Chapter 398 Discovery of the Official Residence (5k2)
"...Very good, Luo Xiu."
Albert nodded and walked towards the room.
His eyes first glanced at the thick stack of files on the table. He placed his broad palm on it and asked Luo Xiu:
"What did you find?"
"It's all here - the transfer order about Zaska, the map of Kaffrey Fortress, the defenses of surrounding fortresses and towns, and the list of guarding 'executors', etc."
As Luo Xiu spoke, he picked up a file from the table and handed it to Albert, who reached out and took it.
When you unfold it, you will see that it is the "Caffrey Fortress and Surrounding Topographic Map (Military Use)". It is a map drawn on gray and white cowhide, with various marks on it using complex symbols.
Luo Xiu only understood those symbols, and was a little confused about some of the symbols like three circles and inverted triangles - but it didn't matter, as long as Albert could understand them.
Albert's eyes wandered over the newly obtained map, and an excited look gradually appeared on his face.
"Okay, okay..."
Albert murmured, "With this extremely detailed map, we can formulate expedition plans and make strategic deployments in more detail."
"In addition to this," Luo Xiu then said to Albert, "there is also the general situation of the residents in Caffrey Fortress, the statistics of heavy weapons and various supplies, all recorded in this side of the file. ”
As he spoke, Luo Xiu's hand pointed to the other side, to the cowhide file on the other side.
Albert rolled up the previous map first, put it in his arms, and then looked in the direction Luo Xiu pointed.
On the yellow cowhide, densely written text was written in black ink, recording in detail all the basic information about the Caffrey Fortress.
This includes - there are currently more than 24,000 residents in Caffrey Fortress, more than half of whom have a social status of "slaves."
Slaves have no freedom and no rights as "human beings". Most of them are refugees who escaped from other places or were displaced due to natural or man-made disasters.
Perhaps due to various reasons, they were not accommodated by the Norland Empire, the Golden Kingdom Federation, and the Holy Tower Theocracy, and ultimately had no choice but to come to the Dark Principality. And because they were penniless, they could only turn to the "Executioner" here. "They sold their freedom in exchange for low-quality food to survive.
And more "slaves" are prisoners of war snatched directly from the battlefield by the Dark Army. Under the "Black Teeth" and "Houshou" under the executioner, they are engaged in the most basic and humble coolies. .
——For example, they go down to dig holes without any protective facilities and are only allowed 4 hours of rest a day; they are arranged to raise cattle, sheep, horses and other livestock, but they can only eat the same feed as these livestock; as an experiment with the latest taboo technology products, eventually being transformed into "monsters", or dying in forbidden laboratories, etc...
During the "Judgment War", the Dark Principality also set up a slave army, specifically recruiting strong "slaves" to undergo extremely rigorous training to serve as cannon fodder at the forefront of the war, attracting firepower.
Luo Xiu had encountered those "slave armies" who were not afraid of death several times.
Most of the "slave soldiers" have been brainwashed by the extraordinary people of the principality. When they rush to the battlefield, the only thought in their minds is fight, fight, fight.
They have the same armor system as the Dark Army, but the internal materials are much different. When these slave armies charge, they are sometimes much more ferocious than the regular army, which indeed brings a lot of trouble to the empire.
And among the "residents" of Caffrey Fortress——
There are also 40% of people whose social status is "untouchable", that is, the lowest status except being directly deprived of human status like "slaves".
Although the "untouchables" have the minimum personal freedom, in fact, they have been taxed by the "lords", "executors" and "city lords" of the fortress or town where they live, and they will not be able to pay it back after their death. Degree——
"Tax has been collected a hundred years later" is not an exaggerated slang for the "untouchables", but a real situation.
In order to pay taxes, their best way out is to join the Dark Army and plunder more slaves or wealth for the Dark Principality.
Part of the slaves and wealth they plundered can be given to them as rewards. Later, this part of the rewards will be used as deed taxes and paid to the lords, city lords and executioners.
Only a very small number of "untouchables" can pay off their debts by joining the war.
And among these people, there are indeed some who have completed their ascent in status through "war" and become "Black Fang", "Hunter" or even the new "Executioner".
In the end, only about 5% of the residents are qualified as "citizens" of the Dark Principality.
Although they cannot be called nobles, at least they do not have as terrible tax debts as the "untouchables". They generally have about four or five slaves under their hands, which allows them to pass through the "slaves" without having to work personally. Earn the necessary money.
There are indeed precedents for "untouchables" to eventually become "citizens" of the principality, but they are still rare.
Most of those who became "citizens" of the Dark Principality were originally wealthy gentry or nobles from other countries, and most of them came from the "Norland Empire" and the "Golden Country Federation".
However, because they committed a serious crime or offended those in authority, they were aware of the disaster before it was imminent, so they packed up all the money they could take away, took with them as many relatives as they could, and fled their original country.
For this type of people, the Dark Principality is the most welcoming - as long as they pay 80% of the money and belongings they brought when they fled as tribute, the Principality can grant them the status of "citizens" in the name of the "Dark Duke" , and rewarded them with relatively healthy slaves.
They will not be assigned forced labor or forced military service. The 20% of their money they are allowed to retain can already allow them to live quite comfortably in the principality.
But the principality will also not give them real "power" - "Black Fang", "Hunter", "Executioner", "Executioner" and even "Chief Executioner" are all without exception. Standing out from war or bloody poison-raising training.
Money alone cannot impress the Dark Duke - those who have not undergone the baptism of blood are not qualified to ascend to high positions.
This is the Dark Principality, the most basic social stratification.
The same applies to the current situation at Caffrey Fort.
At this time, Albert's eyes were carefully browsing the entries about the residents of the fortress.
"..."
"Ariel Sigalia..."
Albert pointed to the name of a person listed at the top of the list of "citizens" on the cowhide file and said:
"I know this person."
"I remember that he should be a businessman from a large chamber of commerce in Songyuan City."
"——Sigalia Chamber of Commerce. They accumulated nearly 10 million imperial gold coins at that time, and used this as original capital to establish the 'Sigalia Bank'."
"'Sigalia Bank'...are they from the Golden Kingdom?" Luo Xiu asked casually.
"Yes." Albert nodded.
With a thoughtful and playful expression on his face, he said:
"I was just a 'Knight of the Throne' at that time, but I also have an impression of what they did at that time."
"The ambitions of the Bank of Sigalia expanded infinitely, until in the end, they even wanted to get involved in the military industry of Songyuan Territory and establish a military monopoly."
"..." Luo Xiu scratched his head.
He can probably imagine what the senior executives of Sigalia Bank thought and made such a decision——
Monopolizing the military industry of the entire territory will indeed bring immeasurable huge profits, but on the other hand, if there is no truly high-ranking person, that is, the "Lord of Songyuan Territory" Marquis Vizia Bakar, to endorse it, then what should be done well? Prepare to die violently.
Apparently, the Bank of Sigalia ended up violently dying——
"[Supreme] discovered their plot very early."
Albert then said, "After they conducted three arms transactions worth over one million gold coins, we officially wanted them, arrested them immediately, and confiscated their ill-gotten money."< br>
……really!
"But we did not arrest the founder of the 'Sigalia Bank'. It seemed that his informants were placed in the round table at that time."
Albert then said:
"He got the news in advance. The night before the knights of the Round Table entered his mansion, he escaped with his family. He seemed to be disguised as an ordinary merchant from the Kingdom of Gold who had just arrived in Songyuan City."
"At that time, the Round Table sent knights to hunt him down, but we never found any trace of his escape - he seemed to have already contacted all the relevant people on the escape route, as if he had already prepared for this day. Prepared.”
"..." "So," Luo Xiu also pointed to the name on the file and said, "The founder of Sigalia Bank is this 'Ariel Sigalia'?"
< br>
"...Yes." Albert nodded.
But his face was still calm, even calm, and he did not have any emotional fluctuations due to the discovery of this 'fugitive'.
After all, Albert was not involved in that case at that time. He only heard about the entire incident and its results from his colleagues.
"No offense intended."
Luo Xiu suddenly smiled and said:
"To be able to do such a thing from the hands of the [Supreme] and finally successfully escape from death, Mr. Ariel Sigalia is actually quite powerful."
"He is indeed quite powerful." Albert also said and nodded in agreement.
But then, he added:
"Because at that time, I was not the person responsible for arresting him."
"If it were me, I would never let him escape."
"..."
There is no mistake in every song, one post, one content, one 6 one, one book, one book, take a look!
Luo Xiu glanced at Albert, and saw the strong self-confidence and arrogance in his dark red eyes.
"Indeed."
I wanted to complain about something, but after thinking about it, I held it back. Luo Xiu echoed Albert and said something.
He continued:
"Caffrey Fortress has been put under martial law, and because the fortress was breached very quickly, it should be difficult for Mr. Ariel Sigalia to escape."
"I have issued an order to my priests and the [Supreme] Knights you entrusted to me. Until tomorrow, all the original residents of Caffrey Fortress are not allowed to go out. If anyone who violates the prohibition is found on the streets, All residents of Caffrey Fortress will be arrested.”
"You can go see this 'old friend' in a moment, Lord Albert. It may be in his mansion or in prison - but in any case, as someone who escaped to the Dark Principality early, We may know more from people who have successfully obtained 'citizenship' status."
Luo Xiu said this, and then he continued to show other compiled files to Albert.
Some trivial but unimportant files were quickly sorted into another pile and piled on a low table half-height next to it.
Because Luo Xiu always dealt with such complicated matters, it didn't take long for him and Albert to handle these files together.
After they finished processing these files, Luo Xiu showed Albert the large amount of money and rare treasures that Zaska had stored in the mansion.
It's just that these money or treasures are not very important to either Luo Xiu or Albert. Albert just took a rough look at them, estimated their approximate value in his heart, and put them away. On the side.
According to the previous agreement between Luo Xiu and Albert, most of these money and treasures will belong to the church, and Luo Xiu will distribute half of them to the "Saint Guardians" of the church to show their previous generosity. Reward for not being afraid of death, carrying and detonating the [Skull of the Martyr].
Naturally, Albert did not discover that in fact, a scroll of "ancient inheritance" had already been lost——
Albert's reaction seemed dull, which was also the result Luo Xiu was happy to see.
So he acted very indifferently, and just closed the thick lid of the last treasure box, letting the dazzling light emanating from it continue to sleep.
Later, he and Albert took away several files that should be classified as "top secret", and then walked out of Zaska's room with Albert, walked out of the official residence, and came to the courtyard.
When Luo Xiu and Albert arrived at the courtyard of the official residence, the corpses of the "Black Fangs" and "Hunted Heads" that had been lying here in a mess before had been cleaned up by the throne knights standing guard outside.
However, there are still traces of blood remaining in the courtyard, splashed on the flower beds, or twisted and smeared on the wall corridor. It seems that through these remaining traces, one can still guess what happened here before.
When they saw the "General" Albert of the side court and the "Bishop" Luo Xiu of the church walking out of the official residence, the three "Knights of the Throne" Haburgon, Shar and Ignaz immediately They came to them together and bowed respectfully to the two high-ranking people.
Luo Xiu smiled and nodded in response to their courtesy, while Albert just nodded lightly, and then ordered in a deep and deep voice:
"Haburgon, you can go in, clean up the unnecessary traces inside, take away the files left on the table in the innermost room, and dispose of those things that cannot be disclosed."
"Then, Ignaz. You go find the 'Knights of the Guard' patrolling nearby and prepare to confiscate the money and property in this mansion, as well as some equipment and props."
"Shar, you remain in the courtyard, watching for any possible peeks of remaining enemies nearby."
"After Ignaz leads the 'Knights of the Guard' to arrive, you select four 'Knights of the Guard' to continue standing guard. Then, go in with Ignatz and lead the rest of the 'Knights of the Guard', and take out the energy Everything to take away.”
"Understood."
"Knights of the Throne" Haburgon, Shar and Ignaz bowed at the same time, indicating that they had received and understood General Albert's order.
Then, following Albert's order, the three throne knights took action.
Albert and Luo Xiu left the courtyard of the official residence at the same time and went to the "side court" and "church" respectively.
There is nothing worth paying attention to in this official residence.
They should also return to their respective positions and make some necessary arrangements for the knights of the "side court" and the clergy of the "church" after entering the Caffrey Fortress.
……
Afterwards, after Albert and Luo Xiu returned to their respective stations and arranged for the side courts and church personnel to enter the Caffrey Fortress, Albert simultaneously sent people to investigate "Ariel Sigalia" , and as expected, this ancient financial tycoon is still hiding in the mansion of Caffrey Fortress.
And when the knights sent out by Albert finally found this "Ariel Sigalia", he was lying on a rather simple-looking hard bed, and there were various medicines on the bedside table and medicine under the bed. There was also a basin filled with bloody phlegm.
He was nearly eighty years old at this time and was seriously ill. He was half paralyzed and could no longer get out of bed.
Now Ariel Sigalia needs to rely on others to serve him for food, clothing, housing and transportation.
Although Ariel had already received the news of the Red Maple City expeditionary force's arrival through his channels, and had judged that the expeditionary force would break through the Caffrey Fortress sooner or later, he really didn't want to run away anymore.
It's not that he doesn't want to, but that he really can't run anymore——
According to reports from the knights who went to the Sigalia mansion at that time, when the knights discovered Ariel Sigalia, he was very cooperative and expressed his willingness to cooperate with the "side court" to take over the work of the Caffrey Fortress. Please don't put him in jail - his body and bones can no longer bear the pain.
Albert did not immediately respond to Ariel Sigalia's request. He just asked the knights to keep Ariel under strict supervision while he had to carry out more important work first.
……
until noon.
Main Street of Fortress Caffrey - In a synagogue diagonally opposite the original official residence, "Commander of the Expeditionary Force" Albert Perez, "Bishop" Rossiu Carlos, and "Great Master" Al Erfan and Eureka gathered here.
Also gathered here at the same time were all the "Triple Destiny" and above extraordinary beings in the expeditionary force, but this did not include players who had advanced to this level.
They gathered here to discuss and finally decide the direction after the "expedition"——
"Our ultimate goal is to capture the capital of our border territory - the deserted city, 'Fafnir City'."
Albert said first:
"We have taken the first step and captured the 'Kaffrey Fortress'."
"Next - we will go to and capture the first town since the expedition."
"——'Latama City'."
"This is our next goal of the expedition."
……
(End of chapter)