Carlotta's Daily Report
Chapter 61: Armament Magic Path and Sky Island

Chapter 61: Armament Magic Path and Sky Island

"What is the scale of the bandits? Can it be estimated?"

Amelia lifted the carriage curtain and asked the knights outside.

"It’s hard to determine. The number of bandits is not small, and with the many obstacles on the mountain, it’s impossible to see the full picture," replied the subordinate.

Hearing this, Amelia couldn’t help but ponder.

Carlotta then said, "They might not be bandits. In such times, it’s inevitable that some would take advantage of the chaos. Or perhaps, people from the Velmoria Empire are posing as bandits to stir up trouble."

Her words were not without basis. As she spoke, she glanced at a piece of intelligence she had seen upon waking up this morning.

[ 1: Velmoria Empire cavalry squad leader Aalto Willy was ordered to create chaos in the Duchy of Francis. He chose to become a bandit, committing arson and plunder everywhere. Over time, he lived quite comfortably, even attracting other squads with the same mission. Now, seven squads have gathered, becoming a hidden danger in the Duchy of Francis.]

In the Velmoria Empire, one squad consists of 100 people.

This means that the so-called "bandits" number 700 in total, far fewer than the Carnation Knights. But numbers don’t tell the whole story, as the military proficiency of most in the Carnation Knights is questionable, with only 500 being true elites.

But as the elite of the Fenwick family, they are certainly not weaker than the 700 soldiers from the Velmoria Empire.

Actually, when Carlotta first saw this intelligence, she was somewhat surprised because she had never had contact with these Velmoria Empire soldiers. How did she get this information?

Was it because she was destined to be involved in the war, so she would receive war-related information?

Or was she destined to encounter these people, and the intelligence arrived a bit early?

In any case, knowing some intelligence early wasn’t a bad thing for her.

"Miss White, do you think there’s something wrong with these guys’ identities?" Amelia asked.

Carlotta nodded, "Exactly. This is the border between the Empire and the Duchy. Usually, there’s a lot of traffic here, and neither side would allow a group of bandits to exist. This can only mean that the bandits are newly formed, and for newly formed bandits to have such a large number is unreasonable. It suggests there’s something wrong with their identities."

Camella couldn’t help but glance at Carlotta a few more times. She hadn’t expected Carlotta to deduce so much from just a simple exchange. Could this girl be some kind of genius?

She naturally wouldn’t know that Carlotta was deducing the process from the result.

Amelia pondered and said, "So, Miss White, do you think we should confront these ’bandits’?"

Carlotta smiled slightly, "I think it’s fine. The Carnation Knights are more than a match for these guys."

"And the Swan Knights," Camella added.

"Then let’s take action," Amelia decided.

Under her orders, the 3000 members of the Carnation Knights, led by their squad leaders, charged towards the bandits, the knights who had escorted the Sunset Roses to the capital had also returned after completing their mission.

Camella quickly ordered her 100 Swan Knights to join the charge.

For a moment, the mountains and fields were filled with the sounds of battle, the clash of weapons echoing through the heavens.

Carlotta’s hands itched for action. Having been in the carriage for so long, she hadn’t had many opportunities to practice her elven knight path. She pulled the Cross Rose from her necklace and, with a swing of her sword, plunged into the crowd.

"Miss White..."

Amelia instinctively called out, then smiled helplessly and didn’t stop her.

These Velmoria soldiers disguised as bandits were mostly at the first or second apprentice tier, with very few at the third tier. Naturally, Carlotta handled them with ease, moving through the crowd without meeting a worthy opponent.

In no time, all 700 bandits were captured. Of the seven squad leaders, four were killed in battle, and only three were brought before Amelia.

At this moment, Aalto was also in a daze. Disguised as a bandit, he had roamed the Duchy of Francis, committing all the evils he dared not do in the Velmoria Empire, feeling as if he had entered paradise. But he hadn’t expected that falling from paradise to hell could happen in an instant.

He never anticipated encountering such an unstoppable force this time!

"Tell me your true identity," Amelia stood on the carriage, looking down at Aalto with a commanding presence.

Aalto, already scared out of his wits, obediently revealed his origins.

Amelia hadn’t expected Carlotta to be right, these guys were indeed soldiers sent by the Velmoria Empire to stir up trouble.

She didn’t continue the interrogation herself but had the Carnation Knights interrogate all the captives.

With Aalto too scared to hide anything, the rest were even worse. In no time, the identities and actions of these people after infiltrating the Duchy of Francis were all revealed.

Amelia hadn’t expected these guys to have committed many atrocities in the duchy. Their numbers were insufficient to enter large cities, so they targeted weaker towns and villages, oppressing innocent people, their hands stained with blood.

After understanding the situation, Amelia showed no mercy and ordered all of them to be executed on the spot, only collecting the badges that represented them as Velmoria Empire soldiers, which would serve as proof of military merit.

After dealing with this group, the Carnation Knights continued towards Silverleaf Castle.

Carlotta, sitting in the carriage and looking outside, noticed the high morale of the knights. After all, they had just experienced a victory, which undoubtedly had a great boosting effect.

However, in war, no one can guarantee eternal victory. Maintaining morale in the face of adversity is what’s truly valuable.

For the 2500 non-elite members, Carlotta only hoped they wouldn’t drag the team down, having learned about the knights’ nature through intelligence, she had little confidence in them.

The rest of the journey passed without incident. Since Silverleaf Castle was located in the southern part of the duchy, it only took two days for Carlotta and her companions to arrive.

It was a massive city surrounded by lakes on three sides and plains on one. As the capital of the Duchy of Francis, it was extremely prosperous.

The architectural style of Silverleaf Castle is identical to that of the imperial capital, Ovelia. The pointed arch buildings scattered throughout the area exude a fashionable flair.

When Amelia arrived with her knights, it immediately caught the attention of Silverleaf Castle. Soon after, Delphine Francis, the daughter of Duke Francis, personally led a group of knights to meet them outside the fortress.

"We meet again, Amelia."

Delphine was no stranger to Amelia; the two had crossed paths in their childhood.

She was tall, with emerald-green hair tied into a high ponytail. Clad in silver armor, she was full of vigor, resembling a valkyrie.

"Delphine, we are here at the Emperor’s request to support the front lines," Amelia said as she stepped out of the carriage.

"Bring some people with you and follow me into Silverleaf Castle to await my father’s arrangements. The rest can go to the military camp."

"No problem."

Amelia quickly made the arrangements.

The majority of the Carnation and Swan Knights went to the military camp, leaving only about ten people surrounding the carriage, following Delphine into Silverleaf Castle.

Amelia did not return to the carriage but instead rode a white horse, walking side by side with Delphine, discussing matters of the front lines.

Inside the carriage, Carlotta and Camella lifted the curtain to look outside.

"Is this the legendary Emerald Light, Delphine Francis?" Camella’s gaze fell on Delphine’s back, and she couldn’t help but sigh.

"Legendary?" Carlotta looked over curiously; she hadn’t heard anything about this person.

Seeing this, Camella enthusiastically explained: "Delphine became famous early on because her fighting style was always very direct and brutal, full of violent beauty, making it hard to forget after just one glance. Especially during this period of war, she has participated in many battles, promoting her valor to the fullest."

"Is she on the knight’s path? What knight path does she practice?" Carlotta asked.

"No, she’s on the magic path."

"Wait, the magic path?" Carlotta asked, puzzled. "From what you just said, this duke’s daughter should be a close-combat fighter, right? There aren’t many magic paths suitable for close combat."

Camella smiled and said, "You didn’t know? Delphine practices Armament Magic. It’s said to be a magic path from Sky Island. Once, the Sky Island passed over Silverleaf Castle, and Duke Francis ascended it and obtained this magic, which he then taught to Delphine."

This statement contains a lot of information, and Carlotta took a moment to process it.

Sky Island is an island that appears randomly around the world. Its origins are difficult to trace. Some say it’s a relic of the gods, others say it’s the pinnacle of alchemy, and some claim it’s the origin of the transcendent... But there’s no denying that the appearance of Sky Island represents a great opportunity.

"Armament Magic path is very powerful. This path allows one to change their equipment at any time, with different equipment representing different effects. I don’t know how many types of equipment Delphine has mastered, but I know that this silver-white set she’s wearing is famous for its defensive capabilities. She usually maintains a defensive stance."

Camella spoke with great enthusiasm.

She was clearly very interested in this unique magic path.

Carlotta couldn’t help but exclaim, "What a great magic path."

As they spoke, the group followed Delphine into Silverleaf Castle. The streets of the city were quite wide, enough to accommodate large carriages.

As the carriages approached, pedestrians on the street stepped aside to let them pass. Many people couldn’t hide their admiration and respect when their eyes fell on Delphine.

The people of Silverleaf Castle had heard too many legends about this crimson rose. She was the pride of Silverleaf Castle and the pride of the Duchy of Francis.

In no time, they arrived at a castle. Before receiving Duke Francis’s arrangements, this will be their residence in Silverleaf Castle.

Carlotta looked at the castle square with a slightly subtle expression: "There really are an unusual number of carriages here."

A large number of carriages and horses were parked everywhere, almost filling the castle square.

Camella changed around and said, "Besides us, many nobles have come, some of whom are our classmates. For example, Doris O’Connor, who once almost interfered between you and Amelia as a third party..."

"That’s not true," Carlotta quickly interrupted Camella.

"Oh, right, she used the excuse of learning the elven knight path to invite you to the O’Connor Viscount’s residence," Camella continued. "Anyway, after learning about your relationship with Amelia, she should know to keep a certain distance."

Carlotta didn’t know what to say.

Camella then mentioned other people. Although only carriages remained here, the family crests were enough for her to identify the owners of the different carriages.

"That Beatrice, who once challenged Amelia to a duel, is also here," Camella said, looking at a carriage with a more serious expression.

The Morholt family, to which Beatrice belonged, was a count’s family, and her father held real power with a very high status, definitely not someone to be trifled with.

Carlotta certainly remembers the person who had once challenged Amelia to a duel, because it was on that day that Camella had challenged her, and the Cross Rose she had lost to her was still hanging around her neck.

She couldn’t help but touch the Cross Rose.

After introducing a few more people, Camella turned back to look at Carlotta and happened to see her action, her expression immediately darkened.

After a moment of silence, Camella said, "Our relationship has become quite good now. Would you consider returning that Cross Rose to me?"

"Then what would I use?" Carlotta asked in surprise.

"Don’t you still have a rapier? And with your financial resources, you could easily buy many alchemical items, right?"

Camella also knew that Carlotta’s wallet was quite full. She had once inspired some ladies in elven knight path and had made a decent profit.

She pointed this out, which made Carlotta somewhat puzzled.

"Why do you know about this? This isn’t public information, is it?"

"Lady Austin mentioned it at a banquet."

"...Alright."

"In any case, you’re not short on money. Can you return the Cross Rose to me?" Camella said seriously.

"Does this alchemical item have special meaning to you?" Carlotta asked, touching the Cross Rose.

"No."

"Then why are you saying all this?"

Carlotta rolled her eyes and directly got out of the carriage, following the others towards the castle.

Camella quickly chased after her, "But losing an alchemical item to you is really embarrassing."

Carlotta didn’t look back, "You’ll understand in the future that losing to me is also an honor."