''It's getting colder, it's already in the north, isn't it?'' ‘’

Byron took off his gloves and exhaled a hot breath.

He was surrounded by a circle of militiamen armed with spears and shields, as well as caravan guards on horseback, armed with swords and spears.

And in the middle of this circle were a few peasants trembling and looking at Byron and the soldiers around him with fearful eyes, clutching iron forks and rusty butcher knives.

They are desperate serfs who have ventured to become robbers, intending to sneak up on Byron, who comes out to pee.

Well, it's clear that they didn't succeed.

"Throw down these rags, you guys go, count me in a good mood today."

Byron waved his hand, and the caravan guards behind the robbers made a way, and the poor men immediately threw down their "weapons" and left almost on all fours like wild dogs.

"Hopefully they won't freeze to death."

Byron laughed, but was not at all happy.

From this place, he could see a white line to the north, which was the beginning of the snow field of Vekia, and the border of Vekia.

When summer arrives, the snow on the lands south of Vekia will melt and thaw, knowing that the first heavy snow of winter will come.

In between, Wikibians will work intensely to stock up on food for the next winter.

And this time is also the best time for travelers to visit Vicchia.

Byron and the others set out early, in order to make a few more orders of business before the arrival of a large number of southern caravans.

When he came, Byron left 1,000 dinars in Dehrim in case he needed it. He took 3,000 dinars with him and went north, and when he returned, he hoped that the number would exceed 10,000.

"Put on winter clothes all of them, or don't blame me for not reminding you when you freeze your fingers!"

Fatis and Bandak reminded the recruits who had never been to the North, while the mercenaries changed into their soothing clothes early in the morning.

Sometimes mercenaries provide unexpected help, and you never know where they've been, which deep path, or some strange people you've met.

And these details of the war, which are not recorded in the book, may sometimes be able to determine the success or failure of the entire battle, or save the lives of thousands of people.

Coincidentally, some of Byron's caravan guards had been to Vecchia, and even one was a northerner himself. Of course, he wasn't a mercenary at the time, and his work wasn't clean. But Byron didn't care, and if the stakes were sufficient, he wouldn't mind cooperating with robbers and bandits, as long as those gangsters didn't touch his things.

Byron didn't face much danger along the way, but the passes along the way were a real headache for him.

The lords of Svadia set up cards all over their territory, and the names of the excesses varied from one castle to another, proving that the merchants had paid at least four taxes, but that there would be three or eight more taxes waiting for them in the next realm.

Byron didn't take the road from Drehem to the border of Vecchia more than he did from Paraven to Wiruga, but he paid two and a half times as much money to the lords along the way as before.

85 dinars, it may not sound like much, but Byron they didn't have any goods, they didn't trade near the castle, and they spent the money of four ploughing oxen on that damn "commodity tax"!

Luckily, they've made it through the last castle that holds the choke point, and they don't need to pay for the anymore. Ahead lies the territory of Vekia, where no soldiers and tax collectors want to stay in the snowy fields.

At the border, veteran light infantry and archers from Vicchia with pointed helmets and round shields and tomahawks patrolled. Some of them rode horses in pursuit of smugglers and criminals, as well as serfs who had left their homes intending to escape.

In small wooden bunkers on the border, officers drank hot water, complained to each other about the weather, and tugged at the little thing between the women's legs.

When Byron and the others reached the border, they were immediately stopped, but they were friendly to Byron and them, after all, a guilty man would not dare to pass through a place full of guards so openly.

Vekia's archers are good at using bows and arrows, shooting fast and accurately, and escaping without protection is a suicide for an unprotected prisoner right under their noses.

"Welcome, peony mercenaries, take care of your body, don't die on the snow."

The leading Sergeant Vikia shook a few silver coins in his hand, gave Byron two words of advice and two jugs of hot wine, and let them go.

Byron's procession made its way north, dressed in coats so thick that it was difficult to move, and tread the snow that was slowly beginning to subside, passing villages along the way.

Wikibians live in warm houses, around fires. They nibble on the leftovers of the winter and talk about when this summer will come and when they will start cultivating their land.

Or rather, the land of their old men.

There were some serfs in the kingdom of Swadia, while Vikia was full of serfs. They are destitute, and they will not stop feeding on the food that the landlords' cattle eat, generation after generation.

This made it very difficult for Byron to recruit soldiers in Vekia. The serfs lived in poverty but had no personal freedom, while the free peasants guarded their wives and children, and would not agree to follow Byron to the outside.

As for the landlords, they don't want to give them what they want, and chatting with those who are insatiable is simply a waste of time.

And the three heroes in Byron's team also have different opinions about what happened to these people.

Phatis sympathized with them, but thought that it was a law made by the king and the nobles, so he could only express regret, and although he had the heart, he could not help.

Jamila was dissatisfied and angry with this system, and begged Byron to give some food to the hungry children, she had seen many poor people in Rhodoc, but even the beggars were freer and more dignified than these serfs. She is very kind, very smart, and even thinks of some ways to save them, but she ignores some differences and the status quo between the two sides.

As for Bandak, he wanted to smash open the warehouse doors of the fat landlords' houses and divide the grain. But he's still quite sane, so it's just lip service.

Byron didn't say what he thought, because sometimes many things are not what they see. And what Byron wants is not to overthrow this system, at least not yet.

What he wanted was steel made from high-quality iron ore from the snowy mountains, and those thick and beautiful ferret furs, which were good things that would help him get rich.

He couldn't stop, he didn't have time to help the villagers, Vecchia's trade routes were reactivated, and he had to buy goods in large quantities before the other caravans arrived, and then find a way to sell them at a high price in another place.

In addition, he also needs to recruit more people, train his own soldiers, organize his own troops, and let the reputation of the Peony mercenary spread in the north and even the entire continent!