261 – Harvest Day
The area that appears north of the Citadel Republic, passing through the sea called the Kant Sea, is now the land of the demons called the Demon Empire. In the past, when numerous demon kings were proliferating, it was called the Demon World rather than the Demon Empire, and it made countless children on the continent cry.
The story of demons kidnapping children at night and taking them away has spread so widely that it is now difficult to trace its origins. The belief that demons will harm me and my family is universal among humans across all continents, regardless of status or class.
But if you think about it again, the demons definitely have a land called the Demon World. Even if you live well in your own land and focus on development and development, it is not enough, so why accumulate the mainland of the continent, which is someone else’s land?
The reason is that the place called Demon World has terrible environmental conditions that make development and development of the Demon World impossible.
“Ugh, it’s cold. Cold. It feels like my bones are turning into powder from being frozen. “It’s been almost five years since I worked here, but I still can’t get used to the arctic winds.”
The territory is as large as several ordinary kingdoms combined, and is equivalent to half of the empire, but the problem is that all of that land is a useless and barren area. The southern land mass, which occupies about one-third of the Demon World, is the infamous Sandea Desert, the largest desert on the continent.
The environmental conditions here are much worse than even those in the eastern plains, and it is not uncommon for there not to be a drop of rain for not just a few days but even years.
So, they are demons, they are naked, and they cannot buy anything. Even the small-scale tribal demons that could be found everywhere, or even some creatures that had adapted to the dry environment, were completely wiped out.
When you think of a desert, this place, which does not even have date palms or cacti, is the most dead land in the world, a hostage of hostages. That alone is sad, but the remaining two-thirds are definitely not good land.
The north of the Demon World does not directly contact the North Pole, but it borders the Arctic Ocean.
“What can I do? It’s like the cold wind from the North Pole is being delivered to you. “You have to endure it.”
Unlike the eastern plains, where the Kalkamir Mountains primarily block the cold air moving south from the North Pole, there is no such thing in the northern part of the Demon World. The cold air from the Arctic hits directly through the Arctic Ocean.
So, the northern part of the Demon Empire is still covered with permafrost, and the pioneering work is progressing at a speed that seems to be crawling like a slug. No one would think of farming or ranching in a place like this. This is a land abandoned by the heavens, a land abandoned by the gods, and a perfect place to enter and freeze to death.
“What on earth is His Majesty Maje thinking? No, you are waging a war to take over the land of the humans. When will that war take place? “They should be attacking the empire, but instead they are supporting it. Does this make any sense?”
“Hey, watch your mouth. Don’t you know that there are words that shouldn’t be leaked out? “For low-level soldiers like us, we just follow orders and get paid, that’s all.”
Any demon knows that the remaining third of land after removing this and that is not very good land. Mage Harmael, a soldier, and even a soldier’s grandmother knew very well how barren and desolate the Demon World was, a land without answers.
It is extremely hot below and extremely cold above, and the middle third of the country boasts a strange climate, not unlike the eastern plains, with cycles of hot and cold cycles. Is it some consolation that, unlike other areas, farming and ranching are possible? So most of the demons live together these days.
These people do not live in a place like this because they want to. The ancestors of the demons fought for power with the ancestors of humans, and after being pushed back and forth, they ended up migrating to a place like this.
The beastmen of the Eastern Plains also do not like where they live, but to the demons, it is just a complaint. Compared to the barrenness of the Demon World, the eastern plains are rather livable land.
Living in a harsh environment is not easy, and it is not worth it. Demons have a strange sense of pride, and since every moment of their lives is like a war, they tend to think that they, who have become stronger by adapting to the environment here, are stronger than the peace-loving, washed-up humans who are content with the fertile land. There was so much pride in military power that even a single soldier talked about war.
However, even though the soldier and the soldier’s grandmother did not know it, the highest-ranking people in the demon world were already fully aware of the gap between themselves and humans. Just because life is a training in self-denial, it does not necessarily lead to helplessness. Just a few years ago, wasn’t the human race’s Urinell Rakponsia ravaging the entire demon race?
First of all, the population there is on a different level, and the resources also surpass the Demon World. Until now, the demons have attempted several times to regain the old homeland that their ancestors lost.
But he failed again and again and had no choice but to be trapped in the land of the demon world again. Although they may be able to overwhelm humans for a short period of time, once humanity comes to its senses and gathers together, they are no match for a battle of size.
“Ha, who doesn’t know that. I’m saying this because I can’t control my anger. A warrior. They actually captured that hero! But are you going to release it alone? “Even though it’s a decision made from above, I just can’t understand it.”
A large building built on purposely frozen ground in the north of the demon world.
Alcamezra, a camp operated in the extreme cold, is the workplace of these two soldiers and a representative place of exile in the demon world. It is a notorious place where those incarcerated here either bury their bones here or are released as an asshole.
After Harmael came to power, the warrior party was also detained in this camp established to establish his authority. The reason why the goatee-bearded man couldn’t control his anger and was fuming was because the hero Yurinel had once fallen into his hands.
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To the rulers of the Demon Empire, he was merely a low-level worker, but to the prisoners in this camp, he was almost like an emperor. There was a time when just thinking about how he tortured and tormented his warriors and colleagues brought a smile to the corners of his mouth.
But for some reason, the superiors ordered the warrior party to be left alone. Although he acts like a king to the prisoners, the lowest class of the camp, he is not crazy enough to think that he really has the same authority as a king.
In the eyes of those above, the life of such a low-level worker is no different from the life of a fly. How dare you refuse orders? Even though the order was to just keep the snack that was already in his hand and not eat it, he only scratched the inside and did not dare to protest.
“What if I don’t understand? Is there any other way? If you openly disobey the orders from above, this will be your home from now on. “Do you want to ruin your life?”
“Keuhum!”
If I did that, it was obvious that I would either die or be brought here and become another prisoner. Until now, there was no need to explain what would happen to a person who had been a security guard, pretending to be a jailer and showing off, but suddenly became a prisoner as well.
Instead of answering by clearing his throat, the man changed the subject.
“By the way, what on earth is this damn vibration? At first it seemed like something was noisy, but as it continued, it was no big deal. Are all the people who ran around screaming that the world is going to end dead? “I can’t even see it these days.”
“Now even our pigs are calm. “I was surprised only after a day or two, but since this keeps repeating itself, I just enjoy the vibration.”
And the reason why these two, who are security guards in name and name, are drinking warm tea and chatting is because there is nothing here that they need to protect.
Who would come to a place like this in the middle of frozen land to take something? When there was a warrior party, they could be targeted, so this camp was also on high alert.
Not now. All tension was relieved, and the guards began to go about their business.
This is because the prisoners know very well that if they try to escape, they will only freeze to death or starve to death. Not a single grain or blade of grass grows on this frozen land.
There is no way to fill your stomach if you do not depend on the food provided. In a place like this, where even reducing rations can lead to terrible punishment, the prisoners know better than anyone else that there is no way to survive if they run away.
So the guards here had nothing to fear in the world other than an unexpected inspection. They had been proudly drinking tea and taking a break even during working hours, but now they even started drinking alcohol and having a drinking party, as if their liver had left their bodies.
“Isn’t the warden coming back today?”
“Of course I won’t come back. “I am a person who licks the toes of powerful people in the capital and only thinks about how to advance to a better place. Do I have any heart for this place?”
What would it be like to drink a cold beer while looking at the thin ice-covered Arctic Ocean and the drift ice floating above it from a large watchtower originally built to monitor prison escapes? I feel like all the anger in my heart has been washed away.
One of the guards who was drinking beer blinked when he saw the island floating across the sea. In fact, his eyes were already unfocused and his cheeks were turning red.
“Did I drink too much? “Why does that island over there look so close today?”
“I recognized this guy who couldn’t even drink when he got drunk and started drinking. My eyes are already out of focus. “I don’t have a foot on the island, so there’s no way it could get close…”
The guard, who seemed to have much better liver function than his colleague and who still had some sense of reason, smiled and looked out over the sea, rubbing his eyes with both hands.
“I guess I drank too much too. Are you feeling tired these days? “Why did you get drunk so quickly?”
Was it originally supposed to be that big? Or does he look like that because he’s drunk?
It’s still too far away to be visible, but it feels like the island is slowly moving. The guard put down his glass with a look on his face that made him lose his taste for alcohol.
“Hey, drink in moderation, too. I go in and sleep. I’m still young, so I shouldn’t be like this anymore, ah. In the past, I drank the whole beer, not just a glass. “What is it, a big beer barrel?”
“I guess I was really drunk. “You talk bullsh*t.”
“I didn’t say I drank all of it.”
The two of them left the room giggling and went back to bed, fell into a deep sleep, and when they woke up the next morning, there was no need to go up to the watchtower and look.
The island was right in front of them when they opened their eyes.