The weather in the town of Nak is extremely cold today, probably to mourn the unjust death of the dead last night, the lead-gray clouds accumulate over the town and constantly change shape in the cold current, although there is no snow, but the cold north wind is like a sharp saber cutting people's most sensitive nerves.

A carriage was already waiting on a main road out of the city at the southern end of the town, and two old gray-black horses made "sneering" noises from time to time in their noses because of the cold, as if urging their owners to leave the place quickly.

"I'll leave this boy to you, old fellow, and make sure you get him safely!" said Uncle Paul to an old coachman in a sheepskin felt hat.

The coachman waved his hand at Paul, signaling that he was reassured.

"Al, you remember, don't write to me when you arrive in Xinlan, the imperial capital, I will go to see you when I have time. Paul patted Al on the shoulder, "This coachman and I are old friends, and you will be there soon with him." ”

"Also, the letter I gave you must be collected, and when you get to Xinlan, go to the old fellow as soon as possible, and he will settle you. ”

Al gently pushed away the hands on his shoulders that he had seen for more than ten years, and there was still the deep scar on them, which Al remembered was caused by his carelessness while forging steel, causing the hammer to fall off and fall on Paul's wrist.

He stubbornly lowered his head, he was sixteen years old, and he didn't want the man in front of him to see him crying like a child. Yet he was still a child, a child who did not want to leave his loved ones.

Since then, he has been alone again, just like he did when he didn't meet Uncle Paul more than ten years ago, without parents and friends. It was as if fate had played a huge joke on him, and he was back to square one.

"Well, let's go. Paul's voice was low, and he gasped, knowing that Al was complaining to himself, trying to say something but not being able to say it.

Al gave Paul a hug, and Paul could feel the tremendous force coming from Al's left arm, and although it was painful, he didn't want to break free. "You must come and see me! You can't lie to me! I'll wait for you!" said Al, who slipped into the carriage without looking back, and could hear a low sobbing sound coming from behind the door.

There was no difference in testimonials, even the hug was the first time in more than ten years, and then the people who had been together day and night were separated, and the sound of horses' hooves carried the thoughts of the elderly before disappearing into the vast mist in the forest.

Paul stayed where he was for a long time, and the emotional restraint he had practiced as a soldier did not bring him to tears. Because he knows that the two of them may never see each other again, and even if they do, who knows if they are enemies? That stinky boy who grew up watching you want you to be strong enough, strong enough to protect yourself, to withstand whatever is coming.

After dusk, the night fell as scheduled, Paul did not knock on the pig iron sent by his employer as usual, he came to the dusty storage room at the back of the house, which had not been opened for a long time, and took out a combat uniform with his rank removed from an old box, and then skillfully put it on his body, and in an instant Captain Paul, who had been heroic in the Green Valley Defense War, seemed to be back, except for the traces of time on his face, the muscles on his body seemed to be stronger than when he was young.

He turned to leave, without the slightest nostalgia for the place where he had lived behind him for more than ten years, his vigorous steps were still sonorous and powerful, but there was less warmth and more certainty in his eyes.

But in the blink of an eye, Paul dived into the ocean of night like a fish hungry for water.

After a long time, the noise of the town gradually subsided, and there was still not a single spark in the charcoal basin of the forge, next to a hut in the old town, except for a cold hammer leaning there, as if waiting for its master, but the other was gone.

Winter days were always so stingy, and it had only been about an hour since they left the town that the already gloomy sky seemed to be covered with a black veil of the goddess of the night, and the carriage still carried the two of them along the dead-leaf avenue, probably to make a little more of a journey before the night fell completely.

The destination of the trip was Xinlan, the capital of the Josephic Empire, which was close to the coast and had a pleasant climate. However, it takes about five days by horse-drawn carriage from the remote border town of Nack, and this is without delay. Because of the advice of his old friend Paul, the coachman did not dare to slack off, and since he left the small town of Nack, he has been driving two horses with highland blood to gallop.

Outside the car window, the old trees that passed by at a rapid pace shivered in the bleak wind like dehydrated corpses, except for the sound of horses' hooves and wheels running over dead leaves, the surrounding environment was surprisingly quiet, as if trying to set off the atmosphere of parting.

Al didn't say anything all the way, and occasionally the old coachman took the initiative to talk a few words, and he would reluctantly respond, and then there was a long silence.

"Al, it's going to be dark soon, let's get out of the car and get some food after a short walk, plan the trip and then hurry. The old coachman's voice came from the front of the carriage, and the carriage slowed down.

"Okay, I'm sorry for you, uncle. The coachman's words brought Al back to his senses, and he turned on the chandelier in the car, which was an old-fashioned kerosene lamp, and the light yellow light filled the narrow compartment, which immediately made people feel warm.

People are really strange creatures, when you are alone in the dark, your mind is always calm, and suddenly the environment suddenly brightens, and you feel an inexplicable emptiness in your heart. Al is like this, his heart is empty, and a lot of trivial things are pouring out: Uncle Paul should still be working in front of the stove at this time, I don't know if he puts salt in his cooking at night, Uncle always forgets to put salt...

"No hassle. By the way, Al, I can't follow you when I get to Xinlan, I have to go and get medicine for our old woman, and you have to take care of your own safety when the time comes. The coachman advised, "Brother Paul should help you arrange a place to go, you go as soon as possible, settle down before making plans." You young people, it's always good to go out into the world. Don't be like us, stay in the town all your life, spend your whole life buried in such a small place, and don't want to leave when you die. ”

Al smiled reluctantly, he didn't know how to answer the old coachman, sympathy, as if he was the one who was sympathized, there was no relative, even the people he cherished the most had to be separated from him, and the most ridiculous thing was that there was no reason. In the old driver's view, that kind of boring day may be a real happiness, guarding a person in a small place, living a life in peace.