“Your Majesty, we’re nearing Lord Ning Cuo’s territory. There’s a town ahead, shall we stop there for a rest?”
Nero’s Captain of the Guard spoke in a gruff voice beside the royal carriage.
“According to our reports, development in this territory is proceeding at an astonishing pace. Your Majesty, you are truly farsighted and discerning.”
Another attendant quickly chimed in, more personable than the gruff Captain.
Nero, hearing these praises, felt a surge of self-satisfaction.
What a great Roman Emperor I am!
Ning Cuo, Ning Cuo, you little rascal, you’re developing at a good pace.
Even in a completely undeveloped area, within just a few weeks, everything is in full swing.
Of course, Nero remained clearheaded.
Ning Cuo had pulled a thousand-man army from Rome, and it was rumored that he had a highly experienced, renowned knight in all of Rome.
He was a fully equipped cavalryman, formally appointed by Nero’s father, the former Emperor.
This made Nero somewhat anxious; he had to come and see for himself.
Such a legion stationed on the outskirts of Rome.
If Nero didn’t possess absolute confidence in his own strength, any other emperor would be sweating bullets right now.
With these thoughts, he continued forward.
Nero’s army soon reached the nearest town.
Coincidentally, this town was also the unfortunate riverside town.
Upon discovering this, Ma Que’er didn’t hesitate for a second; he sent someone to inform Joan of Arc while simultaneously staying alert for any unforeseen event.
Joan, as expected, remained just as Joan was – even with power, she didn’t, as the villagers imagined, retaliate against them.
This instantly instilled even more fear and reverence in the residents of the riverside town.
They were extremely cautious in their actions, afraid of being unworthy of this grace.
As soon as Nero’s entourage entered the town, they noticed something amiss.
They were building a road?
What was going on?
“Have there been any noble donations for road construction projects in Rome recently?”
Nero asked one of her trusted attendants.
“Your Majesty, that’s impossible.”
The attendant quickly responded.
The Roman nobles would rather scrape the land bare than willingly spend money on renovating the outskirts of Rome.
Especially a village that looked so barren.
Even selling every villager wouldn’t cover the cost of building a road.
So there was only one possibility.
This road was built at the Lord’s own expense.
Upon considering this possibility, everyone present became even more puzzled.
Ning Cuo’s background had been thoroughly investigated.
He had abilities, for sure.
His charm was even more outlandish.
He could simply walk around Rome and gather a thousand-man army fully armed.
He even attracted two great knights to join him.
Even the Roman Emperor Nero himself did not possess such charm.
But charm couldn’t be transformed into wealth.
Ning Cuo publicly burned the former Senate’s great nobles.
All those belonging to the noble faction, including merchants, would never make any dealings with him.
Nero hadn’t received any requests for funding from Ning Cuo either.
And the Church was out of the question.
So where did he get all this money?
In this era, maintaining an army was no small feat.
“Go and find out what’s happening here.”
With Nero’s order, several knights surrounding her escorted her into the riverside town.
The Roman Emperor’s flag fluttered proudly in the wind, and the knights beside her carried various family emblems as they entered.
These were all military merit nobles, looking fierce and intimidating.
It instilled great fear in the villagers.
And Joan, in the heart of the village, felt a tightening in her chest when she saw these knights flooding in.
Born in the countryside, she couldn’t recognize these noble emblems.
And the noble Roman Emperor was even more out of the question.
How could they, mere peasants, ever hope to meet the Emperor?
“Brother Thor, what do we do now?”
Joan quickly adjusted her dress and hurried to Thor, who was closing his eyes and meditating beneath the shade of a tree.
Thor merely glanced over before continuing his meditation.
“That’s the Roman Emperor’s army. Don’t worry, someone has already informed Lord Ning Cuo.”
“Oh, the Roman Emperor?”
“What? The Emperor?!”
Joan didn’t react immediately.
By the time she processed the statement, her whole world was turned upside down.
That was the supreme existence of the Roman Empire, a place where even a village headman could strut his stuff.
For these ordinary villagers, Nero’s arrival was nothing short of a disaster.
Just one wrong word, and even their entire village wouldn’t be enough to pay the price.
Thor glanced at the various emblems on the flags.
He didn’t say anything more.
These should all be Nero’s loyal followers.
Most were knights who rose through the ranks by earning merit on the battlefield.
Based on his Lord’s relationship with the Emperor.
It meant these were essentially allies of their camp, so Thor didn’t make any move.
But Joan wasn’t as calm.
Because the moment these knights entered the town, they drove away all the residents.
They even prepared to dismantle the nearby railings to ensure a smooth passage for Nero’s luxurious carriage.
“Get out of the way, all of you. Anyone who dares to get any closer will be killed without mercy.”
These knights roared arrogantly, waving their weapons.
They cleared everything in their path.
Then, they reached the center of the town.
To their surprise, the center of such a small village actually had dozens of horses.
These horses were all pulling large wagons, loaded with various materials.
Clearly, they were of great value.
This dilapidated village was actually planning to pave a stone road?
What kind of audacity, emulating Rome?
Ma Que’er and his group were also dumbfounded after witnessing this scene, especially after hearing Joan mention the arrival of the Roman Emperor.
They neither dared to stand nor kneel.
They were afraid of accidentally offending the royal carriage and causing a major incident.
But Ma Que’er was even more worried about these materials being seized.
After all, based on the greed of past nobles.
The materials used for their Lord’s road construction were simply delicious morsels to them.
But if they were to take the materials and still fail to complete the task.
Plus, with the previous incident.
The consequences, upon reflection, made Ma Que’er pale and speechless.
Only Joan, after seeing those knights using their weapons to poke around in the material bundles on the wagon, walked over with a tinge of sorrow.
She wanted to gather the materials scattered on the ground to prevent them from being trampled by the warhorses.
Nero, lying in her luxurious carriage, seemed to be drawn to something.
Through the layers of gauze curtains, she caught a glimpse of Joan picking up the stones on the ground.
Her clothes didn’t look particularly luxurious.
But they bore the Ouroboros, the symbol representing Ning Cuo’s recognition of his people.
Then, looking at Joan’s golden hair, fair skin, and capable posture.
Nero suddenly felt a pang of displeasure.
How could Ning Cuo, so soon after leaving Rome, find a substitute for herself?
Really, if he missed her, couldn’t he just come to the Roman court?
Why all this flashy nonsense?