The raging fire reflected the dark sky and the red blood.
The battle started abruptly, but in stark contrast, it ended quietly.
Unconsciously, the fighting and roaring sounds became sparse and almost inaudible, and the combatants' movements gradually changed from sharp swings to precise assassinations and final finishing blows.
The orcs at the front fled farther and farther, out of the barriers of the sand dunes and the light of the fire, and disappeared into the night.
The Stardust Guards, who were charging back and forth, gradually stopped, reined in their horses amid the corpses and blood on the ground, and checked and confirmed their results.
On the other side, the cavalry of the Chroma family had already dealt with the orcs who had been cut off from the rear, and they joined the Stardust Guards in a mighty manner.
But these have nothing to do with Thales or the human prisoners being escorted down.
They have not been ignored.
After the battle, the cavalrymen with single-winged crows painted on their robes and shields rushed up to this small sand dune, and drove them off the sand dune with unceremonious scolding and driving.
Thales believed that if they showed a little resistance and dissatisfaction, these unswerving cavalrymen would not mind if the weapons in their hands drank more blood.
As a result, everyone in the caravan, including the mercenaries, became prisoners for the second time. Under the strict surveillance of a group of Croma family cavalry, they obediently walked down the sand dunes and walked towards the messy battlefield.
"Go faster, Sand Bandit!"
A knight holding a spear urged impatiently.
"We are not sand pirates, my dear sir," Tomdin tugged on his collar and protested sternly.
Perhaps because he was no longer facing the ferocious orcs, the caravan owner's courage recovered a lot.
"It's a caravan! An orthodox, legal, and qualified caravan! My ancestors once..."
The knight holding the spear smiled.
"I'm not an adult. My ancestors were probably farmers for seven or eight generations. As for you..."
"People in the desert, sand pirates, caravans, and exiles," he shook his head while riding on his horse: "You know, to me, what are the differences between you?"
Tomdin made a gesture of listening.
"The answer is," the knight said coldly, "I don't know."
"And I don't care either."
Tomdin's smile froze slightly.
The next second, the knight's spear hit Tomdin's butt hard:
"So move your ass, Sand Bandit!"
Amid Tomdin's pitiful screams, the group came to the center of the battlefield in an uneasy mood.
The fire caused by the pile of eternal oil was much smaller, but it was still burning, illuminating everything around it.
The cavalry of the Croma family were cleaning the battlefield while joking unscrupulously. Many people cast their eyes on them, and the ill-intentions in their eyes made everyone feel worried.
"Wait here," the knight put away his spear, stepped off his saddle, and said in a cold voice, "the adults will decide what to do with you."
"Oh my God," Tomdin gasped, covering his butt with one hand, wiping sweat with the other hand, and whispered among the prisoners: "These are simply barbarians...Listen, we have to correct the confession, we are not from We came out of Blade Tooth Sand Dune and went south from the Tower of End, so we don’t know about the blockade order of the stars..."
"Desert God...Sep," Dean sighed: "Do you think they don't know our details?"
Tomdin was slightly startled.
"They have two troops, the Chroma Family and the Stardust Guards. One of them is ambushing in the distance and attacking from different directions. This shows that they have planned it in advance."
"These star people may have discovered us a long time ago. I even bet that they know that our caravan came out of the Blade Tooth Camp," Dean looked at the cavalry around him:
"They just followed the traces of the camp we left from a distance, just to get us to take the bait of the cunning orcs. And they did it. Our caravan made the orcs relax. If it hadn't been for the fire, this would have been It’s a perfect bag, and it can be slowly closed under the darkness of night, and it can catch all the orcs who are sleeping soundly on the trophies and supplies.”
Luisa looked ugly: "They used us as bait?"
Dean sighed and nodded: "So, I suggest you tell the truth and don't hide it."
Tomdin opened his mouth in disbelief: "But our goods..."
"who cares?"
Mikey stood aside and said coldly: "Do you know how many people we lost?"
"We shouldn't have come here or turned back yesterday."
This sentence silenced everyone in the caravan.
Where the knight was walking, a group of soldiers holding torches surrounded an open space. Two officers who were dressed obviously differently from ordinary soldiers stood on the ground, holding their horses and discussing something loudly.
It is worth noting that the Star People stand on two sides, clearly distinguishable from each other.
One party was under the banner of the One-winged Crow, surrounding a serious-looking young nobleman.
The other side, including the Freak Squad, held the Stardust battle flag and followed another strong-looking officer. Thales recognized it. This officer's left arm was slightly thicker than his right arm. He had just punched the Orc Saint to death. Wei's, the "boss" of the Freak Squad.
Thales took a long breath and thought about the next step.
The army of stars is right in front of you.
According to the original plan, the people from the secret department would take him into the desert and join the army of stars, but now...
The levies of the Chroma family, and the Stardust Guards, which are the standing army of the royal family.
Can these people be trusted?
If he revealed his identity now... would it be a wise choice?
"What are they talking about?" Kuaisheng narrowed his eyes: "It looks like they are quarreling?"
Thales raised his head and saw that the argument between the two officers was getting more and more intense.
Old Hammer stared at it for a while and shook his head.
"I am not surprised that levies and standing armies never went together on the Western Front."
"They have a bad relationship?"
"Let me put it this way," Old Hammer coughed, obviously the injury just now has not healed properly: "In the Blade Tooth Camp, if a lord's levy and a royal standing army enter the same group of latrines..."
"Usually, only one person comes out with a clean ass."
Kuai Sheng asked puzzledly: "But they are all Star People, and they are still guarding in the same camp. Why are they so..."
"The current King Exeter and his brother were born to the same mother," Old Hammer snorted:
"When I stabbed my brother to death, I didn't see him showing mercy."
The desolate bone man shook his head: "Blood-spiked lizard."
This sentence reminded the prisoners of something, and soon no one said anything anymore.
The officers' argument finally came to an end.
"So this is the caravan?"
A gentle voice came, and the "boss" who had "fucked your mother" on the battlefield clapped his hands and stepped forward.
Thales noticed that the so-called "freak squad" were all standing behind this officer.
"That bonfire party was really lively, full of sound and color," the so-called boss spoke with a Western Wilderness native accent. He waved his hand to the eternal oil burning in the distance and said with a steady face: "Which of you is in charge?
?”
At that moment, Thales thought he had gone back dozens of minutes ago, facing the interrogation of the orc Kandar.
The prisoners looked at each other.
"Dear Sir," the owner of the caravan finally breathed out, put on a smile, and took a step forward: "I am Sepp Tomdin, this Sir, I often go to the Saber Fang Camp to the merchants in the Three Kingdoms of the Lost Sea.
Lu, my ancestors once served under the Xianjun..."
"I am Douro," the boss of the superpower looked at Tomdin, scanning the dozen or so cautious people in the caravan, but interrupted him without any dignity: "Cusak Douro, but he is not an adult.
, my ancestors were farmers for three generations, until Baron Williams chose me to be one of his vanguard officers, leading a small team."
Tomdin suddenly felt a little embarrassed.
But he turned quickly and immediately held his hands with admiration on his face: "Oh, so you are in front of the Baron..."
At this time, the young noble from the Croma family exhaled impatiently: "Hurry up, freaks, don't waste your time. You haven't wasted enough today."
Thales suddenly noticed that this was the knight who ordered "leave no one behind" on the sand dunes. It seemed that he was the commander of the Croma family.
Hearing "freak", Captain Douro turned to the young noble, his smile did not diminish, but his eyes shone coldly:
"Baron Guz, as promised, can you allow me to negotiate?"
The young nobleman, Guz shrugged.
"casual."
Douro nodded, then turned around, narrowed his eyes, and carefully looked at the businessman in front of him.
"Eternal Oil."
The superpower's next words made Tomdin tremble slightly.
I saw him pointing to the camp that was still burning in the distance: "If you want to light a fire of this magnitude, Tony, how many did you get? Ten barrels? Twenty barrels?"
At that moment, Tomdin smiled, which was both embarrassing and flattering.
He looked left and right, his eyes constantly flickering between the flames and Douro: "Sir, we, we just met some unscrupulous smugglers on the road, so we bought the oil. I mean, we can't let it flow to
Go into the desert? But I swear I didn’t participate in anything..."
Dean sighed quietly behind him.
"Shit."
"Except for those orcs just now, the surrounding area has been completely cleaned up by our people," Duro snorted coldly: "These Eternal Oils were brought out from the Blade Fang Camp by you, Tony, despite the blockade order.
"
Tomdin's face froze, and he didn't even care that the other party called his name wrong.
"I can see that you are not a small caravan of five or six people."
"I bet if we searched your cargo, we would find quite a few contraband items."
"Smuggling embargoed materials into the desert, and under the blockade order..." Duro sighed, his eyes sharp: "I don't think this is a legal business activity."
"You know, it can be criminalized."
The prisoners all frowned.
Tomdin looked panicked: "Dear Sir, we..."
The superpower boss raised a finger and pressed his words.
"But you finally helped a little, distracting those gray bastards a little bit," Douro slowly raised his head, showed a heartwarming smile, and nodded in recognition: "For our victory..."
"Made a small contribution."
Hope reignited in Tomdin's face.
"I should, I should, I can help you, sir... I'm very ashamed for..."
He was slightly excited: "So..."
"But the orc leader still escaped," Baron Guz on the other side said coldly, sounding very uncomfortable: "Thanks to your 'touching' tactical cooperation, Stardust Guards."
The smile on Douro's face disappeared: "We will discuss this issue later, Baron Guz."
"not now."
Guz snorted coldly.
Thales was thoughtful as he looked at the two teams standing on opposite sides, with a vague tendency to confront each other, as well as the two commanders whose words were quite different.
Douro turned back and looked at Tomdin who was at a loss.
He smiled and said: "Therefore, although your violations of law and discipline are despicable, Tony, I am still willing to put in a good word for you in front of the judge and give you a chance to choose."
Opportunity to choose?
Thales frowned slightly.
He noticed that the "freaks" behind Duro looked at each other a few times and smiled mysteriously, while Baron Guz opposite Duro looked to the other side with disdain.
Tomdin took a breath and almost burst into tears.
"Sir! I am extremely grateful... By the way, my name is Tomdin, not Tondy..."
The superpower boss smiled and accepted his thanks: "So, Tony..."
"Collaborating with the enemy, espionage... two crimes, which one do you want to choose?"
These words stunned the entire prisoner team.
Collaboration with the enemy.
spy?
Even Thales couldn't help but be startled, wondering if he should identify himself.
Tomdin's eyes widened: "What?"
Douro sighed.
"Don't be surprised, Tony. Judging from the pile of materials you have used as evidence, you have been convicted of these two crimes, enough to enter the Bone Prison," the weirdo captain of the Stardust Guard looked at him in embarrassment.
He looked at them and immediately smiled: "But I still gave you a choice. You can choose one of them, how nice is it?"
Tomdin's face turned from red to blue.
"No, no, no, sir, I swear... we are not... you can't... our... small contribution..."
Just when Tomdin was incoherent, Douro raised another finger!
"but!"
The captain's eyes flashed slightly: "If there is insufficient evidence, I think it will be difficult to establish the crime, and the judge will have nothing to do with you."
Tom dines for a meal.
"Insufficient evidence? What...what do you mean?"
He looked at Duro in confusion.
"See? Your Eternal Oil is almost burned," Duro sighed, pointing to the burning camp in the distance: "Without evidence, I don't think the Inquisitor can still embarrass you about smuggling Eternal Oil.
"
Tomdin looked at him blankly.
Douro stepped forward, put his thick left arm around the merchant's shoulders, and led him around in a circle without resistance, taking in the surrounding scenery.
It was the camp and small tents set up by the caravans. The piled goods were scattered in the fierce battle, leaving a mess on the ground.
"But, look around, your goods, whether they are smuggling, violating the blockade order, contraband and so on... The sun is setting above, you still have so many criminal evidences present, even if I want to help you get rid of the crime, it will be very difficult.
It’s hard to prove your innocence…”
Douro patted him on the shoulder with a serious expression: "Do you understand?"
As soon as these words came out, Dean and Old Hammer's expressions suddenly became strange.
Tomdin looked at the goods around him, his lips trembling, speechless.
Duro hugged his shoulders like a brother and looked at Tomdin with emotion.
A few seconds later, the snake hand behind Douro shrugged: "I don't think he understands, boss."
Baron Guz on the other side laughed uncontrollably.
The superpower suddenly felt a little embarrassed.
He sighed, let go of Tomdin, and pushed him back into the queue of prisoners in disappointment. His thick left arm made Tomdin stagger: "Okay, then, the two charges of collaborating with the enemy and espionage...
…”
Following Du Luo's words, the star soldiers beside him pressed their hands on their weapons.
Thales was shocked.
At this moment, Dean took a step forward.
The mercenary stepped on Tomdin hard and whispered in his ear: "Give it to them!"
Tomdin was startled and reacted immediately.
"I see!"
He yelled like a pig and raised his hands: "I understand! I understand, sir!"
The sound was so loud that it spread throughout the surrounding sand dunes.
This caused the soldiers who were cleaning up the mess to look back frequently.
Captain Douluo, who had his hands on his hips, paused slightly and slowly raised his eyes.
"You...really understand?"
"Yes sir!"
At this moment, Tomdin's face was full of mourning, but he answered without hesitation. He opened his arms and gestured to the surrounding camps: "The goods... all the goods of our caravan, owned by sixteen merchants, from pots and vessels to spices and seeds, from
From clothing and jewelry to valuable collections... you can take them all, take them all! We don't want anything! As long as you let us be safe..."
The businessmen's faces suddenly turned gloomy.
But Douro didn't smile back as expected.
The squad leader let out a painful sigh and slapped himself on the forehead, looking like he hated iron.
"Oh my... no, you still don't understand!"
The prisoners looked at him in surprise.
Douro put down his hand, looking disappointed.
He raised his voice: "Let us take your goods...?"
Duro sighed with hatred on his face, and kept slapping his hands on the hilt of his sword and armor, making bursts of noise, which frightened Tomdin so much that he backed away: "Do you think our Majesty's army will covet your things, your property, even a copper coin?"
?What do you think we are? Corrupt officials who make money or shameless robbers?"
"It's hard to imagine that the great kingdom's army has such an image in your minds?"
"Goddess of the Sunset, we are the army of the Kingdom of Stars. We have our own rules and creeds. We exist to protect the kingdom and its people!"
The superpower boss was pacing back and forth, as if he couldn't understand the thoughts of these prisoners. His righteous and awe-inspiring appearance made many people feel ashamed.
The more he spoke, the angrier he became:
"Don't insult us like this, okay!"
The prisoners looked at the righteous and righteous captain with dumbfounded eyes.
"What's wrong?"
In the team, Dean whispered in confusion: "Is he too young?"
"I don't know," Old Hammer replied with a cough: "That's all the caravan owns."
Tomdin looked at Captain Douro who was furious, sighing with hatred, and looked at others in horror for help, but the other Star Cavalry looked at him calmly.
"If you are not satisfied, I still have a lot of money after returning to Blade Tooth Camp..."
Douro stopped.
He spread his hands and stared at Tomdin in disbelief, as if he had seen the most incredible thing in the world.
"What are you doing, Tony?"
"You actually... tried to bribe me? Bribe me? Bribe the glorious kingdom's army and His Majesty's soldiers?"
"Do you think we are protecting you just for money? We have our own salary and reward, and more importantly, we have our own dignity!"