Chapter Ten: Calamity

  After reading the book review, a friend said that the name should not be changed back and forth, I think it makes sense, from now on I will use 'Raphael'.

  His confidence shaken, Raphael walked with his head hung low in the direction of the hotel, at this time he didn't want to talk to anyone, just concentrated on thinking about something.

  Raphael was so absorbed that he did not notice a carriage coming towards him, fortunately, Michelangelo shouted from behind to remind Raphael, and the driver of the carriage also turned in time to avoid an accident.

  "Sorry," Raphael said with an apologetic expression.

  But little did he know, the carter didn't even bother with him and drove the carriage further and further away.

  "Raphael, what's on your mind?" Mosuke hurried over and patted Raphael on the shoulder.

  "Nothing," Raphael said listlessly.

  Raphael noticed that Lafi was in a bad mood, so he didn't ask any further questions. The three of them walked silently forward until they reached the hotel entrance. Raphael suddenly stopped and said in a low voice: "That's not right!!"

  "What's wrong?"

  "That carriage..."

  "What's wrong with that horse carriage?"

  Raphael furrowed his brow, although being a detective was only a sideline to make a living in the past, he had gotten used to finding all the abnormal clues, just now because he was too into it, so he didn't notice, until now he reacted.

  In general, when a carter sees someone rushing towards the cart, he will at least shout out to alert them, which is less effort than steering the horse cart to one side. After apologizing, the carter didn't respond at all, it's normal to scold a few words, but acting as if nothing happened is not right, could it be that the other party knows him?

  "Ma Xinkuo, do you think Miss Kaili will be on that horse carriage?" Raphael said slowly, he wasn't sure of his own inference, otherwise he wouldn't have used a question.

  "That carriage? No way, didn't Miss Ke Li leave a long time ago?"

  "It's hard to say." Raphael paused: "If Miss Keli and her group pretend to be smart, think of leading the pursuers away first, and then leave the town... they will be unlucky. Those knights look well-trained and are not easy to deceive."

  Moxinke was taken aback, looking at Raphael, while Raphael was also looking at Moxinke. The two people's lines of sight collided, but they each avoided the other. They both thought of a question: should they go after that horse carriage?

  "Let's go, we're heading back." Raphael made up his mind.

  "Whatever... fine." Mosike's response was somewhat forced, not that his moral quality was lower than Raphael's, but he was born in this world and grew up in it, and the bloody facts he had been exposed to told him that being a good person and doing good deeds usually didn't last long! While Raphael was a modern man, although he had heard people describe the chaos of the outside world, hearing was not the same as seeing, his understanding of reality was far inferior to Mosike's.

  Unfortunately, the two of them were destined not to become good people. When they rushed back to their original place, the carriage had already disappeared and could not be found even when they chased it all the way out of town.

  "What should we do?" Mo Xinkai asked.

  "What else can we do, let's go back." Raphael shrugged his shoulders, things had come to this point, he was also helpless. If Miss Keli was really in the carriage, after leaving the town, she would definitely be eager to escape, heaven knows how far they have run now.

  It was as if to verify Raphael's conjecture intentionally, the three people returned to the hotel and chatted for a while. A sudden horseshoe sound broke the tranquility of the town. Raphael hurried to the window and looked out, just seeing those knights jumping off their war horses, dispersing to intercept pedestrians and ask questions.

  During this time, the people or vehicles leaving the town were very limited. More than one person saw that carriage, and those knights were generous. After a moment, the knights found their own answers and jumped on their war horses to chase them out of town.

  "It's all over..." Raphael let out a soft sigh. He had told Mosenko that violence couldn't solve everything, and the same went for brains - no matter how intelligent he was, he was powerless against this kind of situation. The changes were happening too fast, and unless he had the power to hold back all those knights, there was nothing he could do. He had thought about helping Kiri before, but that was before the crisis broke out... now it was too late.

  "Shall I... go outside and take a look?" Mo Xinkai said slowly.

  "It's useless." Raphael shook his head, picked up the bread on the table that he had prepared for himself as a reserve, and then lazily lay down on the bed. After absorbing the energy of food for a long time, he developed a habit of wanting to eat when he was in a bad mood, and also wanting to eat when he was in a good mood, just like an alcoholic or a nicotine addict.

  "Well then stay here, Stillberg, we'll go out for a stroll." Mosig said and pushed open the door to walk out.

  "Alas... Young Master is definitely heartbroken now." Once outside, Stillberg no longer concealed his emotions and revealed a face full of worry.

  "What did you say?" Mo Xinke asked in surprise.

  "Can't you see? The young master likes Miss Gui very much."

  "Really?" Mosuke's eyes widened. He had teased Raphael about this topic before, but that was just a joke.

  "Why would I cheat you?!"

  "Raphael..." Mosenko paused for a moment: "If this matter passes like this, it will only be beneficial to Raphael and not harmful."

  "What do you mean?!" Stillberg shouted.

  "Hehe... don't be angry." Moxi Ke chuckled, although Stillberg was not very capable and had a low status, he had never looked down on Stillberg: "Think about it yourself, Raphael and Miss Keli... is it possible?"

  Stillberg was stunned for a long time and shook his head dejectedly: "But... but Young Master will be unhappy!"

  "It's better to be unhappy than to suffer for a lifetime." Mo Xin said carelessly, and then added a sentence that Raphael used to say to Stillberg: "You're still young, so there are some things you don't understand."

  Stilberg curled his lip, everyone had gotten familiar with each other over the past few days. Don't be fooled by Mo Xingke's tall and sturdy build, as well as his rugged beard - in reality, he was only 21 years old, merely four years older than him. If Mo Xingke wasn't a high-ranking swordsman, he would have definitely jumped up to retort.

  Raphael had devoured several pieces of bread in a row, and his entire body became motionless, with even the rise and fall of his chest slowing down and becoming lighter. Cultivation was not just about absorbing energy; the skill of cultivating and nourishing one's vital energy could not be neglected either.

  It was unclear how much time had passed when a sudden, urgent footstep roused Raphael from his reverie. As soon as he opened his eyes, the door had already been pushed open and Moskowitz walked in with a smile, followed by Stilberg with a joyful expression on his face.

  "Haha... Rafael, don't pretend to be a prophet in front of me from now on!" Mosike laughed.

  "What?" La Fei suddenly sat up.

  "Those knights are back." Mo Xing pointed at the window: "Don't believe me? Take a look yourself."

  Raphael walked back to the window and looked out again. Indeed, he saw the figures of several knights, but their number had decreased significantly, only four remained.

  "Did they come back empty-handed?" Rafael was astonished.

  "Young master, they brought back the horse carriage, but there's no one inside."

  "How about the driver?"

  "How do we know?" Mo Xing asked back.

  "What about the other knights?"

  "I don't know either..."

  "It seems I underestimated Miss Ke Li or someone has been guiding her, otherwise..."

  "Hah! My prophetic lord, you're at it again with your astrology?" Moshiko shook his head and sneered, "No matter what you say now, I won't believe it."

  "Whatever." Raphael also didn't bother arguing: "Let's drop it, whatever happens to Miss Gui in the future has nothing to do with us anymore."

  "It's just unbelievable..." Mo Xinkai was still shaking his head. This guy who liked to be contrarian had already expressed his dissenting opinion before even listening to the whole story.

  It turned out that Ma Xinke's attainments in astrology far exceeded Raphael's. Nearly at noon, hundreds of sudden knights rushed into the town, driving all the townspeople to the central square, and even the few technical women in the town were dragged out while they were sleeping.

  Raphael and Mosuke were no exception, but the knights who drove them away were originally very arrogant. However, after recognizing Mosuke's identity, their attitude became much more gentle, and it was clear that they did not want to cause any unnecessary bloodshed either.

  It's not just that the number of knights has increased by twenty or thirty times, but also the commander has changed. The leader who wore a red robe in the early morning was also there, and he stood with several officers who looked like they were of similar status at the lower head. On the steps was a young man wearing a white robe.

  The young man's appearance and figure were not outstanding, but the white robe on his body was very eye-catching, especially with many golden streamers embroidered on it, shining brightly in the direct sunlight. Moreover, the young man seemed extremely excited, pacing back and forth, sometimes shouting loudly, and constantly gesturing with his hands and feet. The air of panic and defeat he showed was somewhat at odds with the dignity and nobility symbolized by the white robe.

  The town mayor, Mahana, appeared and mustered up the courage to approach him and say a few words, but just as he opened his mouth, the young man slapped him hard in the face. The two knights then escorted Mahana down the steps and unceremoniously threw him into the crowd.