Atwood, who had fallen asleep for some time, was not awakened until noon by the neighing of horses.

Maybe he poured out his sorrow before going to bed, or maybe every Teuton who adhered to the motto "justice, fearlessness, and never give up" was accustomed to calmly facing the hardships and ups and downs of life, and when he woke up, he seemed very indifferent, and he was in the mood to walk to the stream in the valley and tidy up his appearance.

Even when he saw his reflection in the water, he couldn't help but feel a little sad.

When he hid in the city of Gardinaras, he learned that his family and his attendants had been killed in the valley. But he didn't see any new graves outside the valley yesterday, and he didn't see any bones when he entered the valley, and he didn't know where the bones of his parents and siblings had been thrown by the griffon legion's family who had moved in later.

Alas, that's it.

If you can't find it, you can't find it.

Rather than collecting the bones for burial, I believe that the fathers and brothers are more looking forward to the Teutonic flag flying again on the northern lands.

Helplessly relieved, Atwood went to drink his horse, and by the way, he took out the dry food from the leather bag and ate it slowly.

He was thinking about the way forward.

If he wants to make a deal with the Centaur Khan Julils, bring the Centaurs and the Griffons to the death, and regain control of the North in the future, he needs the help of the Teutonic retainers.

And now the difficulty is that he doesn't know which family can be trusted.

After all, it has been more than twenty years since his family collapsed.

Time has the power to change everything.

Not to mention that he did not know how many of his former ministers still remembered the glory of Teutoni and kept their oath of allegiance to Teuton; He didn't even know how to prove to his former ministers that he was a Teuton.

Is it okay to look very similar to my father?

The thought popped into his head.

Immediately, he laughed at himself.

No family can weigh on the future fate of their own family just by having a similar face.

Alas....

If only my father had asked my retainers to send me to Middle-earth, he would have given me a token or two by the way.

He couldn't help but sigh.

He got up and fed the uneaten wheat bread to the horse, and patted the horse on the shoulder, telling him to search for weeds in the valley on his own, while he walked slowly and aimlessly among the dilapidated houses.

I didn't mean to find anything of value.

Needless to say, the Mills royal family and the traitor Hughes family must have ransacked the place.

He just wanted to get back to the good old days.

The council chambers were in ruins, the kitchens were reduced to nests of snakes and rats, the storehouses where many birds nested, the collapsed stables, and the rooms with rotting bedboards...... Circling around, he finally stopped at the promenade.

Because I saw a wooden sword that had corroded most of it.

This is the wooden sword that all Teutonic began to use to practice swordsmanship after he turned six, and the last owner was him.

Bent down to pick it up, gently wipe off the dirt on it, and with a few simple waves, Atwood laughed.

He remembered that when he was a young man who disdained to use a wooden sword, and after asking his brother John for an iron sword to no avail, he mischievously shoved mud into John's boots and hid horse dung under his saddle to retaliate.

For this, he was confined by his father for a day - a day and a night in a cellar cemetery without food.

Atwood wasn't hungry, though.

His brother John, who was tricked by him, was not angry at his brother's pranks, but ignored his previous suspicions and secretly hid food in front of the tombstone of the first Teutonic patriarch without his father's suspicions.

There is a floor tile there that is loose, put the food in and cover it so that no one will notice.

According to John, this was told to him by his mother.

Because my father was also confined when he was a child, and my brother also sent food like this.

In retrospect, it's no surprise that Atwood smiled.

Because this secret is open in the family, and the punishment that his father made him hungry to reflect on is only a show.

Alas, when I was a child, it was so good.....

Atwood breathed a sigh of relief and threw the wooden sword on the ground, losing interest in walking around.

If you can't go back, don't remember it too much.

Bravely accepting the reality and moving forward is what the last Teuton should do.

"I'm leaving."

"Hope.... Hopefully I'll be back. ”

He looked around one last time, muttering to the sobbing wind.

Then, putting his finger in his mouth and blowing a whistle, he summoned the horse back, and jumped on the horse and rode away.

The faint afternoon sun fell on a man and a horse, stretching the shadow very long, as if the silent valley of Siye stretched out an invisible hand, trying to pull him back.

It's just that the thick clouds obscured too much of the sky, and when Atwood rode into the sunless mountain road, the shadow disappeared, and the invisible pull of the valley was broken, so that the faint sound of horses' hooves faded away and became silent.

The valley, forgotten by the world, has regained its loneliness and loneliness.

But for some reason, after a while, the sound of the horse's hooves gradually became clearer from far to near.

Riding home, Atwood galloped back with eagerness on his face, and before he could get his horse to his feet, he jumped off his horse and rushed into the cellar cemetery, stopping at the tombstone of the first Teutonic patriarch.

"May the ancestors take refuge."

With a face full of reverence, he knelt on one knee with a knightly salute.

With a hand that trembled slightly, he gently wiped the dust and debris from the loose floor tiles.

His father knew that the floor tiles were loose!

This secret is an open secret in the Teutonic family!

If his father and brother wanted to leave him a word of advice before he was killed, this would be the safest and most likely place.

Call.... Call.....

Holding the edge of the tile with both hands, Atwood's eyes became fierce, his breathing became thick, and he hesitated a few times before he suddenly lifted the floor tiles.

He guessed right.

There's something under the tiles.

Wrapped in a sheet of linen with a little bit of black and red.

The linen was very irregular, and at first glance it was clear that it had been torn from the inner village in a hurry, and the black and red dots were traces of dried blood.

Gently lowering the floor tiles, Atwood took out the linen and opened it.

A long bronze block is revealed.

The bronze block is not large, and there is a protrusion on the surface that carves the head of a snowborne monster.

The roaring head of the Snow Monster is the coat of arms of the Teutonic family.

When the last Teutonic king took off his crown, he melted it down into bronze and engraved it with the family coat of arms as a symbol of the Teutonic dukes, which became the seal of the Teutonic family.

At the sight of the bronze block, Atwood wept again.

"So you didn't abandon me..."

"So you've been waiting for me to come back..."

"I'm sorry I made you wait so long.... I shouldn't question your ......."

After a long time.

He stopped crying, wiped away the tears from his hazy vision, and picked up the linen to examine it carefully.

There are also some words on it, written in blood. I don't know if it's been too long, or if the blood is wrapped up before it dries, making the handwriting a little blurry and illegible.

He recognized it for a long time, and finally knew that it was his father's last words to him.

The last words were short, a few sentences.

But the content made him incomprehensible and incredulous.

"My son Atwood, Teutonic fate is over. Destroy this coat of arms, and don't think about revenge. Leave the north and give Teutonia a new lease of life. ”