The Grigley Rift in the Tambul Mountains, the largest mountain range that stretches for thousands of miles, is at its thickest distance.

There is a folk legend of the Ottolo Empire on the other side of the mountain, which tells that the original clan was a persecuted wandering people from the far east of Rigal, who lost their way at sea while fleeing west, entered the Nightmare Sea, encountered a storm at sea, and lost hundreds of people.

And in the middle of that land there was a huge divine wolf, with the sky above his head and his mouth spitting out words.

"This is the land of God that you have been rejected by suspicion, and this is your refuge. ”

The wolf then lay down on the ground and turned into a vast mountain range that stretched for thousands of miles, isolating the outcast clan from their persecutors, allowing them to continue in isolation from the rest of the world in the plentiful West. Because of this legend, the word Tambur also means "Great Guardian" and "Messenger of the King of the Worlds" in the native language of ancient Otolo. ①

Of course, legends and the like are usually believed or not, but judging by Henry's level of knowledge, Ottalo's legend is not necessarily true.

The language of contemporary Ottolo is largely distinct from the languages of the West Coast, and is also very different from the most spoken Lamanite language on the mainland. The two regions are contrasted because they both had the ability to cross the sea a long, long time ago - in other words, it is highly likely that people on both the West and East Coasts would have sailed west to discover the existence of Ottolo. ②

But the linguistic difference speaks for itself. In contrast, the Ottolo language is quite similar in some words to the southern steppe nomads.

Given the migratory nature of the nomadic population, historians have therefore deduced that the original Ottoros in antiquity were indeed an exile in the southeastern direction of the Rigal continent - we are far away.

If it is true that according to the folklore of Ottoro, then the location of the Grigory Rift Valley should be counted as the "hind legs" of the wolf.

This part of the Tambur Mountains is more prominent and rugged than the others, both on the Ottolo side and on the Yavennella side, which is why Yavennella can easily get close to the foot of Tambul, while in other parts of the West Coast you have to walk through dense and dangerous jungle to do so.

"Hoo ......"

In the Great Rift, where sunlight does not shine, the temperature of the air is much cooler than outside, and the breath that comes out of the mouth turns into a white mist.

The sky here is gray all year round, and no matter how bright it is outside, the line of sky that can be seen through the dense moss and shrubs growing on the cliffs on both sides hundreds of thousands of kilometers high will always be this color.

"......" Mira stopped, the ground of the Grigory Rift was quite spacious, even the narrowest part was seven or eight meters long, so when the road in Vavasika behind him was repaired, the merchants of Avenella and Ottolo naturally did not miss this God-given opportunity.

Even when relations between the two countries are tense and the war is sharpened, the profit-seeking businessmen are never afraid - or on the contrary, it is precisely because of the storm that they see the business opportunity.

It is not surprising that three pack horses and a group of people carrying a lot of supplies on board walked in the Great Rift Valley, which stretched out for a long distance.

Prince Edward's usual luxurious clothes were replaced by ordinary linen clothes and a hood. Because he has participated in many knightly competitions and performed quite well, there are not a few people who recognize the prince's face.

He didn't carry any weapons, but disguised himself as a young merchant couple with Minna, and the remaining three guards also disguised themselves as accompanying merchants, and the only ones who did not disguise themselves were Henry and Mira, wearing leather armor and chain mail, and carrying weapons with blue mercenary badges, walking in the front.

The breeze blew through the dark crack, and the cold air made many people shiver. Stubborn shrubs are densely spread all over the high points of the rock walls on both sides, struggling to grow upwards to get precious sunlight.

The survival instinct of creatures can be detected anywhere by careful observation, and Henry did not forget to explain to Mira behind him on the way forward, and the sage's calm and meticulous words as usual also attracted the attention of several other members of the team.

Except for the two who knew each other, the other three were all knights of the guard under Edward's command.

All three were still young, and one of them was the young knight who had met Henry a few times and proposed an alliance with the elves the previous night. Henry now knew his name as Edgar, and Edgar Chester - as the name suggests, was Lord of Prince Edward's city-state - and most likely had recently taken office, as he had not yet worn Chester's ivy emblem.

This point involves the national aristocracy and honor system of Avenella, and we will not delve into it for the time being, but focus on the present.

Edgar is clearly largely one of Edward's henchmen, and although he is still young and vigorous, he has a good point in not being overly conceited.

Perhaps it was due to Edward's influence, and although he had been interrupted twice before by the sages in front of the crowd and dismissed his opinion, the young knight would have freely admitted his mistake as soon as Henry explained it clearly.

This is something that the vast majority of aristocrats, especially the younger ones, cannot do.

Because they have been taught since childhood that they are different, that they are better, that they were 'born to rule over others'.

The aristocracy of all countries, who emphasized that blood was everything, usually had nostrils of pride, and even if they understood that what they were saying was the truth, they would often refuse to admit it because of their face, and sometimes even to the point of using private soldiers to kill the common people who dared to argue with him—and win.

Therefore, in such a situation, it is self-evident why Edward, a young nobleman with a modest and serious character, should take him.

Anyway, if there is any real danger, there is also Henry.

The few of the sage's unknown names were literally poured out of blood, and even though some things were rather obscured because there was no actual written record, and many others were forgotten because of their age, Edward knew full well that this man's fighting power was not measurable by ordinary standards.

- If he's serious.

The light faded overhead, and the night in Grigory's Rift came earlier than anywhere else, and the winding road had gone a long way after a day, and now looking back there was no other view than the cliffs and the bushes that grew on either side.

There were a lot of merchants in the vicinity, and in the dim light, everyone stopped on the side of the road and began to prepare dinner.

Torches were lit, and the interior of the canyon was a lawless place, and the guards would not come to patrol here, and there were only a few dozen people along the entire route, all of whom were just staying with their traveling companions, keeping an eye out for the others.

Because you never know if the businessman-looking guy next to you will suddenly think it's a good idea to rob you.

Keeping a low profile and keeping your money open is always the last word, and piles of bonfires were lit in some of the previously dug holes in the canyon walls or on the ground, and even though it had only been a little over a month since it was officially opened for trade, people had used the road until then.

The flow of people was sparse and less stable than it is now, but more or less, the Grigley Rift has had its share of stories, like any other inhabited place on the continent of Rigal.

The sound of murmuring water sounded on one side, and to the right of the bottom of the canyon, a small ditch that had sunk into the interior of the cliff brought clear drinking water.

The small ditch, which is about half a metre wide, bears traces of manual excavations, which are quite ancient, but still draw water from them by travelers who pass through the Grigley Rift.

"Click. There weren't many resources to use in the canyon, so they had to carry their own wood for cooking and water, and Mira set up the stove while Minna took the firewood from the carriage beside her.

The end of the simple three-legged stove was firmly inserted into the thick dirt floor, and Mira struggled to lift the cauldron with both hands and hang it on an iron hook in the middle of the rack.

Minna put the firewood aside, and then went back to the carriage and took out some pine needles from the dried Eka black pine from the small waterproof leather bag on it, which she used as a kindling material.

"Give. She handed Mira two very thick things, and the girl held them, and then froze.

It was a flat piece of iron with a grip on one side, what looked like a fist, and a large black stone.

- The white-haired Lorian Lori is familiar with what this is, and like the small flint and steel used by adventurers, it is a larger but more convenient flint and steel style commonly used by ordinary civilians on the West Coast.

The heavy piece of iron with a grip is held in one hand and the flint block in the other, and when struck vigorously, it can splash sparks to ignite the ignition.

The principle is the same as that of the small flint and steel used by adventurers, but it is much easier to use.

In fact, the girl who used to be a maid in the hotel used to use this style of flint and steel, and now holding it in her hand, wondering if it was the many things that had affected her thoughts in recent days, Mira turned her head and looked at Henry, who was handling the bacon she was carrying.

Before she knew it, she was so far away from her old life—she remembered many things along the way, new things she had seen and heard almost every day, and her current self was completely different from what she had been before—and Mira hung her head to look at the blue badge on her chest that shone in the afterglow of the setting sun that shone through the gaps in the bushes overhead.

"Mira?" Minna's concerned voice rang out as the girl turned her head to meet the pretty eyes of the blonde girl.

"Nothing, just remembering something. She smiled at her, who ran his right side of his hair behind her ear with his fingers, and then responded with the same expression, then crouched down and began to process the firewood with her.

"Boom-" The spark splashed on the pine needles that had been soaked in grease beforehand, and a flame burst into the fire, and Minna waited for it to grow a little bigger, then added small pieces of wood.

The wood that had not yet dried made a crackling sound, and the blonde girl turned around and scooped up a large wooden spoon from the underground water outlet that had been reclaimed by the past travelers and walked towards the cauldron. She turned her head to look at Henry, who had used the carriage as a platform for chopping vegetables, intently cutting the ingredients with the knife in his hand, while Edward and Edgar beside him were intently observing.

It's as if what the sage is using a knife to process is not tonight's food, but a remarkable work of art.

"These guys. Minna, who had become more mature after the loss of her father, sighed helplessly and amusedly, and then walked towards Mira.

Smoke curls and the road has just begun.

......

Notes: (1): Otolo's original beliefs were polytheistic like many places, but the biggest difference with the beliefs of other places that believe in animism is that there was a god-king in the old god system of Ottoro, called the Supreme God Omar Kats, the king of all worlds, who ruled over all the 'realms', just as its children Ottoro were destined to rule all the land and the sea.

Some historians and theologians believe that the concept of "angels" in the White Cult was only proposed after they were assimilated into Ottolo's native belief system of the Old Gods, because the image of the "messenger" from the Supreme God Omad Kats is ubiquitous in Ottolo's Old Gods beliefs. But there are also objections to this view, because long before the White Church became Otolo's state religion, the followers of the primitive doctrine of the Jetina sect in the Far East had painted angels on the walls of their churches.

(2): In fact, the Stiking pirates who inhabited the four northern islands were also highly seafaring on the mainland, but the reason why they are not the object of comparison is that the peak expansion of the Stiking pirates was five centuries after the arrival of the Ottoros on the western continent - in other words, when the Ottoros first discovered the continent, the Stikings of the four northern islands did not exist.