Chapter 227 (2/2)

Whoosh! A curtain seemed to have flown over the corner, bringing all the dirt and dust together with it. Link then stared at the structure of the wooden shed and used the Higgs Field spell to fix some portions that he was uncomfortable with, reinforcing the stability of this rundown shelter.

The scouts did not idle around as well. There was some abandoned furniture in the wooden shed, consisting of a few tables and chairs. While most of them were already unusable, some of them were still in good shape. They then used the damaged ones as firewood and started cleaning the good ones.

After a while, a fire was started in the middle of the wooden shed. The temperature of the shed immediately rose by a few degrees, bringing much-needed warmth.

A scout even found a broken wok. Link took a look and started fixing it with magic. The scout then proceeded to fill the fixed metal wok with snow to boil a pot of water. Link saw this scene and remembered that he still had some food in his dimensional pendant given to him by Lucy. He then brought it out and split half of it with the scouts. The other half were meat-related snacks which he threw into the wok as part of his meat soup preparation.

Although Elemental Healing could replenish energy, it could not bring the joy and satisfaction that comes from real food. This was especially so when Link’s food looked extremely delicious. He brought out stuff like smoked ribs and spicy lobster, causing the scouts to smile with glee. As they ate, their bodies which were on the verge of collapsing slowly recovered vitality.

Annie hid in the corner as she stretched her hands out close to the fire. Occasionally, she would eat a few snacks, and some vitality gradually returned to her face. However, she was generally still weak.

Link suddenly thought of a snow bear fur cloak in his dimensional pendant seeing her in this state. Though it would be inconvenient to wear it while traveling, it would be the perfect clothing now.

He then took out the coat and placed it gently on Annie. Annie the shot him a grateful smile, the gentleness in her eyes almost overflowing.

Link returned the smile and turned to the scouts before saying, “We are already very close to the arctic region, which lay at the end of the Dark Forest. The Skeletal Fort shouldn’t be too far away now.”

The scouts listened as an oppressive silence enveloped the wooden shed.

The scouts knew first-hand about the insane strength of the ghouls. The ghouls were already scary enough as they were—what would that suggest about the Skeletal Fort which was the base camp of these frightening creatures? Their leader was also residing in that cursed place! Every step closer to the Skeletal Fort was a step towards their demise.

Link continued, “It is getting late. We will rest here for the night and set off early in the morning. If we do not meet the team carrying the Dawn Swordsman along the way, we will grab a stray ghoul from around the Skeletal Fort to extort information.”

“What if the Dawn Swordsman is already in the Skeletal Fort?” Annie asked.

This was a practical question. If the Dawn Swordsman was already inside the enemy’s base, do they continue with their rescue mission? What if he was already demonized to the point of no return?

All of this depended on Link’s decision. All the scouts stared at Link in wait for his answer. His decision would decide the fate of everyone in the wooden shed.

Link fell silent as he chewed on the spicy lobster dish. He felt that the usually delicious meal was not savory at all. In fact, it was extremely bitter and unappealing. This was a difficult decision and a heavy responsibility as it not only concerned the lives of everyone in the shed, but also the outcome of this war.

The scouts waited patiently for Link’s answer.

After ten whole minutes, Link finally came to a decision. He said, “If the Dawn Swordsman has already reached the Skeletal Fort, we will also have to give it our all for the mission. My plan then would be to cast long distance spells from afar to distract the enemy while all of you infiltrate the base to find Kanorse. If he is already demonized by the time you find him, forgo the mission immediately and leave the Skeletal Fort. If he is still alive, rescue him. I will definitely delay the enemy for you.”

The scouts nodded their heads in agreement.

This was an extremely dangerous plan. Both Link and the scouts would be putting their lives on the line for this mission. However, since this was Link’s decision, they would give him their full support.

Annie asked, “Mirose, if the Dawn Swordsman is already demonized, is there any way to save him?”

Link shook his head and said, “If it were an ordinary demonization process, there would still be a chance. However, it is different this time around. There will be no going back. There should be a short period of weakness right after the demonization process is completed. If anyone of you has the chance, kill him using the Sacred Silver.”

The demonization process this time was done using Divine Gear. How could a mortal’s willpower fight against an object of the gods?

This made the atmosphere heavy and depressing.

Apart from the sightings of a few Dark Elves village, they were simply traveling on barren land this whole time. They had found no traces of the Dawn Swordsman or even the trails of the team that was in charge of bringing him back to the Skeletal Fort.

This could only mean two things. One was that they had missed the team that was holding Kanorse in custody. The other was that he had already reached the Skeletal Fort.

Both were bad news.

Everyone fell silent as they watched the crackling flames in their fireplace. After a while, the aroma of the meat soup Link had cooked earlier wafted into their noses. The mood was lifted slightly as they enjoyed the rich, savory broth. Link also drank some to warm his stomach.

Before long, the sky darkened. Link and his fellow comrades had been chasing ghouls for countless days without any rest and were all drained of energy. They leaned on the walls of the rundown wooden shed to rest.

Link felt tired as well. As he felt slightly cold, he curled his body into a ball to retain more of his body heat. However, he suddenly felt his body getting warmer through the night, as though a soft body was snuggling up on him. At the same time, a thick bear fur coat was covered over him as well.

It was Annie.

Link did not reject this act of goodwill in his semi-conscious state. The two of them huddled together and enjoyed the warmth brought about by the fur coat.

It was a silent night.

By midnight, Link suddenly felt a strange magic fluctuation and woke up in shock. His ears picked up sounds of people shuffling through the thick snowfield. The sound grew closer by the minute, seemingly heading towards the wooden shed they were residing in. There seemed to be two people talking in the Dark Elven language.

“It’s freezing! Curse this damned weather.” This was a raspy voice.

“Tch, if you said you were freezing to death in the past, I may have believed you. Now that you have received the blessings of the Lady of Darkness, you are simply making excuses!” Another voice teased.

“Damn you. I am the one carrying this fellow the whole time. Why don’t you try carrying them instead? This damned Warrior is so heavy. I can guarantee you that the armor on their body is at least 220 pounds! Ah! I need rest.”

Link was excited upon hearing those words. A Warrior who was currently being carried by a demonized Dark Elf…Armor weighing more than 220 pounds…It must be an extremely strong Warrior. Might it be the Dawn Swordsman?”

Link was ecstatic. Were they really ahead of their opponents?