Chapter 328: That incident and the smoke [5K]
On the dark blue night, there are twin moons and stars in the sky.
Under the bright starry sky, in the center of Kongqing Town next to the city lord's palace, the most prosperous commercial street is full of people and hustle and bustle.
On both sides of the spacious street, there are all kinds of pubs and snack bars.
Among them, there are also magic supplies shops, magic crafts shops, etc. with colorful signs.
At a glance, various shining signboards inlaid with light crystal stones and colorful signboards enchanted with small visual magic circles complement each other, making people feel dizzying.
As the crowd surged, the mercenaries' chattering, laughing and scolding, and the clinking of wine glasses in the tavern mixed with the smell of burnt barbecue and freshly baked bread from the street food stalls, forming a bustling atmosphere. And the peaceful fireworks.
Such lively scenes have continued to this day since Lei Xiao became the Lord of Kongqing City.
Today, there are no more violent and vicious mercenaries on the streets. Instead, there are teams of garrison soldiers wearing shining armor and treating civilians with courtesy.
Among the dense crowds of people coming and going, a young woman who looked to be in her twenties was walking lightly. Surrounded by a group of followers, she blinked her big curious eyes and wandered around with great interest.
She was seen wearing a simple khaki long dress, with thick slightly curly long hair tied into a neat single ponytail with Kongqing Town's unique blue carved headband.
However, her fair face was dotted with a few light freckles, making her look slightly delicate.
This person is none other than Princess Ariel, who has undergone illusion magic to disguise her true appearance.
"Your Highness, there are many people here, so please don't walk too fast."
At this time, Holy Light General Ju Bai, who had also undergone illusion disguise, followed closely behind with a vegetable basket in his hands and whispered a reminder.
On the other side, a simple old man with gray hair also quickly followed him. It was the giant ax general Burt who had undergone illusion disguise.
Behind the three of them were Lin and Fang Hai, who were wearing illusion cloaks, and the leisurely muscular priest Ye Cang.
Of course, there are also the two sisters Nan Xing and Nan Yue who have been silently walking and jumping on the roofs of tall buildings on both sides in the vast moonlight.
"Don't worry, I have my own sense of discretion."
Ariel raised her eyebrows slightly, came to a stall selling pineapple buns, and threw a shiny golden dragon directly towards the store.
A moment later, while taking a bite of the steaming hot freshly baked bread, Ariel squeezed into another place, in front of the bard stall that was performing at the entrance of the tavern.
I saw this middle-aged bard with a vicissitudes of life, holding an old lute, playing and singing emotionally, the content was an aria about the heroic king Caesar.
Hearing this, Ariel raised her eyebrows quite proudly and took another bite of the steaming sweet pineapple bun in her hand.
As a member of the Lengyan royal family with the blood of Hero King Xisar flowing through his body, it is a matter of joy and pride for him to hear his ancestors being praised no matter when and where.
"I didn't expect this place to be quite prosperous. It seems that besides being annoying, that guy has a little bit of merit."
While listening to the melodious melody and looking at the bustling scene around her, Ariel frowned slightly.
In the mind, the image of a young man who stood indifferently and wanted to be beaten could not help but emerge.
But at this moment, shouts of surprise came to Ariel's ears.
"Lord City Lord, that is our Lord City Lord!"
"Our City Lord is here! Everyone, make way for the City Lord!"
"Lord City Lord, my admiration for you is as endless as a dragon soaring in the sky!"
"Mom, when I grow up, I want to become a city garrison to protect our city lord!"
"Hey, what's the point? Dad, I want to be a great hero like the Lord of the City and wipe out the traitors!"
……
Accompanied by excited voices, the dense crowd in front began to disperse to both sides.
Immediately, under the flickering neon lights, a young man with a gentle face came into Ariel's eyes.
This person is naturally none other than Lei Xiao.
“You really get what you want.”
Looking at Lei Xiao who was walking slowly not far away, Princess Ariel put her hands on her hips and curled her lips slightly.
At the same time, she noticed with surprise.
The aria of the bard beside her has changed from her ancestor, the heroic king Xi Sa, to the young Lord of Kongqing City.
The most important thing is that not only is the singing more emotional, but the words of praise used are no less than before!
"This guy's reputation here is comparable to that of my ancestors?"
Listening to the melodious melody, Ariel's mouth twitched, but she looked helpless.
However, looking at the heartfelt smiles of the people around her, she seemed to remember something again, her eyebrows lowered, and her mood suddenly began to feel low.
At this moment, what emerged in Ariel's mind was the royal capital that was in a mess and with black smoke everywhere before leaving.
Although in terms of scale and prosperity, the royal capital, which is the center of the Cold Flame, can only be described as vastly different from this remote small town of Kongqing.
However, Ariel, as Princess Lengyan, had not seen the peaceful atmosphere and scene in front of her in the royal capital for a long time.
All she saw was reckless killing and devastation of life everywhere.
And all this, she, who is the weakest, is completely powerless and can't change anything.
Just when Ariel thought of this with some disappointment.
Lei Xiao was already passing by Ariel under the stars.
"Now that we've almost finished shopping, let's go back."
A calm voice immediately reached Ariel's ears.
"Hey, he is indeed a nasty guy. I have something to do with you. I'll see you later."
Ariel wrinkled her nose, then took the orange-white arm and left quickly.
……
Twenty minutes later, the hall of the city lord's mansion in Qingqing Town was empty.
Although it was dark at night, the spacious hall inlaid with light crystals was still as bright as day, so that the reflections of people could even be clearly reflected on the smooth and shiny marble floor tiles.
Lei Xiao, who was sitting on the throne at the top, turned his head slightly and looked at Ariel, who was still sitting on a luxurious chair not far away, which was obviously shortened by sawing. He smiled and said: "Dear second Your Highness, Fifth Princess, are you looking for me?”
It was seen that Ariel had dispelled the illusion disguise and returned to her graceful and luxurious look. Her flawless white cheeks faintly exuded an aura of arrogance unique to the royal family.
However, since he was visually several heads shorter than Lei Xiao, this proud aura had almost been suppressed to the lowest point.
"That's right."
Ariel frowned. Because her position was too low, she had no choice but to look up at Lei Xiao and said, "I want to ask you something."
"Oh?"
Lei Xiao raised his eyebrows, tilted his head again, looked down at the shorter Ariel and said, "But it doesn't matter."
"It's nothing important."
I saw Ariel shrugging, trying her best to show a normal look and saying: "Since you have just agreed to let me move freely in the city, then, if I want to go around the area around Kongqing Town, you You shouldn’t refuse, right?”
"Is the performance coming so soon? It seems that "that matter" is quite urgent for Ariel. ”
Thinking about this secretly in his heart, Lei Xiao's face suddenly showed a look of embarrassment. It seemed that after some inner struggle, he responded: "That's all, it's not impossible."
"Great!"
Ariel looked happy, and immediately coughed a few times to cover up her joy, and said with a calm look: "Let me ask you, as the Lord of Kongqing City, I must have a very clear understanding of the surrounding terrain. Right? ”
“It’s okay.”
Lei Xiao smiled slightly and said: "My dear fifth princess, where do you want to go?"
At this moment, Lei Xiao understood clearly in his heart.
If nothing else, the place where the other party wants to go is obviously inextricably linked to "that matter".
According to the information provided by Xinghui, although she could confirm it, Ariel could not determine the specific location of "that thing".
But the other party must have corresponding clues in his hands.
And this is undoubtedly the important information that I currently lack.
"There's no specific location."
Ariel smoothed her slightly curly black hair and continued: "This princess just wants to find a place with beautiful scenery to relax."
After finishing her words, as if inadvertently, Ariel covered her mouth and coughed lightly, and added: "Of course, there are requirements, such as the location to the west of the river in the Shadow Forest, in a place with mountains and forests, by the way, there It would be best if there is a town nearby so that I can find a place to rest when I am tired. Do you have any good suggestions for such a place?”
After hearing Ariel's request, the smile on Lei Xiao's face grew stronger.
If he didn't get the information that Ariel was looking for "that matter", there would obviously be no problem with this seemingly ordinary request.
But now, it is not difficult to deduce that Ariel's request is undoubtedly to find clues to "that matter".
"As soon as you react, Ariel's tactics really make people feel anxious."
Looking at Ariel blinking her big eyes, with a calm look on her face, and an expression of uncontrollable expectation that she tried to suppress but couldn't help, Lei Xiao raised his eyebrows slightly and began to think.
"To the west of the river in the Demon Shadow Forest, that is, on the plain where Kongqing Town is located, in this way, the forest area where the territory is located can be excluded."
At this time, Lei Xiao's brain was spinning rapidly, thinking secretly in his heart.
"Now that the location is determined to be on the side of Kongqing Town, there are only three places left where there are towns, mountains and woods."
"The first place is Magnet Town, which I just conquered today. It is close to the endless Baibu Mountains and is surrounded by acres of woods, which is very consistent with the clues."
"The second place happens to be the town of Mailan that I have conquered and just visited. It is located near the ruins of the ancient battlefield where Kunbu and others were rescued not long ago. It is also surrounded by mountains and dense forests."
Thinking of this, Lei Xiao couldn't help but reveal a look of relief on his face.
After taking complete control of Magnet Town today, with Kongqing Town as the center, Mailan Town, which is the closest due south, and Magnet Town, which is closest due north, the three towns are connected in a line, undoubtedly forming an invisible link. The barrier further ensures the security of the territory located in the forest.
In his joy, Lei Xiao brought his thoughts back to "that matter".
"As for the third place, it is Luolong City, a small city also located under the Baibu Mountains. It is located to the west of Cishi Town and northwest of Kongqing Town."
Lei Xiao was seen calmly continuing to think.
"According to Lin, the geographical location of Luolong City is quite special. It stands on a pass in the Baibu Mountains. It is quite similar to the narrow pass that the orc army entered into the forest and had been sealed by giant stones with knotweed."
"However, the width of that pass is much larger, and Luolong City is a fortress city guarding this pass. Therefore, both the size of its garrison and the number of strong men are much higher. in the surrounding ordinary towns.”
Thinking of this, Lei Xiao pondered for a moment, and without any concealment, he told Ariel all three locations in order to observe the other party's further reaction.
"I see, are there three locations that meet the requirements?"
After hearing Lei Xiao's answer, Ariel subconsciously glanced at the two kingdom generals not far away.
Then he continued: "Have anything unusual happened in these three cities recently? For example, a sudden rampage of monsters, unknown monsters, or other crises?"
"Warcraft are rampant and unknown monsters appear?"
Hearing this, Lei Xiao was startled, and then mused in his heart: "It seems that this mysterious "thing" is quite dangerous. ”
As if inadvertently, Lei Xiao spoke again: "My dear Fifth Princess, are you looking for something? If you tell me, maybe I will help you find it."
The reason why Lei Xiao said this was naturally to knock Shan Zhenhu off and see what kind of reaction the other party would have next.
"Huh?"
Ariel was stunned, and quickly raised her hands and waved them, saying incoherently: "What are you looking for? This princess has never looked for anything, it's just... I'm just afraid that there will be danger in these places!"
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After speaking, Ariel's big shining eyes blinked slightly, and as her eyes flickered, she secretly glanced here with some guilt, apparently also checking Lei Xiao's reaction.
"He's a really easy guy to see through."
Lei Xiao curled his lips and continued to mutter in his heart: "In this way, the matter can be further confirmed. The "thing" Ariel is looking for must be somewhere around these three cities. ”
"Moreover, it seems that there will be some danger signs. Therefore, as long as I pay more attention to the situation around these three cities, I believe I will find out the clues soon."
"By the way, we need to quickly notify Xuan Yue of Mailan Town and Nednet of Magnet Town to ask them to mobilize more manpower to increase the city's defense strength to prevent unexpected events."
Having made up his mind, Lei Xiao looked at Ariel's unconcealed panic expression, smiled lightly and said: "Dear Your Highness the Fifth Princess, I'm just asking casually. At present, according to the information I have, these three No changes occurred in this city.”
Having said this, Lei Xiao raised his eyebrows and asked: "I wonder if Your Highness the Fifth Princess has chosen a specific "play" place in her mind? ”
"Well... go back and let me, the princess, think about it carefully!"
Seeing that Lei Xiao didn't seem to notice, Ariel let out a sigh of relief and then said: "When I, the princess, think about it, I will naturally let your muscle priest inform you."
"It seems that this guy is going back to discuss with the two kingdom generals."
Hearing this, Lei Xiao didn't say anything else, he just shrugged slightly, indicating that the other party was casual.
Just when everyone was about to leave.
A burst of rapid footsteps suddenly came from far away and came from outside the hall door.
Immediately afterwards, the heavily armed Kongqing Town garrison commander Guanzhong pushed the door open and entered.
The crisp sound of armor clashing sounded, and Guanzhong knelt down on one knee, caressing his chest and saluting Lei Xiao: "Your Majesty, I have important military information!"
After speaking, Guan Zhong looked at the two kingdom generals and Ariel, and then looked at Lei Xiao, with a hint of hesitation in his eyes.
"Oh?"
Hearing the sound, Lei Xiao's nerves immediately became tense, and he immediately said: "But it doesn't matter."
At this stage, in a sense, he and Ariel are already in the same boat, so there is no need to avoid it.
"Lord, according to the report of a team of scouts who have just returned, the fortress city of Luolong City located in the northwest of us has billows of thick smoke. It is obviously in an emergency state of being attacked!"
Guanzhong still maintained his luggage posture and reported without hesitation.
"What?!"
Hearing this, Ariel and the two kingdom generals first began to look at each other in confusion.
After being stunned for two seconds, Ariel said with a face of disbelief: "The geographical location of Luolong City is very important. Could it be that it was attacked by aliens from outside the Baibu Mountain Pass?! Or maybe it was that matter... ”
At this point, Ariel, who knew that she had let something slip, quickly coughed again and regained her composure.
On the throne, Lei Xiao couldn't help but look thoughtful.
If this is really the case, then once Luolong City falls and the pass is opened, several towns under his control may also be attacked. At that time, things will be very difficult to handle.
"But according to what Lin said, there are no signs of any aliens living outside this pass."
"For a hundred years, Luolong City has never suffered any attack. We just took precautions before it happened. Why did it suddenly break out?"
"Or maybe Luolong City is the location of "that incident"? ”
In confusion, Lei Xiao stood up from the throne, frowning and said: "That's all, let me see with my own eyes what is going on there." (End of Chapter)