Imperial Crown

One hundred and thirty-seven war horses and three hundred and fifty-two pack horses.

This was the number of horses when Raven and his men left the Scorpion Nest, and the scale was even greater than when they came.

Before leaving, Raven piled up the fuel and food that he could not take away and set a big fire.

The soldiers set the fire step by step, and the gray dwarves joined in the fun.

The craziest ones were the women. They cursed and cried, and threw firewood into the fire with hatred, watching the castle slowly engulfed by the flames, with unspeakable complex emotions in their eyes.

This devil's cave that swallowed their chastity, youth and life finally disappeared in the flames.

When Raven and his men left, the entire Scorpion Nest had become a huge pile of fire.

Then, it collapsed with a loud bang, and the flying ashes and smoke covered the sky.

It can be imagined that no matter which group of horse thieves, it would be difficult to clean up this ruin.

The soldiers had gradually gotten used to life on horseback. The gray dwarves were tied to the horses, and since they were short, there was no need to worry about them falling off.

What surprised Raven the most were the women. They were very clumsy when they got on the horses, and it was obvious that they didn't know how to ride horses at all, but they always gritted their teeth and followed the large group. Even when they couldn't get off the horses when they set up camp at night, they never fell behind.

Under this premise, with Margaret's guidance, the time spent on the road was shorter than Raven expected. It took only eight days to get from the Scorpion Nest to the Rustwater Oasis.

There is a deep lake extending from the underground. The area is not very large. The bottom and walls of the lake are covered with reddish-brown algae unique to this place. From a distance, it looks like rust in the water, so it is named Rustwater Lake.

Raven decided to rest here for a day and make the final rest and replenishment before leaving the Bloody Highlands.

The leader of the Rustwater Oasis was named "Pugna", a retired horse thief. He heard that Heleti was defeated by Raven, so he collected Woz's body early and tidied his remains.

When Raven arrived, he immediately offered the body of the sacrificed scout and offered his own house to Raven for temporary residence.

Under Raven's arrangement, the soldiers camped beside the Rustwater Lake, and he took Simon, Bent and the witch to the tavern "Sand Fox House".

The environment of this tavern was unexpectedly good. Even in winter, there was not much dust and mud on the ground. The stove was burning, and the house was full of meat aroma.

A young man who looked to be sixteen or seventeen years old had his eyes rolling and huddled behind the counter. Next to him was a woman who looked to be about thirty years old.

The woman had chestnut hair and high cheekbones, and obviously had the blood of the Insa Empire. Although her skin was a little rough, she was already a rare beauty in the harsh environment of the Bloody Highlands.

"Would you like to drink or stay?" The woman asked with a warm smile.

Raven ignored the female boss because he had heard the heavy breathing of Simon and Bent.

The Eye of Truth swept across the room, and Raven sat down at the table and said lightly: "You can handle it yourself."

Margaret laughed in a low voice: "Leave the woman to me."

This looks like the villain in the story.

Simon and Bent both took off their hoods, drew their swords and rushed forward. There was no loud condemnation in the knight novels, but the murderous intent in their steps and eyes had already explained their intentions.

The woman's face suddenly turned pale: "Someone is making trouble--"

For a moment, four drinkers who seemed to be drinking stood up and surrounded them. They were wearing thick fur armor, with thick hair and beards, and steady steps. They formed an encirclement in a few steps.

However, this could not stop the angry soldiers.

Simon strode forward, and under the impetus of the stormy fighting spirit, his speed was far beyond the comprehension of ordinary people. While brushing past a big man, the long sword in his hand had already cut open the opponent's throat.

Blood gushed out and the body fell to the ground.

War is the best teacher.

After the tempering of war, Simon has begun to understand how to achieve the greatest results with the least force.

"Extraordinary--!?" A cry of surprise sounded in the tavern.

The remaining three thugs were stunned, but Bent did not stop. If there is anything he learned during this time in the Bloody Highlands, it is--

Don't be soft on anyone on the Bloody Highlands.

He held the long sword with both hands and thrust forward suddenly. The long sword pierced into the heart of a thug, and blood flew out.

The thug was so pale with pain, but perhaps because the armor on his chest was thick enough, or perhaps because his muscles were strong enough, he did not die for a while, but reached out to grab the sword under the effect of adrenaline!

Bent would not give him this chance. With a roar, he slammed his knees against the hilt of the sword. With a "puff", the long sword pierced the chest of the thug, causing blood to spurt out of his mouth and nostrils, and then he fell softly to the ground.

The blood was steaming hot. Seeing this, the remaining two thugs looked at each other, dropped their weapons at the same time, and slowly retreated.

On the other side, the boy who looked to be sixteen or seventeen years old saw Simon coming, pushed the woman towards Simon, and went to the back door himself.

Simon's green fighting spirit flashed, and he let the woman pass, took two steps forward and grabbed the boy's collar.

The boy gritted his teeth, turned around and swept, and a dagger appeared in his hand at some point, and rushed straight to Simon's throat with a sound of breaking through the air.

If it were an ordinary horse thief on the bloody highlands, this attack would almost certainly hit.

But Simon was not ordinary.

He raised his left hand and grabbed the opponent's wrist and twisted it, and the dagger fell to the ground with a clang. Then he held the hilt of the sword with his right hand and hit the opponent's waist fiercely. The severe pain and numbness made the boy collapse.

Panting, Simon pulled the man back to the counter and pressed his body to kneel on the ground.

The boy panted heavily: "Who... are you!?"

Although Raven and others' team was large, they did not raise a flag, and Simon and others were cruising outside, so their whereabouts had never been exposed.

Simon said nothing and glanced at Bent, who rubbed his aching knees and limped out of the door. Soon, he walked in dragging a frozen corpse.

The moment he saw the corpse, the pupils of the boy suddenly contracted: "This... is, it's you! I remember...!"

Before he finished speaking, he was pressed on the bloody ground, face to face with Woz's corpse.

The stiff face made him feel extremely scared, and his desire to survive burst out:

"You can't kill me... You can't kill me! Aren't you the army of the Empire? I'm a civilian, a civilian!"

"But you are not a civilian of the Empire, nor are you my subject." Raven finally spoke.

"You must be the Baron!" The boy struggled: "I... I'm still useful, I grew up in the Bloody Highlands, I know this place!"

"The Bloody Highlands will devour the weak, this man died in my hands, he is not worthy of being your soldier, and I will definitely be more qualified than him!"

Simon clenched his teeth tightly, and the strength in his hands increased a little more.

"The Bloody Highlands will devour the weak." Raven muttered this sentence and nodded slowly: "Well said."

"So, you died here, doesn't it fit this sentence?"

After speaking, Raven stood up and walked out.

He followed to avoid accidents. Now that the matter has been resolved, there is no need to stay.

Looking at Raven's back, the boy cried out in despair: "Lord Baron...Lord Baron——"

With a bang, Simon punched the boy's head to the ground, crushing his mouth.

Then he drew out his long sword and slowly inserted it along the back of his neck!

The sword pierced from the back of his neck and came out from his throat, blood splashed, and bubbles with blood foam kept gushing out of the boy's mouth.

Bent stepped forward, wielding his long sword with both hands and falling like a guillotine.

With a clang, the blade fell to the ground and a gap was broken, and the boy's head rolled out.

The blood fell on Woz's stiff face, as if revealing a smile.

Simon slowly drew his sword and raised his head, his eyes swept over the remaining drinkers in the room, these people suddenly panicked, and one by one carefully left along the wall.

Margaret stepped over the corpse on the ground, her robe stained with blood, grabbed the woman's hair on the ground and dragged it on the ground, step by step up the stairs.

Strangely enough, the woman was lying on the ground pretending to be dead, but the moment she was pulled up by Margaret, she began to shout and scream.

"No-no!!!"

Because she saw the face under Margaret's burqa.

A trace of black air leaked out from Margaret's fingers and enveloped the woman's face, making her silent.

"Don't let anyone come up."

That night, Raven lived in a two-story building next to the Rustwater Oasis.

If it weren't for the fact that this was a bloody highland, the scenery here was actually quite good. In the near distance was the Rustwater Lake with slightly hot steam rising, and in the distance was a vast expanse of white land, which made people feel quite open at a glance.

Creak, creak, creak...

Footsteps sounded, the door opened, and the female owner of the tavern appeared in front of Raven.

She seemed to have washed and dressed up carefully. Her skin became whiter and more delicate than before, and her figure became more curvy. Her eyes were filled with tenderness like water: "Jianka, meet the Baron."

Raven just glanced at her: "Speak nicely."

"Baron, don't you like my new body?" Jianka, or Margaret, twisted her waist and walked forward. She was so charming that she could win a large number of fans even in Mon'en City.

"Stop." Raven said in an imperative tone: "If you want a man, go find one outside. Don't come to me, and don't provoke my soldiers!"

This skin is indeed good, but who made Raven see her original appearance? No matter how beautiful she becomes, Raven will not be tempted at all.

This reminded Raven of the legends about monsters in his previous life. The original body of White Snake, the python, at least looks clean, and it is reasonable that Xu Xian has courage.

But how could the seniors kill those female monsters whose true forms were foxes, dogs, and even deer?

At this moment, Margaret suddenly trembled, and she unconsciously retreated to the corner of the room.

Through the connection between the two, Raven felt Margaret's fear from the bottom of her heart, just like a mouse seeing a cat.

The door opened, and Volaf walked in: "Baron, there is a woman who wants to see you."

Raven glanced at Margaret, and a trace of curiosity rose in his heart: "Let her in."

Volaf retreated, and soon a figure shrouded in a silver robe walked in gracefully.

At this moment, Raven opened the Eye of Truth.

…