As for Erin, her gaze always lingered on the dilapidated, crude huts.
Most of the tents in this camp were constructed from worn-out burlap and wooden poles, utterly incapable of warding off the biting wind. A heavier snowfall would be enough to crush them.
In truth, such collapses had likely occurred nurous tis already. The remnants of huts could be seen scattered amidst nearby snowdrifts, and even unclaid corpses were abandoned in the snow, left to be buried by the blizzard.
Only when they turned into undead would soone bother to deal with them.
Gazing upon this hellish mortal landscape, a trace of sorrow flickered in her eyes.
The only solace she found was that as she moved forward, the scenes before her slowly shifted beyond re misery and despair—there was still a faint glimr of warmth to be found.
It was a wooden shack with a large pot steaming inside, bubbles rising from the surface of a soup so thin it resembled water.
Yet, even so, a crowd of impoverished, ragged people packed tightly outside the wooden shack.
The hunger etched into every face glead bright with longing.
Erin, feeling so comfort, also allowed curiosity to surface in her gaze.
She paused and instructed Theresa to randomly summon a passerby and inquire.
"What place is that?"
The ragged man, bowing his head and afraid to et the gaze of the two nobles before him, replied timidly and humbly.
"That's the Fla King's soup kitchen... It's a place where you can drink soup for free."
Before Erin could respond, Theresa, standing nearby, frowned slightly and asked.
"The Fla King?"
She couldn't recall a lord in Thunder County by that na, and even an ordinary lord referring to themselves as "king" seed presumptuous.
However, the peasants clearly didn't share her perspective.
The layers of intricate court etiquette and the corresponding titles of various ranks baffled even rural nobles, let alone these illiterate commoners.
"That's right. It's his." The ragged man nodded repeatedly, his face showing a rare flush and his tone involuntarily carrying a trace of admiration.
"That gentleman is a renowned figure in the area, even more famous than the mage on Beifeng Mountain… There are countless tales about him, enough to last two days and nights!"
Theresa's intuition told her that people who gushed praises about themselves were generally untrustworthy.
Yet, the Princess standing beside her seed to hold a different opinion, her curiosity leading her to continue questioning.
"Is he here?"
"Uh, of course not. He's busy crafting amulets for folks like us poor souls..."
Erin pressed on with her inquiry.
"Has anyone here seen him?"
The ragged man hesitated briefly and replied awkwardly.
"No..."
"Seems like an elusive figure," Theresa remarked, glancing at the soup kitchen in the distance.
The ragged man hesitated for a mont before speaking again.
"Although I haven't seen him, I heard he appeared in Silver Pine Town before. He even helped drive away a giant dragon from there."
"A giant dragon?!" Theresa's expression shifted dramatically, her eyes full of disbelief.
How could such a legendary creature appear in Thunder County?!
Even more surprising was that this was the first she'd heard of it!
Erin's face mirrored the astonishnt, though her surprise extended beyond just the legend of the dragon.
Silver Pine Town...
The na stirred her mory.
It seed to be an entry point for a maze, and the nearby baron territory was also one of her destinations!
Before the Princess could speak, Theresa followed up her inquiry.
"Do you know the Fla King's na?"
The ragged man shook his head and replied.
"I don't… Maybe his na really is 'Fla King'?"
Theresa fell silent for a long while, then remarked with a sigh.
"How rare it is to find soone doing good deeds and not leaving their na in this world."
Erin nodded, her tone carrying a similar sense of admiration.
"This goes to show just how little we understand of matters outside Campbell Castle."
After gathering further stories about the Fla King, she instructed her attendants to reward the ragged man with a piece of Aurum, then sent the grateful man on his way.
Then, she gazed at the soup kitchen before her. After contemplating for a mont, she turned to Theresa and spoke.
"Since we've arrived at our destination, let's leave the supplies from our convoy here."
"Understood." Theresa acknowledged the order and promptly arranged for the Princess's instructions to be carried out.
A dozen cavalryn dismounted from their horses and began unloading sacks of dried food from the convoy's carts, leaving them behind at the soup kitchen for the refugees.
This act earned the gratitude of the surrounding refugees.
Though they lacked the strength to cheer, the gratitude shining in their eyes was genuine and unwavering.
Winning hearts had never been particularly difficult, especially in troubled tis such as these.
It was just that most nobles refused to bother with such efforts or outright disdained those who acted differently.
Unknowingly, Princess Erin's kindness earned the Campbell family considerable goodwill in the refugee camp, though it also drew the caution of certain new elites in Thunder City.
Near the city gate.
Upon learning that Princess Erin had disembarked near the refugee camp, Governor Wilson couldn't remain idle. Hastily, he assembled a welcoming party and rushed over.
Even Mil Lucius, the mayor representing Thunder City's citizenry, did the sa.
Only one person remained motionless: Yang Andes, who stood atop the city wall, peering down from above.
As the Family Head of the Andes family, he was a favored guest of the newly-appointed Duke Edward Campbell, and the wealthiest magnate in Thunder City. In fact, he held the true reins of power over the city's lifeblood.
His gaze passed over everyone, fixating on Princess Erin's sword hanging at her waist. His thumb absently rubbed the ring on his index finger, his face expressionless as though lost in thought.
anwhile, Erin, now content, returned to her carriage, continuing her journey surrounded by cavalry.
Recalling the tales she'd just heard about the Fla King, she turned to Theresa with a smile and said.
"If given the chance, I'd love to et that gentleman."
Judging by the descriptions, he seed to be a hermit of great mana, blessed by Saint Sis.
With the northeastern coast of Vortex Sea in turmoil and the threat of chaos looming, convincing him to serve Campbell Duchy would be a boon for its people.
Yet upon hearing Erin's words, a trace of concern surfaced on Theresa's face.
"Such enigmatic individuals may not necessarily be virtuous people..."
True Chosen Ones could never rise from obscurity, nor would they dwell in the wilderness.
Those claiming the mantle of Chosen Ones were almost universally schers.
What they relied on, ultimately, was widespread ignorance.
But Erin held a different perspective.
While the Divine could determine whether a person's soul was noble, it could not decide whether it was pure.
At least for now, everything she saw was positive.
"On that point, I intend to confirm it myself with my own eyes."
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