As night deepened, the moonlight filtered through the wispy clouds, casting a rosy glow on the silver snow.
The four sleds of the envoy darted swiftly through the dense forest. Although they had exited the icy woods, towering coniferous trees still stood densely packed on either side. Each sled was pulled by twelve snow dogs, racing rapidly under the leadership of the lead dog, who panted as they ran.
On the foremost sled were two imperial soldiers and a guide; behind them were Amy and Da Qingshan, followed by an imperial soldier and two girls, with several more imperial soldiers at the rear.
From the middle sled, the faint sound of conversation between the two girls could be heard.
"Yushang, how can you be so bold? You dare to trust Da Qingshan and Amy? They seem even younger than us!" Sharo whispered to her companion.
"Hey, just because they look young doesn't mean they're inexperienced," Lin Yushang replied with a chuckle. "Don't underestimate them; I chose them for a few reasons. First, their strength is extraordinary. Did you see that boy named Amy? When he shouted, everyone dropped to the ground. And even though many were eager to take the task before they started, none dared to challenge him, which says something. Second, I learned about their backgrounds. Did you know? Amy alone has three attributes: swordsman, neutral level two mage, and magic swordsman. Boys his age usually spend their time in knight or magic academies, often struggling with their studies. But he has three attributes; that's not simple, right? Plus, he's Reger's apprentice, and I suspect he might be a descendant of an imperial noble, just look at his demeanor. As for Da Qingshan, he's even more astonishing; did you know he's a dragon rider? Look at the sky…"
"What's that?" Sharo exclaimed suddenly.
"I think that must be Da Qingshan's dragon," Lin Yushang said confidently. "And lastly, I really admire their clear, untainted eyes. In such a dangerous journey, if there are any bad people… I don't think they would be like that."
"Hehe, sister Shang, you're just worrying too much…" Sharo suddenly laughed inexplicably. "When I first saw you in the imperial capital, so many young men were surrounding you. Haha, no wonder you always think of people in a bad light!"
"Ha, if you dare mock me, aren't you like that too?" Yushang raised her delicate hand as if to hit her.
"Come on, sister Shang, spare me," Sharo laughed, holding her hand back. "I grew up in the church, and all the people around me were church members. Our church is divided very clearly, and my living area was almost entirely women. This is the most men I've seen in my 16 years!"
"Little girl, have you fallen for someone? Do you like some handsome guy? I can help you get introduced," Yushang teased.
The silver snow was filled with the melodious laughter of the two girls…
"Da Qingshan, what are those two girls laughing about?" Amy asked in confusion. "This is so annoying; it's late, and they're still making noise. Remember, I'll ask them for compensation for lost sleep tomorrow!"
Contrary to their expectations, the journey had been remarkably safe, with no signs indicating that anyone would attack the envoy. Guier often flew high in the sky to scout but found nothing. During their travel, only the lead dog occasionally barked, while the sleds glided silently over the snow.
With just three more days of travel to reach Snowfield City, all the imperial soldiers let out long sighs of relief. However, Amy's expression grew increasingly serious. After dinner, he gathered everyone around the campfire and solemnly shared his concerns.
"We're currently in great danger!" Amy announced.
Yushang frowned. "Why do you say that?"
An imperial soldier nearby muttered softly, "Is he just trying to inflate the mercenary fees? What a scam!"
Ignoring the comments, Amy continued, "Have you all thought about why the enemy isn't chasing us? If they're really as you say, then they must know your route very well and be well-organized. They would certainly track us along the way. I suspect they may even know about your mercenaries. It should be clear to them that we aren't taking the Dragon Tooth Mountain road. If they pursued us, it would be very disadvantageous for them, as cavalry is less effective in forests and snow. So, what would they do?"
Each word he spoke struck a chord, and everyone pondered his insight.
"If I were them, I wouldn't chase along the route. Since they know the envoy's final destination, they could simply ride to the outskirts of Snowfield City and wait for you. They could place some mobile sentries in the most likely spots, and gather their main forces on the periphery. Once they receive the signal, they would launch a surprise attack. At that time, how could the envoy defend themselves?"
All the soldiers inhaled sharply.
"Well… what should we do?" Yushang's face paled as she thought of the black cavalry's formidable impact.
"Yeah, what do we do? I've been racking my brain about this. Da Qingshan, what are your thoughts?" Amy furrowed his brow.
"Hmm, is it possible to split our forces? That way, they won't know whom to pursue," Da Qingshan suggested, also frowning.
"Exactly!" Amy clapped his hands in excitement, almost jumping up. "They all recognize you, so you can break out in one direction. Once they surround you, Da Qingshan and I will go for help. They definitely won't intercept us. I estimate we could bring back reinforcements in about an hour. At that time, we…"
"Will just be collecting our corpses—" Yushang interrupted Amy coldly. "If we do that, what do we need mercenaries for? Wouldn't it be safer for you two to go to Snowfield City? Are mercenaries meant to sacrifice their employer's interests to fetch help?" The girl couldn't believe these two boys would come up with such a plan.
"Hehe…" Amy stuck out his tongue. "I was just throwing out an idea! Why are you getting so worked up? We don't necessarily have to do it that way, although the success rate would be 100%."
"There's another way to approach this, which also has a high success rate, but the risks are the same. Da Qingshan, you take either Yuchang or Sha Ruo and hide at the back, using Green to monitor where the enemy is sparse. We'll draw the enemy's attention to the front and lead them into the dense forest. I estimate they will leave some mobile forces, but not many. The longer we can hold them off, the safer you'll be. Once we reach Snowfield City, we can immediately call for the guards to help."
"No, I'll draw them away; you take them to the city." Da Qingshan flatly refused.
"Are you out of your mind?!" Amy smacked Da Qingshan on the back of the head. "Without Green, who could possibly break through? Don't… don't tell me to take Green along. That little grandpa, I can't manage him. To be honest, fighting against 100 black knights is much safer than being with Green," Amy said darkly, shattering Da Qingshan's dreams.
"Sha Ruo, what Amy said makes sense. In my capacity as the acting leader of the envoy, I order you and Da Qingshan to enter Snowfield City separately. First, submit the national document to the other party, then return to rescue us. If anything goes wrong, you can lead the magical beasts back to the imperial capital. Remember to hurry; otherwise, this opportunity will be wasted," Lin Yuchang stood up abruptly and coldly addressed Sha Ruo.
"No!" Sha Ruo stubbornly turned her head, her long hair fluttering in the air.
"Good sister, you're a priest, I'm a mage; who's more useful in war? Plus, you represent two countries as an envoy. Can I represent the Holy See? Please help your sister out, okay? I beg you, little sister; otherwise, we all…" Lin Yuchang, realizing that being forceful didn't work, embraced Sha Ruo's slender shoulders and pleaded softly as tears streamed down her face.
"Alright, sister, don't cry. I'll go," seeing Lin Yuchang in tears made Sha Ruo panic, and she quickly agreed. However, thinking about the dangers Lin Yuchang and the others might face also made her tears flow.
"Enough, both of you ladies, and what about our mercenaries? Don't act like it's a life-or-death separation; it'll be fine. Tomorrow morning, we'll split up. Da Qingshan, after we leave for an hour, head left, and make sure to let Green monitor everything. Alright, it's getting late; let's sleep." Amy said with a cold smile, then stood up and walked toward his sled.
Early the next morning, Amy, Lin Yuchang, and more than ten soldiers left with three sleds. After watching them disappear from sight, Da Qingshan and Sha Ruo sighed heavily, then drove their sleds, adjusting their angles slightly according to the magical compass, and began heading north.
According to Amy's estimation, Da Qingshan and Sha Ruo would first head north for a while, then east, which would add over 20 kilometers to their route, likely allowing them to exit the forest an hour later than Amy and the others.
Perhaps due to being an orphan since childhood, Da Qingshan was a quiet person. Even when he was with Amy, he mostly listened, thought, and acted, rarely speaking unless necessary. This was especially true on his first long trip with a girl.
He tossed his shield to Sha Ruo, then silently sat at the front of the sled. The steel crossbow had already been loaded and lay beside his feet, while his longsword was half-drawn. The golden dragon spear gifted by the Dragon God had also been taken out from the magical barrier bag, resting beneath him. He held a long branch, occasionally tapping the lead dog's head to guide its direction. After a while, Green flew up into the air to patrol the surroundings.
Sha Ruo, too, didn't speak. The howling cold wind made conversation difficult, and like Da Qingshan, she wasn't sure what to say. This was her first time alone with a male, and having grown up in the Holy See, she hadn't interacted much with the opposite sex.
Time quickly passed amidst the white snow and the forest.
Night fell swiftly in the woods.
Seeing Da Qingshan working hard all day, Sha Ruo felt somewhat guilty. She jumped off the sled to stretch her nearly numb legs, preparing to gather firewood and roast meat.
As she moved her legs, she turned back to notice Da Qingshan had already started working. She was about to greet him and join in when a strange sight before her stunned her.
Da Qingshan found a decayed fallen tree and drew his longsword, preparing to chop it.
"Is this guy stupid?" Sha Ruo secretly laughed. "How can he chop a tree? Even the best longsword cannot be used to chop trees; otherwise, the blade will get damaged, and the sword will quickly break. A slender blade can't withstand such massive shear force, especially since these are coniferous trees. It would take half a day even with an axe. Each sled is equipped with two axes specifically for chopping wood during overnight camping."
Just as Sha Ruo was about to fetch an axe, she saw the massive tree trunk snap in half under Da Qingshan's strike. He swung the sword again, and a 40-centimeter-long standard firewood log was quickly cut. Da Qingshan stood the log upright, raised his sword high, and with each slash, a piece of standard firewood flew off.
"What kind of person is this? Can he really chop wood like that?" This scene nearly overturned all of Sha Ruo's previous common sense. No wonder these seemingly unremarkable youths were A-class mercenaries; they certainly had extraordinary skills.
Da Qingshan was oblivious to how others viewed him. In fact, he didn't even dare to look at what Sha Ruo looked like; if someone dressed similarly to her suddenly appeared now, he would immediately get confused. After chopping the wood, he quickly piled it into a campfire stack, poured on some pine oil, and with a whoosh, the flames leaped high.
Soon, the rich aroma of roasting meat wafted from the campfire.
Fate is a peculiar thing.
Some people have a destined connection yet never meet. Two individuals might live in the same area, often visit the same places, take the same medicines prescribed by the same doctor, play with the same dog, and share many surprising similarities in their viewpoints, yet they still cannot blend together.
Some people may be separated yet insist that fate is in the hands of the heavens, while separation is a matter of choice. In truth, most of the time, it's a matter of timing. No matter how hard they try, the outcome remains the same.
—— "On the Fallacy of Words"