The Song Of Sword And Magic

Chapter 53: The Border

[Translator — Asuka]

[Proofreader — Karane]

After a night’s rest, Fern woke up pretty early in the morning. After two nights of good sleep, he felt rejuvenated. Moreover, after Hersey’s treatment, he felt that he had recovered fully. When he looked around, he was surprised to find that Stan and Rae were no longer in the house. Only Niss was still covered in her cloak as she breathed stably.

Seated on the floor, Fern just looked at her and spaced out. All of a sudden, a series of footsteps could be heard from outside. He hurriedly took a seat on the chair and picked up an empty tea cup, pretending to drink tea.

Rae stepped into the house first, followed by Stan, who was seen with two fur coats in his hands. “We’re lucky. We found two coats that are made of goatskin in another house. This is for you, and the smaller one is for Niss.” Stan gave one of the coats to Fern. “We’ll keep going North on our journey. It’s in the winter now, so it’ll only get colder for the following months. I’m afraid that before we even reach Mount Dagger, you and Niss will come down with sickness because of this weather.” He guffawed upon finishing his words.

Noticing that Fern’s cup was empty, Rae said, “Why don’t you get yourself some hot water?”

Fern hurriedly took the coat and touched it as he tried to change the topic. The coat was well-maintained, which showed that its owner must have treasured it immensely. The threads inside the coat were stitched geometrically. Even though it wasn’t thick, it could fend off coldness and keep the wearer warm. “This must be very expensive for the locals. Perhaps they’re ready to come back one day.”

“I think so. However, if no travelers from Sara would come again, they might as well abandon this place.” Stan put the other coat on the table and poured himself a cup of hot tea. “Anyway, we need these coats, so I put some gold coins in that house and carved the reason we needed them on a wooden slab. I hope their owner will forgive us.”

“Thanks.” Fern indeed needed this coat. The time he spent on digging out the roots was enough to almost freeze him to death, so he couldn’t imagine how he could climb up Mount Dagger in this hostile climate.

“What’s wrong? What are you talking about?” Niss rubbed her eyes and sat up as her red hair hung loose on her face.

Stan lifted the coat and showed it to her. “You don’t have to worry about your fingers getting frozen now.”

Niss smiled in embarrassment. “I’m also worried about my ears, nose and toes getting frozen.”

All of them chortled. By now, they trusted each other wholeheartedly.

***

Although it was afternoon, the sun was hovering on the horizon as it cast a faint glow on the land. Fortunately, it wasn’t a windy day, so the weather was still tolerable for them even though it was still chilly.

Without their horses, they could only walk at a snail’s pace. According to Stan’s estimation, they could reach the border between Doyle and Sara before the sky turned dark. They had to evade the knights who guarded the border and sneak into Sara.

“We’re very lucky today. If a snowstorm strikes, we’ll have to stay here for a long time.” Stan was terrified of the unpredictable weather in Doyle. “The snow on the road will become so thick that it’ll reach our knees. It’ll be difficult for us to even lift our legs.”

“I’ll go mad if I have to stay here.” Niss kept her hands in her coat. Her mouth and nose were covered with a linen scarf, so only her eyes were shown.

“This is nothing compared to what we’ll encounter in Sara.” Rae curled up her lips. 

Niss kept her mouth shut dejectedly, for what Rae had just said frightened her. She subconsciously took a look at Fern, who was also clad in a coat. As soon as he let out a breath, it would become white fog that was clearly visible.

When the sky was turning dark, they could see that there was a large village in the distance. “That’s Ferrer Town—the largest town in the East of Doyle. To you, maybe it’s just a larger village.” Stan laughed as he introduced the town to his companions.

“I’m sure the villagers from other smaller villages have all gathered here. What should we do? Should we circle around it?” Fern pulled down the linen scarf to breathe some fresh air.

“You’re right. We can’t go there. If Hersey is right, I’m afraid our portraits are on the bulletin board in the town now.” Stan took a look at the town and pointed in the North. “If we keep going North from here, we’ll reach the Ferrer Barrier, which was built after the downfall of Sara to prevent the Dark Tide from invading us.”

“How many soldiers are stationed there? How do we go past it?” Fern shook his head worriedly as he had experienced how fierce the Doylan soldiers could be in the Source of Magic.

“There are a few hundred of them. Since it’s very near Ferrer Town, the soldiers could get their supplies here. So, many of them stay in the Barrier.” Stan let out a breath and tried to come up with a solution.

***

With her arms crossed, Rae walked up to them. “The border is very long, and there are basically no natural disasters. We can wait for a chance and run past it secretly.”

“We can do that, but it’s a huge risk. The Doylan soldiers would take turns to keep guard day and night. Moreover, it’s the season of aurorae, so it’d still be very bright at night. For most of the days in Doyle, nighttime is much longer than daytime, so the Doylans have superb night vision that the Southerners are no match for.” Stan gazed at Rae and voiced his concern.

Rae seemed to have a solution as she waved her hand. “I know how to deal with it. We’ll just go near the border, then leave the rest to me.”

Stan and Fern were doubtful, but Rae had always been a calm and confident person, so they decided to trust her. “Alright, it’s decided then. Stan, please lead the way for us.” Upon finishing his words, Fern covered his mouth and nose with his scarf again. “My goodness, my nose is numb already.” he complained.

Without speaking further, Stan led the way for his companions and headed North. The area was originally a wheat field, but in this frigid climate, there were only fences and grass left on the ground. In fact, the grass wasn’t supposed to grow in the winter.

***

Join our discord for more updates on releases! https://discord.gg/reaperscans

***