Chapter 104: Frozen Land

In a civilized world, the evening scene at a farmhouse would be similar everywhere. After a hard day's work, families gathered around their dining table to pray and eat.

"Did you put the firewood inside properly?"

"Yes, yes. I did it all. You don't have to ask every day."

"You always forget, that's why I ask."

Four family members sat around the dining table: the father, mother, son, and daughter. The son was a young boy who had just reached adolescence, and the daughter was just around the age where marriage proposals would find their way to her.

Tonight's dinner was bread and herring soup. Even the fishy smell of the hot herring soup was savory to them.

"Let's pray."

The head of the family spoke, and the rest of the family closed their eyes.

"Oh, Lou, thank you for giving us light today. All things..."

During the prayer, the mischievous son slightly opened his eyes.

'This is so boring. Every day is the same. So hard. Ill never become a farmer.'

In his spare time, the son would always go outside and swing a crude wooden sword.

'I am going to be a knight.'

Such thoughts were common for boys his age. Every one of them was determined not to lead ordinary lives like their parents.

"Huh?"

The son made a sound as his attention was drawn to something outside the window.

"Close your eyes. Aren't we in the middle of a prayer?"

"T-there's something outside the window!"

"Jordan!"

The father, who was reciting the prayer, got up from his seat and yelled at his son. However, seeing the expression on his son's face, he quickly grabbed the fireplace poker. The red-hot poker made a fine weapon of self-defense.

Dammit, is it a bandit?'

Their farmhouse, located outside the city walls, was in an area with poor public safety. Especially since the civil war had drawn away every last security personnel, the overall security in the Porcana Kingdom had deteriorated. It was going to take some time to restore the level of safety back to what it was before.

'Curse this civil war.'

The people who suffered the most from the civil war were the common folk. Their taxes were spent on the nobles' battles. The reason that they paid their taxes was simple. It was to be protected from the violence that inevitably arose from the absence of law.

Recently, there have been many cases of farmhouses being attacked by bandits. This was due to the depleted security force not being able to fulfill its role.

"Honey..."

"It's okay, trust me."

The man, holding the fireplace poker, slowly approached the door. He listened closely and was able to hear some footsteps outside.

Creak.

The door opened. A large hand pushed the door aside.

"Get out of my house right now!"

The man shouted. The mere opening of the door made his hair stand on end.

"Sorry, but I just need to rest here for a bit?"

The intruder spoke. His deep voice carried an intimidating presence, and there were bloodstains on his hands.

"Get out right now! Or else..."

The intruder ignored the fathers warning, and he stabbed at the intruder with the poker.

"Thats dangerous, man."

The intruder grabbed the poker with ease. He held the red-hot poker barehanded, scorching his palm with a sizzling sound. Yet not even a groan leaked out of him.

"Ugh!"

The intruder forcefully tugged on the poker. The father lost his only weapon and fell to the ground.

"Ah, its perfectly heated."

The intruder pressed the poker against his wounded shoulder and cauterized the open cut.

Thump, thump.

The intruder chucked the fireplace poker back into the fireplace and walked further inside.

'He's huge.'

The family members all widened their eyes in shock. The intruder was a large man, obviously a warrior. He had two axes on the back of his waist and a sword at his side. Thankfully, he was wearing a pair of trousers but his upper body was mostly bare, covered only by a fur cloak.

"Were you guys in the middle of dinner?"

The intruder dipped some bread into the fish soup and gulped it down in one bite. Then he scooped up a handful of fish meat from the soup and shoved it into his mouth.

Chew, chew.

He just ate away after breaking into a strangers house. The family members, huddled in a corner of the room, watched him warily.

"My name is Urich."

Urich wiped his fish-oil-stained hands on his fur cloak and extended his hand for a handshake. The family was taken aback by his unexpectedly formal demeanor.

"M-my name is Ges."

"Just let me stay for a few days. I'll pay you for the trouble."

Urich said to the family as he sweated profusely. Although he pretended to be calm, his physical condition was not good. He was seriously wounded from the ambush earlier, so he had to come into the first farmhouse he could find.

"Honey, let's just host him for now."

The wife spoke, and Ges nodded. The intruder was clearly a warrior who had just been in battle. They decided it was better not to provoke him and risk their entire family getting murdered.

"You, over there," Urich said as he pointed at the daughter of the house.

"A-are you talking to me?"

The girl stepped back in confusion.

"Yes, come over here," Urich spoke irritably. His face was contorted in pain.

Dammit, I really feel like Im dying here.

The wound on his belly was too severe. It felt like his intestines could spill out at any moment.

"D-dont you dare touch my daughter, I wont let you!" Ges threatened, grabbing a kitchen knife in desperation.

The wife stopped her husband and approached Urich.

"T-take me instead. My daughter has never been with a man yet..."

Urich glanced at the wife.

"No, youre too old and dry."

Urich stood up decisively and drew his dagger.

"Keep your hands off my family!" Ges cried out and charged at Urich with the knife.

"My god, this is so annoying."

Urich swept Ges aside with a swing of his hand, throwing him to the ground.

"Keugh, not my daughter, you bastard!!!"

Ges clung to Urich's leg persistently.

This shit already hurts and this guy

Urich just dragged Ges along as he approached the daughter.

The girl screamed and collapsed on the floor.

"Leave my sister alone!"

Even the boy tried to attack Urich, who nonchalantly moved with the father and son hanging onto him.

"Come here. Now!"

Urich grabbed the girl by her hair and swung the dagger.

Snap.

The girl stopped screaming and blinked. Urich, having gotten what he wanted, returned to the dining table.

"M-my hair?"

Urich had cut just enough of the girl's hair. The family finally let go of their grip on him.

Urich exhaled deeply and twisted the girl's hair into a makeshift suture thread. He and his fellow tribe warriors believed that wounds stitched with young female hair healed better.

'Normally, these wounds end up being the end...'

Even if the intestines were pushed back and stitched up, most died. Urich had seen countless warriors die from such injuries.

"What are you looking at? Just take this and finish your dinner."

Urich looked at the family, took some gold coins out, and tossed them.

"G-gold coins!"

Ges picked up the coins in surprise. Each was worth a hundred thousand cils.

"My eyes are getting blurry."

Urich murmured as he took out a needle made from a beast's fang. The needle made from a beast and a girl's hair both had magical significance. They were the best suturing tools that Urich knew of.

Urich slowly relaxed his muscles and stitched the wound.

Oof.

The family finally saw Urich's injury. A bloody line crossed his belly, with flesh becoming nearly visible with each breath he took.

'Eating is out of the question.'

With such a scene beside them, it was impossible to eat.

"You all go to your rooms."

Ges sent the children to their rooms and proceeded to watch Urich from a distance.

"Your wound looks serious."

"I might be a corpse by the morning."

Urich replied calmly. He had just fought off ten men in a fight where he was surrounded. They werent just any men, they were well-trained regular soldiers. Though he had picked up a serious injury, surviving was an achievement by itself, and he was proud.

"Damn."

Urich cursed, his hand trembling. His fingers didnt move the way he wanted them to, and the needle kept missing its mark.

"When are you going to finish at that rate? Let me do it."

The wife said as she approached Urich. Urich stared at her for a brief second then handed the needle over.

Thats pretty impressive.'

Urich was surprised by her bravery and scratched his head.

'He is a rich man with a lot of gold coins, maybe he'll give more if we treat him well.'

That was the wifes thought even in all this. Each day was a struggle with their resources shrinking. The moment she saw the pouch of jingling gold coins, her fears were wiped away.

She skillfully finished the stitching. After tying up the last knot, she brought hot water and a clean cloth to clean the wound.

"Mm."

Urich grunted as the wife washed his wound and wrapped it with cloth. After finishing the job, she extended her hand for payment. Urich, holding his painful belly, chuckled.

"You have a remarkable wife."

Urich said to Ges, who just shrugged.

Clink.

Urich handed the wife a few gold coins.

"You can use the room over there while youre staying with us."

Urich nodded and struggled to his feet, holding his belly. He staggered to the bed.

'I really need to rest in bed now.'

Urich laid down in the bed, placing his axe by his head.

"Keke, get lost. Did you come for the smell of death?"

Urich saw shadows flickering on the ceiling and believed it was an evil spirit watching him. He tried to touch his sun pendant out of habit, but nothing touched his hand. He desperately felt the lack of divine protection.

Huff, huff.

Urich took deep breaths and closed his eyes. He slept for almost two days straight. He opened occasionally whenever there was a noise but closed them again shortly after.

'It's hot.'

Urich suffered from a fever. He went through countless vomiting and diarrhea, losing blood from both ends. He drifted in and out of consciousness several times, lingering on the brink of death.

The end of a battle didnt always immediately decide life or death. Even a minor wound could be fatal, which is why warriors prayed to their gods. They believed that the protection of their gods could fend off death.

Urich, still in his bed, felt a movement. He managed to move his fingers and grabbed his axe.

"Im here to change the cloth."

The daughter entered. Urich let go of the axe and sat himself up.

Squelch.

The daughter removed the old cloth that was stuck to his body from the blood and pus. There was a horrendous stench from the infected wound.

"My mother said... if you give us more gold coins, she'll go buy some ointment."

The girl said bitterly as she changed the cloth. Urich nodded and handed her a gold coin.

'I wonder if it's okay to keep taking his money.'

Urich was a man who came to their farmhouse because he was in need of help. They didnt know why he was injured, but one thing was clear. He had already paid enough.

The next day, Urich received the ointment and applied it meticulously to his wound. The herbal scent was refreshing, and after a few days, the pus around the wound subsided, centering around the area where the ointment was applied.

"It's healing."

Urich touched his forehead and felt that the fever had subsided. The wound was healing. Having been injured severely countless times, he knew whether he would live or die.

Grumble.

Urich, now hungry, stood up. He grabbed three smoked herrings from the fireplace and chewed them down.

"Hey! You can't just eat that without asking!"

The wife, returning from laundry, scolded Urich as she held out her hand. Urich smiled sheepishly as he licked his greasy fingers clean. He rummaged through his pocket and pulled out another gold coin.

'A-another gold coin? Exactly how rich is this man?'

The wife was surprised to see another gold coin. She thought that Urich could be a significant person. That evening, she bought a chicken for dinner and twisted its neck.