Imperial Crown

Anthony's mount was a half-demon warhorse with 1/4 eye demon bloodline - God knows how the royal magician put together two completely different creatures.

The floating characteristics of the eye demon can allow the warhorse to offset part of its own weight and run very fast.

Although it barely maintains the shape of a horse, once it gallops at full speed, you can see that the high-raised tail mane is not hair, but dense fleshy tentacles.

Thanks to this good horse, Akori set out in the afternoon and galloped to Raven's territory in the evening of the next day.

Although he didn't know the content of the letter, Anthony asked him to deliver the letter to Raven and get a reply as soon as possible.

No matter what Raven asked, he could agree to it first.

Anthony's serious attitude made Akori realize the urgency of the matter.

But just after entering the Holo Territory that originally belonged to Baron Shufu, Akori had to slow down.

He was stopped by the Eagle Eye Guard and taken to the castle of Holo Territory.

When he came to the reception room, he saw a man with a noble temperament, and the red bow tie was particularly conspicuous.

Akori was about to take off his hat, but the man showed a warm smile and bowed:

"I am Koulu, the political officer of Holo, welcome to you."

Unexpectedly, this man did not even have the title of knight. Akori immediately stopped what he was doing and got straight to the point: "I have a handwritten letter from the governor to deliver to Baron Raven. Please send someone to take me there immediately."

"Oh, so that's the case." Koulu maintained a smile: "You can give me this letter, and I will send someone to forward it immediately."

Akori raised his voice slightly: "I said that it needs to be handed over to Baron Raven in person, don't you understand?"

"This... I'm really sorry." Koulu rubbed his hands: "It's not that I don't want you to go, but the baron is preparing to go to the Principality of Eivor, and there are many nobles from the five northwestern counties who are waiting for orders in Eagle City."

"...So what?"

"So , in order to prevent spies from the Principality of Eivor or other dangerous people from sneaking into Eagle City and creating chaos, all nobles who are not from the five northwestern counties must be examined before going to Eagle City. "

"I am here on behalf of Governor Anthony!" Akori took out the letter with Anthony's seal: "Does this need to be examined? Do you think that Governor Anthony will be unfavorable to Baron Raven?"

Looking at the seal that was almost hitting his face, Koru still maintained a smile:

"Of course not, but rules are rules. You are a baron, so don't make things difficult for servants like us."

"I will send someone to deliver the message immediately. If there is no problem, I can give you a permit to go to Eagle City in 3 days at most."

If Anthony knew what happened here, he would definitely pull Akori's ears and scold him, telling him not to care about Koru's words and rush out to Eagle City.

Unfortunately, Anthony is not here, and Akori was warned by Anthony not to do anything to provoke Raven.

Faced with this move that could be seen at a glance as a delay, Akori was not without a solution. He stared into Koulu's eyes:

"I hope this can be done quickly, and in order to improve efficiency, if you don't get permission for one day, I will keep an eye on you for one day - not leaving your side."

A trace of panic flashed in Koulu's eyes, and then he nodded: "I understand."

That night, Akori stayed in the castle, and was very confident that he would see Raven tomorrow.

Although he didn't understand why Koulu wanted to stop him, it must be at Raven's instruction.

Every government official's actions involved the secrets of Raven's territory.

If he didn't want to be seen by him, Raven would have to let him into Eagle City.

But he miscalculated.

The next morning, before dawn, someone knocked on his door and told him that Koulu had started working.

In order to fulfill his promise, Akori had to put on his armor and follow Koulu.

He followed for three days.

During these three days, Koulu had lost all the panic he had shown before, and he did not avoid Akori. Everything he did was clearly displayed in front of Akori.

Holo Territory was running at full speed, and Koulu was tireless like a dummy.

He got up on time at 4 o'clock every morning, and the first thing he would do was to check how much supplies were shipped out of the warehouse yesterday and how much was left, and then he would immediately arrange the escort for the day.

At 6 o'clock, Koulu casually stuffed two pieces of bread and drank a glass of milk for breakfast, and then he would pick up the awl to personally check the grain shipped out of the warehouse, distinguishing between new grain and old grain to prevent his subordinates from filling the numbers.

8 o'clock to 12 o'clock is the time to handle official documents. Not only do you have to report and communicate with the Eagle City, but you also have to deal with big and small problems in the territory.

12 o'clock to 13 o'clock is Koulu's rare rest time in the day. He will sit down to have a lunch, but even so, there will be a clerk beside him to report the situation-it is said that this is a precedent created by Baron Raven.

From 13:00 to 17:00, Koulu will meet the troops coming from the five northwestern counties.

As the date set by Raven approaches, more and more soldiers arrive and need to enter the Eagle Territory in batches, so Koulu will allocate a temporary station for them here and clarify the time of entry.

From 17:00 to 21:00, cocktail party.

The knights representing the nobles of the five northwest counties will gather here, and Koru will not be absent. He calms everyone's emotions very well and makes all the knights feel at home, but he will never tell any useful information.

From 21 to 23 o'clock, when Kolu was alone, Akori arrived, and he and Akori were in the same room.

However, there will be little communication between the two. Koulu will make a brief summary of his whole day's itinerary and sort out the pros and cons. After doing this, he will take out a book "On War" published in 931 to study.

23:00 - 4:00 the next day, rest time.

Then continue to repeat the previous day's itinerary.

On the morning of the fourth day, Akori was able to wake up at 4 o'clock without being called.

He was so tormented by Kolu's routine that he almost forgot his purpose.

Meeting with Kolu at the gate of the castle, the noble political officer straightened his red tie and handed a wooden token in both hands: "Baron Acre, you can already go to Eagle City."

Akori didn't even react at first.

After being stunned for a while, he caught the sign and turned to leave, but couldn't help but said: "Mr. Kolu, I have a question to ask you."

"In the past three days, I have seen a lot - your self-discipline, your ability, and your responsibility."

"But even so, you haven't received any title. What drives you to do this?"

"Don't you think that the reward given to you by Baron Raven is not worth this kind of effort?"

Kolu didn't expect Akori to ask such a question. He thought about it carefully, then looked into Akori's eyes and said seriously:

"No, I don't think so at all."

"This may be difficult for you to understand, but Baron Akori, in Nord Province, hard work does not lead to rewards."

"You think I'm having a hard time, that's because you've been with me these past few days, and you only have these few days with me."

Speaking of this, Kolu wanted to stop several times, but maybe because he saw Akori's confusion, or maybe he really needed to express his feelings, he continued:

“If you look at my entire life, you might come to a completely different conclusion.”

"My father was a freeman and my mother was a serf."

"You know, the empire has a bad habit called the 'right of first night', and our lord at that time liked to exercise this kind of power."

"And through that power, he set his sights on my mother."

"So before my mother got old and beautiful, she suffered a lot - and I, who inherited her appearance, suffered a lot too."

Akori looked unbearable: "I'm sorry, I..."

"Please let me finish." Koru interrupted Akori, "Since I was young, I have always hoped to change the situation of my family through my own efforts."

"I only sleep 3 hours a day, studying imperial laws and various books that I am not interested in at all; I will use willow branches and wet rags to simulate the touch of parchment to practice calligraphy."

"At the age of 11, I was able to help my lord with official documents."

"But my lord still calls me into his chambers—sometimes with my mother."

Having said this, Koru breathed a sigh of relief: "Sorry, I digressed. Let's go back to your original question."

"I don't think Lord Raven has done me any wrong."

"He didn't care about my past or my origin, and he entrusted Holorland to me."

"All my actions are based on my personal habits and my gratitude to the lord."

"Are you satisfied with this answer?"

Akori didn't know how to answer. If these words came from a stranger, he would laugh them off. But after spending three days together and getting to know Kolu better, the answer seemed extremely heavy.

So he simply didn't answer, got up, mounted his horse, and drove towards Eagle City.

Akori thought that since he arrived at Eagle City, he would not encounter any more trouble and the letter could be delivered to Raven's hands smoothly.

But it was old Gordon who received him.

Old Gordon said that the Baron is currently inspecting Xuefeng Territory to ensure the supply of military supplies for the army.

This is purely an excuse - if the military supply needs to be reviewed at this time, then Raven should not send troops at all.

At this time, Akori was a little annoyed, knowing that he had been tricked by Raven.

But now that the deal is done, Akori will not follow Raven foolishly.

Xue Feng’s leadership is not small. Maybe when he rushes over, Raven will have gone somewhere else.

So he decided to follow the previous strategy.

He proposed to go to the Riverside Workshop to have a look, and made up his mind that if old Gordon didn't agree, he would force his way in.

This method failed to work on Koru's side because Koru was responsible for peripheral matters after all, and the Riverside Workshop contained Raven's real secrets.

Old Gordon actually allowed his actions.

And he thoughtfully arranged for him to have Fili, the administrative officer of Goldsmith Town, as his guide.

In the afternoon of the same day, Fili picked up Akori, got on the carriage and headed to the riverside workshop.

"Actually, the factory is very boring, Baron Acre."

There was an unconcealable look of fatigue on Fili's face, and dark circles had appeared in his eyes. He tried hard not to yawn in front of Akori:

"The things they do are simply witchcraft, and no one can understand it."

Looking at Fili's face, Akori couldn't help but ask: "Are you tired?"

Fearing that he might accidentally offend the other party, Fili quickly said: "No, I'm not tired. Being able to sit in the same carriage with you is simply more enjoyable than drinking angel tears. How can I be tired?"

As he spoke, he forced out a smile.

Looking at the smile that was uglier than crying, Akori sighed and turned to look out the window without any intention of continuing to ask.

Feili breathed a sigh of relief.

To be honest, it is really a chore to receive a baron, especially a baron who represents the governor.

Just dealing with various things recently was enough to make him exhausted.

Although the Gold Town controlled by Fili is not as big as Korlu's Holorland, and there is no need to worry about food problems, the pressure brought by the war is also a lot.

The soldiers in the five northwest counties are not as well-trained as the Eagle Army. They flock to Goldsmith Town to have fun, which will inevitably cause all kinds of trouble and commotion.

Most of these will be sent to his desk.

Big soldiers are nothing, but the families behind them are more troublesome than the last. In order to deal with these things, Fili racked his brains.

You can't deal with it harshly, but you can't let it go lightly either, and you must try your best to avoid troubling the Baron.

Every time he dealt with something, it would make him tired for a long time.

Things outside are difficult to deal with, and things at home are not easy to deal with either.

His three sons were all eager to prepare their own weapons and join the army.

Indeed, you can get meritorious service by joining the army. Maybe after this trip, Fili can be the father of a knight.

But in a war, there are no immortals.

Fili didn't think his son was that lucky. Others would die, but not them.

After a lesson with the whip, the second child and the third child were able to calm down, but the boss still had his neck stiffened and refused to accept it...

The carriage stopped, and Feili came to his senses, glanced out the window and said:

"Baron Acre, this is the Riverside Workshop. Even though it's a bit gray now, it was still very beautiful when it was first built."

After getting off the carriage with Acre, Fili watched the suspension bridge lowered, the workshop door opened, and Poirot was already waiting there with his people.

"Where is the person in charge of the factory? Why didn't he come out to see me?" Akori asked with a frown.

"It's me, Baron Acre." Poirot stepped forward and saluted: "I am the person in charge here."

It's no wonder that Acre couldn't recognize him. Whoever it was, wouldn't have thought he was the supervisor when they saw the current Poirot for the first time.

Ever since Raven gave the order to prepare for the war, Poirot has been staying in the riverside workshop and has never returned home.

Since the entire workshop was working hard to produce "cleaning oil", Poirot had to be extremely alert at all times and inspect every workshop for fear of making any mistakes.

This kind of thing is difficult to extinguish if exposed to open flames and has to be covered with sand. If not handled properly, it may cause a fire or even an explosion.

Even with Poirot's intensive inspections, two accidents occurred during this period. Fortunately, they were handled properly and they did not lead to major disasters.

Poirot was so busy that his naps were divided into three, so let alone taking care of his appearance, he even wiped his face after receiving the notice.

His hair was mixed with large and small pieces of dandruff that looked like snowflakes, his stubble was thick and messy, and he smelled of sweat.

"Um..." Akori hesitated, almost thinking that this was a disguise that Raven had specially made to keep him out.

What a vicious method!

But even after he came, Akori would not back down. He just sniffed and said:

"Lead the way."

But just like Fili said before, there is really nothing to see in the workshop.

Every workshop looked dark, with large piles of sand piled at the door, said to be used to extinguish fires.

In the workshop, there were alchemy tables one after another, the flames were blazing and it was extremely stuffy.

It's obviously early spring, but after walking around for a while, sweat will soak through your clothes and stick your hair to your forehead.

But what makes Acre strange is that Poirot, the "responsible person", is exhausted, but the workers are full of energy and there is no flaw in their movements.

Moreover, whenever he asked questions, Poirot's responses were very slow and his sentences were even briefer, as if he was afraid that others would understand him.

Fili would add a few words from time to time, but he always missed the point.

Coming out of the workroom, Akori's face was gloomy: "Isn't this the way to treat guests?"

"When I came to Eagle City, it didn't matter if I didn't see Baron Raven. He didn't have to let me in."

"But since he allowed it, why did he send an outsider to fool me?"

Feili felt excited.

When he received the order, Old Gordon personally reminded him that the core secrets, such as the formula for Angel Tears, could not be given, but other requirements should be fulfilled as much as possible if possible, and even if they were not possible, they had to be fulfilled.

Just can't let Akori pick any problems.

After all, Akori represents Governor Anthony. Lord Raven is inconvenient to meet because of something, and deliberately obstructing him. Although the result is the same, the meaning is completely different.

"Where did you start talking about this?" Fili forced a smile and said: "Baron Acre, if you don't believe it, you can ask someone. Fili has been in charge of the riverside workshop for 5 or 6 years. Everyone knows this!”

Akori said angrily: "What a joke! Is there a person in charge in this world who doesn't know anything? Call him out quickly, or let Raven explain to me personally."

"Otherwise, I will demolish this factory!"

Upon hearing this, Fili suddenly broke out in cold sweat on his forehead.

If Akori really demolished the factory, he would be guilty of a big crime!

"Sorry, Baron Acre, maybe my actions have caused you to misunderstand." Poirot showed great calmness and apologized respectfully: "But we did not deceive you."

This sentence actually made Acre calm down a little. With Poirot's calm attitude, he didn't look like a liar.

"Then why are you so distracted? Still ignorant of all the questions? The workers are full of energy, but you are so tired!"

Poirot heard this and said: "My lord, because I am really the person in charge of this factory."

"Workers have the energy to work because it is a dangerous job and they must be given a good rest, otherwise major accidents will occur."

"And I don't need to do it myself, I just need to keep an eye on the standards, so no matter how tired I am, I have to push forward."

"As for the slight to you, I didn't originally want it. There are some things that I can't say, and there are some things that are simply because I am too tired. If you want to punish me, please just punish me."

Acre glanced at Poirot, who couldn't pretend to be tired, and then at Fili, who was trying hard to force a smile.

Then, he thought about Kolu who was spinning around and only sleeping 5 hours a day.

A question arises in my heart:

"Don't you who serve Griffith know how tired you are?"

"That's war, Lord Acre." Fili and Poirot answered almost at the same time.

The two looked at each other, and it was Fili who spoke first: "This will be a big war. Facing the war in the principality of Eivor, everyone on the front line, whether knights or soldiers, will face life-threatening danger. We You must devote all your energy to preparation.”

Poirot said: "I don't know that much, but I know what I am doing. Many of the soldiers in the army are children who I watched grow up. I will work harder here and get more kerosene. They have a better chance of coming back alive."

Akori fell silent, turned and left without saying a word.

In the next few days, Raven still did not return to Eagle City, and Akori stopped making any requests and just waited silently.

On March 30, Raven finally came back and met Akori for the first time.

"Baron Raven, this is a letter sent to you by the Governor." Putting the letter on Raven's desk with both hands, Akori calmly sat back in his seat.

Taking it, Raven put the letter under his arm: "I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting for so long because of worldly affairs."

Akori shook his head: "It's my turn to say sorry. If I didn't come, you would have saved yourself a lot of trouble."

These words have a hint of gunpowder.

Raven smiled slightly awkwardly, but did not speak.

He left Akori dry for more than 10 days, and it was time for someone to vent his anger.

But Akori was not angry, but asked:

"Where does your confidence to win come from?"

During this time, Akori slowly figured it out.

Anthony sent him here simply because he wanted Raven to give up the war against the Principality of Eivor. Akori originally thought that there was room for discussion in this.

But during this period of experience, from Koru to Fili, and then from Fili to Poirot, Akori felt the atmosphere of war that permeated Raven's territory.

This made Akori realize that Raven was really determined to attack Eivor, and it was not just a show.

Raven's avoidance itself is a response to Anthony, and it is also the best way to respond.

Because any direct answer, as long as it does not agree to give up the war, will make the two of them break up.

Presumably it was because he was aware of this that Anthony, who had not received a reply for a long time, did not send anyone over to speed up the progress.

That's why Akori asked this question - purely out of his own curiosity.

Raven smiled: "There is no war in the world whose outcome can be determined without starting."

"However, you can follow me to the Principality of Eivor."

"Maybe you can find your own answer."

"This is what the Governor would like to see, isn't it?"

Akori frowned: "When will we set off?"

"On April 1, I don't plan to change."

"……good."

Looking at Akori's leaving figure, Raven smiled.

In fact, Raven didn't know if Anthony would let Akori stay.

Although this can keep an eye on him, if Raven were Anthony, he would not do this.

Akori is too famous. If he stays, the outside world will think that Anthony also supports Raven.

But Raven needs Akori to stay.

Not only did he want to give the outside world such an impression, but it was also because Akori, as a third-level powerhouse who had awakened his martial soul, could have miraculous effects on the battlefield.

Thinking of this, Raven took Anthony's letter in his hand.

After staring for a while, he stuffed it into a drawer full of expired letterheads.

…