Mechanical Alchemist

At noon ten days later, the ship of the Beluga Chamber of Commerce saw the giant city on the coast from a distance.

Su Lun came to the city-state of Moros again.

But this journey has not been smooth.

There used to be several well-established shipping routes from south to north to Romania. Not to mention the calm weather, at least it can guarantee that the merchant ships traveling there will not encounter storms for eight or nine months of the year.

But this time, Su Lun and the others encountered very dangerous and bad weather several times, and the tornadoes and waves were terrifying. If it weren't for Taney's excellent sailing skills, ordinary sea ships might have sunk to the bottom of the sea.

After the ship entered the port, Su Lun found that the once bustling city-state port of Moros was also very deserted. Sea-going ships go ninety-nine out of ten, and all the docks are empty. Only a few merchant ships are still unloading and loading.

Most of the dock workers and slaves are idle.

Groups of three or four were playing cards and chatting, each of them was lazy and without any passion.

"Hey, the law has not been issued these days. The amount of goods shipped in a day is not one-tenth of what it used to be. On the contrary, the food has skyrocketed tenfold, and I can't afford to eat."

"It's no wonder that food prices don't skyrocket without the presence of grain merchants!"

"Who the hell dares to come here? In the first ten days, eight sea ships came from Hastling, and all of them sank into the sea in a storm. In the middle ten days, a grain merchant saw the skyrocketing price of grain, and a dozen more ships came to transport grain. There was also a storm, and in the end only three ships docked. The fucking weather is getting worse and worse, who dares to come?"

"It's not about the weather. I heard that Sea God is going to punish Roman. Have you heard about the 'Alcatraz Island'?"

"Shh don't talk nonsense."

"."

Su Lun and Mr. Jing got off the boat.

Even if you don't listen deliberately, you can hear most of the dock workers' mouths complaining about the sluggish business of the porter.

In order to deceive others, the Beluga Chamber of Commerce brought a boatload of grain over. As soon as it landed, those swift workers gathered around the boat, trying to compete for the job of unloading the boat.

The unloading of the goods will be handled by the stewards of the chamber of commerce, so there is no need for Su Lun and the others to worry about it.

They walked all the way through the pier and saw the "Princess Stiga" and several frigates also docked in the harbor.

The two walked towards the city gate along the trail.

The identity of the grain merchant was very useful, and the Roman guards at the gate of the city did not dare to make things difficult, and the two walked in smoothly.

The city is still the same city, but the popularity is much less.

Su Lun came here once before. At that time, there were a large number of foreign merchants, adventurers and pirates in the city, and it was bustling and bustling.

Now all the shops are deserted, and there are a few pedestrians on the street, who seem to be local people.

The two walked all the way to the central square and stopped.

Mr. Jing narrowed his eyes and looked at the [Statue of God of War Tyre] on the square, wondering what he was thinking, "It's strange, why the power of faith in the city is so thin."

Su Lun turned his eyes and looked around.

He couldn't perceive any power of faith, but naturally, what his senior sister said, there must be something wrong.

After a long while, Mr. Jing's frowning didn't loosen. She still didn't seem to understand, "The Temple of Agaparton existed thousands of years ago, so it shouldn't be underestimated. Get ready, I'll go to the city to see it first." look."

"Um."

Su Lun nodded and didn't say much.

The two separated and walked away.

Mr. Jing got the information, saying that the high priest of the Agapanon Temple used mysterious means to prophesy some scenes, probably knowing that the dawn group would come to the city-state of Moros.

No one is blocking it, thinking that it is something that must happen, and there is no point in blocking it.

The masters of the North Sea Fleet are most likely already in the city at this moment, just waiting for them to show up.

However, Mr. Mirror is not in the prophecy.

Before the war, they had to go to the city to see the situation.

After the two separated, Su Lun wandered around the city alone.

He walked around the central square, and unconsciously remembered that he had met the "Painter of God" Vincent F. Van Gogh here. The guy also provided himself with very important information.

Now that I think about it, there is a high probability that it was Katyusha's handwriting.

The marriage between the North Sea Fleet and the Marfa Empire is absolutely unwelcome to the Lance family who want to control the North Sea.

So it makes sense to assassinate Princess Stiga.

Su Lun didn't know why, but suddenly remembered the experience of being beaten up by the Grand Duke of Lance, and his cheeks still seemed to be aching.

"The dignified Grand Duke, it's really not easy to attack."

Su Lun was speechless, shook his head and continued walking.

Ben was wandering aimlessly in the city, and while walking, he unknowingly came to Walrus Street in Dongcheng.

This is the tavern block of the town.

Alcoholics won't give up drinking because of the economic depression, but here is getting more and more lively.

Without outsiders, those sailors who used to rely on ships to make a living lost their jobs, and stayed in taverns all day to drink away their sorrows.

This is the busiest place in the city, so Su Lun thought about walking in.

He found a seat by the window and ordered a pitcher of rum.

It was broad daylight, and the tavern was full of drunken sailors.

Shouting and cursing were endless.

There are many people, but most of them are poor sailors, and there are no outsiders who can really consume.

"Hey, Oval, you fucking pay for the drink owed yesterday."

"I said boss, we are all old friends, how about putting it on the account first? There is no adventure group going out to sea these days, and we will get together when I find employment."

"Hehe, under the current situation, do you still want to hire someone to go to sea? Last time, hundreds of thousands of adventurers went to 'Alcatraz Island', and finally I heard that only a few thousand people survived. Tsk tsk, who the hell would dare to come to Roman! It’s not that all the family belongings that have been earned for decades have bought this tavern in the city, and I have left long ago.”

"Hey, it's been rumored that the treasure is a conspiracy deliberately released by the temple to attract adventurers to use it for the 'sea sacrifice'. No matter whether it is true or not, hundreds of thousands of people are missing now. Who would dare to come from outsiders? , who dares to venture out to sea?"

"Fucking rumors! Do you really think the current storm at sea is fake, and the death of hundreds of thousands of people is fake? If it wasn't for the people in the temple who did such dirty things, would it be possible?"

"Shh, you can't talk nonsense."

"What are you afraid to say! Who doesn't know that this is the punishment of the Sea God? Damn it, the priests of the temple all pretend to be pure and like fairies on weekdays, but they all turn out to be a bunch of dudes."

"Stop talking, offending the temple priest is a felony."

"Offensive? Hahaha. Now that the news has spread, who in the city doesn't know about it! [The Harp of the Muse Goddess] is right there in the city. If the news is really fake, don't you know if you go to a few priests to play it? Do the cousins ​​in the temple dare to show their faces? If there is no food merchant, they dare to come, do you know how many people Roman will starve to death? My words are light!"

"."

Alcohol makes people courageous, and these drunken old men cursed more and more vigorously with red necks.

Su Lun sat there listening for a while, and gradually became interested.

He was a witness to the "Alcatraz Incident", so he naturally knew that what these sailors said was true.

But what puzzled Su Lun was that the news shouldn't have spread so quickly.

If he were Roman in power, this kind of negative public opinion would definitely be suppressed at all costs.

Moreover, the temple is the belief in the hearts of the Romans after all, and the authority accumulated over the past few thousand years cannot be collapsed just because of some "rumors".

Those people opened their mouths and kept saying "watch", what's the situation.

Although Su Lun knew about the scandal at the Temple of Agapanon.

High Priest Helvetia was Oleg's best friend, and gave birth to an illegitimate son of the captain of the Third Fleet, Onis Popov. That guy is not a fuel-efficient lamp, and he slammed the priestesses of the entire temple.

But ordinary people shouldn't know about this kind of scandal!

"Someone is spreading the news on purpose?"

Su Lun immediately guessed something.

He had heard of the [Harp of the Muse] before, and it was also a lost sacred object in Roman legend.

Legend has it that only the purest girls can pluck the strings and play the most beautiful music in the world.

In the past, the priestesses of the temple would often take it out to play on major holidays and collect treasures of faith.

And by such a coincidence, the harp, which had disappeared for hundreds of years, appeared at this juncture?

Now the priests of the Temple of Agapanon are not virgins, so naturally they can't touch the strings.

It might have been destroyed by the Romans long ago if it was replaced with other things, but this [Harp of the Muse] is a sacred object of faith, and no one dares to mess with it.

So, Mr. Jing suspected that the reason for the collapse of faith in the city was this?

Isn't this a god assist?

Su Lun thought this was good news.

For believers in gods, the power of faith is the most important source of power that determines combat power.

Once the temple loses its credibility, the Roman warriors may not obey their orders.

Just like right now.

In addition to the sailors, there were many Roman natives in the tavern, and there were even some soldiers wearing standard armor.

But listening to those sailors swearing at the temple, these soldiers were all drinking dull wine, and no one made a sound.

But knowing that he has done something shameless, no matter how brave a soldier is, he has no confidence in his heart.

The "God of War Tyre" believed by the Romans represents integrity and justice.

They are not afraid of life and death, but they are not ashamed of despicable and dirty methods.

Moreover, the Romans will face and solve problems when they encounter problems, instead of the temple's current practice of avoiding them.

This really made everyone full of doubts.

"Who is spreading the news?"

Su Lun felt more and more curious.

People in the North Sea Fleet will definitely feel that the biggest enemy is the "Dawn Regiment" who is spreading rumors.

But Su Lun knew that they didn't do it!

"Doing this kind of thing is naturally to weaken the strength of the North Sea Fleet and destroy the foundation of belief in the Temple of Agapanon. The motivation is nothing more than the Luying royal family and the northern nobles."

After thinking about it for a while, Su Lun suddenly thought of something, and thought, "Could it be the Lance family behind Katyusha?"

I met the "Duke of Tulip" Bartolo Lance in Beihai before, a majestic grand duke, it must not be as simple as just beating him up in leisure. Eighty percent have other plots.

Su Lun thought of this, took another sip of wine, and didn't think about it any more.

In any case, this is good for their dawn group.

He took out the communicator and contacted Mr. Jing, and told him about the information he got.

And news came out from Mr. Jing, who originally planned to let the chamber of commerce contact Kai to see if he could redeem him. Now it's confirmed that it can't be done, and we must always prepare for a fight.

Moreover, she also found a lot of strong people in the city.

However, everything went exactly as planned.

After hanging up the communicator, Su Lun also drank the whole bottle of rum.

He didn't plan to stay in the tavern for too long, so he got up and was about to leave.

But at this moment, a man covered with a cloak hurried in from outside the tavern. She looked around the tavern, then went straight to Su Lun's table.

"Sir, can I have a drink?"

The voice is soft and pleasant to listen to.

Even if he didn't see the face, he could guess that this must be a girl with a good face.

But Su Lun's expression became very surprised.

He recognized the familiar soul from the moment this person entered the door, and asked, "Katyusha?"

The man in the cloak lifted the brim of the cloak, but did not take it off, showing a bright smile: "Mr. Su Lun, long time no see."

The tone is still intimate, as bright as sunshine in spring.

Su Lun frowned when he saw a girl's face.

But it was not the Katyusha he knew.

No freckles, no big flaxen braids, but a very beautiful head of purple hair.

This is a beautiful noble lady who is so beautiful that people will be amazed at a glance, enough to be called a country and a city.

The purple-haired girl smiled. She sat on the high stool opposite Su Lun. The details of her demeanor revealed the elegance and self-cultivation of a lady from a top noble family. She put on the cloak cap again, and said, "Sorry, it's not easy to reveal my appearance here."

Su Lun felt very strange.

After pondering for a moment, he asked, "Should I call you 'Katyusha' or 'Miss Ekaterina'?"

"It's all right."

The purple-haired girl tilted her head, and her big watery eyes were full of strange spirits.

She heard the emotional fluctuations in Su Lun's tone, and responded, "I never lied to you. 'Katyusha' is my nickname, and only the closest family members call me that."

"oh."

Su Lun was inexplicably disappointed.

The original young girl suddenly turned into a slim noble lady in front of her eyes.

It does look better.

But it wasn't a friend he knew.

The Katyusha he knew was an innocent, pure as white paper, yet poetic girl.

Although the person in front of him concealed it very well, it is not true.

And meeting here, a breath of conspiracy and conspiracy spread over the surface.

Su Lun vaguely guessed something.

The purple-haired girl looked at Su Lun like this, and the innocent smile on the corner of her mouth slowly retracted, and the luster in her eyes was extremely deep.

She restrained her disguise, and laughed at herself politely: "I wanted to meet you as an acquaintance. But it seems to be self-defeating instead."

The words explain,

The two fell into silence.

Su Lun knew that when they met here, there was only power and profit left.

He sighed slightly in his heart, and asked directly: "Miss Ekaterina, what do you want from me?"

Ekaterina was also very straightforward: "I want to make a deal with you."

Su Lun was not surprised at all: "About the North Sea Fleet?"

Seeing this, he knew that everything in the Beihai situation had her shadow.

The slave-hunting plan in the Silent Forest, the reform movement in Shanyin, the assassination in Pirate City, and now the public opinion in Roman City is fermenting

This is a politician of extraordinary skill and scheming.

Ekaterina shook her head and responded: "It was originally one of the purposes. But it's not anymore."

Su Lun raised his eyebrows: "Oh?"

This answer really exceeded his expectations. If it wasn't for the upcoming battle, then why?

Ekaterina said unhurriedly: "The North Sea Fleet and Princess Namafa have set up an ambush here, waiting for you to come. Everyone thinks that your "Dawn Regiment" will definitely be wiped out."

Having said that, she stopped and raised her glass as a gesture.

Su Lun clinked his glass politely and took a deep sip of the wine.

Ekaterina also took a sip, gracefully and lightly.

She was no longer the silly little girl who got herself drunk.

She continued: "I wanted to remind you that Oleg is here in person. But since you are here, my warning is unnecessary. It seems that your mysterious leader at dawn should also be here."

Su Lun glanced at her, "Oh?"

Yekaterina's star-like eyes flashed with sharpness, as if nothing could hide from her: "It's not divination. The high priest of the Agaparton Temple didn't have the ability to predict that kind of existence. I just know that Mr. Su Lun, your character will not be so reckless. Knowing that there is an ambush in the city-state of Moros, you still come, so you must be sure. Thinking about it, only the mysterious leader of your dawn organization came. "

"."

Su Lun didn't respond.

After pondering for a moment, he asked again: "So... what is the deal?"

Upon hearing the question, Ekaterina did not rush to answer.

Her slender fingers swirled around the mouth of the cup, just this small movement seemed to have a magical power to charm all living beings. After pondering for a moment, he slowly said a few words: "I need to marry the Regadi family."

The voice was very small, but Su Lun frowned instantly when he heard it.

He understood immediately.

Political marriage.

Su Lun almost forgot that he also had the identity of "Fick Regardi".

Su Lun is not Fick, and has no interest in any marriage.

Hearing this, he took a sip of muffled wine expressionlessly.

Now that I think about it, many things become clear.

He was assassinated by Mr. William of Lei Jiadi at the beginning because of this marriage.

Although I don't know why she didn't choose the obviously better William, but chose "Fick".

But it doesn't make sense anymore.

Su Lun has always been brooding about his death.

But knowing the truth at this moment, it doesn't seem to matter anymore.

Why do I feel so restless in my heart?

Is it because of anger that the meeting in Blizzard City, a friend who can drink, has become part of the scheme?

Ekaterina continued: "This marriage won't have much impact on you, what you want is the identity of 'Fick Regardi'. Mr. Su Lun, you are still Su Lun. The only thing you need to do , will appear in Lingdun three months later, and accept Her Majesty's blessing with me. Only then will all the nobles in Luying approve of this marriage. Before and after that, we can have no contact."

The essence of political marriage is the exchange of interests.

There was nothing personal about it.

The largest aristocrat in the north and the ambitious Regadi family in the south have joined forces, an existence that even the Lu Ying royal family would be afraid of.

Lu Ying's political situation is about to change.

Ekaterina said again: "As a condition, I will help you in this battle. I will also give you more resources and convenience later. It will cover your future cooperation, protection, development, etc. of the dawn group."

Su Lun listened silently and had nothing to say.

This "Miss Ekaterina" was extremely smart, and she had already considered everything before she spoke.

This marriage is also of great benefit to Su Lun.

A useless "identity" in exchange for infinite benefits is a win-win situation.

But Su Lun didn't know why, but couldn't arouse the slightest interest.

He felt very irritable, did not respond to Ekaterina's conditions, and drank the wine in the glass in one gulp.

For a long time, neither of them spoke.

The atmosphere gradually became strange.

The purple-haired girl sitting in front of her was calm, composed, rational, and stable.

But at this moment, she seemed to see something, and an imperceptible emotion fluttered quietly in her eyes.

At this time, she finally took out a carry-on box.

Su Lun had seen this meteorite treasure box before, and he still clearly remembered that there were many exquisite and precious small meteorites in the treasure box.

now open,

Inside is also treasured a notched gold coin.

Ekaterina took out the gold coin, put it on the table, and said solemnly: "Mr. Su Lun, you once gave me this gold coin. Can I use it now?"

Su Lun naturally recognized the gold coin at a glance.

"I owe you a favor", this is what he said when he took out this gold coin and gave it to Katyusha.

Seeing it now, a sneer suddenly appeared on Su Lun's expressionless face.

At this moment, a certain idea in my mind seemed to be broken.

There is nothing to hesitate. He picked up the gold coin on the table, and said without emotion in his tone, "Okay! I will show up in Lington in three months."

Said, got up and left.

With a flick of his fingers, he didn't take the gold coin away, and left it on the table again.

But this time, the gold coin that was used as a token of friendship was actually money for wine.

From beginning to end, Ekaterina has shown the calmness and wisdom that a top politician should have.

But at this moment, there was a different light in her eyes.

Seeing the moment the man turned around, she suddenly opened her mouth and said a very poetic sentence: "The encounter must be due to the fetters of fate, not any other factors."

Su Lun chuckled.

Did not look back.

Nothing matters anymore.

He walked out of the tavern, his back was inexplicably gloomy.

From the moment you turn around,

He knew he had lost a great friend.

In the storage ring, there is also the letterhead left by that good friend.

"Sorry for leaving without saying goodbye. Because, this is the best ending I can think of for the story."

"Mr. Su Lun, you have to remember that we once saw this starry sky together. I hid my face in the stars. If...if you really think of me occasionally, just look up at the starry sky at night. The stars will Bring you my blessing."

"If you continue to write, Katyusha will become a carefree great troubadour in the story. But our story ends here. We probably won't see each other again in the future, you have to take good care of yourself.—— Katyusha

"."

It turned out that she had already said goodbye.

Only then did Su Lun realize it later.

Su Lun left.

Ekaterina looked down at the gold coins on the table, her beautiful face was completely covered by the cloak.

No one saw that her nose wrinkled slightly, and there were sporadic sparkles in her eye sockets.

The first secret love in a girl's life may not be much liked, nor may it be very sweet. But that pure spring heart sprout is also a fiery emotion that she will never forget in her life. It is also the only time in her life that she is brave and sincere without any ties. Like the brilliant wildflowers in poetry, they are in full bloom, although they are not delicate enough, but when you look back at the blooming flowers, their colors are still bright.

Su Lun is not only a line of romantic poems in Katyusha's life, but also many unique and beautiful pictures.

took that bite,

I will probably remember it for many years.

Thoughts raced.

Waiting until the sparkle in the eyes completely dissipated,

this moment,

She finally sat firmly in the Holy Land.

Yekaterina looked at the back that was getting farther and farther away from her heart, and murmured to herself: "You are the only man Katyusha has ever been tempted by. If so, then write a poem as farewell .”

She looked out the window and looked up at the sky in the southeast, with a stern smile on her lips.

She dipped in wine and wrote a line of poetry on the table:

The blue sky glistens with dewdrops,

golden clouds,

scratched,

listen,

the wind is howling;

look,

The stars shone in the flames;

This day, my dream woke up, and it went away from me;

Like a meteor falling in the daytime, the momentary light blooms dazzlingly beautiful~

Before the handwriting was dry, Yekaterina's eyes were filled with merciless sternness.

She softly shouted: "Astrology Alchemy Red Emperor!"

Outside the city, someone suddenly shouted loudly.

"It's not good! Look at the sky!"

"Falling stars in the daytime, my God, is it a punishment from the gods?"

"The shooting star seems to be heading towards the temple!"

"."

There was a commotion in the Moros city-state, and everyone crowded the streets, looking at the sky, shocked.

At the same time, in an unknown ancient street in Xicheng, Mr. Jing strolled leisurely on the stone road. She seemed to have noticed something, looked at the vision that suddenly appeared in the sky, and smiled and said to herself: "Su Lun really has a very good friend."