69novels 125. What do you want?
125. What do you want?
The scarred man's gaze sharpened slightly, but the dagger pressed against Xin Lai's neck did not loosen in the slightest.
"The Third Prince?" His tone was full of doubt.
"His Highness the Third Prince should be in the royal city right now, why is he alone in this desolate wilderness?"
"The Marquis of Tanstin left me a map," Sinley said calmly, meeting the scarred man's gaze. "And this."
He did not reach for the silver badge in his pocket, because any unnecessary movement at this moment could lead to his death.
He simply gestured towards his chest with his gaze, then, keeping his hands raised, slowly and clearly described the shape and features of the silver badge:
"The silver emblem of the Lion Knights, with a lion crushing chains on the front and the Marquis Tanstin's coat of arms and his signature on the back. The Marquis gave it to me by hand before his death."
The three scouts' eyes met for a fleeting moment, and that brief exchange of glances contained a wealth of complex information.
The scarred man hesitated for a moment, then gave the lean scout a wink.
The latter slung the short bow on his back, cautiously approached Xinlai, rummaged in his pocket for a moment, and sure enough, took out the silver badge.
The lean scout held the silver badge in his palm, carefully examining it against the morning light filtering through the gaps in the tree canopy.
Sunlight danced on the silver emblem, outlining the proud figure of a lion. The lean scout's breathing quickened suddenly. He looked up and nodded emphatically to the scarred man: "It's undoubtedly a marquis's badge, the highest-ranking token."
The scarred man's pupils contracted sharply as he stared intently into Xin Lai's eyes, as if trying to discern something from them.
"How could the Marquis entrust such an important token to you?" His voice was filled with barely suppressed pain. "The Marquis... is he dead?"
Xinlai met the scarred man's gaze and took a deep breath.
He knew that what he was about to say would anger, sadden, and even drive these three warriors loyal to the Marquis of Tanstin to lose control, but he could not lie, nor could he lie.
"The Marquis of Tanstin was tortured to death in the dungeon a few days ago."
The moment the words left his mouth, the air seemed to freeze.
The sturdy scout's battle axe clattered to the ground, and the lean scout's lips trembled violently.
The scarred man's face flushed crimson in an instant, and his usually calm eyes suddenly erupted with a furious rage.
The dagger pressed against Xin Lai's neck trembled slightly with rage, its cold blade slicing through Xin Lai's skin, and a trickle of crimson blood flowed down his neck.
"You're lying!" The scarred man's voice was like a roar torn from the depths of his throat; he was like a volcano about to erupt, suppressing a world-destroying power.
"He clearly told us about the plan to break into the prison and escape beforehand, how could he...?"
"Brother!" The lean scout, though equally filled with grief and indignation, managed to retain a sliver of reason and reached out to press down on the scarred man's shoulder. "He possesses the Marquis's token!"
"A token? Who knows if they stole it after killing the Marquis!" The scarred man abruptly shoved his companion's hand away, his crimson eyes fixed on Xin Lai.
"You have royal blood flowing in your veins, every word you utter could be a lie!" He pressed the dagger closer, and Xinlai could clearly feel the chill and killing intent emanating from the blade.
"I'll ask you one more time: how exactly did the Marquis die? If you utter another lie, I swear on the honor of the Lion Cavalry, I will snap your neck!"
Xin Lai, her expression unchanged, stared directly into the scarred man's eyes, which were burning with rage, and said, word by word:
"The Marquis was tortured in the dungeon by Simondo, a confidant of the second prince Simeon, and died from his injuries."
I saw the Marquis's body with my own eyes; his bones were broken and his flesh was mangled, but he never lowered his head until his death.
"Simondo!" the scarred man practically spat out the name through clenched teeth, "Simien!"
Xin Lai felt the dagger at her neck getting closer, and the warm blood flowed down her neck even faster.
But he did not retreat or dodge; instead, he continued, “I know you are filled with grief and indignation, and I know you wish you could immediately storm into the royal city to avenge the Marquis.”
But before that, you can hear my purpose first, and then you can do as you please—kill me or torture me.
The lean scout gripped the scarred man's arm tightly and whispered something in his ear.
The scarred man's chest heaved violently several times. Finally, he slowly withdrew his dagger, but his eyes still burned with an inextinguishable rage.
"Alright." The scarred man took a step back, his hands still gripping the dagger tightly, his knuckles white from the force. "You can speak now."
Xinlai didn't wipe the blood from his neck, letting the crimson stain soak into his collar. His gaze swept over the faces of the three scouts one by one:
"In his final days, the Marquis of Tanstin entrusted me with the token of the Lion Cavalry, instructing me to do everything in my power to preserve those fifty thousand heavily armored cavalry on the border. I have come here today not to defend myself, nor to beg for forgiveness, but to tell you:"
The 50,000 iron cavalry on the border have been drawn into the power struggle within the royal city. Simien wants to annex this force, and if he succeeds, this elite army, forged by Marquis Tanstin with his life's work, will become Simien's tool for eliminating dissidents.
"So what do you want?" the scarred man asked coldly.
"I want to inherit the will of the Marquis of Tanstin and become the lion of this army."
Xinlai's words were resounding: "Of course, not as a conqueror, but as an ally. I want to continue the legacy of Marquis Tanstin, to ensure that the spirit of the Lion Cavalry lives on, and to prevent those soldiers loyal to the Marquis from being used by Simeon and becoming victims of power struggles."
"That sounds nice!" the scarred man sneered. "Which member of your royal family isn't all sweet talker with a hidden agenda? Just because Simien is a wolf doesn't mean you're a sheep."
The lean scout suddenly gripped the scarred man's hand tightly, his gaze fixed on Xin Lai. "What evidence do you have for all this?"
Xinlai raised her hand and pointed to the silver badge that was still gleaming in the lean scout's palm: "This silver badge can only be awarded by the supreme commander of the Lion Cavalry in every generation. You three are all the Marquis's personal guards, so you should know better than anyone else what this means."
Xinlai stared at the silver badge, her voice low and firm: "This means that you were conscious when you handed this token to me."
Xin Lai's gaze swept over the three of them, and she slowly said, "The Marquis said that the once mighty lion that once roamed the battlefield has been kept in a cage and had its claws and teeth pulled out. Those 50,000 heavily armored cavalry were once his sharpest spear, but now they have become his biggest worry."