Against a pale background of snow, a lone figure appears in the wilderness. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 infoThe northwest wind was so strong that the solo rider seemed so weak. However, apart from the effect of the northwest wind, the horse that Sogrand stepped on was indeed weak. After all, no creature will do well after a day of starvation.

The days were so short that even if you counted the fleeting evenings, Sogrand would have only six hours to travel. Not to mention the possible pursuers in the future, it is enough to be exposed to the harsh winter of the north for too long to kill people.

The hungry horses were visibly weak, and had only walked another forty leagues during the day. If the net distance is calculated, it may be only thirty miles. Thorgrande now worries that the problem of food outweighs the dangers, and that there is only enough dry food left for Celeste, who must be able to find food if he does not want to go hungry.

In the vast expanse of snow, where even the hardiest creatures have never been seen, it is not easy to find food. "It's just a matter of trying your luck." Thorgrande muttered to himself.

He settled Celeste and the horse, told the little one not to run away, and waited for him to return, and broke a piece of black bran bread and stuffed it into the little girl's hand.

Sogrande went a little west, so that it might be closer to the water system of the Falenas. Sure enough, after walking about a mile, he found a dry stream.

"Let's try it here." As he spoke, he walked into the woods by the stream, where he found a large aspen and crouched down, took out his dagger and began to dig at the base of the tree. Creatures like snakes and frogs usually choose the roots of trees near the water source as their hibernation sites, and the only thing Saulgrande is not sure about is whether the place further north is suitable for snakes and frogs.

As luck would have it, Thorgrande found a fat patterned pit viper under the third birch tree. Although this is one of the most dangerous creatures on the continent, reptiles that sleep groggily are not at all lethal in the harsh winter. Before dark, Saugland found a snake and a few frogs, and he even dug up the cicada larvae.

As he returned to the sleepover with his harvest, Celeste jumped up from his horse and hurried into his arms. Sogrend picked her up lovingly, "Little ghost, I won't leave you here, I'm scared?" ”

With food, the second night in the wild isn't too tough. Sogrande's only concern is still food, and tomorrow may not be so lucky.

When Daystar disappeared into the night sky, the Thorgrandes ushered in the morning of their third day. The horses were obviously very hungry, and they were scrambling the ground for the few wilted plants to feed themselves, so the whole journey became slower. Sogrend also felt weak, after all, in the bitterly cold climate, not ingesting a little fat for two consecutive days is a huge physical drain on people. Just yesterday's dinner was quickly depleted in the body's battle against the cold.

The horse stopped again, not knowing how many times it was today, and Thorgrande awoke from his sleep. He glanced at Celeste in his arms, the little one was in good spirits, but she didn't know that high consumption equaled good appetite. He looked at the sky again, it was getting late, and he was about to say this to himself, when he suddenly realized that something was wrong. Although Sogrend had been dozing off to reduce his energy expenditure, his sense of time had not deviated, and it was too early in the dark. Looking closer, he shuddered at the conclusion he had three seconds later - there was a snowstorm tonight!

I can't go forward anymore, I have to find a place to spend the night. If you can't dig a hole in the snow before it gets completely dark, you'll have to wait until next spring, and you'll have to lie in a coffin and return to France.

Thorgrande jumped off his horse, led the horse, and walked a little with Celeste in one hand. As we walked, we came to the edge of a dirt slope, which was a leeward place. He made up his mind, put Celeste down, and said to the little one, "Celeste, go up there and see if your father has come to us?" Celeste obediently staggered up to the top of the dirt slope and looked earnestly north with Saugland on her back.

After confirming that the little one's attention was not here, Sogrend gently unsaddled the saddle and the reins, came behind the horse, gently stroked the horse's back, and quietly pulled out the "tooth moon". Ma was tired and didn't notice the unusual behavior of the man. Suddenly, there was a long neigh, and the horse fell into the snow with a bang.

"I'm sorry." Sogrend silently recited the words of apology, and pulled the "Tooth Moon" out of the horse's belly, and the blood flowed quickly down the sword's blood groove to the ground, and the snow everywhere it went was instantly melted by the warm blood.

The horse's blood was also a nutrient that could not be wasted at this time, and Thorgrande immediately leaned in and took a big sip with both hands. Then he wiped his mouth and took out the dagger he had with him to empty the horse's belly. The internal organs were quickly cleaned out, the meat was cut off in large chunks, and the fat under the skin was scavenged.

"Celeste, did you see your father?"

"No, no."

"Then come down and make something to eat for you today."

Sogrend set up a fire and cut the horse's meat into small strips and roasted it for the next few days. The offal were cleaned with snow and baked, so it was dinner today. After the grease melts, most of it is evenly applied to the skin of the horse's carcass, which is used to protect against the cold; The rest is reserved for antifreeze and can be applied to the face later.

It was Saugrande's first full meal for three days, and adequate stamina was necessary to cope with the impending blizzard. Celeste was also satisfied, and the horse's liver gave her a loud burp.

When everything was ready, Thorgrande carried Celeste into the hollowed-out carcass of the horse, the main skeleton of which was not removed, especially the ribs and bones of the spine.

"Celeste, go to bed early." Sogrend said to the child in his arms, who nodded sensibly and closed his eyes.

When the last shred of favor from the god of daylight had left the earth, the god of storms opened his sack. The tyrannical north wind is like a knight who hears the horn of the charge, and rushes with a thunderous force. The horse's carcass was quickly buried by the raging wind and snow, which was exactly what Thorgrande had reckoned so that he could make a hole in the snow without a shovel. However, Sogrand had to push the snow upwards from time to time so as not to be buried alive, but the horse's skeleton showed good resilience and was able to withstand the load of the snow.

Celest's tiny body snuggled tightly into his arms, as if Sogrand were all of her world. Thorgrande listened quietly to the roar of the wind and snow outside, and hugged the little girl lovingly, protecting her now was his only responsibility.

As lunch approached on November 20, Queen Margaret was listening to Chenna's summary report on the mission with great interest, and wondering how to perfunctory her lunch.

"To sum up, we have successfully completed the scheduled tasks this time. The targets set by His Excellency Leus were also exceeded. China earnestly concluded the report.

Hearing the sound of "Lyce" popping out of Chinna's mouth, Margaret couldn't help but tremble, this was the first time she didn't know how many times today, and she secretly wondered if she was too sensitive.

"Your Majesty, what do you think of the candidates for Hitaros, Your Excellency Farsberg?"

"I think so too, let him go under the pretext of asking Princess Rakoxiu to return to his country to mourn Marshal Becky." Margaret also has some politicians' minds.

"Lan Fangteqing, come and have lunch with me today." Margaret rose from her throne.

"It's a courtier's honor." China was deeply indebted.

Just as the two were about to leave the palace hall, the atmosphere was broken by the presence of the guards by the guards of Maqi Landil, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, we have encountered infighting among the Navi on our way back, and Your Excellency Leus has sent me back to report the news. ”

"And what about Luce Geqing?" The two men in the hall spoke almost in unison.

"The subordinates were separated from His Excellency Luce in the midst of the chaos, and there is no way to know."

Margaret and Gina looked at each other at the same time, and it was self-evident how important Sogrand was to the two of them. It was China who replied first, "Your Majesty, please allow the minister to go to Nawei in person, and please give orders to the army." ”

"I—I see," Margaret regained her senses at the reminder of the division commander, "and ordered the Second Army to stop recuperating and immediately enter combat readiness. In addition, an order was given to the Third Army Corps that it was not allowed to leave the province of Alk without my orders. The Commander-in-Chief and Admiral Santro were invited to come to the palace immediately after lunch. ”

"Sergeant Randil, rest well today, and set off with me tomorrow, I still need you as a guide." China came to Ma Qi's side and instructed, then turned to Margaret, "Your Majesty, the minister will take his leave to prepare for the trip north, and in the future, I hope that you and Your Excellency Luce will not hide such an important matter from the minister, especially the safety of important people." With that, Gina left the palace in a hurry, and Margaret looked at her departing figure, and sat back on her throne weakly.

And far away in Navi, the focus of the attention of the Pharansi is now advancing southward at a rate of less than four fats in less than an hour. After losing his horse, he had to rely entirely on Saugland's feet for the rest of the journey. Unfamiliar roads and heavy snow are the main reasons for Sogrend's progress, but the biggest problem is the lack of food, and in order to ensure Celest's rations, Sogrerd has to strictly control the amount of food he eats every day. He tried not to use the horse jerky as a stockpile, but instead searched for food along the way.

But that's not all.

On the third day after losing his horse, Sogrand found himself being stalked, not by a human, but by a wolf, of course. After so many years at the Non-Commissioned Officer Academy, he has always been sensitive to the situation behind his back. An adult wolf, behind his left hand, left the position of fifteen fats, perhaps feeling uncertain about the opponent, remained in a state of tracking for the time being.

Half a day later, Sogrend stopped to rest. He shoved the horse's jerky into Celeste's hands, and the little one had no idea that he was followed by a wolf. Thorgrande watched the stalker, trying to find out what it was trying to do. As far as he knew, wolves rarely attacked humans, and only attacked people when they were extremely hungry.

Not far away, the stalker was leisurely clawing and let out a howl from time to time. Sogrend was a little worried, the wolf's hearing was very good, and the volume of that howl could summon any wolf within a radius of 20 miles. He stood, drew his sword, and decided that it would be better to strangle the danger in the cradle. But the other seemed to see through his intentions, and the wolf shrewdly stepped back, keeping a certain distance from Sogrand. After walking more than ten steps, Sogre gave up his original idea, and if the wolf decided to spend so much time with him, he had no good way, not to mention that he couldn't get too far away from Celest.

When Celeste had finished eating, the two continued on their way, and the wolf continued to follow. This continued until the evening, and Thorgrande did not dare to slack off, and as soon as it got dark, he stopped and started to light a fire. Night is the world of wild beasts, and no human being can be an opponent of animal predators at night.

Helpless, there was no chance to go out to find food, so Sogrend had to pick a few pieces of horse meat and swallow them, and then fell asleep with Celeste in his arms. Fortunately, the wolf also did what he could, and did not make any moves throughout the night.

The next day, the wolf was still following them. But about an hour before noon, Sogrend's fears happened, and a second wolf appeared. But unexpectedly, the wolves had no intention of attacking them. The two wolves frolicked and played for a while while while following them, and the one who had followed them left and the one who followed them later.

"It seems to be a big problem, let's find a way to get rid of this tail." Sogrend thought to himself.

However, after a few attempts, Sogre realized that the brute behind him was really suspicious. The allure of horse meat seemed too small for him, and the only one here who could make him attractive enough was Celeste. "It's a pity that I don't have the courage to take this risk, so I'll leave it to my fate." Sogrend thought.

In the year 344 of the Gregorian calendar, the winter in Navi was unusually cold. In the event of a lack of food, wolves born in previous years return to their parents, as they can only hunt large ungulates if they work together, resulting in a larger pack than usual. Coupled with the plundering of the natural world triggered by the rapidly expanding population of recent years, in the winter of 344, the conspicuous lack of food created an unprecedentedly large wolf pack.

After lunch, things went from bad to worse, as Saulgrande had hoped. The number of trailing wolves slowly began to increase, from one to three, and then more to follow. Saugland soon formed a team of more than 20 wolves, which was beyond the normal size. The wolves were in a roar, and the wolves ran unhurriedly along the way, pushing each other's mouths, licking, wagging their stiff tails, and some were even playing and joking. There are new companions, and they also welcome it warmly, sniffing and licking the new companions affectionately.

"It seems that wolves, like humans, have to greet each other before dinner." Thorgrande smiled wryly.

It was getting darker and darker, and finally a wolf couldn't help it. A young male wolf sprang out of the queue, trotted a few steps and looked back to see if any of his companions had come with him, and it seemed that everyone was still holding a wait-and-see attitude. So, it bravely threw itself at the back of the human in front of it. But it was clearly too inexperienced, and the opponent easily dodged its attacks sideways. Warm blood splattered all over the floor, and Thorgrande took advantage of the situation to cut a wide hole in its stomach. The wolf wailed in pain, and its colorful intestines flowed out, and after a few convulsions, it never moved again.

Several more male wolves came out and attacked Sogrend, but instead of getting such a bargain, Sogrend killed and wounded two more heads. A peculiar howl sounded among the wolves, and the male wolves dragged back with the corpses of their companions, apparently the superior of the pack giving the order to restrain the movement. After the carcass of the young male wolf was dragged back to the pack, he immediately became a source of hunger for his companions.

"Since I can't choose the time of the decisive battle, at least I can choose the location." Sogrerd thought to himself as he ran as fast as he could, and before it was dark, he was going to find a battlefield in his favor. The wolves were driven by him.

Sogrerd ran desperately in the snow with Celeste in his arms, and he could not passively wait for the wolves to attack, but had to try to find factors in his favor. It is a pity that in such weather, all the objective conditions are favorable for the creatures that have always followed the laws of nature and survived. Humanity is too fragile at this time.

Eventually, Saulgrande found a place that helped him - a large dead tree, with no other plants or other bunkers within a radius of 60 Faz. Although the tree is dead, it has not fallen and is very tall. Sogrend immediately ran to his chosen base, and the wolves followed, but still cautiously did not make too many moves.

Sogrend came under the tree, and he took a closer look at the bitter tree. Although the tree has not yet fallen, it is estimated that it can no longer withstand too much toss, and many places in the roots have rotted and loosened. If you hide in a tree, you should easily take it down with the strength of the wolves, so you can only rely on it as a barrier to avoid being attacked from all sides.

So he climbed a tree and settled Celeste. Then, quickly start collecting all the combustibles you can get, and if you can keep a fire at all times, it will be very helpful for the rest of the battle.

It was getting dark, but the wolves' patience didn't seem to diminish in the slightest. Their numbers continued to increase, and wolves continued to join the pack from time to time when it was completely dark. Just when Saulgrande thought this would continue until dawn, there was an uproar among the wolves. Almost all the wolves began to run, wagging their tails, raising their heads, and putting their ears behind them, running in a big circle. They jumped high, licking each other's faces and screaming. Young and low-status wolves bent slightly or lay on the ground in a deferential manner.

Experienced hunters will tell you that the Wolf King is about to appear. Sogrend didn't know that the wolves had such rituals, but based on the situation at the scene, he could still deduce some correct conclusions. He didn't have time to do much verification, and the priority was to light the fire as quickly as possible.

When the light of human civilization flickered on the wasteland of Nawei again, the wolf king finally appeared in front of the eyes of mankind. It is a silvery-white male wolf with a sturdy body and a shiny coat. There was a small patch of jet-black hair on its chest, which contrasted with the overall silver, and only half of its left ear remained, apparently from the damage caused by a human weapon. If there was a Navi hunter by his side, he would have told the Pharians in horror: "This is the famous wolf king, 'Blackheart,' and he got his name because of the black hair on his chest, and because of his cruel and cunning nature." ”

"Whew-" The wolf king began to howl, and the wolves began to howl with him, and the young wolf jumped on his companion from time to time. The bleak wolf howl concert lasted about two minutes, and it would have been exciting if a zoologist had been present, but Thorgrande was only a little impatient about it. This is the wolf king's final summoning order, a bit like the army needs to be boosted by the main general before launching a charge.

After the collective howl ended, with a long howl from the "black heart", the youngest wolf in the pack launched the first attack on the prey. Sogrend had been waiting for him for a long time, holding the "Tooth Moon" in one hand and the flaming branches in the other. Unable to gain an advantage in Thorgrande's left-hand direction, the wolves unconsciously focused their attacks on the side of the human's weapon, but the consequence of this was that they could only go up individually to die.

Soon, the corpses of four or five wolves were lying next to Sogrand. The "Black Heart" paced back and forth in front of the wolves in dissatisfaction, and suddenly it howled again, and an older wolf rushed towards Sogrend's left hand. Sogrend also tried to use fire to drive it away, but it seems that the wolf has lived around humans for a long time, and it is not very afraid of fire, so it jumped up and bit Sogrend's left arm.

Sogre felt a slap in pain, and reflexively picked it up with a kick. The wolf made a "whine" sound, rolled to the side, and never got up again, and it seemed that the internal organs were badly injured. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the wolves that had been hovering on the right side of Sogrend jumped up one after another, and one wolf bit the "Tooth Moon", and Sogre poked the burning branch into its eyes without mercy, and the wolf let go of its mouth with a scream, and rolled on the ground. This is a battle to the death, and there is no room for the slightest hesitation. Thorgrande continued to swing his sword, and the first wolves to attack him were soon reduced to corpses.

The wolves seemed to be going to fight a war of attrition with him, and did not give him any chance to rest, maintaining a wave attack. If it were an ordinary warrior, he would have been torn apart by the wolves under such an offensive a long time ago. But after all, Sogrend is accustomed to being a man with a large number of enemies, and such fatigue tactics have no obvious effect for a while.

After a long time of attacking, the "black heart" howled, and the wolves stopped attacking. Thorgrande gasped and leaned against the trunk. If the wolves were smart enough, their attack could last a little longer and kill Sogrand. However, now Sogrand has been given precious respite.

The loss of physical strength, sweating, and many small wounds on his body made him start to suffer from hypothermia. Sogrend knew he had to get some nourishment, and there was not much horse meat left. He finds the carcass of the last wolf he killed, slices its throat, and greedily begins to suck the blood. Cut off the front legs of the wolf corpse and swallow the lean flesh with the fur attached. Human dignity was a useless thing at this time, and Sogrand did not hesitate to abandon it.

Saulgrande ate and drank as he watched the wolves move coldly. Soon after, the wolves began to stir again, and "Blackheart" clamoured his kind to launch another round of offensive against the humans in front of him. Sogrend threw away the half-gnawed wolf leg and went back into battle. This time the wolves became cautious, and their attacks were not as fierce as before, and they were even retreating. Thorgrande is murderous, raw flesh and blood temporarily suppressing his humanity. His eyes were bloodshot, and he frantically brandished his sword and improvised torches, and was gradually led away from the tree.

When Thorgrande realizes that something is wrong, he looks back to find that the fire has been kicked away and trampled by several old wolves.

"Cunning brutes, is that what they're for?" Thorgrande laughed bitterly, and he shouted and rushed back under the tree, killing the wolf who was still trying to kill Celeste in the tree.

Thorgrande leaned back against the trunk of the tree, and he looked up at Celeste, where the little one had not fallen asleep as he had imagined, but looked at him with wide eyes. Thorgrande smiled at her, but Celeste smiled at him as well, and as the two exchanged words, Thorgrand, with the instincts of a warrior, separated the heads of the two wolves that wanted to sneak up.

The battle between man and beast went on and on, and Navi's winter nights were so long that neither side felt the end of the killing.

When the silver moonlight returned to the earth after a few days, the largest pack of wolves ever in the wilderness of Navi had yet to defeat a single human, and the corpses of more than a hundred wolves were irrefutable proof.

Beasts are not creatures that rely solely on their sense organs to judge situations, they sometimes rely on their intuition, and even humans know that beasts have an unusually precise sense of judgment.

Now the whole pack began to stir restlessly, and they began to fear. They no longer roared, bared their teeth, their backs stood up, and they stared at their opponents with stern gazes; Instead, his ears were pressed together, his expression panicked, and a slight grin formed a slit that followed the enemy's advance.

"Blackheart" roared loudly at the wolves, like a general scolding a timid soldier. It walks around among the wolves, howling from time to time and biting the rest of the wolves. But this had no effect, and even a few of the lower wolves rebelled against it, barking at it in a rage.

Thorgrande's body was at its limit by this time, and it was impossible for him to do the same killing as he had done for most of the night. Although his vision began to blur, his mind was still clear, the discipline of the wolves was on the verge of collapse, and if there was the right time, he could let the entire wolf pack collapse.

Sogrend's hypothermia has lasted longer than the average human can tolerate, and the only thing that can sustain him until now is his willpower. The commotion of the wolves could hardly reach his ears, his vision became more and more blurred, and hallucinations followed.

With a "boom", the attention of the wolves was attracted, and the humans in front of them finally couldn't support themselves and fell to their knees. Blackheart grows triumphant again, roaring menacingly at the other wolves, ordering them to strike at their prey again. The rest of the wolves did not obey it, arched their backs and "bited" the air with their mouths vigorously, while making loud crackling noises.

While the wolves were still arguing about whether or not to continue fighting, Thorgrande, who fell to his knees, suddenly burst out, the last of his strength to launch a surprise attack, faster than many predators. Blackheart's reaction was outstanding, and he managed to dodge the human assassination, while the opponent's weapon stabbed into a wolf behind him.

As soon as the "Black Heart" hit the ground, the corpses of its dead kind flew towards it again, so it continued to flee among the wolves. But this time it miscalculated, and Sogrend's blade was waiting for it in that direction.

"Whoa-whoa-oo The wolves looked in horror at the humans who had been fighting them all night, dragged the "former" wolf king hanging from his sword, and walked back to the dead tree step by step.

Thorgrande leaned feebly against the trunk of the tree again, and a heavy tiredness like a mountain came over him like a tidal wave, and serious hallucinations spread unbridled in his mind. From time to time, he saw and heard the voices and smiles of Shapple, Andak, Old Becky, and others, but in the last moments before losing consciousness, he saw ......

"Chief, listen, how can there be so many wolves howling so early."

"Maybe they're dead, the patriarch."

"Lord Lisedar, don't say such unlucky things early in the morning."

"Yes, yes, I see. Let's go check it out. ”