The north wind was blowing, and Barrett, hidden in the dead woods, looked through the narrow gap in the middle of the snow goggles at the fortress in the distance. This is the border between the kingdoms of Cruze and Lucia, and since the defeat of the last tournament, the Lucian bears have built forts to defend themselves on the new border, which has retreated a lot.

Thanks to the way of ruling and cultural traditions of the Kingdom of Lucia. The bureaucrats and aristocrats there beckoned the 'livestock' of the realms without fear of their rebellion. Under this efficient conscription, in a few years, these granite forts appeared at key points along the border - some at the exit of valleys, some at the confluence of rivers, and of course at important nodes of various trade routes.

According to Barrett's observations, the fortress in front of him was not very large, and the granite walls on all sides were 25 feet tall even if they were battlements. The towers on the side are about 40 feet long. The trench outside the city had not been able to draw the river into a silver belt, but the sharpened stakes were a threat - but in Barrett's eyes, the trench was almost covered in snow. The sharpened and campfire-hardened stakes only showed a little black tip.

As with most defenses, the fortress in front of you is riddled with arrow holes on all sides, most notably the towers on the side. However, from Barrett's current position, it is not clear whether the ballistas that projected spears were hidden behind the firing holes. I don't know if it's because of the weather, but there don't seem to be soldiers patrolling back and forth on the battlements.

It looks like those guys are hiding behind the battlements and being lazy. Barrett, who was familiar with the situation of the army in the Western Continent, immediately made such a judgment in his heart. Because no matter how corrupt the army is, it is impossible for the head of the fortress not to arrange manpower. What's more, the army of the Lucia Kingdom cannot be called rotten in the Western Continent.

However, there was a clear barrier between the nobility and the commoners within them, and the situation of seniority was serious. Those aristocratic officers will not accompany the big soldiers under their command to blow the cold wind in the city. Therefore, the big soldiers who lack supervision will naturally try to be lazy. Had they not been caught drinking during the examination, they would have been whipped, and Barrett would have been very drunk, according to what Barrett had known about them.

Barrett, who had been staring at him all morning, carefully moved his body, trying to let the branches of the dead trees cover his figure as much as possible. Although there is no patrol on the head of the fortress in the distance. But it's hard to know when those lazy soldiers will suddenly get up and do their duty. Moreover, he could not be sure whether there was a special observation post behind the shooting holes of the tower, and Barrett was absolutely unwilling to take any risks in such a situation.

It was at this time that Barrett's voice came from behind him: "How's the situation?" ”

"It's alright! At the very least, there has been no change in what we are monitoring. Barrett looked back, "Maybe we won't be able to see a hint until the next time they're there to resupply!" ”

"I've heard that a fortress like this has a long time to sustain itself after a resupply! When is the next time? Well, it's time for a shift change. Noodle grumbled and came to Barrett like a float.

Barrett, who knew he should go back, patted the halfling wanderer on the shoulder, and then removed the comfortable cloak from his back: "Hurry up and put it on, with this thing you can stand motionless in the snow without getting frostbitten." ”

"Thanks, Barrett. If you don't have this stuff, it's really troublesome to deal with this kind of task! He took the cloak and wrapped the noodles around him, then carefully ducked into the shadows of the dead trees.

Barrett, on the other hand, stepped on the ice-blue aura and quickly disappeared into the grove. The duration of the 'Boots of the Crowd Snow' is so long that it has become almost a permanent presence for players since the beginning of this hidden quest. Of course, in this environment, players are no longer interested in the speed it increases, but rather on the concealment of stepping on the snow without a trace - so as to minimize the exposure of their whereabouts to the Lucians.

After about half an hour, Barrett came out of the woods to the edge of a large rock in a mountain col. Then he pushed the rock, and then a warm air flow hit Barrett, and at the same time, the cold wind outside the house also took advantage of the open door to pour in.

Rielly, who was copying something on the writing desk in the Vault, couldn't help but frown as she felt the cold air passing through her neck. And Claudia even shouted: "Barrett, hurry up and close the door for me!" Are you trying to freeze us to death in this damn weather?"

"That's it! Miss, don't be so exaggerated, okay? The temperature here is much better than it was at the beginning. After all the snow on his body was gone, Barrett, who walked into the house, also closed the door.

After all, the Kingdom of Cruze is south of Norhan, and the temperature here is naturally a bit warmer than when players were trekking through the snow. Moreover, the blizzard has long since stopped, and the scattered fine snow here is unlikely to cause too much of a sharp drop. Even if you don't consider the burning fireplace in the Mage's Vault, the environment here is still much better than it was back then.

"It's noodle class in the afternoon, and tomorrow it should be Anvil's turn and meow." Sitting on the bed and shaking his legs, Lalu blinked and stared at Barrett and asked, "Barrett, how long do you think it will take for our mission to be over?" ”

"That's right! That's right! Staying in this room these days is suffocating me. Claudia then began to heckle as well.

Hearing this, Barrett glared at the real master: "Since you're bored, then tomorrow you can change jobs with Lalu or Anvil." How about half a day to see the Lucian fortress in the woods? ”

Claudia, who heard this, was silent in an instant, and she only complained a few words in her mouth, and she definitely didn't want to go to the woods to blow the cold wind motionlessly. And Barrett took the opportunity to chase after him at this time: "Even if you are willing to go, I am worried that you will make a disturb movement to expose our whereabouts!" And to be able to hide in this house you are content! If it weren't for this strange thing, we'd probably have to find a cave and set up camp at the root of here. ”

Although I had complained before that this 'Mage's Secret Pavilion' artifact was a waste of money. But Barrett's attitude has changed dramatically. Because of this strange object, players can have a comfortable foothold in this icy wilderness - although the space of the 'magic rope' is indeed quite safe, but if it is comfortable, there is no need to create a spell such as the 'mage hut'.

It was also because of this artifact that players were able to set up a forward camp so close to Lucia's Fortress. Otherwise, it would be better to just rest, but if you want to eat something hot, you will have to light a fire in a cave farther away to ensure that Lucia will not be discovered. If a one-person player wants to ensure the effectiveness of the monitoring mission, it will probably have to take more effort.

"You know this strange thing by now. Who looked at the thing in the first place, the nose is not the nose, the face is not the face? Hearing this, Claudia suddenly became angry.

However, Barrett shook his head of course: "Miss, you used the wrong word. Otherwise, you can make this 'Mage Secret Chamber' grow a nose or a face! ”

Claudia, choked by Barrett, left in a deep slump. And Kleimatis pulled his friend over and glared at Barrett: "Dia, she likes to make trouble, Barrett, do you need to worry about her?" ”

"I don't want to bother with her! But if she doesn't leave it alone, who knows what will happen to her next. Speaking of this, Barrett emphasized, "I'm just taking precautions." ”

"Probably not! It's freezing outside, and you've put the only comfortable cloak outside that can withstand the harsh environment. Deya, even if she had any thoughts, she probably wouldn't have walked out of the house. Clematis said, looking at Claudia lying on her lap. The latter immediately muttered and complained, "Don't make me so squeamish!" ”

At that moment, Rielly, who had finished copying, put down the silver-tipped quill in her hand. Then he turned his head and asked, "Barrett, I'm a little worried!" At the moment, our surveillance personnel are only keeping an eye on the movement of the fortress during the day. If they move at night, it's a problem. ”

"Mage, you should also understand how difficult it is for armies to march at night. At the level of Lucia's army, want to conduct a night raid? I think it's probably because their commanders have water in their brains to make such a decision. Besides, if this happens, we can also see the fire over there during the vigil! Barrett paused, "As for the baggage team sending supplies into the fort at night, that's even more impossible." It is completely impossible to want those second-line troops and people to escort grain and grass at night. ”

Of course, there is another sentence that Barrett did not say is that the Lucia Fortress in front of him does not have the ability to take the initiative to attack before replenishing food, grass and personnel. Because the number of defenders there is mostly only at the minimum level of daily patrol knowledge.

You must know that although the kingdom of Lucia is large, it has a large population. But it is precisely because of his vast territory that he needs to use people everywhere. Coupled with the relative barrenness of Lucia's land, the most fertile piece had already been eaten by Norhan during the war 200 years ago. The level of technology is not first-class in the Western Continent, so the financial situation of the Lucia government has not been very good.

In this case, although Lucia had a large reserve manpower, non-war conscripts were often only a line above the minimum requirement. At the same time, the level of supply is under the normal drift and the deduction of some greedy aristocratic officers, and the actual amount in place is not enough to ensure the normal operation of the army.

So Barrett, who knew the country well, could more or less guess the situation of the fort not far away—understaffed, poorly paid, and underfrequented. Of course, this is also due to the relatively poor performance of the Cruze Kingdom over the years. If it was on the border with Nohan, although the fortress there would also be eaten by bureaucrats and nobles at all levels, the overall situation would be more than a line better than here.

It was precisely because of this knowledge of them that Barrett would conclude that there would be a large-scale resupply here before Lucia's army could make any moves. In fact, one of the goals of the players this time is to report similar situations to the Boreham family in a timely manner. If a long convoy and a large number of Lucia soldiers appeared outside the fortress, it was a sign that the war was about to begin.

"You're an expert on this, so of course we're listening to you." Speaking of this, Rielly frowned, "But there is one thing I have always wanted to ask, near the creek we passed before, I think it should be a better camping spot than here!" Barrett, why do you just disagree? ”

"At the time, the place was not too far from the trade road, and it was possible to rush to the nearest bridge in time to destroy it. At the same time, it is only about 1 hour away from us, and the impact on the surveillance mission is not too great. Barrett, who at first seemed to agree with the mage's point of view, suddenly changed his voice, "But since we can easily see that the environment there is so superior, don't the Lucians who have been stationed around here for decades know?" If they do want to do something, the first thing they need to do is check for suspicious threats there. ”

Barrett objected to the camping spot that Rielly had chosen because it was so suitable. Even if it is a fool to be suitable for Lucia's army, it will definitely focus on the investigation before acting. Although the 'Mage Secret Hall' has the protection of illusion, as long as the number of people searching the area is large, there is still a possibility of exposure. On the contrary, it is the camping site where it is now, because it is behind a small forest, which is easy for the Lucians to ignore.

At this moment, a short stick with a feather tied to Klematis's chest suddenly began to shake. Immediately after that, the voice of noodles came from inside: "Convoy! Discover the trail of the convoy. ”

"Guys, I'll go check on the situation first. How is it really like a noodle report, my task is probably about to enter a critical moment. Barrett, who had just returned to camp, braved the snow and wind to go out again. (To be continued.) )