The autumn rains in the Acasta Plains are bitter.

The Avenella and Sivalier people call the month of November Shadnes, the goddess of tears and sorrow. It aptly describes the season. The busy women cursed and retracted the laundry that had been hanging on the hemp rope and had not yet dried into the house, while the shopkeepers sighed at the scarcity of customers because of the weather.

Mercenaries and adventurers who admired the pleasure of time crowded the cubicles of the taverns and entertainment venues on the ground floor of the major inns, and their hard-earned coins flowed into the pockets of others with laughter and shouts—the smiling faces of the shopkeepers stood out in the pouring rain.

Raindrops the size of beans fell densely, crackling on the leaves that had turned dark green, muddy water splashed, and a team of a dozen horses galloped through the dense forest path.

The dark brown waterproof cloak with tung oil crackled and crackled from the raindrops, and Henry protected Mira in his arms, and every step of the horse's vigorous and powerful crotch was conveyed to them through the muscles.

The downpour was a good thing for their group, as the bad weather reduced the patrols of the West Waliers, and the rain reduced visibility, which could wash away horseshoe prints and smells when it accumulated on the ground, even if they were carrying hounds.

"Tick-a" Mira lifted her little face, and the horse always swayed up and down as she ran, but she did not feel the slightest panic when she rode the horse for the first time in Henry's arms. The girl looked at the sage as the rain slipped from the brim of his hat and dripped down the side of his face, then down to his chin and finally to the tip of her little nose as she looked up.

"Uhh

The reduced visibility was not only beneficial, but the slippery road in the pouring rain and the chaotic and undulating forest surface made even Henry afraid to run at full speed, after all, they had already learned a lesson in the castle before.

But even the current pace of running requires a lot of caution, which is why Henry takes the lead, choosing the best route at the moment while the others follow him.

The team marched rapidly to the north in a simple column, the rain was still pouring down, the cloaks were already soaked with the sound of high-speed hunting, the lower part of the boots and trousers were already soaked, and the breath exhaled by the horses that had been running for some time in the cooling air turned into a white mist.

"Whoa—" Henry raised his left hand and clenched it into a fist, which meant to stop, and the few people behind him pulled the reins in time.

"What's going on. Bernie came to his side, half of the squad leader's face blocked by his cloak, and he could only shout because of the rain.

"Empty area, standing water. Henry shouted, and Bernie noticed the view in front of him.

The glades were filled with murky water, and it was evident from the way they flowed slowly that some nearby stream had swelled and overflowed from the rain—Bernie frowned, knowing what Henry was worried about.

Muddy soil, which lacks vegetation, becomes as difficult to walk as a swamp when flooded, and both horses and humans sink deep into the mud as soon as they step on it. Coupled with the fact that there was no cover in the open area, Bernie visually measured the distance here, it was quite wide, at least thirty meters. Once they enter it, the chances of being discovered by the Sivaliers are greatly increased, and if they are discovered, they will have to sit back and wait.

"Is there any other way? Bernie asked, and Henry shook his head, "This is the best fit, the terrain will be steeper and the vegetation will be denser and more difficult to walk on to the east, and the west will be closer to the edge of the forest to increase the chance of detection."

"Then it looks like this risk has to be taken!" Bernie turned around and waved at the team behind him, and the two archers arranged to the side of the group, one left and one right, if they were discovered by the West Valiers, Jericho and Ivan were the only ones capable of fighting back. But that's not all, the well-trained mercenaries raised their round shields to the left and right to protect their bodies, and then the whole team rushed down into the murky forest swamp.

"Hiss-hu-" The horses were agitated by the feeling of the sticky clay, and the team that had been moving at high speed was now extremely slow, and as if things weren't bad enough, a flash of lightning swept across the gloomy sky.

"Boom—" The thunder came three seconds later, and Henry frowned, for the journey through the rainy forest, which was already full of all sorts of dangers, had now been added. The dense formation and the rain everywhere caused a group of people to suffer if a bolt of lightning fell near them, but he quickly put the matter behind him, for something glittered in the distance—

"Enemy-attack!" shouted Bjorn in front of him, a black arrow shot directly at him, the northerner raised his round shield to block it, and Ivan behind him immediately opened his bow and arrow in return, but the arrow only missed in the pouring rain.

"Damn!" Til cursed loudly, his shield slung to his back, holding the reins in one hand, and the group stopped, the arrows coming from the dark forest ahead, unsure if there were more ambushes there.

"Boom—" The lightning was closer than before, and purple lightning lit up everyone's faces. Bernie gritted his teeth and looked at Henry, and the Sage nodded knowingly.

"Abandon the shields, leave anything else necessary, and draw your weapons!" Bernie shouted, and the mercenaries obeyed as they threw their spare clothes and personal belongings into the flowing sewage, then brushed and pulled out their shiny weapons.

"Qiang-" Henry held his broadsword in one hand and hung down at his side, then lowered his head and said to Mira, "Hold me tight"

Loan did as she was told, and Bernie raised his sword, "Charge!!" he shouted, and then kicked the horse in the stomach with his boot, and the spur-stimulated horse neighed, pulled out its clay-stained hooves from the muddy water, and began to speed up as soon as it hit the ground.

"Hiss-huhuhu" The advantages of the sturdy and powerful war horses were undoubtedly revealed at this moment, and even in the soft and collapsing muddy water, they still raised their speed vividly. The mercenaries, clutching their weapons, quickly walked the 30-meter distance, and when the mud-stained hooves of the horses stepped onto the relatively dry ground, several black arrows that were the same as before immediately attacked.

"Whoa—grabbing—"

"Ahh

"Click-" Thiel tumbled to the ground. "Damn!" Bernie cursed loudly, but there was no way for the group to stop, and the harder ground allowed the horses to speed up successfully, and Evan and Jericho tried to fight back, but the enemy archers just hid behind the trees, and their arrows both missed.

The team that was reduced by one person once again ran all the way north, fortunately, the number of those people just now was not much more than them, and with the advantage of horses, Henry and his party quickly distanced themselves and threw them off.

Bernie's face looked rather gloomy, but now was not the time to mourn, they still had something to do.

Henry still led the team in silence, and his excellent ability to discern direction and judgment allowed the group to always find the most suitable and shortest route. But God didn't seem to want to help them anymore, and the rain gradually became lighter, and the horses' footprints on the ground could no longer be easily washed away.

Henry slowed down.

They've been on the road for a whole day. The autumn rain that began to fall from about ten o'clock in the morning allowed the group to move at full speed without fear, which bought some time, but it was obviously not so easy to bypass the Sivalier patrols that spread all over the forest perimeter.

The kingdom must be informed before the West Valiya gather forces to attack Asenir, and if discovered, it will take precious time to flee or fight—Henry turned around, and the rain had gradually ceased for five hours, turning from a heavy downpour to a drizzle, and after a while, only the water that had accumulated on the leaves was still slowly falling.

The squad had turned to a slow march, and although the West Valiers might not have come out to search as soon as the rain had stopped, they were now close to the location of their heavy deployment, and now choosing to make a striking run again was tantamount to moths to the fire.

"Wait until evening. Bernie noticed Henry's gaze and said. The sage nodded in agreement, and then as the herald began to look for a hidden spot nearby for sunset.

Wet weather can make you feel sick all over, and that's clearly not what they want at this critical juncture. Luckily, the forest is full of excellent evergreen trees, the black pine of Ekka, its needle-like fluffy and dense leaves can effectively keep the moisture out, and after cutting down many leafy branches on the nearby black pine and then drying off the water attached to them, the group found a more secluded place and stopped.

It was a thicket surrounded by a hill that blocked the view in one direction, so everyone had to be careful not to be spotted by enemies on the other side of the forest.

Björn silently cut down a few shrubs with his axe, then picked up a thick branch and cut a ditch on the ground.

A little of the stagnant water was swept away and flowed down the aqueduct to a lower place, Henry, Minna, and Bernie put the black pine branches they had collected on top of each other on the ground, Ivan and Jericho climbed up the hill to keep an eye on the surroundings, and then the mercenaries took out some of the remaining dry firewood from the waterproof leather bags on their horses.

The humid weather rendered the firewood outside useless, and if the soaked people didn't make a fire, they would obviously fall ill before they reached Vavasika, and the experienced mercenaries wouldn't be so stupid.

The mustachioed mercenary in charge of the fire looked a little embarrassed, while Henry on the side took out two black pine branches and stacked them to block the moisture, and then lifted a stone and turned it over a relatively flat surface and placed it.

There wasn't much moisture left on the smooth surface of the stone, and Henry took off his short dry cloak that was covered with a waterproof cloak to dry it, and then held out his hand to the mustachioed mercenary.

The other party's eyes lit up, and the sage's solution has always been simple and effective. The idea of making a fire platform out of ubiquitous materials to keep out the moisture of the ground was obviously something that only those who were proficient in survival in the wild could think of, and Bernie looked at Henry with some deep meaning.

Henry was at least 10 years younger than Bernie in terms of his physical age, but the wisdom and experience of the sage gave him the feeling of an elder - a disobedience that always made the mercenaries feel indescribably strange.

"I don't think I'll ever want to be your enemy. Bernie seemed to have a feeling, and Henry, who lit the fire, only smiled faintly back.

"Whew-" Mira sat down on a thick cushion made of pine needles, and the white-haired Lorian Lori was a little nervous about all this, as evidenced by her silence all along.

Minna came over with bread and a jug and sat beside her, and the two men with the same eyes looked like sisters, and they behaved in the same way, the girls whispered to each other, while Henry removed his soaked boots.

Like the others, the sage poured a lot of stagnant water out of his boots. He picked up two branches and stuck them diagonally as a stand to dry his boots, as did several other mercenaries. More rain-soaked branches were also planted around the campfire, and the dry firewood was limited after all, so they could be used for the fire after the heat dried the branches.

"Knock-" Bjorn walked over in silence and uncorked the soft leather bag.

The sour smell of ale filled the air, and the tall northern man pinched the bottle and poured it down.

"To Till, our loyal and reliable pioneer. Bernie said, and several other mercenaries stood up in response. Lysa patted Rodney, who was sitting on a pine needle mat and gulping ale, and hurriedly stood up at this scene, and poured a small amount of soft leather water bags.

The stingy scene of the "......" Chunky mercenary made Bjorn's thick black eyebrows furrowed, and he pursed his thin lips under his beard, and his face was not good.

"Whoa," Rodney smirked, and then fell to the ground with some flesh pain on his face. "Ahh Everyone sat back in their seats and began to eat.

"It's nothing, sir, there's no West Valier nearby. Evan and Jericho descended from the knoll, the older archer said, and Bernie nodded.

"Then wait here for nightfall"

A drop of rain fell from the tip of the leaf, and the sky, where the clouds had dispersed, cast a not-so-bright light again.