Because hastily announcing this information without identifying the enemy would only cause unnecessary panic and unrest.

After all, most ordinary people have awe and fear towards Talona, ​​the goddess of poison and disease.

She was afraid that her pastors and believers would spread the plague around her, causing large numbers of people around them to become sick and then die in pain and despair.

But not making it public doesn't mean pretending nothing happened.

Jaheira used his druid abilities to place a large number of birds, mice, squirrels, rabbits, snakes and other small animals around to closely monitor everything that happened around him.

Zuo Si also ordered the Shadow Legion to use its powerful shadow hiding ability to turn the entire area with a radius of five kilometers centered on the caravan into a "forbidden zone."

As long as there is a humanoid creature approaching, he will know it at the first moment.

Not only that!

Zuo Si also personally tested the water and food to ensure that they were not poisoned.

After all, he is very good at doing this kind of thing. If he was poisoned by someone else, it would be a huge joke.

With this tight inside and loose outside operation, night fell quickly.

After dinner, the slaves who had been traveling all day lay down near the carriages they were in charge of, closed their eyes and began to rest.

Those who were not sleepy yet gathered in groups of three or four around the campfire, imagining the wonderful life after arriving in Amn and regaining their freedom.

To outsiders who don't know the real situation, Amn seems like a country of miracles.

Although it is called an empire, it does not have a supreme monarch. It is more like a country ruled by a huge business alliance.

Even noble titles can be purchased with money, rather than relying on ancient bloodline and family inheritance as in other places.

No matter if you were once a lowly beggar or a slave, here you have the possibility to cross classes, change your destiny and become a superior person.

The most important thing is that this country is so rich that it can even be called the richest country in the entire Faerun.

It is not uncommon to hear that a destitute person comes to Amn, quickly makes a fortune through business, and thus becomes a member of the upper class.

However, these slaves with dreams do not know that Amn is actually the country closest to the capitalist system in the entire continent of Faerun.

Indeed, it does not value family and bloodline, and anyone who can accumulate enough wealth has the opportunity to climb up.

But at the same time, there will be no mercy for those lower-class people who are of no use.

This can be seen from the huge slums of Athkatla.

Zuo Si had already learned the true situation of Am from the merchant Bernard.

So whenever he heard some slaves shouting that they must make a name for themselves, he would look at these guys with a slightly pity look.

Because if these illiterate people who can't even recognize words had obediently obeyed Bernard's arrangements and worked in the estates under the Chamber of Commerce, they might have lived a peaceful life.

But if you are not content, work for two years to save some money, quit your job and go to Azkatra to make a living, you will probably soon end up struggling to survive in the slums.

As for starting from scratch...

Sorry, those are only prepared for a very small number of geniuses and lucky people. Ordinary people should just forget about it.

Just as Zuo Si was sipping pheasant mushroom soup and listening with interest to the true thoughts of the people at the bottom of Faerun society, Ai Luolin suddenly walked over from a distance and asked nervously, "What do you think of Talona, ​​the goddess of poison and disease?"

"What do you think?"

Zuo Si was stunned for a moment, totally not understanding what the other party wanted to express.

Seeing that the communication between the two had been hindered again, Ai Luolin could only sigh helplessly and explain: "I mean, what is your attitude towards the teachings preached by this goddess and the actions of her church."

“My attitude is that it doesn’t matter.”

After figuring out the intention of the Holy Knight, Zuo Si simply smiled and spread his hands.

Ai Luolin obviously did not expect the other party to give such an answer, and her eyes were full of confusion and puzzlement.

Zuo Si answered directly: "It doesn't matter, which means neither approval nor denial. No matter what Talona and her followers preach, as long as they don't provoke me, I will pretend that I didn't see anything. In addition, if you are worried that I will regard her as my own belief, there is no need to worry. I have no intention of believing in any god, nor will I become a believer of any god."

"What?! You are a non-believer!"

Ai Luolin opened her mouth in shock, her face full of disbelief.

"No, strictly speaking I agree with some of the views and teachings of many gods.

For example, the God of Suffering Ilmater advocates helping the weak and protecting children; another example is the God of Knowledge Oghma's idea of ​​respecting and protecting knowledge.

But equally, I hate the former's teachings on endurance and endurance of suffering, and the latter's irresponsibility in spreading dangerous knowledge anyway.

This kind of personality and way of thinking determines that I have faith, but it is almost impossible for me to become a believer in any god.

As for a god like Talona who gains influence by spreading fear and death, I don’t think I have any similarities or commonalities with her at all.”

Zuo Si expressed his ideas on faith directly.

In the continent of Faerun, faith is not like some religions on Earth, where people say they believe in something but then secretly do a lot of immoral things that violate the teachings. As a result, they can continue to be devout believers as long as they repent and donate some money.

Just the opposite!

First of all, it requires you to sincerely accept the teachings and ideas of a certain God, and then put into practice in your life what these Gods want you to do.

Only in this way can one be called a believer, and after death the soul will be taken away by the god of faith.

The real non-believers are often lunatics whose thoughts, consciousness and values ​​are extremely confused.

In Faerun, where gods are everywhere, it is actually quite difficult to be a true non-believer.

Upon hearing that Zuo Si was not a non-believer, Ai Luolin was obviously relieved.

You should know that in Faerun, the souls of the faithless will be stuck on the "Wall of Faithless" by the god of death after death because there is no god to take them away, and they will be left to be plundered by the devils and demons.

Just when the holy warrior wanted to say something, Zuo Si suddenly put down the bowl of soup in his hand and stood up from the ground.

At the same time, Jaheira, who was listening to the cooing of an owl not far away, also woke up Khalid who was resting with his eyes closed beside him.

"What happened?" Ai Luolin asked nervously.

"Get ready for battle! A large group of strangers of unknown origin suddenly appeared in the forest on the left." Zuo Si immediately gave the answer.

Just as he was about to take the initiative to attack, a little werewolf ran back from the front near the Surdus River, panting, and reported breathlessly: "Master! A group of riders came from the direction of Zazesibo on the other side of the river in the north. There are about a hundred of them. They are crossing the river and will arrive in fifteen minutes if nothing goes wrong."

"Two groups of people? Are they together, or..."

Jaheira raised his head and looked into Zuo Si's eyes, as if asking how to handle this situation.

"I don't care about that anymore! Let's first deal with the group of people coming out of the forest on the left."

Zuo Si made a decision immediately after a little thought.

He planned to use his advantage in magic to create a time difference and eliminate the ones closest to him before the second wave of riders arrived.

However, just in case, Zuo Si left Wilmes and Qiwu behind to guard the camp.

Just like that, before the rest of the caravan could react to what was happening, he led the team to the left side as quickly as possible to meet the enemy.

Only a group of mercenaries and Bernard, who had just woken up from his sleep, were left at a loss in the night wind.

(End of this chapter)