Thorn had just finished chatting with Elysium before settling alone into his assigned guest room. To be honest, his first impression wasn't bad at all. The place was small, but it was clean and tidy. According to the innkeeper, it had been a very long time since they'd had any guests.
The town itself also made a decent impression, though it was very different from Brisamar City. Here, almost everyone was an adventurer; very few were Terra natives. Considering the harsh weather and unforgiving environment, that was perfectly understandable. Except for adventurers, no Terra folk were willing to stay in a place like this. Most preferred to head south, to warmer lands.
A knock sounded at the door. Thorn wasn't sure if it was Elysium—he frowned reflexively, sighing at that thought. For once, he wished Elysium could put all that talking energy into some actual work.
He opened the door, prepared to decline whatever nonsense was coming, but the refusal he had ready on his lips vanished instantly.
"Nice to meet you, my name is Han."
It was the adventurer he had seen earlier. Thorn hadn't greeted him back then, but apparently the man was making up for that now.
"Thorn. What business do you have with me?"
Mr. Han noticed Thorn's expression and cleared his throat twice. "Well, you see… since Mr. Thorn has just arrived, I—both as an adventurer and as a senior member of the Holy Knight Federation—feel that I should show you around the camp. Let you get familiar with the place. And we should also get to know each other."
Thorn hesitated. But Mr. Han's reasoning wasn't entirely wrong. He slowly nodded. "Then I'll trouble you."
Thorn followed Mr. Han out into the streets.
Not far away, Xiao Ran A was guiding Elysium around when he spotted the two of them. He thought Mr. Han fell asleep and logged out earlier.
The man looked ecstatic, like a drifting boat finally finding harbor after years at sea.
He wanted to raise this dark-skinned NPC's affection level to one hundred. Everyone, evacuate!
Xiao Ran A glanced at Mr. Han, then at Thorn. He rubbed his eyes. Bro, that's not Weedy behind you. Why are you smiling like that?
Mr. Han didn't notice Xiao Ran A. Or rather, even if he did, he wouldn't care. This was his precious one-on-one time with Thorn.
Xiao Ran A watched Mr. Han warmly—perhaps too warmly—welcome Thorn into a café and sit with him in a two-person booth. He let out a deep sigh.
He'd seen this before. It reminded him of a certain friend who was probably still in the Kazimierz Territories, rain or shine, bringing a freshly prepared lunch to his uncle's office, along with a newspaper warmed so that his uncle's fingers wouldn't freeze.
Honestly… it was kind of a red flag.
Xiao Ran A sighed again as he continued explaining things to Elysium, all while worrying about the troubles of the Reunion Movement.
It had been a long time since they had any real contact with Reunion. They still exchanged symbolic gifts to maintain friendliness, but that was also a way of widening the distance.
Their numbers kept increasing. Each time they moved into a new city or took over a town, Reunion's numbers grew even more. Those violent types cared nothing for civilian lives, even though they themselves had once been ordinary people. Now their hatred fell squarely on the very civilians who used to be just like them.
They had no mercy. All they wanted was to use the flames burning in their hearts to show those who once mocked them what it felt like to fall from the clouds straight into the abyss, to force them to savor this moment in full.
Among the victims were many nobles. In fact, the thing the Reunion Movement hated most was nobility. The women were taken for their own enjoyment, but the men were all infected and then thrown into the garbage heaps to fend for themselves.
To be honest, such actions were understandable to a degree, yet turning their blades toward ordinary civilians made the whole thing repulsive.
Xiao Ran A continued walking forward. With the end of version 2.0, he knew war would break out in 3.0. Version 3.0 would likely be one where multiple factions joined the conflict.
As a member of Tomorrow's Development, he would probably become a soldier and be dispatched to various battlefields. That should be the meaning behind it.
Little did he know that the wars of his previous life had been far fairer. Everyone pledged their loyalties to a faction, and each faction offered nearly identical rewards. No one gave significantly more than the others. After all, factions needed to earn money too.
But in this life, Tomorrow's Development had established dominance over everything. The rewards they offered were beloved by both new and veteran players. Veterans could progress further, and new players could quickly catch up with each version.
A player mole who had been hiding within the Reunion Movement once contacted him, claiming the Reunion Movement would attack a noble-controlled mobile city before the end of this year and that next year they might launch a major operation.
Considering that next year would be version 3.0, Xiao Ran A simply relaxed. Let me reach max level in 3.0, and then I'll come back and crush you all.
In the northern camp, the place that had once been the Reunion Movement's base, only ruins of its former liveliness remained. Talulah had led the majority of her forces to occupy the mobile cities they had conquered over the past few weeks. There, they sang, danced, reveled, and indulged in the rights they believed they deserved as the infected, along with the power to decide the fate of others.
The camp had once housed ten thousand people, but now fewer than three hundred remained. Aside from the elderly, the weak, and the sick, there were also women and children who lacked the ability to fight.
Most of the children followed Talulah and the others. The few who stayed were still being taught by Alina.
Watching the weather outside grow colder, Alina began boiling water to prepare for today's lesson. Calling it preparation was somewhat overstated, since she only had two students left.
There was a knock on the door. Alina opened it with a gentle smile. "Yelena, good morning."
"Morning, Alina."
FrostNova stood at the door wearing the Yeti Squad uniform. "I'll be going out to hunt today. The remaining squad members will stay in the camp. You and the children shouldn't leave today."
"Alright…"
Alina responded softly. FrostNova pulled up her mask and left with a few members of the Yeti Squad, while the rest remained behind to guard the base.
The once lively camp was long gone. Only a few ordinary people remained to watch over the territory. After Talulah marched forward and occupied the mobile cities, those cities became their new strongholds. In a way, this place had already been abandoned. The prosperity of the past was gone, leaving behind only trivial problems and tasks.
Members of the Yeti Squad made up nearly a third of the remaining population and were the only combat-capable individuals. FrostNova's father, Patriot, and the Shieldguards had gone to the mobile cities under Talulah's orders. Talulah had originally arranged for FrostNova to oversee one of the mobile cities as well, but FrostNova declined. As a result, Talulah reassigned her to several camps and important supply routes.
From city to camp, even though FrostNova had been one of the founding members who accompanied Talulah on her long journey, it was clear that this arrangement was gradually pushing her away from the center. But as long as FrostNova had a request or suggestion, Talulah would listen. The camp's layout followed FrostNova's instructions, and the defensive formations did as well. This made many believe that FrostNova might have been injured and unable to be on the front lines, so Talulah stationed her at the rear to guard the main camp.
This made everyone think Talulah was a sentimental and loyal leader. Infected warriors who came after hearing the rumors all looked forward to the day they would gain their rights as infected.
But the true veterans knew Talulah had changed. Her change had been subtle at first, but she was gradually adopting methods she once despised. In some ways, she had certainly matured.
FrostNova did not like this kind of maturity. After several city assaults, not only were many ordinary civilians killed, but infected civilians were also pushed to the very front lines as living shields. In truth, such acts were common, but it was clear that Talulah no longer intended to develop peacefully. She had begun expanding by any means necessary.
The results were undeniable. In just a few months, the Reunion Movement had seized territory comparable to the size of the Brotherhood's domain. Multiple towns supported one another, forming an ironclad network. And Talulah didn't stop. She continued to lead her forces toward more towns.
FrostNova exhaled, her breath turning into a thin mist that quickly disappeared into the frozen air. She felt like giving up.
Giving up to this reality, giving up to the infected's vague and self-destructive future, and giving up to Felix as well.
The future of the Reunion Movement was like that of a moth rushing toward a flame.
"Big Sis…"
Petrova spoke in a small voice. "Maybe we shouldn't stay in the Reunion Movement anymore. This place is no longer suitable for the Yeti Squad to survive."
"Where would we go?"
"Anywhere, Big Sis… I just feel like staying here is a waste of our time."
FrostNova stopped walking. She pressed her lips together. She wanted to say something, but the words wouldn't come out. Her father, Patriot, was now one of the main pillars of the Reunion Movement. Judging by his actions, he had decided to follow Talulah to the very end. And what about her? Perhaps she simply lacked the courage to leave, as well as a reason to do so.
"If we leave, what will happen to the camp? What about the supply routes?"
FrostNova looked at Petrova. "These are our responsibilities. If we don't carry them out and the Investigative Squad discovers the supply lines, the Reunion Movement will collapse immediately."
Petrova fell silent.
FrostNova knew Petrova was only trying to persuade herself. And wasn't she the same? She also wanted to leave, to take Alina far away from here. But she feared what would become of the infected left behind if she abandoned them.
"If only the Pioneer were still here."
"Yes, he could probably talk some sense into Big Sis. Maybe he could even take you away with him."
Whispers came from behind. FrostNova paused for a moment, then continued walking as if nothing had affected her. She also wished Felix could stand beside her and show her a way forward.
But she felt herself growing farther and farther away from him.
In October of the year 1095, Talulah captured two towns in succession, once more "harvesting" tens of thousands of infected warriors. At the same time, some players who believed the Reunion route was the main storyline began joining the Reunion Movement. Many of them were new players born in Ursus who had become infected early on due to having no resources, and were then absorbed into the movement.
Although some chose to search for the Brotherhood and join Tomorrow's Development, many players were too lazy to travel that far and decided to follow this storyline for easy experience.
With the arrival of the Undead, the Reunion Movement grew rapidly. They had no intention of slowing down and instead began accelerating their expansion.
Players aligned with the Brotherhood didn't mind much. The Reunion forces deliberately avoided the towns where the Brotherhood conducted trade and continued conquering cities to the west, most of them occupied by the Patrol Squad.
The Brotherhood eventually realized they were being ignored, but what they felt most was a cautious detachment. Both sides followed a "you don't bother us, we won't bother you" attitude. After all, they were powerful adventurers who could not die. Conquering their cities would require enormous sacrifices, and Talulah could not afford the loss.
Northern Ursus had descended into complete chaos. Meanwhile, good news came from Kazimierz that excited the infected. Infected knights would be allowed to participate in the next Major Knight Tournament. This was possible thanks to the efforts of the Blood Knight and the tacit approval of the General Chamber of Commerce. The K.G.C.C. agreed, though reluctantly. Infected knights were still looked down upon, but the chance to compete and change their fate was a matter of utmost importance to them.
The Fate Knight Club, to which the Blood Knight belonged, received much attention. Besides the Blood Knight, the order also had Knight Viviana, who had earned the public's admiration, as well as several knights and infected knights who had performed well in previous Major. Many sponsors sought to recruit the Blood Knight after he became famous, but he refused them all. This left the sponsors puzzled. How much profit could this Fate Knight Club even make?
On Iberia's coastline, storms gathered. After submitting her request to Felix, Skadi left Kazdel and returned to Iberia on a mission. No one knew exactly what she had done there, but once she returned, she often seemed lost in thought. She kept staring at Felix with a strange look in her eyes, filled with an odd mix of dependence and gentleness.
In November, Felix returned to Lungmen once more.
The Venus was finally complete, and its engine had been fully activated.