I am the old, fiery-faced man from the senior department.

Of course he was afraid.

But he cannot be afraid.

"Brother Laichang!"

Corpses staggered toward them from the wind.

The girl clutched the man's clothes tightly, tears streaming down her face.

Those corpses... those monsters... were their fellow countrymen whom they once knew well.

"Fu-mei. Don't be afraid, don't be afraid..."

What else?

Looking at the villager who had turned into a monster, the man touched his violently beating chest.

Was he scared?

Naturally, I was afraid.

But besides that, he also felt a surge of anger, an inextinguishable anger that could burn away all his passion.

That tiny bundle hanging on the corpse... was the child of the village's Third Sister, who had just given birth to him and was not even a month old. His name was given to him by that illiterate woman who asked him for help.

Peace, peace, may you live a peaceful life.

"How dare they... how could they?!"

The man's roar echoed through the sky.

"boom--!!!"

His anger seemed to reach into the netherworld.

White clouds gather to form a sea of ​​clouds, and a blue wind blows down from the mountains, shattering the evil wind.

Azure lightning bolt crashed down, crushing the sorcery that had taken lives and insulted the dead into ashes.

"Good lad, have no fear."

"I understand your wish."

The clouds surge with the wind, forming a blue dragon, its roar like thunder in fury.

Its eyes shone brightly, like the blazing sun.

Its body is like a yurt, covering the four fields.

The majestic power of Heaven is revealed without moving.

It is the destiny of the Yan dynasty, and the fulfillment of the wishes of the people.

He is—the Guardian God, Zhou!

"..."

They looked up, gazing intently.

They broke down in tears.

They collapsed to the ground, their cries filled with joy.

Great sorrow, and also great joy.

With the arrival of the deity, hope was restored.

■

"..."

Walking through the dilapidated village, everything before my eyes no longer resembles its former glory.

The dragon's face showed no emotion.

Anger? Sorrow?

"They suddenly appeared from the south, wearing masks that concealed their faces."

"They used strange magic to kidnap all the villagers in the blink of an eye."

"They must have targeted more than just our village."

They followed closely behind him, step by step.

"They are demons."

He knew the origin of this spell. He had learned about this wild yet effective spell from a friend.

"The demons... but... why do they dare to come to Great Yan? Do they... want to start a war?!"

When Yao Laichang was in school, he once happened to read a book about demons, which recorded the origin of the name "demon race" and the evil deeds they had committed.

"Instigating war... perhaps, or perhaps, they are performing an evil ritual."

"ceremony……"

Yao Laichang looked at him, puzzled.

"Yes. A ritual that is an honor for them, but a disaster for us."

Bai Zhou turned to look at the two of them, a hint of tenderness appearing on his calm face.

“Good children, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. If it weren’t for your prayers, I don’t know how long it would have taken to discover their evil deeds.”

"Ah...no no no...God...God, this is what we should do...and...we just wanted to save ourselves..."

Yao Laichang never imagined that he would be thanked by the God. In that instant, he felt as if all the books he had read were blank pages, and he had to think for a long time before he could even say a simple response.

"Good children, I will take you to the nearest city's inn. You can stay there for now, and I will make arrangements for you when I return, how about that?"

"Leave everything to me from now on, whether it's seeking revenge or killing the enemy."

"...Yes, thank you for your trouble, Divine Lord..."

Yao Laichang stammered as he cupped his hands in greeting, but then felt that it was somewhat impolite, and for a moment he didn't know what to do.

"No need for formalities. Consider these matters as my apology for failing to fulfill my responsibilities."

"This...this won't do...Fu-mei, Fu-mei, quickly thank the God..."

"Ah... thank... thank you..."

"Brave child, relax, the disaster is over, and life will be better from now on."

Looking at the fox girl who was still standing there blankly beside Yao Laichang, Bai Zhou's expression became even more amiable. He raised his hand and patted the girl's head as a compliment.

"Then let's go, children."

Bai Zhou summoned a cloud, which carried the two somewhat frightened people to a nearby city post station. After instructing the postmaster, who was stunned by his sudden appearance, to take good care of the two, he left again.

"...Chang-ge."

"What's wrong, Fu Mei?"

The fox-like girl tugged at Yao Laichang's arm and laughed at his concerned greeting.

"Now I know why so many people like the God."

For every one of the thirty-seven who killed me, I will repay with a hundred.

Northern Kazdel

Marjorie is an active-duty Sarkaz conscript who just enlisted this year. Today is his sixty-eighth day guarding the border fortress [Ruins].

The weather is getting colder, even though it's only just past June.

"Hey, do you have any alcohol?"

He called out to his teammates who had just come back from urinating.

“First of all, I am not called Hey, I am called Abdul Bassett Sidda.”

Secondly, there was no wine.

Marjorie couldn't remember his teammate's long name, but he did know that his teammate came from the royal court and seemed to have served as a follower of a very powerful nobleman, so he knew a lot.

"Okay, okay... no alcohol, so we'll just have hot water."

He wrapped his blanket tighter around himself, trying to keep the warmth from slipping away.

"Hey... Cedar."

He wanted to talk to someone, otherwise, it would be too unbearable to remain silent in such cold weather.

"what happened?"

Xida took his dried sandworm leg, used a knife to cut off a few pieces, and prepared to soak it in water to make some soup.

"What were those Blood Demons planning to do with all those people they captured recently... Hey, what are you doing?"

Suddenly, a teammate hit me with a rock. Although it only landed in my chest, it was still a bit too much to do it without any reason.

“Those guys are the Blood Demon Lord’s personal guards. If you don’t want to be captured and used as blood bags, then shut up.”

"...Okay...Alright."

Seeing his teammate's cryptic expression, Mariori had no choice but to forcefully change the subject.

"Those people... are they from Yan?"

He glanced at them from afar; those people... looked like beasts of flesh...

There were only able-bodied young men inside... not a single old person or child.

"Won't doing this attract the attention of those Yan people?"

Why do you think they chose this time to go?

Cedar's words piqued Marjorie's curiosity.

"why?"

Xida took a twig he had picked up, peeled off the bark, stirred it a few times in the tin box, and then replied:

"All I can tell you is that someone is having a birthday celebration, and those audacious young people want to show off by sending him some novelties that he's never tried before."