abnabooks Chapter 424 Meeting with Akhmatova Einhorn
Chapter 424 Meeting with Akhmatova Einhorn
Chapter 424 Meeting with Akhmatova Einhorn
The ruins of an old warehouse on the banks of the Tasok River outside Backlund.
Dressed in a neat leather jacket and wearing a black soft hat, Maxim walked through the thick layer of fallen leaves on the ruins that resembled a ghostly realm, with the eerie howls of wolves echoing from afar.
This place was originally the largest distribution center for goods in Backlund, storing goods transported from all over the world via the canals.
However, as maritime trade began to flourish, the cost of sea transport became lower and lower, while the cost of inland waterway transport became higher and higher, and the transport volume became increasingly unable to meet the ever-growing transportation demand.
This has led to the area becoming increasingly dilapidated, with most of the warehouses abandoned, turning it into a remote and complex regulatory vacuum where many shady things happen.
As a dignified Iron Knight, Maxim's late-night visit was not for amusement, but because someone had invited him to meet here.
Looking at the dilapidated surroundings, Maxim's doubts remained. He never thought that the other party would meet him here. In his opinion, even if the other party was concerned about their own safety, they should have chosen to meet in the center of Backlund, or at the very least in the city center. Why choose such a remote place?
Doesn't Evan Horn really worry that I have designs on him?
Maxim had reviewed Evan's materials and gained a comprehensive and detailed understanding of him.
In the heart of this "Iron Knight," Evan was an impeccable hunter who had not brought shame upon his bloodline.
But it was precisely because of his deep respect for Evan that Maxim found it hard to imagine that Evan would entrust his life to someone he had never even met, especially someone from the hostile Fusak Empire.
So after receiving the message from Alice that Evan Horn wanted to meet him here, Maxim hesitated about whether to come, because the meeting seemed unusual and could very well be a trap for him.
However, the pressure from Lord Akhmatova Einhorn was increasing day by day. If there was no progress with Robert Horn and no breakthrough could be made with Evan Horn, he wouldn't need to go back.
So after much deliberation, Maxim finally decided to take the risk and come.
Thinking of this, Maxim became increasingly vigilant, ready to be ambushed at any moment.
Just then, a clear laugh came from not far away. Maxim stopped in his tracks, turned around abruptly to look in the direction of the sound, and found that Evan Horn had appeared on the roof of a warehouse less than two hundred meters away from him at some point.
This set off alarm bells in Maxim's mind. He transformed into a ball of blue-white flame, then exploded into more than a dozen balls of fire that shot in all directions. In the end, they reassembled on the roof of a warehouse a kilometer away, reforming into a burly human shape.
Although he didn't understand how Evan Horn managed to infiltrate within 200 meters without him noticing, Maxim, feeling nervous, didn't delve into the matter and instead focused on creating distance first.
Just as Maxim stood still and revealed his figure, before he could even catch his breath, he turned his head and saw a scene that horrified him.
Evan Horn appeared on the rooftop two hundred meters away from him, holding a black soft hat in his hand, the very one he was wearing.
Maxim felt a chill run through his body, and his legs felt like lead; he dared not take another step.
Evan turned the hat in his hand over and over, feeling very surprised. Last time, when he ambushed the War Bishop "Bock Einhorn", in addition to obtaining his extraordinary ability, he also gained the extraordinary ability of a "Witcher".
He had only intended to give Maxim a hard time, but he hadn't expected to gain something unexpected: a sealed artifact crafted from the extraordinary traits of the "Night Watcher" pathway, Sequence 4.
It's obvious that this was a spoil of war from the last war, given to Maxim for his use.
Having such a useful sealing artifact, he hasn't used it on me or Klein even once. I wonder if he's overconfident in himself or confident in Alice's loyalty!
This sealed artifact retains the ability to draw people into dreams. Many people often find it difficult to lie in their dreams, but Maxim never used it on himself or Klein, which Evan found hard to understand.
Although they are both favored by the goddess of night and protected by her, they are not affected by the power of dreams.
This sealed artifact was clearly crafted by a specialist, and its side effects are relatively minor compared to any Level 1 sealed artifact that Evan has ever seen.
Wearing this hat will give you an hour of deep sleep every day, which is equivalent to being unconscious for an hour.
"What's the name of this hat?"
Evan slipped the soft cap onto his finger, twirling it casually as he called out in a familiar tone, like a customer asking a small vendor about the price of a hat.
Maxim watched as his hat spun incessantly between Evan's fingers, his face turning ashen, veins bulging on his hands. He said with absolute certainty, "The Thief's Path? You possess a sealed artifact of the Thief's Path!"
This was the conclusion Maxim reached after calming down.
"Congratulations on answering correctly, but there's no reward; you haven't answered my question yet!"
Ignoring Maxim's unpleasant expression, Evan asked with a grin.
"Everyone underestimated you, Evan Einhorn. You have actually crossed the threshold of demigod."
Maxim gradually calmed himself down, neither answering Evan's question nor asking for anything in return, lest he humiliate himself.
Instead, they changed Evan's surname from "Horn" to "Einhorn" to remind Evan who was backing him and not to forget the cooperation they were discussing.
Evan naturally understood the subtle threat in Maxim's tone, but he didn't care at all. He simply put the hat on his head and looked at Maxim with a smile, saying, "After all, I'm a legitimate member of the Einhorn family. Now that I've embarked on the path of a 'hunter,' I can't very well disgrace my ancestors' bloodline. To be honest, if it weren't for the limitations of potion ingredients, I feel I could advance much faster!"
Evan's words nearly choked Maxim, but he couldn't refute them because he was absolutely certain that the person in front of him was Evan Horn. But precisely because he was certain of this, he was already extremely shocked. A demigod at the age of twenty-three? Apart from the ancient times and those born demigods, were there any demigods this young now? In any case, he had never seen one in the Fusak Empire.
Maxim realized that all his previous assumptions, guesses, and preparations were in vain. If he couldn't handle things properly tonight, this place might be his final resting place.
After a long silence, Maxim stopped mentioning the sealed artifact that could no longer be retrieved and began to talk about serious matters.
"You clearly have a huge advantage but haven't made a move. So, while Alice's information about you is full of errors, it's true that you're not opposed to contacting us. Tell me, what exactly do you want?"
Maxim now realized that Alice's approach and defection were the result of the person in front of him guiding her.
This was the least bad outcome for him, because it at least showed that Evan Horn was indeed willing to establish contact with them and had something to ask of them. His mission had not failed; on the contrary, it had made progress, only the initiative had changed hands.
More importantly, this means that his safety is temporarily guaranteed.
"I need to see Akhmatova Einhorn!"
Evan stated his demands directly and clearly!
"Okay, you just need to come with me to the border, and I guarantee the adults will see you!"
Maxim was taken aback by Evan's offer and was quite confused, which made him extremely irritated.
Evan sneered, looking into Maxim's eyes, and said in a cold tone, "Do you think I'm really stupid? Go to the border to see Him, and wait for His true form to arrive and take me away?"
"So what do you mean? You want to see the adults, and I'm willing to introduce you, but you're worried about all sorts of things. What exactly do you want?!"
"You are a member of the Eternal Night Legion, that is, a member of Akomatova Einhorn. I don't believe you can't let me meet Akomatova Einhorn directly."
Don't forget, I was right there watching Dante Einhorn make his move at Backlund the month before last, I saw it all clearly!
During the Augustus family's joint operation with the Steam and Mechanical Church to expel "Tail Eater" Ouroles and target the Life Council Chairman, Dante Einhorn, through the body of Burk Einhorn who had infiltrated Backlund, remotely disrupted the Augustus family's plans. This fact was already known to almost everyone in the Extraordinary World who held a certain status.
Maxim hadn't expected that Evan would have personally experienced that battle and know the details, so he could only nod helplessly and offer no further explanation.
In fact, the "Sequence 3 War Bishop" was already able to project his consciousness onto his subordinates, but Evan didn't want to reveal his understanding of the "War Bishop," so he used that battle as an excuse.
As for why Maxim didn't mention having Akhmatova Einhorn project his consciousness onto him, it's because this method is extremely harmful to the possessed person; in a sense, it's considered corruption, causing the possessed person to transform both internally and externally into the possessor.
Just as Triss will become more and more like the original witch.
However, Maxim was a decisive person. Knowing that he couldn't avoid it, he immediately began to pray.
"The master of the fog of war, the symbol of weather changes, the totem of storms and lightning, the great Prince Akhmatova Einhorn."
My subordinate has met with Evan Horn and discovered that he has ascended to the status of a demigod. He has also requested to speak with His Highness.
As soon as he finished speaking, Evan, who was not far away, sensed a change in Maxim's demeanor. A thunderclap suddenly appeared in the sky, its sound like a mountain collapsing and echoing across the land. Accompanying the thunder was a sudden gust of wind that howled past, blowing up fallen leaves and raising dust as if a hurricane had passed. Evan squinted at Maxim, who had turned around, without avoiding the scrutiny of that unfamiliar gaze.
After a moment of silence, Evan finally spoke, "Greetings, Your Highness Akhovatoma. Thank you for coming to see me!"
Regardless, the other party is also an angel, and Evan should still show some respect.
Ahomatowa Einhorn looked Maxim up and down, and said with a smile, "Indeed, a young talent of my Einhorn family. To become a demigod at such a young age, his future is limitless."
I'm just a little curious: where does your "Iron Knight" potion come from? Could you perhaps answer that for me?
Although Ahomatowa Einhorn spoke in a gentle tone, Evan sensed an undeniable firmness in his voice. Clearly, if Evan couldn't explain the problem, He wouldn't hesitate to turn hostile.
Evan felt a chill run down his spine and couldn't help but think to himself, "That old fox is really sharp!"
As mentioned before, the Hunter pathway demigods are updated too frequently, and their practicality in war is too great, so various forces are collecting related extraordinary traits.
So much so that over time, it became almost common knowledge who possessed how many hunters' extraordinary characteristics or sealed artifacts were "hunters'" demigods.
So the question is, where did Evan's extraordinary qualities as a "Steel Knight" come from? Did they come from the Augustus family?
Although it wasn't impossible, the first thing Ahomatova Einhorn thought of was Bock Einhorn, who was trapped in the Kingdom of Loen.
Evan wasn't afraid of Ahomatova Einhorn turning against him, after all, he wasn't like Dante Einhorn, a Sequence 1 conqueror, and Maxim, who was possessed by the sleeve, wasn't like Burke Einhorn, a Sequence 3 war bishop, so he absolutely couldn't unleash the power of an angel at this moment.
Since He cannot unleash the power of an angel, then Evan is absolutely not afraid of Him!
However, Evan's purpose in meeting Him directly this time was not to fight, so he couldn't afford to break off relations.
Fortunately, Evan hadn't intended to hide anything from Ahomatova Einhorn before meeting him, and he had anticipated the questions asked. So he smiled slightly and calmly replied, "Of course, it comes from the extraordinary characteristics of your kin, Bock Einhorn. Where else could it come from?"
"So, does the Augustus family know that you've inherited Burke Einhorn's estate?"
Akhmatova Einhorn then asked a question that went straight to the heart of the matter.
The Fusak Empire was once willing to follow the old tradition and return the extraordinary characteristics of the War Bishop with a "Mad Mage" extraordinary characteristic.
However, the Augustus family did not follow their usual practice of exchanging weapons, nor did they ever admit to killing Burke Einhorn.
The Fussac Empire also believes that a third party killed Bock Einhorn.
If the Augustus family was unaware that Burke Einhorn's extraordinary abilities were in Evan's possession, it would mean that Evan and the Augustus family were not truly on the same page.