Winter day, near the town of Phumisiu.

A few boys and girls were playing on the frozen river, and adults were fishing in the ice not far away.

um came running from a distance with a small dog and stood looking around.

Soon um sees the girl she is looking for.

It was a bit of a chubby girl, who looked twelve or thirteen years old, but was actually a little younger.

um is not slow to develop, and Gurney is a little fast, which is very much in line with the growth rate of most barbarians in the Frozen Lands.

Generally, people who like to eat and work often are more precocious.

Awkward um remembered yesterday, when his mother, Emma, came to her master to ask about the church for the New Year, and took the time to tell him to get to know Gunnie of the Fryss family and take good care of Gurney.

Despite his clumsiness, um is not shy and is looking forward to getting married.

Gurney used to play with Tim a lot, and um had known Gurney since then, and had seen each other a lot in the town over the years, basically in church.

There are so many boys and girls in the town, and they all know who their parents are, some of them can play together, and some of them can't.

Um and Gurney speak one thing, that is, they rarely speak.

um quickly walked over to Gurney.

Gurney is playing with her younger siblings and the neighbors' little ones watching the adults go fishing or skating on the ice.

"Um! Rig! ”

um puppy is quickly spotted by the boys in the neighborhood, and everyone quickly comes over to play with um and the puppy.

Dogs can eat, and except for sled dogs, the rest of the families basically don't have dogs.

The dogs in this land are concentrated near farms and some workplaces, and are responsible for watching the home for Lawrence, rather than roaming around town.

Rig is a very ordinary puppy, more than a year old and less than a meter tall, and his body is not strong, but it is no problem to warn the caretaker in advance.

um chatted with a friend he knew, and soon ignored the puppy Rig and walked over to Gurney to look at the ice.

"Gurney, what are you doing here?"

Gurney glanced at um and quickly at the people fishing near the ice cave.

"We're watching fishing, and our house now has a fire in the morning and at night, so if only we could catch a fish."

Gurney's younger siblings sat quietly by the river and waited.

The man who fished was a native of the Wave Kingdom, a slave selected from a group of captives after Fryce attacked the Wave Kingdom a few years earlier.

Fryce was not Lawrence's slave, so he was one of the few people who could legally own slaves.

The slave was not mistreated, somewhat similar to Fryce's lieutenants or henchmen.

In Fryce's family, the slave was also somewhat similar to a subordinate under the official system, and the family treated him with a little respect, and he had to serve the family for free.

Because Lawrence's manor law still has binding rights, long-term slaves are automatically converted into hired farmers, and into hired farmers in the Land of Stars, not Fryce's slaves.

So the man only had to work for a few more months to become a legally resident farmer, even if he didn't do anything for Fryce.

It's not too bad, it's not too good, it's in a period of run-in and exploration, to be precise.

um also knew about the affairs of Fryth's family, knowing that Fryth would go to the tavern every once in a while to drink and eat meat, and that there was still some land to receive in Southtown, and the Prophet gave some of the land in Southtown to Frys.

However, Fryce prefers to stay here, and does not care about the affairs of his hometown.

When I go back to my hometown, I have to start construction again, and there is naturally everything here, so I have to think about everyone else.

Fryce was wealthy but not generous to his children, and preferred to eat and drink at taverns rather than at home.

Even when he ate at home, Fryce had a hearty meal to himself, followed by the boys and working slaves in the house, and women and girls did not eat much.

um proposed, "It's too cold here, shall we go to church?" There was no wind there. ”

When Gurney heard um suggest, she quickly looked at um happily, "Can I go to church to play?" We won't be beaten up when we go to church, right? ”

"Nope!" um said happily, "Probably not." ”

There's nothing to see by the river, boys skate and have snowball fights here, but girls don't want to get cold here.

Soon Gurney went to church to play, and the younger siblings were handed over to the man who was fishing.

um shouted, and Rig the dog soon followed from the crowd.

Remembering his mother's request, um whispered as he walked with Gurney towards the church, "My mother made a shoe for my sister, but my sister didn't dress it properly, so she gave it to me." ”

"I'm sure I'll be laughed at when I wear girls' shoes, Gurney, you can try it, and if you can put it on, I'll give it to you."

Gurney looked at um happily, "Really? Then I'll try! ”

The simple girl was very happy and looked forward to it.

um was a little embarrassed, but very happy.

"When the New Year's salary is paid, I will invite you to drink mutton soup! Eat pancakes! ”

"Really?" Gurney looked at um excitedly, her mouth grinning.

"Really!" um was quick to affirm that although it would cost a sum of money, his mother would certainly not say anything about himself.

Gurney said expectantly, "Then I'll play with you in the future!" ”

um rejoiced: "Good! ”

Gurney was very happy, smiling with her mouth open all the way, looking forward to the arrival of the New Year.

It's not just Gurnie who is looking forward to the New Year, but Eve, another girl who has been eliminated, is also looking forward to it.

Eve, who was assigned to work on the farm because she stole the hostess's food when she was a child, and then was arranged by Lawrence to be a maid and female apprentice to the beekeeper witch, is now a little more sensible.

Most people have been slaves since childhood, so they don't see anything wrong with class.

Eve has also received a lot of favors from Lawrence in recent years, and the beekeeper's hut of the beekeeper witch has also changed from wooden to neat and beautiful red brick hut, which looks like a delicate little house.

Lawrence would often send people to give the beekeeper some daily necessities, and would invite her to the Church of the Stars every other month to pray, eat something good, and replenish some daily necessities.

In the cold of winter, Eve, who doesn't need to study or take care of the bee colony, is sweeping livestock manure.

As soon as he dragged out a basket of dung and was about to fall into the pit, a man riding a black beast approached.

"Master!" Seeing this, Eve hurriedly wiped her hand in front of her apron, and quickly ran over and shouted, "Master, His Majesty the Prophet is here!" ”

Lawrence soon found himself in the snow in front of Eve, jumped off the unicorn, and stood firmly on the compacted snow and ice.

With two baskets of things still hanging from the unicorn, Lawrence turned around and began to unload.

"Eve, come here, I've brought you a little winter gift."

Eve quickly walked over, and when she got closer, she said excitedly: "Master, she may still be sleeping and needs some time." ”

"It's okay." Lawrence smiled, placed both baskets on the ground, and walked towards the room with one hand.

Eve picked up another basket and found that it was not heavy, probably some clothes and paper.

Usually people bring food, there is no shortage of food and water, and wild animals and the like have been driven away.

The two walked into a somewhat quiet room, the living room was relatively simple, except for a table and two chairs, there were some boxes and hanging flowers.

On the walls there are some purchased paintings, some hanging flutes and xylophones, and carved beauty murals.

Emma, the beekeeper witch, came in from behind the curtain a little crampedly, having just slept in the warm bedroom, not expecting Lawrence to come in person.

"Prophet." Emma quickly said, "Thank you for your gift, I recently made some sugar jars out of honey, I hope you will enjoy it." ”

Lawrence smiled: "I'm not here to do business, just like in previous years, you can go to my place to spend the winter if you have time this winter, and now there is still some time, I will send some New Year's gifts in advance." ”

"The basket next to Eve is new clothes, five of yours, one of Eve, and I have some cooked meat here, and some jars of oil, salt, sauce and vinegar, and two jars of candy."

Lawrence looked at the happy Eve nearby, and smiled and took out a few pieces of candy from his pocket, "These are for you, learn from Ms. Emma well." ”

"Yes, Your Majesty the Merciful Prophet!" Eve grabbed the candy with both hands and thanked her excitedly.

Emma was very smart, and she had long seen Lawrence's kindness, and smiled, "This kid is not smart, but it is enough to do something that is not hard." ”

"That's fine." Lawrence quickly said to Eve, "Eve go cook, I'll go back after eating, don't disturb our conversation until I'm done." ”

"Yes!" Eve quickly responded.

The person who cooks here is not Eve, but the women of the nearby farm.

There is also a stove house near the hut for the healthy women who come to help, who are usually responsible for some heavy physical work, and then they will give these people some valuable honey as a reward.

The apiary is not just a small hut, and the beeswax honey that Lawrence needs is not a small number, and now it has expanded a lot with the beekeeper's hut as the core.

Under the guidance of the queen bee, the bee colony was divided into flower fields to establish a hive, and the nearby beekeepers also established a beekeeper village with the hive as a guide.

Candle workshops, honey workshops, and flower shops have gradually evolved into several branches like flowing water from the source.

After Eve went out to work, Lawrence and Emma went into the warm cabin and sat down to talk.

Lawrence sat near the fireplace, and although briquettes were provided, the smell of burning coal was not liked by some people, such as the beekeeper.

Wood is still burned here, and there is a special firewood room near the house, which has already been stocked with wood for a winter.

"This is my brewed honey tea, please use it."

"Okay."

Lawrence unceremoniously accepted the hot tea from the beekeeper.

After taking a sip, Lawrence smiled, "The taste is good, it feels very refreshing, and I feel a lot more refreshed." ”

The beekeeper sat across from Lawrence and nodded gracefully, "If you like it." ”

Lawrence was quick to say, "Recently I have been going to re-maintain the Colossus of Ravenfeather, Delenn's sorcery is not so useful, and there are many wizards in the territory who are not willing to show their power. ”

"I'd like to ask you to visit the town of Phumethius and the port of the Ferry when you have time next year, the witches should be more able to spot witches."

"I don't force those people to work for me, and I don't hold them accountable for their past, you can just tell them one thing tactfully."

Lawrence paused and said seriously: "If you pay, you will be rewarded, this is my rule here." ”

"If they want to go on like this for the rest of their lives, I don't force them to do anything."

"If they want more, then they can consider playing for me."

The beekeeper nodded, and asked with some confusion: "Forgive me for being stupid, why are you looking for me?" There are a lot of witches around you. ”

Lawrence sighed, "I don't know, maybe I feel that your perception is a little more keen, and you know the rules of wizards outside better than the witches here." ”

In fact, I feel that Sariel and the others have been abstained by a good material life, and they lack the vigilance and instinct they used to have.

It used to be like when Saril discovered Sophia, and there was a clear feeling between witches and witches.

But the women of the family were not forbidden to go out all these years, and these people also went out to shop and convey orders, but for several years, they did not introduce women for themselves.

Kehalan was too lazy to go out and spent most of his time in the house studying.

If Sariel doesn't feel clear, then Sophia must have deliberately not said it!

Sophia, who has the ability to perceive, should have been the most proactive person to provide information about witches, but now she is no longer the treasure hunting girl she used to be.

The wind has brought back more things than she has.

The beekeeper nodded, feeling that she was able to control the swarm, and that she was indeed better at finding traces of wizards than the rest.

"I'll do this for you, I also know some wizards outside, there have been wars outside in the past few years, the situation is turbulent, and I don't know if they are still there, I can introduce them to you."

Lawrence is not as resistant to male witches as he was at the beginning, and when he met male wizards in the early days, he was killed!

Now it's different, the Kingdom of Gran, with a population of 900,000, and the Kingdom of Io, with a population of more than 500,000, are ruled by themselves, and the Kingdom of Stars, with a population of nearly two million, is the strongest overlord in the West.

"Well, I'm happy to accept these people's submissions."

Lawrence nodded in agreement.

After eating a not-so-good meal, Lawrence and the Black Unicorn walked home in the snow, and instead of riding the Black Unicorn, they walked forward one step at a time.

As I walked, I thought about what happened this time.

[Sure enough, sometimes outsiders are more reliable, and it is more reassuring to hand things over to capable people. 】

[In the future, don't take people from your home, this will raise people to waste. 】

[Dogs too.] 】

Lawrence thought about dogs and pigs.

If Hurricane was no longer the dog boss of the manor, but became a pet dog here in his castle, he would also be kept in ruins.

After Doug was raised by himself, although he had a powerful dog son and pig brother, Doug's ability was actually very average.

Lawrence was a little sad, Doug was the dog he raised since he was a child.

It's the same with Pig, if Pigg was raised in the pigsty by himself since he was a child, then it is definitely not a boar piggy now, and it is not even certain whether it can survive.

Lawrence opened his arms and shouted to the sky under the black unicorn's incomprehensible gaze, "Freedom! Wild! Strength!! (End of chapter)