A dry wind blew over Murred, and the leaves of Al Helino on Mount Sharp became even more vermilion. There is no doubt that autumn has arrived.

There was no laughter, no joy, just pacing back and forth in the courtyard of Sharp Hill House, Baron Zax Sharp.

He frowned, and the man known as the 'Six-Foot Timberwolf' was now full of doubts. He looked at the stout El Helino red-crowned tree in the middle of the courtyard of Sharp's house many times, and the shadow of his brother Bill seemed to be swaying with the autumn wind, without smiling, and his eyes seemed to be lost.

"To leave or not to leave. It's a tough question. Zax Sharp pondered the tangle in his mind.

Beside him, Sharp, Mulred's Garrison Commander Theoannis and the red-haired Oak Fist stood, their expressions miserable, and they looked at Zax Sharp, who was pacing back and forth with the same uneasiness, and looked at each other from time to time.

"Bill, my poor brother Bill. How nice it would be if you lived. At least you can share some of your anxiety for your brother instead of leaving him alone to face the black shroud. Segal II will not rest on his laurels for the Kolo mercenaries we have hired, and he will eventually use his minions to find us in hiding. The knight who escaped will definitely report the news, and all it takes is time to follow the vine! After a long time, Zax suddenly stopped pacing, and sighed at the Red Crown Wood of Al Helinor, who had once held Bill's corpse, "Alas! ”

"Your Excellency, you shouldn't save me. This time I was too negligent to allow the king's minions to seize the clues in the search for this incident. You could have asked Theoannis to hand me over to the king. Let Murred clear the suspicions. The nobles who only know how to spend their time drinking and the hypocritical king who has a high throne only look at the results. Oak Fist clasped his hands together, his fingers rubbing against each other between his fingers, and he shook his head in frustration, his red hair shaking like a flame burning above the shadows.

"Shut up, Oak Fist, what are you talking about frustration. Your daddy, Essex Root, that donkey isn't what you are! The one who says this is a coward. Do you know? Your dad's old fellow reached out to me in the toughest of times. sacrificed himself, and ended up with a corpse that was not found! We are like brothers and sisters, how can we be turned away from each other for the sake of profit. Besides, it's not your fault. This is a feud. Zax Sharp shook his hand, "I think our activities will soon be known to Segal II." It's not safe here. Maybe we really have to get out of this homeland as soon as possible. If you can, I think you should touch the grass and trees on this red earth. ”

"Ah, what will I do when you leave, Your Excellency? I think if I were left here by you, my companions and I would surely die because of it. Ah, and my family and children. Excellency! Theoannis's sissy didn't seem to have improved much from his long dealings with smugglers, and he licked his lips, trembling with a reckless display of his cowardly nature.

"Theoannis, I don't seem to say that I was going to leave you and your family and your companions here to die. Although you are a defector, you can be regarded as making a lot of contributions to our Sharp family. Oh, remember last time you resisted the pressure to shield us in front of those knights! We, the Sharps, will not be as cold-blooded and ruthless as the Saxons. Zax nodded lightly to Theoannis, he didn't intend to laugh at a cowardly person like Theoannis, in his eyes, Theoannis was just a noble kid innocently involved in the feud between the Sharp family and the Saxon family.

"It's wonderful! We are willing to follow you, Lord Zax. Whether you're in the north or south or far away on Sunset Island or Erwinia. As long as we are by your side, we are safe. I hate the soldiers and officers in the army of Arcanda and the King's army, they are foul-mouthed, murderous, and even more afraid of the dungeons of Parma, I'd rather be right! I would never want to stay in that place for a moment, and I would not be unfamiliar with the title of officer. I even hate holding a sword. The sword is a murder weapon, the chief of war! Theoannis stroked his chest and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Good wishes, I really hope that one day it will become a reality. But this was after I avenged my family. Zax said loudly.

"What Your Excellency did to you, I will keep it in my heart. Alas, since we are going to abandon the House of Sharp, which will soon be no longer peaceful, where are we going to move? Flee to the one-eyed dragon in the Perland Wasteland? Oak Fist sighed, scratching his crimson curls, "It seems that there is only one way out now." ”

"No, there are a lot of us, and we have children and daughters in tow, and we are full of all kinds of goods, so it is not a good idea to go to the north and south of El Helino. The forest may be ambushed by the Kolo mercenary group, which happens to be stationed on our secret trade route. While it is true that the mercenary captain of the Chloe Mercenary Regiment, Fore Annist, has helped us defeat the Third Cavalry Regiment of the King's Army, they are mercenaries to be trusted. I know that although he has a body of martial arts, he doesn't have any brains! If he had been manipulated by the king, we would have predicted the outcome - after all, these warriors fought for money. They have a keen sense of smell for money and goods. Zax Sharp waved his hand quickly, as if lost in thought.

Images of memories slowly came to Zax's mind.

A small, nondescript village sits at the southern foothills of the White Snow Mountains. To the south of him is the secluded Moore Gorge. Zax rode his horse and led the caravan of ox carts through the rudimentary wolf-proof hedges into the village, the smoke rising from the rings of cabins made the village look calm, and a little farther on the hillside, a small wooden fort with a very simple construction stood alone overlooking the village, and the few guards who guarded here preferred to look at the sky with their spears on their backs and be in a quiet daze rather than defense.

"I think I've thought of a suitable place." Zax patted his head, "Just go there, Nilmont—next to the mountain!" ”

"Niermont?" Theoannis and Oak Fist looked at Zax Sharp in confusion and asked in unison.

"You may not have heard of it, but I won't forget the snowmelt iced tea there, a small village on the western border of Yafin, and I'm sure the King's soldiers and the Callable conscripts who had had enough of the extravagant life would never have known of such a place. The questions you both have are the best answers for me. Zax couldn't help but clench the wooden cross hanging from his chest, which was Bill's relic.

"But I don't think it's possible for all of the people to evacuate with you, and as far as I know, there are still many of them who don't want to evacuate with you. After all, they did not choose the same as we did, because they believed that our brothers who were born and died had a faithful heart. Oak Fist frowned slightly, "I have no doubt about the loyalty of most of our Sharpsan and Murred Lords to you. Like Daddy Hahn at the Mill and Boucher at the Leather Workshop, they are all exemplars of loyalty. People like Ewell Sharp exist, but they can't threaten you yet. These people will be bad for you once you have the chance. ”

"Your Excellency. I suggest that we should arrest all those who do not want to evacuate with us. Even so, I doubt that these people will expose the hidden dangers of our evacuation path. As much as I hate killing, I don't mind forcing them to follow us. Theoannis immediately suggested, "I know the habits of the King's army, and their arrival will bring these creatures to misery. Luckily, I was sent here last time to manage the territory. ”

"Couldn't agree more. Although you're a nerd, this is certainly not good advice. Oak Fist's frown suddenly stretched, and he patted Dioannis on the loose shoulder.

"Good advice. That's it. However, I don't like to take away people who don't want to follow us like robbers, and I don't want to hurt them for no reason. For these people, stay in Murred and wait for them to fend for themselves. Just arrest them all before we leave, blindfold them, and put them in a centralized detention at the easily discoverable Sharp House. I must do this in your name, with your Karkhand soldiers, Theoannis. Zax Sharp looked at Dioannis like a timberwolf, and his gaze forced back his self-righteous smile.

"On one side is the beheading for treason, and on the other side is the decapitation of siblings for dereliction of duty. The former can at least live happily, and the latter is equal to dead. Theoannis began to mutter, so worried that he felt his heart beat out, he lifted his legs, looked at his hands, and replied, "Got it, I'll do as your lord says." ”

"You've finally shown a little courage, and this is your first step in the open. All I can tell you is that what little courage you have left in your heart has made you make the right choice every time. You and I both know that once we fall into the hands of Segal Saxon, we are dead, and while we are free, we might as well leave our homeland, give it a go, and wait for the comeback. Zax Sharp's strong hand grasped Theoannis's trembling hand.

The order issued in the name of the Sharpe Commander was quickly conveyed by Theoannis. With the closure of the gates of Murred, all outsiders were turned away, and even all the subjects of Murred were not allowed to leave the barony's territory for half a step. The lords who were loyal to the Sharp family began to pack up their belongings, and the men of the Sharp family were also busy with their duties, and the treasurer of their inventory held the account book in his hand, copying and writing, counting the goods accurately to each small piece, and the porters carried out the inventory goods one by one, neatly sorted them into categories, and put them in the Murred warehouse to be loaded. The Kakhand soldiers, who had surrendered, did not want to cause any trouble, and under the watchful eye of the men in charge of the guards, the two posts rotated, and they also monitored the every move of the people, especially those who were indifferent in the territory.

The blood-colored wanderer quietly climbed to the top of Sharp Mountain in the silence.

The night was surprisingly dark.