The blizzard raged, and the cold wind howled incessantly through the night.
At the entrance of a cave at the foot of a mountain, a campfire flickered with weak light. The shivering refugees huddled around the fire, staring eagerly at the pieces of meat placed over the flames.
Under the leadership of Yuna, people stood on high ground and used stones to kill a limping goat.
Though all the animals in the highlands of the Eastern Border were the property of the noble lords, the refugees could no longer care about that. They had been driven out of their homeland and had been struggling on the road for three days without a single grain to eat.
Fat dripped into the flames, releasing a tantalizing aroma.
A thin man swallowed hard, shifting uneasily, his teeth clenching as he endured. By now, even the most foolish person knew that they could only survive by sticking together.
"We’ll reach the southern border soon..."
The man tried to divert his attention, murmuring, "I heard that if we can just hold on until we get there, things will get better for us..."
"But I heard that Lord Roland, who occupies the Southern Territory, is a traitorous demon..."
Another female refugee hesitated as she spoke, "He sends soldiers to slaughter all creatures approaching the Southern Territory and then uses terrifying means to turn their bodies to ash..."
She said dejectedly, "Maybe we should stay as we are. At least we can survive by relying on the beasts..."
The people fell silent again, turning their gaze to their consistently mute leader.
Yuna was an ordinary-looking girl, slender but with toned muscles akin to a nimble and agile antelope.
At that moment, she was smearing the brain of the goat she had dug out onto its peeled skin, working earnestly, like the daughter of a hunter should.
"If we stay as we are, the only outcome will be getting caught by the noble lord’s guards and hung on the railings."
Yuna softly replied, "The south is forested, allowing us to hide better, with more beasts to hunt, and... there is no Blood Plague there."
A young girl lay beside Yuna, her face pale, her breathing rapid, and her forehead burning hot.
"Cough, cough..." The little girl spat out clots of red-black blood again, her expression pained and her breathing growing weaker.
"Hold on a little longer, Meili." Yuna’s eyes dimmed as she tightened the fur wrapped around her sister, "We’re about to have meat to eat..."
The people fell silent once more, as the roast meat was nearly done, their only hope was at hand...
But in the next moment, a sharp scream pierced everyone’s ears!
"Everyone! Something is coming after us!"
A man rushed in hurriedly, his voice filled with utmost terror, "It’s a pack of wolves! No... monsters! They have red eyes all over their bodies!!"
"Run!"
Chilled to the core, Yuna immediately carried the little girl on her back, shouting, "Run! Head south! If we get trapped in the cave by the wolves, we’re done for!"
The exhausted refugees panicked once more as the weak fire was extinguished; the thin man gritted his teeth, grabbed the roasted meat, and was the first to dash out of the cave.
The blizzard roared, myriad eyes lit up in the dark.
In extreme terror, he fell to the ground, surrounded by eyes. Despairingly, he looked up as blood-red monsters, covered in dense eyeballs and twisted sharp teeth, were already within reach.
Horrendous wails and blood-curdling sounds of gnashing teeth jarred everyone’s eardrums!
The refugees scattered and fled in all directions.
With the unconscious little girl on her back, Yuna ran forward with all her might, countless crimson gazes locked onto her. Cries of agony resounded unceasingly, and the hill-covered terrain shrouded in darkness became the most brutal slaughterhouse.
Eyes... blood-red eyes were everywhere in the darkness...
No matter how long she ran, those eyes always maintained a certain distance from Yuna, patient and ruthless.
In the next instant, Yuna felt a sharp pain in her ankle, as if something had severed her tendon. The girl tumbled clumsily into the icy snow.
Looking down, she saw a twisted sharp fang deeply piercing her ankle.
Despair wrapped around Yuna’s heart like spider silk.
The wound was rotting rapidly, something seemed to be seeping into her blood, mocking life’s insignificance, then spreading along her veins all the way up.
Her consciousness quickly blurred as she heard the unhurried footsteps of the wolves closing in.
Instinctively, Yuna clutched her sister’s body tightly; finally, she stopped struggling.
On this endless journey, just how many people have died?
She couldn’t remember.
Uncle Nick, who had a simple, honest smile and was willing to share food with Meili.
Sarah, the laundry woman with delicate thoughts, who proactively cared for the children.
Stubborn yet honest, Old Matt, who, despite his age, refused to let others expend energy to assist him.
They all disappeared, the vast snowfall like a bottomless whirlpool, and if a person fell in the wind, they would be wholly devoured by the darkness.
Over one hill, and another would appear ahead, human life as fragile and tiny as weeds in the field.
The noble lords always said that those who forsake the Lion’s Heart Glory would have their souls descend into the most terrifying hell after death, enduring the harshest punishments.
But... is the hell they describe really more terrifying than reality?
The horrifyingly grotesque ’Gray Wolf’ had already approached, its head lowered, splitting slowly into several parts.
Though not afraid, though only numbness remained, tears and snot still gushed from Yuna’s eyes and nose.
I want to live, I so want Meili to live...
Suddenly, she saw the light.
The light raced towards her from the edge of her vision at breakneck speed!
Is it an illusion...
How could there be sunlight at night...
In the next moment, a scorching Long Spear of Ash Soil pierced through the blizzard and the throats of the wolves!
"Don’t be afraid! We are here!!"
A warrior clad in Golden Armor roared! He forcefully lifted the beast’s body, raising it high, as the brilliant golden flames spiraled up his arm, instantly igniting the monster’s body!
The golden flames burned fiercely, and the warrior seemed to hold aloft a torch illuminating the night!
The monster’s wails ceased abruptly in the blizzard, and those eyes began to slowly retreat, as the warrior coldly stared at them, casually discarding the charred corpse aside.
Stepping forward, then—
Charge!!
Wave after wave of golden figures tore through the blizzard, their morale high, like meteors ascending the sky from the ground!
"Captain, these two kids are both infected with the Blood Plague!"
A militia member supported Yuna’s shoulder, hastily pressing a peculiar ball of light to the girl’s forehead, "Hold on, child, I’m using the Sun Ore to save you..."
Drowsily, Yuna felt an unprecedented light and warmth, the discomfort in her veins rapidly dissipating.
The heat continued to increase.
"Slow down, you fool, are you trying to roast her?!"
Another Decurion in Sun Armor hurriedly stepped forward, kicking his subordinate aside, "I see Sean’s teachings went to the dogs!"
"We only need to use sunlight to suppress the Blood Plague’s worsening, treating the civilians is the logistics unit’s task!"
He gripped the Long Spear firmly, striding forward, "Follow me, keep pushing ahead!"