Grade 4 cities are five to ten times stronger than any grade 3 city. Towns are mostly weaker than cities but there are certain towns which are very much powerful than cities of the same grade.
They just kept themselves as towns due to their traditions. The 'town' tag attached to them was only in name, they shouldn't be underestimated.
However, the Bland town was different. It wasn't a unique town and that was the reason Salza Marble had the grit to take them on all by himself, because in truth, his force alone was enough.
In contrast to this, they never imagined that the Bland town would find themselves help, making them five times more powerful, and the Settlers were completely silent about it.
Normally, the Bland town by itself might be able to match a single division of the Sand-scale city's force, but that was overruled with the reinforcement.
No wonder their messenger made an audacious claim when he visited the Sand-scale city's mayor. They already had their plan in motion.
"Ahem," the ninth division commander cleared his throat, "Tomorrow we will reattack the Bland town and am sure they're very prepared. In their case, defense is favorable than attack since we took the battle to them. But don't forget soldiers, we have all our brothers with us and the god of Sand-scale is even closer. We can't fail for the second time!" Salza said with determined gaze.
The others felt the bitterness in his voice and the uneasiness and power emitted by it. It was devoid of conflicting emotions and any tint of fear in them was immediately washed, and they felt reinvigorated.
"We can't fail. We won't fail!!" Their booming voice reverberated in the space going beyond, and the soldiers who heard them from the outside reechoed the words, and the others started chanting the same.
The air itself shook subtly and became still and the atmosphere turned heavy.
The spies of the enemy camp hidden away in the ocean of tall trees became irritated and their faces turned grim, since they didn't know what could have made the depressed soldiers' moral spike so high.
Some of them quickly retreated, they had to deliver the message.
______
The day appeared bright, and the sky was fully lit, transmitting its natural light through the previously dark land.
Two silhouettes laid coolly in a tent, uncaring of the dangers of the region where they placed their tent. It was like they own the area or had paid for protection. They had slept past dawn which they agreed on, that they'd begin their tough journey.
The angle at which they lay was perplexing, as they blindly relied on the protective measure they placed.
Cold breeze suddenly blew into the tent which only had a thin cotton obstructing the view from the outside. It bypassed the cotton's protection, putting it on a dance and directly overwhelmed the room with its chilly aura.
Ballock was the one who felt it the most, as he was in the angle of the chilling breeze. He peered into the distance and was shocked by what he saw!
A hurricane, unbelievably vast was rapidly closing in on them. One could see the huge cloud of dust it took along with it as it swallowed all that it came across.
Without dallying for even a second, he rushed to Blood and tapped him hard, which was more of a slap.
Blood opened his dizzy eyes and saw Ballock's uneased gaze. He wanted to go back to rest when he felt the cold aura, which spread inside the tent, chilling his bones in the process as they whizzed.
He could hear the horses neighing without end and quickly threw a questioning gaze at Ballock who responded briskly, "A curse is upon the region; we must leave immediate." he said, his voice was shaky.
The size of the hurricane was astonishing.
He didn't bother to receive Blood's reply. He started packing their stuffs and stowed it.
They came out and stored the tent before boarding their respective mount, leaving the scene without caring to retrieve the formations they had placed prior.
Blood was shocked when he noticed the size of the hurricane and urged his mount to move faster, they dare not wait a second late.
When they left the hurricane far behind, they noticed its size wasn't diminishing but it looked to have slowed down considerably. They heaved a huge sigh of relief and turned their horses around. They didn't know how far it would go but decided not to prob further and continued their journey.
A long journey awaits them.
Ballock explained the peculiarity of the matter giving Blood the full understanding of what transpired. It seemed it was a natural phenomenon considering the icy environment.
After crossing problematic and devious lands accompanied with beast attacks at interval, they soon reached a village whose size could be enshrined at will and followed the path which trailed into the village.
Ballock and Blood where both shrouded in casual black robes since they've heard from the 'whip lady' that his father had placed a huge reward for any word about them, and anyone would be compensated heavily if they managed to bring him back safely.
He supposed he's a big deal around the surrounding territories and there was even a high chance that he'd be captured by anyone who recognized him, and would then be safely delivered to his home, just to earn the exorbitant reward.
Without any qualms, Blood entered the town in hooded robes after making his horse slowed down its gaits. The people on the way naturally paved way for them and watched as two unknown figures entered the village.
The village head quickly got wind of it and hurried over to welcome the visitors. He didn't know if they were problematic fellows or were the type who only seek refuge for some days as many other adventurers.
What made him came out and personally greeted them was because, the horses they rode was overbearing.
People who rode such horses wouldn't look at their village twice, except when calamity approached the village and he had a perfect person in mind.
Undoubtedly, riding on high-tier mounts was a sign of honor and respect. It was even more so for this village, since it was rare for them to receive guests whose mounts they couldn't comprehend.
Hence, he abstained from probing the cultivation of the duo who rode the mounts, since they mostly had remarkable status and high cultivation base, even if their stature appeared young. They couldn't offend them.
He gave the same respect as he usually does with people of this caliber,
"Welcome, respected masters. I wonder what this diminutive village could help you with." he said earnestly with a large smile while the others behind him bowed.
The duo atop the mounts were dumbstruck and didn't understand what to make out of their gestures, however they didn't question but replied politely,
"It's an honor for us to be graced by your presence, senior. We don't need anything much than to replenish our energy in your place for the next hour or so. I hope you understand." Ballock replied courteously, looking subtly towards the village head.
He had the highest cultivation.
If they don't find faults with them, it would be fine to proceed calmly.