The mercenaries and the young villager Julius had a dispute. If it weren't for Olga and Padding, this matter would undoubtedly have developed into a bloody incident, and Julius, this courageous but ignorant and reckless youth, would have met with a very miserable end.
After replenishing their food, Padding ordered the convoy to set off immediately towards the Forest of the Dead.
Staying in this small village for a while longer would only magnify the anxiety and fear of these poor villagers.
Before Padding left, he received some coins from the village chief.
He knew why the village chief did this, and he also knew that he must be filled with fear and trembling hands as he offered the same amount of coins to the "Terrible Giant" Griss.
In order to make the village chief feel at ease, Padding accepted these coins — for these villagers, this money might be their long-term savings, but for Padding, this was at most a matter of a two-handed sword.
This was the way of survival for the villagers.
Humiliation was just a small matter. Survival was the only thing that would never change.
Before the village chief bid farewell to Padding, perhaps he had just remembered, or perhaps he was grateful for what Padding had done for him, he told Padding one thing.
"Sir Knight, in fact, there are still people living in the forest."
Padding felt a little curious, "People living in the Forest of the Dead, with wild beasts as their companions?"
The village chief seemed to be recalling something, "It may not be accurate to say that there are people living there, I don't know if they are really people … That was something I encountered more than ten years ago. At that time, there were so many wild beasts that even the villages at the edge of the forest could not withstand their harassment."
It seemed that the village chief had a long story to tell, so Padding quietly stood aside, waiting for him to continue.
"At that time, the life of the village was very difficult. Children were taken away, there were casualties among the villagers, and the crops were often destroyed by wild beasts … At that time, I still had some strength and was rather impulsive, so I led the strong people in the village into the forest, wanting to avenge my son and wife who were killed by wild beasts. I thought that I had to kill at least a few wolves before returning to the village … At that time, my head was full of anger, and I didn't even care about my granddaughter."
Speaking of this, the village chief laughed bitterly. "He also thinks of himself as someone important, forgetting that those who run out of the forest to look for food in the village are all weak beasts.
In the end, in the forest, those strong magic beasts ate the villagers like fruits. We didn't have the slightest ability to resist.
In the end, I was the only one who could run away, thinking that I was doomed.
While running away from the beasts, I unknowingly arrived in front of a wooden house. There were no more magic beasts chasing after me.
I've already forgotten what the wooden house looked like, but I still have some recollection of the people in the nursery in front of the wooden house. "
"She was a very old woman. She wore a black robe and her hair was messy like kelp. She had more wrinkles on her face than I do now. At that time, I thought she was very scary. She looked like a witch.
That old woman saw me covered in blood and panicked, falling in front of the wooden house. She helped me up and used medicinal herbs to treat my wounds.
The crushed and juicy herbs were like a miraculous elixir. They healed my wounds very quickly, leaving only a few scars. "
Hearing this, Padding had some understanding of the old woman, but he couldn't make an accurate judgment.
That old woman could be a herbalist who lived in seclusion. She could also be a witch or a mage who fled from the west to the east.
Cruel witches and merciless mages wouldn't be so kind unless they asked for something in return. Therefore, Padding was more inclined to think that she was a herbalist who was at the end of her rope.
"That old woman was taciturn. She never said a complete sentence to me.
After bandaging my wounds, she brought me out of the forest until we could see the smoke from the village.
When I walked out of the forest, I turned around and looked at the mysterious old woman. She only said one sentence, 'Don't come back again.' Then she turned around and left.
Since then, until now, I have never seen that old woman again.
It has already been more than ten years. She might have already passed away. "The village chief recalled the past and sighed with emotion.
"Sir Knight, if you enter the depths of the forest and are lucky enough to see that strange wooden house, that is probably the old woman's house.
I don't know if that place is still the same as before. If you meet that old woman, maybe you can ask her for some medicinal herbs to treat external injuries.
She might be a strange and eccentric person, but since she saved me, she shouldn't be a bad person. "
The old man finished his words.
Padding took out some silver coins from his pocket and stuffed it into the village chief's hand. "Thank you for your advice. It will be very helpful to us."
Padding wasn't being polite. In the Forest of the Dead, there were times when they needed to use medicinal herbs or medicine for external injuries.
The village chief didn't dare to accept the money from the kind-hearted Sir Knight. However, Padding was very firm this time, so he could only accept it obediently.
The slow moving caravan had already reached the edge of the village and the entrance of the forest.
Padding got on his horse, said goodbye to the village chief, and rushed towards the caravan.
The mercenaries walked carelessly at the rear and in the middle of the caravan. They were rude to the attendants who were also walking.
The Church Knights rode their horses and walked between the caravan, monitoring these restless fellows.
Padding returned to the front of the caravan and found that Olga, who had temporarily replaced him as the leader, had a child beside him.
The boy named Julius followed beside Olga's horse. He had to walk quickly to keep up with the horse's pace.
"You should go home, child." Padding urged his horse to rush to Olga's side and said to Julius.
"Sir Knight, I think you need a guide."
When Julius saw Padding, he immediately abandoned Olga, who was still trying to curry favor with Padding.
He raised his head and looked up at Padding, his eyes sparkling. "I often go to the forest to pick up fruits. I know which path is harder and suitable for carriages. I also know which path is safer. Even the cries of wild beasts can't be heard. Alright, although our village hasn't heard the cries of wild beasts for a long time."
"We don't need a guide.
Your parents will be worried about you. Go home quickly. "Padding showed no signs of relenting.
Hearing this, Julius lowered his head. "My parents died a long time ago.
I'm an orphan. "
When Padding and Olga heard this, their expressions changed slightly.
In this day and age, death was not a rare thing. Instead, it was so frequent that it made people numb.
Padding didn't even need to ask how his parents disappeared. Perhaps they were killed by bandits, or perhaps they died of illness. Natural disasters and man-made disasters, these poor villagers couldn't escape from one or two of them.
Because of this, Padding didn't want Julius to follow them.
"No, go back to your village."
Padding's tone became heavier. "Child, I know what you're thinking, but your delusion will destroy your stable life. You won't even be able to keep your life."
Padding let his horse raise its hooves, kicking up clouds of dust and driving Julius to the side. "You were lucky just now. Otherwise, those mercenaries would have at least made you lose an arm or a leg.
In the dense forest, you won't be so lucky to get help from me or Olga.
Those boorish warriors have many ways to torture you, but I can only turn a blind eye to it! "
Padding purposely let the horse's hooves land in front of Julius, scaring Julius so much that he fell to the ground and couldn't stand up for a while.
Padding thought that his attitude was clear enough, so he ignored Julius and continued forward.
"You saved the child's life again." Olga said to Padding when he caught up with him.
Padding replied: "No, I just saved his second life.
His first life was saved by you, merciful Mr. Olga. "
"Without you and the Church's knights, I wouldn't know how to deal with this." Olga laughed.
Padding only smiled and didn't say anything.
Olga was right. Without him, a Silver-ranked knight, and the twelve Iron-ranked knights, Gris wouldn't have been so honest.
This huge mercenary leader looked like the king of barbarians, but in reality, he was as cunning as an underground thief.
The convoy quickly entered the forest, leaving only the dust kicked up by the horse's hooves and the wheels. Julius sat by the side of the road, staring blankly at the convoy disappearing into the forest.
The greenery was so dense that only the trees outside could be seen. The forest was like a bottomless green mouth that swallowed the convoy as if it was eating a centipede.
The Forest of the Dead was very quiet. The chirping of the birds and insects wasn't annoying, but instead made the silence lively.
The only things that could make people feel irritated and afraid were the cries of the wild beasts in the forest, or the rustling of the leaves as some strange things shuttled through the trees.
Those strange things could be wild elves, or they could be underground dwellers who dug their way up to the surface, or they could even be hunters lurking in the greenery.
But in the Forest of the Dead, these ominous sounds couldn't be heard.
There were only the fluttering and chirping of the birds, and the chirping of the insects.
This silence made Padding and Olga a little uncomfortable.
"It's very quiet." Padding said.
There was a very simple road in the forest for the carriage to move forward. There were occasional potholes on the road, but it didn't affect the carriage's progress.
"Is it because this is the Forest of the Dead?"
Olga said, "You said that there are soldiers of the Double Eagle Empire sleeping here. This natural mausoleum is so natural that no living beings dare to approach it?"
"They aren't vengeful spirits. They should have been summoned to the side of the God of Light." Padding replied, "This silence does make people feel a little strange.
Maybe the patrolling knights of the Crescent Empire trampled through the forest, and the wild beasts and the inhabitants of the wilderness were driven away. "
"If it's the soldiers of the Crescent Empire, it's indeed possible."
Olga nodded. He was a native of the Yilan Continent, so he knew this country better than Padding. "Conquer everything, then gain glory and wealth … In the Crescent Empire, even children who haven't grown up will be influenced by what they see and hear, and grow up to be strong warriors.
If you want to conquer a forest, it doesn't sound that strange. "
Padding didn't reply.
As long as one lived in the Yilan Continent, they were afraid and apprehensive of such an aggressive pagan empire.
It was because of this terrifying spiritual power that the Crescent Empire crossed the narrow strait and expanded to the other side of the Yilan Continent. The once glorious Double Eagle Empire was suppressed to the point that it couldn't breathe, and could only hide in the lonely city of the King's Castle.
And now the Crescent Empire's territory, which made the western city-states and the Church of Light feel suffocated, actually belonged to the Double Eagle Empire.
But that was a matter of hundreds of years ago.
History was like a tide, sweeping away the glory of a country, and then letting the strong take it. The strong relied on their own ability to obtain all of it, and then lost it after the decline.
The Double Eagle Empire obtained its glory from an ancient empire that no one knew of, and the Crescent Empire took it from the Double Eagle Empire.
To put it bluntly, this glory was voluntarily abandoned by the Double Eagle Empire. More than a hundred years of civil war, and the Western Expeditionary Army's plundering, caused the Double Eagle Empire to continuously cut off its own flesh until it could no longer bleed, and only a skeleton was left.
As Padding and Olga walked in front without saying a word, the curtain of the carriage behind them was pulled up.
A young girl with blonde hair and a face so pale that it made one's heart ache a little, revealed her head. "Olga, can I ride with you?"
The young girl's face was beautiful, but there was a faint sadness on her face. It seemed to have become something that could not be removed from her face. Her eyebrows were unconsciously furrowed, and people were worried that she would age prematurely because of this.
She was a beautiful girl, but like a fragile porcelain vase, people were afraid that she would break at the slightest touch.
The young girl was the owner of this convoy, Romuona Mullenin, who was going to be married to the West.
"Miss, you shouldn't have come out."
Olga slowed down and came to the side of the carriage. "This is not in accordance with etiquette, and it's not safe." Olga was worried that she would be exposed to the mercenaries.
"In this silent forest, animals and ghosts don't care about the etiquette of the living."
Romuona said. Obviously, she was also clear about the origin of the name of the Forest of the Dead. "The carriage is too bumpy. I would rather ride on the back of the horse and have the skin on my inner thigh chafed than endure the pain of my butt being hit again."
Olga sighed and extended his hand to Romuona. "Come on up, Miss." He had never been able to refuse Romuona's request.
Romuona let her only two maids continue to sit in the carriage, and she sat on Olga's horse.
She sat on Olga's inner side and changed into a more comfortable position.
"Thank you, Olga."
"It's my pleasure, Miss."
Because he had to protect Romuona, Olga did not go forward to advance side by side with Padding. Padding did not care about what was happening behind him and continued to stare ahead, as if this was the only thing that could attract his attention.
The carriage continued to move forward until the sun set in a place where they could no longer see in the forest.
The sky was still bright, but it would soon be dark.
It was time to find a place to set up camp and rest.
Padding turned his horse around and gestured for the carriage behind him to stop.
"It's already dark, let's rest here today!"
The carriage stopped, and the servants and mercenaries leaned against the carriage and sat on the ground.
Not only were they tired from walking, but the knights who had been riding for a day also dismounted and comforted their tired horses as they rested.
Olga helped Romuona dismount.
After dismounting, Romuona combed her messy hair and looked at the side of the road. "Look, there seems to be a small wooden house there."
Padding and Olga followed her gaze.
On the side of the road, in a place blocked by the messy trees, they could vaguely see a small wooden house, mainly because of the light from the fire.
Padding held the hilt of his sword and waved to Olga and Romuona. "I'll go take a look, you two stay here."
"That place is very suitable for staying overnight, at least better than a carriage." Romuona said.
Olga shook his head. "No, Miss, at least make sure that it's safe and harmless, and the owner of the wooden house must be friendly and welcoming."
Padding walked through the wild bushes, feeling the deformed trees, and came to the wooden house.
The wooden house was built with rough wood, and there were many vines wrapped around it, as if it was about to merge with the forest.
Smoke rose from the top of the wooden house, and there was an oil lamp hanging in front of the door.
In front of the wooden house, there was a simple wooden fence around the air, and there were herbs growing on the ground.
There was a young girl in front of the wooden house, and she must have just hung up the oil lamp.
She noticed Padding's arrival and turned to face Padding.
The young girl was wearing a short blouse and skirt made of coarse hemp, a pair of straw sandals, and a tattered gray cloak. Her long black hair flowed out from the gap of the hood.
The young girl was about fourteen or fifteen years old, and there was a flower-like smile on her beautiful but slightly immature face. Her eyes were clear and bright, as if she had never experienced pain, and happiness was her everything. Coupled with the basket full of flowers hanging in her arms, she looked like a little elf who used flowers to spread happiness. Perhaps this elf's body was a little too big.
"Hello, Lord Knight."
The young girl greeted Padding, looking a little reserved, as if she had never seen such an important person appear so close to her.
Padding's hand on the hilt of his sword loosened. "Who are you?" Although he had let down his guard, Padding still wanted to know the other party's background.
"I am Lulunaka," the young girl replied. "I am an alchemist."