Sword of Dawn

Chapter 0157 New Age Armed and Alternative Missionaries

After several days of design, improvement and trial production, Rebecca excitedly sent the first set of heat ray guns and combat backpacks with actual combat performance to Gao Wen.

"This is the result!" Miss Viscount was full of pride, she seemed very satisfied with her result, "Have a look?"

Gawain looked at the things Rebecca brought - the first thing that caught his eye was the silver-white gauntlet. Compared with the rough and primitive "prototype machine", the finished thermal energy ray gun looked closer. The shape of Gao Wen's brain is more in line with human aesthetics. It is shaped like an expanded and thickened plate armor arm. The upper part of the arm guard can see the ellipsoidal expansion, which is to accommodate the magic capacitor and the scorching ray substrate. place, and the lower part of the arm guard is used to adjust the tightness and the buckle to fix the body.

In addition, its magic capacitor and rune substrate are also designed to be detachable to ensure that the energy crystal or core magic unit can be replaced at any time.

Compared with the prototype, it has an aiming mechanism added to the front end, and the metal wire and finger cot used to activate the rune trigger have also been replaced with a more reliable and sturdy grip. The safety is linked with the grip. When the safety is locked Down, the grip will also be retracted to the lower part of the gauntlet, so that it will not affect the soldier's normal combat movements.

According to Rebecca, after adjusting the internal runes and refining the quartz pillar, its effective range has finally been increased to 340 meters to 370 meters (there is still room for optimization), and its accuracy and power are also certain. The degree of increase——as the world's first "long-range firearm", its range and power surpassed the early muskets on Earth, but Gawain knew very well that this was because it was born in a world with magic power. The blessing of the power makes many weapons in this world ridiculously powerful. If the thermal energy ray gun can't reflect the advantages in this aspect, then there is no need for it to be born.

After all, the early muskets on the earth had to deal with earthlings wearing ordinary metal armor, while the heat ray guns here had to deal with not only ordinary soldiers, but also superhumans wearing enchanted equipment and even supporting energy shields...

Then, his eyes fell on the "combat backpack" brought by Rebecca.

From the appearance, it looks like a strangely shaped hard "school bag", or luggage. The outer leather is made of cowhide, and the inner should be lined with a metal frame and metal plate, so it looks hard and crisp. The buckle can obviously be fixed on the outside of the soldier's armor, and the cuboid backpack is divided into upper and lower parts. Gawain was a little puzzled about this.

"The upper one is a normal backpack," Rebecca explained, "it can be used as a marching bag, with dry food, water bags, flint, ointment and other things in it, and the lower backpack is for crystals. Look, the backpack When you put it on, the lower part is just at the back waist, and you can reach it by stretching your hand back. You can take out the spare crystal from the opening on the side—the crystal is sandwiched by two metal plates, arranged in order inside, and taken out After one piece, put the exhausted crystals in from the other end of the backpack, and then push them out one by one. I stuffed twelve magic mesh units into the whole backpack, theoretically, it can charge 12 yuan crystals at the same time, No matter how much it is, it can still be stuffed...but the charging efficiency is too low, and soldiers should not be able to use up so much energy in one battle."

Gawain looked at the combat backpack designed by Rebecca, and suddenly his heart moved: "Have you thought of other functions of this backpack?"

"Other functions?" Rebecca scratched her hair, and didn't turn around all of a sudden, "Do you mean to add a strong strap to it, so that it can be thrown out to hit people? Then its weight will have to be..."

"Don't be so straight-minded, what if someone suspects it's heredity?" Gawain covered his forehead with one hand, "Didn't you realize that when a lot of crystals are stuffed into this backpack, it can be regarded as a huge Is your magic capacitor gone?"

Rebecca was taken aback when she heard the words, and came out after a while: "That's right! You can still look at it like this!"

Immediately afterwards, she became excited: "Doesn't that mean that if this backpack is used to directly supply energy, it can carry larger magic?!"

"Such a large volume cannot be wasted," Gawain looked at the combat backpack, "In addition to storing crystals and providing magic power for soldiers on the battlefield, it can also integrate some array substrates into it. Think about it, if we What about installing a magic shield on it? Or what about installing a breeze shield for filtering poisonous gas? Or, we engrave a magic circle on the armor of the soldier to enhance defense and physical strength, and then leave a The external magic interface, after the backpack is connected to the armor, every soldier is equivalent to following an army priest who constantly releases enhanced spells for them 24 hours a day... and the energy consumption of these basic spells is very low. As far as the backpack of the two magic mesh units is concerned, it will not affect its charging speed at all. Or it will affect it a little...but it is quite worthwhile for the overall income."

The more Rebecca listened, the more surprised she became, and at the end she couldn't help opening her mouth wide: "Master Zu, why do you think every one of your thoughts is so touching!?"

Gao Wen smiled, and his face was as solemn as ever: "The wisdom of the elderly, the wisdom of the elderly..."

Before Gao Wen could finish chattering, Rebecca had already grabbed the combat backpack: "Then I'll go back and redo the design of the backpack!"

"You'll be back later!" Gawain hurriedly stood up and called out to this super-active silly roe deer, "Have you created a new rune substrate now?!"

Rebecca turned around in a daze, analyzed carefully, and suddenly said, "No!"

"A total of [-] scorching ray has been analyzed. What are you stuffing into the backpack in such a busy schedule?" Gawain waved his hands dumbfoundingly, "What I just said is included in the next generation backpack plan, and now this one is directly Put it into production, let the soldiers form combat effectiveness first is the most important thing."

"Oh..." Rebecca nodded and obediently agreed.

Gawain waved his hand: "When you go back, go find Heidi and ask her to come over."

Not long after, Hetty came to Gawain's tent.

"Ancestor, are you looking for me?"

"I want to ask you about the missionary's situation, what he has been doing these two days, who he has been in contact with, and whether he has left the territory or passed on news..." Gawain raised his head from the document, "... What's wrong with you?! In order to practice your aim, you finally smashed yourself with a big fireball?!"

He stared dumbfounded at Hetty standing in front of him, and saw that the latter was so embarrassed that he didn't look dignified and calm in the past. Not only did his hair look very messy, but there were also some gray and black marks on his face, and even his clothes were heavy or heavy. Different scorching marks——it looks like it was hit by a big fireball.

... Rebecca's iron-haired silly girl must have used some very creative method to call her aunt over, right?

Hetty had already tried her best to take care of her hair and face with magic, but she obviously didn't have time to clean up all the traces when she came here in a hurry. At this time, she couldn't help the corners of her mouth trembling when she heard Gawain's words: "Rebecca I was doing an experiment when I broke into the lab..."

Gao Wen: "..."

Although it's different from what I imagined, it doesn't seem to be much different.

After a few seconds of awkward silence, Gao Wen asked cautiously, "Have you beaten it?"

"I've beaten it, I'll beat it again when I go back."

"...Be gentle, you are already a big girl."

"I try my best."

Gao Wen coughed twice: "Ahem, let's get down to business first."

"Yes," Hetty took a deep breath, calmed down, and began to report on the missionary's situation, "The pastor named Wright hasn't left the territory for the past few days, and he hasn't acted suspiciously. He gets up earlier than everyone else every day. Some, mostly prayer and physical exercise, then breakfast like the others and go to the construction site - we didn't assign him any work, but he took the initiative to find the foreman and is now moving bricks in the newly planned 'Market Street' area , has almost become a permanent worker there."

Gao Wen found it interesting: "...Is he so proactive in wanting to work?"

"Yes, I asked the soldiers to chat with him, and the missionary said that he did it because of the 'guidance of the Holy Light', because the Holy Light taught people that hard work should be exchanged for food-he is still Without permission to build churches, hold sacraments, or bless territories, so physical labor is required in exchange for food."

"He really said that?" Gao Wen felt incredible.

Hetty nodded: "That is indeed what I said, and I also did so."

"...These are indeed what the Church of the Holy Light preaches on a daily basis, but I firmly believe that there are not many clergymen who are still practicing. They are just using these rhetoric to fool the common people into voluntary labor or collecting donations for the church," Gao Wen shook his head. "Then is he preaching?"

"I don't know if that counts as preaching," Hetty said with a strange expression when he said this, "He... is really used to talking about the way of the Holy Light, and occasionally he will say it when he uses divine magic to help people heal their wounds." A sentence like "May the Holy Light protect you", but he doesn't look like he is preaching seriously at all-only when he meets believers who really believe in the God of Holy Light, he will seriously explain the teachings, but When encountering unbelievers, he just laughed it off."

Gao Wen frowned: "Did the person sent to Tanzan Town send back any news?"

"I have already returned. Our people asked the pastor there at the Church of the Holy Light in Tanzan Town, and confirmed that there was indeed a missionary named Wright Aviken who came from the Plain of the Holy Spirit and traveled in the southern border, and his characteristics were the same, but According to my guess..."

Hetty paused when she said this, and shook her head: "This guy named Wright was not so much sent out to preach, it might be better to say he was kicked out by the Central Church, otherwise he wouldn't be like this."

"To be honest, I guess it's the same," Gao Wen shook his head dumbfoundingly, "Even in the rigid and strict Church of the Holy Light, it is inevitable that such unusual characters will appear."

"Ancestor, how do you plan to arrange for this missionary?" Hetty asked curiously, "It's not the way to just leave him like this?"

"Wait another two or three days, if there is still no problem, I will see him," Gao Wen laughed, "There can also be a church in our territory..."

Chapter 0158

The weather is getting cold.

When the giant sun is in the sky, the clouds appear hazy and illusory, more and more grayish-yellow patterns appear in the sky when day and night alternate, and the stars appear cold and bright. winter.

It is difficult for homeless people to survive such a winter.

"Red-Nosed Tom" limped on the way back to the settlement with a bundle of dry firewood he had collected with great difficulty. The cold wind of the frosty moon blew from the north and rolled over the surrounding sparse forests and low hillsides. , blowing on his face, pouring into his collar, making him feel as if his whole body was soaked in a basin of cold water that was gradually cooling down.

He is a 17-year-old young man. According to Ansu's law, he is an adult. However, long-term malnutrition makes him as thin and short as most of his peers. From the body shape, he seems to be underage. Only his rough and black face His face and eyes that have gradually become numb can reveal his true age, as well as his harsh living environment.

He could already see settlements, which he said were settlements, but in fact it was a small and crude camp in the mountains and forests of the southern border. Even the camp could barely be called a camp: some low and tattered tents and piles of stones gathered here, surrounded by With a circle of equally dilapidated fences and thorns, a little bit of Tanzanian mine extending to the southeast forms a low barrier here, barely providing the most basic shelter for the poor people hiding here - to resist The cold wind from the north makes winter come later and the people here live longer.

Tom walked into the camp carrying dry firewood, and what he saw were pairs of indifferent eyes. There were 26 people from [-] households gathered here, but the number was [-] a few days ago.Most of the people are refugees who escaped from the Vulture Territory. A flood there made these people homeless, and the rest came from various Viscounts in the southern border. They all lost their land and sanctuary for various reasons. poor.

They wandered among cities or villages, were driven, captured, killed by local lords or local wild animals, or died of cold and hunger. The southern border was barren, and most of the land could not support more people. And for those nobles who only know how to scrape blood and sweat from the land and serfs, any refugee who wanders into his territory is a disgusting mouth that needs to eat, so the refugees can only choose to live in the wilderness in the end." settle down".

Tom found his place, which was a dilapidated small tent-this is already a very good situation, because not every family has a tent, and many people have already lost almost all their belongings in the process of exile. They can only sleep in tree roots or stone nests, wrapped in ragged clothes or piles of weeds, and Tom can only have a small tent for shelter from the wind and rain, all because of his and his sister's machetes. With the bow and arrow still on the body.

The fire in front of the tent had been extinguished, but it was not yet night, so Tom carried the firewood into the tent, and after his eyes adjusted to the darkness inside, he saw a pair of bright eyes looking at him in the dark.

"Sister," Tom looked at the black-haired girl, "I didn't find any mushrooms, only these firewood."

The black-haired girl just stared blankly, and then suddenly said after a few seconds: "The two children of the Bohm family are starving to death."

"...Oh," Tom agreed in a low voice, sat down in the dark, and said in a low voice after a few seconds, "today...do you have anything to eat?"

The black-haired girl froze again, and Tom couldn't help feeling a little ominous, but after a while, the black-haired girl suddenly moved half of her body, groped for something and threw it over.

It was a small pheasant, and it still smelled of fresh blood—but in the tent full of all kinds of peculiar smells, Tom was completely unaware of its existence.

A scrawny pheasant wasn't nearly enough to feed the siblings, especially since they could only eat one meal a day, but it still lifted Tom's spirits: better than roasted mushrooms and roasted moss , Meat can make people last longer in this increasingly cold weather. He was overjoyed: "You got something?! We don't have to be hungry today!"

"Take the hunting knife when you go out to pluck the chickens," the brunette girl said flatly, "and put it in a conspicuous place."

"Yeah!" Tom nodded vigorously, but as he got used to the darkness in the tent, he finally noticed something unusual about his sister—she was always lying in a corner in a weird posture, and her speaking strength was obviously not as good as Normally, Tom leaned forward with an ominous premonition, and finally saw the blood stains near his sister's shoulders, and the arm hanging limply by her side, "Sister, are you injured?!"

"I was bitten by a wild dog and hurt my tendons," the black-haired girl's voice finally trembled, "I... can't hunt anymore."

As if a bucket of ice water was poured from his head, Tom was cold from head to toe in an instant—unable to hold a knife, unable to draw a bow, and the arm injury meant that the only sister who could go hunting in the woods lost the ability to get food, and at the same time It also means that the two of them... are bound to die.

Everyone is starving, and it is impossible for anyone to help their siblings. For these people who have lost everything, even a small injury on their hands and feet and a short-term loss of labor are fatal. threaten!

What's more, people who are bitten by wild dogs are extremely susceptible to infection, and in this case, once infected, it is impossible to save them.

"I..." Tom gritted his teeth and made up his mind, "Tomorrow I will bring a bow and arrow..."

"Don't go," said the dark-haired girl forcefully, and her eyes fell on Tom's feet. "If you go, you can't come back. Hunting in the woods is not the same as gathering firewood nearby!"

Tom was not born lame, his leg was broken by the knight of the lord's house, because the knight went to the church to listen to the sermon, and the priest of the Blood God Sect said that only by breaking a man's leg with his own hands, can martial arts and The courage broke through the bottleneck, so the knight master broke Tom's leg without hesitation--afterwards he made up for half a sack of wheat.

"I'll set traps," insisted Tom, "and I'll remember how to tell the signs of bears and wolves, and I'll go around..."

"But if you die outside, I will die too," the black-haired girl stared into Tom's eyes. "Go to the forest to pick up mushrooms, and look for the seeds and fruits under the roots of the trees. It's really impossible..."

What can I do if it really doesn't work?She doesn't know anymore.

Tom bit his lip, thinking hard, and finally said what he had been thinking for a long time: "We can... find the lord here..."

"Have you forgotten how everyone was driven away in the Carroll Territory?" The black-haired girl said sternly, "It's a frosty month, no farming, and a month when it's difficult to hunt. Even a mouth!"

"Then..." Tom thought about it again, and said hesitantly, "Maybe the mine needs slaves—the lord of Tanzan Town has a big mine, even in the frosty moon, the mine still needs slave labor..."

"Can you be a slave laborer?" The black-haired girl stared at Tom's legs. "I can't work now, and neither can you. Even if they want slaves, they don't want us!"

"Then how about going further south? I heard that the south of the Baishui River is the newly developed territory of the Cecil family. There should be a shortage of people working in such a place... I can at least tan leather."

"Don't even think about it," the black-haired girl finally sighed, and leaned back on the moldy haystack with blank eyes, "Gentlemen... are all the same..."

Once again the howling wind blew from the north, sweeping through the bleak and impoverished camp.

Hunger and cold made people stop their only activities of the day, and everyone curled up in their tents or haystacks, in this way to minimize the loss of physical strength and heat, and in the process, the camp gradually became quiet.

But outside the camp, in the slightly denser woods, some swaying shadows were gathering.

They were armed with various but exceptionally sophisticated weapons, without any uniform marks on their bodies. They gathered in groups in the mountains and forests, staring at the small settlement through the trees and the night.

Like a hyena watching its prey in the dark, eyes full of greed and hunger.

……

In Cecil's lord's tent, Gawain received Philip's report.

"A refugee gathering point? In the north of Baishui River, in the forest on the east side of Tanzania Mine?"

"Yes, my lord," the young knight nodded, "Knight Byron was supposed to report to you, but he was exploring the ruins in the mountains, so the news was transferred to me."

Gao Wen put down the dip pen in his hand: "How big is the scale? Have you sent someone to contact it?"

At the same time, he felt a surge of excitement: after opening up information channels everywhere, the investigators finally began to discover those hidden refugee settlements!

"The scale is small, about 100 people, but it is possible to contact other refugee settlements through them," Philip Knight replied, "but our people haven't contacted them yet... because it's a bit troublesome."

"Trouble?" Gawain frowned.

"Some armed personnel of unknown origin are operating near that settlement. I'm afraid they are mercenary 'slave catchers' waiting to attack," Philip showed a hint of disgust on his face. "According to the news that came back, those people were armed Excellent, it is certain that there are extraordinary professions, and there may even be one or two spellcasters in charge, but the level is unknown."

"Multiple extraordinary people are in charge?" Gao Wen was a little surprised, "The strength of this mercenary team is not bad."

Knight Philip nodded: "My lord, what should I do?"

"Of course... to bring back the people who should be protected by the Cecil family," Gawain smiled, "The mountains, plains, jungles and rivers to the east of the Tanzania Mine and south of the nobles' lands belong to the In the land of no owner, in this area to the south, as long as it is unowned, it belongs to the Cecil family!"

Chapter 0159 Attack

Mercenaries are not a rare thing in this world. In fact, the history of this business can even be traced back to the dark ages of the Gondor Empire. Armed men in the gray area fill the vacancies in the process of social operation. They are the "blood gloves" of the nobles, the "money fighters" of the merchants, and when there is no employer, they are desperadoes in the mountains. .

Mercenaries are legal, and even have formal guilds and a rough registration system, but almost every mercenary has done illegal things, but so what?In this barbaric and backward world, "law" itself is not a glamorous and just thing...

According to the news sent back by the spies, about 30 well-equipped mercenaries were eyeing the refugee settlement with a population of over a hundred, and there were at least three low-level knights and one or two mages sitting in the town, and the others Even if they don't have a professional level, their combat power should exceed that of ordinary soldiers. This kind of "elite group" mercenary group is really rare in this industry, and it also aroused Gao Wen's great curiosity and suspicion. Gawain quickly ordered Knight Philip to organize a [-]-man army and prepare to lead the team to "expedition" himself.

No matter where those mercenaries came from, they were threatening the refugees on this land, that is to say, threatening the future population security of the Cecil Territory. Gawain would not allow this situation to continue—it was all labor!

And a legendary knight brought thirty fully armed Cecil combat soldiers to deal with twenty mercenaries. This seemed like a big deal, but Gawain had his own intentions:

The thirty fully armed Cecil combat soldiers are all the new generation of "magic infantry" who have just finished changing their outfits - amidst the roar of the machines in the machinery manufacturing plant, the first batch of standard magic weapons have already rolled off the production line. Thirty soldiers were equipped with brand-new thermal energy ray guns and mana combat backpacks, and underwent basic shooting and coordination training. The experience is also shallow, but Gawain believes that these new types of fighters who can easily shoot high-energy beams are definitely more effective than traditional soldiers, so he wants to pull these soldiers to the actual combat test.

Thirty "magic infantry" gathered on the south bank of the Baishui River. Behind them was the bridge that was completed not long ago and was temporarily used to communicate the two banks of the river. Serfs, serfs and slave labor who have not yet obtained the status of free citizens - all gathered nearby, looking curiously at this army that was quite different from their impressions.

The soldiers were neatly dressed in enchanted light armor with basic strengthening magic. Each soldier wore a strangely shaped steel armguard on his left hand, and on his back was a new generation of hard combat backpack that replaced the traditional rucksack. , the enchanted long sword and the spare sword are fastened to their waists and the side of the backpack with iron buckles, looking majestic.

Gao Wen trained these soldiers for a long time with a strict discipline and reward and punishment system, and they themselves knew that it was a special honor to be the first batch of "magic infantry", so at this moment they all stood up straight, even if there was a big A bunch of civilians pointed to this side with envious and amazed eyes in the distance, and none of them turned their heads away.

Knight Philip stepped forward: "My lord, the soldiers and the supply convoy have been assembled and are ready to go at any time."

Gawain nodded, and glanced at Amber next to him - this time he didn't bring any more people besides Amber and Philip. He believed that there were [-] magic infantry, and with his own pressure on the formation, it was just a matter of time. Twenty or so mercenaries can't make much trouble: "Then we..."

Before he finished speaking, he suddenly noticed some commotion among the civilians in the distance, and a loud voice came from the crowd: "Let me go, let me go... Thank you Holy Light for giving me a space." Son... Shengguang, you stepped on my foot... Let me thank you, for the sake of Shengguang..."

Gao Wen was stunned to see the crowd split in the middle, and then the Schwarzenegger-type missionary named Wright ran all the way to this side.