A caravan carrying a large amount of goods crossed the Alps and walked on the edge of the desert to the city of Gardinerras. It took nearly three months one way. Along the way, it had to overcome difficulties such as heavy snow, ice breakage, and water supply.

It can be said that it has been a difficult journey.

But for Chris, who set off lightly and traveled with a horse, it was a pleasant journey.

The sadness of being far away from your loved ones and hometown will be blown away by the biting cold wind when you are galloping; the endless desert is golden during the day, but at night it is like mercury bursting to seal the world, making people can't help but sigh at the magic of nature;

There is the figure of the sand lizard man wandering around the edge of the desert in search of food. He hurriedly ran for his life into the depths of the desert as soon as he heard the sound of horse hooves...

Everything made Chris feel that the world outside Eaton's territory was very novel.

Even the food and drink along the way have a unique flavor.

Seeing Xian in his eyes, his novelty and stupidity, which he had never seen before, did not disturb him.

After all, he is a young man, and it is inevitable that he has a heart that longs for freedom and longs for the distance. Even the eyes that fall on Chris occasionally flash a hint of worry.

It is a kind of worry similar to that of parents when they let go of their children.

His duty is only to escort Chris to the city of Edin of the Ainske family in the south. Chris will have to explore the rest of his life alone.

Although this big boy he watched grow up has good qualities and a certain ability to protect himself, he is as pure as a piece of white paper and is ignorant of the dangers and evils of the world. He is worried that this big boy has not grown up yet.

The warrior at his peak has already been swallowed up by the sinister human heart of the world.

Of course, he didn't intend to interfere too much.

Growth inherently comes at a cost.

The young bird that has been sheltered under the wings of its elders will never have its own sky.

What he could do was to make Chris as familiar as possible with the world outside Eaton territory during the journey south, so that he would suffer less in the future.

The road along the desert on the west side of the Alps was sparsely populated, and the two of them did not stay too long. It only took about a month to arrive outside the city of Gardinaras, an important town in the southwest of the empire.

This city is located between the remnants of the Alps and Lokidaran mountains. A few hundred miles ahead is the terrifying swamp where the snake people live. Behind it is the plain that can reach the imperial capital in a short distance. It is the Holy Empire's defense against snakes.

Man's only line of defense.

The garrison is extremely powerful, with 50,000 imperial elites stationed all year round.

Among them, 20,000 troops came from the Griffin Legion directly under the royal family.

Chris, who had just arrived outside the city, was first shocked by the thirty-meter-high city wall, and then looked at the flag embroidered with a gryphon pattern and was speechless.

There were no knowledgeable scholars in Eton territory, and he did not have the opportunity to read many books.

But when he was very young, his grandfather Henry Sr. told him the history of the Eaton family; his father Kafka also told him the past of the establishment of the Holy Empire and the origins of the major lords and the family as stories.

So he also knew that more than a hundred years ago, it was this flag embroidered with a gryphon that never appeared in the Alps, which led to the Eaton family being shamed as "traitors of mankind"!

He was spurned by the Ice and Snow Goddess Cult, and verbally criticized by the lords of the Northwest Plains!

Especially to this day, the Eaton family still pays a heavy tribute to the empire every year.

"The Empire has long abandoned the Eaton Territory, so we cannot give up on ourselves."

He silently repeated in his mind the words that his grandfather often said.

Immediately, he quietly added, "So, I must become a strong person. Only with enough strength can the Eaton family control their own destiny."

Xien, who had a dusty face, smiled when he entered the city.

Just when he was about to turn around and introduce the history of this city to Chris, he happened to see Chris looking at the gryphon flag in silence. He was a little surprised for a moment. But after thinking about it for a while, he knew the reason as he had long been integrated into the Eaton family.

.

"Come into town, Chris."

He jumped off the horse vigorously, pulled the reins of the horse and said softly, "We don't have enough dry food, and the horses need to rest. We just need to go to the city to rest for a few days."

"good."

Chris, whose thoughts were interrupted, returned a smile.

When he dismounted and started walking, he asked curiously, "Why did we dismount here? Is it a ban in the city of Gardinanras?"

"Yes, Chris, you are very observant."

Xion nodded with some relief, "Whether you are a noble or a commoner, you must walk three miles away from the city wall. Otherwise, it will be regarded as an attack, and the soldiers on the city wall can be shot directly without notification."

After explaining this point softly, without waiting for Chris to ask questions, he took the opportunity to tell more things about the city of Gardinaras.

The city of Gardinanlas is a city directly under the jurisdiction of the Griffin Legion, so it is also the most orderly place in the empire's territory, and the place with the least sense of status and inferiority.

Here, nobles cannot enjoy immunity even if they commit crimes.

In the same way, this is also a place where no lord can enforce laws and impose punishments.

Therefore, countless people who could not survive in the heart of the empire gathered here, such as bandits, mercenaries, thieves, escaped slaves, wanted criminals, or farmers who could not pay the rent, etc.

And the city of Gardinanlas welcomes everyone to come.

As long as you can afford to pay the city gate tax - regardless of gender, no matter children or old people, the city gate tax for one person is ten silver coins!

It's not expensive, it's just a hundred times more expensive than other cities...

This is not a private increase in taxes by the Griffin Legion, but a high amount set by the empire as a last resort in order to alleviate the financial difficulties of supporting the city's huge army.

Of course, after collecting the expensive city gate tax, the Griffin Legion is also responsible for protecting everyone's safety.

For example, killing is not allowed in the city.

If there is really going to be blood, both parties can run outside the city to settle the matter and then come back; if one party is unwilling to go out, they can stay in the city, and the Griffin Legion will continue to protect your safety, allowing you to be arrogant in front of your enemies.

.

If one party can't help but kill someone in the street~~

Very good, the Griffin Legion will avenge the victim as soon as possible, and will accept all the property of the perpetrator!

As for fighting, please feel free to do so as long as it does not disturb order.

But remember that if something is broken during the fight, you will have to pay ten times the price for compensation.

After all, every shop has paid protection fees to the imperial army...ah, after paying the taxes, the shop also regularly provides extra money to reward the loyal griffin army that protects them.

Chris and Sion went to the city and spent fifty silver coins.

Both horses also had to pay taxes, which made Chris feel a little sad.

Fifty silver coins are half a gold coin, enough to cover the expenses of a farmer's family in the Eaton Territory for a year.

But after entering the city, he realized how poor the Eton Territory was.

Because this is also the most famous city for selling stolen goods in the empire. Except for particularly high-end goods that are traded at auctions, things worth hundreds of gold coins are sold directly on the street. And many people use gold coins or rubies when trading.

Hardly any payment was made in silver coins.

As for the copper coins~

After entering the city for half an hour and walking through four streets, Chris was nowhere to be seen.

The various wonderful expressions on his face also fell into Jack's eyes.

He is a person who lives in the city and is also one of the city's brokers. He serves as a guide for people coming to Gardinanras or as a middleman for caravans to facilitate transactions.

His many years of experience gave him a sharp look in his eyes. Not only did he notice the aristocratic crest on the button of Chris' cloak, but he also determined that this person was a young bird who had never seen the world.

Nestlings need brokers the most.

They are also the easiest to be tricked into spending money to buy a bunch of flashy things, making it easy for brokers to earn a lot of intermediary fees.

"Good day, both noble lords."

Jack, who seemed to hear the sweet sound of gold coins colliding, trotted up to Chris, nodded and bowed to promote himself, "I am Jack, a broker who is very familiar with the city. Is this your first time coming to Gardenanlas? If you

Hire me as your guide and I can save you a lot of money in this city!"

If God gave Jack a chance, he would never go to Chris to recommend himself.

But there are no ifs in the world.

Since he was fifteen years old, Jack has been a donor for almost ten years. Jack has experienced many ways of being rejected.

Some people politely said no need, some held their heads high and ignored him, some cursed him rudely, and some even spit on him viciously...

.

But I have never seen anyone draw a sword directly!

So today he has learned a lot.

Chris responded to Jack who suddenly stood in front of him, and quickly pulled out a long knife and put it on his neck.

The one-meter-two-meter blade shone with a cold light, and the cold air stirred up goosebumps all over Jack's body. Jack suddenly felt that his legs were a little weak, and he quickly begged for mercy with a cry, "Sir, please forgive me... I don't mean any harm~~"

I just wanted to ask if I need a guide. What a big deal!

As for drawing the sword?

Jack was extremely heartbroken at this moment.

"Don't be impulsive, Chris."
To be continued...