Chapter 423: "Creep" Within the Empire
"The roads here are comparable to those near the imperial capital." Humboldt was prepared to have his butt broken, but he found that Rorschach's car had good shock absorption, and the road network in the south of the Kingdom of Bain, at least the main roads from Munich to Kempsen are relatively flat and wide.
Rorschach did not take the words of the great wizard as a compliment: "Master, I studied in the imperial capital for several years. When will the roads in the imperial capital be comparable to our new roads?"
The capital of the kingdom and empire, as the best place, the main road is also part of the facade. The width and beauty will be considered, and expensive stone slabs will be used.
But Rorschach did not consider beauty. He pursued flatness, durability and whether it was convenient to maintain. No matter whether it is marble or some other rock, it is not as good as concrete and the cost is more expensive.
The color of the road is relatively dark. It is a "pseudo asphalt road" made of a large amount of tar slag produced by steel mills and coking plants. They kept passing by slow ox carts and packhorse teams. Obviously, it is a great waste to use such a road for animal-powered vehicles.
Master Humboldt finally realized that Rorschach’s desire to promote vehicles was not empty talk, otherwise why would such expensive infrastructure be needed?
On the way, Rorschach wanted to ask Humboldt why the chancellor came with him. Unexpectedly, the great wizard took the initiative to speak on the way: "Are you very curious why the chancellor didn’t take the airship and insisted on taking the teleportation array with me?"
"For safety?" Rorschach thought of the plane crash he encountered when he first came to Byrne.
Humboldt nodded: "Originally, airships have been flying across the continent for a long time. Although there are hidden dangers, the operating companies and spellcasters have tried their best to ensure their stability. However, the number of accidents has increased sharply in recent years, not because of accidents of the airship itself, but because of human factors in the final investigation.
"It is said that some days ago, some big figures died in the empire because of the airship crash. The chancellor may know something about the inside story, so he asked me to visit the imperial capital."
Humboldt did not elaborate, but he still remembered what Mr. Otto said when he entrusted him: "If I sit on the airship to Byrne, it will most likely have an irreparable accident. So I want to ask you for help, to seek a way to enter Bain secretly and safely. "
Alexander von Humboldt did not ask in detail, he did not want to be too involved in matters other than the farming of the empire, but it happened that his next stop was also the Kingdom of Bain, and the guild's teleportation could perfectly meet the needs of the chancellor, so Humboldt used the authority of the great wizard to help Mr. Otto.
The carriage formed a relatively closed space, and the three saw the scenery outside the side window, and the suspicious people and animals quickly passed by. In this way, the state of passengers being detached from the environment will produce a sense of privacy, and people will naturally reveal more information that they would not say in public occasions.
So for the nobles, the coachman is as important as the personal servant and the butler, and requires loyalty. He can not only control the life and death of the passengers, but also has a pair of ears that are most easily ignored by the people talking in the carriage.
Humboldt continued: "The imperial capital has not been peaceful recently. The failure of the war has caused various factions to attack each other. It is said that the relationship between the crown prince and the chancellor is not good, and the appointment of the new marshal has also caused controversy. But the emperor wants to see me, and I can't refuse. "
The Forest Tower is a wizard tower that is deeply involved in the Empire. It can represent the guild to show goodwill to the Empire and is responsible for "playing the good cop". In addition to researching and assisting the Empire's agriculture on food issues, it also occasionally treats difficult and complicated diseases for the rulers.
This is not completely flattery and goodwill. The Empire does not have the Church of the Holy Kingdom. If a noble has a physical problem, it is easy to attract some evil wizards and cults to "treat" and then pollute and control them. Therefore, there must be guild members to occupy the position, even if they can't cure it, they have to give up this idea.
And being able to invite Hong Master Humboldt's, there are no more than one hand in the empire. The reason why the factions in the imperial capital are ready to move and unnatural deaths frequently occur is that the war is unclear, and the emperor's physical condition is also unclear.
From the fact that Helmut, a friend of the crown prince, whose military exploits were beaten by a group of generals, became a marshal, one faction has temporarily gained an advantage.
For all the above, even if Humboldt is willing to tell Rorschach, he can only use the rhetoric he has learned throughout his life and use impressionistic literature. He finally commented on the current scene in the imperial capital: "Do you know the structure of muscles? A muscle attached to a bone is composed of multiple fleshy fibers in the same direction gathered together.
"The muscles of our arms should have all the flesh fibers working together when we punch the enemy, but now, each of them has their own thoughts, framing each other and hindering each other, like a spasm. No, some people and factions are like maggots lying on the flesh, knotting and wriggling. Usually they pretend to be part of the body, blending into it and quietly sucking blood, but now they are slightly showing their true colors.
"I was surprised to hear that the imperial army was defeated, but after the trip to the imperial capital, I realized that this was bound to happen."
As for the emperor's condition, Humboldt did not reveal a word, and did not even specify who he was trying to treat. He only told Rorschach: "In vain, the pain of a distinguished patient was prolonged."
The emperor suffered from the "flesh and blood curse", and a certain organ in his body was diseased, which is what Rorschach's original world called "cancer". Can it be cured? If ordinary healing spells are used, it will only cause the "flesh and blood curse" to erupt. Ordinary healing spells will increase the risk of the recipient getting the "curse".
The ancients guessed that it was the healing spells that angered the god of death and brought resentment to those who violated the laws of life and death.
It may be possible to cure it with radical methods, such as using the hyphae found in the Black Forest. The idea is the same as curing tuberculosis, finding the lesion and replacing it with the cultivated symbiotic bacteria.
The lung can be said to be one of the simplest organs. The emperor's diseased organ also has a secretory function, so it is much more complicated. But it is not completely impossible. The treatment process requires obtaining the emperor's flesh and blood, especially bone blood, and fusing it with bacteria. Unfortunately, no one in the court or the empire dared to authorize the caster to do this.
"So I envy you for being able to find the nearest row of audience seats when two giants are fighting." Humboldt looked at the peaceful and peaceful Bavarian countryside.
The journey from Munich to Kempsen is not long. It is about 160 kilometers along the main route. It takes a day for a carriage, but a fast horse can do it in the morning and evening. After the road is repaired, the speed of the vehicle can basically be maintained at 40 kilometers per hour, which takes less than half the time of a fast horse. The machine will not get tired, and the three casters sitting inside don't have to worry about the consumption of magic power.
The car stopped and the door opened. The relatively closed space was gone, and the passengers stepped on the solid ground again and walked out of the car. Master Humboldt reminded: "But Rorschach, these good days are coming to an end. The Prime Minister's arrival in Bayern is the beginning."