Traveling through The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim

Rigel hid nearby and snickered.

Danger's words left me a little confused. He and I met at the Talos Altar south of Lake Irinata. After analyzing the situation at the time, he confidently stated that General Tullius would definitely take the capture of Falkreath and open up land transportation lines as his first strategic priority. Subsequent developments seemed to confirm his judgment, and the Imperial Legion was indeed approaching.

What's wrong with that?

"But General Tullius did lead the troops personally..."

The old fox raised his front paw, interrupted me, and turned to his father.

"How about you tell me?"

"Boy, have you seen General Tullius?"

"Come to think of it, I actually saw him, on the day when the dragon destroyed the town of Helgen. He was this tall, so he must be not young, and his hair was almost completely white..."

In fact, I was shocked by my bad luck that day and was only thinking about escaping. I didn't observe carefully. Now I can only recall and gesture at the same time.

"Shut up now!"

Rigel pulled me and nodded at his father who had a gloomy face.

"Ha! I didn't realize that you are really well-informed! Do you think that if you were standing on the city wall, would you be able to recognize a man wearing a helmet a few hundred meters away as General Tullius himself?"

Dad said something sarcastic, and I quickly shrank back in my chair and shook my head.

According to him, the lords of Skyrim didn't know much about General Tullius. Although Dad and Tagel had participated in the World War thirty years ago and had been to Cyrodiil, the capital of the Empire, they were only young men in their twenties at the time, and the only people they could interact with were their comrades of similar age and status. Dad was seriously injured and retired soon after.

Neither of them had worked with General Tullius before, and they had never even heard of him. It made sense, since Tullius was about the same age as them, and the Imperial Legion was very particular about seniority, and even most senior officers had age limits, such as the position of Legion Commander, which required a minimum age of 45. At that time, Tullius was probably just a private or a junior officer like them.

In any case, the Emperor would not send a fool who had never led a soldier to Skyrim, but considering that the fragile peace agreement with the Thalmor could break down at any time, he probably would not send his own people whom he truly trusted. After Danger regained power, he tried to find out about this man from many sources, but in the end he only got some rumors and legends. He pieced these fragments together and barely put together a profile of General Tullius.

The empire was in tatters after the war. The emperor's personal guards suffered heavy losses in the battle to capture the imperial capital, and some of the troops were even destroyed. With the enemy at the doorstep, he had no choice but to allow various places to recruit soldiers on their own, and these troops became warlords after the war. They were nominally governors of the empire, but in reality they controlled the local finances and military affairs and became local emperors.

It was not that Titus Mede II did not want to eradicate them, but he was powerless to do so. In fact, even in his own court, he was constrained by many parties. The decrees he wanted to implement were prevaricate by the Senate with various reasons, and the barely passed bills were difficult to implement in the imperial capital, let alone other cities. Under this situation, governance became a joke. The once prosperous and safe hinterland of the empire was now full of bandits and the people were living in misery.

Despite the difficult situation, the emperor did not give up. He set his sights on the rising stars in the legions. Once upon a time, the legions had to swear allegiance to the emperor and the Senate, but now they have degenerated into playthings of the nobles. Fortunately, there are still people who remember honor and faith, and are willing to work hard to correct the current problems and revive the empire. Tullius is one of them.

However, all His Majesty could give him was a letter of appointment. Tullius, who had just turned thirty, was promoted as the treasurer of Bruma. Normally, this position required a man to be thirty-five years old. This was not because the emperor favored him. In the past few years, countless similar letters of appointment had been issued, and most people sneered at them and threw them into the fireplace.

But Tullius went to the post alone.

The duty of the treasurer is to manage local taxes and government budgets, and the power is very great. A capable person can even gain a certain influence in the legion by intervening in logistics. The mayor of Bruma City certainly would not let Tullius really do such an important thing, so for three years, this young man from the imperial capital had nothing to do and wandered around in and out of the city.

At dusk in the year 186 of the Fourth Era, the Lord of the City could not resist the repeated requests of his wife and daughter and had to announce a banquet.

It was a wonderful night. The burning bear fat in the corner slightly dispelled the winter air and cleverly maintained the temperature of the hall at a perfect level, so that people wearing a slim-fitting thin fur coat would not feel cold or hot. The lights were turned on and the distinguished guests arrived. The welcoming male servants sang their titles, official positions or nicknames in a loud but not shrill voice. The city lord, who was reluctant to give up his money, greeted every visitor with a smile on his face.

"I was in such a hurry that I couldn't prepare well. This is just a small gift, which is not a sign of respect. I just want you and my lady to enjoy it in your spare time. I hope you will accept it on my behalf. I will have another gift for you during the New Year."

A ball of fat wrapped in gorgeous clothes crawled in front of the city lord, and the bare ball sticking out from the collar reflected the dazzling light. A crack appeared on the ball, squeezing out flattering words. Behind the fat was two slender boys like bamboo poles, each holding a beautiful wooden box. The lid of the box was lifted, revealing a pearl necklace lying in red brocade. The round and plump beads, even under the dazzling brilliance of the meat ball, still stubbornly emitted a soft glimmer.

Bruma is deep inland, far from the sea, and pearls are rare. The two necklaces in the box have no less than 40 pearls, all of which are top-grade and of the same size. I really don't know how much money it would cost to get them. The recipient of the gift naturally knew that for the fat man in front of him - Licinius of Crassus Trading Company in the northern border of Cyrodiil - it was really just a "small gift" that was "hardly a sign of respect". He didn't dare to use it to offend the city lord, so he could only give it to his female relatives.

The winter dinner of the Lord of Bruma was famous in the empire for its luxury, and only the rich and noble could be invited. However, the guests were curious about why the dinner, which was always held on New Year's Eve, was moved forward by more than a month. Could it be that the Lord of Bruma was short of money recently and couldn't wait to receive New Year's gifts in advance?

Fortunately, the adults were considerate and did not keep everyone curious for too long. With the city lord's wife and daughter making a brilliant appearance, the mystery was revealed.

The pure white fox fur is as white as snow, enveloping the youthful vitality of the 17-year-old girl. Her spirited face is like the red sun on the snowy peaks, as if it can penetrate into the deepest part of people's hearts, dispel the unspeakable darkness, and melt the eternal ice. Her light deerskin boots tapped her cheerful dance steps, instantly attracting the attention of the whole audience.

The lady, who is nearly 40 years old, smiles and walks steadily. The light brown bearskin coat sets off her flaxen hair, describing her elegance; the silver strands on her temples and the red fox fur on her lapel highlight her wisdom; the knee-length style and the subtle crow's feet at the corners of her eyes tell all the guests: this is the most noble lady in Bruma.

The Lord of the City was in a trance for a while, as if he had returned to his youth. How long had it been since that bloated, yellow-faced woman had made his heart beat so fast? Fortunately, the surging praises drowned out his sudden desire, and his excitement, which had not been high for a long time, returned to normal, so that he did not make a fool of himself in front of his daughter and guests.

The dance has begun.

Young talents were looking forward to dancing with the young lady, while middle-aged ladies surrounded the lady and talked with her. The neglected young girls puffed their cheeks, reddened their eyes, twisted their handkerchiefs, stared at the young men who usually showed great courtesy to them, and wagged their tails like a lap dog, just to smile at the ice elf.

The Lord of the City held a glass of wine and walked among the crowd, sometimes drinking with others, sometimes chatting with others, enjoying the compliments that were either sincere or insincere. When the fat man called Licinius cautiously asked him about the origins of two furs, he was startled.

Yes! Where does such a good thing come from?

White foxes are not rare in the northern Sky Province, but it is not easy to stitch them together into a garment. Those two coats were obviously made by a famous craftsman, and were tailor-made for his wife and daughter. Women in ordinary families cannot afford such good things, and if they do, they will not give them to other women. If it is a gift from a man, it must have passed through his own hands.

He was very sure that he had not paid for it, and it was even more impossible that the two ladies had paid for it out of their own pockets. The city lord who could divide the land and establish borders in the troubled times considered himself a hero. His wife and daughter could spend his money, but he knew how much they had spent.

His wealth comes from many sources, in addition to the tributes from those present today, there are also many shady villains. He provides them with shelter and opens the door to their evil deeds, and they want a share of the profits. As for those poor ghosts who are unlucky because of this, who cares?

Chaos is a ladder, along which you can reach the peak of wealth and honor.

Could it be...

In the past few years, the Lord of the City has grown better and better at controlling his men, but he has become more and more unable to control his women. The thin land at home has long been cracked by drought. But today, she is radiant, as if she had drunk a lot of sweet rain...

The city lord thought more and more that something was wrong, so after the dance, he moved closer to his daughter and asked softly about the origin of the fox fur.

"It was given by a gentleman. His name is Tullius, and I heard he was an official sent by the imperial capital. We met at Publiya's birthday party. Father also knows him, right? I was just looking for him."

The sparkle in the daughter's eyes was the kind of light that would make every father happy and sad. At some point, the wife also came to the father and daughter, and teased her husband tenderly about how her daughter had grown up. The girl blushed and accused her parents of being immoral, then she gracefully entered the dance floor, looking for her beloved.

"Um... I seem to have forgotten to invite this Tullius..."

"Hmph! Did your Excellency forget, or did you never think of inviting him?"

The city lord touched his nose awkwardly and thought to himself. He had always excluded that guy from the palace, but he had sneaked into Chencang. It seems that this guy is not a stupid person. However, if he wants to be the city lord's son-in-law, he is still a long way from having two pieces of clothes. Otherwise, I will ask him out to have a chat in a few days?

The local emperor, in a good mood, bent down and raised his hand to greet the woman who once captured his heart, who was no longer young but still could not hide her charm.

"My dear lady, may I have the honor to invite you to dance?"

Just as the old couple was about to rekindle their old passion, an ignorant servant came in. He whispered something in the ear of the city lord, who was horrified.

"Sir, that Tullius from the Imperial Capital gathered a team from somewhere and raided the Dark Brotherhood's sanctuary!"

The Dark Brotherhood, an assassin organization that everyone fears, thrived in the chaos after the war and developed rapidly. In the northern border of Cyrodiil, they successfully won the tacit approval of the city lord and were able to openly set up a sanctuary in the downtown area. Such a ostentatious style brought them great prestige and countless contracts. Of course, the price was to pay a generous protection fee to the generous and benevolent ruler.

Bruma never enforces a curfew. People who cherish their lives will return home at sunset, even though it is not a completely safe place. Even in broad daylight, you can often see killers from the Brotherhood walking through the streets with heads they have just cut off. They are not only the masters of the shadows, but also the gods of death walking in the light.

Until the true light shines into this filthy city.

As his most important thug and money bag, the elimination of the Dark Brotherhood was a great harm to the city lord, but he did not dare to openly fight against the officials appointed by the emperor. The fact that he had no reason to do so was only one aspect, the key was that Tullius did have a good armed force. The assassin organization, which was skilled in assassination, was completely wiped out, and the city lord regretfully admitted that he could no longer do anything to this young man.

Fortunately, the term of office of the treasurer was only five years, so he could bear it. Tullius did not send gifts to his wife and daughter again. The city lord later found out that this sinister guy had already started a family, and his wife and children were all in the imperial capital, under the protection of the emperor.

For more than a year, Tullius led a team he called the Tax Department to sweep around Bruma. Merchants' profits were plundered, the property of the wealthy was extorted, and even the city lord had to patiently deal with him just to pay less tax. All the respectable people in the city were harassed, extorted, and robbed by him! Except for the emperor far away in the imperial capital, only those unruly people who had temporarily lived a stable life would think he was a good person.

After completing his term in Bruma, Tullius was transferred to Bravil to serve as tribune. Due to gang fighting, the local order has been completely destroyed, and a loyal and brave man is urgently needed to restore order.

Over the next ten years, he traveled around Cyrodiil, successively serving as treasurer, tribune, inspector, alderman, and military governor. He trained soldiers, collected taxes, suppressed bandits, and put down rebellions. He was invincible in the face of all who came his way. Some people respected and loved him, while others resented and hated him. Some said he was the pillar of the empire given by the eight holy spirits, while others said he was just a dog of Titus II.

But no one doubted his loyalty to the Empire.

The emperor's loyal dog was promoted to the position of legion commander at the age of forty-eight, leading an elite force to Skyrim to quell the Stormcloak rebellion.

It took him less than half a year to almost succeed. If Alduin hadn't suddenly appeared, the imperial capital could have held a triumphal ceremony for him a year ago.