Chapter 16: The Free Folk

Nio ordered that the sleds be driven into Wald to carry goods, and naturally, the path to be cleared through the Thorny Forest had to be wider. As they cleared the path, the team was surprised to find that the thorny branches no longer had any resilience at all—they were simply like ice strips that shattered instantly when struck, scattering ice shards everywhere.
“What exactly happened? How did such a change occur?” the team members asked while clearing the path and chatting.
“What’s there to be so surprised about? The Aemera world is full of wonders. The green light from yesterday burned these thorns to ash!”
“I thought I’d be poisoned, but the green light made me feel refreshed!” …
Nio didn’t set any strict speed requirements, so the team worked relatively leisurely. Over these days, they had also come to understand some of Nio’s working methods: he emphasized reasonable planning, encouraged individual initiative, didn’t care too much about the methods used, and focused on the overall outcome. As a result, there was no pretense among the team when Nio arrived—he would even join in the discussions and chat casually. These days, the team worked hard every day, and though they were tired, they didn’t find it too strenuous.
After passing through the Thorny Forest, the team headed north, following the perimeter of the Giant Thorny Forest.
While the team members marveled at the strangeness of the place, Nio had different feelings. The departure of Thorn gave the area an indescribable sense of gloom, like a hollow existence devoid of soul, yet it wasn’t entirely negative—there was also a vibrant energy, wild, subtle, and prosperous. In short, the feeling was very subtle. Nio asked Thorn, who told him that spirits are born and die, scattered or united, living in groups or alone. Spirits like him were rare; the influence of the World Tree gave him uniqueness. Before becoming the sole spirit in this place, it had also gone through a series of competitions and mergers.
“Thorn is an outstanding one, the king of plant spirits in this region. Its strength was a key factor in the Battle of Wald’s Thorns. Due to the power of the seal, its dominance was justified. But now that the seal has been broken and the power of the World Tree has been inherited by Nio, Thorn instinctively senses a change in fate, even a shift in the laws of nature. This kind of instinctive, dangerous intuition makes it instinctively draw closer to itself. Such deep bonds and pullings will likely become important factors guiding its actions and decisions in the future…”
The more books Nio read and the more he thought, the more he realized that fate—a vague concept—was truly difficult to interpret and explain. Its combination with individual lives shaped a life like a tangled thread of struggles, efforts, and changes, often making the thread more chaotic or complex. As a result, more threads got involved, suffering greater impacts and exerting greater influence in turn…
“Hm? What’s that in the sky? A Caban Giant Eagle! An Air Knight!”

The members’ chatter pulled Neo back from his unfocused thoughts. Looking up, he saw the aerial knights riding on the giant griffins. Their gazes were sharper, and the three aerial knights flew very low, allowing them to be seen clearly. The knights wore standard armor with gold and silver trim, and their sky-blue velvet capes fluttered in the wind, embroidered with a pair of silver, outstretched wings.

“Sigh…”

“We’re here!”

Within the squad, some members excitedly jumped around, waving and shouting at the aerial knights. This wasn’t because they were unsophisticated country folks who had never seen such things before, but because in the Principality of Sanvest, there was the “Sky Law”: those who could fly in the sky were either nobles or representatives of the authorities. In most cases, they were both nobles and official representatives.

In the sky, the black-haired aerial knight in the lower right glanced down at the ground. The chestnut-haired knight in the lower right sneered, “Hey, see? Someone’s waving enthusiastically at us.”

“Militia, ants—look at their outfits! Tsk tsk! The descendants of those frontier settlers are really tough. I get the illusion that I’m encountering the North Kalidians in the Frost Tundra!”

“Indeed tough. What do you think they’re doing?” asked the black-haired knight.

“How should I know? If you’re interested, go ask them. They’ll surely tell you everything. Maybe they’ll even ask you to sign your name on them, just like those ladies in Phoenix City.”

“Stop being disgusting…”

At that moment, the aerial knight in the leading position spoke seriously, “We’ve arrived. Prepare to land.”

“Yes, sir!” the two knights behind replied in unison. Yet in their eyes, which exchanged smiles, there was mockery toward those who mistook trivial things for important matters.

The passage of the three aerial knights left the members of the Gale Squad feeling both angry and helpless.

“Did our voices are too low? Did they not hear us?”

“Nonsense! Even a deaf person could hear us!”

“You’re right. It’s nonsense. We’re just ordinary people—how could we deserve the attention of noble aerial knights?” one member retorted sourly.

“Maybe they have some urgent task. Who knows? They might come back for us soon. Anyway, they’re fast enough.”

The members discussed among themselves, while Neo glanced in the direction where the three aerial knights had disappeared, thinking, “They must be heading for the seal…”

Just as Neo had predicted, the three aerial knights were indeed heading for the seal. More precisely, they were after the seal key—the power of the Sacred Tree.

“Damn it! Someone else got there first too. What bad luck!” The black-haired knight angrily punched the air, creating a sonic boom—bang!

The chestnut-haired knight also said sourly, “I wonder who has such good fortune as to obtain the Seed of Divine Power!”

“Good fortune? Hmph! It can’t be that coincidental. I think it was planned ahead! Our enemies aren’t just demons!” The leading aerial knight remained relatively calm, but the creaking of his gauntlets revealed his inner unrest.

“Maybe those Erdrits, who live like cockroaches, know something.”

The chestnut-haired knight dismissed his companion’s remark with disdain. “Them? A bunch of scavengers who pick through leftovers. How could they be timely? Tch!”

“We’ll look for clues around here…” said the leading Air Knight as he began to examine the traces carefully. “Hmm, a battle took place here—most likely over the Seeds of Divine Power! There’s still such a high concentration of spatial energy left; it must be some kind of teleportation spell or magic, like Blinking. Truly impressive—what a powerful foe…”
While the proud Air Knights, willing to act as hounds for the sake of delicious meat bones, searched for clues in the giant pit,Neo and his group had already devoured all the meat bones. They were now searching thoroughly through Wald Village.
Although the Bitter Thorns and their vines had devastated half of Wald Village, since the area hadn’t been attacked by dark forces or barbaric aliens, the supplies they found satisfiedNeo’s group greatly. In addition to the food and clothing prepared by the Wald villagers for winter, the team also found over a dozen dead animals that had died of starvation in the stables due to lack of care; they were frozen solid, but could be eaten after some processing.
“Wow, I never expected it—two whole carts full! Our sleds won’t be enough now!”
“Then make more! I hope every cart in our team is fully loaded!”
“Where’s enough pulling power? Are you going to pull them?”
“I’ll pull them! Can we just throw away all this good stuff?”…
The team was quite enthusiastic about collecting unclaimed goods, searching house by house, not forgetting cellars either. They even gathered a pile of ironware. As they were busy, the three Air Knights they had encountered earlier arrived on giant eagles. The snow kicked up by the eagles’ landing created thick snow mist, and their grandeur and presence scared several team members into retreating, with Hagen and Tony’s faces turning pale.
The three Air Knights stood out with their bright armor and arrogant attitudes.Neo observed secretly and found that each of them possessed a strength comparable to Valentina’s—that is, they were at least at level 7 professionally. Judging by their age, they seemed to be around the same age as him, truly proving the saying “There’s always someone better.”
The black-haired Air Knight glanced at the trash collected byNeo’s group, a mocking smirk forming on his lips. The chestnut-haired Air Knight, after seeing how the others were dressed, simply crossed his arms and closed his eyes, showing no interest in those who were even less properly dressed than beggars.
The leading Air Knight arrogantly scanned the group first, then raised his chin and asked, “Whose refugees are you under?”
“Tures and Mathuya”…
At first, the team was slightly excited, thinking these three Air Knights had come for the people. But soon, their enthusiasm faded as they realized the others cared nothing about the suffering and fate of the Edrit refugees, nor were they interested in the pursuit by dark forces and barbaric aliens. They were only concerned with one thing: had anyone seen what happened deep in the Thorn Forest?
“I know something about it,”Neo volunteered, leading the three Air Knights to the corpses of the mutated villagers. “I was chased by man-beasts and fled here, where I found these.”

One must admit that the Sky Knights were quite astute; they quickly realized that these villagers had been deceived and enslaved, and that the root-vine puppets were a typical form of dark magic that utilized both body and soul. Those capable of such magic were undoubtedly extremely powerful spellcasters. As a result, they successfully drifted further and further away from the truth through speculation, easily missingNeo, the bearer of the Divine Seed they longed to devour.

The three Sky Knights who thought the Divine Seed was far away were too lazy to stay any longer. The leader among them still had some pride and used a grand excuse along with distant promises to sendNeo and the others away, then discarded these commoners like trash and soared into the sky.

“What a shame! Even just a little bit of divine power…” the dark-haired Sky Knight muttered, chewing thoughtfully.

“If I find out who that guy is, I’m going to eat him alive!” the chestnut-haired Sky Knight was equally disappointed, venting his anger by making threats.

“That’s power that should belong to us. We’ll get it back, no matter how far away it is!” The leader glanced once more toward the giant pit, his face filled with rage.

The Sky Knights’ arrival and departure, along with their cold indifference toward everyone, depressed many of the team members.

“Freedom Wings! Tch! What so-called freedom! Even talking to you is like showing pity and indulgence—awesome! Truly awesome!”

“Everything we wear and ride comes from the taxes paid by the people. Raising such a bunch of fools who only know how to oppress others!”

“Enough!”Neo shouted. “Complaining is pointless! Right?” He looked around at everyone and declared loudly, “Does anyone here remember the true spirit of Frey?”

“I do!” Dick replied loudly. “Freedom, exploration, and struggle!”

Neo nodded. “Freyians are first and foremost free. Only in Frey do people have freedom—true free people, not citizens, let alone commoners. Many of you, your parents, your grandparents, left their homelands to pioneer and build new homes. What did they rely on? The protection of those in fine clothes? No! They relied on faith, courage to explore, and determination to strive for freedom and a better life for themselves and their families! Every true Freyian should be free and have the courage and determination to strive for freedom and a happy life. We won’t complain. We’ll take action. If our ancestors could create a new life, so can we! Do you have that spirit?”Neo asked loudly.

“Yes!” the team members roared.

“Good. I heard you. I don’t repeat myself. From now on, we’ll see through actions—whether it’s real or just talk. Get to work!”

Before noon,Neo and his group returned to the camp. Today was peculiar—the dark clouds hung so low it seemed one could reach them by standing on tiptoes, and there was no wind. Normally, the snow would fall heavily under such conditions, but it had been drifting steadily since morning.

“The clouds are so low—it seems the snow will keep falling for days!” Mah said as she remindedNeo, who was ordering the team members to unload the goods and repackage them.

Nio looked up at the sky seriously. To be honest, this kind of weather was something he had never seen before, but it didn’t stop him from understanding what Mah meant. It’s better to fear slowness than haste—rain and snow both follow this principle. The white snow might not seem as slippery and muddy as rain, but in reality, it contains a high amount of moisture, and when it accumulates heavily, it causes cold and freezing conditions. Simply put, it’s similar to permafrost: lower sunlight intensity leads to less freezing, while higher intensity causes more freezing, as the ground is already completely frozen. It’s the opposite of how snow melts into mud in early winter.

Besides this, Nio was also aware of another disease: snow blindness. The intense reflection of sunlight off the snow surface can damage the eyes. In the early stages, it manifests as unbearable eye swelling, sensitivity to light, tearing, and blurred vision. In more severe cases, persistent dark shadows appear in front of the eyes, severely affecting vision and even leading to blindness.

After a prolonged heavy snowfall, the world would be completely covered in white, and the weather would remain exceptionally clear for a few days. If this issue wasn’t taken seriously, it could cause trouble.

“Natural disasters, man-made disasters. Traveling is hard, and the path to freedom is even harder!” With these thoughts, Nio closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Pursue progress, strive hard.” He gave this short phrase to himself as well as a reminder to everyone else.