I will be crowned king

Red Hand Bay, in a tavern.

With his back to the noisy hustle and bustle behind him, Karin Jacques was huddled alone in the corner, playing with a pair of old playing cards, stacking them into four neat piles on the table, then shuffling them, and starting over.

A glass of beer was placed on the table, untouched.

Normally, within an hour of a customer like him, the bartender would come to chase him away; but because the store was always full recently, he could only deal with such a black-robed priest who had no sense of existence when his feet were not even touching the floor. Choose to ignore it.

When he was shuffling the cards for the fifteenth time, a hand suddenly tapped his shoulder from behind.

The expressionless black-robed priest straightened his body naturally, and the tall man sitting in front of him in astonishment drew a "Joker" in his hand and placed it on the table.

"Sorry." The tall man pulled the hood on his head and held the corncob pipe in the corner of his mouth with his hand, covering most of his face:

"I don't want to come in person. The main reason is that there is a reason... If you are worried, we can suspend the transaction."

After hesitating for a moment, the black-robed priest shook his head and played "Ten of Clubs".

The tall man nodded slightly, took out a sealed cloth package from his arms while puffing, stuck his hand under the table, and then stopped Karin Jacques who was about to raise his hand:

"This time we did not follow the rules. To show our sincerity, please go back to inspect the goods first, and there is no need to pay the bill in a hurry."

Karin Jacques thought for a moment, put down his hand that was blocked by the opponent, and played "Six of Hearts".

The tall man showed a happy smile and looked at the black-robed priest with a seductive look: "By the way, I will tell you a piece of information that I have just obtained recently. It is considered as extra compensation - of course, the price is your client. 'If you want to buy something good next time, how about introducing it to us first?"

Even if the free information is false, there is no reason to refuse it... Karin Jacques threw the "Three of Hearts" on the table without even thinking about it.

"A month ago, a certain mercenary group in Yangfan City discovered a stronghold of an old god sect."

The tall man's eyes suddenly became sharp, and he said without thinking: "Of course, they are not ordinary Old Gods, otherwise they wouldn't be called intelligence in a place like the New World. They...are the Yser elves."

The Elves of Iser?

Karin Jacques raised his eyebrows and lightly tapped the "Six of Hearts" card.

Seeing that he was interested, the corners of the tall man's mouth raised slightly:

"No one took this seriously at first. They just thought that elves were a bit rare. After all, it's not surprising for anyone to appear in a place like Sailing City."

"But that mercenary group happened to have a friend in the empire's army. The man told him that the colonial minister, Sir Bernard Morwes, had been to that stronghold - and more than once. "

"This is nothing...but a very trustworthy friend told me that that 'stronghold' was the headquarters of the Faithless Knights half a year ago!"

"So I can't help but wonder, what kind of guy can scare the Faithless Knights into fleeing in panic, even abandoning their hometown, fleeing from Sailing City overnight, and secretly collude with the colonial minister appointed by the emperor? "

"You may already know the answer - just a few months ago, the rebellion plan of the Thirteen Councils of the Ysel elves was exposed and was strangled to death by the Judgment Knights themselves!"

Looking at the tall man's colorful face, the corners of Karin Jacques' mouth twitched.

Not only does he know that the "Report on Major Incidents in the Court of Yser", which is currently being widely circulated as a top secret in Clovis City, is a "masterpiece" completed by him.

So a group of surviving remnants of the Thirteen Council escaped the joint strangulation of the Judgment Knights and the Southern Legion, quietly escaped to the New World, and even received the protection of Bernard?

This... is not impossible. After all, with the relationship between the empire and the Yser elves, it is not impossible to let the Yser elves establish a new kingdom in the colony, let alone leaving a place in the colony.

Then the black-robed priest rolled his eyes and handed the man a "Five of Diamonds".

"impossible!"

The tall man categorically rejected it, took the "Eight of Diamonds" directly from the table, and stared directly at Karin Jacques: "Either add more money, or this is the limit."

The black-robed priest shrugged and took away the "Ten of Clubs" just now.

"You are really stingy. You are not even willing to pay for a meal..." The man muttered and complained:

"Okay, let me tell you another key piece of information: so far they have only found one Yisel elf spellcaster in that stronghold, and she is also a female elf."

After the words fell, the tall man stopped talking. He smoked his pipe and silently looked at the black-robed priest's expression - very much like a profiteer waiting for a customer to take the initiative to speak.

Female elf?

Karin Jacques frowned slightly. This was indeed not very important information: women were not a minority among elf spellcasters, and there was nothing special about them compared to men. The most important thing was that there were no living female elves that he knew. Either one is casting...

etc!

The black-robed priest...he suddenly recalled something.

Yes, I do know a female elf spellcaster.

He is so powerful that he can scare away ordinary Old God sects on his own, and can get in touch with the empire.

The most important thing is...she is indeed still alive!

I still remember with certainty that she did not die in the Royal Court of Iser that was bombed by the Judgment Knights, and she indeed escaped to the empire.

If you think about it seriously, the possibility that she will want to run to the new world seems to be very high indeed!

Karin Jacques panicked, and his whole body was instantly sluggish; and after the sluggishness, there was infinite fear.

There can be no delay, this information must be told to Anson Bach as soon as possible! He must be told immediately, at least...

At least we must get there before attacking Yangfan City!

……………………

Outside the small church in Yangfan City, seven figures of different heights, fat and thin fell to the ground. Each of them had only a shallow wound on their chest and neck, and the weapons in their hands were also broken into two pieces - proving that they were all In the first round of confrontation, the weapon was damaged and suffered a fatal blow.

On a rainy night when I couldn't see my fingers, only one heart was still beating in the empty streets.

Louis Bernard stood in front of the steps, his right hand holding the handle of the knife and his arm were dyed blood red. His golden bangs soaked by the rain drooped weakly, covering his lonely face, only revealing his tight lips. .

While this wasn't entirely unanticipated,... why?

Both she and Freya have exercised restraint as much as possible, and have told them that they pose no threat and simply want to live a stable life here. They have even expressed their "willingness to compromise" countless times, either explicitly or covertly. idea - if it is really unacceptable, they are also willing to leave the new world at the right time and return to Edland...

So, we still have to kill them all, right?

call--

The bright silver blade flashed through the rain, and the blood on the blade left a bright red semicircle around him.

"Aren't you ready to show up?"

The young knight suddenly spoke, tapping the long knife in his hand gently, and the sharp tip of the knife made a clear and continuous sound with his steady steps:

"Although I don't know who it is, since you have seen me and still have no intention of retreating, it means that you are ready to become enemies of the Bernard family."

"I am not an Old God sect, and I have no interest in your recent actions in Sailing City, let alone who is the ruler of this colony."

"If even this is not enough, then take action! Although I have vowed not to intervene in any disputes, you should not expect me to sit back and wait."

"In the name of the Sea Knights, outsiders who step into this place with murderous intentions."

"You are not allowed to pass!"

"clang!"

The moment the words fell, the sharp blade passed through the drizzle, making a harsh metal collision sound.

Following the direction of the attack, the young knight raised his eyes and his vision, strengthened by the power of blood, locked onto the attacker who had just been peeping at him in the dark.

It was a tall figure wearing a black high-collar windbreaker and a half-top hat. His left hand was behind his back, and his exposed right hand was raised in front of him, with a rectangular-shaped weapon between his fingers.

Are those... playing cards?

Just as he was in a daze, the attacker suddenly threw his weapon.

There was no hesitation... Louis held the blade in front of him almost instinctively, and while blocking, he was also ready to dodge to both sides.

The scream that tore through the air echoed in the rainy night. It was so fast that even the sea knight's dynamic vision could not accurately capture it. The young knight could only subconsciously swing his sword and slash at the invisible "projectile".

"boom--!"

The young knight swung his sword forward, and the revolver hidden in his waist exploded with golden-red gun flames, stabbing the tall figure that suddenly appeared behind him like a spear.

The astonished attacker froze on the spot, not even noticing his left arm gushing blood and the missing dagger: "You...?!"

"You underestimate the power of the Sea Knights!" Louis snorted coldly:

"You think you can deceive others with such childish methods?!"

The sharp long knife drew an arc of nearly 270 degrees in the rainy night. In the blink of an eye, the blade was approaching.

The attacker, who was freezing cold, had no time to think about it. His right hand conjured up an extra card again, and at the same time, he leaned back to dodge.

"clang!"

Dazzling sparks exploded in the rain, and the metal "card" was split into two as if it didn't exist. The unhindered blade passed over the attacker's throat, and in an instant the entire figure dispersed like a shadow, leaving no trace. .

The expressionless young knight showed no surprise in his eyes. He raised his left hand and fired blindly.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The fire illuminated the darkness and made a thunderous sound in the alley; every time it lit up, you could see the attacker running away in terror, unable to dodge.

Finally, all the bullets in the revolver were used up, and the muzzle of the gun that was spitting out residual smoke no longer lit up the fire; the young knight who abandoned the revolver rushed straight towards the corner where the attacker last appeared with no expression on his face.

A "card" screamed and struck from the darkness in front of him. Louis, who had already expected it, slid forward to the right to dodge, and then turned the long knife in his hand, taking advantage of the situation to chop.

But at this moment, the card that he should have easily dodged disappeared.

"clang!"

The card suddenly appeared and hit the center of the blade. Under the deflected blade, the attacker holding the top hat avoided the fatal blow.

Louis' pupils shrank suddenly, but he did not stop dancing with the long knife in his hand.

One after another, the sword flashed in front of the attacker, each one more sharp than the last. The expressionless young knight was like a reckless beast, rushing forward desperately, approaching the attacker's neck and chest again and again.

Under the swift blade, the attacker held the top hat on his head and dodged calmly from the deadly blade, like a shadow that could only be seen but could never be touched.

Compared with the initial shock, he now seemed extremely calm, as if he was determined to continue fighting with the young knight; but as long as Louis tried to distance himself, or accelerated his slashing speed, the "card" came out of nowhere. " will appear, interrupting the rhythm of the battle without warning.

However, the attackers did not take the opportunity to counterattack, but continued to circle around, dodging the incoming "fatal blow" while strolling.

In the narrow alley, if nothing else happens, this battle may continue forever, until someone among them is exhausted, or...

"Close-up illusion."

Wielding a sharp sword, the expressionless young knight suddenly said in a deep voice.

Um? !

The attacker's pupils shrank suddenly, and his left hand holding the brim of his hat suddenly trembled. He was almost hit by the blade, but he forced himself to stay calm and continued to dodge.

But Louis did not continue to pursue. Instead, he stopped the long knife in mid-air and stared coldly at the attacker who took the initiative to distance himself from him: "Your trick has three prerequisites... Mr. Black Mage."

"First, you have to stay close; in order to maintain this trick, you must never leave within three steps of me."

"When you first attacked me, you were not on the top of the building, but at the other end of the alley. The action of throwing the cards was just a mirror image of the flip, and it was just a trick based on inner suggestions."

The young knight said coldly, "Bang!" and raised his left hand without warning, catching the cards that came from nowhere.

The attacker's eyes suddenly froze and his body froze in place.

"Secondly, you know my identity, strength, and weaknesses of my bloodline very well." Louis stared at the other party expressionlessly, raising the corners of his mouth in a self-deprecating tone:

"Once my mind is disturbed and I am unable to maintain absolute calm, the effect of bloodline power will be greatly reduced or even unsustainable; so the best tactic for me is to fight endlessly, wearing down my patience and constantly disrupting the rhythm. Hide the fatal blow in a disorderly attack."

"Thirdly, your purpose is not to kill me, but to delay time - to force me to stay here. The non-existent killing intention can also prevent the power of my blood from detecting your true position."

"How, sir, what I said was...right?"

Click.

The long knife that stopped in mid-air was slashed, and the attacker who had already hid ten steps away showed an extremely frightened look, and a bloodstain suddenly appeared under his neck.

Long bloodstains.