Chapter 205 Dark Clouds

In the eastern part of Bardim County, which is adjacent to the southeast of Mamor County, outside the "Shatai City" built near the big lake, there is a large area of ​​broken tents and shabby shacks.

If in previous years, there had been a large influx of people into the territory, it might have been a beautiful thing that would have made the lords who ruled here overjoyed.

But a few months ago, this area had been looted by thousands of Uriya mercenaries crossing the border.

In Shatai City, which was spared from the attack after being repeatedly extorted of property and food, survival supplies became increasingly tight. Now the situation was so dire that the city had to open the granary and pull out the grain stored at the bottom of the lord's warehouse in order to help the victims who were gathering. .

Looking at the refugees outside the city wall who were wearing old iron helmets, holding swords and axes on their waists, holding spears and farm tools, and taking away the relief food, the fat baron at the top of the city kicked the wall in anger.

Opening granaries and "giving away" food is certainly not a sign of kindness on his part.

The fat baron only regretted that he had not sent soldiers resolutely and killed all the untouchables outside the city when there were few people.

He had to give it now.

Thousands of untouchables outside the city actually imitated the extortion practices of the Uriahs, and were ganged up by a few bold leaders to threaten them. If they did not release food, they would rush into the city and rob them themselves.

"You ungrateful and humble beasts. When Master Abel returns the army, I will definitely hang these bastards outside."

The Fat Baron cursed and watched the precious food being dragged away by the hands of the disaster victims organization, and his heart felt like a knife.

In response to King Aviut's call for war, almost all of the military assets he had accumulated over the years were lost in the previous majestic Eastern Expedition invasion.

The treasures of gold and silver that were snatched back were indeed gratifying, but it was a pity that before they were warmed up, most of them were robbed by the Urians who turned against them for no reason.

The soldiers sent abroad are now being brought along by the Duke of Abel, saying that they want to protect the injured king when he returns to the court. There are only two hundred guards in the city to fight. Even if the residents are forcibly recruited as soldiers, they will not be enough to deal with the looting and return. The Uriya people in the southern grasslands are also unable to deal with the thousands of victims outside.

Some are happy and some are sad.

The baron in the city was furious.

The refugees under the city saw that the leader had "received" relief food from the lord, and the crowd immediately gathered over happily.

However, they were quickly pushed away by a group of men wearing simple patchwork armor and carrying swords.

A middle-aged strong man wearing half armor, led his men, quickly rushed to the cart carrying grain, and shouted back the impatient people.

The strong man in armor drew his sword and arranged the order of the crowd before starting to organize the distribution.

They had already had several experiences. When chaos broke out earlier, they killed several leading looters. At this time, the refugees looked at the bloody weapons of the leader and accepted the opponent with a clear mind. established camp order

A young man with a short knife on his waist, next to the leader, helped distribute the food with quick hands and feet. In the increasingly hot weather, he soon became sweating profusely.

The refugee leader supervised the crowd seriously, took a moment to glance at the little guy next to him, and patted his head with a faint smile: "Little gold coin, take your share and go back to the tent. I see you are always late at night these days. I woke up and went back to catch up on my sleep.”

The boy held his rough hands on his head and couldn't help but raise his head and complain: "Uncle Ron, my name is Brandon, not Little Gold Coin."

"I still think the small gold coin is more palatable."

Ron rubbed the boy who was about the same age as his child vigorously and urged: "Okay, stop talking nonsense and go back quickly."

Knowing that the leader was caring about him, Brandon did not continue to show off. He was indeed disturbed by nightmares frequently these days and was mentally exhausted.

Obediently receiving enough food, the young man grabbed the short knife at his waist and quickly returned to the leader's camp. He mixed the crushed black bread crumbs with wheat and wild vegetables and soaked them in a clay pot under the rising fire. After cooking porridge and a good meal, he got back into the drafty tent and closed his eyelids that were blue due to insomnia with his dagger on his pillow.

For several nights in a row recently, he dared not close his eyes in the silent darkness.

It seemed that every time he closed his eyes, the terrifying scenes in his dreams, those monsters and evil spirits, would appear in his mind.

Only in broad daylight when the sun is shining can I fall asleep peacefully without being disturbed by nightmares.

Although the camp was noisy during the day, Brandon's tense nerves couldn't help but relax as he was far away from the monsters in his dreams.

Refugees in famine years are just as scary, but Uncle Ron has found a way out for everyone. At least the young man no longer has to worry about being thrown into a pot by some starving green-eyed man in his sleep.

It was a very comfortable sleep, and I didn't even notice it was getting dark.

Night falls.

Brandon opened his eyes and looked at the camp where only the bonfire was swaying. He instinctively felt nervous, but when he heard the loud snoring from the side and turned around to see Uncle Ron sleeping soundly, the young man felt relieved.

He turned to look outside the hole-in-the-wall tent, where the uncle's men were sitting vigil by the campfire. He simply didn't want to sleep anymore, so he opened his eyes wide and helped the leader beside him to ensure safety.

It's just that the boy overestimated his own energy, and the long-term pressure of survival and malnutrition still caused him to quickly fall asleep again with his eyelids wide open.

Not knowing how long he had been back in the cage, Brandon was suddenly shaken awake by a pair of big hands.

When he opened his eyes again, the environment was still as dark as night.

The outside of the tent looked like it was shrouded in gloomy weather.

"Wake up! Little gold coin!" Ron, who returned to the tent, hurriedly woke up the boy and ran out again.

Brandon rubbed his sleepy eyes and felt that he had never had such a comfortable and sweet sleep.

It seemed that he had slept for a long time. Not only did he not dream of the ghosts and evil spirits in those stories, but his body was also a little sore from lying for a long time.

He slowly woke up and heard the noisy sounds of the crowds surrounding the refugee camp. Everyone outside seemed to be discussing something.

Reaching out to put the dagger back on his waist, Brandon got out of the tent.

The temperature outside was different from the usual summer heat. It was particularly cold at this moment.

The dim visibility was like just entering the night, and it was also like the half-darkness before dawn.

Is it almost dawn? Or did he sleep until dark again? The boy who just woke up really couldn't tell the time.

Looking around, everyone in the camp seemed to have woken up a long time ago.

Is it going to rain heavily in this weather?

Brandon looked up at the sky.

As expected, the sky was covered with thick dark clouds. Because the sun was blocked, the surroundings seemed to be shrouded in the night.

He just hoped that the wind and rain would be less severe. He didn't have any extra clothes to change.

The boy prayed and looked around for Ron.

Not seeing where the leader had gone, Brandon didn't dare to run around and had to wait.

After a long time, he saw Uncle Ron holding a long knife hurriedly returning to the camp outside.

The faces of several companions around him were full of fear and panic.

"Everyone - call everyone!! Take food and weapons, gather under the city wall and call for me! Quick! Go!!"

Uncle Ron shouted with a cold face to gather refugees. He saw the boy in front of the tent and shouted: "Brandon! Come and follow me! Don't leave at all!"

The boy shuddered and had a bad premonition, and immediately followed the leader's footsteps.

Amidst the noise, the huge crowd in the camp quickly gathered. Under the gloomy sky, the refugees came to the city of Shatai.

Seeing the aggressive group of refugees, the guards guarding the battlements were startled, and the sergeant hurried to inform the lord that something was wrong.

The one who arrived before the fat baron was the knight in charge of leading the guards, who was also the second son of the local lord.

The young knight saw the huge group surrounding the city, and remembered the threat of the refugees to besiege the city not long ago, and his face was immediately filled with anger.

"Ron! What do you want? My father has already agreed to the threat of you rioters, do you still want to go back on your word!?" The young knight Cantadar roared on the top of the city.

Hearing this, Ron shouted angrily: "Damn it, we are not going to attack the town, open the city gate quickly!!

There are monsters in the east! Monsters everywhere! They are coming! Open the city gate quickly and let everyone in! Otherwise, you will die too!!"

In the cave halfway up the mountain.

Leon broke free from his deep dream.

With a slightly blurred vision, he swept across the bonfire that had long been extinguished and looked at the bright sunshine projected outside the cave.

He yawned and felt that he had a strange and familiar dream.

It has been a long time since he came here. This is a long-lost experience.

But no matter how he recalled it, he couldn't remember what he dreamed about.

It seemed that there was only a vast expanse of light.

"Leon, are you awake?"

Hearing the girl's call, Leon scratched his cheek, rested his head on the soft thigh touch, turned over on the camping blanket, and looked at Olivia's smiling face.

The griffin was lying on the side of the cave. The girl leaned against its warm side, sat on the blanket, and used her legs as a pillow for her lover.

She raised her hand and gently stroked Leon's cheek: "Good morning, do you want to sleep a little longer before setting off?"

Leon smiled and shook his head.

He had to hurry up. He had been uneasy since he learned from Laura two days ago that the mages of Atias might have done something in the Holy Land City.

Straightening up, Leon woke up, got up and packed his bags, and then helped Olivia to put on the armor he had taken off before going to bed.

Although the exact location was unclear at this moment, Leon estimated that he should be not far from the eastern border of Cantadar based on the map he carried with him.

He took off from Avalon Castle on a griffin and found this cliff cave to rest before dark yesterday. It should take a few minutes to reach the original owner's hometown, Rolandal today.

Leon only hoped that the fallen religious holy city had been recovered by the Kingdom of Serian, as the captive nobles of Glade County had guessed.

After waking up the snoring Deathclaw and flying down the cliff with it, the two found a river to wash and wake up, and then took off again.

Since the distance was not close, Leon did not let the griffin fly too high this time, only keeping an altitude of about a thousand meters, so that it was convenient to overlook the earth and identify the flying direction.

"So you went through such a long distance."

Olivia looked down at the mountains and rivers below, and was amazed at the long journey that Leon and his team had taken.

"It's not that far actually."

Leon turned his head and said, "We spent most of the journey in the mercenary's prison car, and I was unconscious for several days while being pulled from the Holy Land City to Mamor County."

Hearing him say this, Olivia realized the misfortune of his situation during that period, and she couldn't help but feel guilty for her slip of the tongue: "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned this experience."

"It's nothing, it's all over." Leon waved his hand to comfort her.

After all, he was not the original owner. His memory of the destruction of the city and the loss of his family was more of sympathy and indignation, but not so real and unforgettable. Although the days trapped in the slave cage were indeed tormenting, he ran quickly with the help of Laura, and did not have time to leave a psychological shadow. To be honest, the days of surviving in the wilderness with Lohak and Azerian were even more difficult.

Olivia listened to his answer and couldn't help but tighten her arms around her waist.

Leon patted the girl's arm armor and felt that his lover was distressed for him, and he couldn't help but feel ashamed.

Find a chance to explain his true origins to Olivia. The girl behind him will soon become his wife, and there is no need to hide some things.

As he flew, he looked out and found that the end of the horizon, about ten kilometers away, was covered by gloomy dark clouds, and there was no edge from south to north.

Did it happen that there was bad weather ahead?

This was the first time.

But it seemed that the top of the dark cloud was not high.

Leon turned his head to look at the giant wings of the griffin. Flying in the rain would not have much impact on this giant beast, but the death claw would definitely not like to be exposed to the rain. When he got closer, he might as well let it rise to a height higher than the clouds.

Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly heard Laura say: ". Look at the shape of the dark clouds over there. They are not formed naturally."

Leon's heart trembled.

He looked at the endless range of dark clouds and was deeply surprised.

The coverage area was at least more than hundreds or thousands of square kilometers!

"Lola. Don't you mean that there is a spellcaster in front of you who cast a celestial magic?"

Leon now has some understanding of magic. Such a large-scale celestial spell, let alone the unknown level of the Atias Master, even the standard Master of Lorelit, would find it very difficult to do it.

Laura did not answer immediately, but urged: "Get closer, I can't sense this distance through you."

Leon immediately ordered the death claw to speed up.

The griffin cried, soared and climbed to a higher altitude, then dived and accelerated.

But as it got closer and closer to the airspace covered by dark clouds, Leon also received the uneasiness from the death claw.

The griffin's senses detected the strangeness of the environment in front of it, and it quickly flew sideways at a distance, as if it didn't want to get close to the range of the dark clouds.

Leon looked up and was surprised to find that the dark clouds extended to the east as if there was no boundary. The range of this celestial phenomenon far exceeded the previous estimate.

Laura seemed to understand something: "A strange domain magic, formed by some large-scale ritual, the purpose is to... block the connection between the present world and the Dead Sea."

Before Leon asked, he felt Olivia patting him.

"Look there! Is there a war there?"

The girl pointed to the land under the dark clouds in the southeast.

Leon looked up and barely distinguished the town of Cantadar by the lake in the distance.

There were dense black spots around the town, as if it was being attacked by a huge army?