The wind and snow in the Ailay Basin seem to completely hide the noise of the outside world, and the people living in this relict independent basin still follow their familiar rhythm and live a peaceful life that can even be called boring in the increasingly tense continental situation.

But not all of them are like this, for example, at this moment, on the school field of Lilac Castle, in the snowstorm, there is a young heart, beating restlessly.

It's been a few days since I received the news from the eldest lady. Why would such an old maid leave the eldest lady suddenly?Sally didn't know, but she felt that she couldn't wait any longer.

With her sword in hand, she began to dance lightly in the wind and snow, chopping, slashing, stabbing and teasing...... As she moved, there was also a sharp sound of "snort" in the air, not just swordsmanship, everything that Elle taught her, more, was to be able to hear the sound of the sword, more precisely, the singing.

What is the song of the sword? The cold wind only made Sally more and more agitated, and the sound of this sharp weapon tearing through the air must not be it? If you can't hear the sound of the sword, you will never be able to complete the tuning, let alone the more advanced skills that follow.

On her chest, the heat from the ornament calmed Sally a little.

She said that the song of each sword is different, some are melancholy, some are passionate, some are light, and some are cheerful. Sounds like it has something to do with the material and style of the sword?Sally looked at the rapier in her hand, if it was this one......

Half an hour later, a futile Sally walked into Mrs. Russell's room dressed as a maid.

"Today, let's talk about dance and music~" The blonde woman who will become a mother in about two months smiles like a child.

......

Ellie has had a great time these days.

During the journey, the living conditions were not as good as they were in Lilac Castle, and even less than before, but the way the caravan treated her like a guest still made Elle a lot more relaxed.

What's more, as if the Dark Maiden had really answered her prayers, the ghostly Velons never appeared again.

Maybe the gods have been there all along? Although for some reason they have not been able to answer the prayers of the believers, they have been silently protecting their most devout believers? Looking at the tall wall in front of her, the girl in a good mood was thinking nonsense.

The caravan is about to enter the city.

This is the former kingdom of Clay, the capital of the current diocese of Clay, a city that is not small in size.

In the wilderness of the Northlands, there are two types of cities, those that existed before the Great Collapse and those that were newly built after the Great Collapse, often differing in their size.

The city in front of him belongs to the latter, and it has to transport tons and tons of stone from the far south, through the dangerous wilderness, to build such a majestic city, which shows the strength of the Clay Kingdom back then.

However, such a kingdom fell without a fight under the forces of the Church of the Eternal Night. Thinking of this, Ellie couldn't help but be a little worried about the situation of her little master in the future.

"I don't know you, master...... What are your plans?" asked with a smile on his face as the white fat merchant walked up to Ellie's side as he waited to enter the city.

"I'm sorry. Although it was convenient to travel with the caravan, Elle had already made a decision: "After that, I'm going to go to the east to have a look." ”

The general shape of the northern land, somewhat similar to the pentagonal diamond, the six dioceses from north to south, distributed in the form of two three one, the sacred city that the caravan was going to was located in the northwest of this diamond, after arriving at the city, the caravan was ready to change to the west, through the western diocese to the holy city, but Elle's destination was the northeastern diocese.

"That's a pity...... the merchant whispered behind him with a smile as he whispered behind him, and one of the mercenaries gathered on the side of the caravan quietly left the group.

Ellie was completely unaware.

By this time, her attention had been completely drawn elsewhere...... The paladin standing next to the guards at the gate of the city, with the emblem on his breastplate?

Following Ellie's gaze, the merchant also noticed the paladin.

"Oh~Knights of the Holy Sword!" he praised in an aria-like tone, "The Lord's sword~"

"Why are they here?" Ellie's face turned a little ugly, "Those ...... What about Clay's original warrior monks?"

"You mean those filthy monkeys?" said the merchant's face with disgust, "Seems to have been transferred to the north near the forest, right? I think it's a good place for them, because ...... You can have fun with their kind!"

The merchant thought he had told a funny joke and laughed out loud, and then the employees of the caravan next to him laughed in unison.

The Pathless Followers, the name of the Warrior Monks that Ellie was talking about, were once one of the proudest forces in the Kingdom of Clay, but now ...... The Kingdom of Clay surrendered without a fight, and under the pressure of the Church of the Eternal Night, it was already a very fortunate thing that they could still exist, so their exchange of guards with the Knights of the Holy Sword was indeed unexpected and reasonable.

Moreover, it is not surprising that these believers of Ilmat are not liked by merchants. In Ilmat's teachings, helping all the wounded in the world and bearing the suffering for others is the most sacred act, so the followers of Ilmat often lend a helping hand to those in need free of charge, which is contrary to the philosophy of the merchants in the first place. Second, warrior monks who valued the training of their bodies and wills had very few material needs and could hardly be bought by money—at least not as likely as these Ilmat followers—to accept mercenary employment as mercenaries.

In this way, they have become a group of people who have almost nothing to do with the merchants, and now that the Church of the Eternal Night has ruled the Northlands, they have been deprived of even the last of their deterrents, and it is not surprising that they have been ridiculed by unscrupulous merchants...... Although, these merchants had received the favor of Ilmat in the wilderness not so long ago.

Gratuitous help, over time, will be taken for granted, and in a world without God, these profit-seeking businessmen will even lose their awe...... The Church of the Eternal Night doesn't seem to have helped them recover this.

Elle was silent and followed the caravan through the gates.

Everything went well, nothing happened, except that the small sword painted on the paladin's breastplate, golden and a little dazzling.

......

Inside the city.

"It's your pay. The merchant happily paid, smiled, and watched as Elle walked into the inn next to her.