I'm really not a Sanctuary Warlock.

The closer you get to the border of the Duchy of Toussaint, the more refugees you encounter.

They came in groups of three or five from the south.

Whenever Lynn encounters refugees, he stops to cast the Moonlit Blessing.

Once, twice, three times...

Later, Lynn himself couldn't remember exactly how many people he had saved.

"I feel like I'm about to become a saint."

Three days later, at dusk, after purging another group of nearly a hundred refugees, Lynn leaned against the campfire and couldn't help but complain.

Lisa, who was sitting to the side wiping her longsword with a cloth, paused for a moment upon hearing this.

In the past few days, she has witnessed Lynn's acts of kindness time and time again.

He could have easily ignored these strangers and refugees, but he patiently stopped and pulled back those struggling on the brink of death one by one.

This man is sometimes so sarcastic that you want to punch him, and other times so kind that you can't help but like him.

Anna sat on the other side of the campfire, the firelight illuminating her profile. She listened quietly without saying a word.

In the past few days, the feeling of weakness in her body has completely disappeared.

"Holy Song City".

Anna silently repeated the name in her heart.

That city that travelers described as large, harmonious, and free.

There will definitely be room for them there.

It will definitely become their new home.

Seven days later.

As the rolling plains were gradually replaced by undulating hills, and the air took on the crisp coolness characteristic of the mountains, they finally arrived at the border between the Kingdom of Orentia and the Duchy of Toussaint.

However, the scene before them made all three of them stop in their tracks.

Thousands of people gathered in a dense crowd on the mountain path of Fenjieling.

They set up camp here, forming a huge temporary encampment.

Cries, shouts, arguments, and coughs mingled together, rising into the sky.

An atmosphere of despair and unease permeated the air.

"We can't go! We're all carrying the plague. If we just go, are we trying to bring disaster to other countries?"

In the center of the camp, a tall man with a flushed face roared at the crowd around him. He was wearing tattered leather armor and looked like a mercenary or adventurer.

"What else can we do if we don't go?" a woman holding a child cried out in protest. "Stay here and wait to die? The city gates are closed, we can't even buy medicine, my son is dying!"

"But...but will the people of the Kingdom of Orentia accept us? They'll only point arrows at us too!"

"We have to give it a try! I heard some people have already gone there."

The crowd split into two factions, arguing fiercely.

One group believes that the border should not be crossed, thus bringing disaster to innocent people.

Another group believes that staying behind means certain death, and they must seek a way to survive.

Lynn frowned.

The situation was worse than he had imagined.

A plague could plunge a country into such immense chaos.

Where are the strong in this country? Where have all the high-ranking mages, knights, and even "guardians" like those in the Kingdom of Orentia gone?

Are they really helpless in the face of such a huge disaster?

"Brother."

Lynn steered the unicorn slowly toward the leather-armored man who was trying to maintain order.

The man's argument was interrupted. He turned around and was clearly taken aback when he saw Lynn and the other two.

The magnificent unicorn and the three extraordinary figures stood out starkly against the backdrop of the ragged, emaciated refugees around them.

"You are... from Orentia?" the man asked warily, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword.

“I suppose so,” Lynn did not deny it. “I want to ask, what exactly happened in Toussaint? Why did a plague become so severe? Don’t the rulers of the capital and other major cities have any way to deal with it?”

Upon hearing Lynn's question, a bitter smile appeared on the leather-armored man's face.

"What are the solutions? Who are in power?"

He thought he had heard the biggest joke in the world.

"The king is gone."

The man spoke slowly and deliberately.

Lynn's heart skipped a beat.

Anna and Lisa's expressions changed instantly.

"What do you mean the king is gone?" Lynn pressed.

"His Majesty the King was assassinated two weeks ago."

"After the king was assassinated, several grand dukes fought for the throne, and then... and then the plague broke out."

"Toussaint now consists only of nobles fighting each other for power and territory, and... countless refugees waiting to be swallowed by the plague."

The man's words surprised Lynn greatly.

The king was assassinated.

Aristocratic civil war.

The plague spread.

In just half a month, a country has come to the brink of collapse.

No wonder... no wonder no high-level combatants stepped forward to resolve the plague.

They were all busy fighting for the bloodstained crown.

Anna's body swayed slightly.

Her hope turned out to be a burning hell.

Lynn seemed to sense Anna's unease; he looked up and gazed south.

Beyond the border lies a land of chaos and death.

Behind them lay Orentia, orderly yet unlikely to welcome them.

To advance or to retreat?

Lynn didn't ask Anna.

He simply stared at the muddy path leading to the Duchy of Toussaint.

Then, he gently squeezed the horse's belly.

The Holy Spirit Unicorn took a step forward, crossing the border that separated the two countries.

Chapter 105 Dwarf Village

After crossing the dividing ridge, large swathes of trees on both sides of the mountain road withered, their leaves turning an eerie grayish-brown, as if something had sucked the nutrients from their roots.

Occasionally, you can see a few corpses abandoned by the roadside, covered with tattered cloth, already emitting a putrid smell.

Lisa frowned, instinctively going into a state of alert.

Anna leaned against Lynn's chest, without saying a word.

The three of them walked south along the mountain path for about half an hour, and the forest began to thin out, revealing large areas of bare wasteland.

Just then, Lynn saw a wisp of smoke rising from a chimney ahead.

“There is a village,” Lynn said.

Anna slightly raised her head and followed his gaze.

It was a small stone village nestled in a valley, but its layout was compact and orderly, forming a stark contrast to the desolate and ravaged landscape outside.

The village was surrounded by a low stone wall with sharpened wooden stakes stuck in the top, which looked like a temporary fortification.

Smoke rising from inside the stone wall indicates that someone is cooking inside.

"A whole country is ravaged by plague, yet this village seems completely unscathed?" Lisa rode closer, her tone clearly wary.

Lynn also sensed something was wrong.

Along the way, they saw either deserted, abandoned villages or groups of refugees fleeing the disaster.

The entire northern part of the Duchy of Toussaint resembled a desolate, apocalyptic landscape.

But in the village before us, wisps of smoke rose from chimneys, the stone walls remained intact, and one could even faintly hear voices and the clanging of objects coming from inside.

This is not normal.

"Let's get closer and take a look," Anna decided.

Lynn nodded and urged the unicorn to slowly walk towards the village.

When they were less than fifty meters from the stone wall, Lynn finally saw what was inside.

Then he froze.

The village was full of dwarves.

He was about waist-high, with a sturdy build like a small barrel, thick, muscular arms, and long, meticulously groomed beards.

Lynn had seen dwarves in the markets of Orentia, but they were just scattered dwarf merchants; he had never seen a village made up entirely of dwarves.

"All dwarves?" Lisa's voice betrayed her surprise.

Anna also sat up slightly.

“The dwarves have considerable influence in Toussaint,” Anna pondered. “But most of them live in the Iron Ridge Mountains in the south. It is indeed rare to find a village of pure dwarves in this northern plain.”

Lynn was still observing when the dwarves in the village were busy with their own tasks, some carrying timber, others sharpening knives, their movements orderly and without any of the panic one would expect during a plague outbreak.

Moreover, he noticed a crucial detail.

None of these dwarfs had dark purple spots on their bodies.

They are all in good health.

In a country ravaged by plague, an unscathed village seems somewhat eerie.

"Your Highness Anna, what do you think of these dwarves...?"

He hadn't finished speaking.

"Huh? There are people outside."

A loud voice boomed from above the stone wall.

Lynn looked up and saw the heads of several dwarves peeking out from the top of the wall.

Their eyes swept over the three men before fixing on Lynn.

The gate in the stone wall was opened from the inside.

A dwarf swaggered out.

This dwarf was clearly different from the other dwarves. His beard was crimson red and braided into three thick braids, adorned with golden rings. He wore a leather armor that was patched but still looked luxurious, and a finely crafted warhammer hung at his waist.

What's most striking is his aura.

Although this guy only reached Lynn's thighs, he walked with an imposing manner, his two short, thick legs thumping loudly on the ground, making him look like a walking miniature general.

He was followed by four equally armed dwarf guards.

The red-bearded dwarf stopped a few steps in front of the unicorn, put his hands on his hips, tilted his head back, and scrutinized Lynn from head to toe with a critical look.

Then, his eyes lit up.