Cyril's face turned pale, not because of the cold winter in the capital, Kislev, but because he was about to meet the country's supreme leader, Katerina, the Snow Queen.

Feeling uneasy, they retreated when the Ice Queen ordered the North to support the city of Kislev. Moreover, there was not the slightest news of it. Only now, when the homeland is destroyed, did he go south in the hope of getting the support of the queen...... It's unreasonable to be reasonable. So Cyril was terrified. But he had to come again, and the people in the north helped him rebuild his home?

The Winter Palace of Ice and Snow is like a palace carved out of ice, and in the center of the Bandaga Palace, the Krem Guard, the ruthless character that Cyril is most familiar with. They were the Queen's personal bodyguards, and since Caterina came to power, these fierce guards have been the equivalent of the royal forbidden army. They hadn't even looked at Cyril, but Cyril was used to it, and he climbed the white stone steps alone toward the tall palace.

The Ice Hermitage is now covered in a thick layer of frost and snow, as Catalina and her Frost Witch cast a blizzard one autumn, followed by a cold winter. The accumulation of natural and unnatural snow made the whole city, the whole palace shrouded in a layer of white snow, and also under a shadow of death.

Cyril hesitated, but eventually arrived at the Queen's palace. Here, the Ice Queen Caterina is already high on the Ice Throne. She always was, always sitting on that throne made of ice before people saw her. Just like the image she has always given people - cold and tall.

"Your Majesty, the orcs, they destroyed the Watchgate...... I know I deserve it, but ...... Tin ......"

"Ironhide?" Caterina turned her head and stared at the Count below the steps. Cyril only felt uncomfortable, and under the Queen's piercing gaze, he felt that he was being seen through.

"You named the beast?"

Caterina scoffed.

"No, not the name I gave it...... That's what he was supposed to ......."

Cyril replied intermittently.

"How do you know?"

The Ice Queen's deep voice echoed through the hall like an interrogation. The skulls and skeletons of those ancient behemoths looked so hideous at this moment.

"Rhodes...... The ...... Rod told me"

The stone slab beneath Cyril's feet was smoothed so smooth that his shadow could almost be seen. At the same time, he kept asking himself, is this answer appropriate?

"Looks like our Lord Rhodes knows a lot about this beast?"

Cyril thought she would draw the Queen's wrath, but Caterina only smiled contemptuously.

He ...... does have a certain understanding of Ironskin, and has duel with him. ”

Cyril returned with a sigh of relief.

"The result?"

The Ice Queen asked. Fire Book Bar

"Defeated, Rhodes was defeated by Ironskin. ”

Cyril replied earnestly.

"It's like a warrior. ”

"And what about you, where were you when the orcs attacked the castle?"

Caterina asked.

Cyril was scared into a cold sweat, and he was eager to speak and explain, but his tongue was knotted, "I...... I...... I was ...... at that time In the castle! I distributed my weapons to the people, so that they could take up arms and join me. Resistance to the Orcs ......"

After Cyril finished speaking, Caterina was still expressionless, and for a long time, Cyril wondered if he had said something wrong. But you really can't blame yourself for the fall of the Overwatch, even the Ice Queen can't stop Greenskin's destruction of the kingdom, what can he do as a little earl?

"Then go ahead, keep taking up arms and fight the Greenskins. Last time your army did not come under the city of Kislev, I hope there will be no next time. Otherwise, you know the consequences. ”

Caterina said domineeringly.

"As for the Watchtower, it must be rebuilt. At the end of this winter, supplies and personnel will arrive at your castle. But remember, I'm only giving you one chance. The next time the orcs invade again, you know what to do. ”

Caterina's cold words echoed across the main hall like a pair of cold hands pinching the back of the count's neck, and if she pinched it lightly, the lord of the Watch Castle would be bloodied on the spot. Cyril felt a frost drift through her heart. I wanted to say, how is he going to spend this winter? But the words came to my lips and I swallowed them back. The Queen's promise to support the rebuilding of the Overwatch was a great blessing. What more could he ask for, it's just that to survive the long winter, he needs to pay out of his own pocket......

......

Fort Blackhammer, this year's winter seems to be particularly long. The town has lost its former prosperity and busyness, and the snow is sprinkled on the town, paving the whole town with a layer of snow white. In cold weather, if it is not a very important thing, people hide in their homes to bake their bodies to keep warm.

The streets were deserted, and equally deserted, as was Rod's heart. The old butler Muros finally couldn't hold on, and he was bedridden for three years, and finally couldn't stand the erosion of the years. The servant reported that Muros was getting smaller and smaller, that he needed to be fed every meal, and that he was incontinent. He lay on the bed, his eyes always looking out the window, like a shriveled corpse, covered in skin and bones. There would always be a crow or two outside the window, looking at him with blood-red eyes, as if waiting for him to peck at his flesh when he took his last breath. Muros did not suffer from any particularly serious illness, but he was too old and overworked to get up again.

Seventy years old is indeed an advanced age for human beings. In this war-torn world, hunger and poverty, the average age of human beings is no more than thirty. Half of babies born to poor families do not survive two years. The rest barely grew up, and they also had to face various diseases and conscription, and it was normal for young soldiers in their twenties to die on the battlefield in the midst of war. Therefore, it is a blessing to be able to live to old age. Certain people who are blessed by the gods can live to be one or two hundred years old. But such people are so rare, everyone only sees their longevity, but they turn a blind eye to the lives that fall from time to time around them.

Rhodes was in a heavy mood, and he sat beside the old butler, holding his bamboo-like fingers, and his heart was full of guilt. When Alves didn't arrive, he put too much pressure on Muros. He knew that some people would talk behind his back, accusing him of not doing well here and not doing well there. At least, when Dennis was taken away, how many people suspected that Muros was the devil behind their backs. But no, he kept it a secret. Until the Queen's men themselves broke into the castle......

"Rod, the chosen one, you will be the pride of Kislev......"

Muros spoke weakly from the bed, while he was still thinking clearly.

"When I'm dead, burn me, I don't want to be a puppet of the walking zombies and necromancers......"

He took Rod's hand and spoke slowly in a weak voice.