Barrett and his party followed the trail left by the frost bugs, which were littered with overpowered bushes and grasses, and the frost worms rampaged through the forest, at least saving them the trouble of reopening their path.

The brute took a deep breath of air, the smell of decay and freshness intertwined in the forest, and he felt the cold dampness of his slightly stinging nasal passages. His enhanced keen vision could even see the buds of a blue flower in the distance, this solar term was not the season when the blue flowers bloomed, but, how to say, this was a misty forest after all.

"You mean that if there was no fog, the temperature here would be no different from the outside?" said Old Will as he walked in the middle of the line, smoking his pipe that never seemed to leave his mouth.

The smoke was as red as a volcano, and it kept spewing smoke outward, but there was no magma.

Barrett was still at the front of the line, and he glanced sideways at the mage before moving on, "Suffice it to say, Your Excellency, because someone has experienced it firsthand. With his left hand, he stroked the hilt of the Iron Bride', the rough straps on which were tight and sweat-wicking, and the hand fit comfortably in his hand. "There was once an adventurer in the Bay of Pigs known as Theodore 'Jumping Face', who was the only known person to have escaped from the misty forests of winter. ”

"Oh? I have a hunch that this is another good story. The half-elf walked behind Barrett, light and agile, "The famous writer Yaris Al wrote a very famous novel about adventurers, "Live Like Fried", which I recommend you read when you have the chance. On the title page of the book, he wrote: 'Every qualified adventurer is a wonderful collection of stories'. ”

"This man knows adventurers well. Barrett nodded, "If I have the chance, I'll read his book." He said nonchalantly, and in a blink of an eye, he forgot the title of the book. This is undoubtedly an excuse, and Barrett has never read a single book in its entirety since he came out of his hometown.

Oh, that's not right. It should be said that I haven't read any "serious" book in its entirety. At least "Duchess Oviera" and "The Legend of Merry Mage Wood", two of the most popular erotic books, he had studied many times.

At night, in the tent of thorns, in the arms of those lovely children.

"Hey, gentlemen, let's put aside the topic of literature for now. Old Will's voice came from behind him, "We are adventurers, not the bards who like to attract the attention of the opposite sex, or the young aristocrats who have nothing to do and whose minds are full of literature and romance. Let's get back to the adventurer named 'Jumping Face', and I wonder how he made it out of the misty forest of winter alive. ”

Old Will seemed to be more and more interested in the fog in the forest, which was not surprising, since the Wandering Mage was also one of the mages after all.

"As you wish. Barrett looked around, and as he continued, he began his speech, "There are many adventurers in the Bay of Pigs who go to the Misty Forest in the first few days of winter. This is undoubtedly an extremely dangerous act, but the first harvest of winter is often more abundant than it is now. Theodore was one of these outlaws. ”

Outlaws? Actually, we are, Barrett meditated in her heart. He took another deep breath of the cold mist, "But unfortunately, due to some accident, Theodore and his team were separated during that adventure. At that time, winter had already arrived in the Misty Forest. Believe me, Your Excellency, in the true winter of the forest, the biting winter fog makes even the mages shiver, and even magic cannot completely resist it. ”

The barbarian adventurer crouched down again to examine the traces along the way, picked up a branch from the overwhelmed grass, and put it in front of him to look at it carefully. He took the branch in his hand, got up and continued on his way, continuing the story he had just said.

Theodore wasn't the first adventurer to get lost in the forest during the winter, and certainly won't be the last. No adventurer had ever survived such a winter fog, no! The rest of his party thought Theodore was dead, like those who had been lost in the forest, into the belly of some creature in the forest, and became a lump of excrement frozen as hard as a stone. No one cares about it, not even the sad one. I don't know what will happen to the adventurers of the Makua city-state as the center of the continent, but this is the Bay of Pigs, and this is the adventurers of the Bay of Pigs. Barrett turned and shrugged his shoulders at the crowd behind him.

Old Will took his pipe out of his mouth and groaned, "The adventurers in the city-state of Muya may be more civilized, after all, the great floating city is overhead. "When he said 'Floating City', his tone unconsciously revealed reverence. "But that's all, as for the nature of the adventurers, there is no difference between the two places. ”

Barrett could vaguely understand what Old Will meant by 'adventurer essence', but when he had to use words to describe it, he felt a blur in his mind.

"But he survived, didn't he, surprisingly everybody did. The half-elf interjected. Barrett felt more and more that he wasn't a good listener, "I mean, 'jumping face.'" ”

The barbarian turned his head to look at the half-elf named Estelle, and continued, "Yes, more than a month later, when everyone had forgotten about it, Theodore suddenly appeared under the walls of the Misty Castle, his skin was ulcerated, his body was covered with severe frostbite, and he was unconscious by the city gate, but fortunately he was discovered in time by the guards of the Golden Alfalfa Knights on the city wall. ”

"How did he survive?" asked Old Will again. The pure white smoke diffused with his breath, thicker than the fog in the forest, but it did not last, and it dissipated in a moment, leaving no trace.

This kind of questioning is the right way to listen to the story, rather than directly stating the results. Theodore later told the crowd about his magical experience in the forest. "According to Jumping Face, the first two days of his separation from his companions were relatively good. At that time, the temperature in the forest was barely bearable. 'Jumping face' pierces the leather jacket on the body and flushes the fur inside to preserve the temperature. But on the third day, the fog suddenly thickened, and the temperature in the forest plummeted. The mist burrowed into any of Theodore's exposed skin like a locust in water, and like a sharp sword, it cut through Theodore's heavy clothing and brought him the cold that could freeze his soul......"

"Actually, locusts don't get into the skin. The half-elf interjected again.

"What?" Barrett didn't know.

"I mean, the locust doesn't get into the skin, it just clings to the surface of the skin, sucking a lot of blood, but it doesn't get in. "So the analogy isn't accurate. ”

The barbarian looked at Esther with a blank face, "I'm sorry, that's what Theodore said, you can't expect an ordinary adventurer to be as knowledgeable as you, or your Excellency the Mage. ”

"My bad. The half-elf smiled, "You continue." ”

Barrett sighed and continued, "In less than a glass of wine, Theodore was covered in frostbite. His skin turned pale and shriveled, and his blue veins were highlighted. Immediately afterwards, the skin began to crack and fester. He couldn't even tell if it was the festering that came first, or the frostbite that came first. The pinprick pain spread all over his body, and Theodore screamed, forcing himself to run forward with what little sanity he had left. At that time, he couldn't tell the direction anymore, he just stumbled, not wanting to let himself fall. ”

"He's supposed to be a man of perseverance. "We all know that in that situation, if you fall, you're unlikely to get back up." ”

"Yes, you're right. Barrett tilted his head to Old Will and gestured, "But in the current situation, perseverance alone is not enough, and more importantly, luck must be achieved." It has to be said that Theodore is a lucky man. ”

Or maybe the forest favored him as much as it did me?" Barrett thought, "Lucky enough for him to discover a cave just before he fell to the ground and became a nameless corpse." According to his description at the time, it was probably similar to the frostworm cave I had encountered earlier. Barrett described, "Theodore mustered up the last of his remaining strength, staggered into the cave, and passed out at the entrance to the cave. ”

"When Theodore woke up again, he noticed something strange......" Barrett said, pausing.

"Strange things?" asked Old Will with a tacit understanding.

"Yes, something that many adventurers might notice, but no one cares about. "The fog was still thick, but it didn't enter the cave at all. The temperature outside the cave varies greatly. ”

"Like two different worlds?" the mage smiled.

"It's like two different worlds!"

......