Rumble!
Asher kept watching them as they rode into the city, causing the citizens to gasp in shock and awe at their magnificence.
After their parade, Lambert came into the lord’s manor and found Asher waiting for him in the meeting hall.
“My lord.”
Lambert, in his black armor that has two spikes, one on each pauldron, fell on one knee and hit his right fist against his chest.
“Did you see the surface?”
“I did.”
He lifted up his head. “Ashkelon is below the valley in the middle of four mountains.”
“What?”
Asher furrowed his brows and slowly rose to his feet.
“Mountains.”
He gasped in amazement. The picture he had in mind was still that of the great plains, but if the system had altered the terrain to this extent, the price was worth it.
The mountains would drastically increase the defensive measures of the city, making it harder to conquer.
“Arrange a horse for me.”
In mere minutes, Asher rode out of the wide underground passage that three carriages could move through side by side, and the rays of the sun embraced him.
Shortly after, his eyes adjusted to the sunlight, and a beautiful valley appeared before his eyes.
The valley was still filled with vibrant greenery that the snow had not yet covered. Looking up, Asher could see towering mountains on each side, all connected to the other like a mountain wall.
At the top of these mountains were sentry towers made of wood. They were far out of Asher’s sight, but the two exits, created through the thick mountains by the system, were visible since it wasn’t too far.
Getting close, he saw soldiers manning the exits. Spurring his horse, Asher went beyond the exit and found himself in the plains once more, but the mountains behind stood tall, declaring their presence in the landscape.
With a gentle turn, Asher looked at the great mountains, and a smile crept into his face.
‘My first mythical city.’
….
Somewhere beyond the borders of Ashkelon land borders, a man with pure white hair opened his eyes.
“Was there a fight close to the Ash Mountains? What kind of beast could cause such a tremor?!” He muttered to himself.
Boom!
The doors slammed open, and a soldier clad in black leather armor walked in. “Lord Winter, we have guests from Edom.”
Lord Winter clenched his fist. “What are they asking for now? The month isn’t over yet.”
He rose to his feet, leaning against his staff.
Together with the soldier, he walked out of his manor and found his men lined up with their hands on their swords as they stared at the human-like, black-armored rats standing on their wooden wall.
The two warrior beastmen were behind a pink-horned white rat, about 1.6 meters tall. While the armored rats have been rid of their tails, the white rat still has its tail.
“The chief has made a decree that you either send us warriors to aid the battle against Dothan or you leave Edom.”
Lord Winter’s eyes narrowed. “You want me to send my men to battle the bloodthirsty descendants of the giant race?! If you, the noble white rat beastmen, are losing the war against them, how are my men, who don’t even have steel armor, going to help? They’ll just be cannon fodder!”
The pink horned rat smiled. “Exactly. That’s what we need them for. Humans took over the mainland, stole our skills, and made us fight over such a small piece of land. Why don’t you make amends for what your ancestors did?!”
The pink-horned rat pointed at Lord Winter.
Lord Winter was the only reason they left a human stronghold in Edom. Other strongholds had been destroyed, but because Lord Winter was a human who had lived for over 200 years, the white rat beastmen couldn’t do the same to his stronghold as they did to others.
But Winter knew it was only for a time. These rats were waiting patiently for his death, and from the look of things, it wasn’t too far.
This was the reason he was trying to reach out to Beowulf, chief of the Bashan clans.
“We’ll give you 15 extra percent of our monthly products in exchange for letting off my men.”
The rat chuckled.
“Deal.”
Lord Winter clenched his staff so tight that his palm prints were etched into the wood! His eyes remained fixed on the wall even while the rat beastmen were gone.
“Those proud beasts.” He ground his teeth.
“Lord Winter, what are we going to do? We’re the last remaining stronghold in the entire Edom and Dothan, and if we give an extra 15 to the 60 percent, the people will starve. Can’t you see that they’re killing us?”
A soldier clad in a fur-padded cloak said with a hardened expression.
Even now, his hand refused to leave the hilt of his sword.
“Have you received word from Chief Beowulf?”
Lord Winter looked at the soldier.
“Unfortunately, we were unable to sneak past those watchful man-eating jackals. Those beasts are growing by the day.”
Lord Winter looked at the sky. This small stronghold would have perished decades ago had it not been for his healing ability.
He was able to keep his barrier throughout the night, keeping the people safe from the abyssal frost.
Even if he knew there was a city that he and his people could live in without being troubled by the cold and constant beast attack, Lord Winter would never believe it.
200 years was enough to make a man rigid. However, a human wasn’t supposed to live this long without breaking into the imperial rank, a rank where the body surpassed its basic form and capabilities.
“But Lord Winter, no matter who wins, we won’t benefit. In fact, after the war, these rats might send a troop to claim the stronghold. Why don’t I travel to meet Chief Beowulf?”
Simon, the captain of the guards, said from behind.
His voice made Lord Winter and the soldier clad in a fur-padded cloak turn.
Seeing the black-haired man tightly clad in leather armor, a shield, a sword, and a pair of determined eyes, Lord Winter sighed.
He knew it might be impossible to evade the jackals, but it was a better choice than facing utter annihilation.
“Take your squadron and go. The fate of the Winter stronghold rests on your shoulders, young man…Find the humans out there.”
