Witch Troupe and the Undead

Countless skeletal reliefs on the entrance floor flow like a river around the hall, eventually surrounding a sun-shaped platform on the left side of the hall. Below the platform are countless half-dead monster sculptures; on the opposite side, there is a platform carved into a moon, surrounded by trees and flowers. The two contrasting sculptures are connected end to end.

The family alchemist offered an explanation, suggesting it might symbolize the mysteries of alchemy, the meaning of death as rebirth, and the imagery that all living beings must die. However, the older members of the family refused to believe the latter part of the statement.

The man walked nonchalantly through the bone reliefs into the depths of the hall, where a row of six stone chairs stood before him, completely out of place with the overall artistic and sculptural style of the hall, appearing entirely foreign.

"Good... news?" On a stone seat, an almost withered human figure opened its mouth and uttered a hoarse question.

“Failed.” The man said nonchalantly, and the desiccated corpse in front of him began to tremble violently, causing the glass tube filled with green fluorescent substance to shake incessantly. Pale green liquid overflowed from the connection between the body and the glass and quickly evaporated into the air.

“Responsibility…” “I’ll take responsibility.” The man nodded. “The plan went wrong, but it was an unexpected accident that none of us could have foreseen. The ‘curse-breaker’ mentioned in the intelligence might be ‘that’…” The six desiccated corpses all let out low growls, which sounded like laughter.

“Don’t be too happy yet. What I mean is, it might be ‘that,’ but it’s not necessarily ‘that,’ and if it really is…” The man’s expression turned mocking, but then quickly turned to deep pain, “then the judgment of death will follow like a shadow, just as recorded in the ancient scrolls passed down in our family, won’t it?”

"...Get lost...on the mission!"

"Yes... Old Master~" The man bowed slightly and left the hall without looking back, leaving behind six half-dead things entangled with the glass, liquid and countless young and withered corpses on the stone seat.

"Boom!" The door slammed shut behind him. The man turned and glanced at the now-closed relief on the door, chuckling twice. "The first principle of alchemy: equivalent exchange. A bunch of old fogies!"

The Frost family made great contributions to the imperial unification war by standing on the side of the royal family, and were granted the title of Grand Duke. The entire Southern Plains Province and Jade Province were their fiefdoms or clan lands.

The family has been renowned for its alchemy since ancient times. During the imperial unification wars, they provided the Stoll family, who were not yet emperors at the time, with a large amount of alchemical materials, weaponry, and the wealth most needed to rise from a regional lord to become emperors of the empire.

"When did it begin..." The man looked up at the sky above the courtyard. When did the family begin to decline? When did the once-prosperous alchemy family begin its gradual decline?

The fiefdom that once occupied almost a third of the empire's territory now only has the core county of Catherfield left, and even Silver Maple County, which is just across the river, has been lost. Well, saying it has been lost is not quite accurate.

Because the Earl who ruled Silver Maple County was still theoretically a vassal of the Frost family, and would symbolically pay the family a sum of money every year as a vassal's obligation, but this sum was based on the standard from hundreds of years ago, and had not changed since the founding of the empire.

And of course they wouldn't obey the orders of the Frost family. Well, that's not entirely accurate. They could indeed issue orders to the other party in the name of the family head and the lord. If the order didn't conflict with the royal family or affect the overall situation, such as suppressing bandits or organizing hunting tournaments or martial arts competitions, the other party would obey respectfully and meticulously.

If it weren't for this, the other party would definitely find countless flawless excuses to shirk responsibility.

If Silver Maple County, separated by only a river, is like this, one can only imagine what the even more distant Jade Province is like. If the Earl of Silver Maple County still puts on a show, the bandits who occupy Jade Province are too lazy to even bother with pretense.

"Want more, and you'll lose more; want everything, and you'll have nothing." The man murmured, this was the family motto, but clearly the six skeletons sitting in the hall didn't think so.

When someone reaches the level of someone like Freud, who is practically a king in his own right, he can only have two desires: either the supreme position or eternal life. And those old guys choose "both!" They want endless wealth and longevity.

Thus, just as the family motto foretold, they lost everything. A large amount of wealth was poured into bottomless alchemical experiments. Obsessed with ambition, they were noticed by the emperor. After several generations of deliberate or unintentional weakening, the Freud family eventually became what it is today.

He was still the same glorious Grand Duke, but everyone knew what he really looked like beneath that glory.

The only remaining territory was Catherfield County. No, it should be said that Catherfield County could not be perfectly controlled either, because with the construction of the railway lines, and with the help of stations, railway patrol cavalry, and the Train Merchants' Guild (a merchant guild that relied on freight train trade), the Emperor's tentacles had deeply penetrated this territory.

This is why those old guys would do such a hysterical thing—because with this trend, the Stoll family will soon be exposed to the deepest secrets of the family.

"The fewer chips you have, the more anxious you are to turn things around. And the more impatient you are, the more likely you are to fall into a trap and eventually lose your last copper coin." The man sat in the study high up in the castle, where ancient scrolls collected and accumulated by his family over dozens of generations were piled up. Alchemy, arcane arts, and even witchcraft from distant lands and more mysterious shamanic traditions could all be found here.

“Old Stoll won’t last much longer…” The man opened the envelope and glanced at it. “That old guy seems to have realized something is wrong? No, he probably doesn’t know the problem…” Because of the previous prince’s coup, this old man had massacred the eunuchs and the entire palace, but it was too late, everything was too late.

"Hopefully, that was just a simple curse-breaker..." No matter how skilled a curse-breaker or sorcerer was, it was impossible to remove the curse from the emperor, because it was not a curse at all, nor even the effect of any magic, but simply the effect of alchemy.

The royal family has various ways to prevent poisoning, and even has a large number of rare magical potions. Ordinary methods of poisoning are useless. Therefore, it was not poison, nor was it a curse or poisoning, at least not "poisoning" in the general sense of this world.

Only a family like the Floros, with a history spanning over a thousand years and having exhausted its last fortune on various alchemical experiments, could create something that, strictly speaking, is part of the "elixir of immortality" or the "philosopher's stone."

Naturally, no one would notice anything amiss. The emperor usually took too many magical potions to boost his energy, strengthen his physique, and enhance his vitality. After discovering that he was under a "curse," he consumed these potions like food and performed various magical rituals continuously. Under these circumstances, even the most skilled astrologer would be unable to divination for any clues.

"Potion Master..." The man looked at the information in the letter, a sense of foreboding creeping into his heart. An ordinary Potions Master couldn't possibly have any way to treat the Emperor's body, but... he still felt waves of unease, as if he had forgotten or overlooked something.

"Well... I hope those old guys won't get carried away again. The family really can't afford to lose anymore." But there's nothing harder in this world than persuading a group of gamblers who've lost everything, especially when they still have a small bag of coins left.

"Ah, our ancestors were indeed wise..." The man looked at the family motto carved on the wall of his study and felt a headache coming on. The old man had already told you: If you want more, you will lose more; if you want to turn the tables and win back what you have, you will give up everything you already have.

If it weren't for the underhanded tactics those old guys had used against him, he would have wanted to rush into that hall more than once and pull all the tubes out of those old bastards who should have died long ago but refused to. However, the results of his elder brother's and father's struggles told him that doing so would mean losing his own life as well, becoming the price one of those old bastards paid to maintain that pathetic existence.

Meanwhile, at the Giant Rock Palace.

"The Fross family..." The old emperor looked at the intelligence report that his subordinate had just sent. Rhine had not actually sent any important information through his spies in Fangqiu Town, but that was precisely why their train being hijacked in Fangqiu Town and then disappearing seemed so unusual.

"Should we take action?"

"No," the emperor shook his head. "The Floros family is not what it used to be. If we take action now, it may cause all our previous efforts to be in vain."

High-ranking nobles who are on par with the emperor can only be dealt with little by little. To deal with them in one fell swoop, there must be solid and irrefutable evidence. If we rely solely on baseless accusations, it is very likely that the emperor will be mistaken for trying to restart the process of centralization that has been stagnant in the empire for hundreds of years.

"Moreover, this also confirms a doubt I had," the old emperor smiled, "Was everything we did to the Frost family really effective? Was it because they didn't want to resist, or because they disdained to resist? This is a doubt that my father and I share."

Because the royal family's weakening of the Grand Duke's family has become increasingly ruthless, perhaps at first the water temperature wasn't high enough, and this frog could still leisurely enjoy itself. But when the temperature rises to this level, even the most sluggish frog should jump out of the pot. However, the Frost family frog really stayed well in the hot water pot.

Either the frog was not afraid of boiling water at all, or the water temperature was not high enough to pose a threat to it, or the frog was not a frog at all. This confusion plagued the late emperor for his entire life, and it would also plague him for his entire life. He even thought it might plague the next generation for their entire lives. Unexpectedly, he now found that this was not the case.

The frog noticed the water was getting warmer early on, so it made its own plans, waiting to see whether the person boiling the water would play with fire and get burned first or the frog would be boiled to death first.

This put the emperor's mind at ease: "It seems that the Floros family is not as powerful or calm as we imagined. They were even driven to a dead end, which is why they chose this method." Although there is no such thing as "a cornered dog will jump over the wall" in this world, there are proverbs with similar meanings.

"I hope this frog can maintain the same understanding with me and stay in the water instead of making a mess of boiling water everywhere," the emperor said meaningfully. The composure of the Floros family was the key to maintaining the stability of the empire's politics, because if the person in charge didn't speak, it would be difficult for other nobles to speak up.

Moreover, if even the Freud family shows no intention of resisting, then other nobles will have to consider whether the gap in reputation, wealth, history, and power between themselves and the other side is enough to resist the royal family.

"What about Sir Rhine...?"

"...There's no good way. We can't take action. The Frost family has already made a mistake. What we need to do is to pry open this crack for them, not to help them cover things up."

The emperor rubbed his head, which was feeling dizzy and aching. The curse was getting worse; he was experiencing dizziness, blurred vision, a throbbing pain in his brain, loss of appetite, vomiting, and occasional spasms and convulsions.

However, it seems that the Freud family has completely stopped acting, or perhaps the curse has truly come to an end. Therefore, the symptoms did not worsen or become more severe, but there was absolutely no sign of improvement either.

Every day, he could feel life steadily slipping away from his body. Who would have thought that this frail old man, who walks with a shaky gait, was not even sixty years old? And at the age of twenty, he was a powerful knight who could reach the [Transcendent Physique III] level and even pursue the [Transcendent IV] level?

If it weren't for his extraordinary physique, he would probably have been a corpse lying in a coffin a few years ago, waiting for ministers to present him with flowers one by one.

“The Frost family has gone astray, and they are now busy patching up the hole. The more they do, the more it will be exposed, and the more gaps we can exploit.”

"So, we're not going to do anything?"

"No, we need to do something, but you're right, outwardly we should do nothing." Everything can only be investigated and done in secret.

"So, what has Freya been up to lately?"

"She's reforming the Imperial Capital Magic Workshop's guild and re-examining the licenses of all tax-farming merchants. She seems to think the current tax-farming system is somewhat...unreasonable."

"It is indeed unreasonable." The emperor nodded. The late emperor had tacitly approved of it because these merchants were indeed something the royal family could use to control the nobility, but that did not mean that the profits they seized were reasonable.

"Then what is she going to do? Send out inspectors? Or have the Royal Chamber of Commerce's accountant audit the accounts? Neither is possible. Besides, we don't have that many... people to collect taxes one by one in the territory. That would cost more than the tax revenue."

The emperor understood those officials far better than Freya did. These tax-farming merchants, no matter how much they exploited them, could at least collect taxes. But if the royal family sent officials to do it, it was hard to say how much they could collect.

Moreover, while these merchants may engage in corrupt practices, they know their limits. In other words, the taxes they need to pay must be earned back through these franchises and monopolies. Therefore, maintaining a certain level of market prosperity is a basic tacit understanding, rather than exploiting the market to the point of exhaustion. However, the officials dispatched to the region may not be so prudent.

This is not because these merchants have higher moral character, but because they know better than anyone that things like royalty and nobility are even more shameless and inhuman than they are. If they were to exploit the people to the point of exhaustion, when they could not pay enough taxes, the royal family and those nobles would really dare to kill them all and seize all their property, and no one would say a word in their defense.

"No, Your Highness, we plan to abolish the tax farming practice and replace it with a monopoly."

"Tell me about it?" The emperor became interested.

"It's basically about breaking down the original tax on goods into several items, and then granting several exclusive sales rights to each item. These goods will no longer be paid into the national treasury, but will be sold locally to these merchants at a fixed price, so that they can realize their value."

"So, you mean selling the tax-generated products locally?"

"Yes, all of these are put together and then sold locally. To obtain this regional exclusive license, the merchant needs to pay a periodic... well, a deposit. If everything goes well, this deposit will be refunded when they transfer the license or exit the business. But if these people run into problems, the deposit will be forfeited and the license will be revoked."

"They agreed?"

"To be precise, it was a partial agreement." Merchants were very enthusiastic about some in-kind taxes that were exclusive to the royal family or could only be used as tribute, but their attitude was ambiguous about other bulk trade goods that were not easy to liquidate.

"So what is she going to do?"

"To sell them together, if you want to operate a business like Rubyshire's ruby ​​production, you have to also sell Rubyshire's timber and wheat."

"So, those people agreed?"

"It's still a stalemate, but in my opinion, they will eventually give in." Because some of these items have such high profit margins, and some are even commodities vital to the nation's survival; those businessmen won't let such an opportunity pass them by.

Even if they are forced to sell those industries that are prone to losing money, and even so, they are not without opportunities and plans to "optimize" or "dispose of" these industries. It's just that businessmen, as everyone knows, will never let go of any opportunity to gain more profit.

"So now you're haggling?" The emperor had never done business, but politics and commerce are largely similar. Haggling is the basis of cooperation. If your partner or enemy doesn't care how unreasonable your offer is and agrees to it without hesitation, then they probably never intended to honor the agreement.

If the other party adopts a confrontational stance, arguing and debating every detail repeatedly, then they are likely genuinely sincere. This is because an agreement that is neither needed nor intended to be fulfilled has no need to get bogged down in these details.

"Yes, they're haggling." "Hiss~ What is Freya thinking?" The emperor wondered if his view of his daughter was a bit one-sided.

"I guess... Your Highness probably just doesn't want to look at complicated ledgers..." After all, things like in-kind taxes, and the affairs of those tax-inclusive merchants, those ledgers are a real headache.

But now it's different—all the messy stuff has been integrated into a kind of data that everyone can see at a glance—actual gold or silver coins, or "gold coins" that only exist on receipts and accounts.

The various expenses of the empire were simply converted into the same "gold coins" based on the current market price, making the accounting much simpler. As for the series of subsequent troubles and problems that arose from this, Freya obviously hadn't considered them, and the old emperor felt that these troubles were insignificant compared to the benefits.

"Then I'm relieved," the old emperor nodded. Was this the appearance of great foolishness as wisdom? Or was it the appearance of great wisdom as foolishness? However, for a future emperor, foolishness or wisdom is not important—a foolish emperor has countless advisors to draw upon his wisdom; while a wise emperor has his own abilities. What truly matters is whether she can make her subordinates see clearly what kind of person she is.

Mystery and the unknown are the foundation of imperial power politics; only when punishments are unknown can authority be immeasurable.

Chapter 206 The Meaning of Contracts

"Is this the tunnel?" At the tunnel exit, a few people were lurking furtively by the roadside. The pitch-black tunnel looked like a gaping maw ready to devour anyone, and the dirty water dripping from above resembled the saliva of a giant beast.

"Yes, this is it." The bandit carrying a short sword looked at the unlucky guy surrounded by several people. "Stop dawdling and go in." This tunnel was used by the local thieves as a place to test the courage of newcomers.

There are no monsters inside the tunnel, and the other end is blocked off, making it perfect for newcomers to practice their courage. Once the newcomers go in, the veterans will follow them from behind with a wicked grin, then wait for an opportunity to ambush them from inside.

"Is there really no danger?"

"Nonsense, why would I bring you here if there's no danger at all?" the old thief scoffed. "Hurry up, this is just the most basic trial. If you want to join the thief's gang, this level is far from enough!" The newcomer cautiously approached the cave entrance. After taking only a few steps, he heard sounds like a monster's panting coming from inside the tunnel, and the thunderous roars gradually grew louder.

"Did the boss put some new toys in there?" the old bandit asked his companion.

"Could it really be occupied by some kind of monster?" Such a thing is possible, but monsters usually don't choose such places as their nests, because these man-made buildings and railways are, after all, creations of civilization, and they would feel very uncomfortable to monsters, which are barbaric creations. They would only live in human ruins and relics if they had no other choice or were attracted by magic.

"Whoosh!!!!" A loud whistle, accompanied by a gust of wind generated by the compressed air from the train, blew out of the tunnel. Two bright lights appeared in the dark tunnel. "Whoosh~~~~" The clanging of the rails continued. "Oh my god!!!!" The rookie thief turned and ran, while his companions outside had already taken cover.

Human legs obviously can't outrun a train, and soon a silver-white unicorn head covered in wear marks appeared before them, with a layer of green gale swirling around the horn.

"Bang!" The sound of a human body colliding with metal was very dull and weak. Amidst the roar of the train engine and the bursting of elemental flames, it was as if a fragile shrub was crushed by the metal wheels. The front of the train, which was already covered with various dirt marks, was instantly stained with a bright red blood. The blood was dried by the wind in an instant, leaving dark red marks that stretched backward on the train body.

The improved train roared past, followed by carriages covered in armor plates, spikes, and thorn-like wires. And the train's direction was…

"Oh no!!!" The old thief's scalp tingled. Their stronghold was built in the middle of the station, or more accurately, an abandoned station village. They used the magical order created by the tracks and the station to fight against the spread of the Black Forest in the wilderness.

The railway tracks ran through the center of the stronghold, and crisscrossing wooden gates blocked both ends of the station. Various materials such as planks and metal plates formed a simple wall. For these thieves, they would not damage the railway tracks, because the railway tracks were also a convenient mode of transportation for them.

They made more use of human-powered mechanical railcars, like those in the Metro series, which are driven by manpower and levers. For the thieves, this allowed them to transport more loot or launch attacks along the railway line more quickly.

"Obstacles ahead!!!" Bone Whistle, who had taken over Lulua's daytime lookout duty, blew the whistle loudly. Roach poked his head out of the cockpit and glanced at the approaching gate of the bandit stronghold, as well as the bandits frantically running around on the "walls," operating makeshift crossbows in preparation for an attack.

"Whoosh!" Roach pulled down a lever, and the whistle emitted scorching steam, indicating an obstacle ahead. "Livia, it's time!" The little witch, her face flushed, placed her hand on a crystal ball. "It's time to witness my sky-piercing drill!!!!"

The unicorn suddenly accelerated its spin, and with the witch's power, the entire front of the vehicle was enveloped in a terrifying armor made of wind and fire elements. The spiraling wind and fire horn, like a knight's lance, was aimed directly at the obstacle in front of it.

"What's all the noise about!" The leader of the thieves threw off the covers and walked to the first floor of the station with an annoyed look on his face, ready to see what was going on outside. Could it be that the self-defense militia had come to attack?

"Whoa!!!" The long, drawn-out whistle startled him. A train? Why was there a train sound?! Inside the carriage, everyone gripped the handles tightly, because this second, even longer whistle meant that Roach was depressurizing the engine; in other words, he was going to use it.

"Snap!" The big red button slammed down, and "whoosh~" white mist spewed out from the gaps in the accelerator. With the help of the witch, the elemental torrent was guided into the accelerator. "Bang!" Like the roar of a cannon or the firing of a projectile, intense flames and smoke shot out backward, and the wheels made a screeching friction sound against the rails.

The gate to the thieves' stronghold was sent flying into the air in an instant, and half of the wall was shattered by the violent impact. The blazing tail that swept through the area turned all the thieves who couldn't dodge in time into charred remains.

The train carriages scraped and carried away the collapsed buildings, leaving the entire stronghold filled with flying wood and metal, as well as unfortunate human bodies that were grazed. The bandit leader decisively lunged into the building, scorching flames sweeping over his head as train carriages rumbled and crushed through the stronghold.

The other gate also failed to withstand the monster, weighing tens of tons and accelerating to a considerable speed (125 km/h), for even a second longer. Moreover, there was the witch-enhanced super drill, which, accelerated to extremely high speeds by the airflow, flung wood chips and debris outwards under centrifugal force, just like a sprinkler truck, frantically creating death and piercing.

"I..." The bandit leader stood up only after the train had completely passed. Looking at the mess of the camp, he reached out and extinguished a clump of hair that was still burning. His face was filled with an indescribable expression. This was a completely undeserved disaster!

Why would a train crash into us? Isn't this railway line abandoned? And it was an armored vehicle with reinforced impact resistance that hit us.

Besides this bandit camp, there are other camps along the railway line. Some are temporary camps set up by adventurers, while others are intermediate camps set up by villagers when they cross the old line to trade in the market town by the Greystone River.

But regardless of the method, the result was that Roach's "sky-high drill" was forced to drill a path through the terrain. However, this violent approach was quickly punished by the terrain. Faced with a river valley extending along the hillside on one side and a railway with a cliff on the other, Roach dared not use this violent path-breaking mode, fearing that he would perform a "Need for Speed" routine around the next corner.

The train's speed was reduced to less than 30 kilometers per hour because the road conditions were very bad. It had to allow enough time for braking warnings. Many sections of the tracks were suspended in mid-air due to collapses below, while others were covered by mudslides. Twisted and deformed tracks and severe corrosion were also common problems.

The train had to brake and slow down every 10 kilometers on average, so that the little witch or Rhine and the others could get off to clear the road and reinforce the tracks. When Livia was conscious, this kind of repair only required slowing down and did not require braking. However, after Livia's weak stamina was quickly exhausted, the train had to brake.

Either we wait for the witch to wake up and rest before reinforcing the rails, or we have to send the dwarves and shadow raven thieves off the train to clear the stones, dirt, and wood from the road and reinforce the roadbed below.

"Screech—" The train stopped again with a piercing screech of brakes. "The cooling box is about to explode. We have to wait for it to cool down." The waste heat of the improved power furnace has increased by several orders of magnitude, and the original cooling box is no longer sufficient, especially without the little witch using fire magic to extract heat and cool it down.

"It seems like the time is about right. We can rest for a while before continuing our journey." Everyone was already quite familiar with resting on the railway line. The lookout skillfully climbed onto the roof of the carriage, which had been converted into a dining car. Fox Girl lit the stove, and soon the smoke from the burning wood came out of the chimney at the rear of the carriage. Scarface and Rhine went to find firewood nearby. Every rest stop required the collection of necessary resources.

Wood for making phlogiston blocks and charcoal, fresh water to replenish water tanks, game to replenish food, some wild seasonings, and alchemical materials necessary for Roch Rune Disk and Magic Furnace.

These tasks mean that each stop, the so-called "rest," is definitely not a group of people lying in the car sleeping. On the contrary, this rest refers to letting the machinery rest, while for people, it means it's time to get back to work.

On the contrary, people can only rest when the vehicle is in motion. After all, the modified carriages and locomotive can ensure that, when the vehicle is in full-speed motion, almost everyone except for necessary sentries can sleep and rest.

Roach and Livia lay on the beds made from chairs, one on each side. Both of them were of weak constitution, and Roach's mental abilities as an Earthling were simply insufficient to maintain the operation of the rune disk for a long time. Therefore, in order to enhance his mental recovery speed, Leslie, under Old Mar's murderous gaze, placed Livia next to Roach, so that the two could be in close contact.