The Path to Lordship Begins in the North

From the moment he entered the North, the scene Ballow saw was basically the same as Cordick had described: ruins and rubble everywhere, with the constant crying of children and the cawing of crows and vultures.

The young and middle-aged men were nowhere to be seen; they seemed to have all been conscripted into the army. The fields were filled with elderly people doing farm work, and the entire northern border was a scene of deathly stillness.

This made Barlow's heart leap into his throat. He gripped his sister Sharon's hand and the rune scroll in his arms, ready to jump out of the car and run away at any moment.

Barlow's anxiety finally subsided when the carriage suddenly began to move smoothly.

Once the carriage became stable, the surroundings were no longer all ruins. In fact, the well-arranged buildings looked more exquisite than most of the buildings in the capital, and at least much more exquisite than the house that Balo rented in the outer city.

The roads seemed to be paved entirely with some kind of alchemical material; it was hard to imagine how much money the lord here had spent to connect these roads.

The surrounding area was bustling with noise, and caravans and carriages came and went in an endless stream. Although he had long heard that the western part of the North was economically prosperous because of the Champagne nobles, the prosperity here was far beyond Barlow’s imagination.

"Is this what gray-collar and white-collar work is like?"

Barlow asked the coachman curiously.

"No, this is Evans Territory, which seems to have recently been renamed Stonegol County because it is rich in stones."

The coachman, much like a modern taxi driver, began to chatter incessantly.

"Although stones can be found everywhere, the governor says the stones here are the best, and can be used to build houses and castles. Although I don't know much about them, the governor must be right. The entire West uses stones from here to build houses."

Looking around, Barlow saw that most of the houses were indeed built with the same type of black stone.

"And that waterwheel, I heard it was invented by the Governor's wife. It's a pity that the one in Stone County isn't big enough. The waterwheel in Gray Collar is truly enormous. I heard that some scholars have already gone to Gray Collar to study the waterwheel. Our Governor's wife is much smarter than those so-called scholars."

The coachman stood tall and proud, which puzzled Barlow. How could Lena Lars be so different from the notorious disgrace of the royal capital?

At that moment, the carriage was suddenly stopped. Balo's heart skipped a beat. If nothing unexpected happened, wouldn't something else go wrong?

A nun wearing a strange bird-beak mask boarded the carriage and asked, "Are there any sick people here?"

Barlow gripped Sharon's hand tightly. Sharon glanced at Barlow, who simply shook his head, signaling her to remain silent.

It's likely that the other side knows about the strange illness appearing in the capital and is afraid that these illnesses will spread to their territory.

But Balo had no choice; his sister was his everything. If his sister were taken away, Balo might as well just run away with her.

Seeing that no one spoke, the nun was not in a hurry and said, "The governor said that if anyone is sick, they can go to the nearest church for treatment, which will not be charged any fees. He just hopes that no one will conceal their illness."

No one on the carriage dared to utter a sound. Who would believe such a good thing? They might disappear after arriving at the local church, or even be burned in a mass grave later.

The nun wasn't in a hurry. Instead, she took out her pocket watch and waited. Just as Barlow was wondering what the other was planning, Sharon suddenly tugged into Barlow's sleeve.

Seeing Sharon's face turn red from holding her breath, Barlow knew his sister was about to cough up blood. Just as he was about to make a loud noise to cover it up for her, Sharon finally couldn't hold back and coughed up blood in pain.

Sharon looked at the blood on her hands and felt her vision blur. Her already weak body, coupled with the extreme tension, made her feel dizzy.

The nun noticed Sharon at this moment and slowly approached her, her hand still rummaging through her handbag.

Upon seeing this, Barlow immediately pulled Sharon into his arms and shouted, "My sister is just feeling a little unwell, we'll leave on our own, don't come any closer!"

But the nun seemed unmoved. The powerful oppressive feeling emanating from the bird-beak mask made Ballow feel somewhat desperate. Was coming to the North really a mistake?

The nun crouched down, and just when Ballow thought the other woman was going to take his sister away, the nun simply reached out and touched a few places on his sister's body, then touched her forehead. Afterward, the nun took out a bottle of medicine from her handbag and said, "Drink it."

Sharon was a little scared, afraid that she would never wake up again after drinking the potion. Barlow even tried to snatch the potion away, but the nun was quick and made Barlow miss.

Seemingly realizing what was happening, the nun reluctantly removed her mask, revealing a face covered in scars. This startled both Barlow and Sharon, but Barlow quickly realized that the scars on the nun's face were somewhat similar to those on his sister's body.

“I was like that before, much worse than you, but I got much better after taking these medications. You are only in the early stages of the symptoms now, and you will recover quickly without being left with these unsightly scars like we were.”

"These are all family heirloom medicines of the Governor, they will make you better soon."

After the nun finished speaking, she handed the potion to Sharon again.

Barlow hesitated for a moment, but Sharon took the potion and drank it down in one gulp after seeing the face under the nun's mask.

"Brother, I feel much better!"

Sharon touched her body in disbelief and said to Barlow in shock.

Seeing this, the nun put her mask back on and said, "After you arrive in Gray Collar, remember to report your health status to the local church every week. If any other symptoms appear, be sure to contact the local nun immediately, understand?"

Sharon nodded, seemingly confused. After the nun briefly registered the brother and sister's information, she jumped off the carriage.

Soon, the carriage continued its journey.

"Are you really not feeling unwell anywhere?"

Barlow looked at his sister, whose complexion was gradually improving, with some shock.

"It's really much better now, bro."

Sharon pulled Balor close to her ear and whispered, "And the potion tastes a bit like the holy water my brother gave me before."

"really?"

"I don't know, it doesn't seem quite the same."

Hearing Sharon's answer, Barlow was finally relieved. Holy water wasn't something common; it was probably a special medicine developed by the governor of the Gray and White Collars.

"Brother, the holy water you gave me before seemed to have been diluted with water. This tastes better."

"..."

Ballow, who initially thought it was a complete rumor that the governor here was a descendant of the old empire, suddenly realized that it wasn't impossible. After all, it was more plausible than the idea of ​​free holy water.

The brother and sister thus embarked on their journey to the gray and white collar once again. On the carriage, Barlow vaguely recalled the nun's scarred face from back then, suddenly waking up and slapping himself.

"I'm so damn stupid."