Chapter 34: Disaster in the Middle of Night
Chapter 34
34.1
It was a mid-month Sunday night, and the city of Ravenmont had already fallen into a deep sleep. Only the faint sounds of the tavern on the corner could be heard.
Until a loud "bang" was heard from the carpentry shop.
There was a sound like something exploding, and then a beam of fire suddenly shot out from the window of the carpentry shop!
Two knights patrolling at night saw the fire in the corner from afar and exchanged a quick glance:
One of the knights immediately ran towards the fire, while the other knight ran towards the Knights, hastily blowing the alarm horn in his hand.
"Fire! Fire!"
"Attention, citizens! Fire!"
With a scream, all the citizens in the alley were awakened by the alarm horn.
The knight who had initially rushed to the fire had already reached the carpentry shop, hoping to put out the flames. However, for some unknown reason, the fire spread extremely quickly, and by the time the knight had reached the shop, the fire had already begun to burn fiercely.
Flames shot out from the roof and cracks in the door of the carpentry shop, shooting straight up into the sky and illuminating the entire narrow alley. Window frames, eaves, wooden pillars—the entire shop was completely engulfed in flames. The wood crackled and black smoke rolled around the workshop.
The air temperature rose rapidly. When the firefighters arrived at the door, the air was already too hot. They could not approach the carpentry shop and could only shout, "Is anyone inside?"
No one in the carpentry shop answered him, so he turned to the two shops next to it and shouted loudly: "Go! Go! Leave!"
The fire in the carpentry shop was so intense that even as the knight spoke, it had already spread to the rooftops on either side. This alley was home to many wooden shops, and some of the dry firewood, caught fire under the heat, ignited spontaneously. The flames, like a monster, climbed over tiles and rain gutters, transforming the once silent alley into a blazing corridor. A woman rushed out of a neighboring shop, her face covered in soot. She clutched a wet cloth, coughing and shouting, "Fire! Get out!"
Others in the city were also awakened by the noise, and some rushed over with buckets of water. However, the fire in the alley was so intense that it burned five or six shops in a row. The water poured out of the buckets was even evaporated into streams of white steam in mid-air.
The alley was in chaos. Some people rushed out of their homes barefoot, some carried their dogs on their backs, and a boy cried as he ran, "Goddess! That's Master Catherine's carpentry shop... How could this happen?"
The "South Hill" where Oulidsi and Hesong lived was outside the city of Ravenmont, quite a distance away from the carpentry shop. When they arrived at the carpentry shop, the fires in the six shops had already connected into one, with flames leaping between the eaves and thick smoke rising into the sky, filling the entire alley.
The Knights of Ravenmont have gathered and are urgently putting out the fire; dozens of knights wearing the "Rose Scepter" badge are carrying buckets of water and fine sand and pouring them into the fire.
Hersong shouted in panic: "Master, Master Catherine - Zoe -"
Hesong, who had lost his mind, almost rushed into the fire, but Oulidsi grabbed him.
"There they are," she said.
Master Catherine and Zoe sat at the far end of the alley, both coughing and unable to speak. When He Song saw them, tears welled up in his eyes.
He rushed in front of Master Catherine: "Master...how are you? Are you hurt?"
Master Catherine coughed and shook her hand slightly, indicating she was fine. She was wearing her resting robe and didn't appear injured. Zoe looked even more disheveled, her apprentice's face covered in soot, and two strands of her hair seemed singed. She was completely dazed.
"Cough, cough," Catherine coughed twice and said with difficulty, "We ran out immediately when the fire started, but we were choked by the thick smoke."
"Okay, okay," He Song nodded repeatedly, "I'm glad you're okay, I'm glad you're okay. You guys stop talking."
As he spoke, he hurriedly took off his cloak and said, "It's cold at night, you can wear my cloak."
Master Catherine's voice was still hoarse, but she was still in the mood to joke: "The fire is so big, it's a super big fireplace. It's very warm, not cold at all." As she spoke, she stretched out her hand in a serious manner and made a "fire-warming" gesture.
Hesong put the cloak on Master Catherine with a helpless smile. Seeing that the master was still in the mood to joke, he relaxed a little.
Olidisi, who had been silent all this time, suddenly called out, "Hesong."
Hesong responded, and Oulidesi calmly asked him, "Who is that person?"
He Song was startled and looked in the direction of her finger——
The Knights of Ravenmont were fighting the fire. The sounds of armor colliding, horses' hooves, the crackling of flames, and human voices mixed together, and the situation fell into chaos.
In the midst of this chaos, a thin and timid figure sneaked through the crowd.
If Euridsi hadn't pointed directly at him, Hesong wouldn't have noticed his presence. However, Euridsi pointed him out, and Hesong stared at the figure and subconsciously called out his name: "Simon——"
The figure froze, and after hearing his name, he hurried away without looking back.
He Song stared at the short figure in disbelief: "It's really him."
Olidisi narrowed his eyes: "Simon... is it Simon Karagaran?"
That was another illegitimate son of Duke Karagaran. Hesong nodded slightly. "It's Simon. He always wears the short cloak given to him by the Duke; it is his most proud possession."
Euridsi looked at Simon Karagaran as he hurried away, thinking, "He doesn't live in Ravenmont Castle, does he?"
"Of the Duke's four illegitimate sons, only the most favored Eustace lives with his mother in Ravenmount Castle. The other three illegitimate sons live with their mother in the city," said Hersong.
Olidisi curled his lips and said, "This Simon Karagarang, I guess he doesn't live on this side of the city, right?"
Hesong's eyes darkened slightly.
"He lives on the other side of the city, far away," Hersong said. "Simon, he's the old blacksmith's apprentice. He lives in the smithy."
"How interesting," Oulidsi said with a sarcastic smile, "How could this Simon Karagarang, who lives so far away, end up in a carpentry shop?"
He Song clenched his fingers: "You mean..."
Oledsi sneered, "Yeah, that's right. I mean, he must have done something in the carpentry shop."
Hesong was very surprised: "Simon, how is this possible? There is no conflict between us."
Olidesi looked coldly at Simon Karagaran's embarrassed back as he left. His lips moved slightly, and he was about to say something when someone suddenly exclaimed, "What is that—what is that?"
Olidisi stopped moving.
Above the alley fire, a low "whoosh, whoosh" sound came from far away and then approached. It was the sound of wings fluttering. He Song looked up and exclaimed, "Ah!" "Is that... the Flying Knights of the Royal City?"
Among the knights of the Chimera Orcs are numerous raptors such as hawkmen, black vultures, and kestrels. Not only are they physically strong and agile, they are also capable of long-distance flight. They form the "Flyer" Knights, directly loyal to King Lucinda and the most elite knights around her.
At this moment, the Flying Knights suddenly appeared above the fire in the carpentry shop, and an uproar broke out among the crowd:
"What's that flying in the air?"
"It's the flyer from the Royal City!"
"Ah, it's the knight of Kaderinburg... What's going on?"
"Did this fire actually alarm His Majesty?"
Amid the people's exclamations, the wings of twenty flying knights streaked across the night sky. They swooped down from the darkness, their royal emblems of the "Nine Lights of the Sun and Moon" adorning them gleaming in the fire.
Among the Flying Knights, the most prominent figure was a man riding a white Pegasus and wearing a golden cloak:
It was Prince Rokolan!
The white Pegasus landed on the ground, and Prince Rokolan's long silver-blue hair slowly fell in the wind; although the prince was no longer young, he still had an upright posture, handsome features, and a pair of eyes as deep as a dark pool in the night.
Someone exclaimed, "Yes, it's Prince Rokolan..."
Not many of the citizens in the alley had seen Prince Roquelin in person. They looked at each other, unsure whether to greet him. Prince Roquelin simply waved his sleeves indifferently and said, "Put out the fire first."
As he spoke, he raised his eyes and looked towards the Flying Knights in mid-air. The Chimera Orc Knights, with calm expressions, were arranged in an orderly manner in mid-air, allowing him to clearly assess the extent of the fire.
The Flying Knight Commander said in a deep voice: "To the south, there's fine sand; to the east, there's a water bag."
Twenty knights sprang into action upon hearing the command. Fine sand and cold water were sprinkled down from the sky with precision, sealing the fire's front. On the ground, the Knights of Ravenmont hurriedly coordinated with the Flying Knights' actions. Thanks to the Flying Knights' precise intervention, the fire was quickly suppressed, halting its uncontrolled spread. Unfortunately, the six affected shops continued to burn slowly, seemingly beyond saving.
Prince Rokolan stood quietly beside the burnt shop, holding a scepter in his hand, his eyes half closed, and his expression could not be seen clearly.
He Song looked at all this and couldn't help but whispered: "Prince...why would he come here in person..."
Oulidesi didn't say anything. Prince Rokolan suddenly opened his eyes and looked coldly in the direction of Hesong.
"Catherine Wood," said the prince indifferently, "it was your carpentry shop that started the fire, wasn't it?"
Master Catherine was stunned and looked up in surprise: she didn't expect that Prince Rochlan would know her name.
"Yes," Master Catherine stood up and answered honestly, "The first thing that caught fire was my carpentry shop."
Prince Rochlan stared down at Master Catherine and said coldly, "Then, the six shops burned down because of your recklessness."
Hearing the coldness in Prince Rokolan's voice, Hesong realized that the prince was seeking responsibility for the fire.
He stood up subconsciously and was about to speak when Zoe, the apprentice beside him, suddenly fell down with a thump.
Hesong and Catherine looked over in surprise. Zoe sat on the ground and suddenly burst into tears. "It's all my fault... It's not the master's fault. It was me. I was secretly practicing in the studio, and a spark from the wood started the fire!"
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