Fang Yu looked at the ring in his hand, it was heavy, unremarkable, it seemed to have weight in the palm of his hand, the bright golden flame on it had long been extinguished, and the blazing heat like flowing lava no longer existed, there was no text on it, and there were no patterns.

A snowflake swayed and fell from mid-air, dissolving into his hand, turning into a slight coolness between the clumps of palm prints, tangling with the ring and making the latter even colder.

He clenched it, looked up, and looked at the snowflakes fluttering in the air, it was the first day after the winter solstice in North Kaulin, the snow in the north of Kaulin fell later than in the Talen, Guta and Xilin areas, but the north wind through the sea of clouds also made the winter last longer, and the long winter would last until March of the following year.

Adventurers (Electors) often travel to the warm south to wait for the snow to melt, or venture out into one of the few snowless areas of Ishurian, such as the dense forests of Nosannua, and they have to make their way through this long snowy winter.

Duke didn't tell them much about the dragon's golden pupil, maybe he really didn't understand, but the ring of golden flames really contained the power that could restrain the dark dragon. So the old man only told them to take the Ring of Golden Flame to those three places—

Joshud finally defeated the land of the Dragon Witch, the Ash Mountain Forest, the mountain forest north of Dulun was once called the Great Valley, but an evil dragon fell with it, and the sea of fire turned it into a barren land, and the pale canyon still has no vegetation to this day.

Then there was Idus, a name that few people knew now, and the original site of the city could not even be found on the map, except for a shadow at the southern edge of the brown-red forest, at the end of the westward branch of the Cave Mountains, which was now called Tais, the city of death in the mouth of the desert people.

Finally enter the silver sand sea, and under the moonlight, all the way west, find the oasis lost in the desert, the last retreat of the Oath Keeper, the land of the dragon, but today there may be only a piece of rubble, and the pale ghost lingers between the cold sand for a long time, and the silver ruins echo with the sad songs of the past.

These three places are arranged from north to south, and then turn to the west, which is the route that the Dragon Witch used to approach the royal capital all the way north to the king's capital. The entire Kaulin-Ishurian trembled at the dragon witch's wrath, and even prostrate in the shadow of the dragon's wings.

Until a hero came out of nowhere, with the sword of the dragon slayer in his hand, Galapeia, to save the entire ancient kingdom Yu Jiang.

And the story of the hero has been sung to this day.

But the legend of the witch is not well known.

Fang Yu stood in the midst of the fluttering snowflakes, silent for a moment, he didn't know why he had taken on this task - maybe it was because the ghost sent the gods? Maybe it's because these three places are right on their planned adventure route? Or maybe it's because of Miss Atira's approval?

Maybe it's because of a throbbing in my heart, driven by curiosity about the mission line of the third scourge that has descended? Or maybe in Dorifin's fantasy, there is still a respect for the noble lady thirty years ago.

Or Nicol Bolas's mournful roar in his mind, the shadow of the dragon's return with its wings spread? Finally, he turned into Mazak's serious gaze and warned him:

'Don't forget the enemy who has passed away—'

In the darkness, a snowflake fell on his neck, and the cold pierced his skin like a needle, allowing Fang Yu to return to reality with a spirit, "Don't forget the enemy who has died." He muttered to himself, "What is a dead enemy, the Dark Dragon?"

They've returned—Torragotos is missing, but it's not dead, and no one knows where it's hiding.

Miss Tata looked at her knight quietly over his shoulder, very quiet, indeed, but there was a faint worry in her dark eyes. The throbbing that struck the hearts of the two of them, like a step getting closer and closer, seemed to make Mr. Knight feel a little anxious.

She has a common heart and feels.

Fang Yu tugged the ring into his coat, and the sense of improminence was closer, but it was not uneasy, but rather a question.

It is true that the Dragon's Golden Flame has the ability to rob the power of the Dark Dragon, but if it weren't for the hero Joshud, who would it be, and for what purpose did it be forged?

Mazak should know everything about the Dragon Witch before she left the Dragon Land, and she didn't lose her right pupil before she became a dragon.

So what happened in between may be a secret that no one will ever know.

The only thing that could tell him the answer was the ring, which was why he finally decided to go to those places to find out, but Fang Yuan was not sure of Duke's certainty.

"Still thinking about the Dragon Witch?"

Fang Ou turned his head and saw the big cat man coming to him, who stretched out his paw and grasped a snowflake, the lens of which disappeared in the fur on his paw.

The lionmen have thick fur and manes, but Rotao, where they live in a warm country where there is no snow all year round, is not very accustomed to the northern winters of Kaurin-Ishurian.

"But something suddenly came to mind, Mr. Red."

"If you think too much, worry about wrinkles early, look at your frowning brow, little one."

Fang Yuan shook his head, Miss Scarpe said that his head was empty, and he didn't want to do anything but move forward, but now he is no longer the self he was at that time.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Tata." Red was greeting Miss Elf very gracefully.

Tata looked at the big cat man and nodded at him.

Lady Papamo waved at them below, signaling that Mr. Greystone was ready, and Luo Yu and Sky Blue lowered a soft ladder and picked her up from underneath.

The expedition group was actually ready to leave three days ago, just waiting for the final supplies, supplies to be loaded and unloaded, and since it was the first operation, it was a little slower than normal -

The only one who came to see them off was Princess Brian, and to Fang Yuan's disappointment, Sir Roban, another hero of the Battle of Byrne, whom he had been curious about, had not arrived.

Although according to Her Royal Highness the Princess, Roban was very interested in their group, but he couldn't take the time to meet them.

"Be careful on the road."

Princess Brianne Calanhill waved at them.

Others waved goodbye to her on the side of the boat.

Mr. Greystone stepped forward, and it wasn't long before the figure of the elven princess fell far behind the wind and snow, becoming a small black spot.

Only then did people put down their hands, and they couldn't help but feel a trace of parting sorrow in their hearts, and they didn't know how long and what month they would be able to see this kind and beloved elven hero and princess again.

But the wind and snow soon blew away the sentimentality in people's hearts, and everyone got busy and went to their posts. Attila, with Elisa's assistance, lit a fire in the kitchen boiler, and the heating was transmitted through a metal conduit to the 'ship' before the temperature began to rise.

The third helper in the kitchen, Sky Blue hung a wooden sign outside, and the Paparals and the boxes came to see what the dinner was today, and then complained loudly:

"Why are there carrots again!"

"I hate carrots."

Angry, Tianlan blasted the two out of the kitchen together.

Baggins, who was in charge of the lookout on deck, heard the noise below, glanced down, and couldn't help but shake his head. However, this situation reminded him of the time when he was a sailor.

Fang Yu closed the door of the warehouse, as if he had shut out the wind and snow, he took off his coat, shook the snowflakes on it, and hung it on the wall.

He looked up, and a line of text appeared in the system:

Eugudora: "I'm sorry I couldn't see you off—"

"It's okay, you also have your own tasks."

Eugudora: "Say hello to Kita and Luo Yu on my behalf, this is their first adventure." ”

"I will."

Eugudora: "The first batch of materials has been received, is it enough?" ”

"Hmm."

Yugudora: "If you have any trouble, don't forget to contact us. ”

“……”

Eugudora: "Still in trouble?" ”

"Not really."

Yugudora sent a 'lol' emoji: "Insincerely. ”

Being seen through his thoughts, Fang Yu's face turned red.

After a moment's hesitation, he said, "Don't worry, we're just doing our duty as allies...... The other March batch of materials may be a little later, okay? ”

"What's wrong?"

Eugudora: "Nothing, what do you want to do so much?" ”

Fang Yu nodded: "I understand." ”

Yugudora grimaced: "Captain, you don't talk much, do you talk to girls like this?" ”

Fang Yu paused for a moment: "Red leaves also said the same." ”

Yugudora: "Hehe, how about I let her be your contact when Momiji comes back?" ”

The communication crystal dimmed.

Fang Yu let out a sigh, and a faint white mist dissipated into the air.

He then set off through the narrow hallway filled with supplies and came to his studio, where a crystal lamp hung and the orange light was full of warmth.

At the other end of the studio, Sylvid was sitting on her bed with her back to the bulkhead and concentrating on a map, and when she saw him enter, she raised her head and smiled at him: "Is there a rush outside?" ”

"It's a little."

There were only two people in the room, and the air was somewhat quiet.

Fang Yuan nodded, although it is not a real 'ship', but this platform still has a complete system after being redesigned, and it is not easy to make it work well.

The main reason is that the heat exhaust pipes have all kinds of problems at low temperatures, and the operation of the Guy inflators assembled by themselves is not very good, resulting in the airbags not being able to lift off at full load.

There were also some minor problems, all exposed in the wind and snow temperatures, which was something they didn't expect when they were testing the platform.

Fortunately, with a professional alchemist like him, tinkering finally solved the problem temporarily.

"When the temperature is lowest in the middle of the night, I have to go out and check again."

"Do you need me to wake you up, I was going to work until midnight."

"What's wrong?"

"When planning a route, the information on the map is not always reliable, it always has to be updated and marked all the time." The shipsman's lady put down the map: "In some places, the bridges have been interrupted by the summer floods, and they have not yet had time to be repaired, or the roads have been buried by mudslides, and some news has only come recently, so the plans have to be changed." ”

"Besides, through the north of Cowling, summer is not the same as winter, these are all things that I, as a ship officer, have to consider."

"But don't worry, I'll knock on the door before I come in."

Fang Yu heard her ridicule and smiled.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome, Captain."

On deck.

Kita put down the communication crystal in her hand and leaned on the side of the ship to watch Mr. Greystone sway forward in the wind and snow, Miss Yugudora knew a few days ago that their group would be leaving today.

Unfortunately, she was not able to make it to see them off, and although she expressed this wish in the correspondence, Miss Naturalist felt a little pity.

Miss Eugudora is actually a good person, but everyone in the group has some problems with her.

Kita couldn't help but think of what Miss Yugudora had said to her and Luo Yu before leaving:

"You don't have to think too much about it."

"I'll take care of the guild's affairs—"

She was very short, a head shorter than Luo Yu, and only reached out and patted Kita's shoulder. Then he looked at Luo Yu with frowning little eyebrows: "Luo Yu, you are too tall." ”

Luo Yu could only smile bitterly.

"All in all, this is your first adventure."

"Behave well."

"Although I have kept the Tapolis origin for you, you will only be responsible for your team after that."

"If another guild leader gives you random orders, don't pay attention to him."

"Just come to me."

The two looked at her a little puzzled, not understanding why she would say that.

Eugudora smiled, "Just a vaccination, you have to watch out for those stone heads, you know." ”

Both nodded.

"All right," replied Eugudora, "go back, I shouldn't have come to you, it's a bit unruly, but I'm afraid you're not going to suffer if you're inexperienced." ”

"After all, this is your first adventure—"

"Mr. Ed won't mind these little things." Kita shook her head.

"It's because he doesn't mind that we have to be more measured," Eugudora laughed: "It's the same with teammates, respect is always mutual. ”

If Momiji was here, he would definitely hold his forehead and say, "Miss Yugudora, you may not get along well with others in the guild—"

However, Kita and Luo Yu only nodded honestly.

And that's what Eugudora likes about these two little guys.

Kita retracted her thoughts, and sighed faintly, watching as Mr. Greystone walked farther and farther away in the wind and snow, gradually leaving Golland's outer wall behind, leaving only a thin line in the sky.

Hardy by nature and with its thick fur, it will carry them from north of Kaulin through Tibia Creek to the Cave Bottom Mountains, with a few small towns to seek supplies.

And everyone knew in their hearts that leaving Golande would be the beginning of a long journey.

……

In the Golande port area, Yugudora also put down the communication crystal in her hand, and she raised her head, her blue eyes reflecting the port that was gradually covered with snow.

There is no such thing as a frozen or ice-free port in the empty sea of Aitalia, but due to the silence of the aether magic in winter, winter is indeed not conducive to navigation in some seas further north.

Of course, in the winter of Golland, the port is still busy, with ships coming in and out from time to time, and the orange lights on the ships bring the only warm color to the cool-toned port.

When the others saw that she had finished talking, they came up and asked, "Commander, have you started to act?" ”

Yugudora turned her head and glanced at him, "Call it a day." ”

"Call it a day?"

"The operation is canceled, and the team goes home."

"What?" The others were stunned, the goal was in front, why should they take the team home?

At first, they thought it was the eldest lady's usual joke, but looking at the look on her face, it seemed that this time it was really serious. People looked at each other, not quite understanding what was going on, and they were busy preparing for this mission line here for more than a month, and finally saw a happy result.

Is the information wrong?

Or did you get the wrong target?

Zifeiyu also walked out of the crowd and asked, "What's wrong?" ”

Eugudora shook her head: "An order from the guild headquarters. ”

"What's going on, those people in the guild are crazy?"

"No, it's the meaning of the Super Athletic League."

"The Super Athletic League told us to abandon this mission?" Zi Feiyu was a little surprised, the Super Athletic Alliance does have a strong binding force on guilds and clubs, but it will not interfere in the normal activities within the guild.

"It's not just our mission," Eugudora shook her head, "All guild activities have stopped. ”

"What?"

"It is said that the matter of the Rain-Listener and the Dragon Fire Guild has attracted the attention of the high-level, and all guilds are required to self-check within a limited time, and the Super Athletic Alliance will also send people down and enter all guilds."

"But we're not doing that now?" The others felt a little unreasonable: "And we are also victims of the Dragon Fire Guild incident, don't they have brains?" ”

"They don't think so."

"No one can rule out suspicion." Eugudora replied quietly.

Zi Feiyu looked at his old partner: "But it's not?" ”

The Gray Lady glanced at him, "Why are you so smart?" It's pretty much the same, there are rumors that the Super Athletic Alliance wants to further strengthen the constraints on guilds, and our application to the second world has also run into trouble, and there is a meaning within the alliance that all guilds after the star gate must have a realistic foundation. ”

"Those who listen to the rain also have a realistic foundation," Zi Feiyu smiled: "Meaningful? ”

"It's one thing to have a point, but it makes sense logically, strengthening regulation on the other side is really conducive to preventing this from happening," Eugudora looked into the distance, "Of course you know, it's another thing to know how." ”

"What does the guild say?"

"There are many arguments, and if the Super Athletic League insists on going its own way, we will be under a lot of pressure, but Tapolis is a free guild after all, and this cannot be changed."

Zifeiyu looked at Eugudora, whose words were more like he was convincing himself.

But she didn't explain: "Let's take it one step at a time, the surface work still has to be done, but after the guild, the next step is the adventure group." ”

"Adventure party?"

"I have this hunch."

Yugudora's gaze seemed to pass through the port area, looking in one direction in the wind and snow.

After a while, she didn't wait for the other people's discussion to come to a conclusion, she had already turned around and walked in the opposite direction into the snow. Before leaving, he only dropped a headless sentence:

"Momiji is coming back."

……