Chapter Five Arrival at Headington

  "We have arrived, prepare to dock!"

  At Dreya's command, the sailors sprang into action, and the Qingyun lowered its sails, slowly entering the dilapidated dock.

  According to Reid's coordinates, Raymond and his party arrived smoothly at a town called Haidington.

  From the ship, it's a small coastal town with houses of varying heights leaning against a slope and extending outwards. A low wall surrounds the entire town. There are hardly any tall buildings in the town, most houses have white exterior walls, red or black roofs, and under the warm sunlight in the afternoon, they look quite peaceful.

  However, upon closer inspection, the entire town seems to lack vitality. Many houses have a sense of long-term neglect and dilapidation. Just like the dock they are entering now, it is old and almost completely abandoned, with only a few wooden pillars standing alone in the sea, and no large merchant ships can be seen on the dock, only a dozen or so old fishing boats gently rising and falling with the waves.

  However, at this time, there were not a few people standing on the beach. In addition to some residents who came from nearby after seeing the Qingyun enter the port, there were more than a dozen men wearing simple leather armor and long swords hanging from their waists, who should be the town's guard team. Looking at these people with surprised expressions mixed with some tension, it can be seen that outsiders have not come for a long time.

  Entering the port, dropping anchor, boarding the ship's plank, Dreya commanded the sailors to complete a series of actions with ease. Afterwards, Raymond and others finally set foot on the land of the Veronica Continent.

  As they stepped onto the beach, the onlookers hastily retreated, clearing a semicircle. The guards then rested their hands on the hilts of their swords, their faces watchful.

  However, apart from their outdated equipment, it was clear that they hadn't received much training judging by their movements, and naturally, Raymond wouldn't take them seriously.

  Exchanging a glance with Freddy, Raymond spoke up loudly: "Who's the mayor around here? I have a letter to deliver to him."

  The onlookers glanced at each other, but no one spoke. After a moment, the crowd in front of Raymond and his companions parted to either side, and a man walked out.

  Unexpectedly, the person who came was a woman. She was about 25 or 26 years old, quite tall and had a great figure. Her face was slightly wide, not particularly beautiful, but this made her features look very dignified. The two thick red lips, paired with a sensual beauty mole under the right eye, gave off an extremely seductive mature charm.

  At this moment, she had a similar wariness and suspicion in her eyes as the surrounding residents. Apparently, she was not very welcoming to Raymond's arrival either.

  "I am Charlotte, the mayor of Haidington. Who are you? Where did you come from?" The woman spoke up at this time. Her voice was very pleasant, but her tone wasn't so friendly.

  It was unexpected that the mayor of Haidington was such a beautiful woman, and everyone couldn't help but be shocked. Even Freddie, who was always calm and collected, showed a slight change in expression.

  Seeing everyone's silence, Charlotte slightly furrowed her brow: "Didn't you hear what I said?"

  "Women are women after all," said Raymond, taking out Reed's letter and handing it over, saying: "My name is Raymond. Reed introduced us to come here."

  "Mr. Reed?" At the mention of Reed's name, Charlotte's face lit up with joy at once.

  At the same time, the residents behind her also buzzed and started talking to each other in a low voice.

  Charlotte hastily read through the letter and still seemed somewhat incredulous: "You... are really sent by Mr. Reed?"

  "Get it straight, we're not his underlings," Freddy said coldly.

  Charlotte was taken aback: "What's going on here?"

  "Simply put, he seemed unable to come here for some reason, and since we were planning on coming to the Veronica Continent anyway, he suggested we come to Haidenton instead."

  Charlotte felt a great disappointment. After hesitating for a moment, she gritted her teeth: "Since you are not representatives of Mr. Reed, I'm sorry, but we cannot receive you here, please go back."

  "What?" Unexpectedly, she actually chased people away, and Raymond and others looked at each other in dismay.

  "What's strange?" Ricky asked.

  Charlotte shook her head: "I'm grateful for your arrival, but our problem isn't something ordinary people can solve. Since Mr. Reed can't lend a hand, please leave."

  "Are you worried that we can't get Haidington out of trouble?" Luz said at this time.

  Charlotte seemed to have only just noticed the tall beastman, but she was only slightly surprised and didn't react much. Apparently, as Riketto said, on the continent of Veronica, there wasn't such deep-seated hatred between humans and beastmen like in Mochida.

  "Charlotte said in a low voice: 'I understand that you want to use our town as a trading post, and in the past, we would have welcomed it very much. But now, your presence not only can't help us, but also will drag you into trouble. So, please leave.'"

  "It's not just a simple business issue."

  Her words reminded Raymond of Reed's parting advice, and his heart skipped a beat. This place is indeed strange, it seems that guy isn't a big good person either, and he seems to have pushed a huge trouble onto me.

  Just as he was about to ask, a voice suddenly came from the boat: "Meow, young master, how much longer do we have to wait? I'm going to pass out."

  In the midst of conversation, a white figure descended from the sky, but it was Bastet who had been waiting impatiently for a long time.

  She landed on the sandy beach, her feet sinking into the sand. She stood still for a moment, her whole body trembling slightly as if electrified, and an extremely moved expression appeared on her face.

  "Finally... finally, I'm back on solid ground again!"

  "Hey, you..."

  Right behind, with a hubbub of noise, a group of people surged out from the side of the Chongyun ship, and it was those robbers. Although ordered to stay on the boat waiting for instructions, these unruly guys would not listen so obediently.

  "Damn it, finally see land, brothers, hurry up and get ashore."

  Harold let out a loud shout, and the thieves all shouted in unison, rushing to run towards the sandy beach. The deck was too crowded, and some impatient guys even jumped directly into the sea, splashing around like dumplings being dropped into boiling water.

  Unexpectedly, a large number of people suddenly emerged, and the residents of Haitun Island stared in shock at a group of fierce-looking men rushing onto the beach, completely unsure how to react. The guards were even more tense, with sweat dripping from their faces.

  "These idiots!" Freddy muttered in a low voice, furious.

  "Haha, finally ashore! These days almost made me puke to death." At this time, Harlot, who was splashed with seawater all over his body, swaggered over.

  "What's wrong with you guys? Why are you still standing here, hurry up and go into the city... damn, what a beautiful chick!" Suddenly, he saw Charlotte, and his eyes widened in shock, freezing on the spot.

  "Who are these people?" Charlotte exclaimed in surprise.

  It's come to this, and it's too late to send them back now. Raymond could only say: "They are members of the merchant group... uh... and some bodyguards."

  This explanation is really rubbish. These ugly-looking guys with evil faces, no matter how you look at them, don't seem like good citizens. Who would believe they are doing business?

  But Charlotte's reaction was unexpected, she actually showed a hint of joy: "You mean, these people are your caravan's mercenaries?"

  "Hmm? I suppose..."

  Charlotte hesitated for a moment, turned around and walked back to the crowd, and began to discuss with several middle-aged men. They kept saying something in a low voice, seemingly arguing about something, it could be seen that those people did not agree, but Charlotte's opinion was obviously contrary to theirs.

  After a moment, Charlotte seemed to have finally persuaded the men. She walked back over to Raymond and said, "Please forgive my rudeness earlier. Since you've all come this far, let's head into town first."

  Although it is unknown why her attitude suddenly changed, no one was forced back on board, and everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.

  "Right," said Raymond, "you were just talking about Haidington..."

  "This isn't a place for talking," Charlotte said, making a beckoning gesture.

  Raymond nodded slightly, and a group of people followed Charlotte's lead into the town.

  Although being accepted by the other party is a good omen, when passing through those residents, the doubts and unease in their eyes have always been lingering in Raymond's mind.

  What's wrong with this place?

  After entering Haydenville, everything he saw along the way reminded Raymond that this town was slowly declining.

  Most of the shops along the street were closed, and even those that were open only sold some food, vegetables and fruits, or local seafood, with few stores selling other goods, let alone magical items or luxury goods that represent a prosperous town.

  Actually, all along the way, there were not a few residents in this town, but most of them looked listless and wore simple clothes. The men stood guard with vigilant expressions, leaning against the doors, while the women and children peeked out from under the windows to gaze at these uninvited guests.

  Clearly, the decline of trade left many residents unemployed and with no one working, which further exacerbated the town's economic downturn, leading to its overall decline. For a town like Haydington that relied heavily on trade, this was a devastating blow.

  However, the geographical location of this town is quite good. It is adjacent to the sea and has a very good natural harbor. Although there is no dock, the "Cangyun" can still easily reach the shore without fear of running aground. In addition, since there are no mountains outside the town to obstruct it, it can be said that both the sea route and the land route have great development opportunities, so how did it end up like this?

  Although Raymond was puzzled in his heart, Charlotte didn't say a word, so he couldn't ask. He could only wait until they settled down and then slowly find out.

  At this time, the crowd walked to the central square of the town. It can be seen that this was originally a very prosperous and bustling area, but now it is also deserted, with only the tall statue in the center remaining.

  "Huh, who's that?" Bast asked curiously, pointing at the statue.

  The statue depicted a tall, muscular man with his lower body in a half-crouch and his waist slightly bent. His hands were half-open and half-closed, as if he was about to make a wrestling move. It was no wonder that Bast felt strange seeing such a statue standing in the middle of the town square.

  "That's my great-grandfather, Billy," Charlotte explained. "He founded this town."

  "Haidington was originally just a small fishing village. In my great-grandfather's time, he united the nearby villages and fishing villages to establish this town together. It was originally called Hailington, and later changed its name to Haidington."

  A middle-aged man behind Charlotte spoke up, "Sir Billy was an unbeatable wrestler. He defeated the savage tribes that originally inhabited this place, allowing the town to be established smoothly. In order to commemorate his achievements, we erected this statue."

  This man was called Morini; he was a person of some standing in the town, and had been the first to nod approval at Charlotte's reception of Raymond.

  The dark passage was originally like this, and Raymond and others nodded one after another. For some reason, they suddenly felt a sense of reverence for the statue.

  Taking advantage of the relaxed atmosphere, Rickett asked in a timely manner: "By the way, where are you taking us?"

  Morin said: "On the east side of the city, there is a former inn that was originally built to accommodate merchant teams from all over the world. Although it has been vacant for a long time, there is enough space to arrange all of you."

  "When we get there, I want you all to rest properly first. We'll discuss other matters later." Charlotte said.

  Having traveled from Mojina for a long distance, after so many days of tossing on the waves, everyone is extremely tired. What they want most now is hot food and a soft, stable bed.

  So when they heard this, all the people cheered.

  They soon arrived at the building Morini had mentioned. It was a complex of many houses, with the main building being a three-story Western-style house. Although it was very old and worn out, its former grandeur could still be seen.

  According to Morini, this group of buildings was used to receive merchant teams when Haidington was still in its heyday. Those rows of low houses were the living quarters for ordinary members of the merchant team, while the three-story building was a special inn for the leaders of large merchant teams. It is said that it cost a lot of money to build at the beginning and was built very beautifully.

  And for the convenience of merchant teams, warehouses and livestock sheds for feeding horses are also complete. From here, it can be seen that Haidington relies on commerce.

  However, that was already an old story. When Raymond and his group entered, what presented before their eyes was a house very similar to a haunted house. The ground was filled with dust, the ceiling had spider webs hanging from it, and in order not to get dusty, all the furniture were covered with white cloth. Occasionally, several mice could be seen scurrying across the floor.

  At this time, the group of thieves who were taken to ordinary houses also kept complaining, and it seemed that the situation on that side was not optimistic either.

  "Master, are we really going to live here?" Bastet lamented.

  "Looked at her and said: 'If you don't want to, go sleep on the Cangyun.'"

  The cat girl stuck out her tongue and didn't dare say anything more.

  "Sorry, it's been abandoned for too long, so... But if we just clean it up a bit, the conditions are still pretty good."

  "You're worrying too much, we won't mind these things." Rudes said in a low voice.

  This is indeed true, and even if the conditions are worse, it's still much better than the northern wilderness. Of course, this is in comparison to those few guys who came from the Beastman Empire.