On the Seven Towers

Crete Sandro was walking in Camp Three carrying a bundle.

It was said to be a camp, but it was actually a newly built village used to house the slaves brought back by Xiao Chen. Five similar villages are already under construction, located on both sides of the meandering Kalma River. Kalma means calm in the local language. As the name suggests, this mother river in the Montenegro region is wide and quiet, nourishing the wilderness and forests on both sides. Some of these riverside villages are close to fertile farmland, some are close to mines in the mountains, and some are built next to small lakes rich in fish.

Camp Three was a planned miner's village, and most of the slaves living here worked in the nearby iron ore and copper mines.

Houses made of logs are neatly arranged along a gently rising road. It stretches from the river to the foot of the mountain. Most of the buildings near the river have been built and occupied, while most of the buildings near the foot of the mountain are still framework. These houses are very simple, built with unpeeled tree trunks, with mud on the walls and thatch on the roof. Master Xiao Chen has said more than once that they are only used for transitional purposes. But almost all slaves cherished them. Although the houses built out of rush work may not be as strong as the cells in the slave camps, it was a new home with a sense of freedom.

Crete will pass by these houses every day these days. Watching these houses being built from scratch, he can truly feel the changes in the lives of the slaves.

Now the sun has just risen and is no higher than the trees. The third bell to wake up is still echoing in the camp. People come out of the house in twos and threes and slowly walk towards the village canteen.

Several young acquaintances saw Crete and waved the vouchers in their hands to greet him: "Crete, have you eaten in the morning? If not, I'll treat you!"

"Have eaten. I still have to go to Priest Elena to deliver something. Just like usual." Crete responded. He cherishes this feeling. Since he became Master Xiao Chen's nominal student, no one has called him "beauty" or "little girl" anymore. Almost everyone has a friendly look on their face when talking to him. Some people can even be called flattering and flattering. Although his father has left him unexpectedly, for him, life in the past month has been warm.

"Ah! Let's go give something to that beautiful elf. That elf is very arrogant and never talks to us." The young man in the lead showed an envious look. His name was Hawke. He was a head taller than Crete, with a thin build. He had curly ocean-blue hair and green eyes, and his face was quite handsome. I heard that before becoming a slave, he was originally a minor nobleman in a southern city-state. Because he is literate, he is now a warehouse manager at an iron mine.

"You don't want to talk to her. The only people who can talk to her now are the wounded who have been sent for treatment." Crete shrugged.

Hawk laughed. He took a cigarette butt in his hand, took a deep breath, threw it to the ground, and said with an ambiguous expression, "Crete, you are still young and don't understand the benefits of that beauty. Just do what I say." Ah, if you can catch her, it's worth losing your legs. Don't you think?" The friends around him nodded, and a brown-haired boy said sourly: "But what are we now, the lowest miners? Only a magic apprentice like you, Crete, is qualified to talk to her."

"Magic apprentice? I'm not a magic apprentice, I'm just an errand boy." Crete frowned slightly, "And didn't Master Xiao Chen say it? There is no distinction between high and low here."

"No hierarchy?" Hawke laughed unnaturally, "If nothing else, let's just say that we can't even enter the magician's main castle, but you live in it. Is there any difference? Six or seven of us were crowded into a room, but the elf beauty had a room to herself. Is there a difference? We unlucky guys deal with the stones in the mine every day, and the other guys who came with us, But you can go boating on the lake and eat fresh fish, is there a difference? Of course, I don’t mean to be dissatisfied, I’m just a little jealous.”

"Actually, there is nothing good about living in a mage's castle. I only met Master Xiao Chen once, and he ignored me. I didn't dare to go to him, and later he gave me a job of delivering documents and information. , and then went away." Crete's tone contained the unique resentment of a child.

"What didn't he teach you? I thought... your father saved his life after all." Hawke asked.

Crete took a breath, feeling like he was about to cry, "I, I think, he just promised dad to take care of me and live safely. I heard that the God of Nature is among thousands of people, Only one or two people are chosen to be given the power of magic. Maybe, maybe I'm not that lucky, so he looks down on me."

Hawke patted the shoulder of the little boy who was a head shorter than him and comforted: "It's nothing. If you can't learn it, you're just like the rest of us. Since he asked you to deliver the message, you should do it well. Well, maybe I can become a housekeeper in the future. That’s also a matter of old scenery.”

"But I really want to be a magic apprentice." Critter whispered. "I used to only sing and didn't know what a magician was. But that day in the slave camp, after seeing the power of Master Xiao Chen, I think this is what men should pursue..."

"A man?" Hawke couldn't help but laugh, "When I was twelve years old, I didn't know that I wanted to be a man. Then you just wait for the opportunity. Maybe one day you will have the opportunity."

The few of them chatted for a while, and when Crete was in a better mood, they separated from the road. Hawke silently watched Crete leave, thought for a while, and then led the others to the cafeteria.

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Crete walked along the main road for a while, turned a fork, and came to a big house with an open space in front. He tidied his clothes, walked to the door and knocked twice.

The door opened quickly, but the owner of the house, the elf priestess Elena, was not behind the door. It was a girl with green hair, Katarina.

At this time, Crete's face did not have the frustration and unwillingness that he had when talking to Hawke. He just showed a concerned look and asked: "Sister Katarina, can you get up?"

Katina was still wearing a leather armor with a dagger and a throwing knife on it. Her face was a little pale and her movements were a little slow. She touched Crete's head and said, "I'm fine. Dr. Feng helped me sew up the wound first, and Priest Elena cast healing magic for me. I feel I have recovered."

"How can it be so fast? I saw that your blood yesterday stained the stretcher red."

"I said it's okay. Don't worry about it, kid."

"Is it because of Lord Xiao Chen? He left on his own and didn't take you to visit the earl. You were a little unhappy, so you challenged Lord Ji Yijun, and you fought so hard, right?"

"What are you talking about, kid?" Catalina was stunned, and then spat, "Don't talk nonsense. In order to stimulate fighting spirit, I naturally have to use all means to hone myself..."

"I know you like him." Crete smiled cunningly.

"Shut up, or I will sew it up." Catalina felt her face was hot, and her first reaction was to cover the other person's mouth.

"The more exaggerated you act, the more you will appear to have something to hide, Sister Catalina. Besides, someone is watching us from behind," Crete said hurriedly.

Catalina's hand stopped awkwardly in mid-air, and when she looked back, Elena had indeed come out of the inner room.

Elena was still as beautiful and elegant as ever, wearing a light green robe, and walked slowly, like a willow leaf.

"You are actually seriously injured. Although the combination of Dr. Feng's magical medical skills and my healing magic is amazing, your body has not recovered yet, and you shouldn't get up so early." Elena blamed.

"I'm fine. The more this happens, the more I should try to break through myself. Make myself useful." Catalina replied.

Elena shook her head and said nothing more. This is just her job. Life here is simple, eating in the cafeteria, wearing the clothes issued, and doing the assigned work, that's all. As an elf, she doesn't have much affection for humans, except for some special people. In this camp of a thousand people, as an elf, she often feels like she is drifting in an endless ocean.

"Priest Elena, these are the pills that Doctor Feng asked me to bring." Crete took the bag off his shoulder and pulled out a ziplock bag from it. In the transparent ziplock bag, there were two capsules, two white pills, and a bag of herbs. "Doctor Feng said that these colorful capsules and pills are for Sister Katarina to take twice a day, and the herbs are for external application."

Caterina took out the herbs and smelled them, saying, "This is similar to the medicine for Captain Kalanda's injuries. I think I only need to apply this. As for the magic pills in school, I'd better keep them for others. I heard from Doctor Feng that these things are very precious and can't be made after they are used up."

"This..." Crete scratched his head, "Sister, maybe you should ask Doctor Feng?"

"Really, I was injured more seriously before, but I survived with these herbs. You don't understand what the life of a mercenary is like." She put the pills back into the bag solemnly, sealed it, and stuffed it into Crete's package, "These pills can save other people's lives, you have to keep them."

Crete couldn't persuade her, so he had to agree.

"Let's go together. I shouldn't waste Priest Elena's time here."

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The two walked in the camp, slowly walking towards the entrance of the village along the way up.

"Actually, one of my companions died." Katarina said.

"Ah?" Krit exclaimed.

"A little guy who was very kind to me. A few days ago, when protecting the caravan, he encountered robbers and was shot in the chest by an arrow and could not be saved. He has always taken good care of me."

"Sister Katarina, don't be sad. I..."

"Silly child, we mercenaries have seen many people die, you don't have to worry about me. But you have to understand that I really understand your feelings. They are like family to me."

"Yeah." Krit nodded as if he understood.

Katrina rubbed Krit's head and said, "Let's not talk about this. Lord Xiao Chen left in a hurry this time and didn't have time to take care of you too much. Don't think too much."

"How could it be. After all, they took me in." Krit replied.

"I can sense your reluctance. But don't hold a grudge." Katerina looked back at him, and Crete turned his head away from her eyes.

"I can sense your thoughts, too. Is it because we are similar?" he asked.

"Are we similar? Maybe we just share the same pain," she said.