"I'm just saying... we shouldn't take this... car route to Essodu this season! If we continue to soak in this cold quagmire, I... we will definitely get sick and die on the road!"
Moning Bell cursed and held on to the carriage, his chest heaving rapidly, and he was breathing like an old bellows.
A voice that also sounded like it was coming from clenched teeth asked a question:
"That, that's why we are here now."
Monimbel straightened his sore waist, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and used all his strength to push the cart. He felt a little dazed, so he didn't notice that his muddy hands left a few thick black lines on his face.
of mud prints.
He stood huffing and puffing for a while before he had enough energy to answer:
"The president asked us to come, can we still come? Do you still want the bonus for completing the task?"
A feeble wail spread among the crowd.
"I want it, but this process is too... too harsh."
The people and horses in the caravan were panting rapidly at this time. Together, it sounded like the sound of wind. So much so that the wind, which still carried a slight chill, was like a ruthless, cold hand that was defenseless.
When it brushed against his skin, he shivered violently.
He tugged at his undershirt, which was soaked with sweat or mud, and looked down again - only his knees could be seen. He remembered his soft, shiny lambskin boots before setting off.
, now the boots have long been filled with mud, and the foot wraps that have absorbed water have become extremely heavy.
It was so difficult to walk in the mud. At this time, there was no time for Monimbel to sit in the carriage and learn the aristocratic manners. When he climbed from caravan worker to convoy steward, his clothes were covered with mud, and some of them had been baked by his body temperature.
The dried mud marks shed powder as the knees bent, and then were smoothed away by new mud.
If you are not very familiar with the caravan, you may not be able to tell who is the steward and who is the clerk.
"What price did the president charge? If we come out this season, the horses will be exhausted."
The driver felt distressedly and touched the horse, which was covered with glistening sweat, and rubbed it in his hands. It felt a little sticky.
"Steward, the horse can't exert any more force!"
"***!"
Moning Bell cursed angrily. He lowered his head and was silent for a while before shouting loudly: "Take a rest! Put on your coats! Hurry up and feed the horses water! Remember to add salt!"
The guys let out a sigh of relief. They quickly took their coats from the carriage and wrapped themselves tightly. The coachmen, who were also covered in mud, carried wooden buckets to look for clean water.
Only the guard holding the knife was slightly cleaner on his clothes. Although there was water everywhere and no one could be seen, keeping the guards strong enough was one of the survival wisdom of the caravan.
The team was really tired. They had been swimming in muddy water for two days. This kind of thing sounds stupid, but now it has to go on.
The journey from the border to Northcap is not particularly far for a carriage caravan. If it is summer, it only takes half a month to drive a carriage across this plain. It is easy and comfortable.
However, now this place has become like a hell filled with mud and water. They had set off as early as possible. Although there was only the last stretch of the journey left, they still could not escape this nightmare.
A continuous spring rain completely turned the mud that was barely passable, only as high as the feet, into a quagmire. Now in this vast quagmire, it is no longer just to complete the task, but to survive.
In the wasteland where mud and water flow, the cold mud and the still-chilling wind will ruthlessly take away the body temperature. Everything is wet, and there is no way to light a bonfire. Only the carriage has a dry place to sit. Lying down is
It's impossible. Without a dry camping ground, even if the people can hold on, the horses that have been soaked in muddy water are already dying - they can't climb onto their carriages.
He sighed: "I guess there's half of it left. Oh my god, why are these sewage and mire so warm? They want to keep us here until summer! Also, why is this cargo so heavy? What if it is
With the car empty, we might have already taken a nap by the warm fire!"
Moning Bell looked at the mist floating on the plain in front of him, trying to find familiar landmarks. At the same time, he was thinking about those simple-looking iron boxes that were slowing down his progress. This may be the transportation of Moning Bell in his life.
The heaviest cargo ever.
Some of the boxes are imported high-quality crystals that are business items of the Chamber of Commerce. The Island will purchase as many of these as there are Star Islands, and there is no possibility that they cannot be sold.
The other part is some consignments of unknown origin. Although out of professional ethics, he did not open this consignment of goods to see, but judging from the consignor's indifferent expression, he did not send anyone to escort the truck.
Judging from the situation, it shouldn't be anything valuable.
"The alchemist who gave it to Hingdao to make armor, weapons and giant machines? I don't even know the name. How can I find out? Besides, does such a person exist in Hingdao? This consignment may be materials for making armor.
Bar?"
He couldn't help but feel headache again for this task without knowing the recipient.
"Steward, this is the first time I've seen road conditions like this. Is it so bad this year? Ordinarily there are no caravans in front of us, so why are the roads so frequently crushed? By the way, we still have time to go back and transport the goods after we deliver them.
Bring the materials?"
Moning Bell turned around and saw the coachman who had been with him for more than 20 years carrying a wooden bucket and wading back through the mud. He looked at the relatively clear water in the bucket and nodded.
: "No, we brought the crystals. We will stay here after delivering the goods. When the mages release the goods, we will go back directly with a batch of scrolls, and then try to make another trip before the end of summer. Maybe we can get them this year.
To double dividends!”
In this muddy desert, it is really a difficult task to find a source of water that is safe to drink. The veteran coachman did a good job.
Although it was hard on the way here, the return trip was much easier.
Mages have never liked to use cash to pay. With the huge amount of materials they purchase, they can't get the huge metal currency they need anyway. So they prefer to use scrolls to barter.
It is loved by people who have no power but money. The scroll that can be pulled out and used is close to hard currency in a sense-the most ordinary shield may be able to use it in some situations.
I'll save your life.
Mo Ningbeier suddenly felt that he heard a strange sound. He listened carefully and made sure that he was not hallucinating. He suddenly became alert: "There is movement! The convoy is in a circle! The guards are wearing armor!"
The people who had just rested for a few minutes had no time to complain and started getting busy again. By the time the defense work was ready, the strange churning sound coming from the front could be heard very clearly.
Moning Bell looked at the convoy that had been connected end to end, forming a circular convoy. More than 10 freight carriages surrounded him like a temporary city wall. The guards were already holding weapons and scrolls and wearing half-body armor and standing in the car.
At the top, he nodded with satisfaction.
Although he hadn't heard of any robbers or the like near Northcap, the noise was so weird that he had to be on guard. The sound was getting closer and closer, and it seemed that it wasn't slowing down at all. He suddenly became nervous.
The lowered right hand took out a scroll from his waist and held it in his hand.
The sound became clearer and closer. A sound of metal friction also gradually became clearer. The ground trembled slightly, and the horse began to become restless.
It seemed that something was coming from not far away, showing a vague outline in the mist.
His eyes widened as he saw this black figure pressing in from the white mist, getting closer and closer until it lifted its veil, rushed out, and appeared not far in front of his motorcade!
What a black shadow is this!
It looked like two stories high, like a huge lizard lying on the ground. It was dark all over, with a metallic dark light. The stocky body looked quite heavy and strong, perhaps the head.
, a chimney is spraying white smoke into the air, while the two pipes on the side are spraying powerful white steam into the air.
Compared with it, the four-wheeled freight carriage beneath him, which usually seemed very large, suddenly looked like a child standing in front of a strong adult.
Just the huge round wheels on both sides of its body, as wide as two horses leaning against each other, are taller than a person. There are deep, sloping metal racks on the wheels, and they stand in the knee-high muddy water.
It stirred indifferently. Behind the huge car, there was a square box. Although the face could not be seen clearly, a person wearing a robe could be recognized.
It is unwise to aim a weapon at anyone. He quickly raised his hand to signal to the guards of the convoy: "Calm down! Put down the weapons and scrolls! This is the creation of the mage! Don't panic!"
Bolu and Garland are the people in this tall cab.
Polu pointed to the circle of convoys in a defensive formation and asked: "Didn't it mean that no caravans would come this season? Then what is this?"
Garland also looked incredulous: "This is like seeing a ghost. Look at how they are covered in mud. They are obviously having a hard time. How do I know why they came here this season? I will send someone to ask."
So he turned around and walked out of the cab, and gestured to the guards in a huge, room-like truck that was towed behind the machine. The guards nodded, jumped up and grabbed the truck.
They pulled up their bodies and looked out from the wall-like carriage. At this time, the huge machinery had slowly stopped. They turned over and began to perform their work.
Garland walked back to the cab and said to Polu: "The view in the back compartment is a bit too bad, isn't it? Sitting in it, you can basically not see anything in the surrounding environment."
"That's not a place for people to sit in the first place. Why does Mineral Sand need a view?"
"It's not very comfortable in here. There's not even a comfortable seat."
"Brother, this is not a luxury carriage. This is just a tool for pulling goods. We can't compare it with your enchanted carriage, right?"
"Yes. But actually you shouldn't have stopped just now. Although we are not afraid, if these people have any malicious intent, it will be difficult for you to speed up immediately."
"Well, I don't have much experience in this area."
Bolu smiled sheepishly. The two of them watched the guards surrounding the convoy. The people in the convoy had put away their weapons and seemed to be saying something to the guards. It seemed that everything was fine. So Garland
Continue to ask:
"But how did you build this thing so quickly?"
"It's not a modern one. I have a lot of this thing at my place. I usually use it to pull ore."
Relying on a small tractor to tow a small bucket has long been unable to satisfy the huge appetite of Ta Island's four blast furnaces, so Goola asked Case to build a batch of mining machines. Without mining equipment, it would be a large tractor. After all,
This thing doesn't care about road conditions and has full horsepower. It's also very useful for pulling ore without installing mining equipment. Before the ore railway line was built, this thing was the logistics pillar of Ta Island!
The only problem is that it is too big, too heavy, there is no such a powerful crane, and there is no suitable place to place it on the ship. In order to drag the two MK2 tractors over, a flatbed ferry had to be built.
For the same reason, there was no hope of landing from the pier - the stone embankment was not as wide as this guy. And the narrow streets in the city basically had no way for such large equipment to enter. With the help of Garland, we found another area
Beach landing completed.
After landing, Polu bypassed the city, thinking that he would run on the road for a while anyway, so he sent another tractor and the people who came with him to the mine, and he invited Galande to conduct a road test.
This is a chance encounter.
Although the simple cab environment was not very friendly, Garland's curiosity about novel creations still successfully attracted him. He watched Bolu control the behemoth to move forward slowly through a series of turntables and levers - in fact, it did not
Not slow, just slow compared to the speeding carriage. He was full of all kinds of doubts. He had become a curious baby all the way, and Bolu even had a headache from asking questions.
The guards came back soon, and this time they were obviously much more alert. They did not return to the car, but stood on the pedals on both sides of the fuselage, holding on to the handrails and holding their weapons.
A guard walked into the cab and saluted: "Sir, the official chamber of commerce is going to Northcap, and there are documents. There are crystals and other materials on the car. It is on the road this season because of a consignment order."
"Okay, let's go around them."
"etc!"
Polu suddenly had an idea: "We have encountered them anyway, and we have to go back soon anyway. How about we drag them to Northcap and test them?"
When Mo Ningbeier saw the guard coming back, he couldn't help but panic. Before his terrible thoughts took shape, the guard had already walked in front of him: "My lord said, seeing that you are working so hard, anyway, let's take you along."
Cheng. Later, you can untie the horses and lead them, tie the carriages into a string, get in the carriages, and we will drag you away."
"I don't know which adult is...in this..."
"Lord Garland, Lord Northcap Mage. Whether you want to leave or not, I'll forget it."
Moning Bell actually wanted to refuse.
You can't just accept someone who says he is a lord. Besides, sometimes lords are more dangerous. Although the reputation of mages is pretty good, it is not certain whether this person's identity is true or false. But he is also
I didn't dare to ask any more questions.
But if he refuses and defeats the good intentions of the lord, if he meets a lord who is not easy to talk to, it will be difficult for him to get along in the future. What if he agrees and these people are robbers?
"Hmm...probably not."
He looked at the tall machinery and ruled out the possibility that it was a bandit in disguise. He began to worry that the lord had taken a fancy to his goods. He cursed in his heart: "Unlucky, why do I have to catch up with everything?"
Already."
However, there was a smile on his face: "How embarrassing..."
"Go or not go."
The guard was obviously a little impatient. Mo Ningbeier really didn't dare to refuse, so he gritted his teeth and nodded: "Let's go."
While Polu and Garland continued to discuss some issues, the guard came to the door again: "Sir, we are ready."
"So fast? Then we can just turn around and walk along this road, right?"
"Yes."
The airlock opens and the piston slides.
The connecting rod sways and the flywheel rotates.
During a violent vibration, Moning Bell watched the huge machine spin around in the mud without a care, as if the soft mud that could pull off boots could not stop its movement at all. Knee-high
The mud barely covered its rim! It continued to move forward, blowing out white smoke, and the thick iron chains hanging in the mud gradually straightened, lifting up the shaft wood tied to it.
He looked at the horses that had been unhooked from the carriage and were being controlled by grooms on the roadside. He felt the carriage body beneath him tremble and move forward with the chains.
The mud that tired the horses to the point of being covered in sweat and made the wheels so deep that they couldn't be pulled out seemed to be nothing. He turned around and saw the entire convoy of carriages, including the cargo and carriages, starting to move with him.
.
The speed gradually increased, and the mud under the carriage in front splashed out to both sides like ordinary rainwater. It looked like the waves in front of a sea ship that he had seen before. He felt the wheels being carried by the speed.
The ups and downs of getting stuck in the mud, then collapsing, sinking, and then being forcibly pulled up again, and sinking again, if it were an ordinary two-wheeler, the horses would have lost their strength by this time!
And the machine that towed the entire convoy showed no signs of failing at all. The huge wheels rotated without any stagnation, showing a courage to bear all the difficulties and dangers ahead!
A wave of horror arose in his heart: "How many horses must this machine have? Wait, machine?"
He lowered his head and thought for a while: "It can't be such a coincidence, right? Mage, a huge machine? Is this the alchemist? Is this my recipient?"