Traveling through The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim

The letter was from Helgi.

"Brother, I have been assigned to the scout team. Sister Lydia and Aigis are in the same group with me. We have carried out two reconnaissance missions. Some enemies have begun to advance towards the fortress, but they are very cautious. So far, there has been no contact between the two sides. The area I am responsible for..."

A large piece of parchment was cut off here.

"… Sister Lydia wouldn't let me write the specific defense arrangements, so I had to dig out all the words. What I want to tell you is that although there are many enemies, we are ready to fight them, and I probably won't need to participate in the battle, so it's relatively safe. In addition, Mr. Lund got a batch of high-quality equipment, and Sister Lydia could have been assigned a set, but she refused because it didn't have your emblem on it."

There really is no one who can make people feel at ease...

I guess that Lund got the equipment from the orc tribe in the Bireguchi Mountains. Considering that they were away not long ago, the two blacksmiths probably didn't have time to forge the meteorite heavy armor. Since Helgi said it was "a batch of equipment", it was probably just the previous inventory. Of course, compared to the simple leather armor of the Reachmen, any piece of iron armor can be called "high quality". I hope that Lei Mei just disliked the inferior equipment, but was embarrassed to point it out, so she found another excuse.

However, a few pieces of heavy armor would have little impact on the battle situation, unless they could establish an alliance with the orc tribe to fight against the powerful enemy together, then the situation would be different. It was just unknown to what extent Lund could achieve this.

There is still too little time left for us.

In the Frostfall Month, the weather was noticeably colder, and I was still curled up in Helgen Town. During this period, Angie sent a letter every two weeks to report safety. I don't know if it was due to the pressure of the war or some other reason, but Danger never took any action. However, in the past thirty days, the old fox visited Donna twice. As for the content of their conversation, Angie didn't know, but judging from Donna's reaction afterwards, she thought it was not a heavy topic.

On October 15, Eric went to Whiterun to report on his work, while I entertained Mrs. Montoya. She evacuated with the last batch of non-combatants, and after returning to Falkreath, she was sent by the old fox to ask for help from Lord Balgruuf, and briefed me on the battle situation along the way.

After searching for the dragon for months without success, Tager led his troops to support the front line.

On the day I received Helgi's letter, the Imperial Army launched its first wave of attacks. They had apparently conducted careful reconnaissance and knew that in addition to facing the Sunny Garden Fortress held by the Reachmen, they also had to deal with reinforcements from Falkreath.

Dad did not bring the troops into the castle, but stationed them in an abandoned small village in the east - Granite Village. It is located at the junction of four official roads, leading to the town of Loristed in the north, entering the Whiterun Territory along the Bletsyn Mountains in the east, and reaching the upper reaches of the Kaas River through the valley on the south side of the Sun Garden Fortress in the west. To the south is Lake Irinata in the territory of Falkreath.

Granite Village is named after the Granite Mountain next to it, which is named after its specialty. It is said to have been a prosperous settlement since the Dragon Cult era. At some point, it became the fief of a Whiterun noble. Although the name of this person is unknown, it is said that he once built an extremely luxurious manor called Granite Hall. In the following hundreds of years, wars were frequent and the place changed hands many times. About twenty years ago, Baron Sungard moved into Sungarden Fortress, and it ushered in a good time here, but after the invasion of the Reachmen, no one dared to stay.

This village is not only a transportation hub, but also backed by a hill, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. More importantly, it protects the supply line of the Rich Tribe.

Sunshine Garden Fortress is built on the top of a mountain. Not only food, but also drinking water needs to be carried by people. The east, south and north sides are all steep cliffs, and there is only a gentle slope from the west to the foot of the mountain, which was originally the only way to go up and down the mountain. However, our enemy is coming from the northwest, and this gentle slope will definitely become the place where the two sides fight. In this way, the supply of the castle has to rely on another direction.

There is an independent tower at the eastern end of the mountain top. It is where Helgi was imprisoned by her sister. Now it has been converted into a storage room. From there, you can reach the official road to the south of the castle. I entered from this road last time. Now, the supplies transported from Falkreath and the Orc Tribe also enter the castle from here.

Dad repelled the enemy twice in Granite Village, but was outnumbered in the end. He had to retreat westward into the Cracked Rock Canyon before his retreat was cut off, relying on the complex terrain to hold on. As a result, the official road along the west bank of Irinata Lake to the Half Moon Mill was exposed, and Tager's team went to block this gap. This was the only way to barely maintain the transportation of supplies.

With the lesson of the previous failed attack on Snake Cliff Ridge, Moira had no intention of fighting the aggressive enemy on the open plains, but instead gathered her forces and took a defensive stance. Due to the limited space in the castle and the limited supplies that could be stored, she decided to evacuate all the weak and elderly people and diplomats who had no fighting power, and Mrs. Montoya was one of them. Lund was originally on the list of evacuees, but he took the initiative to ask to stay, and it was said that he was assigned to the patrol team in the inner city.

"By the time I left, the enemy had already set up camp outside the castle, but they have not yet attacked the city walls. Lord Horik still controls the Broken Rock Gorge, and the Reach Guard under his command are very good at fighting in places like this. Lord Danger said that your fellow townsmen and several of your subordinates are also at the front line, so they may be more concerned about what is happening there."

Mrs. Montoya exchanged a few more pleasantries, then left the north gate and hurried to Whiterun. I watched her back disappear in the falling snow, but could only shake my head and sigh.

I don't know what Lord Balgruuf is thinking. In my opinion, this is the perfect opportunity for him to regain lost territory. As long as Whiterun sends troops to raid Loristed Town, they can cut off the food supply of the Imperial Army, and then attack us from both sides, catching the turtle in a jar. If Tullius really leads the army here in person, it may even be possible to achieve success in one battle and end the civil war.

By capturing the military governor sent by the Empire alive and liberating Skyrim, he would be able to completely overwhelm his old rival Ulfric and become the most powerful competitor for the High King. With an unprecedented achievement in front of him, how could that old guy still sit firmly in Dragonsreach?

I don't understand.

This is my second winter in Skyrim, and the cold days seem particularly long. Like last year, we have to face the invasion of the Imperial Legion, but this time, I am just a spectator. No, I am not even a spectator now. Everything that happens on the front line has nothing to do with me.

Another month passed. When the sun was setting and the moon was about to set, a carriage passed through the west gate of Helgen Town in the whistling snowstorm. The driver was Riya's apprentice Bryce. The girl was already sixteen years old. Although her face was still a little childish, she was already a grown-up girl. She stopped at the door of Eric's house, turned over and jumped off the carriage neatly, and the two swords on her waist jumped like the wings of a flying bird.

Bryce tightened his cloak on his head, fixed the wheels, and pulled out a sturdy square piece of wood from under the seat and placed it at the back of the carriage. The three-finger-thick door curtain was lifted, and Angie, wrapped up like a dumpling, walked out carefully with her belly in her hands, supported by Bryce and a maid. After the pregnant woman got off the train and stood firm, the dark elf girl Savilla, wearing a sheepskin cloak, jumped out of the carriage, turned around, and stretched out her arms.

The last person to get off the bus was Donna.

Tagel kept his promise and really sent a car to take Donna and Angie to the town of Helgen.

"It seems that you have a comfortable life when I'm not at home?"

Anji frowned slightly and looked around the room.

"Yes...ah...no...it's not..."

Eric frantically dug out a water glass and handed each lady a glass of warm wine. I hurriedly gathered the empty wine bottles on the table and the floor into a corner, hating myself for being lazy. If I could learn the art of invisibility earlier, wouldn't it be just right to use it now?

With the help of the maid, the pregnant woman finally freed herself from the rice dumpling leaves. She covered her nose with one hand and fanned her face with the other hand, then sent the little girl beside her to take over my work.

"Go clean it up and open the window a little. This room is stinking."

Donna nodded to Savilla, and the dark elf girl ran to help. Eric and I sat upright, waiting for the lecture.

"Look at you, how can you be a father? Do you know that Rigel has not been able to get a good night's sleep in the past three months taking care of the child? The brat wakes up once an hour every night, either because he is hungry or because he has to pee. He is such a tiny little guy, but when he cries, the noise is quite loud. Anyone who can breathe in the room, even a mouse, can't sleep peacefully."

Angie nodded Eric's head with a smile.

"She is the wife of the lord, and she has five or six people serving her. Even so, every time she sees me, her eyes are dark and she looks exhausted. If I have to tidy up the house every day after giving birth to a child, won't I be exhausted to death by you?"

"How could that be? It's because Locke loves to drink. Now that you're back, I'll kick him out."

This thief who valued women over friends smiled awkwardly and stood up to massage Angie's shoulders.

Donna watched Eric and I grow up, and she lived with Angie for a while, so they were very familiar with each other. Bryce was a heartless person, so we started chatting together, and the topic naturally revolved around "the lord's son." The old and the young were obviously unaware of the inside story, so Angie took the lead and described the recent situation of Rigel and his mother in detail.

The child was healthy and was able to roll over by himself last month. Even by Nord barbarian standards, he was considered strong. Although it was very hard for Rigel to raise the child herself, it had another benefit. Otherwise, given her personality, she would definitely have to go to the front to fight. In fact, she did complain to Angie, worrying that she had been away from the battlefield for a long time and her martial arts skills had been abandoned.

Donna said that Danger visited me twice to inquire about my past experiences. This had been going on for a long time. Ever since the dragons entered the country during the second seed moon, and Donna and Rigel were taken to live in Falkreath, Danger had visited her five times. Angie only knew about the last two times. Of course, Donna knew very little about what happened after Locke followed his uncle into business, so she mainly introduced "my" childhood and youth.

Parents are always very interested in talking about their children's embarrassing moments when they were young. At this moment, Bryce was like a wild animal entering a melon field, his eyes gleaming, his ears standing up, and he was eating like crazy and satisfied. It was not until the maid was about to light the lamp that he suddenly remembered that he had to go back to report. Seeing her getting up to say goodbye, Angie quickly asked her maid to take out a small bag.

"Thank you for your care along the way."

Bryce grinned and pushed his pocket back.

"Sister Anji taught me archery, which is the best thank you gift."

……

At night, I lay flat on the bed, but couldn't fall asleep.

The information provided by Donna at least confirmed one thing: before Rigel gave birth, Danger already knew clearly that Locke's uncle was named Sunil, and that the uncle and nephew were very close.

Donna was also surprised when she heard that the lord's son was named Sunil, but she finally thought it was just a coincidence. This name is not uncommon, maybe there is a predecessor with the same name in the lord's family, and using the name of the elder is not uncommon among the Nords. For example, the lord of Mosal City and his daughter are both named Igrod.

But I know the situation is definitely not that simple. Donna also mentioned that Danger saw that she only had a little maid by her side, so he concluded that Nanya was too greedy, which led to my financial difficulties. The old fox even apologized for this, which led to the series of actions of the butler to show his kindness to me.

"Lockel, are you asleep?"

Eric patted my head.

He and Angie's house was very big, with three entrances in total. The innermost was the kitchen and storage room, Donna and Angie lived in the bedroom in the middle, and Eric and I slept on the floor in the outermost reception room.

"It's strange that I can fall asleep after being hit by your bear paw."

"Put on your clothes and go out to talk."

The snow was only slightly lighter than during the day, but Eric dragged me away from the eaves.

"Locke, don't you think..."

"I think so, but I don't know why."

"I thought of a possibility, but..."

I waited for nearly half a minute, but Eric didn't say anything else.

"Brother, can we be quick? Don't you feel cold?"

"Then I'll tell you... I'll make this clear first, I'm just guessing, don't get angry if you hear it."

I felt my toes were a little numb from the cold, so I stomped on them hard twice.

"I'm not angry at all, just tell me!"

"I just wonder if you might be..."

Eric closed his mouth again. He raised a hand and pointed behind me. That was the avenue leading directly to the north gate of the town.

In the flying snow, two staggering figures supported each other and walked towards us with difficulty. The tall one was leaning on a long sword as a cane, and the thin one was dragging a long tail.

That's Lydia and Aigis.

The two had obviously been through a fierce battle. Lydia's armor was covered with dents and cracks, and Aigis's condition was even worse, with bandages wrapped all over his body, and he could barely walk properly.

"Lydia, what's going on?"

Hearing my voice, Lai Mei was stunned for a moment, then she shook off the little cat girl, walked quickly forward, stuck the sword into the ground, and knelt on one knee.

"Sir, Lydia has failed to live up to your trust. Please punish her!"

Although my heart tightened, I still reached out and helped her up.

"Get up and go inside."

We made quite a noise, and two maids came out yawning, and were coaxed back into the house by Eric. Lydia took a glass of wine, but did not bring it to her lips.

"My lord, Miss Helgi has been captured!"