Chapter 442 Refugees

Joseph is a native farmer of Fort Casparmi. He grew up here since he was a child. Half his life has passed and he has never left the radius of 100 miles from Fort Casparmi.

Although he has never left here, Joseph is very satisfied with his life. He has a virtuous wife and a sensible son. The family takes care of farmland and orchards, although they have to pay a very heavy burden to the lord. There is a tax, but the good thing is that I can have enough to eat every year.

But this year is different.

Ever since entering the Sleeping Moon, the climate in Fort Kaspami has taken a sharp turn. Every day is gloomy and terrifying, and the sun is almost never seen again.

Although cold weather is normal after entering winter, Joseph felt that something was not right.

The Sleeping Moon in previous years was not as cold as this year.

In his memory, his father once told him that the same thing happened during the Sleeping Moon one year. As a result, there was a heavy snowstorm in the cold month. Even the houses were buried in the snow. People couldn't even get out. The cellars were sealed with ice. Hundreds of people froze to death on the streets. The nobles closed down the sale of grain, making it impossible for common people to buy food. Many people starved to death at home.

"I'm afraid there will be a heavy snowstorm next month."

The worried Joseph told the others, but no one believed him.

Everyone laughed at him for becoming "Master Mage" (because powerful magicians can affect the weather).

Joseph was worried about this fact and began to secretly stock up on food.

Then, the cold moon came, and the facts gave everyone a hard slap in the face.

The blizzard really came. The heavy snowstorm that lasted for a week covered the entire land. The snow as high as a person blocked the door of the house. People could not go out and could only rely on the food at home to survive.

"This damn weather! We have to find a way to get some food!"

Joseph glanced at the snow that had not yet melted. The grain and dried meat stored in the barrels were almost exhausted. Only the last four days of rations were left. If they did not find a way, their family might starve to death.

The wife, who was wrapped up tightly, suggested in a low voice: "Let's borrow some food from Bob next door?"

"Impossible," Joseph shook his head, "No one would be willing to lend food to others in this kind of damn weather... I'm sure the food store in Fort Kasparmi must have been closed because of this kind of snow disaster. , they will definitely need to stock up on food—or raise the price to take a serious bite.”

"I don't know how long this weather will last..."

"It won't be long, the storm has stopped, but these snow accumulations will last for a long time."

Joseph's face was very ugly: "This snow is the big problem, we have no firewood."

With such thick snow, many homeless people must have froze to death in Fort Casparmi. The situation in the villages outside is not optimistic either. You can't leave your house for a week, and you don't store so much firewood on weekdays. You can burn it at home. Everything was burned out, and without anything to start a fire with, the cold temperatures would quickly kill them.

"How about we tear down the chairs and burn them?"

"Firewood is just one of them. We are running out of food and we must find a way to solve the food problem."

Joseph wrapped up his clothes and made up his mind: "I will go to the city to have a look. If I can buy some food, I can carry it through."

Just when Joseph was about to force his way out, there was a sudden knock on the door.

Joseph's family was immediately shocked. How could there be anyone in the thick snow outside?

"Joseph!"

"It's Bob."

Joseph hurriedly opened the door. Outside, Bob's whole body was buried in the snow, and his face was livid from the cold.

"come on in!"

After Bob entered the door, he asked very simply: "How much food do you have at home?"

Joseph opened his mouth, and then said against his will: "There are still two days of rations."

"Two days?"

Bob frowned, and after a moment, he said: "Just two days! At worst, I'll give you a little, as long as you can get to your destination... Pack your things and get ready to go!"

"Pack your things? What do you mean?"

Joseph was shocked: "Where to go?"

"Ellington!"

Bob paused and lowered his voice and said: "You don't know yet, right? Something big happened in Castle Kaspami. Monsters attacked the castle and many people died. In order to pay the soldiers' pensions, Lord Lawrence decided to A temporary protection tax is levied—those without money must also pledge their grain.”

"Protection tax!?"

Joseph suddenly raised his voice: "In this damn weather, we don't have any food, and we still have to pay taxes!? We will starve to death if we don't have anything to eat!"

"So, we all discussed it and decided to leave here and go to Ellington."

Bob said very calmly: "Owen, the owner of the Potion House, is willing to lead us."

"But so suddenly...the snow outside hasn't melted yet!"

"If you hesitate any longer, the tax officer will come directly to your door after the snow melts."

Bob said calmly: "There are currently twenty-two families in the village, and your family is the only one missing."

"Everyone agrees!?"

"That's right."

Bob said: "I heard people from the Datang Chamber of Commerce mention Ellington before, and it is no longer the same place as before."

"Ellington...but it's so far there! The carriage also takes six days!"

"We don't have a carriage, but we have feet."

Bob looked indifferent: "If you don't leave here, you will be forced to death by Lord Lawrence sooner or later. If you leave here, there is still a glimmer of hope."

"B-but..."

Joseph, who had never left Fort Kaspami, had an inexplicable fear of traveling far away.

"You know, the merchants who came over there before winter were full of praise for Ellington, saying it was a miraculous city that was changing day by day."

Bob said with great yearning: "I heard that the roads there are paved with a kind of black gold. No matter it is windy or rainy, they are very flat and not muddy at all. I also heard that the food there will be cooked in a day." Even the poorest farmers are richer than those in other places. As long as they are willing to work there, they can earn gold coins and eat delicious barbecue and bread for every meal!"

Joseph, who could only chew dried meat for several days, swallowed: "But they definitely don't welcome outsiders..."

"No, you are wrong. I heard that outsiders are very welcome to settle there."

Bob said with great certainty: "They said that Ellington is different every day. The lord there needs a lot of people to build the city. He will spend money to hire people to work for him instead of recruiting them for free. It is said that he can get a lot of people every day. The reward is dozens of silver coins."

"Dozens of silver coins every day!?"

Get rid of the fear! Joseph's psychological defense collapsed instantly: "When are we going to set off!?"

"immediately."

Bob opened the door and walked out without looking back. He had already said what needed to be said. It was up to him whether he wanted to go or not.

"Honey? Do we really want to go? It's so cold outside, my son..."

Joseph glanced at his son who was shivering with cold, and said with determination: "We must take risks, otherwise we will wait for death if we stay at home! My dear, pack your things quickly, bring food and clothes, and don't need anything else. !”

The two got busy immediately. Joseph ran to the bedroom and carefully put the coins he had saved for many years into his arms. One gold coin, fifteen silver coins, and eighty-two copper coins. This was all his savings.

Soon there was a knock on the door again. When Joseph opened the door, there was already a group of people outside who were ready to go.

"Ready?"

Seeing those familiar faces full of confusion and expectation, Joseph took a breath and said, "Ready."

In this way, Joseph's family joined the fleeing army.

On the snow-covered land, they quietly left their home where they had lived for most of their lives and began a long journey toward Ellington in the south.

Day after day, the team did not stop, and they did not dare to stop - legally they belonged to Lord Lawrence's wealth, and if the lord's soldiers discovered that they escaped from Fort Kaspami, they would be hanged!

The further south you go, the less snow there is. The calf-deep snow is much less than at the beginning. They rely on each other, support each other, share food with each other, and rely on their will to persevere and resist the cold.

"Come on everyone, we're almost at Ellington!"

Every time someone couldn't hold on, Bob and Owen, who led the team, would describe the beauty of Ellington to everyone: "Everyone can have food and clothing there, and everyone has the opportunity to make money, so don't worry. If you are being exploited arbitrarily by the guards, you don’t have to worry about being asked for benefits by the tax officer..."

In the world of these farmers, they had never heard of or seen such a beautiful city. When they got here, they were almost entirely supported by their breath.

"Dad...Dad..."

Joseph's son murmured unconsciously, his body hot and feverish from the cold.

"How much longer!"

Joseph's spirit was also very bad. Along the way, their team also included many refugees from other villages. These people also consumed a lot of rations. In fact, they had already eaten the last food yesterday.

The hungry refugee team was on the verge of collapse.

"It'll be there soon!"

"You always say right away! My son is almost dead!"

Joseph's eyes were red and he wanted to pounce on this guy and beat him up hard.

"Save your strength! My friend! I won't lie to you!"

"But this is obviously a lie! What Ellington is more beautiful than the kingdom of God! Why haven't we seen it yet!"

"One, two, one, hey! One, two, one, ha..."

There was a very rough sound in the distance approaching quickly.

"No! It's a bandit!"

Joseph's expression changed greatly. Bandits near the Ladia Hills were notoriously famous.

His words immediately caused a commotion among the people in the team, and the women and children were so frightened that they began to cry softly.

Bob shouted: "Gather your formation! Men, stand up! It's time to protect your family!"

Owen, who was fleeing, had a grimace on his face, thought for a while, and secretly held an alchemy potion in his hand.

Soon those people appeared in front of everyone. They were a group of half-naked warriors with weapons on their backs. They looked very fierce.

"Bandit! Die!"

Owen closed his eyes and roared, then directly smashed the alchemy potion in his hand!

"Bandits?"

Elsa, who was blocked behind by the strong man's figure, looked confused.