Imperial Crown

In the bloody highlands, the north wind howls.

On the endless plains, the howling wind blew the snow on the ground into the air.

The air is dry, and the snow is as finely ground as flour. From a distance, it looks like a white sandstorm, or like a canvas with scattered white oil paint.

A group of dark men and horses stepped through the wind and snow.

The first horse's hoof sank deep into the snow, startling a crow that seemed to be looking for grass seeds, and let out a piercing scream, adding a little noise to the world where there was only the sound of wind.

"Damn thing." Eric cursed bitterly, exhaled a breath of white air, stretched out his hand to pull off the ice on his beard and threw it to the ground.

"Damn weather!"

Along the way, Eric didn't know how many times he had been scolded like this, and it was conceivable that this would never be the last time.

The air was bone-chilling and the wind was as hard as a knife.

Even after applying ointment, the exposed face and eyes still felt uncomfortable, even though Eric was "gifted". It was common to shed tears in the wind, and his face was often covered with ice beads while walking.

With his eyes focused, Eric found that the crow that had been driven away before was sitting on the head of his horse. It looked smooth and smooth, and seemed to be living a very good life.

This made Eric a little angry. People can't eat well, but this bird that brings bad luck is so energetic!

"Get out of here!" He patted it casually, but when he missed it, the crow squawked and flew away.

"What a bad luck!" Eric kept these words in his heart.

It has been nine days since we set off, and three days have passed since we officially landed on the Bloody Highlands.

Starting five days ago, in order to hide his strength and better implement the plan to invade the east and attack the west, Eric was ordered to lead the team first, while Raven followed behind with his own soldiers.

For safety reasons, Raven sent the copied map to Eric along with Simon.

But life is like this, you never know which will come first, tomorrow or the accident.

Especially when traveling, especially when you have to lead hundreds of people to act together!

The day after they separated from Raven, they had to spend the night among the horses because a previously surveyed camping spot was filled with heavy snow.

The next morning, two people failed to wake up, and more than 20 people suffered from dizziness and fever.

On that day, they officially landed on the Bloody Highlands.

It was a sunny day.

Although eight of the huge packhorse team fell into the snow pit when they ascended to the Bloody Highlands, Eric was still in a good mood because there were no further casualties.

He sped up the progress and wanted to go a little further. As a result, at noon, more than 20 soldiers suddenly went blind and started shouting.

As a veteran, Eric knew what was going on. In the Iron Legion, this was known as the "Dark Dream" because it appeared out of nowhere and, like a dream, passed quickly.

Baron Raven, on the other hand, calls it "Snow Blind".

Eric told the soldiers about the possibility of this situation, and also told them how to deal with it-don't panic, loudly ask for help from their companions.

But when all this really happened, more than half of the blind soldiers still fell into panic.

Some claimed to have been cursed, others believed it was poisoned by horse thieves from Bloody Highlands -

Although they didn't even see a ghost, let alone a human being.

In the panic, six or seven people even ran wildly on horseback.

Fortunately, Eric gave the order in time, and several captains and Simon also responded quickly, but there was still a guy who broke out of the team and fell into the snow valley with both men and horses.

The team doesn't stop just because one person is missing.

After two hours, the blind soldiers regained their consciousness, but the low morale of the entire army was not relieved.

One bad thing after another.

A strong wind seemed to never stop blowing on the bloody highlands.

As far as the eye can see is a vast white and gloomy sky and earth.

Many times, even if the war horse is indeed moving, it will give people the illusion that they are standing still.

For two days, even Eric occasionally wondered if they were going in circles.

At this moment, a black spot appeared in his field of vision.

The black spot quickly enlarged, and Simon, riding a half-warhorse that transformed into a monster, broke through the wind and snow and arrived in front of him.

He reined in the reins and saluted: "Sir Eric!"

Eric hurriedly replied: "How's it going? Did you find anything?"

"The camp site fifteen kilometers away is still there." Simon wiped off the ice marks on his face: "Although there is some light snow, the wind is not strong enough to get in."

Eric breathed out softly after hearing this: "...Thank you for your hard work."

After speaking, he turned back and shouted loudly: "Cheer up and speed up! You will be able to rest in one hour!"

After a short pause, the voices were passed on one after another, but most of the soldiers were still numb. After all, the "one hour" in Eric's mouth could be long or short, and no one knew how long they would have to go.

Only a few maintain the excitement and energy.

Among them was Vesdon.

He exhaled and rode up to Eric, smiling at Simon: "Thank you for your hard work!"

Simon nodded with a straight face, and then rode his horse to the back of the team, obviously not forgetting what happened.

Vesdon did not give up, but licked his face and rode his horse to follow: "Um...Simon, how long do you think it will take for us to find Heleti's lair?"

"It's hard to say." Although he doesn't like Weston, Simon still maintains a very high quality: "If it doesn't snow next time, we can probably reach it within six days, but if it snows..."

Weston asked: "What will happen?"

"..." Simon sighed and suppressed the impatience in his heart: "The heavy snow will cover many conspicuous things that can be used as signs. If you force the march, it is normal to get lost or take a long way around. It is possible that the time will be doubled or even more. ”

"Oh..." Vesdon nodded with some distress: "I know, that..."

He put his hand into his cloak and groped around, then handed a piece of dark meat to Simon: "The work of exploring the path is very hard, this... is for you."

Simon looked at Weston in surprise, with a suspicious light in his eyes.

When did this second young master change his gender?

"My mother prepared this for me before I set off." Vesdon misunderstood what he meant and quickly explained: "I didn't steal the supplies!"

Simon heard this, hesitated for a moment, and then took the dried meat: "...Thank you."

The team continued to march, and after two hours, after a detour, they finally arrived at the place Simon mentioned before dark.

This is a cave hidden in a mound. It can be seen that there are traces of artificial excavation. It was probably abandoned because the water source was exhausted.

The entrance of the cave is not big, just enough for two people to enter and exit side by side, and it is located in the leeward, so there is only a small amount of snow in the cave and it is basically kept dry and tidy.

The soldiers dismounted and poured into the cave, while the war horses and pack horses were tied at the door.

"Whitey, get a blanket and seal the hole!"

After everyone entered the cave, Goyle ordered.

"Yes!" White, who had just sat down and before taking a breath, immediately stood up and executed the order.

Since being punished by Baron Raven, White has become the "screw" in the team. He can be bossed around by anyone, and he does all the dirty work.

Although White was dissatisfied, he also knew that this was his own fault.

Who told him to be so mean-mouthed at that time?

The hole was sealed with nails and boards, and the wind suddenly became much lighter.

But what White didn't notice was that the hole he had just sealed was immediately opened a little by a black beak, and then a dark eye blocked it.

There was a fire pit in the middle of the cave, and a bonfire was raised. Water bags were densely packed next to it. White threw his own water bag on top, then returned to his place and sat on the ground wrapped in a dirty blanket. Food was taken out.

The Baron never treats them badly when it comes to food, especially on this march. Everyone has a large piece of black bread and two pieces of bacon for every meal.

But White did not put them into his mouth. Instead, like other soldiers, he began to stare at the bonfire in a daze.

It's not that they're not hungry, but they need time to wait for the campfire to melt the snow in the water bags.

For White, the most painful part of the expedition was not the march in the snow, the cold and dry air, or the hard work of marching.

But after experiencing a day of coldness and fatigue, I couldn't eat a hot meal.

It was nothing at first, but as the days got longer and I woke up every day, I felt that my body was getting stiffer and colder from the inside out.

Looking at the blazing bonfire, a trace of desire flashed in White's eyes. He wished he could lean next to the bonfire and roast his stiff body.

But he can't do that.

Chief Eric and the three captains also stayed far away from the bonfire. They ate and drank the same as them. Even the most pampered Vestron didn't do anything special. How could White dare?

Outside the bonfire, a circle of bulging water bags gradually softened. After everyone had finished taking them, White took his own one - there was no mark on it, and it didn't really matter who it belonged to.

He took a hard bite of the black bread, soaked it in a mouthful of warm snow water to soften it, put it into his throat, and then used his teeth to tear off a piece of stiff meat and swallow it.

This way of eating can only be described as eating, which is boring, mechanical and boring.

The same food, the same way of eating, tastes the same.

Eric, five extraordinary people and one Vestron formed a small circle and were discussing with each other.

"Tonight, Goyle and Link will be on guard duty." Eric looked around at everyone: "Tomorrow it will be Mosingan and me."

"We are getting closer and closer to Heleti's hometown. Let's all work harder and stop changing shifts. If there is an emergency, some of us must be in top condition."

Link poured the water bag back and forth with both hands: "I will be alone tonight. I am a flame fighting spirit, and the cold will not hurt me that much. I will arrange Gower and Mosingan tomorrow. You are the commander, so you must get enough rest." OK."

"I am at the second level, and you are only at the first level." Eric snorted: "My physical strength is much better than yours."

"I'll do it!" Weisidong volunteered: "I haven't stood guard yet, who can help me give it a try? I promise to be obedient!"

The air was a little awkward for a moment. At this moment, Simon said: "Link is right, Lord Eric, you are the commander and the only second level. You must be in the best condition to deal with emergencies."

"So, why don't I come and keep vigil."

"No!" The other four officers objected in unison.

The sound was a bit loud and immediately attracted the attention of the soldiers.

After the curious eyes dissipated, Eric lowered his voice: "Any one of us can stand guard, but you can't. The entire army is pointing at you to explore the road."

"If something goes wrong and you can't find the camp location in time, your morale will probably collapse."

This sentence made sense, and Simon could only nod.

"Then it's decided like this." Eric ordered: "Tonight Link will take Visidong to keep vigil, and tomorrow it will be Gower and Mosingan. If there is no problem, from now on it will be you two groups who will rotate."

Everyone nodded in agreement, especially Vesdon, whose face was full of excitement.

After eating together, everyone dispersed and returned to their respective places. Eric was wrapped in a blanket and leaning against the wall, staring at the firelight in trance.

If he had only known before that no one had ever dared to march into the Bloody Highlands in winter, then now he has a deep understanding of the reason——

cold.

The Baron prepared enough cotton-padded clothes, blankets and tents, provided sufficient nutritious food, and used up a quarter of the packhorse team just for fuel.

But this is not enough.

The bloody highlands are so desolate that you can't even see a tree even if you walk for dozens of kilometers, let alone cut down trees for fuel for heating.

This fire pit alone can use nearly 100 kilograms of firewood in one night to keep it burning, which is about the capacity of a pack horse.

It is very luxurious to be able to find a completely windless location like today. Most of the time they will be stationed in a mountain col with leeward wind. A mere fire pit cannot provide much heat at all. No matter how thick the equipment is, it can only barely keep people from getting burned. freeze to death.

In order for the entire army to have hot meals and ensure warmth in the cold climate, at least ten people need to share one fire pit. Ten fire pits will burn the capacity of about ten pack horses a night.

One twentieth of the capacity of the entire packhorse team!

Therefore, in order to ensure that the fuel is not exhausted early, wood must be saved.

Even if they can't keep warm, as long as the fire is burning, they can keep these numb soldiers from collapse.

"The Baron's decision is indeed the right one. It must be made quickly without any delay." Eric murmured.

The winter march was so difficult, it was even more impossible for Heleti to be prepared. This attack could be completely beyond his expectations, and the balance of victory would still favor their side.

"I don't know where Lord Baron and the others have gone."

The crow at the entrance of the cave rolled its eyes, suddenly flapped its wings, fluttered and flew into the air, ignoring the cold wind as if it were nothing, and swept away to the southwest.

"Gah——"

…