Black Hearted Mage

At the same time that the Saint Laurent Empire dispatched a large number of assassins, Hawkeye's spies within the Saint Laurent Church quickly passed on this important intelligence. And Carlos, the spy chief far away in the Roland Empire, also received the news immediately.

"Quinn, take a look at this news!" Carlos said to Old Quinn with a serious expression, "The Church of Saint Laurent has actually sent out a full 800 people. It looks like they're planning a crazy revenge operation against Caesars!"

Old Quinn quickly took the paper Carlos handed him, his eyes as sharp as an eagle, quickly scanning the text on it. In just a few seconds, he had read the entire message and then tossed the paper aside.

"Well, while this information is important, it's incomplete," Old Quinn said, frowning. "We only know that the Church of Saint Laurent has sent out assassins, but we don't know their specific routes. If we can't track the assassins' movements, we won't be able to stop them!"

The spy chief nodded, realizing the seriousness of the situation. Old Quinn, however, didn't seem overly worried. He continued, "But Caesar's home isn't as easy to break into as most people's. He has four golden-eyed black snakes and a ferocious fat dog—all top-notch guards. It's nearly impossible for an assassin to sneak into his home unnoticed."

The spy chief felt a little relieved after hearing Old Quinn's words. But he still felt a little worried and asked, "Are we just going to sit back and do nothing? What if the assassins really break through the defenses of Caesar's house? The consequences will be unimaginable!"

Old Quinn smiled faintly and said confidently, "Don't worry, Carlos. Violet City has the Thorn Flower Trading Company. Those assassins will definitely not return. To maintain our friendship with Caesars, we only need to send this news to the Thorn Flower Trading Company. They will naturally find a way to deal with these assassins!"

The masked spy chief, clad in jet-black leather armor, nodded. Hawkeye and the Roland Empire's high-ranking officials had long-standing, close cooperation with the Thorn Flower Trading Company. The assassins' poisons, magic-patterned daggers and leather armor, as well as various high-level alchemical potions and potent elixirs, were all provided by the Thorn Flower Trading Company.

The spy chief immediately issued an order, asking his men to immediately send this important information to the Violet Alliance via remote communication.

"Kaesas is still too young, and he obviously lacks sufficient understanding of the methods of the Saint Laurent Church. He sent people to Fire Maple City to openly sell the church's gold and silver artifacts. This is undoubtedly asking for trouble! I'm afraid that he was discovered by the church's spies on the first day of setting up a stall in Fire Maple City. You know, the relationship between the Saint Laurent Church and the Saint Laurent Empire is complicated, and both sides must have been eyeing him for a long time. After all, he burned down half of the Bone Burial Castle and killed a group of top-level figures. These are just trivial matters. The most terrible thing is that he actually humiliated the Pope so severely!" Old Ethan said slowly with a serious face.

"That's true!" the spy chief echoed, a hint of gloating on his face. "He actually named the golden-eyed black snake and that fat dog Saint Paul. This is simply a slap in the face of the Pope!"

Just a few minutes later, the Thorn Flower Trading Company in the Violet Alliance received news from the Roland Empire.

When Okus, the general manager of the Thorn Flower Trading Company, saw the number of people sent by the Saint Laurent Empire, his heart tightened and he immediately sent a message to the crater without hesitation. After all, 800 people was no small number, and he was worried whether the company's guards could handle it.

The three old elves of the Crater were chatting in the small reception room of the Magic Tower. At that moment, a light screen appeared from the magical device, and Orcus' figure appeared within it. After a brief conversation, the three old elves hurried to the library.

Just as Caesar was immersed in the ocean of knowledge, the door of the library was suddenly opened and three elf elders with solemn expressions walked in.

"Kaisas, you're not strong enough to cause trouble. You killed the people of the Saint Roland Empire and robbed the church's things, which was originally a good thing, but why did you rush Rodman to set up a stall in Fire Maple City? The people of the Saint Roland Empire have traced those things all the way back to you, and they sent 800 people to take revenge on your family!"

The great elder Crassus, wearing a black magic robe, said angrily.

"No way, how could the people from the Saint Laurent Empire find me so quickly?"

Caesars put down the book, somewhat puzzled. He wore an elven mask when he was killing people and setting fires, and his disguise was very perfect.

"Kaesas, you are too young. You don't know the dangers of the Church of Saint Roland, nor its vast magical powers. Ever since you were in the Bone Battlefield, the people of the Saint Roland Empire have been targeting you. The elf transformation mask is not omnipotent. It can change a person's appearance and temperament, and change the magical fluctuations in his body, but it cannot change a person's height or weight!" High Priest Destro said slowly.

"Kaissa, go back first. Come back after we've dealt with the people from the Saint Laurent Empire. Eight hundred people is a bit too many, and Ocus is worried they won't be able to handle it. Crater will send people over when the time comes. All you have to do is send a magic message in time!"

Old Ethan looked at Caesar and shrugged. He felt that Caesar was young and impulsive, not very steady, and not very thoughtful.

"Old Ethan, my ancestor also challenged the Holy See when he was a great magician!" said Caesar.

"Kaesus, where did you hear that? When Riven challenged the Church, he was already a mage, but he kept it a secret. Dark mages don't have the control that ice mages have. When Riven was a high-level mage, he was able to kill the entire defense force of a cathedral, hundreds of people, in one fell swoop!"

Old Ethan looked at Caesars, smiled and shook his head.

Crassus smiled and said, "Boy, if the Great Magician can challenge the Church, it won't be Riven's turn to overthrow the Holy Mountain!"

Caesar realized that his ancestor seemed to never reveal his true strength. He was obviously a magician, but he insisted that he was a great magician in the battle photos. Isn't this a lie?

"Kaissa, take the magic book in your hand and hurry back to Violet City. The people from the Saint Roland Empire have been on the march for two days, and the Roland Empire hasn't figured out their route. You can only go back and wait for them!"

Old Ethan anxiously urged Caesars to return quickly. No one knew Saint Laurent's current location, so they could only adopt a passive defense strategy. Furthermore, the specific situation regarding the Saint Laurent Empire, such as how many people had come, what professions they belonged to, how many dangerous items they had brought, and so on, was unknown and could change at any time.

Violet City was very close to the crater, and under the cover of the night, Caesars hurried back home. According to the three elven elders, the Church of Saint Laurent was an extremely large force, and the number of spies stationed in various locations was probably no less than that of the Hawkeye Organization.

Based on various clues and intelligence, Great Elder Crassus speculated that the Saint Roland Empire's forces likely came from the east. With the powerful Roland Empire to the north, it was unlikely they would risk breaking through its defenses. The south was blocked by the Great Swamp, making it impossible to pass. As for the west, not only would it require a long detour, but the crater was also nearby, making it an unlikely route.

The Crater has dispatched five Nighthawks to patrol the eastern border of the Violet Alliance day and night. A small team of elven shadow warriors has also been ambushed in the mountains and forests along the border. The elven elders are not prepared to allow the Saint Roland Empire's troops to enter the densely populated Violet City. They are undoubtedly carrying a large number of alchemical bombs. The Saint Roland Church's members act recklessly, using any means necessary to achieve their goals.

The Mage Alliance, which had close ties with the Thorn Flower Trading Company, was alerted to the threat of trouble from the Saint Laurent Empire. They immediately stepped up border inspections, placing a heavy emphasis on checking professionals. While identities could be forged, professionals couldn't disguise themselves as ordinary people.

A few days later, a team of more than 30 people arrived at the border of the Violet Alliance. When they were strictly interrogated, their faces were obviously a little abnormal.

The number of border guards of the Violet Alliance suddenly increased two or three times, and there were also a large number of archers guarding the road in the distance, which made the team passing the checkpoint very nervous.

"Take out all the storage rings you are carrying and submit to inspection!" The border guard stopped the team and shouted loudly.

"Why do we need to check the storage ring?" asked the team leader.

"Decree of the Violet Alliance, check for contraband!"

The commander of the border guards had a gloomy face. He waved his arm and more than two hundred soldiers armed with spears quickly surrounded them from both sides like hungry tigers pouncing on their prey. In the blink of an eye, they tightly surrounded the team of more than thirty people in the middle.

These people looked somewhat suspicious. They were all of similar age, between thirty and fifty years old, which was the golden age for mercenaries.

Faced with the border guards who were acting as if they were facing a formidable enemy, the team seemed somewhat panicked. However, they did not resist and instead obediently handed over several storage rings.

The border guards took the ring, carefully checked it to make sure there were no dangerous items hidden inside, and finally decided to let the team pass.

However, just as the team crossed the border, a nighthawk circled high in the sky, its sharp eyes fixed on the team below, and the image stone on its body continuously transmitted real-time images to the crater.

Destro stood before the magical device in the magic tower, watching everything unfold through a vast screen. When he saw the group approaching, a cunning glint flashed in his eyes. Without hesitation, he gave the order to the elven shadow warrior beside him: "Ambush this group immediately. Make sure to leave a few alive and hand them over to Orcus for interrogation!"

The other two elder elves offered no objection to Destro's decision. After all, the number of mercenary teams that arrived in the Violet Alliance each year was extremely limited. Besides the Endless Forest in the southwest, there were few other places to explore. Furthermore, now wasn't the best season for exploration.

Old Ethan stared at the video and said thoughtfully, "Let Caesars come and watch the interrogation process. Let him see the ruthless methods of the Saint Laurent Church!"

Great Elder Crassus nodded slightly in agreement. They had already basically confirmed that these people were from the Saint Roland Empire. Over the past two days, several nighthawks had spotted four or five mercenary teams rapidly approaching the Violet Alliance.

Meanwhile, Caesar, who was anxiously waiting, suddenly received a magical message from Orcus, telling him to head to the eastern part of the Violet Alliance and prepare to ambush the incoming enemy.

Upon receiving the message, Caesars unleashed his elemental wings without hesitation, soaring into the sky like a bird. Meanwhile, the plump puppy remained quietly in the backpack, its eyes tightly closed, motionless.

On the ground, Emily saw Caesars soar and cried out in excitement. She waved her hands vigorously, as if trying to grasp the blue sky. At that moment, the dream of flying was quietly planted in her young heart.

Over half an hour later, Caesars arrived at the designated ambush point—the edge of the Yellowstone Mountains, the only way in and out of the Violet Alliance from the east. Upon meeting Orcus, Caesars greeted him and immediately took out his magic crystal to replenish his magic power.

The fat puppy crawled out of the big backpack, hummed twice at the group of elves around it, and then lay down next to Caesar.

"Lord Orcus, is it the Abyssal Beast?"

An elven shadow warrior in leather armor asked Orcus, who was wearing a magic robe.

"It's a genuine abyssal monster. It's still in its infancy, and its intelligence is about the same as a human's. According to Lord Riven, if it were injured now, its bloodline might awaken in a short period of time, and it would become extremely terrifying!"

The puppy heard Raven's name and turned his head sharply to look at Orcus who was speaking.

"Look, this guy understands what I say. It's much smarter than Shadow Leopard!"

Okus was a little curious, but thankfully, he'd learned the origins of the Lava Dog before the pup was still an egg. This fat dog would be their lifeblood when they reached the demonic realm.

As time passed, the magic crystal in Kaisas's hand gradually shrank. He had a strong physique and could cast spells violently, as well as absorb magic power violently.

After about half an hour, nearly forty high-level magic crystals were consumed, and Kaisas's magic sea was basically full.

"Lord Orcus, how far is that mercenary team from here?" Caesars asked Orcus.

"It's about half an hour away!"

Okus replied.