Chapter 619 The Bard and the Black Mage

"Everyone, go and see. The mercenaries hired by Lord Dorne from the capital are outside the city!"

"Are we finally going to deal with the dragon? Oh, the great war god Monliod, bless your devout believers and bless those mercenaries to successfully rescue the kind-hearted princess."

"I heard that the leader of the Dawn Mercenaries is very powerful. He is a 'magic swordsman' who practices both physical and magical skills. He will definitely be able to get rid of the dragon."

"Oh, that's hard to say. These days, Lord Dorne's knights went to the dragon's lair and were burned to death by the dragon."

"."

The Principality of Dorne is a small country with a population of only a few hundred thousand. It belongs to the Kingdom of Ossien and is located on the northwest coastal border of the kingdom.

This is a magical continent blessed by the gods.

There are seven powerful kingdoms, namely the Scarlet Kingdom, Kieran, the Frostwolf Kingdom, Fama, the Black Rose, Atria, the Insect Witch Tribe, Rockhammer, the Kingdom of War, Ossien, the Gondor Medicine Alliance, and the Magic City, Sedris.

The Kingdom of Ossien is the most powerful of the seven kingdoms on the continent.

The seven kingdoms have their own patron gods, and everyone believes in the same supreme god, that is, "Baal, the Titan God".

One day, outside the Blackstone City of the Principality of Dorne.

A well-equipped mercenary group was riding horses, heading slowly towards the city marked as a pile of black stones on the sheepskin map.

Blackstone City was built on the blue sea, with plenty of sunshine and gentle sea breeze, and it also produces the best grapes and wines in the Kingdom of Ossien.

On the gravel-paved official road, this team of mercenaries with torch flags walked and chatted.

"Everyone, Blackstone City is ahead."

"Hahaha, it is said that the girls and wines in Blackstone City are the best in the kingdom. I have seen them waving at us."

"Robert, don't be careless. This mission is not easy. It is said that the evil dragon Marodis is a mutant dragon. It is not a metal dragon nor a five-color dragon. It is very powerful. Even the Knights of Lord Dorne can't do anything about it."

"Tsk, how can the strength of our Dawn Group be compared with those hereditary knights who can't even hold the knight's gun? What's more, there is the captain."

"That's right. No matter how powerful the monster is, Captain Ji Xun will always solve it."

"I heard that it was the little princess Sophia of Lord Dorne. When traveling, she was captured by a dragon. We don't have to kill the dragon this time. Just rescue the princess. "

"Hey, what do you think, why did the dragon capture the princess? If it wants to eat people, the princess won't be tastier than others, right?"

"I don't know. Maybe it's because dragons like to collect valuable and beautiful treasures? Maybe those big lizards also know that the princess is the most precious property in the human world."

"Hahaha"

"I heard that the dragon's lair is full of gold coins and treasures, I don't know if it's true."

"Who knows? I haven't seen a dragon yet. I hope it's true, and I'll kill it in one go."

"."

This mercenary group has only eight people.

Captain: Magic Swordsman Ji Xun, Heavy Knight Robert, Magician Gwyneth, Priest and Pharmacist Sina, Archer Sivar, Assassin Laen, Hunters and Trappers Efa and Lolota.

Each one is a strong man who can stand on his own.

Although the target of this mission is an evil dragon, there is not much worry in their tone.

Because, they are one of the few individual mercenary groups in the entire kingdom that have received an S-level rating from the Mercenary Union.

Captain Ji Xun is a swordsman who looks very young.

But he is actually not young.

He himself does not know how old he is.

The beginning of his memory was twenty years ago, when he was caught as a deserter by a scavenger on the battlefield and sent to a slave camp.

He lost his previous memories, did not know where he came from, and did not know if he had any family. He only remembered that his name was "Ji Xun".

Later, he worked as a war slave in the slave camp for ten years. Because of his bravery, he earned enough money to redeem himself.

Later, he gathered a group of teammates and formed a mercenary group.

Another ten years passed in a flash, and the now famous "Dawn Mercenary Group" was established.

Although Ji Xun knew that he did not look old, he had to admit that his qi and blood had begun to fail at this age.

That was a kind of aging that both the soul and the body had to admit.

When he was a slave in his early years, he trained too hard and lost his qi and blood, and had accumulated a lot of hidden injuries.

Probably after this mission, he would consider retiring.

Ji Xun doesn't like riding horses, he prefers lying on a horse-drawn carriage.

Because he can lie down and read books leisurely.

At this moment, he is flipping through an ancient book.

Archer Sibal rode a horse beside him and asked curiously: "Captain, what are you reading?"

Ji Xun pointed to the book in his hand and said: "These are the ancient books found in the basement when Earl Filmer got rid of the evil spirit in the ghost castle last time. This is a travelogue of a bard named "Faro". It's quite interesting. That guy traveled all over the continent and went overseas three thousand years ago."

Before he finished speaking, the assassin Rann in a black corset not far away laughed and teased: "Oh, our captain with limbs stronger than a bull actually likes reading books?"

"Hahahaha."

As soon as this was said, everyone laughed.

Ji Xun also smiled.

In this world, only nobles and churches have people who teach literacy, and the literacy rate of civilians is very low.

Ji Xun also learned mainland lingua franca in the past two years because of the new member of the team, the magician Gwyneth.

Originally he thought he only liked practicing fighting, but after accidentally coming into contact with some books recently, he found that he liked it more and more.

But in people's minds, reading is something those weak magicians like to do.

A swordsman likes to read, just like a farmer does needlework and embroidery, which gives people a great contrast.

His teammates started teasing him one after another.

Of course Ji Xun didn't care.

He continued to look at the travel book and said: "Don't underestimate these classics. I think that guy named 'Farlow' may be a very strong adventurer. Otherwise, he would have no chance to travel to so many places alive. .And that guy’s understanding of the world is very interesting. The book says that the world operates according to rules, but it is not completely regular, but has a trace of chaotic order."

He said, wanting to share some of his experiences.

However, after hearing this, no one was interested in travel notes or anything like that.

Instead, archer Sival asked: "By the way, captain. You have been stuck in the rank of great knight for ten years. When will you be promoted to legendary knight? Your strength is no worse than those of the royal knights in the capital. If you break through the legendary knight, there will probably be very few opponents in the entire kingdom."

As soon as this statement came out, everyone nodded in approval.

They knew only too well how powerful their captain was.

It is no exaggeration to say that this one is more powerful than most legendary mercenaries in the mercenary union!

This is also the most important reason why they dare to take on this "dragon hunting mission".

When Ji Xun heard this, he sighed slightly: "Probably there is no chance. The priest of the Holy See said that my faith in the gods is not pious enough, so I cannot receive the extraordinary power blessed by the gods."

Although it is a bit regretful, it is nothing to regret.

Along the way, my life has been wonderful.

As soon as these words came out, Pastor Xina, who was a devout believer in the Seven Pillar Gods, asked curiously: "Ah? Captain, why don't you believe in the gods?"

"."

Ji Xun doesn't know either.

Perhaps it was because he lost his memory twenty years ago that he forgot his belief in gods?

All in all, there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with it.

He always felt that belief in the sword in his hand was more reliable than belief in any god.

Thinking of this, Ji Xun glanced at the "parchment" that he used as a bookmark.

This is a strange piece of paper about the size of a palm. It is something that I kept close to my chest when I woke up from a coma.

It is a strange piece of paper that cannot be burned or torn.

Although nothing was recorded, it seemed to have a magical power that made Ji Xun look at it, as if his intuition told him that it recorded very important information before he lost his memory.

So for so many years, he kept it by his side, taking it out and caressing it from time to time.

This paper is not yellowed at all as it was twenty years ago, but it has aged.

Just as I was thinking about it, someone suddenly shouted from the front: "We have arrived at Black Rock City!"

Walking up the hillside, under the sun, it is a beautiful seaside city.

The sea breeze blew across his face, and the blue sea came into his eyes. Ji Xun's deep pupils were filled with faint waves.

Seeing the endless sea, he suddenly remembered the sentence written in his travel diary: Where is the end of the sea? And what is there outside of this world?

It is a kind of advanced thinking about exploring the world.

Ji Xun had a very strange feeling in his heart. Many of the words of the bard named Farlow seemed to resonate inexplicably with his own inner thoughts.

During this thought, a thought suddenly occurred to him: "After this mission, it seems like a good idea to travel around the world as a bard for the rest of my life?"

Black Rock City is a very prosperous commercial city.

Cobbled roads are lined with steepled buildings made of rough stone.

The air is filled with smoke from burning wood, mixed with the aroma of roasted wheat from the bakery, and the original smell of the leather workshop.

The most intense thing is the fragrance overflowing from the wine shop.

Ji Xun and his group of armored men looked very eye-catching when they entered the city, and were immediately watched by the residents of the city.

There is no mistake in every song, one post, one content, one 6 one, one book, one book, take a look!

"Ah, why are there only so many people in this mercenary group?"

"Oh, you didn't know that. Did you see the seven stars on their emblem? That's a masonry medal that only S-class mercenaries have. There aren't many such a powerful mercenary group in the entire kingdom. "

"Wow, is it really that powerful?"

"."

Both adults and children are very interested in mercenaries like Ji Xun.

No matter how small the Principality of Dorne is, the lord is still a top noble.

It has been more than a month since Princess Sophia was kidnapped by the evil dragon. Of course, the lord is extremely anxious.

Ji Xun and others originally planned to rest in the city for a day and taste the special wine.

But as soon as they entered the city, the lord's butler took them to the mercenary union and obtained detailed information about the mission.

An hour later, everyone appeared outside the city again.

The evil dragon's lair is a hundred miles to the northwest in a deep mountain forest where monsters are active.

They need to solve it as soon as possible.

The generous remuneration also made everyone stop complaining.

Anyway, there is no problem in leaving early to solve the problem.

"Ah, the mission is worse than expected. It is said that there are no less than ten waves of people trying to save Princess Sophia, but they have never returned. There is also an A-level veteran mercenary accompanying them."

"Yes. That evil dragon's strength is probably higher than expected."

"It doesn't have to be a forceful attack. The mission is just to rescue Princess Sophia. When the time comes, the leader and us will hold off the evil dragon, Larn, you can secretly go to the dragon's lair to see if you can rescue the princess. Also, if there are any treasures in the dragon's lair, please come out as well."

"That's right."

"."

Although they knew that this dragon hunting mission was dangerous, everyone in the Dawn Group did not back down.

They have dealt with many dangerous missions before.

Strength is their greatest source of confidence.

The magician Gwyneth is an intelligence analyst in the team because she is familiar with the languages ​​​​of the seven countries and is proficient in various secret codes.

While everyone was walking and chatting, she was carefully examining the information she had obtained from the mercenary union.

But as he looked at it, the magician lady actually showed a strong interest in several rotten and unclear stone slabs.

Suddenly, she seemed to decipher the contents on the slate and exclaimed: "Oh, Captain, look! I found something in the clues about the mercenary union!"

This startled breath attracted everyone.

Ji Xun looked over.

The heavy knight Robert glanced at it and said, "Isn't it just a few decayed stone carvings?"

Gwyneth couldn't hide the surprise on her face and corrected: "Oh my God, this is not an ordinary stone carving! This is a secret text of black magic that has been lost. If I deciphered it correctly, it was written three thousand years ago. The magic notes left by the number one black magician Nan Shenyu!”

At this point, everyone in the Dawn Group began to pay attention.

You know, on the mainland, the status of magicians is extremely high!

They are not only polymaths, but also the most powerful supernatural profession.

And almost every official magician has a more powerful old magician and a complete inheritance system.

And Gwyneth comes from the magic city of Sedaris and inherits the orthodox lineage of the great mage "Red Mage Younes" three hundred years ago.

It was by chance two years ago that Ji Xun rescued this traveling young magician. Only then did their "Dawn Mercenary Group" have such a teammate that other mercenary groups were envious of.

She was so amazed.

That said, those stone slabs are really amazing.

The heavy knight Robert looked confused when he heard this and touched his head: "Dark magic? Number one in the plane? Gwen, what are you talking about?"

Gwyneth realized it later, looked left and right, and then said: "Shh, this is a taboo, and we are not allowed to talk about it."

Ji Xun also became very interested when he heard this.

Except for knowledgeable magicians, no one really knows this secret.

And he also felt that there was a coincidence somewhere, oh, three thousand years ago?

The travelogue I was reading recently was also written by a bard named Farlow three thousand years ago.

Gwyneth looked at her teammates with great interest, and explained in a low voice: "It is said that there was a powerful magician three thousand years ago, named Nan Shenyu. The reason why she is said to be the number one magician in the plane is because in a period of time, she was In the hidden historical truth, the Holy See and the Seven Kingdoms all joined forces to encircle and suppress But in that battle, eight great magisters and four legendary knights died. In the end, the black magic Nan Shenyu just disappeared. It is said that he disappeared into the eastern sea. The Seven Kingdoms and the Magic Guild regarded it as a shame and erased it from the history books."

As she spoke, she added weakly: "I also found out about this when I accidentally found an old diary in my teacher's library when I was a child."

As these words came out, everyone in the Dawn Group became more and more excited as they listened.

Ji Xun was also extremely surprised, as if a new world had opened up: Are there really such powerful humans in this world?

Pastor Xina also asked: "Ah, since you are a magician, why is it taboo?"

This is what everyone is curious about.

Magicians have a very high status and are respected even by nobles. How come it is considered a taboo?

Gwyneth hesitated to speak, as if that secret conflicted with what she believed in.

But looking at everyone's scorching gazes, she hesitated for a moment and said what she knew: "Because...it is said that the great mage Nan Shenyu created some powerful black magic that can be released without belief in gods."

Upon hearing this, everyone understood.

Extraordinary divine gift, this is the common understanding of everyone.

Only by devoutly believing in the Seven Pillar Gods and the great Titan God can you gain powerful power.

After hearing this, everyone in the Dawn Group even suspected that this was just a "story".

How could someone not believe in gods and still have such great power?

However, Ji Xun had a strong intuition in his heart that this story was true!

He just said that although his faith was not firm, he also had great achievements in the magic sword. Theoretically, it is possible to be even more powerful.

Magicians fear the gods.

Likewise, they also fear the truth.

Gwyneth looked at the expressions of her teammates who suddenly became bored, and guessed that they didn't believe in the taboo figure she once admired so much when she was a child, and then said: "The reason why Nan Shen Yu's lineage is considered taboo, it is said that , it is because she is so powerful that she can almost rival the gods. The black magic system she created is still being circulated to this day. Most of the black magicians who appear from time to time come from that lineage."

And the facts are right in front of us.

If the writing on this stone tablet is correct, it is the writing on the black magic system.

In other words, there may be people nearby here

Gwyneth looked at Ji Xun and expressed her conclusion: "Captain, these are the 'clues' that the previous mercenaries risked their lives to bring back from near the black dragon's lair. So if I guessed correctly, that dragon There are ancient ruins related to black magicians near the lair."

When Ji Xun heard this, he also showed deep thought.

Although his expression was as calm as ever, he was actually very interested in the erasure of history three thousand years ago.

Can human beings really rely on their own strength to rival gods?

besides,

Could it be that the evil dragon that suddenly appeared in the Principality of Dorne was heading for those black magic ruins?