Winter Lord: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 105 Daily Intelligence Update
A semi-transparent screen appeared before Louis's eyes, with several lines of text rapidly appearing on the panel.

[Daily intelligence update complete]

[1: The remnants of the old Northern nobility, at the call of Viscount Firth, secretly gathered in an attempt to unite against the newly appointed Sheriff Louis, each noble harboring their own ulterior motives.]

[2: Under duress from the Snowsworn, Baron Vera led thirty-five of his former followers in a raid on Firth Manor, capturing twelve nobles who were attending the event.]

[3: Baron Vera was forced to lead thirty-five Snowsworn to the south, planning to attack Red Tide Territory today in an attempt to capture County Governor Louis alive.]

[4: An outbreak of "white fever" has occurred in the northern Shanshan region. If not dealt with promptly, it will rapidly spread to the entire Xuefeng region, with unimaginable consequences.]

Every piece of information in this daily intelligence system update is of great importance.

Louis, who had been leaning against the headboard, immediately sat up straight when he saw the first item.

The old noble class in the North united to resist them.

"This is fucking isolating me..." he muttered to himself.

Louis had originally thought that since Duke Edmund had appointed him as sheriff, he should take on the responsibility.

Xuefeng County is currently in dire need of reconstruction, and it is precisely the time for lords to share resources and overcome difficulties together.

But these people... actually colluded in private, trying to outwardly comply while inwardly defying me and undermining my authority?

"Human nature is truly treacherous."

He quickly racked his brains for a solution, but when he saw the second piece of information, he couldn't help but laugh.

Baron Vera raided Firth Manor, and twelve nobles were captured alive and sacrificed.

“So they’ve all been locked up in cages by the Snowsworn. That saves me some trouble,” Louis chuckled softly.

Thanks to the Snow Oath, thanks to Baron Vera.

However, before he could finish laughing, his face darkened again when he saw the third one.

Vera led the way, turning their attention to the Red Tide Territory in an attempt to capture him alive.

"You damned guide!" Louis roared, completely forgetting that he had just been thanking this guide a moment before.

Thirty-five Snow Oath takers are not many.

However, in the present Snow Peak County, the regular Snow Oath Legion has withdrawn, and only some remnants are barely surviving. Those who can still move freely in Snow Peak County must be the elite troops of the Snow Oath Legion.

If it weren't for the daily intelligence system, I might have really been used as a "sacrifice" without any preparation.

They eat the empire's food, yet they want to turn around and send the empire's nobles into the cauldron of ancient gods?

What he hates most are these collaborators.

Baron Vera has already found a way to die!

“What a pity, I have a daily intelligence system.” Louis’s voice was not loud, but it carried a hint of coldness: “So now the roles of hunter and prey need to be reversed.”

With the help of the intelligence system, he quickly came up with a solution.

Then Louis looked at the fourth one, and this time his smile completely disappeared.

An outbreak of "white dormant fever" has occurred in the northern Firs Territory.

Louis stared at the intelligence report, his brows slowly furrowing.

White sleep fever is a highly contagious and deadly disease.

Every ten years or so, an outbreak occurs in the North. Whenever it happens, it means death and chaos.

Because of its extremely strong sleep-inducing properties and deadly cold reaction, it is more commonly known as "Snow Spirit's Curse".

In the beginning, it was just drowsiness and confusion, like a minor illness caused by being too tired for too long.

But three days later, the body temperature will drop sharply, and the patient will open their eyes and mutter to themselves.

They would recount the scenes from their dreams, recounting vague and bizarre "fragments of the future."

On the fifth day, it began to fall into a deep sleep, with a weak heartbeat and tear ducts leaking a liquid that looked like ice water.

On the sixth day, a sudden high fever will occur, as if a raging fire is burning inside the body.

They'll most likely die on the seventh day.

If left unchecked, this disease could cause panic and collapse of order throughout Snowpeak County and even the North.

Louis closed his eyes, his mind racing: This isn't a curse, it's an illness.

More specifically, it should be a fungal disease activated by low temperatures. "The spores likely invade through the skin or nasal cavity via damp, cold winds, eventually colonizing the brain and affecting the nervous system."

Drowsiness, hallucinations, hypothermia... these symptoms also fit the characteristics of a worm infection.

Surprisingly, the solution is actually quite simple.

Exposing patients to a high-temperature environment of over 50 degrees Celsius for half an hour can effectively kill bacteria and prevent the disease from worsening.

The patient will wake up naturally and be out of danger.

It sounds almost like a joke.

The problem is that this "simple" approach needs to be done promptly.

If the opportunity is missed, the bacteria will take root in the brain, and the patient will be in a deep sleep for too long, making it impossible to save them even with high fever.

The most challenging aspect is the speed of transmission and the rapid onset of the disease.

By the time many lords discovered the problem, a large portion of their people had already perished.

Another point is how to recreate a sauna-like environment in this godforsaken place called the North.

In a place where even water will soon be obtained by breaking ice, how can you possibly raise the temperature of an entire room to 50 degrees Celsius and maintain it for half an hour?!
Louis quickly came up with a solution: steam.

Saunas, steam rooms, and geothermal fumigation are all viable options.

The Red Tide Territory happens to have hot spring resources.

But the next second, he shook his head: "No."

Red Tide Territory is the core area of ​​my territory, the granary, the fortress, and the starting point for everything in the future.

He absolutely would not allow even a trace of the virus to be brought in.

Moreover, it would take at least four days for the pine trees to reach the red tide, which is simply not enough time.

"We can't bring people here, we can only send warmth over."

His mind raced, quickly sifting through all the recent intelligence and devising a countermeasure.

Suddenly, he remembered an old piece of intelligence.

The geothermal core of the Red Tide Territory is home to a group of fireback turtles.

A glint flashed in his eyes.

Fireback turtles are geothermal creatures that inhabit hot springs and magma crevices.

The energy blocks on their backs can store a huge amount of heat.

When the temperature reaches its limit, it will turn into steam and erupt.

The sudden increase in temperature and humidity felt like a natural sauna.

"Vibrio hysteria...that's exactly what I'm afraid of."

Fireback turtles are practically a natural nemesis of this epidemic.

High temperature, steam, humid air, and magical thermal energy.

All you need is a small house and a turtle, and you can have everything you need for treatment, purification, and isolation.

His original plan was to tame them.

Take it slow, build trust, and let these geothermal turtles become the guardians of the Red Tide Territory during winter.

But now... there's no time to "take it slow".

"I'm sorry, Turtle," Louis said apologetically. "For the sake of the entire Fir Territory, I have no choice but to kill a few for now."

He knows what this means.

The turtle shell is disposable; once removed, the heat will likely only last for one or two days before it's gone forever.

Fireback turtles are rare, and every one hunted reduces their numbers.

But he can't care about that now.

Turtles can be nurtured over time, but once a person dies, they can't be brought back to life.

(End of this chapter)