Early the next morning, Naven Besarius once again embarked on a long journey to visit the Ember Empire.
Due to the intensification of the war, the long border between the Kingdom of Cassander and the Kingdom of Thrace was full of wars, and this mission was particularly difficult.
As for why not use teleportation?
After their many attempts, the space in the Burning Ember Empire seemed to have a layer of confinement that was difficult to break through.
Because of the war, the Thracian Kingdom was full of interference spells, and there were even many cases where the teleportation results of mages were torn into pieces by space cracks.
Due to Otis's arrogance, this time he could not go with the envoys in a big way like last time. He could only go secretly, with only two personal guards.
In the carriage, Naven felt uneasy.
"Hopefully it will work this time."
"If we can win the assistance of the Ember Empire, maybe His Majesty Otis can really unify Fadland and rebuild the glory of the empire."
He turned his head to look at the increasingly distant Holy City behind him, looked up at the towering "Tower of the Eternal Sun God", and thought in his heart.
The carriage sped along the road.
After passing a post station, he was replaced by a mule with excellent endurance.
And he himself put on inconspicuous cloth clothes and pretended to be an ordinary businessman.
In the next more than a month, Naven will pass through the dwarf kingdom in the northeast, pass through the long Mir Valley, and first go to the Katpa Hills area that is now under the jurisdiction of the empire.
Immediately afterwards, he will go north into the Anzeta Corridor and head to the remote and remote Anzeta Wilderness—that is, the mainland of the Burning Ember Kingdom.
One month later, in the middle of the Anzeta Wilderness, on the outskirts of Istalia.
Naven held the mule and slowly took off his hood.
"This"
"How is it possible?"
He looked at the spectacular buildings in the distance, at the tall and thick chimneys, at the thick smoke rising in the city, and couldn't help but rub his eyes.
Is he dreaming?
Naven is not simply disbelieving because of the size of the city. If we talk about these alone, he is very confident that no city can compare with the "Sunlight City" Teotihuacan.
What made him incredible was the speed of empire building.
You must know that only a few months have passed since his last visit, and at that time Istalia was still only the prototype of a city.
But now, this place is more spectacular than many century-old cities in Cassander. Even if it is placed in the once holy Fadlan, it will not be lost to the public.
He rubbed his eyes again.
It wasn't until he saw pedestrians walking from a distance that he confirmed that this newly built city was not an illusion, but actually existed there.
"Amauna Tower is up there."
"This young and unfamiliar empire is more terrifying than I imagined."
Naven couldn't help but pray secretly, feeling a little panicked by all this.
He didn't know how the Ember Empire did it, nor why they had such terrifying mobilization and construction capabilities, but he knew one thing - the Kingdom of Cassander must pay attention.
Of course, Naven didn't know that the Burning Ember Empire now has nearly 200,000 high-quality laborers who are not tired and are not afraid of death.
Although these guys caused a lot of chaos, they did bring a qualitative leap to the empire's productivity.
Nowadays, building houses from ashes has become the only way for newbies to earn gold coins and contribute to the camp. It can be called a "newbie guidance task" with the characteristics of Burning Ember Empire, and the newbies are also given a kind name - -oxen and horses.
Unique landmark buildings such as the Imperial Council Hall, Ember Ordnance Hall, Istalia Arena, and Imperial Bank Building were basically built with the joint efforts of players and the Imperial construction team.
In the distance, tiefling guards lined up in neat lines and marched in, holding new bayonet rifles in their hands.
"Sure enough, it's that kind of weapon."
"The standard short stick is very similar to the one in the hands of the Thracian army."
Naven thought this way as he looked at the firearms in the hands of the tieflings.
But watching the tiefling guards approaching, getting closer and closer to him.
"It is better to observe the situation in the city first, and then complete the tasks assigned by His Majesty."
"If they really become allies with Thrace."
Naven put on his hood, lowered his head, and walked silently while leading the mule. He felt a little uneasy and prayed that the tieflings did not notice anything strange about him.
"Stop."
The tiefling guard captain said.
Naven quickly tightened his hood, pretending to be nonchalant, and wanted to pass by.
But the tiefling guards stopped him with their gleaming bayonets crossed.
"Sir, I'm just a passing merchant. If you..." Naven wanted to reach out and take out some money.
But the tiefling guard captain took out a piece of parchment with gilded text.
"You must be His Excellency Naven Besarius."
"Please come with me. The great Ember Emperor has already foreseen the arrival of Cassander's envoy. His Majesty has been waiting for you for a long time."
"What?"
Naven was suddenly shocked.
His visit was a secret one and was not disclosed to any outsiders, but the emperor already knew about it.
Could it be that he really has the power to know everything and predict the future, as the rumors in the Ember Empire say?
"Please follow me."
The tiefling urged again.
With great anxiety, Naven led the mule and entered the city under the guard of the tiefling patrol.
The city is full of people coming and going in a hurry, and there are many players wearing strange clothes.
A group of heavily armed soldiers.
A mule.
A humble businessman.
This combination is indeed a bit strange.
As Naven walked, he looked at the buildings of different styles on both sides of the road.
But when they saw that it was the Imperial Guard performing official duties, most passers-by just looked at it a few more times and went about their own business. After all, obstructing official duties is a serious crime.
"What does that NPC do?"
"I don't know, the person who can be caught by the Imperial Guard is probably a big shot."
"It's not a spy from the south, is it?"
"Last time, I caught a remnant from the North. It is said that he died not long after he was captured."
"There won't be any hidden missions, right?"
"Don't worry, you won't do anything for us. If you have time, you might as well move more bricks. It's not easy to earn gold coins now. The mining task seems to have been replaced by skeletons."
The players talked nonchalantly, but did not dare to approach, but their words made Naven quite embarrassed.
Suddenly, the whistle sounded, attracting his attention.
"Woo——Woo——"
"We have arrived at Beifengbao Road Station, and the next stop is - the Seventh Military Factory of the Empire."
"Passengers please get off first and get on first. Don't crowd and queue up to enter."
Under Naven's surprised gaze, the "monster" made of steel drove over from the track, spewing out clouds of gray-white smoke from the pipe at the top.
But those people waiting on the roadside have long been accustomed to this. They just yawned, waiting for the people on the bus to get off, and then lined up to enter amidst the shouts of the flight attendants.
"Citizens! Please pay attention to order!"
Sheriffs riding dragons would fly past in the sky from time to time, but people were not surprised and just whispered.
Some players are still discussing topics such as "This bastard fined me fifty copper coins last time" and "He's the son of a bitch again".
Several ogres wearing oversized tuxedos walked towards me on the street. Their belly bulged out the shirts underneath, and even the buttons were about to fall off.
The leader also held a gentleman's staff in his hand and wore a pair of silver-rimmed glasses. He looked quite "aristocratic."
"Isn't this Lord Big Head?"
"Good day, Viscount Big Head."
"Have a good appetite today."
People were not afraid, they just greeted them respectfully, some even came forward to flatter them, and the ogre nodded in response.
There are many similar scenes.
"This city."
"It's so weird, it's different from anywhere I've been before."
Naven Besarius looked around at the bizarre scene and couldn't help but think like this. (End of chapter)