The Rocky Darran Mountains extend in a "ji" shape, dividing the south into east and west parts.
To the west of the word "ji" is the Horrible Swamp, the habitat of the snake people; in the middle of the word "ji" is the dwarf kingdom, and to the east is the territory of the Holy Empire, the birthplace of the Vulcan Cult.
Therefore, there are only three ways to choose from the city of Gardenanlas to the south.
The first option is to enter the Middle-earth plain of the empire through the city of Gardinanlas, cross the territory of many lords, large and small, and then cross the river that divides the south and the Middle-earth.
This road is the safest, but no caravan would choose it except for noble nobles traveling around.
Because the city gate taxes and pass taxes of those lords were enough to make the caravan lose all their money.
The second option is to walk along the Terror River, then pass through the Dwarf Kingdom and enter the southeast of the empire.
This road has no other expenses except for the border customs duties in the dwarf country, and the road condition is very smooth and easy to pass. The most rare thing is that there are many wild animals along the way, which can be hunted by caravans for supplies.
But there is a fatal flaw: you will definitely encounter snake people if you take this road.
It just so happens that among all the known races on this continent, only the snake people include the human race in their diet.
Even people who are not afraid of death are not willing to bury themselves in the belly of a snake man, so this road has never been favored by caravans.
The third option is to go directly to the dwarf country through the great wasteland and a canyon.
I only paid border taxes to the dwarf kingdom, but the road conditions were very bumpy. I had to either walk in the valley or toss between going up and down the mountain.
This is the path Chris and Sion chose.
They are now in a small town on the edge of the Lokidaran Mountains, waiting for the passing caravan to let them join.
It is impossible for a team of only two people to cross the Lokidaran Mountains that crosses the east and west. Not only because of the supply, but also because there are too many dangers to face along the way.
This small town was built in the mountains and has been around for a long time.
Many years ago, a caravan began to choose this mountain col to take shelter from the wind; slowly, more caravans felt that this mountain col could avoid many dangers; and later, the nearby lords smelled the smell of gold coins and established a caravan here.
The small mountain town has become the current caravan supply point. However, it has never had a name. People are accustomed to calling it "the small mountain town in the Rocky Darran Mountains".
The two of them waited in the small mountain town for more than ten days.
It's not that the passing caravans were unwilling to let them join, it's just that they arrived early.
It took four or five days to get here from Gardinaras, just in time for the spring flowers to bloom in the Rocky Darran Mountains. After the thick snow melted, a stream formed from the top of the mountain and merged into a canyon.
Flash floods swept across the entire wilderness.
If you choose to cross the mountains at this time, you are courting death.
So the two of them had no choice but to find a tavern to stay in and waited boredly.
There are many travelers or adventurers like them in the small mountain city, and there are also small caravans that have arrived early - they who are not strong enough come here early in order to join forces with similarly weak caravans to increase safety by staying together to keep warm.
Chances of reaching the dwarven kingdom.
Dragons and snakes are mixed here, but the atmosphere is very warm.
Everyone waiting to set off knows that on the upcoming journey through the wilderness, each other will face the same challenges and will be partners fighting side by side, so people try their best to release goodwill. In order to avoid being insulted by themselves,
One push will mean that for the rest of the journey, you must be wary of the sharp knife stabbing out of your back at all times.
Chris likes this atmosphere very much.
There is no dark psychology of scheming between people, no disgusting hypocritical smiles, and no ugly faces that bully others or pretend to be aloof. Everything makes him feel that the sunshine after the rain is very warm, even the things that can be seen everywhere
, the nettles climbing all over the low wall became particularly enchanting.
He also regained his sense of novelty about the outside world, mingling with people from all over the world and speaking with different accents, and letting go of his youthful energy.
It also ushered in many firsts in life.
For example, when I threw away my noble status for the first time and drank with vulgar mercenaries, I realized that low-quality ale will make people feel dizzy when they wake up the next day...
For example, I made money for the first time in my life.
Under Sion's instigation, he climbed onto the platform in the small mountain city where fists were used to win money, and successfully knocked down the opponent and won ten silver coins.
That was also the last time he stepped onto the small platform.
Because when he was fighting, his long flowing bright red hair, slender figure and beautiful face made many women watching on the side have a crystal luster in their eyes.
So he was invited for the first time.
Just as he walked down the small platform, a young woman with many freckles squeezed to his side, with a flushed face and rippling eyes like autumn water, and told him in a low voice and eagerly that she lived there.
In whichever street in the small mountain town, in whichever tavern, in whichever room, I will leave the door open for him tonight, and wait for him to come and explore together the mystery of how life was born...
However, the invitation failed.
He didn't go.
His father Kafka's loyalty to his mother Avril had a great influence on him.
This also makes Xion feel very sorry.
The freckles on that young woman’s face are so cute and playful, and her cherry-like buttocks are so plump and round~
Oh, here’s that damn old widower of Vulcan!
Why wasn't he the one invited?
Obviously he has been on the platform many times and won many silver coins...
By the way, Chris was forcibly kissed for the first time in his life.
It was when he was wrestling with others in a tavern to decide who would treat the other party to a drink. A dancer in cool clothes took advantage of him not paying attention and kissed him hard on the cheek, which made him stand up with a blush on his face.
He ran away, causing everyone in the room to laugh and whistle.
Happy time is always short.
As more than ten days passed in a blink of an eye, all the caravans packed their bags and started on their way.
In the Rocky Mountains after the spring flood, sufficient snow water moistened the entire land. The green grass broke free from the shackles of the dark land and swayed proudly in the wind. The trees on the rolling hills were covered in green. Wherever you look, there are
Like the green on the earth climbing up the mountains, and then spreading to the blue sky, weaving a dreamy ribbon on the green and blue skyline, becoming confusing and extremely colorful with the intensity of the sun.
Spring is cold and cold, but it cannot stop life's yearning to bathe in the sunshine.
The Great Wilderness is a gently sloping stretch of mountains with increasingly higher terrain. It is not deserted.
On the contrary, the vegetation here is very lush, there are countless large and small lakes, and it also supports countless herbivores and ferocious beasts.
Under the guidance of the sun, you can often see groups of wild cattle swaying around and gnawing on tender grass, and flocks of birds are often startled. Together with the lush scenery, it makes you feel like the grass is growing and the birds are flying.
artistic conception.
These piles of herbivorous meat have also attracted countless species of carnivorous beasts lurking in the grass, woods, water, and even hiding underground, always ready to launch a fatal blow when the prey passes by.
That's why people call this place the Great Wasteland, not referring to the desolate land, but to the desolate human habitation here.
Because these ferocious beasts are too deadly, no humans choose to settle here.
The sky is very clear today, and the gentle breeze cannot take away the warmth given by the sun. It is a good time to go on the road.
Looking down from the sky, on the vast wilderness, the caravan starting from the small mountain town is like a black line, winding towards the heights of the mountains; if you look carefully, you will find that this black line is actually a
There are small sections separated by small sections, like many insects squirming.
They were caravans that were put together temporarily. In order to facilitate management and deployment of defense, they were divided into multiple small groups separated by 100 meters, and each small group elected a leader to take charge.
The personnel of each small group are also arranged differently.
On the outermost sides of the small team were the caravan's guards and scattered travelers and adventurers.
If they are attacked by ferocious beasts during the day, they are the first line of defense, so their weapons are placed in the most convenient places so that they can be taken out as soon as possible.
Next to them are the mercenaries hired by the caravan.
Except for the elite scout team who were already running ahead to explore the road, everyone else was sleeping on their horses. Their duty was to keep vigil at night, which was the most dangerous time in the Lokidaran Mountains.
Further inside are women and people who are cared for.
For example, people who are protected by their medical skills, caravan cooks, dancers whose bodies are goods, and some noble children who behave elegantly and pay many gold coins to the caravan. This is also the most unclassifiable group in the entire small team, men and women.
There are all of them, the noble and the humble are mixed together, and the vulgar mercenaries collectively call them: a group of eggless people!
Of course, some female warriors are on the outside, and they don't bother to be protected.
In the middle of the caravan is a line of kodo beasts slowly moving forward.
They are the core of the entire caravan.
The kodo beast is five meters tall and weighs more than ten tons. Its flat back is piled with various commodities and supplies. There is also a thin human sitting on its short and thick neck. That is the kodo beast's charioteer.
When walking on this trade road, kodo beasts are indispensable.
They carry an astonishing amount of weight, almost as much as their body weight, and are very docile and resistant to hunger. Their huge four feet are so big and thick that they will not get bumpy even when walking on rugged ridges. According to legend, kodo beasts were first domesticated by the tauren.
, but as the humans drove the demi-human tribes out of the northwest plains, humans also became one of their masters.
As for carriages, there are none in the caravan.
The changing terrain and increasingly higher terrain of this trade route made horse-drawn carriages a burden.
Therefore, both men and women in the caravan were riding horses, holding a pack horse carrying tents, clothes and dry food. This made the caravan very bloated and gave the wolves a higher success rate in their attacks.
Yes, the biggest threat to the wilderness comes from wolves.
The wolves here are as big as calves, with blood-red eyes and a white line running from their foreheads to their noses. They can easily snap a horse's neck with one bite.
The strength is also very strong. If someone who has not reached the peak of a warrior meets alone, the outcome will be between two.
What's really scary about them is that they hunt in groups. The number of wolves in each pack is as low as about fifty, and as many as more than a hundred. Except for the monsters that live in the water, all creatures walking on the land are their food.
.Even the more powerful ferocious beasts can be turned into food by relying on their huge numbers.
The wolves of Lokidaran are the lords here, grazing this vast wilderness.
Every time a caravan walks through the wilderness, many people will become their food.
But no one complained or changed the route.
Because compared to the snakemen in the Terror Zee or the high city gate taxes and customs duties of the lords of Middle-earth in the Holy Empire, the ferocious Lokidarran wolf is as cute as an unweaned baby.
Chris and Sion, who temporarily joined the caravan, were inevitably placed at the outermost part of the small team, acting as humanoid early warning devices for ferocious beasts to attack the caravan.
But, it's okay.
It has been five days since we entered the wilderness, and no one has found any trace of the vicious beast.
As the Kodo is the absolute core of the caravan, the itinerary is naturally determined based on its physical strength.
They don't walk very fast but have great endurance. No matter how rugged the mountain road is, they can walk continuously for seven or eight hours a day, almost fifty miles.
In order to ensure that there is enough time to deploy defenses before nightfall, the drivers will feed them when it is slightly light, pile them with goods and drive them on the road.
There is no time to rest before setting up camp.
Everyone’s lunch is to eat the dry food they brought with them. Of course, you can also choose to stop and cook a hot meal, but the caravan will not wait for you.
So whenever they encounter a red flag stuck on the ground, everyone in the caravan will cheer.
That was the sign left by the mercenary scout team exploring the road. The red flag means setting up camp.
It’s another day at camp.
The sky is beautiful, and the sunshine in the evening is still warm.
The caravan was inevitably noisy. Those who drank the horses, those who went hunting, those who fed the kodos, and those who prepared dinner were all busy.
Young girls wearing skirts of various colors spread the tablecloths on the grass in twos and threes, put some dried fruit pulp on it, and boiled a pot of black tea, and a lively social gathering began. They were riding on horses all the time.
It was very boring during the trip, and they were already bored out of their minds because they liked chattering.
Aunts are not involved.
On this trade route, the only older women are cooks, without exception.
They were busy finding stones to build a stove and preparing dinner for the mercenaries and caravan guards.
Although it's still early, there are too many people, so it's better to start working early, and the mercenaries' vigil food also needs to be prepared.
The feelings of young girls are always poetry.
There were more or less freckles on their faces, and from time to time silver bell-like laughter came out of their small mouths under their sour noses.
Some of the bolder ones pointed their fingers at the men nearby and commented. This young man with red hair is so handsome, the middle-aged man with yellow hair is very good-looking, and the bald muscular man over there might be a threesome.
A short, soft-footed shrimp that only needs three in and out...
The laughter was rising and falling, rippling in the sunshine and breeze, constantly playing with the turbulent hearts of the rough men gathered in a circle outside.
Chris and Sion were in no mood to appreciate the youthful energy of those girls.
They all had a trace of frustration on their faces.