"What kind of beast can kill these goblin warriors without a scratch?!"
"My lord, they all have one thing in common. There's no sharp wound, like one caused by a claw or a blade."
A King Swordsman some meters behind Asher said.
"That's because what killed them doesn't fight with claws or blades… it uses its fists." A gleam flashed past Asher's eyes as he stared at a deep footprint.
It was much bigger than that of the goblins, and while the snow had covered the footprints of the goblins, it could not cover these footprints.
"It looks like a human's foot."
"It's not. My guess is this beast belongs to the ape lineage, but it's not just any ordinary ape… It's the 'Winter Titan!'
"But… my lord… That's a mythical beast. How could a mythical beast like the winter titan be so close to human settlement after the war?"
"I think it awakened its memories."
Asher sighed as he picked up ice shards from a goblin's corpse. The Winter Titan was a fearsome giant-like beast known for its monstrous strength and ability to freeze almost anything.
"This isn't your field, Alex; you're bound to have disbelief. My instincts tell me that the abyss worshiper discovered this mythical beast and planned to make it awaken its memories. That would mean we would face a formidable opponent, but it killed them first."
"Does that mean Silverleaf is in danger?!"
"No. Nineveh is the target. Silverleaf, although it is in the mountains, is deep in the south, much farther than Nineveh."
Alex turned. He looked at the deep craters the winter titan caused with its bare fists and back at his lord.
"Can our wall withstand such might?"
Alex turned his head toward him. "If we let it reach our wall, there's a high chance it would destroy it. Hire as many mercenary groups as you can and have them hunt down the titan. They are not to engage and only reveal its location."
Alex nodded. "But… why don't you want to send the troops?"
"I can't send the troops aimlessly into the mountains. The mercenaries will make things easier for us. Also, have Uriah and a squad lead the mercenaries."
Asher rose up. He stared at the tops of the mountains covered with snow. Unbeknownst to him, at the top of one mountain, a black-eyed creature covered in white fur and packed with bulging muscles crouched.
Asher's face reflected in its terrifying eyes. Those bright golden eyes, it could remember it. Those were the very same eyes in its memories; it belonged to the armored being its ancestor fought before it died.
Those very same eyes burned like the ones the titan saw right now.
The winter titan clenched its razor-sharp teeth, a powerful gust blowing around it.
It superimposed the face of Torah Ashbourne on Asher, rage boiling within it.
The only difference was the one that killed its ancestor was covered in flames. He was like the son of the fire, but this one looked fairly normal and weaker.
The winter titan kept watching them as they mounted their horses and rode back.
"Hahaha!" A soldier burst into laughter as he slammed the cup of milk on the table before his comrades.
Others ground their teeth as the soldier took their bronze coins.
"I told you no one can defeat me in a drinking competition."
"Tsk! This is just milk!" Another soldier retorted.
The soldier that won raised an eyebrow. "We've tried rum, water, and every other drink. I won in every liquid you brought. What more do you have?"
A shadow covered them, causing all four of them to raise their heads.
"We have night duty, and you're here drinking. Go watch those miners!"
They scrambled to their feet and left the tavern with their captain behind them. The moment they arrived at the mines, the captain glanced at two well-known figures amongst the miners.
Baron Rutherford and Baron Scarlet.
He nodded at them and walked away. No one saw it, but Baron Rutherford smiled.
"That little lord would have never known that we could win over his soldiers." He chuckled while speaking to Baron Scarlet.
"Hehehe. He's still young after all."
Work was going on, but on a closer look, one could see there was communication going on with every miner.
It was as if they all had a single hidden purpose that the soldiers couldn't spot.
Unfortunately, after making two captains defect by activating their greed for a better life, a good portion of the soldiers slowly changed sides, and they were able to spread more in the ranks of miners.
The secret was a promise of a better life, a promise of having all they desired once they've claimed Silverleaf.
Baron Rutherford had manipulated their minds, making them believe all he said. This wasn't easy to achieve, but in the end he was successful.
All of a sudden, a yell rang.
"Buba, your little girl is here!"
Many miners began to chatter as they saw the little girl who looked to be 9 years old on the top of the wooden wall surrounding the mine.
Ever since Buba began to work as a miner, he caught the favor of the little girl, who was Ark White's last child.
Her elder brothers also mined, but they didn't have night shifts.
In fact, this was the first time most of these dangerous figures had night duty, and the warden couldn't do anything since it was written by the commander in charge of the miners.
Buba, who was covered in sweat, brushed his dirty silver hair away from his right eye. The vibrant young girl waved at him from the wall, reflecting in his eye.
'I thought she wouldn't come today. Who let her out this late?'
Dragging his legs bound in chains, he approached the wall, ignoring the bickering of other miners.
When he was below the wall, the girl threw something she wrapped up.
Buba opened it and saw that it was bread. The famous King Bread!
"Did you steal this?"