Chapter 12 Chapter 12 Escape

Borric pointed forward. "What's that?" Guda asked. The caravan was on the main road from Frzefa to Kesh, passing through miles of fields.The road seems endless, at least until now. North of the road, three men on horseback try to catch a running man.The odd-looking guy was wearing a plain yellow knee-length gown.His head was shaved like a monk's, but Borric had never seen his peers dressed like this in the kingdom.He was very happy, and Borric had never seen a monk so rowdy.Every time the horsemen tried to grab his robes, he would dodge, sometimes under the horse's neck, yelling and laughing.

It's hard to believe that he was carrying a wooden stick and a sack over his shoulder to dodge, laughing and chirping at the three riders.Borric and Goodall laughed at the antics, and one rider looked angrier as he turned his horse's head around the noise. The man drew a pagan-style club and rushed at the dancing monk, trying to knock him down, but the monk dodged the blow and rolled on the ground before the man could turn his horse's head, The monk had stood up and continued dancing.He turned his back on the three riders, disturbing them with such contempt. "Who are they?" Borric asked, laughing.

Guda said, "That dirty guy looks like an Isalani from the clothes he wears. They are a people from the shing lai, south of the Kash ring. A bunch of weirdos." "The other three plainsmen are from the ashunta. You can tell that by the tufts of their hair and the staffs they use to smash the Isalani." Borric then noted All three had their hair tied up, no matter how incongruously dressed they were; one wore buckskin shorts, no shirt, and a leather vest, the other a leather armor, and the third's interest Cavalry boots, a dressy shirt, and a top hat with a feather.Everyone has a ponytail tied at the back of the head and hangs down to the back of the waist, and there are braids on each side of the ears.

"What do you think about them?" Guda shrugged his shoulders, "There are Isalani people present, who can tell? They are mystics - seers, shamans, prophets and illusionists, and they are also the largest A gang of thieves and crooks. He probably swindled those three." With a growl of frustration, one drew his sword, determined to kill the Isalani.Borric jumped out of the wagon as the caravan began to climb at the foot of Lightcone Mountain.Caravan Leader Janos Sabo yelled, "Crazy man, get back in your car! Mind your own business." Borric waved his hand vaguely, and quickly ran towards the chase, shouting, "What's going on here?"

The walking eccentric didn't stop his dodging, but a man on horseback - the one in the top hat - turned and shouted, "Keep out of it, stranger." "I know you're losing your temper, my friend, but it seems a little too much to strike a defenseless man with a sword." The rider ignored Borric and charged at the Isalani.Another knight made the same attack, and the Isalani immediately ran among them.The first person turned and found that he had no time to change his wrong direction.After the Isalani danced away, the two horses collided, and according to the wishes of the mounts, one horse thought it was a good opportunity to bite the other horse, while the other horse also felt that it was time to kick the opponent As a result, the second rider was thrown from his horse.Sworn, the first rider waved to the third man, so that such an accident would not happen again.Then he turned around, and suddenly saw the Isalani's crutch coming at him, and he too fell to the ground.

The third rider—the one in the leather vest—hadn't stopped, jogging toward his goal, ready to turn at the last moment.He dodged the Isalani sticks in his saddle.The rider avoided leaning to the left, where the Isalani was standing, but suddenly felt a powerful force coming from his right.Borric pushed him off the saddle, half pushed and half thrown, and led him to the other two companions. "It was a mistake," said the first rider, holding his sword in poise.Judging from his expression, he wanted his opponent's blood to splash on the spot. "Okay." Borric was also ready for battle, and the other two riders turned their attention to the mercenary. "This is not the first mistake I've made," he breathed, "but I hope it wasn't mine. One last mistake."

The first rider charged forward, trying to catch Borric off guard.Borric's nimble dodge prevented the man from stopping his feet and rushed over, slashing at the back of the man's thigh - there was no protection from his leather armor.Although this injury is not disabled, it will make it lose combat effectiveness. The second and third riders realized that they faced a highly skilled opponent.They parted, the one in the top hat turned to the right, the one in the leather vest turned to the left, so that Borric had to be distracted in both directions.Borric began to say to himself, a habit Elland had teased when he was a child, "If their brains had the weight of a pound of pepper, the idiot on my right would feint when the one on my left thrusts a sword."

Suddenly Borric struck. He drew his long dagger for parrying and jumped to the left, but moved backward abnormally, approaching another opponent.The man was about to seize the exposed opening behind Borric.But when he waited to deliver a blow, Borric turned and parried the blow with his longdagger, followed by a counter-thrust that battered the man's stomach and his dainty shirt and boots. The rider fell backwards, screaming continuously.Borric turned to find his only remaining opponent cautiously closing the distance.Borric complained. "Damn it. This man's an old hand." Hoping the man in the leather vest would make the same mistake as his two companions, he charged forward.

The rider approached the prince cautiously, as he told himself, this time he was facing an experienced warrior.Both of them circle around each other centered on each other, not wasting any energy on the things around them.Then Borric noticed the opponent's footwork.Softly, he said to himself, "One step, one swipe, one step, one swipe, and another step. Come on, good man, do it again. One step, one swipe, one step, one swipe, and another step." Borric grinned , and when the man changed steps again, he launched an attack.This slightly turning body was just the defensive space Borric needed.The violent slash of the sword and thrust of the dagger forced the man back.

The rider then countered and took Borric's charge, and Borric found himself pushed back.Cursing the fact that he was holding a longsword instead of a slender sword, Borric tried to parry and regroup the attack.Breathing evenly, he whispered, "The bastard did a good job." In less than five minutes, the two fought evenly, every thrust was replaced by a counterattack, and every block was accompanied by a counterattack. Borric felt that he had fought several times. Hour.The two were sweating profusely and struggled under the scorching sun.Borric tried every combo he'd ever learned, only to find his opponent as challenging as he was.

Then both of them stood still, desperately trying to adjust their breathing, the only sounds that could be heard were the buzzing of grassflies and the rustling of the wind blowing through the grass, the fighting stopped for a while.Borric gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, fatigue starting to overwhelm him.Fighting has become more dangerous now. Above combat skills, both of them are exhausted, and exhaustion can cause fatal mistakes.Trying to end the battle, Borric stepped forward with a decapitation, followed by a sudden downward cut to the opponent's thigh.But even with the advantage of not needing to block with a dagger and shielding his left side with a sword, he still didn't get the fight over. The advantages of one retreat and one advance changed hands, first Borric, then the plainsman, but both of them successfully took over the opponent's moves.Sweat was dripping from the Plainsman's chest, and Borric's side was also sweating, and the fingers on the hilt of the sword were flicking. Neither of them had the confidence to win.Breathing turned into panting, the only thing that remained the same was the still cruel sunshine.Stepping dust clogged the nostrils and breathed in the throat, but still no one could end the battle.Borric had tried every trick he had learned from childhood, nearly wounding opponents countless times.But also almost injured countless times.On several occasions, he barely escaped the bad luck of being injured.So Borric finally calmly admitted that it was beyond his abilities; he faced one of the best swordsmen he had ever seen so far, maybe his talent was not as good as his own, but his experience made up for everything. After fighting for a while, the two began to rest, squatting on the ground looking at each other, panting like cows, and their bodies were shaking from fatigue and tension.Both parties are aware of the principle that whoever makes a mistake first dies first.Borric was busy slowing his breath, trying to muster the last of his strength.He stared at his opponent, knowing that he was doing the same.No one wasted breathing time talking, both waiting for the strength to come back and fight again.After a loud inhalation, the plain man turned over and stood up, roaring furiously, arousing his fighting spirit to charge.Borric took a stride, parrying his opponent's blow with sword and dagger, before bringing up his knee and slamming it into his opponent's stomach.Taking advantage of the interruption of the Plainsman's breathing, Borric kicked his opponent, and the Plainsman dropped his sword and fell backwards.A slash, Borric's sword slashed into the dirt, and his opponent rolled out to escape.The prince felt something behind his ankle and lost his balance. Borric got too close to his opponent and was hooked by his foot.Now it was Borric who fell and rolled for his life, desperately looking for a chance to get up again.Rolling over, Borric dropped to one knee and found the point of the sword pointed at his face.Fortunately, another sword intervened in time and sent the sword flying. Looking up, through the blinding sunlight Borric saw Goodall standing between himself and the Plainsmen, holding his sword and a half. "If you two have had enough? . . . " he said. The rider glanced up, and it seemed that he had no intention of fighting.Obviously, if he wanted to continue, he would face another new opponent, and from the appearance of Guda and the size of the sword in his hand, this person was very destructive.Borric raised his hand and shook it a few times in a show of weakness.The rider stepped back and shook his head. "Enough," he said in a husky voice. Su Li got out from behind the big warrior and handed Borric a water bag. Gooda told the rider, "Two of your companions need help. One of them may die. Better take him to a doctor." "And you," he said, turning to Borric, "you'd be better off checking out the road than messing around with these bored children." Borric saw that the rider had turned his attention back to his companion.The man with the leg injury is helped to stand up, and the two then examine the other man's injury together. "Where's that jumpy fool?" Borric asked, taking another sip of water. "I don't know." Gu Da said confusedly, "I lost track of him when I inserted myself between you two wizards." "Well, he didn't disappear," Borric said. "By the gods of truth, madman, I don't know. And don't care. Janos Sabo won't be happy to see you fleeing like this.What if this conflict was a diversion from an ambush over the hill?It's going to be a nasty reversal, that's the reality. " Removing his sword, Guda motioned for the young swordsman to stretch out his arms, helped Borric to his feet, and then punched him on the head, sending the young man falling back to the ground. Shaking his buzzing head, Borric said, "What are you doing?" Guda shook his fist, "Because of your folly! Damn it, buddy, this will teach you how to be a responsible guard and how to do your job! This may be an ambush, isn't it?" Borric nodded. "Yes, I think it's possible." Borric ignored Guda's outstretched hand and stood up by himself, while Su Li hid aside.When they hit the avenue, Borrick said, "I just hope people stop thinking that hitting me is the best way to teach me something." Gooda ignored Borric's words, "You've spent too long on the rapier, madman." "Huh?" asked the exhausted prince, "what do you mean?" "You've been trying to stab that fool, it's kind of a test to do that with a longsword. It's damn useless, unless you get the edge on the spot, all you'll do to an armored opponent is enrage He. If you ask me, you missed half a dozen chances to chop off his head. If you want to live longer, you'd better learn how to use your blade, as good as a krondor's forked pig like people." Borric smiled.The rapier wouldn't have become a universal weapon without his father, an excellent swordsman, becoming a prince.This fad is notably unacceptable among the crowd south of Dream Valley. "Thank you, I will practice more." "Just don't pick an opponent who wants to fight you to practice sword next time." Looking at the caravan passing away at the end of the road, he added, "Now they are starting to go down the mountain, and it will take us a long time to catch up with them Time. Let's start catching up." "Farewell." Borric replied from the bottom of his heart.He was getting used to Kesh's scorching afternoon sun, but he still couldn't walk in the scorching sun like the natives.He also drank a lot of water and juice like Gu Da and Su Li, but he still found himself losing energy rapidly.Borric wondered how much he had to suffer after the Chapu desert ambush. Climbing up the hill, they saw Jaros Sabo's caravan is advancing steadily on the road.Sitting with his feet dangling in the last wagon was the Isalani, eating an orange.Gooda pointed there, and Borric began to shake his head, "He's a smart guy, isn't he?" Gooda started rushing down the hill, and Borric had to follow suit, though his hands and feet were like limp cotton.A few minutes later, they caught up with the convoy, Borric climbed onto the tailgate with great effort, Guda took the seat next to the driver, and Su Li continued to chase the kitchen cart forward. Borric heaved a long sigh, and then looked carefully at the man he had rescued from the three plainsmen.There was nothing attractive about this Isalani: bow-legged, short, and vulture-looking.The shape of the head is asymmetrical, almost square, which, combined with a long, thin neck, gives it a comical appearance.There are only short hairs that have just grown in at the back of his head and around his ears, as if he's just helped spread the word about a depilatory drug.Laughing, his eyes narrowed, Borric had only seen a few Tsurani descendants with golden skin like his in Lamut.In a grateful tone, the Isalani said, "Would you like an orange?" Borric nodded, and the strange-looking man took one out of his pocket and handed it to him.Borric peeled the orange, took out a slice, and began to suck the juice from the orange. The man took out another orange and handed it to Gooda.The old guard asked, "Speaking of which, what's going on?" The man shrugged, still smiling. "They thought I was playing badly. They got mad." "Did you do it?" Borric asked. "Maybe a little. But they're out too." Borric nodded, as if such a reason was understandable. "People call me a madman." The smile on the Isalani's face widened. "I've been called that a few times. Other times I've been called Nike, the Blue Knight." Guda asked, "Your name is Blue Knight?" Nike nodded affirmatively, "At that time, I always rode a beautiful black war horse and wore a conspicuous blue robe. I was very famous in some places." "But not here," Guda said. "Oh, not here. Here I am a nobody. But when I rode my beautiful steed in my blue robe, I soon became famous everywhere I went, for no one could match my good looks .” Admiring his faded orange robes, Borric said, "I don't think you've been able to charm this time either." "I'll have to say 'ah' again, and this time too. My horse died, so it's hard to ride it again. I lost my blue robes to a guy who played cards better than I did." Borric smiled and said, "Well, at least you're more candid than any of the outliers I've faced at the poker table." Neko also laughed, "I only lie to those who want to lie to me. If you are honest, I will be honest. But usually it is difficult to find an honest person." Borric was intrigued by this guy he had never seen before, "So how many honest people have you met so far?" Naike shrugged his shoulders and moved his shoulders vigorously, "No one. But I still look forward to meeting an honest person one day." Borric shook his head and smiled, as one lunatic saved another. As night approaches, the traditional carriage forms a circle around the campfire.Janos Sabo reprimanded Borric for asking for trouble when the situation was unclear, and also blamed Guda for leaving the convoy behind Borric without thinking.He forgave Su Li because he was still a child and children would do indiscreet things. For some reason, he didn't find fault with the Isalani joining the caravan without permission.Borric was sure the eccentric had a tingle with the usually stern caravan leader, suggesting he knew some magic or something.Unless he was a crook who was sure enough to carry the deceit through, his poor robe was going to be run over by five wagons in a row.Borric thought that even Uncle Jimmy wouldn't dare claim to be able to escape unscathed. Thinking of James, he feels once again a failure at where he is now.How to get safely to Cash's palace and tell James he's alive?The reality is that in the Governor's Mansion in Deben City, he discovered that some prominent heads of the royal family were also involved in this conspiracy.The closer to the palace, he was sure, the more difficult things became. Leaning against the campfire, Borric decided to mull over this question during his journey.It is still a long way from the gate of the palace.On such a hot night, he dozed off after dinner until Guda came and kicked him awake, "Your class, madman." Borric got to his feet and joined the other two guards.The three set up three guard posts around the convoy, complaining and cursing the same scene in history together. "Jeeloge!" Chowdah yelled. Borric stood up and looked in the direction of the old mercenary's finger from between Guda and another teammate who was driving.As an alternate guard on the last wagon, he could escape the drive and doze on a silk bag from the Free Cities.Climbing up the hill, a small town appeared on the horizon.It doesn't look small.In the Kingdom, it could be considered a small city, but since Borric learned about Kesh, the Kingdom can only be said to be a country with few people.The prince went back to napping.They were going to rest for the night at Girogue, and most of the guards and coachmen were planning to play and gamble a lot tonight. A day earlier, they had rounded the northern section of the Guardian Range: the range just west of Owendip.Now they marched along the Shani River towards the city of Kesh.Small towns and farms are dotted on both sides of the road, forming a beautiful scene.Borric understood why the pay for caravan work in Kesh's interior was so low.The closer you get to Kesh's capital, the safer the journey becomes. "I wonder what happened there," Guda whispered. Borric looked up to see a party of horsemen setting up a checkpoint on the edge of town.Moving to the right, Borric whispered in Guda's ear, "Maybe it's me they're looking for." Turning to the young swordsman, the old mercenary's eyes were full of anger, "Isn't that interesting? Before I was caught in the prison of the empire, what good news did you not tell me?" The anger prevented him from continuing Lowering your voice, "What have you done?" "They say I murdered the wife of the governor of Deben," Borric whispered. Guda's only reaction was to close his eyes and press his nose hard with his index finger and thumb, "Why me? God, what did I do wrong?" Looking directly into Borric's eyes, he said, "You What's up, madman?" "of course not." Guda squinted his eyes and looked at Borric for a while, then said, "Of course you didn't." Then with a long sigh, he continued, "If it was a robbery, we could kill a whole team of bandits, but if it was Officials, before we can explain these imperial soldiers are tying us to the dinner table like venison. Listen: if anyone asks you, you are my relative who lives in Odoskoni." "Where's Oldscony?" Borric asked. "It's a small town in the stone hills of Tranquility, and the nearest city to her is Kampari. To get there you have to walk through Green Cape reach) The forest is more than 100 miles away, so it is inaccessible.It will take years for those people to find there. " The leading carriage slowed down and stopped, and the carriages behind also stopped moving forward. Borric followed Guda and other guards out of their respective carriages, stood behind the caravan leader, and demonstrated to the soldiers who found fault.but to janos Sabo's officer was a royal soldier, apparently on some mission.These soldiers wore gorgeous coats and red silk products, and wore metal helmets trimmed with animal hides-these people had skin the color of cheetahs.Each held a spear in his hand, a sword at his side, and a bow hung behind his saddle.Borric couldn't help agreeing with Guda.These soldiers could be seen as veterans.He asked softly in Guda's ear, "Aren't there any recruits in the empire?" Guda replied in a low voice, "Many, madman. The cemetery is full of them." The officer said to Sabo, "We're looking for two escaped slaves from Deben. A young man, perhaps in his twenties and a kid of eleven or twelve." Janos said, "My lord, all my people are caravan guards and coachmen. I know them or someone who knows me introduced them. The only child we have here is our little cook." The officer nodded, as if what the caravan leader said was unimportant.Guda rubbed his chin in thought, covered his face and whispered to Borric, "Interesting, they are searching the caravan. Why do the slaves who escaped from Deben flee in instead of out." Ganos might have sensed that it was Borric and Suli that the military was looking for, but he said nothing.A soldier walks up to Guda and Borric.He glanced at Guda, but then began to study Borric carefully. "Where are you from?" he asked.If he thinks there are loopholes in the other party's answer, he will be sure that the person in front of him is a wanted slave.Questioning a calm, armed slave was something he had never thought of doing, but it was his duty to do so. Borric said, "Where I come from. I was born in Oldscony." Borric wanted his answer to amuse the soldier. "You have a weird accent." Borric didn't take too long to answer, "You sound like a foreigner, a soldier. We all talk like that." "You have green eyes." Suddenly, he snatched the hat off Borric's head and saw Borric's black hair. "Hey!" Borric grumbled angrily.He and Su Li had used up the last bit of medicated oil a few days ago, and he hoped that the roots of his newly grown red hair would not give away his identity. "Captain!" cried the soldier, "this man fits the bill." Then it occurred to Borric that those who wanted to kill him knew he was redheaded, and that the escaped slave's traits were provided by the sailors of the merchant ship he escaped on.How stupid, he blamed himself, should have found another color of medicated oil. The captain walked over slowly, inspecting Borric, "Name?" Borric said, "People call me crazy." The captain raised his eyebrows, "Strange. Why?" "In my hometown and everywhere I've been, people always thought I—" "Do stupid things," Guda finished for him, "he is my relative." "You have green eyes," said the captain. "The same goes for his mother," Guda replied. The captain turned to Gu Da, "Do you always answer for him?" "Often, sir. Like I said, he does stupid things. We don't call him a madman at Oldscony out of fraternity." He squinted and stuck his tongue out from the corner of his mouth, making a foolish look. . Another soldier pushed Su Li over. "What's this?" asked the captain. "He's the little cook," Janos replied. "Name, kid?" asked the captain. Guda said, "Suli of Odescony." The captain turned and shouted, "Shut up!" Borric said, "He's my brother." The captain slapped Borric across the face with his backhand.Tears welled in Borric's eyes, and he endured it, though he wanted to poke holes in the captain of the royal guard. The captain raised Su Li's chin, "You have black eyes." Su Li stammered, "My... Mom has black eyes." The captain gave Gu Da a hard look, "I think you said his mother had green eyes." Immediately Guda interjected, "Yes, his mother has green eyes," he pointed at Borric, and then he pointed to Su Li, "His mother has black eyes, half-brother." Another soldier came up and reported, "No one else fit the profile." The soldier grabbed Suli. "Who's your father?" The boy looked at Borric, but the soldier shouted, "Answer me!" "Sully of Odescony," the boy screamed, "my name is his." The captain punched the soldier. "Idiot." He pointed at Borric. "Another one will hear that name." Borric said, "Captain, you can take the boy away and ask him the name of our other brother." The captain ordered his men to do the same, and Borric whispered to Goodall, "He's going to detain us." "Then why did he ask such nonsense?" Gu Da asked quietly. "Because he just confirmed that we are the ones he is looking for, and he will sentence us to death in a while." "Instant execution?" Guda hissed against. Borric nodded affirmatively, and the officer walked up to them. "Now, tell me what is the name of the mysterious brother of you two liars?" "We have a drunk brother named Resta," Borric replied, silently praying that the boy remembered the conversation they had had before they met Thalaia in Deben. After a while, the soldier came back and said, "The kid said they had an alcoholic brother named Resta." Borric wanted to kiss the boy, but he hid the smile on his cheek.The captain said, "You are still very suspicious." He glanced at Janos who was waiting aside Sabo, "You and others can leave, but I will detain these two people." Then he saw Guda, "This one will also be arrested." "Excellent." Guda shouted, and the soldiers stepped forward to disarm him and tied his hands.Borric and Su Li were also tied up. Surrounded by swords and guns, the three of them were tied to a long rope that was dragged behind the horse, and then it was to see how good they were at running. Jirogue has a garrison, but to be precise, there are no cells, and most of the time it is used to detain farmers and herdsmen who cause trouble.Now it is requisitioned by the Captain of the Royal Guard and his men, making the watchhouse jittery.A grey-bearded, pot-bellied war veteran, he's only capable of lining up wild peasant brats, not fighting any fight.He quickly agreed to the captain's request and moved himself out of the guardhouse. Borric overheard the captain ordering his sergeant to ride back to Kesh as soon as possible to deliver a message, asking for instructions on what to do with the three prisoners.Borric could only hear part of the captain's conversation, but it was clear that the order came from the top of the army, and the army must have prevented the undue attention this massive search would draw.One thing was about Cash, Borric thought, with so many people doing so many things in this country, a military move like this would alarm at least some of its citizens.It was dark now, and Su Li had fallen asleep an hour ago, and didn't expect the sheriffs to provide them with a dinner.Of course, the captain of the guard would not care about the hunger of the prisoners. "Hello!" A cheerful greeting came from outside the window.Su Li was awakened. They looked up and saw a smiling face outside the small window above the cell. "Nike!" Borric called in a low voice. Signaling Guda to lift his legs, Borric stood on Guda's shoulders and climbed up the window, "What are you doing here?" "I think you still want an orange." The little man grinned. "The food in the prison is not very good." When Nike took out an orange from his pocket and handed it to him, Borric only nodded silently.He tossed the orange to Su Li, and the hungry boy quickly peeled it and took a bite. "We do thank you," said the Prince, "it looks like they're not going to feed us." Suddenly Borric asked, "How did you get up here?" The small window was at least 8 feet high, and it didn't look like the little figure was hanging from the window beams. "Leave that alone. Do you want to get out?" Gu Da, who was already standing below, said, "This is the stupidest question ever asked in thousands of years of human history. Of course we want to go out." Isalani smiled happily, "Then stand in the corner and cover your eyes." Borric jumped off Goodat's shoulder.Then they went to the corner and covered their eyes with their hands.Quietly and nothing happened at first, but suddenly Borric felt a surge of force hit him, as if he had been thrown against a wall by a large hand, accompanied by a loud bang.He flinched and opened his eyes to see a big hole in the wall.The Garrison smelled of dust and sulfur.A few soldiers were clutching at things to keep from falling, while others fell to the ground, apparently disoriented by what had broken the wall. Nekor stood beside the four steeds with the royal emblem on their heads, each saddled. "I'm sure they don't need these anymore," he said, handing Borric a bridle. Su Li stood there in fear, "Master, I don't know how to ride a horse." Gooda picked up the boy and put him on the back of the nearest horse. "Then you'd better learn it right away. If you catch the mane when you're about to fall, that's all right." Borric said on his horse, "They'll catch up soon. We—" "No," said Nekle, "I cut the girths and bridles off their saddles." But no one could see that he could pull out a pocket knife to prove it. "But it's still wise to leave, and someone will look into the noise." No one would object to this point. They escaped from the guard post on horseback, and Su Li could barely save his life.After riding for a short distance, Borric got off his horse and adjusted the belt of the stirrup for Su Li.Suli's mount sensed that its rider was a novice and restless, so Borric could only hope that the boy would not fall to his death in their haste. They fled from Jirogg, who had just awakened, and Borric asked, "What was it?" "Oh, those are some magic tricks I learned along the way." Isalani grinned. Gu Da gestured defensively, "Are you a warlock?" It's ridiculous. "Of course. Don't you know that all Isalani are gifted with magic." Borric said, "Did you use magic to climb the window, too? Did you use magic to levitate?" Naiko laughed even harder, "No, madman. I'm standing on horseback!" Feeling relieved and happy after escaping, Borric tapped the stirrup and let the horse canter.He could hear the others following right behind him, until he heard a scream followed by a crash telling them Suli had fallen from his horse. Turning back to see if the boy had fallen badly, Borric muttered, "This must be the slowest escape in human history, too."