The Book of Hibernation

There are already many people guarding the outer hall of the city hall, including the other three leaders of the chamber of commerce.Seeing Bellos and Aldin walk in, they greeted the chief, and greeted Aldin normally, as if this was just a normal meeting.

In the corner, a thin figure in a hood stood among the mercenaries.

Bellows glanced that way, left briefly, and entered a small lounge with the hooded man.

After closing the door, March took off her hood with a very confused expression on her face.

Bellos asked her what was the matter, and she took out the book case that Winter Thistle entrusted her.

Belos recognized the thing and immediately asked March about its origin.Sanyue told the truth: she had known Refiner Dong Ji in Harbor City for a long time, this time the situation was special, she had heard about it, so she sent Winter Ji out of Harbor City in advance, Dong Ji expressed her gratitude and handed over the bookcase to She, let her hand over to Bellos Jr.

March is really confused, I don't know what is the use of this bookcase, everything said is the truth.She didn't know if Little Bellos had the ability to detect lies, and even if she did, she wasn't worried.

After listening, Bellos shook his head: "Irene, you are too emotional. In this regard, he and you are indeed very similar... so no wonder you are at a disadvantage."

March raised her eyes sharply.The "he" Bellos mentioned here obviously did not refer to Winter Thistle, but her brother Tarr the Younger.

Sanyue frowned and said nothing, her face was ugly.

Bellows sighed, put the book case on the small table by the wall, walked over and stroked March's hair: "Sorry, I said the wrong thing."

Sanyue said: "I just think the refiner is very important. If I let him go, maybe we can reunite in the future; but if the anaconda has prepared some way out and just took him away...then... ..."

"This consideration is correct," Little Bellos patted her on the shoulder. "Now the anaconda can't contact Winter Thistle, and Winter Thistle doesn't know about the changes in Harbor City. It's better to separate them. It's just that you've done too much. Suddenly, tell me in advance next time."

"Ok."

"Well, you go away first."

Just when March was about to turn around, Little Bellos stopped her again, chanted a spell, and detected the spell fluctuations on her body.

She has basic trigger protection on her body, and she wears a magic storage ring on her finger, which can cast a force field shield.These are pretty normal mage protection spells and items.

Apart from the above, she didn't have any necromantic fluctuations on her body, not even the faint scent of related medicinal materials.No matter who came to investigate her, she was just an ordinary chamber of commerce mage.

Then, Bellos Jr. asked March to perform the same detection on him.After March finished, he cast it on himself again.

"Very good, the effect is as usual." Bellos nodded, "Go."

After March left, Bellos Jr. cast a spell to lock the doors and windows, and placed a silence spell rune.

He went back to the table, sat down, and opened the book case.This time, what was placed in the book case was not the manuscripts of ancient warlocks, but several small pieces of soft leather and a ball of wax.

He could recognize that the soft leather was a short-term enchantment tool from Winter Thistle, and the wax ball was communication crystal wax, a communication tool between spellcasters.

Bellos found a cup and cast a spell to dissolve the wax ball.A small piece of letter paper was exposed inside.

He unfolded the letter paper, and there was only a simple sentence on it:

I have Haman's spellbook.

Bellos' eyes trembled slightly, then he gradually smiled, and whispered to himself, "It seems that I guessed right."

He picked up the few short-term enchanting tools again, looked at them carefully, and put them into his pocket.

Bellows did not reply.After reading, he threw the letter paper, crystal wax and cup into the fireplace.

The fireplace was cold this season, so he chanted a spell, and an open flame lit up in the furnace, instantly engulfing those objects.

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In order to take care of the face of many people, the city hall has not used the trial court for the time being, but has used the review court.

In the review chamber, the participants sit on the ring-shaped stepped seats, and the speaker should go down to the center of the ring and stand at the lowest place to make a statement.

The outermost layer of the hall is the city guard and the execution team, and there are chamber mercenaries outside the building.Although the form is different from the trial court, if there are villains who refuse to accept the punishment and make trouble on the spot, they will not be able to escape even if they are surrounded by layers of court.

The person who presided over this review was a royal court official who was over seventy years old.He first spoke to verify the matters and confirm the personnel, then the local consul spoke, and then the patriarch of the temple and two doctors went down to make a statement.

When Aldin was about to speak, he just stood up from his seat. Before he could go down, a blond man stood up in the crowd and stopped him.

"My lords, forgive me for my recklessness," Simon said while bowing to the surroundings, "Should we let the relevant witnesses take turns to make statements, and finally ask Aldin in charge?"

"This is not a trial court, there are no witnesses or defendants or anything like that," a city hall official said.

Having said that, everyone understands that today is actually a trial.

Simon smiled and said: "I'm very sorry, forgive me for speaking inappropriately. Then let me put it another way. As far as we know, one of the relevant people was not invited, so he was not present. He knows a lot about the underground market and should participate This deliberation. It would be unfair if Aldin made the statement in the absence of this person."

"If that gentleman or lady is involved in this matter, he should have informed the city hall in advance and we will certainly notify him to be there," the consul said.

Simon said: "It is like this. The gentleman was assassinated while going out and almost lost his life. He is now very weak. He has been recuperating and missed the opportunity to inform the city hall, so he was not asked to be present."

The Archon nodded, agreeing to let Simon bring in the men mentioned.But in the process of waiting for others, he still asked Aldin to come down to the center of the ring to accept inquiries and make statements first.

Aldin had to answer a lot of questions, some of which were innocuous, and some of which were obviously meant to test whether he had a secret deal with the northern necromancer.

When the envoy of the Austrian Law Federation asked him questions, Aldin said that he did not understand the content.He is not a mage, and he doesn't understand those arcane supplies, and only deals with money-related matters.

The mage asked again: "We found many items related to necromology, toxicology, alien science, and various embargoed materials. Not only that, but also a large number of traces of spells cast on the spot. You don't know about all of this? "

Aldin said: "If it is said that everyone is unaware, it is definitely not true. Of course I know that this market is a trading place for spellcasters. The problem is that I am not a mage, and I can't tell what is the use of each of those things."

"If you don't know everything, how can you manage this market?"

Aldin replied: "I am not the manager of the bazaar. My business is in other fields, and I am not responsible for the operation of the bazaar."

When he said this, the envoy of the Austrian Law Federation did not continue to ask, but looked to the side of the hall.

The door of the court opened, and Kanai walked in slowly with the help of a servant, followed by two soldiers.

Simon immediately stood up to greet him, took Kanai from the servant, and helped him to a seat that didn't require too many steps.

After letting Kanai sit firmly, Simon did not leave immediately. He squatted and half-kneeled beside Kanai, and held Kanai's hand with a dignified expression to show his support for Kanai.

Aldin looked over, and Kanai happened to meet his gaze.

Simon observed Kanai.This pair of brothers reunited after a little farewell, both of them had delicate expressions, without any hint of joy.There was still a smile in Aldin's eyes, but Kanai's expression was cold and stiff.

None of them spoke first, and Aldin didn't even ask about Kanai's injuries.The two looked at each other for a moment, and Aldin looked away first.

While observing Kanai and Aldin, Simon also saw Bellos.

Bellos sat on a high place, smiled slightly, and nodded to Simon.

The envoy of the Austrian Federation continued to ask: "My lord, if you are not the manager of the market, then who is in charge of these affairs?"

As Simon expected, Aldin turned slightly and faced Kanai.

He replied, "It's the refiner beside me, the half-elf Winterthistle."

This sentence did not cause much reaction, he just mentioned a subordinate.

The courtiers of the royal capital and several other leaders of the Chamber of Commerce did not know the person he mentioned at all, and the Austrian Federation felt that it was normal for refiners to participate in such affairs.Even several officials in the city hall were relieved.

Only Bellos and Simon's expressions changed.

Bellos had communicated with Aldin many times in advance, and had already discussed a solution to this matter: Aldin confessed to his younger brother Kanai and asked Kanai to take responsibility.Then Bellos and Aldin will try their best to protect Kanai together and prevent him from suffering too much.Face is secondary, calming the turmoil is the most important thing.

Kanai's status in the Chamber of Commerce is not high, he has no personal power, and will not cause joint losses, so he is very suitable to stand up and take responsibility.He has a blood relationship with Aldin, which makes everyone believe in Aldin's sincerity, showing that he is exposing the crimes of his relatives, rather than just talking nonsense about a person.

At the same time, although Kanai has a close relationship with the Hilda Academy, he is not a full member and does not have any teaching positions.If he was the one involved in necromancy, he could not only explain the contraband in the academy, but also preserve the dignity of all spellcasters in the academy.

Kanai is obviously the younger brother in charge of the chamber of commerce, but he does not hold any exclusive position. He has no private residence, no land, no fleet or firm under his name, and he has not even done business in his own name.

More than one mentor in the academy also felt sorry for Kanai, saying that he is very talented and should not be unambitious or buried just like that.It's a pity that he is just an accessory of Aldin.

It would be fine if he was a child, but he is obviously an adult who is about the same age as Aldin.

Bellos had long noticed the difference in identities between Aldin and Kanai, so he reckoned that Aldin would agree.

At this time, Aldin faced the courtiers and consuls of the royal capital, and turned his back to Bellos.

Bellos narrowed his eyes, staring after him.

Simon was also a little confused.As far as he knew, Aldin should have confessed to Kanai. He obviously heard that Aldin had already wanted to do so...

Simon observed Kanai's reaction.Kanai frowned tightly, as if thinking about something.

Simon thought for a while, Aldin just said the name of a subordinate, it was not a self-confession, it was not forceful.They still have a chance to bring the charges back to Aldean.

So Simon stood up: "My lords, what Aldin said did not match the facts we had in advance."

He introduced Kanai to everyone—Aldin's younger brother, his closest assistant, who knew about Austrian law, and lived in Harbor City all year round.

The consul called Kanet to answer.Due to Kanai's leg injury, the tribunal agreed that he would not have to stand up, but just sit where he was.

The courtier who was the chairman of the council asked Kanai: "Do you have anything to say?"

"Yes, let me think about where to start..." Kanai paused, and said, "Simon said just now that Aldin's statement did not match the facts. It is true. What he said is not accurate. I can tell you that testify."

Simon smiled, eyes filled with gentle encouragement.

Kanai continued: "He said that the manager of the market is the refiner Winter Thistle, which is not accurate. A long time ago, the manager of the market was me. Later, it was replaced by the refiner Winter Thistle. The relevant records are related to I have submitted the evidence to the Hilda Academy and the Austrian Federation."

Simon was completely stunned, and he didn't even dare to look up at Bellos' expression.

The other three leaders of the Chamber of Commerce sat very close.The three of them looked at each other in a very short period of time, and did not send messages to each other directly, and everyone had a dignified expression.

They also knew the man Simon.Seeing that Simon interrupted Aldin's statement, helped Kanai in, and specifically emphasized that Kanai was assassinated and injured... the chiefs more or less guessed what Kanai might say.

Unexpectedly, the statements of Kanai and Aldin were basically the same.This made them rather surprised, but also thoughtful.

The chairman of the council asked: "Where is that refiner now?"

Aldin replied: "He was going to the workshop in the western suburbs this morning. The chief is sending mercenaries to look for him."

After finishing speaking, Aldin bowed to Bellos.Bellos returned a polite smile.

Simon was still sitting next to Kanai, clasping his hands and rubbing them back and forth.

Kanai looked at him from time to time, but he looked away instead.

================================

With the moon rising, today's deliberations are temporarily over, and quite peacefully.

The door of the review court opened, and the courtiers of the royal capital got into the carriage and left first. After him, others also left the door one after another.

Bellows and Simon never left City Hall.When Aldin left, he saw Bellos walk into the lounge next to the hall on the first floor, and Simon followed behind him with his head bowed.I don't know what the two of them are talking about at the moment.

Aldin helped Kanai out.When getting into the carriage, Kanai needed Aldin's help.Even with Aldin's strength, Kanai still clenched his teeth in pain.

After closing the carriage door, Aldin looked at Kanai's leg: "Is it really lame?"

"Bones are cracked, of course it's real," Kanai said.

"I thought it was fake...why bother? You can fool him with spells, but he won't be able to see through the trash like Simon."

Kanai said: "But it's not just him, there are more than one thugs around him, I don't know the depth of those people. By the way, what happened to Winter Thistle?"

Aldin sighed: "I don't know."

"It turned out to be really running away? I thought it was fake..."

Aldin said: "I have a feeling that maybe he knows something that even we don't know ... But it doesn't matter, although it happened suddenly, it is moving in our favor."

Kanai nodded.The pain just now subsided a little, and his complexion was much better.

Aldin suddenly said: "Kanai, you have done everything I told you, and that's enough. You don't need to suffer deliberately to prove your loyalty, and you don't need to spend your time doing extra things, which may cause extra problems instead. Make trouble for me."

Kanai froze for a moment and didn't speak for a long time.

Aldean was clearly referring to more than just his leg injury.Although the injury was serious, it was not to the point of "adding chaos".

Both fell silent, and only the sound of horseshoes could be heard in the carriage.

When the carriage was driving half way, Kanai suddenly said, "I'm sorry about that ship."

Aldin looked at him with a smile on his face.

"I accept your apology," said Aldin, "but...why? Why would you want something to happen to the caravan of the Carlos family? Who would benefit?"

Kanai smiled bitterly: "Yes, it's not good for anyone. I just want to pass this matter so that the caravans of the Carlos family will no longer enter and exit from Harbor City. They trade slaves in the north. This kind of thing is too dangerous ...There is no benefit in continuing to cooperate. I am a mage, and I know very well how dangerous it is. If we keep cooperating with the Carlos family, they will implicate you sooner or later. The risk that the Carlos family brings to you is far greater than the benefit."

Aldin said: "Have you ever thought that if you are not careful, you will not implicate me 'sooner or later', but will implicate me immediately."

Kanai said: "Now I understand. I used to overestimate my control over the matter. At that time, I thought that even if the slave trade in the caravan was exposed, we would definitely be able to get away. After all, we do not operate directly. There are legal channels, and you can use the identity of the Templar Knights to prove yourself. Compared with the Carlos family, we would not have suffered too much loss. You did not deny these advantages, you just think that we will lose the trust of our allies. .And I think that... that's an acceptable price to pay."

Aldin said, "But there's someone else watching us. He's lurking in the shadows, and you almost sent him a nice weapon."

"You're right." Kanai clenched his hands tightly, not daring to raise his head to face his brother. "Later I realized. So... I want to make amends."

Aldin leaned forward and sat a little closer: "Brother, you have succeeded in remediating it. It seems that Bellos has been looking for my weakness. Your behavior caught Bellos' attention and made him think he had successfully found it. You've misled their judgment and gone to great lengths to keep them spending their time and energy in the wrong direction. And that's a good thing."

Kanai sighed: "They all believed it."

Aldin said: "They will believe it. Compared with family affection, the people of Shandonia still value interests more, and everyone's logic is like this."

As he spoke, Aldin patted his younger brother's shoulder comfortingly, and then pressed it lightly.

"You did well after that." Aldin looked at his legs, "You can rest at ease after you go back, don't worry about too many messy things in the future, and try not to go out, lest someone get angry and retaliate against you .”

Kanai hesitated: "However, there are some things I still need to know..."

He was just halfway through when Aldin interrupted him: "You said before that when drinking, one of us must be sober all the time. You are more likely to get drunk, so you can only be responsible for being the sober person. Kanai , you often forget this and mistakenly think that you also drink."

This time Kanai didn't justify, and didn't speak for a long time.

After a while, he whispered, "I'm sorry. I've dragged you down again, just like when we were kids."

"Well, don't keep bringing that up," Aldine said.

Then, the carriage was completely silent again.