The gray sandstone under his feet broke off and rolled down the cliff that was dozens of meters high. There were only a few withered shrubs along the way. Sebas hurriedly stopped and raised his head to look ahead with lingering fear. The towering mountains and precipitous ridges were covered in varying shades of gray, and a thin mountain path that was as thin as sheep intestines extended between the grayness. This path was the famous Withered Path in the eastern part of Karsuk.
The young man was leading a donkey. He did not understand. The people who traveled with him, including the undead who made him feel uncomfortable, all said in private that the destination of their journey was a rich place, but everything they saw in the past few days had become more and more desolate.
He followed his foster father and left Rosaleen with the intention of going to Nine Phoenix. Who knew that he would come to this completely foreign land by accident. Although it did not matter as long as it was a good place to go, everything he saw now seemed to be different from what he imagined.
The forest that extended from the northern lowlands of Karsuk to the east ended here. During the Year of the Cave Beasts, when the Blood Staff swept through the eastern part of Karsuk, it had a great battle with the Highland Knight here. The undead's secret magic had wiped out all life in the canyon, resulting in the scene that he saw today.
Adney wrinkled her delicate nose and frowned as she looked at Quill, who was bidding farewell to Andrea and the others not far away. She smelled the strong smell of death in the air.
"Mister Quill, south of here is the Gray Mountain Path. There is a small path that leads to Westminster. After passing through the forest there, you will reach the northern end of the vast desert. From there, you can return to Lubian. "
Freya took a folded map from Na Xin and handed it to Quill.
"Miss Freya, Miss White Mist, and Mister Na Xin, the children of the desert will never forget the kindness of others. I will tell the elders everything without missing a word." Quill placed his hand on his chest and bowed to everyone in Lubian.
"You're too serious, too serious." Na Xin waved his hand. Due to the long journey, Na Xin's originally dark skin had a deep brown color, and his cheeks were sunken due to the constant exposure to the sun.
"Convincing the entire tribe to migrate north is not an easy task." White Mist stood on a towering rock and looked down at the golden elf. She replied in a cold and arrogant tone, "And even if it succeeds, it will be a long process."
"We will return immediately after returning to Lubian," Na Xin replied, "and bring the Sword of Wisdom to Erouine in the shortest time possible."
"That's the secret that the Tomb Keepers have been guarding for generations, right?" Andrea asked.
"Mister Brendel has proven that he is the one in the prophecy. We are heading east to Rosaleen to verify this prophecy. The elders are wise people, they will make the right judgment."
White Mist nodded....
.... com.......... Quill....... and Quill........
. "Na Xin looked at her.
"You know who I'm talking about. Miss Andrea. She's so young and beautiful."
"Ha." The Knight laughed, "The captain is jealous."
"Shut up, you idiots." Adney's eyes were about to spit fire as she gritted her teeth and said, "I'm just worried about my teammates. After all, it's impossible. Think about it. You're an elf, Na Xin. Besides, Miss Andrea is not a desert dweller. Her hometown is not in the desert."
"Yes, Na Xin." The Knight sang in unison, "Na Xin, you can't let down the sensitive and delicate heart of a young girl."
"What nonsense are you guys talking about?!" Adney jumped up in anger and unsheathed her sword to chase after Na Xin. The Knight laughed and dispersed.
Andrea smiled as she looked at the group of people. "Miss Adney is such a kind-hearted girl. I can see her feelings for Mister Na Xin." She said in a small voice.
Na Xin promptly nodded in agreement. Of course, he knew that although the girl in front of him looked young, she was a powerful warrior. Moreover, she was the leader of a group of similarly powerful warriors. In the Taowu Strait, if such a person was not a powerful lord, then at least she was a hero.
White Mist said in disdain, "The feelings of ignorant mortals."
"Yes, the great and wise Lady White Mist." Andrea replied with a smile.
"Hmph."
… …
The hall was buzzing with discussion. Everyone had different expressions. Some people were talking loudly, while others were whispering to each other. Burning torches were inserted into the holes in the rocks, and the light from the torches was sometimes bright and sometimes dark, making the contours of everyone's faces appear particularly deep.
The atmosphere was very heavy. Some people had already stood up at a long table in the center of the hall. They were red in the face and excited. Their chairs were pushed away and fell over. But the people who were still sitting were very silent.
The Duke of Grinoires sat at the head of the table with a bearskin coat draped over his shoulders. The cold air from the Deathfrost Forest was descending south of Valen. Autumn had not yet passed, and the weather had quickly turned cold. It was said that snow had already started to fall in Viero and Lantonilan, and in Braggs, it was also the beginning of winter.
In this year, the temperature in Erouine had been abnormal. Everyone could clearly feel the shortening of summer and the lengthening of autumn and winter. Other than Tónigel and Randner, which seemed to have been prepared for this, most regions had decreased their food production. Fortunately, the Second War of the Black Rose did not affect the regions outside of Grinoires and Karsuk, so the farmers could still make a living.
It was said that in the north of Erouine, across the DarkStar Strait, the weather in many places in the Silver Bay region was even more abnormal. There were even some places that had rare long nights and long days. A few small duchies had completely lost their food production. After the fall of the Black Moon, the panicked refugees rushed to the places that could still be maintained, breaking down the only order that was left.
These rumors increased the panic in Aouine's southern border to varying degrees. There were rumors everywhere that an unknown enemy from the north was invading the lands of the civilized world from the south. Although this rumor was not confirmed, it still made people feel uneasy.
Thinking of these troubles, the duke shrunk his neck and seemed to be a little absent-minded.
"Look at what our princess has done. She made peace with the undead, and now they want to send an army into Erouine. This is simply asking for a yard after taking an inch. I've said it before, how can those evil fellows be trusted?"
"I've long seen that she's just a weak little girl. She's not like her father at all. When the late king was still on the throne, Erouine would never have fallen to such a state!"
"She wants to walk the same path as Arreck, but it's only because those Tónigel untouchables have bewitched her all day long. What kind of knowledge can those fellows have? They're just a bunch of greedy sycophants. I heard that Madara spent a lot of money to bribe them."
The crowd was in an uproar when they heard this. The blame immediately fell on the 'mistress' of Tónigel Count Randner, and the number one fighter of the count — Freya, who was now privately known as the Valkyrie. Of course, the nobles who were deeply afraid of her only called her 'the count's loyal dog'.
As for Maynild and Oberwei, who had sided with the Eldest Princess for a long time, it was inevitable that they would be labeled as' traitors'.
However, few people blamed Brando himself. Most of the people present knew that Brando was the grandson of Sword Saint Darius, and had the support of the Highland Knight and the Black Tower Wizards. The Highland Knight's status in Erouine was already high, not to mention that the Cardiloso family's history and status were much higher than the families behind most of the people present.
They dared to unscrupulously criticize the royal family and the princess, but not many dared to criticize the traditional forces of the kingdom. In fact, most of the people present were just the representatives of the old noble forces.
Everyone knew this in their hearts.
However, almost everyone was gnashing their teeth at the 'cold-blooded and ruthless butcher', as if their hatred for this new force was completely pinned on Amandina. In comparison, Brando himself, who had been out of the country, was much more 'innocent'.
"Maybe it was this devil woman who bewitched the grandson of the old Marshal Cardiloso. I heard that she did a lot of sensational things in Tónigel. She's just the daughter of a low-class person from a small noble family. This kind of person is most likely narrow-minded to do such things."
"I heard that she also instigated Her Royal Highness and Prince Haruz to give up the throne so that the ambitious man in the north could come to the south. This woman may have some unspeakable relationship with that man."
"There's such a thing?"
Some people obviously hadn't heard about the reopening of the Peace Conference in Ampere Seale.
"It's true. His Royal Highness Levin Ornessen's envoy has now arrived in Abies Castle. I heard that he also plans to betroth his sister, the little princess of the Seifer family, to the count. If it wasn't for some agreement behind the scenes, how could such a thing happen? "
"We can't let her play tricks here!"
There was a sudden commotion among the nobles in the hall. The Battle of Ampere Seale determined the confrontation between the north and south of Erouine, but the hatred between the nobles of the north and south was far from being eliminated. This hatred could be traced back to the time of the December coup, when a large number of members of the Royal Party were persecuted and assassinated in the palace struggle. In the south, Viero, Grinoires, and Anthony were the strongholds of the Royal Party. The deep hatred between the north and south was evident.
These former members of the Royal Party could even tolerate the sudden rise of Tónigel and Brando in the kingdom's political arena, but they would never sit back and watch the forces of the north once again rule Erouine. Because it might mean a new purge and suppression, even if it was only a possibility, they would never sit back and watch.
… …
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