You have earned the trust of a small group of people, but that doesn't mean you've earned the trust of everyone. Maffeo and the others were in such a situation now, it had been five days since they arrived at the camp of the Bantu tribe in the snowy region of Ston. But until now, there has not been a single Bantu willing to communicate with them. Not even freedom of movement, they spent a great deal of time in their tents, because as soon as one of them left the tent, they were immediately monitored by four or five Bantu.

That's how they treat outsiders, and they show a wariness that makes you think you're the ones they hate to be. And you have no reason to contradict them or convince them, because they simply don't want to say a word to you. Now that the conversation has become a superfluous act, the tension and delicate relationship between the two parties can only continue forever.

Of course, staying in a tent all the time isn't a bad thing, at least for the people, they have a place to warm themselves, especially in the snowy region of Ston, a faraway place covered in snow and ice at any time of the year. Uma could find any word to describe the cold in the snowy region of Stone, which wasn't too bad for him, but not so much for others. Schultz, for example, felt that there was no worse place, even the islands in the West Sea, which were perennially hit by storms.

Perhaps the only one who is not so eager to break the current situation is Uma alone, Maffeo and Schultz don't want to waste precious time in this hellish place, they still have a lot to do. Freya and Mirna ponder how to talk to Bantu people who don't want to say even more to outsiders, Milna doesn't want to get involved in politics, but she decides to help each other out because Freya might have a hard time dealing with them alone.

Uma leaned over into the crevice of the tent and looked out, he certainly didn't expect to see anything that everyone wanted to see, he just wanted to make sure that the Bantu were not plotting anything. Keeping an eye on all the outsiders who come here is definitely not something they want to do, and if they can, they really want all the outsiders to leave the snowy lands of Stone.

He did hear several Bantu people talking, but because they spoke Bantu, he could not get any useful information. It was like bird language to Uma, and the strange pronunciation made him feel bad. The eavesdropping lasted less than half a minute before it ended, and Uma retracted her head and walked back to where she had been.

"Tell me, genius, what did you hear?" said Maffeo, placing his greatsword on a rock, concentrating on maintenance.

"If my ears could distinguish different languages, then I would be able to tell you what I heard. Uma said.

"It's not funny at all, this place sucks. Maffeo scolded under his breath.

"Bankarul never came to us, well, it gives me reason to believe that he was assigned by Okar to do some other task. Uma guessed.

"He must have been cut by that bastard named Orka!" Schultz, who was lying on the ground relaxed and relaxed, jumped up and shouted angrily.

Maffeo hurriedly rushed over to cover his mouth, desperately making a "shhhhh "Be quiet, Frederick, if you don't want to have your head smashed in your sleep by those Bantu people with blunt objects, then listen to me, and don't speak ill of Okar. ”

Schultz struggled, muffled sounds coming out of his mouth, Uma could barely hear what he was saying, but Maffeo knew he was still cursing Orka. "Alright, alright, Frederick, don't be angry. He reassured.

"Why should I be with a little ghost and a madman?" Uma muttered in frustration.

The Bantu people give outsiders no more than two choices, first, leave the snowy land of Ston and return to the place where you came. Second, he was sent to Mount Kanak, where the ice dragon Skasa was. Anyway, they don't have to worry about collecting the body, because the whole snow-capped mountain is a natural tomb, and the snowflakes will cover your body instead of a coffin. Or worse, the corpse will turn into an ice sculpture. In short, the Bantu have always been the worst and stupidest choice for outsiders.

It was expected that this would continue, but on the seventh day, Okar seemed to change his mind. He took the initiative to find the outsiders who had come here, and although he promised that the Bantu would not hurt the outsiders for no reason, the unhappiness on his face could be seen by anyone. If it weren't for that summoning, Maffeo and the others wouldn't have known that there were hundreds of adventurers who had come to the snowy region of Ston. It seems that the reward given by the principality this time is indeed very generous, otherwise there would not be so many substitutes for the dead who are willing to come to this hellish place.

What to say, Orka decided to give all the outsiders a chance to prove themselves, and that was to go to the ridge of the snowy mountains to duel the Bantu warriors stationed there. The guy who gets the token of the animal tamer Ruug will be able to prove his mettle, and Orka eventually says that he will only talk to those who have proven his mettle. Of course, he wouldn't mind if some Bantu warrior on the ridge shot too hard and killed the adventurer. As he said, the snow-capped mountains are a natural tomb. Even if you don't die in a duel, the wild Ice Tigers and Snow Mandrills in the snowy mountains will kill you.

It's a lot of fun, and there's no shortage of volunteers who go to the snow-capped ridge next to Mount Kanak to challenge the Bantu warriors stationed there. It's just that no one knows what their fate will be. In this case, Orka made it uncommon for the adventurers to walk freely in the snowy camp of Ston, and he was not afraid of any trouble that these outsiders would provoke. In his opinion, the Bantu warriors were enough to keep the arrogant outsiders in check.

To be honest, Maffeo and the others are not willing to take on another challenge. Moreover, the cold wind on the ridge also discouraged everyone, and no one wanted to have a duel with a powerful opponent in the cold wind. And the other party will not show mercy, and there will be a danger to his life at any time. Maffeo would rather go to a remote village to complete a hunt commission, so that at least he can get some pay.

But if it weren't for Orka's decision, they wouldn't have had the chance to get to know Mintae and Barrena, the only two people in the camp who weren't prejudiced or wary of outsiders. There is also a blacksmith Renault who has a bad attitude towards outsiders, and another guy who is a heavy drinker.

Mintai, a young girl of the Bantu ethnic group, although she is only 16 years old, is already an excellent shaman of the Bantu ethnic group. Barrena, who is over thirty years old, is often called an aunt by Mintae. Well, I have to say that Mirna was very sympathetic to her plight, and her husband and son all died at the hands of the ice dragon Skasa. As for Renault, as I said before, he's an alcoholic. Maffeo was eager to see if he had any good stuff in him, but the smell of alcohol on him kept him away.

Although I saw some Bantu people who were unwary of outsiders, this did not mean that they should be treated in Bantu camps. The expressions of these northern barbarians were very direct, so Maffeo and the others would often hear the sound of spitting and swearing. If this is taken as a provocation, then they will probably have to clash with these barbarians at all times in this camp.