Game of the World Tree

The cold river wind whistled from south to north, and the sailed Nature was swiftly sailing on the Vermul River.

Affected by the average temperature of the Elven Forest that is higher than that of other regions, every winter, the monsoon blows from the relatively low-temperature fertile plain to the Elven Forest. south wind.

Sophia stood at the bow of the boat, looking relaxed and expectant. She sometimes looked at the silvery river in the distance, and sometimes closed her eyes and felt the cool breeze blowing on her body, happy like a bird flying out of its cage.

Until a familiar voice drew her attention back:

"You're in a good mood, Miss Viscount."

It's Demacia.

Seeing that disgusting handsome face, the half-elf girl's expression immediately faded.

However, just as she was about to turn on the sarcasm mode, Demacia quickly waved:

"Don't...don't scold, I'm here to give you something."

After speaking, he took out a scroll from his arms and handed it to the other party.

"what is this?"

Sophia frowned.

Perhaps because she was in a good mood, she rarely rejected the other party.

"It is recorded that the powerful disguise technique can help you change your appearance and become an ordinary human being."

Demacia said.

"Change appearance?"

Sophia was stunned.

"Yes, in a little while, we will arrive at our destination. The appearance of half-elf is too conspicuous, so it is better to disguise yourself. It is not just you, we have to change. This time, we are going to disguise as human beings. mercenary."

Demacia explained.

After listening to his words, Sophia frowned slightly.

She glanced at her appearance in the river, which was obviously different from ordinary humans, hesitated for a while, and finally took it.

"correct."

And at this moment, Demacia spoke again.

"What else?"

Sophia asked ill-naturedly.

"Nothing else, just want to say one more thing, Hewan Town may be a little different from what you imagined, so don't expect too much."

Demacia scratched her head and said.

Listening to his endless words, Sophia frowned slightly.

She was about to say something, but Demacia turned around and left, not sure if she was afraid of staying too long and being mocked by the girl again.

"God babbling."

The girl snorted coldly and said.

After Demacia's interruption, her mood for viewing the scenery also dissipated a lot.

Looking at the blue sky, the girl put away the scroll and went to the cabin to rest...

The ship continued to sail, and half a day passed quickly without knowing it.

And when it was almost noon, a small port town finally appeared in the field of vision.

"Hewan Town is coming! Get ready for the disguise, disembark now!"

On the Nature, the voices of the elves rang out.

Sophia was also attracted by the voices of the elves, her eyes lit up, and she quickly got out of the cabin and looked towards the shore.

However, when she saw the town on the shore clearly, the look of anticipation and excitement soon turned into stunned.

It was a port town that was less than half the size of Gray Harbor. It was located in a "U"-shaped river bay.

There are some caravan cargo ships parked on the dock of the port, which are loading goods, and people come and go on the shore, which is a little popular.

It's just that, with the exception of some merchants who got off the merchant ships, most of the people's clothes are dirty and torn, and they are as thin as firewood. You can even see some begging around the merchants, thin and ragged like saplings. of children.

This dilapidated and impoverished scene was in stark contrast to the prosperous and prosperous scene in Grey Harbor, so much so that the girl was slightly lost for a while.

"This... is Hewan Town?"

She murmured in disbelief.

"Yes, this is our destination, Riverbend."

Demacia, who appeared out of nowhere, said.

Sophia didn't sneer at Demacia's sudden interjection, she seemed to be stunned by the sight in front of her.

She stared at the dilapidated port in front of her with wide eyes and shook her head:

"No...impossible. According to the documents in the castle, Hewan Town is a pearl on the Vimur River and an important port town in the Western Territory. How could it be like this?"

"Miss Sophia, don't compare Grey Harbor with this place. The elf city is not comparable, and don't compare it with Zeroland. Both sides of the Zeroland river are rich areas."

Demacia shook her head.

As he took out the scroll and transformed himself into a human mercenary, he said:

"What you see now is the real human civilian port."

"Let's go, ready to dock and disembark."

...

The Nature slowly entered the port, and Sophia, who had disguised herself as a human mercenary, followed the other elves who had also disguised themselves and boarded the pier.

Their landing immediately caught the attention of the port residents, and everyone looked at them with curiosity and vigilance.

When the residents saw their obvious mercenary costumes, many people's expressions changed slightly, and they left in a hurry. After a while... the port was deserted a lot.

Only the unloading caravan looked at them with wary eyes, and many caravan guards clenched their weapons and acted defensively.

Seeing this scene, Sophia was slightly stunned.

"Why are they avoiding us? Is there something wrong with our costumes?"

she asked suspiciously.

Seeing the port town in front of her, which was many times worse than her expectations, the girl was about to find a resident to ask why it was so dilapidated, but she didn't expect everyone to hide from them like the plague...

"This is normal. We are disguised as mercenaries, and mercenaries are synonymous with chaos in the human world. For safety, no one is willing to approach ordinary people. Of course, this is also our purpose. Disguised as mercenaries, also It would be a lot less hassle.”

An elf accompanying him explained.

When Sophia heard this, her expression became even more astonished:

"Why? Could it be that the mercenaries still dare to be unrestrained in the city? Aren't they afraid that the city guards will put them in prison?!"

The talking elf spread his hands:

"Then I don't know. I have been to Maple Leaf once, and I only know that civilians are very afraid of mercenaries, and I don't know about others. However, Demacia has seen a lot, and he should know more specific situations. "

After listening to the elf's words, Sophia fell into silence.

She did not continue to entangle on this topic, but followed the elf who got off the boat, mounted a dragon-scaled horse disguised as an ordinary horse, and walked towards the town.

As he entered the town, the more detailed face of Hewan Town gradually appeared in front of the girl.

Low buildings, dirty streets, poor residents...

This situation of poverty and backwardness has greatly impacted the girl's worldview.

The faces of the passers-by were numb and lifeless, and they looked at them with fear. That kind of fear... made Sophia's heart inexplicably sour.

Along the way, the girl was keenly aware that she did not see even a single city guard soldier along the way.

Riding a dragon-scaled horse, the group slowly moved forward under the awe-inspiring sight of the residents.

Suddenly, a burst of clamor and scolding caught Sophia's attention.

It was in front of a dilapidated tavern, and a few humans dressed as mercenaries were punching and kicking an old woman in a rags.

A fruit basket was overturned on the ground, and the wild fruit scattered all over the ground, many of which have been trampled by the mercenaries, and the mercenaries let out a burst of arrogant laughter.

Seeing this picture, Sophia's face flashed with anger.

She squeezed the necklace on her chest and was about to sing something when a faster figure rushed out of the team.

It was a female elf disguised as a mercenary. Sophia remembered that the other party seemed to be called Jasmine Moonlight, she snorted coldly, and kicked a few mercenaries out.

"roll."

Jasmine under the moon said coldly.

Several mercenaries got up from the ground and were about to get angry, but when they felt the powerful aura on the opponent, they instantly turned into panic.

Seeing this, Sophia loosened the necklace in her hand, turned over and dismounted, came to the old woman to help her up, and picked up the berries that fell on the ground one by one.

Looking at Sophia who was suddenly approaching, a trace of fear flashed in the eyes of the old woman, but after the girl began to help her, her fear gradually dissipated.

"Thank you... thank you... my lord..."

As she wiped away tears, she thanked Sophia.

Looking at the cowering old woman, Sophia's eyes flashed with anger.

She chanted a spell, and under the surprised eyes of other players, cast healing magic on the old woman.

"Damn it, it turned out to be a mage? I didn't even see it... Could there be any concealment props?"

Seeing this scene, Demacia muttered in the distance while taking the healing potion back in her hand.

"Thank you...Thank you...Master Mage...Thank you..."

After being treated, the old woman's voice was choked up.

Sophia sighed, and while helping the old woman pat the dust on her body, she said:

"No thanks, do you still feel uncomfortable?"

"It's much better...I'm much better...thank you...thank you so much..."

The old woman held the fruit basket and said gratefully.

Sophia glanced at the messed up berries in the fruit basket and couldn't help asking:

"Is there no guards in Hewan Town? How can these mercenaries be allowed to be so arrogant?"

The old woman sighed and shook her head:

"My lord, the guards of Hewan Town have fled with the nobles. The Maple Leaf Leader rebelled. They were afraid that it would spread here, and they fled a few days ago."

"Ran away?!"

Sophia was stunned for a moment, then looked angry:

"What a shame for a group of nobles!"

She looked at the mess around her, and couldn't help but ask:

"What about the church? The lord fled, didn't the church come forward?"

"Teach... the church?"

The old woman was stunned.

Then, shaking his head:

"The church also evacuated, along with the nobles..."

Sophia was stunned.

Looking at the girl's stunned expression, the old woman said:

"Sir, are you a mercenary too? Are you going to join Duke Rosen's recruitment?"

Sophia hesitated for a moment, then nodded slowly.

"Then I advise you not to go. The nobles are all masters who eat people and don't spit out their bones. Don't look at the high rewards they give. In the end, it's still a question of whether you will take your life... You are a good person, so don't let it go. If they were the outlaws, I wouldn't say that, but you're... a good guy."

The old woman shook her head.

Sophia fell silent.

She sighed slowly and said:

"I see."

After she finished speaking, she looked at the old woman shivering in the cold wind, glanced at the pulpy berries in the basket, thought about it, took out a gold pound from her bosom and stuffed it into the old woman in the arms of:

"Here's a little money, you can buy some clothes and food."

"Gold...gold pounds!"

The old woman's eyes widened, and a trace of greed flashed in her eyes.

However, she quickly shook her head and smiled bitterly:

"Thank you for your kindness, but...you should take this gold pound."

"It's just my opinion."

Sophia insisted.

The old woman sighed and said:

"My lord, even if you give me such a large sum of money, I'm afraid I won't be able to keep it..."

Hearing her words, Sophia was slightly taken aback.

Following the old woman's gaze, the young girl looked around, and when she saw those homeless people who had gathered around and were looking at the gold pounds in her hands with greedy eyes, she finally realized.

"I understand……"

The girl's expression became lonely.

With sourness in her heart, she took off the tattered coat disguised as a mercenary and put it on the old woman, and took out some delicious food that she had specially kept in Grey Harbor from the storage ring. The pastry, handed to each other:

"You eat something, and I'll leave after you finish."

"Thank you...Thank you...Sir, you are a good person, and the Eternal Lord will definitely bless you."

The old woman was grateful.

After she finished speaking, she devoured it, and she didn't know how long she hadn't eaten well.

bless me...

Looking at the dilapidated streets around and the closed door of the church in the distance, Sophia suddenly felt a great sense of irony...

Farewell to the old woman, the girl's heart became heavy.

At this moment, she is no longer excited when she started.

The group continued to move forward, and gradually reached the hinterland of the town, and also entered the wealthy area in the traditional sense.

This is the place where nobles live. It is magnificent and in sharp contrast with the previous area, which makes Sophia find a little familiarity.

But this did not make the girl feel happy. On the contrary, her mood seemed to be getting heavier and heavier.

Along the way, Sophia's words became less and less, and her eyes became more and more gloomy.

Even the players who wanted to talk to her became quieter.

Hewan Town is not big, and after passing through the aristocratic area that was already deserted, Sophia and her party soon came to the other side of the town.

As they progressed, the surrounding houses became dilapidated again, in stark contrast to the wealthy area.

The town on the other side is guarded by a city wall, and there is a moat outside the city wall.

Of course, there are no guards now.

Riding a dragon-scaled horse, Sophia and the elves finally left the town and entered the hinterland of the Western Territory.

However, not long after she walked out of the city gate, Sophia saw a sneaky pedestrian passing by the side of the road.

It was a man in his 30s or 40s, holding something in his arms. He looked numb, walked to the ditch by the roadside, and threw the thing in his hand.

However, when he saw Sophia and others, his face changed slightly, and he fled in a panic.

"What did he leave behind?"

Seeing this scene, Sophia frowned slightly.

"I suggest you don't look at it better."

Demacia, who was with him, suddenly spoke up.

For some reason, his voice was a little heavy.

Of course, the half-elf girl naturally wouldn't follow his advice.

She snorted coldly, clamped her horse's belly, and rode towards the roadside.

As she approached the ditch, Sophia gradually smelled a disgusting stench.

It seemed to be the smell of something rotten.

And when she came to the gully and saw the situation inside the gully, her vision suddenly solidified...

in the gully.

A pile of dead babies.