Throne of the North.

Chapter 436: Before the Divine Grace Festival, the Dragon Tomb in the North
Precious obsidian is a land resource that any noble would envy. Such wealth is enough to maintain an extraordinary legion, but the war has shattered the only extraordinary legion in this land.

The Carlos family faces more difficulties and troubles than it seems, and the discord with the royal McReynolds is vividly portrayed.

But these are not the biggest troubles. The most crucial point is that Carlos needs to transport the obsidian further east, to the territory of the elves, in order to trade for the extraordinary potions that only the elves can bring.

This process is very difficult and requires military escort, but now the Carlos family no longer has a strong army to do all this.

First of all, it is not feasible to send a large number of ordinary troops, because they have to pass through many noble territories along the way, and the large size of the army will make those nobles nervous and mistakenly believe that war has begun.

In the past, Carlos always arranged for the Kamikaze Corps to provide escort. Only elite knights could deliver the obsidian to the elves and then bring back what the Carlos family needed.

Ryan's letter to Carlos was about this matter. Starting with Baron Mendes and Baron Dean, he discussed the possibility of cooperation with Archduke Carlos.

"This Ryan!"

In the castle hall of the Carlos family, there are many direct members. The elderly Grand Duke can no longer preside over the meeting clearly. The power transfer within the family is proceeding in an orderly manner. However, everyone knows that the transition of power is never calm and uneventful.

There are also a lot of contradictions among these people.

The Holy Land Knight Ian Carlos is the mainstay of this family now. Especially after the destruction of the Kamikaze Corps, the attitude of the Holy Land Knight can determine the future status of many people.

However, at the critical moment, the Grand Duke with cloudy eyes ordered him not to participate in any struggle. He stayed away from the power of the family but still held on to the training of the knights and the control of the army.

There are advantages, Carlos has been stabilized for a short time, but there are also disadvantages, that is, no one can make the final decision on the transportation of obsidian this year.

"There is an unforgivable hatred between us and Ryan. We must not allow his army to escort our caravan. Moreover, we don't know what Ryan's purpose is. He definitely has no good intentions."

Some people spoke loudly, but others refuted.

"Lyan is also a noble recognized by the Kingdom of Sera. The war is over and we are now followers of the Kingdom of Sera. Is there hatred between us and the king?"

"Why not invite the royal family? The Griffin Legion can help us get through this winter faster."

The two voices actually represent the two directions within the Carlos family. Some want to get rid of the kingdom, while others want to rely on the new kingdom to gain power from others.

In the middle, Archduke Carlos was drowsy, and his eldest son Honan Carlos, who was standing next to him, couldn't help frowning as he watched everyone arguing.

This is not the scene that should have appeared, because no matter they are direct descendants or collateral descendants, knights or commoners, they are all subjects ruled by the aristocracy. They do not have such great power, nor do they have such a loud voice. The final word of the aristocracy is often the factor that determines everything.

But today, these people actually dared to make a scene in front of the Grand Duke.

Is it because his father no longer understands too many things, or is it because he is still just an heir and has not yet fully become Archduke Carlos?

Why do these people think that their decisions can represent the Grand Duke and themselves?
"enough!"

Honan Carlos roared angrily and looked at the people arguing. Under his gaze, everyone lowered their heads. Everyone understood who the power came from. Just now, they were too radical and regarded themselves as the masters.

However, the eyes of some of them flickered, and their purpose of stirring up disputes was not simple.

"I have decided to agree to Baron Ryan's request and have his army escort the obsidian to the woodlands."

Woodland is a place name, but it is extremely vast. To the east of human civilization, there is a vast forest, which is called Woodland.

Humans once tried to occupy there, but their wars with the elves ended in failure time and time again.

In the past, elves would appear in the human world. After the war, the elves no longer appeared, and it was difficult for humans to enter the forest and come out alive safely. The conflicts between races gradually became irreconcilable.

Interests are one of the few connecting points. For example, wealth like obsidian is something that even the elves cannot give up.

The Carlos family didn't know what Ryan's purpose was. Even if they agreed to Ryan's suggestion, they were still extremely vigilant. But in fact, Ryan's purpose was very simple, which was a path.

A complete path into the woods that Carlos had walked for hundreds of years.

"The Holy See doesn't seem to be willing to start a war, so Lord Ryan gave us a new mission."

Appiah said to Bogeld, and the tall armored bear man stood up and slapped the shiny ore.

The raw platinum is exposed, and this is a very rough way of mining.

"To the world of elves?"

Bogeld opened her eyes wide. She had never seen an elf before, but she heard that the empire used to sell elf slaves.

Fifty armored bear warriors and fifty ordinary soldiers went to the Carlos family. After the armored bears showed their strength, Carlos no longer hesitated. The Festival of Grace was approaching, and they had to deliver the obsidian as soon as possible.

……

"The Day of Grace is coming soon."

On Rhino Horn Mountain, Ryan's tone was a little emotional. This year seemed to have passed particularly long. He had been through so many things before the year was finally coming to an end.

In his hand, he held the invitation letter from Earl Winter. Earl Winter's second son was going to hold his coming-of-age ceremony on this Grace Festival. He attached great importance to this second son. Ryan had vaguely heard rumors among the nobles that this second son might be the leader of the Winter family in the future.

Ryan didn't know why this happened. What happened to the Winter family? Was Baiyu Winter, the heir of the Winter family, dead?

Avril said doubtfully, standing next to Ryan.

"When I was in the magic academy, there was a rumor that circulated for a while. I heard the great wizards talking about it."

"It is said that there is a magician who has been favored by a great being. His flesh and blood body has been transformed into an elemental body. He is also a noble."

"The rumor didn't mention the noble's identity, but we know that he seems to be from the north."

"The magician's elemental body is like Master Brock's never-tiring body. It is the best blessing for a magician, comparable to a legendary gift."

"What's the price?"

Ryan asked. He really didn't know much about the world of magic.

"Everything that humans have is gradually lost, and everything becomes elemental. Magicians call this kind of life a fairy."

"Natural fairies are great partners for magicians. They can help magicians produce many magical crops, especially those that have extremely demanding environmental requirements. No one can control acquired fairies because their thinking surpasses that of humans."

"Fairy, interesting."

Ryan was about to set off for Earl Winter's territory. When he stopped focusing on one thing, he found that there seemed to be more things happening.

Fortunately, he only made a start in many things, and the rest was up to the goddess of fate. For example, at this moment, Lawrence and Connie were in the North, holding the ice-blue long sword Frostmourne, struggling for life and death in the North, waiting for the judgment of fate.

One after another, werewolves rushed out from the wind and snow in all directions. Lawrence held the sword in both hands, with his legs slightly bent, staring at these werewolves. Several werewolf corpses had fallen around him, and the blood was covered by the wind and snow, but such wind and snow also prevented Lawrence from retreating.

He couldn't run away, he could only fight and kill these werewolves to survive.

"come!"

Lawrence took the initiative to attack. His figure kept flashing in the wind and snow. Werewolves fell in front of him one after another. As more than half of the werewolves fell, the remaining werewolves roared with unwillingness and turned around to flee into the depths of the misty wind and snow.

"hu~hu~"

Lawrence was breathing heavily. He was extremely tired, but he didn't dare sit down. He was not sure if there were still werewolves lurking in the dark, or if there were more than just werewolves.

Pack your own bag, especially the warm carbon stone, which is a material purchased from the frozen land. It can be preserved for a long time in the North. Things used for heating are crucial here.

He couldn't stay where he was. Although the wind and snow would cover up a lot of the smell of blood, the noses of the beasts and monsters in the north had also evolved. Those with poor sense of smell had died more than a hundred years ago.

Returning to the secret cave, Lawrence lit a bonfire and then extinguished the flame, putting the carbon stone in it. He only needed the temperature to be sufficient. Excess flame would lead to the appearance of enemies. This was the lesson he had learned in just a few days.

Relaxed, Lawrence began to think about another question.

How long does he need to survive in the North?

Ryan didn't give him a goal, but Grace Day was approaching and Lawrence wanted to go back and reunite with his family before Grace Day.

But he didn't know when he could set off.

Lord Baron Ryan let him enter the North. What exactly did he want him to do?
After thinking for a long time, Lawrence covered the campfire with snow and fell into a deep sleep.

When the next day came, the sunlight did not mean much to the North, because the brightness in the North was not low at night. During the day, when the sun shone down, the world was not colorful, but just deathly white.

It's this color every day, and it's snowing and windy every day. Lawrence can hardly imagine how humans can survive in such a world.

It's not easy for him to live here alone.

The questions he thought about last night were still echoing in Lawrence's mind. Perhaps his mind became much clearer after a night's sleep. Lawrence thought of what Ryan had said to him before.

"Someone from the Meyers family has also entered the North. They are adventurers registered with the North Brave Guild and will bring back wealth from the North."

Lawrence planned to look for these people because they also entered the North from the Frozen Territory. Logically speaking, their direction would not be too far from his.

Just do it. With a purpose in mind, time passed much faster. Lawrence simply identified the direction and walked deeper into the north.

There are no roads in the north, so walking on the snow is the norm. Of course, falling off is also the norm.

Lawrence was not careful and fell towards the huge hole. In panic, he remained calm and inserted his sword into the ice. The sharp Frostmourne easily penetrated the ice wall. As the snow fell down, Lawrence was suspended in the air.

Under his feet was a huge ice hole. He was hanging at a height of at least twenty meters above the ground of the hole. From the intricate cracks in the ice under his feet, one could tell how deep it was below.

Lawrence naturally didn't want to fall, so he used both hands to try to climb to the ground with the support of his sword, but at this moment, a rumbling sound like thousands of horses galloping came from above his head. There was only one thing that could make such a sound in the North.

That's an avalanche.

Lawrence's body also froze at this moment. He hesitated whether to go up or down. Finally, hearing the roar getting closer and closer, he gritted his teeth, kicked the ice wall with one foot, drew out his sword, and fell downwards.

The knight's sword pierced into the ice wall again at the critical moment, slowing down Lawrence. He was a knight, but not an immortal knight. As the roar of the avalanche above his head became louder and louder, cracks appeared in the ice wall, and more and more ice collapsed. Lawrence could not gain leverage, and he fell down and hit the smooth ice surface.

Lawrence held on tightly to a crack and avoided falling into the even more desperate crevice below.

"I just stepped into a hole. It won't cause an avalanche, right?"

Lawrence said unconfidently, and then he heard a deafening dragon roar above his head.

Looking up, I saw a huge pair of wings in the vague gap. The dragon spread its wings and soared in the sky. The frost dragon Areris was crazy for some reason and kept roaring high in the wind and snow. The dragon's roar resounded, and the whole world was trembling under the dragon's majesty.

The same was true of the ice under Lawrence's feet. The cracks on the trembling ice became bigger and bigger. Finally, when the avalanche came overhead, the ice under his feet cracked again.

Looking down from the sky, a huge crack appeared on the land of the northern border, stretching for tens of thousands of meters. The widest part was even more than two thousand meters, forming a huge rift valley.

No one knows what lies in the depths of the rift, but the giant dragon in the sky is roaring madly. It stares at the depths of the crack, but is unwilling to go in to find the answer that perhaps only it knows.

The dragon's reaction and the shaking of the earth caused a large-scale commotion, and life from all directions began to rush towards this side, trying to find precious treasures.

Deep in the rift, Lawrence opened his mouth wide, looking at the frozen dragon skeleton in front of him in shock.

"One end, two ends..."

Lawrence had received an aristocratic education, so knowledge was not a luxury for him. But at this moment, just the simplest numbers made him feel so depressed that he couldn't breathe.

"Ten, ten dragons died here?"

Ten neatly arranged skeletons of giant dragons were actually frozen here. Looking at the appearance of the skeletons, it seemed that these dragons were frozen alive during their lifetime. Their fear and struggle were sealed in their bones. Lawrence saw some of them gathered their wings and spread them out to try to take off, but seemed to meet death at the last moment.

Likewise, the situation with the other nine giant dragons was similar. In the process of struggling, escaping, and resisting, they were all instantly frozen without exception. Their flesh and blood disappeared, leaving only bones to record everything.

But is that all? No, Lawrence looked in the direction of the last few dragons that resisted, and a larger dragon skeleton appeared in his eyes. Only part of the corpse was exposed, and most of the rest was hidden in the falling snow, but Lawrence could still see the most bizarre part.

The giant dragon sat on the huge throne like a human. On its head, there was a glittering crown, a crown that belonged only to the dragon. It was so big that even the largest gem in the human world could not be inlaid on that crown.

It looked like a human, but it was in the form of a giant dragon. This scene made Lawrence stunned.

Dragons, when grown up they are legendary creatures, terrifying beings at the top of the food chain, yet they are dying here in droves.

Moreover, dragons are all lonely. There cannot be two tigers in one mountain, unless there are one male and one female. But for dragons, even a male and one female is difficult to accommodate.

Lawrence wanted to get closer to there. Even though he could see everything at a glance now, just like being outside the mountain and inside the mountain, he still had a long way to go before he could reach the top of the mountain.

But at this moment, a roar came from behind. Lawrence turned his head and saw a gray-skinned goblin rushing towards him with a picked-up metal weapon.

Behind it, there are more monsters like this.

(End of this chapter)