The Blackmane Tribe's camp was located southwest of Deer Lake, and for Ed and the others, it was tantamount to walking back, and Naria looked anxious and impatient, making Ed sincerely hope that they could really get some definite news here.

Naria's mood has been so bad lately that she doesn't even care much about Tess, let alone have any good looks at him.

The camp was very lively. Before you even stepped inside, you could hear the loud neighing of horses, which swaggered between more than a hundred tents, large and small, looking more like their owners. There was a high fence around the perimeter of the camp, and I don't know if it was to protect the people inside, or to keep the horses from running away without a trace. Just outside the camp is the frozen Deer Lake, and the snow is so flat that Tess wants to go up and ski a few laps in a sled.

Ed had heard Hal say that the men of the Blackmane tribe loved their horses more than their wives and children, and they liked to keep them free, but he was still a little dumbfounded by the fact that they were too free. It is said that horses that have grown up with savages, even if they look like wild horses, only need a whistle and immediately return to their owners, loyal and brave. So Norwe, who made the horses suddenly lose control with a whistle, was constantly watched by the barbarians all the way, but as far away as possible.

They probably thought the elves had some strange magic.

Both Hal and Nutka were quickly taken to meet the chieftain of the Blackmane Tribe, but Ed and the others were stuffed into a small tent.

"Why do we always get mistaken for bad people?" Tess sat on the side, holding her head in boredom and pretending to be puzzled, "being treated as a thief by the dwarves and being treated as a bad mage by the Anktan...... Guess what the people here think of us?"

"We are dragon slayers hired by Noutka...... I don't think anyone will ask us, but if asked, it should be like that for the time being. Norway said.

Naria absentmindedly tugged at her knotted hair and didn't say anything.

"At least we weren't driven away at once, like the other adventurers, but went into the barbarians' camp, which is already remarkable!" said Ed, poking his head through the crack in the door, but was soon rudely pushed back by a large hand.

"yes, it's like making history. Tess laughed at him.

Ed rubbed his nose and began to study the rough patterns on the tent until he was sure that it was nothing more than an ancient stain accumulated over the years, and Hal and Nutka finally returned.

Hal looked exhausted, apparently being questioned again. Instead, Nutka brought back news of the Ice Dragon.

"They say the dragon disappeared for a while, and it reappeared about a month ago...... "Nutka's solemn face gave everyone a sense of foreboding.

"They said it took a couple of kids. ”.

Narya lay upright, staring at the top of the tent, where there was a strange stain that looked like a smirking face in the firelight.

She couldn't sleep. No one could have slept, not even Akan snored at all, only the sound of Tess tossing and turning and Mochi's disgruntled chirping. Hal was scared away by the eerie atmosphere, and even though it was warmer and the humans had treated him well, he preferred to stay with his reindeer. He couldn't understand why the people who had gone to kill the ice dragon were not a little excited when they heard the news of the dragon, but each one was more gloomy than the other.

They went to confirm the news that Nutka had brought back—and again and again, interrogating every detail, until the barbarian, who had lost his two daughters, picked up his axe in a rage.

It could only be Is. It took two cows, three men, from the barbarian's camp, and by that time it had a crying child in its paws.

Ed is still convinced that Iss is not hurting anyone.

They only saw him take the men, but they didn't see him eat them. Even with a pale face, Ed insisted, "Maybe he ...... I just feel lonely and want to catch a few children to accompany him. ”

Nalya didn't know if he really thought that, or if he was just trying to convince himself that the one with the dragon's body was still his friend.

She couldn't think any further—she remembered Iss as the boy who had never killed an animal and had never had any blood on his hands. Even if she had seen the ice dragon before, she only remembered that it had saved them.

But now that she thinks about it, she does know that it kills, and it didn't hesitate to tear apart a necromancer in front of Norvi and Tess.

"But it definitely didn't eat him, it didn't even lick the blood from its paws!" Tess emphasized, as if it could change something.

It can kill the people it hates and hates, and maybe it can kill those it doesn't care about, and maybe one day, when Nalya stands in front of it, there will be only indifference and cruelty left in those huge golden eyes. After all, what is a human being for a dragon? They are not even its own kind -- and it is not its own kind that has not been killed.

Naria pulled up the blanket and covered her head - she couldn't think about it anymore.

"If you're afraid, you can leave. "Nutka clearly took all their strange actions and expressions as fear. "My people will help me. ”

The Blackmane tribe is aggressive but also fearless, and Nutka knows that it will be easy for her to find warriors willing to slay dragons with her.

"Nope. We'll go with you. Naria said stubbornly, even though she wanted to run away. Maybe she should have listened to Scott a long time ago, so that at least in her heart, Iss would always be innocent. But now that they've come here, she can't allow herself to turn her back and pretend she's doing nothing just because she didn't see it.

It was clear to everyone that Nuttka would not have been able to kill the Ice Dragon alone - at least, she might have been able to stop it from doing more wrong.

The ice dragon skimmed across the night sky, its wings splitting through the clouds and flying lower.

It doesn't care about being discovered, and it even has some expectations of being discovered. Those screams might have made it more sure who it was...... What is it.

It only sneaked out after the humans fell asleep - it certainly wouldn't continue that stupid game, it just lost interest in turning into a dragon in front of them.

It couldn't refrain from searching for Naria and Eddard for their traces. The group had been heading north, and if they were left alone, they might actually find its cave. Before then, though, it can leave and fly back to the sea of ice. There's never going to be a way for them to cross the ice to find it, if they're really stubborn to that point......

Even if they were really stubborn to that point, it wouldn't be able to go home with them.

There are many things that it cannot be sure of, but this is one thing that is certain - it cannot go back, just as time can never go back to the beginning.

It can go on and on. Compared to it, human life is as short as a dream. It only takes a few decades for everyone who ever knew that human boy to disappear from this world, and no one will come back to bother it and remind it of what it once was...... It should be absolutely relieved by this, but it is inexplicably irritated.

Perhaps it should have been more straightforward, and simply appeared in front of them, and made Nalya understand that there was no hope for what she wanted to do, and let her go home willingly, live her life well, and forget about the boy named Is...... Just like itself.

That seemed like a good idea - it told itself.

In fact, its body betrayed it once again, almost unconsciously turning southwest, away from the direction Ed was heading, and trying to justify itself.

It's not too late to go to them when you're full.

But it found nothing to eat, not even a camp still inhabited, and lifeless in the snow, which would be too desolate and dead for a dragon.

The ice dragon was upset. It's not really in the mood to trouble the necromancers lately, but apparently, they need some lessons.

It pulled upwards and saw the faint glow of the fire on the edge of the deer lake in the distance. It hadn't been there yet, but it knew that the barbarians were gathering there, and maybe they could deal with the necromancers themselves, and they wouldn't need it to help - after all, in the eyes of the barbarians, it was in the same league as the black-robed humans.

It flew towards the firelight. Since it doesn't like cannibalism, gold and gems, scaring people has become one of its few pleasures, and there are some things it can use.

"Dragon!"

At the hearing of that word, the entire tent jumped almost simultaneously.

“...... Did I hear me right? is that saying 'dragon'?" Ed asked dumbfoundedly, the pronunciation of "dragon" is almost the same in any language.

Without a word, Nutka dressed as fast as she could, picked up her sword and rushed out.

"I guess so. Tess said, still curled up in several layers of hides, with only her head exposed, like a strange, half-folded worm.

Naria reached for her cloak and wrapped it around her, running out without even putting on her shoes.

"Naria!" Ed cried, struggling to pull on his boots, "Wait for me!"

When he finally lifted the thick curtain and ran out of the tent, there was already chaos outside. Horses running all over the ground became the biggest nuisance, and while people were running around in panic, equally frightened horses ran around, knocking many people to the ground.

Ed looked up at the sky, and saw no dragon at all.

"Go find Naria!" Noway nudged him, and he came to his senses, frantically searching the crowd for the figure of the brunette girl, who looked extraordinarily petite here and was easily stopped by the tall savages, but Ed knew how to find her.

"She'll run to where the dragon is!" he shouted.

"Over there!" Norway pointed him in the right direction, and Ed had heard the roar.