Shield River City was named for being built around a river, but unlike the Jade River that flowed past Allen Bridge Fort, the river water here was icy cold and clear, carrying the frigid aura of the snow-capped mountains.
Looking down from a high vantage point, beneath the snowy peaks, sparse snow forests and dense coniferous forests were distributed in layers. Riding a horse down the winding, twisting high cliff road, one could take in the entire ancient city, predominantly colored in grayish-green.
Although most of the central region of the White Horse Kingdom was plains, there were occasionally high mountains like those surrounding Shield River City.
Precisely because of its geographically advantageous position that was easy to defend but hard to attack, many important border cities and military fortresses in the Storm Territory were established in this area, forming a distant echo with the kingdom's long western border defense line.
Watching the figures of the knight team gradually disappear into the towering city gate tunnel of Shield River City, Count Bran finally flapped his wings with all his might, soared over the majestic city wall bristling with arrow slits and patrolling soldiers, and finally entered this border city with its distinct character.
Compared to the commercially prosperous and architecturally splendid Allen Bridge Fort, Shield River City still retained a strong, distinct martial character.
The thick city wall he had just scaled, the training grounds, weapon racks visible everywhere within the city, and the stone buildings emphasizing practicality, all vividly embodied the characteristics of this military city.
Although it didn't seem as bustling and noisy as the central cities, the streets were already filled with quite a few travel-worn adventurers and mercenaries, as well as the conspicuous signboard of an Adventurer's Guild outpost.
Count Bran flew over the labyrinthine city for quite a while before suddenly alighting on the eaves of a grand church, clearing his throat awkwardly a few times.
Chen Yu, perched on top of his head, heard this and opened his small, round eyes, looking around.
His gaze swept over the vast expanse of gray, dusty rooftops below, finally settling on the northeastern part of the city. There was an area with noticeably more vegetation and buildings painted in brighter, more vivid colors.
He pointed with his little gel finger. "That place looks very pretty and refined, probably the wealthy district."
"The Gardenia Flower District Glenn mentioned is likely there. Let's go take a look."
Count Bran immediately flapped his wings and took off, not forgetting to flatter the slime:
"Gahaha! As expected of Your Majesty, your discerning eye is as sharp as a torch."
"If we were following that directionally-challenged Arthur, this Count would surely get lost in this maze-like city for days."
Shield River City's urban area was vast. Count Bran flew for another dozen minutes before landing on a rooftop in the wealthy district.
Compared to the old, gray, and dark houses of other districts, the buildings here were mostly bright and clean in color, with carved balconies and courtyards cultivating various flowers and green plants, appearing exceptionally quiet and elegant.
It wasn't certain if this was the Gardenia Flower District, but it was definitely a place where only nobles, professionals, and wealthy merchants of Shield River City could reside.
He had originally planned to go with Count Bran to the cafe at the center of the district to see if they could gather information about that society member, but unexpectedly, he saw several teams of fully armed knights on the street, going door-to-door knocking and making inquiries.
Further ahead at a street intersection, several uniformed constables and two robed clergy members were also standing.
A bad premonition arose in Chen Yu's mind.
Count Bran also muttered, "Strange, have they already discovered something and come to search ahead of time?"
"That can't be right. Didn't that kid from the Snow Jackal Family swear up and down that this was a secret society, known to very few people? How could they be targeted so quickly?"
Chen Yu signaled Count Bran to get closer and listen carefully to the conversations between those knights and residents.
Sure enough, they vaguely heard common words like "witch," "treason," and "escaped."
The good news was that the society member seemed to have received a tip-off in advance, even fleeing before having time to pack her crucible and magical contract.
But the bad news was that, this way, their lead to contact Princess Louisa was cut off.
The slime was suspicious.
Why did he feel that ever since entering the White Horse Kingdom's territory, everything had gone wrong, with misfortunes piling up one after another?
Was it Count Bran's strange luck acting up again?
Before he could figure it out, Count Bran suddenly excitedly pointed with the tip of his wing at an alleyway not far away.
"Your Majesty, look quickly! Those knights seem to be chasing someone. Let's follow and see, maybe we'll have an unexpected discovery."
Having said that, he immediately flapped his wings and followed.
Inside the alleyway, the chaotic sounds of pursuit rang out incessantly, with knights issuing stern warnings.
"Halt!"
"Colluding with traitors is a serious crime!"
Ahead, a nimble and agile figure darted flexibly through the complex alleyways. Upon hearing the knights' shouts, he responded with a light, mocking laugh:
"Are you all stupid?"
"You already said it's a serious crime. Of course I'm going to run."
"Thank you for the enthusiastic escort, Sir Knights. Let's part ways here. We'll chat again next time when we're free."
By the time several knights, panting heavily, chased to the alley entrance, the thief's figure had long since vanished. They could only stomp their feet in frustration on the spot.
A few minutes later, that figure slowly revealed a tall, slender form in an alley on the outskirts of the Gardenia Flower District.
The woman clapped her hands. "Not bad, at least we got something useful."
She was just about to take off the cloak used for disguise when a male thief emerged from the shadows of the adjacent wall.
He reported in a low, respectful voice, "Lady Belly, I've temporarily confirmed it. There are no 'tails' following nearby..."
Before he could finish his sentence, he suddenly seemed to notice something, sharply looking up at the sky.
"Wait, something's not right."
"There's a crow!"
"A familiar? Or a druid's animal companion?!"
Belly instantly became alert. She decisively grabbed her subordinate and quickly ran deeper into the alley, not forgetting to say, "How did you scout this? I'm docking your pay when we get back!"
Count Bran flew over, carrying a temporarily picked-up acorn in his beak. "Uh... Your Majesty, they're getting away!"
"Throw the acorn at them," Chen Yu said.
Count Bran swooped over the heads of the two and dropped the acorn.
"What is that?!"
Belly caught a glimpse of something falling from the corner of her eye and instinctively moved to throw a dagger.
[All Plants as Soldiers]
[Hixiulong Part One]
The acorn in mid-air suddenly erupted with emerald green radiance. With a "crack" sound, the acorn's shell shattered.
Amidst a series of crackling sounds resembling the rapid growth of a tree, a juvenile Oak Guard materialized as if out of thin air, landing heavily in the middle of the alley, completely blocking Belly and Cohen's path.
"Natural magic?!" Belly's movements abruptly halted, her face revealing a look of shocked uncertainty.
An elven druid?
When had she offended those long-ears?
Just as various possibilities flashed through her mind, that strange crow had already flown down and landed on a branch of the oak tree.
It raised its head high, striking a haughty pose, and spoke: "If this Count heard correctly, your name is Belly, that... Belly Brooks?"
"What if it is?"
She didn't lower her guard, her mind racing as she thought of ways to escape.
However, the crow's next words caused her heart to jolt violently.
"Gahahaha, we found the right person!"
Count Bran gestured triumphantly with his wing. "You're the one Arthur and Galvin have been looking for, uh... that little girl who left Ironboot Town back then, right?"
He flapped his wings once and declared, "They sent this Count to find you."
......
Half an hour later, deep within a noisy underground tavern in the old city district.
Belly passed through the patrons drinking cheap ale and laughing boisterously, lifted a heavy curtain, and entered the quiet room behind it.
Only then did she place the crow, who had been chattering non-stop the whole way and wore a strange gel cap on its head, on the wooden table.
After listening to Count Bran's lengthy narration, interspersed with copious amounts of boasting and complaining, Belly crossed her arms and leaned against the wall.
"So, you came back to look for the Crown of Ignis, then were discovered and arrested by the Border Corps people in Baron Landen's territory?"
Count Bran greatly appreciated her clear thinking and nodded with satisfaction. "Gah! Correct. Living people's brains are indeed easier to use, much smarter than that dullard Arthur."
Hearing this, Belly fell into deep thought. After a long while, she finally raised her head and spoke slowly:
"There have indeed been rumors about crow criminals circulating within the Border Corps. But based on just this, I still cannot fully confirm your identities and intentions."
"I'm sorry, I cannot tell you the whereabouts of the crown."
"Gah!"
Count Bran immediately let out a dissatisfied caw. "At a time like this, what do you need that broken crown for anyway? This Count is here to find someone to rescue those two fools, Arthur and Galvin."
Belly seemed thoughtful, ignoring Count Bran's outburst.
She took out an exquisite hand mirror with silver runes inlaid along its edges from her inner pocket, then stood the mirror upright on the table, facing Count Bran.
"This mirror was likely intentionally left behind as a clue by the society witch you mentioned. It has obvious arcane traces."
"If you truly have a connection with Arthur and the others, then you should know how to use this mirror."
Count Bran looked at the mirror and immediately widened his bewildered bird eyes.
"Your Majesty, that kid from the Snow Fox Family didn't say anything about this thing."
"How do we use it?"
He pawed at the mirror with his claw. Unexpectedly, the mirror's surface suddenly emitted a hazy glow, revealing the silhouettes of two figures, accompanied by a woman's light laugh.
"A crow? Interesting. I never imagined the 'Dark Noble' prophesied in the Lady of Contrariety's revelation would be an animal believer."
"A Heretical Believer?!"
Count Bran was so startled he retreated several steps in succession, his feathers puffing up.
He seemed to suddenly understand something, hopping up and down angrily, cawing loudly: "This Count said so! Why have misfortunes kept piling up ever since stepping into this White Horse Kingdom? So it's you wicked women secretly manipulating fate again!"
Chen Yu also hadn't expected the witch Glenn mentioned to be a Heretical Believer. He had only ever seen two of these believers;
they were rarer than Giant Dragons.
Listening to Count Bran's conversation with the woman, he curiously asked, "You're afraid of her?"
Count Bran lowered his voice, covering his beak with his wing and muttering, "Your Majesty, you don't understand. Seeing a fellow practitioner is not a good thing."
"Being fellow Heretical Believers makes it easier to see each other's paths of fate. If she has ulterior motives, one of our own can be incredibly effective at screwing over another."
The woman on the other side of the mirror seemed to hear Count Bran's muttering and chuckled lightly.
"It seems there is a small misunderstanding between me and this Crow Lord."
"But please don't forget, like Her Highness the Princess, I am also currently wanted by the entire White Horse Kingdom."
"If not for the Lady of Contrariety's revelation, I probably would have long since left the White Horse Kingdom and gone prospecting in the Golden Radiance Valley."
"Alright, let's skip the pleasantries. This spell cannot be maintained for too long. Let Her Highness the Princess speak with you personally."
The image in the mirror swayed slightly, and the sound of light footsteps could be heard.
Another figure gradually approached. She seemed to even perform an elegant noble curtsy in the direction of the mirror.
"Louisa, in the name of the Princess of the White Horse, greets the Slime Majesty, the Crow Lord, and this young lady."
"I am already aware of what happened in Shield River City. I feel deep sorrow and anger regarding Glenn and the others' plight. However, rescuing them will be fraught with immense difficulties and will require the assistance of your kingdom."
"Slime Majesty?" Belly, who had been standing by watching, looked surprised and re-examined the gel cap she had been ignoring.
She saw the blob of gel give a little bounce, as if nodding in response. Count Bran immediately puffed out his chest and relayed on behalf:
"His Majesty says Your Highness the Princess need not stand on ceremony. Please speak frankly about any assistance you require."
Princess Louisa in the mirror gave a slight nod and began to outline her plan:
"According to reliable intelligence, a storm from the coastal Misty Bay Harbor Trade Alliance may sweep in at any time in the coming days."
"When that happens, all garrison forces at Storm Fortress must be on high alert, fully committed to resisting the summer Magical Tides. Correspondingly, the forces remaining within Shield River City will become relatively weaker. This is our opportunity."
"But this is far from enough. To draw Captain Lide away from Shield River City, unless... unless Storm Fortress can be made to fall, allowing Magical Creatures to flood into the Golden Tassel Plain."
Belly exclaimed in surprise, "Aren't you a princess? Why would you do this..."
She stopped halfway, realizing that this princess had already been convicted of treason. Someone pushed to the brink might do anything extreme.
Louisa didn't have to explain, but she still said softly, "The actual control of Storm Fortress has long since fallen into the hands of that Greater Demon. Without doing this, there's almost no possibility of breaking the deadlock."
"As long as the Slime Kingdom can help, assist the Magical Tides in breaching Storm Fortress, the secret army under my control will immediately act to rescue Glenn and the two knights from Shield River City."
"What about the commoners..." Belly started to speak but then hesitated.
Princess Louisa performed a slight bow. "If I'm not mistaken, you must be Lady Belly of the Blade of Vengeance."
"No, I'm not," Belly quietly denied.
Princess Louisa gave a slight nod, as if she hadn't heard, and continued, "If it's you, that makes things easier. To ensure we have sufficient strength to protect the commoners, I will also need to draw upon the power of your organization, and even more groups."