Chapter 87 - 31: [Ederic’s Wall]

Chapter 87: Chapter 31: [Ederic’s Wall]

In addition, over twenty fully armed Heavy Armor Guards stationed themselves on both sides of the gate, wielding halberds and massive shields bearing the Imperial Sword Crown Badge.

Heavy crossbows and cannons lined the stone walls and the top of the fortress. Dozens of Lightly Armored Soldiers patrolled above, carrying longbows or slings designed for throwing Magic Potion Bottles.

Sword crown flags with blood-red backgrounds fluttered beneath the azure sky. The long flagpoles and trailing banners resembled sword slashes, cutting through the flowing white clouds.

Two convoys of merchant carriages transporting Demonized Materials halted between the checkpoint gates, looking as insignificant as a swarm of bugs at the fingertips of a giant.

"Truly spectacular," Samael praised in a low voice.

He could feel the figure in Black Armor beside him trembling slightly. Reaching out with his dark, bluish-bronze Hand Armor, he gently pressed it against the back of Talia’s hand.

"Relax, it’s nothing major," he said briskly. "Just treat it as a vacation... don’t pressure yourself."

Truth be told, he was also feeling somewhat anxious. However, in this tiny alliance consisting of only two people, even one person feeling uneasy was already too much—a full fifty percent.

Between the two of them, someone had to remain emotionally stable and positive. If they were both pessimistic and depressed, they probably would have already held hands and jumped off a scenic cliff together.

"Alright," Talia replied.

Samael froze for a moment. He felt the black Claw-shaped Hand Armor beneath his palm flip over, grasping his own freezing bronze Hand Armor in return.

"Aren’t you cold?" he asked softly.

"No," she replied.

What a joke. How could this body of his not be cold? Samael wanted to pull his freezing Hand Armor away from her warm grasp, but when he tried to move, she only held on tighter.

He turned to look down at Talia, only to see her with her head bowed, looking like a little child afraid of getting lost.

Her demeanor reminded him of someone and something from his past. It felt as if he were cradling a sick, fragile hatchling in his palm. Not daring to struggle any further, he simply let her hold him.

"Adventurer friends, please cooperate! Just a simple routine inspection!" The soldiers clad in cavalry coats shouted loudly as they spread out to conduct random checks. They pulled open the doors of the carriages one by one, raising their Magic Potion Indicator Glass Bottles in turn while asking random questions.

Samael activated his helmet UI, extracting the audio of the conversations between the surrounding soldiers and adventurers.

CLANG! A carriage door opened, revealing a blonde woman with a Longsword on her back. The soldier raised his hand, the Magic Potion Indicator bottle flickering with a faint blue light.

"Level? Class? Where are you from?"

"Fourth-level Swordsman. Floren Kingdom, Qingyu Port."

"Roll up your sleeves and let me see. Any feathers or scales on your forearms?"

The sound of sleeves being rolled up.

"Thank you for your cooperation, ma’am." The soldier closed the door and left.

CLANG! Another carriage door opened. Inside sat a fully armed, medium-built Full Armor Knight wearing iron armor and an iron helmet, carrying a steel warhammer on his back. The Magic Potion Indicator bottle flashed with a soft blue light.

"Level? Class? Where are you from?"

"Level six, Warrior Knight. Holy Light Church Country, Saint Justin Snow Wind Monastery."

"Is that single horn just a helmet decoration? Take the helmet off."

The soft scrape of a helmet rubbing against hair.

"Thank you for your cooperation, monk." The soldier nodded, closed the door, and left.

CLANG! A carriage door opened, revealing two brothers. One wore light armor and wielded dual swords, while the other wore heavy armor and carried a greatsword. The Magic Potion Indicator bottle flashed with a soft blue light.

"Level? Class? Where are you from?"

"Level 5 Assassin. Born and raised in the Empire, a Northern Man from the Marshall Province of the Central North Five Provinces." The dual-sword Assassin rubbed his hands together. "We are brothers, traveling together."

"Oh, I guess we’re fellow townsmen," the soldier remarked casually. "How long have you been at this?"

"Almost three years now, right?" The Assassin looked at his older brother.

"This year makes it the third," the Heavy Swordsman brother nodded.

"Lift the hem of your clothes and let me see. Any tail feathers or a tail?"

FLAP. The sound of a coat hem being flipped up.

"That’ll do. Thank you for your cooperation, townsman."

CLANG! A carriage door opened. Inside were two fully armed Heavy Armor Knights, one in Black Armor and one in bronze armor. The blue light of the indicator flared brightly, flashing a brilliant deep blue!

"Level? Class? Where are you from?" The soldier frowned at the Magic Potion Indicator Glass Bottle in his hand. He looked at the two Knights before him, growing noticeably more tense.

"Level seven, Warrior Knight. Holy Light Church Country, Saint Justin Snow Wind Monastery." Samael took a gamble. "The two of us are from the same Monastery."

"Oh, so you’re with the guy from earlier, right?" The soldier relaxed slightly. "Level seven? ... How long have you been adventurers?"

"It’s been about four years, hasn’t it?" Randall, who was driving at the front of the carriage, chimed in.

"Yes, over four years," Samael agreed. "Almost five years now."

The soldier nodded. "Those twin horns, are they helmet decorations? Take it off and let me see."

He pointed at Talia’s black Demon Horned Helmet.

Talia reached up, grabbed the twin horns of her helmet, and lifted it up slightly to reveal the lower half of her face, indicating that the horns did not actually grow from her head.

"That’s fine, thank you for your cooperation, monk." He closed the carriage door and left.

"What an earnest and responsible guy," Samael remarked, feeling both of Talia’s hands tightly gripping his arm.

He raised his other hand and gently patted hers.

"We’re almost there," Samael said softly. "You’re always so jumpy."

Talia suddenly leaned her helmet closer, pressing the forehead of her black Demon Horned Helmet against the side of Samael’s.

"Valak sent a warning. They will catch up very soon." A faint buzzing vibration came from the contact between their iron helmets. "When we were at the Rondolan Ruins, they pierced my arm and collected my blood. Demon King Sitti Ka can use Witch Gold to craft complex, high-precision Spiritual Equipment. This includes a type of Cursed Compass that can track a creature using a flesh and blood sample. No matter where you flee, to the very ends of the earth, it’s completely useless."