Curse of the Stars

Part 1: A Promise Under the Stars

If one day, the star you always look up to wants to kill you, how do you respond?

1 March

The howling cold wind swept through the dry, barren land, as if to leave more scars on the already devastated surface, mixed with countless deciduous yellow sand and scattered tumbleweeds, and the wind roared in an almost hoarse voice to roar the bloody wind and rain of the world.

In November 1802, although the north had not yet entered the depths of winter, the cold wind had swept away, blowing away most of the animals and life, leaving only a desolate land, cracked and cracked like countless eyes, looking helplessly at the sky, as if pouring out and complaining about their tragic fate.

A bird's-eye view of the land from above – scattered boulders, rolling hills, sparse and dead trees, and a small group of "ants" marching east......

But to look at it closer, the boulders have turned into mountains, the hills have turned into canyons, the trees have become clumps of trees, and the "ants" are a small group of marching soldiers.

At this time, it was late at night and close to the early hours of the morning, the soldiers hurried silently, they did not hold torches, lined up in a row in the dark night all the way to the east, the chaotic footsteps were suppressed by the wind, and the footprints left behind were quickly swept away by the wind and sand, and the silence seemed to become the spokesperson of the soldiers. From time to time, the leader took out the compass to confirm the direction, and the speed of the team slowed down a little, and someone broke the silence in the cold wind.

"Damn the djinn, we will suffer this sin!" A young soldier said, with a hint of grumbling and hatred in his voice, but it was very lively, as if he had not yet seen the cruelty of war.

"Young man," said a middle-aged veteran, "if you're angry, when you're fighting the djinn, you can just kill a few more." There seemed to be a joking mockery in his words.

The young soldier disagreed, slapped the huge broadsword on his back twice, and said, "With this guy, I'm not afraid!" ”

"I'm afraid that when the time comes, you'll be served as lunch by the djinn first, and that thing will be used as a toothpick." The veteran laughed after speaking, and the other soldiers laughed when they heard it, but due to the cold wind, everyone's mouths were blown and couldn't open, so they had to cover their mouths and laugh "poof".

A soldier in front of the procession wearing a cowhide helmet and chain mail shouted: "Okay, okay, let's save some energy, and when the sun comes out, we will rest for a while." ”

"Captain, this rookie has never seen the world, I enlighten him." The veteran quipped, and the soldiers around him laughed again, still covering their mouths and smiling.

The captain did not answer the veteran's words, but only reminded everyone: "Speed up and try to reach the assembly site before sunrise." No one spoke anymore, and silence once again became the voice of the soldiers. The soldier at the head put away the compass and instructed the squad to continue to the east.

It didn't take long for the soldiers to feel the cold wind blowing on their bodies gradually mild, and there was no longer the piercing feeling of the knife before, and the experienced soldiers felt that the sun was coming out. The captain also felt it, and gestured to the soldiers behind him, asking everyone to speed up, worried that they would not be able to reach the assembly point before sunrise.

Sure enough, after a while, a crimson morning glow appeared on the eastern horizon, burning the eastern sky. As the sun rises, the earth is thoroughly illuminated, revealing an earthy yellow surface; The cold wind also stopped raging and became a breeze with a slight temperature. The soldiers were blinded by the oncoming sun, and slowed down, but we could see them clearly—a dozen or so men, all dressed in brown burlap cloaks, half of them in heavy armor, carrying swords, broadswords, axes, and other weapons on their backs, and the young soldier was among them; Others wore only light leather armor and crossbows on their backs, while the old soldier held an arquebus.

The first soldier took out the compass again, and the captain also took out the map, and the two began to confirm the direction and location, and the soldiers began to look around and check the surrounding situation. "There!" The veteran raised his right arm and shouted at everyone. The soldiers looked in the direction of the veteran's finger, and the captain looked up, and what they saw was a wisp of black smoke that slanted into the sky with the breeze blowing.

"Campfire!" The young soldier shouted excitedly, "That's the assembly area." ”

"Beware of being a djinn's trap." The veteran reminded solemnly, then looked at the captain.

The captain nodded, did not speak, and made two gestures, and the veteran and another archer immediately went out of the line and rushed in the direction of the campfire to find out, and the two men divided into two ways to approach the location of the campfire from different directions, while the rest of the soldiers waited in place. After a while, the soldiers saw the veteran waving to them in the distance - everything was normal, there was no danger. The captain immediately led the team over.

The campfire was a makeshift camp, and a dozen or so soldiers in various armor were repairing, mostly eating breakfast, some of them were working on their weapons or feeding horses. Seeing their human companions approaching from afar, the soldiers applauded and cheered in welcome.

The captain who entered the camp ordered his soldiers to disband and repair, and the two teams finally gathered together, and everyone had breakfast together, chatted, complained about the bad weather last night, and talked about the things in their hometown.

The captain quickly found the makeshift camp and the leader of the team, and the two of them had to discuss the next mission. I saw him standing alone on the boulder on the east side of the camp, looking to the east, as if he was looking for something, as if he was looking forward to something. "Glory to Splet," the captain greeted with standard Imperial aristocratic etiquette, "and our squad arrived on time. ”

The man heard the call, turned, jumped off the boulder, and walked calmly towards the captain. Due to the backlight, the captain did not see his appearance clearly, and did not see it clearly until he got closer - medium build, 25 years old, dressed in light armor, with a short sword hanging from his waist, his cloak was tattered, his rectangular face was serious and resolute, and the corners of his mouth were tightly closed, as if he did not like to talk. The captain assumed that the man must have been a battle-hardened warrior, so he respectfully folded his right hand across his chest and bowed, his movements a little stiff due to the long hours of walking in the cold.

"I'm Charlie Hamp, and I'm leading the squad to join yours." With that, Captain Charlie straightened up and pulled the corner of his cloak to the front, on which was printed his family article - a leaping lion on a golden banner.

"Glory to Splitter. Hello, Captain Charlie. The other party responded with a smile and saluted respectfully, and his movements were much more natural and fluid than Captain Charlie's. I'm Captain Milo and it's a pleasure to work with you. After the salute, he did not show his family crest like Charlie. Charlie felt strange and was afraid that there would be a problem, so he asked, "Captain Milo, may I ask what your full name is?" A hint of apology and helplessness swept over Milo's face, and he held up the corner of his tattered cloak in front of him, and the family crest was already cracked in some places, but it was clearly visible—an ivy tree on a white flag.

"Milo Entekoman."

When Captain Charlie heard the name, he didn't react in surprise, he just felt as if he had heard the name, and when he kept searching for the surname in his memory, he quickly remembered something.

"Whew!" Captain Charlie gasped gently, as if he was afraid of the person in front of him, and instantly felt the temperature even colder than last night, and couldn't help but shiver. However, Milo didn't care about Charlie's improper behavior, and patted Charlie on the shoulder, "Okay, hurry up and rest, and when the others arrive, we will hurry to defend against the djinn." ”

At this time, in Captain Charlie's heart, the person in front of him was even more terrifying than the djinn.