Istria slowly turned the blade, letting the morning light shine through the shallow floating dust on the blade of the steel. The glow of metal is like a mirror, reflecting a thin, serious face, with a brown, piercing gaze. He watched silently, then gently drew his sword from the shelf, bringing up a wisp of smoke.

On the spine of the sword that flickered in the cold light, the words cast by fire were engraved with the color of golden flames in the darkness, 'The blood flows like a river, and the crow's voice lingers; The storm is coming, and the longship is coming, and then an old surname and first name, Edwin Kleve.

He put away his sword and plunged it into its black leather-wrapped scabbard, on which was pinned the insignia of a crow with wings outstretched. The sword hung from a girdle, and underneath it was a black coat and chain mail, and it made a heavy sound of fabric and metal grinding as it walked.

The owner of the bakery, dressed in deerskin gloves, walked through the hall, where the rats were swarmed in the darkness, their slender tails shining through the narrow light cast by the skylight, as if accompanied by the footsteps of the owner. The famine year has arrived, and these creatures born in the dark are strangely fat, oily and slippery.

Istria walked to the door, took off the gray trench coat that hung on the doorknob, draped it over his body, pulled up his cloak, and the low brim of his hat covered his face. He pushed the door open, and the light between the clouds poured into the dimly lit room, and the tiny creatures scattered in a squeak and scream, and the owner of the bakery raised his head in the morning light.

He was silent for a moment, silently watching the light flickering between the clouds, and after a long time, he raised his right hand and lightly pressed the corners of his eyebrows with his index and middle fingers.

"Almost?"

He asked as if to himself, moving his lips slightly.

A huge raven flapped its wings and landed on his shoulder, its blood-colored eyes reflecting the man's stubble-covered face. Under the brim of the hood, at the corner of the eyebrows, there is a small scar in the shape of a claw.

As if in response to his question, the scar suddenly became hot, and even through thick gloves, it seemed to burn life. Istria let go of her hand and raised her brow, involuntarily remembering the somewhat interesting teenager in her heart.

He smiled faintly, lowered his head, closed the door, and walked forward. Like a swordsman, dressed in a heavy coat, with a man and a sword, and the long cloak he was wearing, he gradually disappeared at the end of the alley.

Few people saw him go, as if many years later, the people who lived here had forgotten that there was once a bakery and a taciturn owner.

A timid girl, with an interesting teenager.

……

"You're saying Abigail didn't come back?"

"Miss Sandnight, Abigail was seen leaving with the people on the other side, I mean, he probably didn't go to the inn at all."

With a tired look on his face, Sha Ye lifted the tent and walked out to the comer. Of course, she understood what the other party meant by 'the person on the other side', and she was really just an outsider to this camp.

More and more people are willing to be on their side, but not everyone is happy to see it. The differences between the two sides have long arisen but everyone knows it.

"What did you say?"

"I said, Abigail didn't listen to your orders and went to Mr. Ed."

"But if he hadn't gone to Ed," Sand Night asked, "how did Ed find us?" ”

"This ...... We don't know, Miss Sandnight. The two people who came back to report also looked confused.

In the quiet snow, a few unnamed birds fluttered their wings and fell, causing a layer of snow to fall on top of the tall pines and cypresses. Sand Night raised her head and looked at the forest around her, looking a little silent, and there was always some ominous premonition in her heart.

"They......" she hesitated and asked, "I mean the people on the other side, where did they go yesterday?" ”

"They went to town."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

The two messengers looked at each other and said hesitantly, "Miss Sand Night, there are still many people in the camp who are willing to believe them. After all, before you came......"

"I see," Sandnight interrupted them, "no more. A heavy feeling of dizziness hit her, and the uneasiness in her heart turned into substance.

She gritted her teeth, her face was unusually pale, and the fact that she had not eaten a grain of rice for two days in a row made her feel a little seriously lightheaded. "Miss Sand Night, are you alright?" The two looked at her and asked with some concern.

Sanda shook his head, took a breath, and took a step back a little vaguely, but his feet were weak, and he lost his center of gravity and leaned back.

At that moment she felt as if the whole world was sinking in front of her, and then the world swirled, and in the swirling perspective, she saw the two men running towards her with panicked expressions, their mouths closed one by one, as if anxiously calling her name.

But all she heard was a severe ringing in her ears, which drowned out all the sounds in the world, and she only felt that someone had grabbed her, calling out to her.

But Sand Night has never felt so helpless, he has been the pride of the sky since he was a child, and he entered the academy of Tapolis with outstanding results, and entered the upper echelons of the guild without much effort. Compared to Sora, she is the real lucky one.

If it weren't for all the things that happened to the guild after that, if it weren't for all of this, she wouldn't have fallen into what she is now. But she has never regretted it, and the pride in her heart makes her never easily bow her head and admit defeat, but at this moment, she feels her weakness.

She gritted her teeth and tried to make a sound, but she found that she couldn't control herself even the slightest movement for a while, and she only felt that her whole body was sinking downward.

She shuddered and closed her eyes, tears of helplessness sliding down her eyes, but then a tingling pain suddenly came, and she suddenly felt that she had regained control of her body. Sand Night came back to his senses and realized that he had unconsciously bitten the tip of his tongue, and the saltiness that seemed to smell of metal rust spread from his mouth in an instant.

She ignored the pain, and immediately spoke:

"Get out of this place."

The two people who grabbed her almost stunned for a moment to hear this sentence clearly, and asked with each other looking at each other, "Miss Shaye, what did you say?" ”

"Leave...... This one...... Place, rush ...... Hurry up ......"

Sha Ye shook his head weakly, tears flowed, blood slid down the corners of his mouth, and he said word by word.

A shrill whistle echoed over the forest.

Then another, closer whistle sounded in the direction of the camp.

Figures in green cloaks appeared in the forest, and the hunters jumped from the trees and ran in the direction of the camp. They waved their hands vigorously, warning the people in this direction, and shouted:

"There are enemies!"

"The people of the Ravental Sanctuary are here!"

There was a slight silence in the camp, and then there was chaos in the air, and everyone was in a panicked situation. Almost everyone knew that Sand Night had sent the camp escort out earlier today to pick up a sum of supplies.

Without these fighting powers, it is conceivable that the old and sick in the camp will face a wolf-like enemy, and the Templar knights and their more ruthless and greedy mercenaries and adventurers.

'Bang', the wooden basin in Deelle's hand slid to the ground, her face became as pale as snow, she looked at the shadow of the longing figure in the forest, looked at the black and white robe, the nightmare of the past seemed to hit her heart all at once, and her body trembled slightly uncontrollably.

She immediately felt someone push her, "Run, Deelle, run!" Get out of this place with your sister——! Deelle didn't have time to see who the person who pushed her was, but the words of her sister seemed to wake her up at once, and she suddenly came back to her senses, and the fear in her heart subsided at once, took a deep breath, and ran backwards as soon as she turned around and took a step.

The sound of arrows in the wind swooped down on the nearby tents, and the wails of people before death could be heard far and near, and her heart tightened, for fear that she would fall to the ground in the next moment.

She saw that the hunters who protected the camp met the knights of the Ravental Temple, but mainly with the mercenaries affiliated with the Temple, and how could these hunters be the opponents of specialized warriors, and they were cut to the ground in a matter of three or two.

Those who are familiar, those who have protected them.

Tears welled up at once, blurring her vision, but Deelle didn't dare to stop, because her blind sister was still waiting for her. She saw someone who had been shot in the face by an arrow, and screamed at her with a bloody face, so frightened that she fell backwards with a scream, and her young body fell in a tent.

Blood oozed from her elbows and knees, and wooden thorns were inserted into her palms, but she didn't have time to cry out in pain, gritted her teeth and wiped her tears, and got up again. Carefully bypassing the dying man, he kept saying to the other party, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I can't help you......" before he continued to run forward with tears in his eyes.

One tent after another was left behind her, and the tent where her sisters were finally appeared in front, but at this time, Deelle suddenly heard a scream coming from the tent in front of her. Her heart tightened all of a sudden, stinging vividly, it was her sister's voice—

A couple of men laughing at each other grabbed the weak girl by the hair and dragged her out of the tent. How could the blind girl disobey these people, crying and screaming, "Let go of me, please let me go......"

Deelle's blood clotted when she saw this scene, and she stood in place in a daze.

The tall, rugged men were clad in dirty leather armor, and they weren't even mercenaries for the Templars, but bounty hunters who followed them to beg for a bite to eat.

They call themselves adventurers, but the real adventurers' guilds don't recognize these people at all, they only call them hyenas, and they only pick up some dead people's 'food' on the battlefield. These people can do almost anything, they have no mercy in their hearts, and they can even kill the defenseless for the sake of a shabby piece of clothing.

The tall men were smiling at the moment and placing the rusty iron sword in their hands on the girl's white neck, gesturing repeatedly, as if they were testing where to slash down to satisfy their bloodthirsty desires.

The girl shivered, and that only further amused the scumbags.

It's just that they suddenly stopped, and looked at the little man who suddenly appeared with some surprise.

"Hey, another one," the man in charge whistled, "Look what I found, a little 'shadow man'." ”

The others laughed in understanding.

Deelle looked at these people with a shudder, the fear in her heart almost drove her to faint immediately, she gasped in small gulps, but she could not move a step in the face of her own sister who fell into the hands of these people.

The girl in the men's hands suddenly seemed to feel something, and looked up, her dull eyes looking in the direction of her sister, "-Run, Deelle, run!" - Leave me alone! She seemed to muster up all the courage in her body, and shouted this sentence with all her might.

But how could Deel run, that was her sister, her only relative in this world. Tears flowed uncontrollably, and she picked up a stone from the ground with all her might, and staggered a little to the men.

The tall man sneered, turned back to his companions, and said, "You see, she's ready to attack us. ”

The bounty hunters chuckled.

The man drew his short sword at his waist and walked in the direction of Deelle.

Deelle almost convulsed with fright, and the instinctive fear of her body had already overpowered everything. Tears poured out, but she closed her eyes hard and lifted the stone tremblingly.

Only at this moment, a hand reached out from behind her and gently pressed her cold little hand.

Deelle shuddered, opened her red eyes, and looked back in a daze. The young man, wrapped tightly up and down, held her hand with one hand, while the other hand was quietly pulling a thin sword out of his scabbard.

He put his hand through the handle of the cage and raised his thin sword, pointing the tip of his sword at the bounty hunters—

And at that moment, the young man, with his pitch-black coat, pointed wizard hat, and even a collar that stood up to cover his face, and his calm, silent gaze, and the sword in his hand, were almost the whole world in the eyes of the little girl.

But the hyenas only sneered, as if they had been informed that the decent fighting force in the camp had long since left. "Another milky boy," the tall bounty hunter spat out, "Hey, boy, I suggest you don't point that thing at us—"

But the box rarely talks nonsense.

In fact, he is not used to talking, but only expresses everything with actions. With a lift of his leather-gloved left hand, the tall man's second half of his sentence came to an abrupt end, and the whole person immediately flew up and crashed into the tree behind him with a thud.

Almost everyone heard the crunch of a broken bone.

The bounty hunters were so surprised that they woke up from a dream and drew their swords one after another. But the young man in a trench coat pointed at everyone one by one with his left hand that he had not put down, and whispered one by one: "Detection, metal induction, force field, grabbing people's hearts-"

He pointed to the swords in the hands of these people, and with a flick of his left hand, the bounty hunters only felt a huge force coming from the blade in their hands, and at that moment they seemed to be able to watch as they held their swords and slashed at them uncontrollably.

The box looked at this scene quietly, and rarely opened his mouth and whispered:

"Whoever does evil on his own will reap the consequences—"

The light of the sword flashed, and the scene looked like every bounty hunter who approached the maiden suddenly became enchanted and nailed to the spot motionless, and raised his hands to turn the sword clockwise to kill himself.

The cold blade grazed the fragile neck, and a red blood arrow gushed out. But the blood did not fall, but was frozen in mid-air.

The surviving bounty hunters watched as if they had seen a ghost, gurgling in their throats with too much fear, and the only sanity they had left knew they couldn't turn and run away, and only let out a scream that changed their tone and threw themselves at the box.

But what greeted them was just a few sword lights, and the box was already a first-line combat force in the Seven Seas Brigade, and killing these seventh- and eighth-level garbage was no more troublesome in front of him than killing a chicken.

It wasn't until the last corpse fell that he gently brushed the blade of his sword, and then flicked it, and the blood in mid-air flew backwards with a thud, splashing in the snow there. The process is just a few seconds.

Deelle stood still, watching in amazement.

She was so motionless that the box took the stone from her hand and threw it on the ground without even realizing it.

The box glanced at her and made sure she was fine, before passing her gently and coming to the blood-stained girl. He crouched down, removed his trench coat, and laid it over the shivering girl, and helped her to her feet.

The girl trembled slightly, and from the warm coat, from the broad palms that held her up, she keenly sensed the gender of the other party. She seemed to vaguely sense what was happening, lowered her head, and asked in a slightly trembling voice:

"Deelle......?"

"Sister, sister...... Deelle was stunned for a moment, and finally reacted, she whimpered and wiped a handful of tears, and sobbed vigorously and said, "...... Sister, sister, we are saved, yes...... It was Mr. Aidan Hakosen who saved us...... Woowoo woo ......"

"Deelle, Deelle don't cry......"

The girl curled up her head slightly, unable to see, and was a little overwhelmed for a while, and said thank you with a slightly red face: "Wan, ten thousand, thank you...... Mr. Ai, Aidan Ryan Box ......"

The box tilted his head slightly, and he was a little puzzled in his heart, when did he have such a strange name?

At this time, a cry came from the forest: "Box, where have you been!?" There are a lot of enemies here, come and help! ”

It was the voice of Sky Blue's startling.

Only then did the box turn around and look at the other side of the forest, the 'hyenas' he had killed here were nothing to mention on this battlefield at this moment. In that direction, countless knights in black and white robes were emerging from the edge of the forest.

In front of them, there were a number of more mercenaries, and the dense crowd formed several attack arrows, and they were coming out of the bushes in the snow in rows.

Seeing this scene, Dai Elle suddenly let out an 'ah', and couldn't help but lose her voice: "Sister Sand Night, Sister Sand Night and the others are still in the camp!" ”

The box was silent for a moment.

He looked down at the sword in his hand, and then subconsciously looked to the side, and looked at the black hilt of the sword hanging on the other side, like a raven with curled wings.

The raven's eyes, the blood-red gems, shimmered with a dull sheen.

It was the sword he had never been able to draw.

……