RISE OF EROS

The only good news for this group following Andrew and his companions is that in a couple of days, they would reach the city of Agua, which is an obligatory passage to the country of Rios, and then their mission would end.

The Limares family, being the second most powerful family in Catarea, obviously had people established in the large cities of the country. The capital was obviously their center of operations, but in the cities of Valle and Agua, they were also present and powerful.

Being border cities that had a lot of trade and an influx of people, it was necessary for them to have trustworthy people to develop there, since they could not be the second most powerful family in Catarea, without a presence in these cities.

Once they reached the city of Agua, this group could return to the fortress bordering Dunnas and the Limares family staff in the city of Agua would take over.

The Limares family staff in the city of Agua was much more efficient and powerful, so they were more suitable to monitor Andrew's group. Furthermore, there would be no problem with powerful experts watching them, since they could use the excuse of watching their territory.

Oliver had already anticipated this situation. He is an experienced military strategist, so he understands how large families work and although he had no proof, he was almost certain that the Limares family would act this way.

Although he did not believe that they would cause them problems, surely, the surveillance would not be as lax as now and that is why he warned Andrew and Andrew's wives so that they would be prepared and not get upset.

If this group that was following them until now, was already starting to bother them, in the city of Agua where everything would be much more intense, it would put them in a bad mood and Oliver did not want unnecessary conflicts to be created.

Upon hearing this warning, Andrew let out a sigh of resignation, because it really bothered him to be watched all the time. Although he knew that when they met Eduardo's caravan they would be watched, he never expected it to be so extreme.

Fortunately, Oliver had warned them of what would happen in the city of Agua in advance, because if he hadn't said it, Andrew could have exploded, creating problems for themselves.

The trip to the city of Agua went smoothly. The endless grassland of the kingdom of Catarea was really good terrain for traveling by carriage and it was not only comfortable but fast.

From the city of Agua to the country of Rios, it was only a half-day trip, but since they arrived near sunset, they decided to spend the night in the city and restart their journey early the next morning.

If Catarea was perfect for traveling by carriage, the country of Rios was the opposite, because its territory of soft land and wealth of wetlands made movement difficult for carriages, so they would not waste time.

With this in mind, they entered the city which was massive. Of all the cities Andrew had visited, this was undoubtedly the largest, but at the same time, the least populated in comparison with its size.

Although there were many buildings with businesses, houses, and other constructions, they still retained the quality of the cities they had already visited in this country, so there are many farms around.

Because of this, the city seemed much larger than it was and its population was not as large as the capital of Cannaris, Dunnas, or Tampilla. If Andrew had to compare it, it would have a population similar to the city of Calci where he and Castor grew up.

Being an important city and since Andrew's group was new to this place, the check to allow them entry was slow and thorough. The Limares family group that followed them, being employees of the family, entered through their own channels, which allowed them to enter before Andrew's group.

It was thanks to this, that they were able to report their mission and delegate it to the city staff of the Limares family before Andrew and his group passed the checkpoint at the entrance. In short, they were already being watched since they arrived in the city.

Andrew and the others immediately felt a large number of relatively strong people watching them from the shadows. Just as Oliver had said, the discomfort of being watched bothered Andrew and his wives, but they did not react.

They had already been warned, so they were able to control themselves. What they were doing was clearly disrespectful, but since this was foreign territory, Andrew could do nothing but endure.

Without haste, they found a good inn and rented an apartment similar to those they rented in every city they entered. Since they only intended to spend the night in this city, they did not leave their room.

They ordered food, which unlike the rest of the Catarea territory was not loaded with meat. Being close to the country of Rios, fish was very common and therefore the gastronomy was more focused on freshwater foods.

Andrew and the others had to admit that it was an abrupt change, but they enjoyed it. They were able to try a variety of fish in different presentations, as well as some river shrimp and crayfish, which they had never tried.

Well, Zany who lived in the forest had tried some, but here there was more variety and they were all delicious, so the four enjoyed the good food, before going to sleep.

When the experts who were watching them noticed that Andrew and his group did not plan to go out, they felt strange. Their mission was to watch them and find out if they did business or contacted someone, to get an idea of ​​how to approach them, but seeing them go to sleep after enjoying dinner, they could not help but wrinkle their eyebrows.

Knowing the importance that the Limares family was giving to Andrew's Group, they did not dare to relax and kept watch all night, but when they confirmed that they did not intend to leave, they had to notify.

Quickly, one of them returned to where the leader appointed by the Limares family to manage the business of this city was to report what had happened. The person in charge of the Limares family's business in Agua is in fact the younger brother of the current leader.

Although not as talented as Eduardo in business, this man also stood out as a merchant and administrator, which is why they entrusted him with this territory and had generated so much profit for the family that they held him in high regard.

"Master Koza," said a middle-aged man upon entering the office of the Limares family's manager. The man, a little overweight, but elegantly dressed and with an aura of authority, looked up and upon seeing who was speaking to him, asked, "Anything new?"

"No sir. The group that your nephew is interested in stayed at the Silver River Inn and after a meal, they went to rest," the middle-aged man reported.

Hearing this, Koza Limares furrowed his eyebrows. He did not believe that a group like Andrew's which had caught the attention of not only his nephew Eduardo but also Ecclesiastes, would act so passively in a city like Agua.

One must know that this is an important economic and strategic center, so it was strange that a group like Andrew's did not make any movement. This made him more alert, but he also had the thought, "Could it be that they are really just passing through?"

Although he had been notified that Andrew and the others had said that they were just passing through, Koza did not believe that in a city like Agua, they would not make some business or friendship moves even if they were just casual.

Despite his suspicions, he did not want to create conflict, so he said, "Keep watching. If they do nothing, there is no problem, but do not let anything slip by." The middle-aged man who had come to report nodded and left to pass on Koza's orders.

Unfortunately for them, Andrew and the others were really just passing through. If they hadn't been in the middle of a long journey, perhaps they would have tried to do business as Koza thought, but since Andrew didn't want to be delayed, they really just spent the night and left the city the next morning.
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Koza was surprised to hear the report that they really had just spent the night and left. It wasn't like he wanted them to cause trouble, but he at least wanted them to make some business moves, so he could get close and build some relationship.

They are after Oliver. They knew he is at least a super-level expert and having support like that wasn't trivial, but without information, it is difficult to achieve and that is what they lacked the most.

Letting out a sigh, Koza said, "Follow them for a while. If they enter Rios, give up the chase, we'll have to wait for another chance to contact them."

The experts who were watching Andrew and his group did as Koza asked and when they saw that they had entered Rios' territory, they had no choice but to return. When Andrew and the others felt that they were no longer being followed, they could finally relax.

Although they were relaxed, that didn't mean they were carefree. The country of Rios, although stable, was still unfamiliar territory for them, so they kept their guard up.

They were just relieved to escape the constant surveillance, but when they got rid of one problem, another appeared. A few hours after entering the territory of the country of Rios, they encountered a strange battle.

A large group of muscular men with heavy weapons were facing a small group of people with pale skin, pointy ears, and blue hair. Andrew looked at the small group and found it strange, as they looked like elves, but what surprised him more was that the muscular men group was guarding steel cages with several of these blue-haired elves in them.