“I bring you bad news.” Gilbert said with a complicated expression as he sat down next to Austin in the group of soldiers.
“What?” the soldiers all put their heads in front of Gilbert and asked.
“You have to start moving again.” Gilbert said with a relaxed smile.
As soon as he finished speaking, the captain of each team walked over and called for everyone to gather.
“Sigh.” the soldiers sighed and stood up one after another. They walked to their respective teams.
“Are you tired today?” Gilbert looked up and asked Austin, who was holding his hand.
“I’m alright.” Austin smiled and said, “How far did you run?”
“Not too far.” Gilbert tried to recall for a moment, then shook his head and said, “I can’t remember clearly.”
“It seems that your status is not bad.” Austin replied.
“Hehe.” Gilbert laughed softly. He did not say anything.
The exhausted elven soldiers landed on the ground. The surrounding Caradia soldiers immediately surrounded them and supported them.
“We can walk for the rest of the journey. Remember to pay attention to the movements of the grass around you.” Abel instructed.
“Yes!” the soldiers answered in unison.
“Today’s journey is almost over. Please hold on a little longer.” Abel encouraged them.
He also noticed that a few of the soldiers were close to collapse. They needed the support of the people around them to barely move forward. However, since they had persevered to this point, they could not leave any loopholes for others to exploit.
Claremont walked to Abel’s side and suggested, “Let’s walk a little slower.”
Abel pursed his lips and nodded.
Claremont relaxed and returned to the back of the formation, standing side by side with Devitt.
“It’s been hard on Abel.” Devitt sighed as he looked at the slowly advancing army.
“Mm.” Claremont could not help but agree.
In terms of daily marching, Abel had indeed done more for the reconnaissance team than the two of them.
“The further we go down this road, the more uneasy I feel.” Devitt said.
“Yes.” Claremont also had the same feeling. “However, being afraid is also a good thing. At least it proves that we are very clear about our current situation.”
“Sigh.” Devitt sighed and said, “I hope we can successfully complete our mission and return to Drondheim safely.”
“Of course we will go back.” Claremont said with confidence. “Once we have the information about the disappearance of the dwarven craftsmen, we will take the elven soldiers who stayed at the edge of the island and wait for us to return together.”
There were still many areas around the volcano that were suitable for camping. After walking to the ideal safe zone. Abel immediately stopped and commanded the soldiers to start building the camp.
Most of the soldiers still had a lot of energy left in their bodies. After settling down the weak soldiers, they immediately started building the tents.
Although Gilbert would not do this kind of work, he walked over to the soldiers who had fallen to the side and started a bonfire for them.
“Thank you.” the soldiers felt a wave of heat in front of them. They opened their eyes and thanked Gilbert.
“It’s nothing. You guys have a good rest.” Gilbert shook his head and said, “Wait here for a while. The tent will be ready.”
“Okay.” the soldiers moved their bodies and sat down beside the fire. They nodded.
Gilbert squatted down and warmed the fire with them.
A piece of sparkling ice crystal floated to his palm, but it quickly melted.
“It’s snowing?” Gilbert looked up at the night sky.
He found large snowflakes falling from the sky.
“Gilbert! Your tent has been set up.” At this time, Austin Strode to Gilbert’s side and said, “Eh? It’s snowing?”
“Yes.” Gilbert stood up and looked up. He said to Austin, “This is the first time I’ve seen snow on this island.”
“Really?” Austin asked, “I thought only Drondheim would rarely have snow.”
“Really.” Gilbert said. “Have you set up the tent?”
“Yes.” Austin nodded. “Go in and rest. I’ll call you when dinner is ready.”
After saying this, Austin looked at the soldiers sitting around the fire.
Gilbert noticed his actions and suggested, “Let me help you carry these soldiers into the tent.”
“Huh?” hearing Gilbert’s words, Austin raised his head in surprise and agreed, “Sure.”
Without saying anything else, the two of them helped the weak soldiers into the tent.
The tent that took care of these people had long been set on fire, and the temperature in the room became very warm.
The other soldiers who had finished their work also came to help.
After everyone had finished their work, the dinner in the kitchen had also been prepared.
“We can finally eat hot food.” Austin said happily while rubbing his sore shoulders.
Because of the snow, a simple canvas shed had been set up in the open space of the camp. Everyone put the tables together. They waited noisily for the food to be served.
The soldiers in the kitchen were always the first to eat, because after they had served the soldiers’ food, they had to wash the kitchen utensils with clean water without stopping. This was especially true in winter, because the stickers on the plates were easy to freeze.
The first to be served was a plate of turkey, and the soldiers burst into cheers.
At the end of the new year in Drondheim, every family would have such a dish on their dinner table.
“I didn’t expect to be able to eat this dish in the wild.” a soldier shouted.
“The soldiers in the kitchen are really thoughtful.” Austin sighed.
Gilbert, who had just started to come into contact with human food, had never tasted this dish. He tugged at Austin’s sleeve and asked, “Is this delicious?”
“It’s delicious.” Austin nodded. “You’ll know after you try it.”
Gilbert felt relieved and nodded.
Some of the soldiers on the seats couldn’t help but reach their knives and forks towards the turkey on the plate. At this moment, a soldier in the crowd asked, “Where’s Captain Devitt and the others?”
“That’s right. Let captain and the others come and eat with us.” Jeb suggested.
The soldiers with quick eyes immediately ran to Devitt’s tent and brought over Devitt and Claremont who were chatting.
“Just start eating. Why are you calling us?” Claremont said with a smile as he walked to the long table that was put together.
“Captain Devitt, Captain Claremont, Happy New Year!” the soldiers said to the two of them in unison as they had discussed beforehand.
