Tess let out a long breath into the sky and watched the white smoke drift away.

"It's cold. She complained.

No one paid attention to her. Everyone seems to be busy checking their luggage, and her luggage is her own Nuo Wei to worry about.

They had just returned to Visa from Christos a few days earlier, and were making all sorts of preparations for their departure. Many of the things Ed had bought back were tossed aside by Alan and Norway.

"If you want to pretend to be a caravan on your way, you can take these with you. "But we'll have to add two wagons and hire a few more men." In that case, you'll probably be able to get out of Anktan's borders next spring. ”

Scratching his head and laughing, Ed dug through the despised, pile of equipment and materials in the corner for a long time, dragging out some for the servants to take out and give away.

Things have improved in Visa. The dwarves reappeared in the autumn with their goods, and even helped rebuild the bridges that had been washed away by the floods in the summer. The lord of the city, Ayir, also died in the fall.

Vala brought Ed back to the funeral, replacing him with his eldest son, Quillin Ayer, a man in his thirties who had just returned from Stonebutch and looked calm enough to carry the burden of a city. He also seems to realize that the prosperity of relying solely on dwarven gems is too fragile, and has made a point of visiting Vala in the hope that River Singal will discuss the Singar spice business with him in detail when he returns to Visa.

However, winter came too quickly, and most of the houses washed out in the summer had not had time to be rebuilt, and the first snow had already fallen. Even with the establishment of the asylum, the rooms on either side of the Collins Temple were open to all worshippers free of charge, and corpses dying of cold and starvation still appeared on the roadside every day.

Vala allowed the Singers' servants to bring back their relatives or friends who needed help, and before they knew it, the empty house was almost full, and even the Château de Chrisses had added a lot of people who didn't need it.

Vara had to take her to Patty Monson, the housekeeper she had taken to Christesburg, back to Visa to take care of it, a stout, middle-aged woman with a soft voice that didn't match her appearance, and who did things quietly and quickly. Despite the crowding of the house, she kept everything in order and did not make any inconvenience to the hosts and rare guests who had suddenly returned to Visa.

Unable to help at all, Ed enthusiastically takes Tess on a tour of Visa. However, it was freezing cold, and Tess refused to go out after "touring" the lifeless streets for a long time, and Ed had to squat at home boredly and watch Naria practice her sword.

One day, Naria couldn't help but kick him.

"Needless to say, Elf and Tess can at least protect ourselves, what the hell are you for?" she teased him mercilessly.

Ed bowed his head and didn't snort, and when Narya thought he had really hurt his pride and was a little upset, he raised his face and said confidently, "I'll pay for it!"

Naria made up for it in frustration.

Ed asked himself the same question when no one was around. He knew he was good at dealing with people, and that would be very useful on the road, as Norway had told him:

"I'm an elf, and Tess and Naria are girls, so it's mostly up to you to find out. ”

Yes, he knows the language of the elves, and the dwarves are not a problem, he will be very useful...... But he still hopes to be more useful elsewhere as well.

For example, a snap of your fingers can start a fire or something.

The night before he left, he was tumbling under the covers, fantasizing about all sorts of magical powers—and then burying his head in the covers in shame at that childish thought.

Finally, he took out the crystal ball that he had hidden in the pendant.

"What the hell am I for?" he asked softly.

In the darkness, no one answered.

They set out early in the morning, like all travelers.

"At a normal pace, you will be at the border in two days, there is an inn in front of the checkpoint, you can stay there for one night, and the next day you will enter Anktan, and in less than a day there is a village called Tapu...... Be careful when looking for a guide at the mouth of the Kuz River...... "If he could, Alan wanted to arrange a daily itinerary for them, but he also knew that it couldn't be, there were too many unpredictable changes in the journey, and he could only hope that the four-hundred-year-old elf could be called a rich experience."

But the elves had never been further north than Visa.

"Celebryan may join you at any time or place. It was another hope he had, but it sounded even less reliable. He gave Calebryne something that belonged to Scott, but hoped it would never be used.

"We'll be fine, Dad. Nalya rarely called him that, but Alan still just wanted to sigh, he didn't know how much he said she really remembered, Ed had at least traveled between Visa and Stonebutch alone, but it was really the first time she had traveled far away without him.

"I'm teaching you swordsmanship just for self-preservation, and try to avoid conflict with other people under any circumstances......" he continued to nag despite his daughter's absent-mindedness.

"Will you tell my father, though I would have written him a letter......" Ed looked down at his mother's hand arranging his clothes, and was surprised and distressed to find that it was much thinner than he remembered.

"Oh, I don't think so, he's gone to the other side of the Summer Sea, and won't be back until at least next fall, and you'll be back long ago by then, and you can tell him everything yourself. Vala swallowed her thousandth remorse and patted her son on the chest, "Take care of the girls." Whichever one you prefer, I'll be happy for you. ”

Ed's face turned red instantly, and he couldn't speak anymore.

Tess let out a long breath to the sky again. She's a little bored.

She had never experienced such a warm and prolonged goodbye, and it made her a little uncomfortable. She lost her parents at a very young age. But what does it matter? She has Norvi, and she has Mochi.

However, Vala came over and hugged her, kissed her on the cheek, and then Ellen, and they even hugged the elves, thankfully Norway did not resist this too "human" physical contact like the other elves.

Tess blinked a little bewildered.

"I don't know if there is a God who will bless you on your journey, but at least give blessings to your loved ones. Alan said, "Find Is, and return safely." ”

He and Vara had been standing on the long bridge across the Vinez River. The travelers looked back after walking a long way, and they could still see the two small figures.

"We were stalked. Norway said.

"Alan really guessed right. Naria said, not looking back, "Paladins? ”

Norway smiled and didn't say anything.

Paladin, of course, but maybe not just Paladin.

They didn't try to keep it a secret, there was an elf joining the journey that was too conspicuous in the north, and sooner or later they would all be targeted, so it was better to act calmly from the beginning. There was no reason to stop them from finding the Ice Dragon, and besides, they didn't know anything about it, so there was no difference between tracking them and following any of the adventurers' squad. Hopefully, the paladins will give up on this pointless act when they find out about it - no matter what, being stalked is never something to be happy about.

Allen guesses that Iss will return to the northern ice fields, or further north, after all, he has spent more than a year there undisturbed.

"He may have built a nest somewhere, ready to sleep for decades. "And I've heard that no one can cross the ice." ”

"There's always a way. Ed said optimistically, "When we get to the ice sea, we'll find out, well, there's the solution." ”

"If not, are you going to pave a glittering path with gold coins?" said to Tess sarcastically. She had heard Nalya say Ed's shameless "I'll pay for it!"

Ed smiled, not paying attention to it at all.

Norway smiled all the time, looking at his young human companions. When an elf asked him how he could endure a long period of time with ignorant, rude, fickle humans, he replied that there was nothing intolerable to think of the fact that the fathers of those men were not yet born when he was born, and that the graves of the sons of their sons were covered with grass when he died.

That was indeed one of the original reasons, and the reason why the elves were able to accept it. But he knew that now, he was truly enjoying every moment with his human friends, whose lives were like flowers in the valley, perhaps blooming and twilight, but more vivid than most long-lived elves.

Sadly, this trip to the dragon may disappoint Ed and Nalya - the elf feels guilty about it, but how can he turn down two parents who are worried about their children?

But...... Who knows? Journeys are always full of surprises.