
Stealth?
Scouts who could stealth were not cabbages that could be found on the streets. Generally, only a small part of a scouting team had this ability. Training dark energy was much more difficult than the training of combat aura. This also led to the absolute dominance of this continent, and assassins and scouts were much rarer. As for spellcasters, they were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.
More importantly, most of the professionals who could stealth were assigned another job: infiltration, intelligence gathering, assassination, and so on.
It wasn't easy to be a scout, but a soldier who was competent in this job must be very outstanding. This was the collective evaluation of the Empire's army. Most of the time, scouts had to undergo the most difficult training, endure the harshest environment, and receive the most stringent supplies.
Although Noda and the others weren't scouts in the Empire's establishment, their tasks were similar.
In front of them was a majestic army. Their formation was neat and silent, and they seemed to be well-equipped. Other than the infantry with huge shields, the knights riding on tall horses were the most eye-catching.
They wore thick metal helmets. The style of the helmets was completely different from the style of the cavalry of Saint-Rames. It was thicker and heavier. The horses of the cavalry were not wearing armor, but there was a rack that was specially used to hang heavy armor on the horses. This was prepared for the cavalry to quickly put on the heavy armor when they entered the battle.
The knights in the front row were holding high banners. The cross symbol on the banners was conspicuous and exuded a holy aura. They were holding cavalry shields with crosses painted on them. Their full body plate armor made them look like tin cans, but the arms that held the banners and lances firmly reflected their extraordinary strength.
At this time, Noda was on a low hillside. He could see the whole picture of this army. This army actually came from the Azura Forest. Speaking of which, it was really scary. To be able to walk through the Azura Forest where the trolls ran rampant, and to be able to maintain the appearance of this army until now, it was really not something that an ordinary army could do.
The total number of soldiers was about 20,000, and the number of cavalry alone was a bit shocking. It reached an astonishing number of 2,000. Noda knew how powerful this number of cavalry represented. No matter where the cavalry went, they would always be a heavy note on the battlefield. Their existence was often the decisive factor.
Noda did not hide himself. His figure on the hillside immediately attracted the attention of the opposite army. Not long after, a small team separated from the army and galloped towards Noda.
They were wearing light leather armor. But even the leather armor was very different from the one Noda was wearing. Most of the decorations on the armor were mainly crosses, mixed with some engravings that looked like proverbs.
Needless to say, this was the army of the Luminous Church, the army from the Inquisition!
The number of soldiers in this army was similar to that of Noda's army. When they approached, they first formed a standard cone-shaped formation, and when they approached Noda, they changed into a square formation. After they stopped neatly, a sergeant sitting on the saddle asked loudly, "Excuse me, are you the defending army of Oditore?"
"We are the reconnaissance team of Oditore. Knight, may I ask where you are from?"
"The holy Luminous Church, Lambas, the third army of the Inquisition, 'Ruling Sword'. Under the command of the Supreme God's spokesperson, the great Pope Ramiel IV, we are here to help the Empire of Saint Reims get rid of the evil undead!"
'This man sure has a lot of adjectives.' Norda pouted in his heart, but he put on a solemn expression. He quickly got off his horse and bowed. The man understood the situation and got off his horse as well. Once they bowed to each other, they took a few steps closer to each other and exchanged information in a rather formal manner. Then, they got back on their horses.
Noda left the rest of the mercenaries to lead the team, but they were heading towards Oditore Castle. He himself rushed towards Pombo Village and brought the news back to the soldiers who were in a combat-ready state.