Half an hour later, Brendan arrived at the Mellon Family manor to bid farewell to Richard and his group.
Brendan had arranged 31 escorts for Richard, which, combined with Richard's own 6 escorts, totaled 37.
Richard and his group of 41 departed for Fresco Town around 7 AM.
No gentleman was willing to spend the night in the wild mountains and wilderness of the West, so they set off early.
It wasn't that Brendan didn't want to arrange more escorts for Richard, but he was currently stretched thin, and even these 31 men were the best he could do.
However, Brendan felt this escort force should be sufficient.
Firstly, it was only a day's journey, so there were fewer variables.
Secondly, these 31 escorts were elite family soldiers, working in perfect coordination, and could easily withstand an enemy force more than twice their size.
Few bandit gangs were strong enough to defeat them, and those that were usually had some dealings with McKinley.
Of course, there were some hostile bandit gangs, but they did not operate in the Rocky Mountains.
Finally, the McKinley Family was renowned in the area, with large cavalry escorts frequently operating there, strong in both men and horses. Unless there was a profound enmity, no one dared to provoke them.
Besides, perhaps Sean had already received the telegram and sent people to Death Valley to meet them?
In fact, if they didn't encounter bandits specifically setting an ambush, a dozen escorts would be safe enough.
Richard didn't find anything amiss; he had never brought so many escorts when traveling in Pittsburgh in the East.
He knew that bandits were as numerous as cattle in the West, but it was broad daylight, and some things, one could not truly understand or take seriously without personally experiencing them.
After all, he was only 25, and had studied at a prestigious Eastern university. Although he was a business genius, his understanding of the West was truly lacking.
This was also why he personally came to investigate this time.
Richard believed that no practical verification was ever superfluous.
Moreover, he was quite confident in his marksmanship, archery, and horsemanship.
The two noble ladies, Edith and Madeline, sat excitedly in the double-horse, four-wheeled, hard-top carriage, observing the scenery outside through the open windows.
Madeline said with a hint of worry, "Uncle will definitely scold me when he finds out, Edith, you've really given me a problem."
Edith withdrew her gaze from the beautiful natural scenery outside and smiled happily.
"It's fine. If they find out, I'll tell my family it was my idea, and we're only going for a few days, so why not just not tell them?"
"You know how hard it is for me to get out and get some fresh air. When I go to the Commonwealth for my studies, I'll prepare a satisfactory gift for you and my future nieces and nephews this Christmas."
"Besides, I plan to write something myself in the future. If I don't see the world, what can I write? Decades ago, 'study tours' were still popular among British aristocrats, but unfortunately, by our time, this tradition has waned."
Madeline was speechless, as if the 'study tours' of old aristocrats had anything to do with women.
But since they were already going, there was no point in saying more. Madeline asked, "There were quite a few young gentlemen at the McKinley banquet last night. Did you find anyone suitable?"
Edith shook her head and said, "No, I really dislike those who boast at banquets. Besides, even if I favored someone, would it matter?"
Madeline stared at Edith for a long time with a 'you're still too young' look until Edith became a little uneasy, then she began to impart her wisdom.
"Perhaps not, perhaps it would; under similar conditions, it would be very useful. At the very least, we should have a sufficient understanding of suitable targets around us. Appropriate preparation can sometimes play a huge role at critical moments."
"It's like that with Richard and me."
"Of course, many times these preparations are indeed useless, but as long as there's a slight chance they might be useful, we should be prepared, don't you think?"
Edith nodded with a grin, indicating she understood.
In fact, she understood all of this without Madeline having to say it.
There was no other way; they had seen too many happy or, more often, unhappy elders, so they naturally weren't as naive as ordinary girls their age.
About two hours earlier than them, just as dawn broke, Carlos and Pizarro had already set out with their team, leaving two men to maintain contact with Texas. The 70-man contingent moved with a mighty presence.
However, because it was too early, few people noticed them.
About an hour after Carlos and his group left, "Cross-Eyed" Frank led 127 bandits and also set off.
He had wanted to leave earlier, but unfortunately, he had played cards too late last night.
—
Henry and his group had already traveled nearly 4 hours, covering about 30 miles.
The mountain mornings, even in summer, were a bit chilly.
Now, the sun was gradually growing stronger, making them feel pleasantly warm and comfortable.
Midway, everyone rested for about half an hour. Another thirteen miles ahead was a treacherous place—Death Valley.
The terrain here was complex, with basins, hills, and dense forests on both sides of the mountains, making it easy to hide hundreds or thousands of people without being easily discovered.
To pass through here, one had to take a winding path in the valley, about a mile long, ranging from 5 meters at its narrowest to 10 meters at its widest.
If one were ambushed here by accident, hundreds or thousands of people would not be enough to die.
It is said that nearly twenty years ago, an army of over 500 men was ambushed here and completely wiped out.
Occasionally, some Indian natives also appeared here.
Basically, large forces arriving here would first send out sufficient scouts to reconnoiter and occupy key high points on the mountainsides before passing through.
Even so, it was not 100% safe.
Henry planned to let everyone rest again after another hour or so, covering about 10 miles. At that time, Charles and Owen would also return to join them, and he would scout ahead alone, while the remaining 9 officers would stay behind to protect the convoy.
Based on his judgment, since there were no bandits blocking the road for the first 30 miles, it indicated that the bandit gangs in the Fresco Town direction had been largely dealt with by him in recent days.
After all, bandit gangs didn't grow on trees. Even without counting McKinley's private soldiers, he had eliminated 124 bandits and assassins in recent days.
So, if there was danger, it would likely be in the latter half of the journey closer to Denver.
Death Valley was the most probable location.
Because even if you suspected someone was ambushing there—and they actually were—you might still not be able to find or discover them.
Charles and Owen were also fathers of six children. If they died in normal combat, there was nothing to be done; life was tough for everyone these days.
But knowing there was a high risk of ambush and still sending them in would be a bit much.
Mainly, Henry had enough 'get out of jail free' cards, so he decided to go himself.
Including Hangman's Hill, seven or eight miles past Death Valley.
Henry planned to personally scout both of these locations.
Since they had followed him, and it was essentially his private mission, Henry would try his best to bring them back to the town safely.
Moreover, these people were likely to become Henry's future core team.
--+--
T/N: Although I'm an inexperienced Editor, I do have a Patreon account! Although it seems like I don't have many supporters right now, my webnovel will be released in full every day, and the advanced chapters will be uploaded to Patreon.
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