Two and a half hours later, ten Mana Airships arrived above Count Duoer's Private Manor, three hundred kilometers south of the Xinfei Merchant Guild's Main Base.
Akali was still in Count Duoer's hands, so Xu Yi had no intention of acting rashly. He ordered the ten Mana Airships to land on the flat ground outside the Manor's gates.
As soon as he stepped out of the Mana Airship's hatch, he saw the Manor's gates open. A group of soldiers in gleaming, matching armor escorted three luxurious horse-drawn carriages slowly outside.
Xu Yi's lips twitched. Just as I suspected.
Count Duoer had indeed found someone to back him up, giving him the nerve to lay hands on the Xinfei Merchant Guild's employees.
These days, every noble in the Stantin Duchy owned one or even several Mana Sedans to replace traditional horse-drawn carriages. Count Duoer had probably discarded his old carriage long ago. The sudden appearance of these lavishly decorated, exquisitely crafted traditional carriages made it obvious that they had come from another country.
Xu Yi and Avita disembarked from the Mana Airship with Hart and ten guards, then waited where they stood for the carriages to approach.
The carriages rolled over the flat cement road outside the Manor's gates and stopped about fifty meters from the Mana Airships.
The side door of the first carriage opened, and Count Duoer slowly stepped out.
Upon seeing Xu Yi, Count Duoer gave him an odd smile with a hint of smugness, then extended a hand to his side and bowed, ready to help someone down.
That gesture further confirmed Xu Yi's suspicions.
Count Duoer had always been notorious among the nobles of the duchy's south for his arrogance and domineering behavior. His respectful manner now meant that whoever sat inside the carriage had to