Chapter 409: Seven Cities of Gold
"Morning! Lucky Salazar!"
"Good morning! Indomitable Angelo!"
The early morning sun shines on this land on the other side of the ocean, and the withered yellow branches and leaves seem to remind us that winter is coming quietly.
Walking on the dirt road in the city-state, Salazar Knox smiled and greeted his companions, with whom he had no previous interactions.
Since returning to the city-state of Padilla, Salazar has gained a new title - the Lucky One.
And those friends who were originally just nodding acquaintances with me became obviously much more enthusiastic towards me.
In recent times, Salazar could clearly feel that he seemed to have suddenly become a well-known figure in the entire Padilla city-state.
Being chased by mutants and forced to jump into the sea is certainly not something to brag about.
But the important thing is…
After he jumped into the sea, he was luckily rescued.
The person who saved him came from another continent, from a mysterious country called the Principality of Idar.
Salazar's knowledge of the Principality of Idar came only from Captain Hausen's few words.
But even so, he was clearly aware of the powerful strength possessed by those Idar people. After all... not to mention how complete the equipment they were wearing was, the fact that they were able to cross the ocean and come to this land with their strong ships and powerful guns was enough to explain a lot of problems.
and……
As the first native resident of the Lost Land to come into contact with the Idar people, Salazar witnessed with his own eyes the Idar people carrying the still-living mutants onto the ship, and saw how they killed and injured more than a dozen aggressive mutants without sacrificing a single soldier.
By chance and coincidence, Salazar has now become the guide of the Idar people on this continent, leading the soldiers of the Principality of Idar to explore this relatively unfamiliar land time and time again.
After passing through the noisy streets and turning three or two corners, Salazar finally arrived in front of one of the few houses in the city that looked particularly magnificent.
This is the temporary residence of the Idar people in the city-state of Padilha.
Under the threat of mutants, the value of houses in the city-state of Padilha is not measured by currency, but by the number of mutants killed to determine what kind of house you are qualified to live in.
so……
When Captain Hausen dragged a long string of mutant corpses through the city with blood-stained chains, this house, one of the best in the Padiliya city-state, naturally became the temporary residence of the Idar people.
The flag symbolizing the Stuart family, the rulers of the Principality of Idar, was hung high on the flagpole on the roof.
On both sides of the gate, there is a fully armed Idar soldier on duty.
And under the eaves opposite the house, even though the Idar people have been here for quite some time, there are still many idle residents who cast curious glances at the Idar soldiers on guard from time to time.
certainly,
A single building certainly could not accommodate a whole ship of Idar soldiers, so this was just one of the temporary settlements of the Idar people in this land.
As the commander-in-chief of the ocean-going fleet, although the indigenous residents of the Padilla city-state did not show any hostility towards the arrival of the Idar people, Captain Hausen still maintained due vigilance and distance.
Except for him and his personal guards stationed in the city-state of Padilha, most of the Idar soldiers remained on the warships and built a temporary camp of a certain size near the coast.
"I'm here to see Lord Hausen..."
Salazar spoke to the soldiers on both sides.
As a guide serving the Idar people, Salazar had to report to the Idar people's base every morning. The soldiers guarding the door were already used to it. They just gave Salazar a quick check and then let him in.
The first floor had been converted into a living room and reception room by the Idar people. After greeting several Idar soldiers seated in the hall, Salazar went upstairs.
“Boom boom boom…”
"Come in."
Hearing this, Salazar pushed the door open and saw Captain Hausen staring at the map on the wall in a daze.
The map hanging on the wall was a gift given to the Idar people by the elders of the Padiliya city-state a few days ago.
Of course, with Captain Hausen's approval, the Idar people also presented several sets of standard armor for Idar soldiers as a thank you.
For the indigenous people living on this continent, this lightweight and highly protective standard armor is definitely a rare treasure!
"Your continent...is not small in size!"
Captain Hausen couldn't help but lick the corners of his slightly dry mouth.
"It looks quite large, but as I mentioned to you before, most of this continent is unowned land occupied by mutants. Even traveling on the road between the two city-states would be quite risky, not to mention exploring those forests and mountains far away." Salazar said with a wry smile.
During these days, he spent most of his time accompanying Idar soldiers in exploring the forests around the Padiliya city-state. In just one week, the number of mutants he encountered was almost more than what he had seen in the past six months.
If it weren't for the fact that the Idar soldiers were able to escape safely every time with the help of their weapons and equipment, and had not promised to give him a generous reward, Salazar would have disappeared long ago.
Captain Hausen nodded slightly, but his eyes were still on the map hanging on the wall.
The city-state of Padilla is located on the southwest coast of the Lost Lands, and for this reason it was the first city-state to come into contact with the Idar people.
During these days, through communicating with the indigenous people living on this continent, Captain Hausen has basically figured out the situation in the Lost Land.
first,
Humans are not the masters of this continent. Countless mutants occupy most of the land, and humans can only huddle together for warmth and build city-states one after another on the edge of the continent.
The number of residents in these city-states varies. Small and medium-sized city-states like Padilla have nearly 10,000 residents, while some large city-states may even have a population of more than 100,000.
That's right.
The existence of mutants has caused poor communication between the city-states, so that even now, there is still no stable and large political power formed in this land, only a large number of independent city-state neighbors.
Moreover, the ruling systems of various city-states are also different.
For example, the Padililla city-state where Captain Hausen is now is a human city-state with the Council of Elders as its core. The three elders in the Council of Elders control all matters in the city-state and are responsible for organizing soldiers to resist the invasion of mutants.
In addition, there are city-states with family ties as the core of rule, city-states with the most powerful local warriors as leaders... The ruling structures and forms are numerous and varied.
Secondly,
According to Captain Hausen's understanding, in addition to small and medium-sized city-states like Padilla, there are seven most powerful city-states on this continent.
And they are called the "Seven Golden Cities" by the local indigenous people.
Compared with other small and medium-sized city-states, the Seven Golden Cities are closer to the inland, occupy more fertile and abundant land, support a larger population, and possess more powerful military forces and armies.
In addition, each city in the "Seven Golden Cities" has a unique holy place. It is precisely because of these holy places that the Seven Golden Cities can stand safely in the inland of the empire where mutants are densely populated.
Although no common people have ever been to the Seven Golden Cities, and even because they are located inland, they have no connection with other city-states, but in this vast land... the legend of the Seven Golden Cities has always been circulating.
It is said that...
No one knows the exact location of the Seven Golden Cities. Only those warriors who can cross the deep forest alone while being surrounded by mutants can be qualified to join the Seven Golden Cities and live in that rich land full of gold and silver.
But to Captain Howson, such unfounded rumors were irrelevant to the story.
The Lost Lands left the Idar people with the impression of a large number of city-states with loose connections and a vast area of unowned land.
In Captain Hausen's opinion, although the existence of mutants is a bit troublesome, in a sense... this is actually good news.
At least……
It was for this reason that when the Idar people first set foot on this land, they did not encounter much resentment and hostility from local forces.
The Idar people's possible future development activities will probably not encounter too much obstruction.
After all... in this land, the territory of the city-state only includes the city-state itself, and the rest of the place is unowned land occupied by mutants.
If the Idar people built towns and demarcated territories here, they would only need to focus more on the mutants roaming around.
Although the Principality of Idar is far away from the Lost Land, and Captain Hausen had doubts about the overseas expansion plan when he first set sail, but...
After arriving here, Captain Hausen was extremely surprised that... this land, called "Lost Land" by his own Duke, indeed possessed a large number of extremely rich natural resources.
In addition to the common gold, silver, copper and iron, there are countless other minerals.
For example, when Salazar fell into the water, the token that the Idar people found on Salazar was made of mithril.
You know, for the Principality of Idar, mithril, a special metal widely used in magical equipment, can be called a precious resource of strategic level!
so……
During the time they came to this land, in addition to gathering intelligence about this continent, the Idar people also began to try to trade with the local indigenous people (the city-state of Padilla).
Even a very ordinary canned vegetable can be exchanged for precious minerals from local residents.
"that……"
Salazar hesitated for a moment, then asked cautiously: "Lord Hausen, I heard someone say... Are you ready to leave here?"
Upon hearing this, Captain Hausen did not deny it, but nodded affirmatively: "We have been stationed here for more than half a month, and have basically figured out the situation of this land. It is time for us to go back and report."
After receiving a positive response from Captain Hausen, Salazar couldn't help but look a little nervous:
"Will you come back then?!"
after all……
During the days he served as a guide for the Idar people, Salazar became more and more impressed by the Idar people's powerful military strength.
In addition to hunting down a large number of mutants when they first landed, the Idar people even took the initiative to attack and wiped out a group of mutants that had been entrenched in the forest near the city-state in one fell swoop!
Although the Idar people's goal was to capture a few mutants and bring them back for research, and to understand the mutants' living habits and fighting habits, but...
For the simple residents living in the city-state of Padilla, this was undoubtedly a great thing! Moreover, because the strength of the Idar people was so terrifying, Salazar, who served the Idar people, was also respected by the local residents.
The strong are respected! In this land plagued by mutant invasions, powerful forces often have many privileges and are respected by more people.
The Idar people, who were able to cross the ocean, were undoubtedly considered strong in the eyes of the local natives.
So, at least for Salazar himself, he absolutely did not want the Idar people to leave like this.
The people on this continent do not have the intrigues that existed in the Norman Empire. Under the threat of mutants, the conflicts between people and between city-states basically have only one purpose, which is to compete for limited survival resources.
So far, the Idar people have not shown any aggressive side, and trade with the local residents has also brought considerable benefits to the Padilla city-state.
Therefore, in addition to curiosity, the local indigenous people still have great respect for these Idar people from overseas.
"Of course I will come back..."
Captain Hausen nodded as a matter of course: "In addition... I plan to take a few local residents to the Principality of Idar to meet the ruler of our Principality of Idar, the great Duke of Idar Bruno."
"Go... to the Principality of Idar? Is it on the other side of the sea?"
Hearing this, Salazar's heart moved, and he couldn't help but say: "Look...can I?"
"you?"
Captain Hausen turned his head with a half-smile and looked Salazar up and down: "What we need is an envoy who can make decisions on behalf of the Padilla city-state, but..."
Captain Hausen paused for a moment before continuing, "As the first guide hired by the Idar people and the first drowned person they saw after arriving in this land, you do have the qualifications to go to the Principality of Idar."
Although he had been stationed in this land for more than half a month, Captain Hausen knew clearly that his familiarity with this continent was definitely not as good as that of indigenous people like Salazar who had lived on this land for generations.
In his opinion, it was far from enough to just travel the route and find out the news about the lost land. He had to bring a few people back with him to successfully complete the task assigned by the Duke.
For example, only by bringing back living mutants can the mages and scholars of the Principality of Idar conduct further research; only by bringing back the envoys of the city-state of Padiliya can the Duke make a more thoughtful decision.
after all……
This will directly affect the Idar Principality's plan to develop the Lost Land! "Then I will go and ask the elders for instructions! I'm sure they will agree to my request!"
Salazar said eagerly.
Hearing this, Captain Hausen thought for a moment, then nodded: "No more than five places!"
(End of this chapter)
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