"I hope your mother won't think we came too late," Yuffie said.
Going to the Jingxin Lake in the Emerald Territory was a small detour. The week that Wei Feng took them to the stronghold was an unexpected delay. Two days before arriving in the capital, they also experienced a
A very bad "accident".
That day, they happened to rest for a while in Funiu City, which is north of the imperial capital "Xin'an" and about two hundred miles away.
This city is much larger than the previous small towns they passed through. As the acropolis of the imperial capital, it also has complete city walls and arrow towers, as well as seemingly well-armed guards. It was already evening when they entered the city, and they had been busy all day.
Pedestrians were strolling along the gravel-paved streets toward their homes, or chatting loudly with a few friends, discussing where to go drinking in the evening. Bars and small restaurants along the road were also open for business, and they were selling snacks.
The hawkers made the streets very lively.
But at this moment, a harsh shout came from not far away.
"Long live Gipnis——!!"
Yuffie quickly turned around and saw the scene that happened not far away - several Yinir people dressed as travelers bowed down, their faces twisted in pain, and their limbs swelled as if they were inflated.
Transformed into beast limbs covered with muscles and gray-black hair. Their heads also changed at the same time, with the corners of their mouths extending to both sides as if they were torn apart, and sharp canine teeth quickly protruding from their gums. The clothes that originally wrapped them were stretched open, revealing their coverings.
The whole body is covered with golden fur covered with black spots.
——As if human beings and some kind of leopard-like beasts were forcibly combined by some means. They bent down and pounced on the pedestrians around them, tearing apart the flesh with their claws and teeth without mercy, or
Bite off the throat.
In just a moment, the street fell into chaos. People who were closer were scrambling to escape. Pedestrians further away were not sure what was going on, and some planned to get closer to see what was going on. It was like a messy street full of people.
Screaming and cursing, from time to time someone accidentally fell down and was stepped on by residents who couldn't see their feet clearly.
Of course, Yuffie would not just sit back and watch all this happen. She and Lin quickly rose into the air, and together with the guards who came later, they tried to suppress these beast-turned "tourists". Unfortunately, just when they almost controlled each other, she suddenly felt,
A violent fluctuation of magic power emerged from every 'enemy'.
She just had time to protect herself, and Lin and several guards beside her saw a dazzling white flash and the accompanying loud noise.
Perhaps some special means were used, and most of the houses in Funiu City were of wooden structure. After the explosion, raging fires quickly ignited on the streets. Those who were seriously injured by the explosion, or those who were unable to escape in time and were caught in the flames, were passers-by and shopkeepers.
The screams could be heard clearly from dozens of meters away.
With the help of the two of them, the fire was put out not long after, and some injured people also received emergency treatment. Unfortunately, the remains of the attacker had already turned into a ball of charcoal. They wanted to confirm the attacker's identity.
The actual identity is simply impossible.
However, for most people - and even most officials, the obvious slogan before is enough to explain the problem. As for whether there are any doubts or more hidden secrets behind it, they don't care at all.
As a result, including the time spent assisting in the investigation at Funiu City's Public Security Bureau, nearly thirty days after leaving the alliance, the group finally arrived at the capital of the Inis Empire. This took almost a full amount longer than their original schedule.
Double the time.
"Don't worry, Mother certainly won't be angry because of this." Man Tianxing replied with a smile, "Besides, she probably expected you to arrive at this time. Well, look, the people who picked us up are here.
Already."
Yuffie followed the doll girl's gaze and easily found that person among the crowd - because her outfit couldn't be more conspicuous.
It was a girl who was just over one meter tall, almost the same as an adult Itite. She was wearing a complicated and classic crimson dress, a skullcap of the same color, and long, shiny golden hair.
It was tied into two bunches, hanging down from the jade-white cheeks to nearly the knees.
This kind of dress was not common even in the former continent of El, let alone Inis. However, the people in the imperial capital seemed to have been familiar with her existence for a long time - they made way for the girl with respect and watched her off.
Passed through the city gate and came to her 'companion'.
"I am Renee." She saluted everyone lightly, "Mother is very happy that you came as promised. So, please come with me."
Perhaps because of the "accident" in Funiu City, the inspection when entering Xin'an City was much stricter than when they left the Alliance Capital. The guards carefully asked and confirmed the identity, purpose, and previous itinerary of each person who entered the city.
, as well as the identity certificates they presented. However, Yuffie and others still did not face any difficulties - after the guard heard that they were guests of 'Ms. Luo Zhen', the guards briefly glanced at the certificates that Renee prepared for them.
Then he let go happily.
Similar to other big cities that Yuffie has seen, the city of Xin'an is still quite lively. But if you taste it carefully, you will feel that under the superficial prosperity of this imperial capital, there seems to be a sense of busyness and depression that is completely different from that of Xiyang City.
Pedestrians hurried past her, greeting each other seemingly familiarly, but their eyes only glanced before returning to the front. There were not many stalls on both sides of the street, and even if there were, they were mostly restaurant owners who had their stores open.
A portion of fresh and portable food
Place it at the door to attract passers-by. The effect of this is quite obvious - it is noon at this time, some pedestrians will be attracted to the store by the wafting fragrance, while others will just quickly buy the packaged food and stuff it into the store.
mouth, while continuing to walk quickly.
In such a rush, Renee, wearing a long crimson dress and strolling leisurely, looked quite out of place.
She heard Gypsophila mention this 'sister'. Renee was one of the first dolls to be made. The most special thing is that, unlike other "sisters" who were created out of thin air, she was made by a certain person.
Converted from real human souls.
Man Tianxing never asked for the specific reason. But this was the main reason why the doll girl believed that her mother could use similar means to 'resurrect' Noka.
"What are you thinking about? Is it about me?" Renee suddenly turned her head, her sapphire-like eyes blinked, as if she had seen through the thoughts in her mind, "Xin'an City is the most energetic at night, but recently
The city is not so lively even at night."
"Maybe it's because of that attack." Anya looked at the guards who were still seriously questioning everyone who entered the city, and sighed softly, "I always feel that...even as a member of the alliance, doing this is unacceptable.
What about..."
"Not necessarily." Renee slowed down and came to Anya's side to continue leading the way. "Of course you can't believe what you hear. Even if you see it with your own eyes, it may not be true." She said softly to the girl beside her, "Things
The truth is often hidden behind the fog, and only by "paying attention" can you see it clearly."
Anya nodded silently and continued to follow Renee.
They walked all the way through the center of the city. Through the towering city walls, Yuffie could barely see the palace hall in the inner city. The large-scale buildings reflected brilliant golden light in the sun, which reminded her of the Oren Empire.
A gold-leaf palace. However, compared to the luxury of that palace, the palace in front of you looks a bit simple except for being entirely golden. This may indicate that the current emperor is not very enthusiastic about his current position.
The crowds around them gradually became sparse as they moved forward. After another ten minutes, Renee crossed a path and stopped in an open space near the corner of the city.
Rather than an open space, this place looks more like a garden. Dozens of flowers of various colors are arranged in an orderly manner, and each one looks vibrant, even if they originally grew in different environments. Located on the edge of the flower bush
In the center is a wooden hut that seems to be no more than ten meters square. On the simple wooden door, there is a handwritten sign hanging -