Chapter 106 Can’t walk anymore
On an autumn afternoon, a team of 1,200 people was busy dismantling tents on an open grassland.

The sunlight shone on them through the sparse leaves, and combined with the mist and spores floating in the air, there was a slight feeling of stuffiness.

The children were still laughing and helping the adults roll up the tents, while some elderly villagers were struggling to carry the luggage or load it onto the wagons.

The stench of swamp grass hung in the air, making it hard to breathe. Sweat flowed down people's armpits to their waists, soaking their pants.

The sick villagers were carefully helped towards the carriages. Some of them were still sleeping, while others were coughing with hoarse and weak voices.

The child soldiers and veterans shuttled among the crowd, and the sounds of coughs and falls were heard sliding on the grass.

Busak stood on a carriage, directing everyone to move luggage and tents.

Standing at the front of the team, Horn frowned, pondering his next move.

After another count, there were already more than 400 patients in Horn's camp.

Although most of them can still walk, when they really go on the road, they walk much slower than the normal speed.

"Throw away all the baggage that can be thrown away, and you can also throw away the food. As long as we are alive, there will always be a way." Horn grabbed the child soldier and asked him to report the order.

His eyes stopped at a carriage where an old man was struggling to climb up, his face pale and his breathing rapid.

Horn immediately walked over, offered his help, held the old man's waist, and pushed him into the car.

Turning his head from the carriage, Horn saw Carrie and the child soldiers who had been sent out to explore the way.

They jumped off their horses hastily and looked around for any sign of Horn.

"How is it?" Horn strode forward and walked in front of Carrie and the Boy Scouts.

The boy soldier handed Horn a crude hand-drawn map. "There is indeed a path, about 12 miles from here, but there is a small river there, and the original wooden bridge has collapsed. We have to build a sheepskin raft floating bridge first."

Horn nodded and called Darth.

"Dass, take a brigade of guardsmen, carry sheepskin rafts, and go to the river to build a floating bridge. Make sure it is completed before we arrive."

"As commanded, Your Majesty."

After receiving the order, Das led the only guard brigade whose members were not sick, carried the sheepskin rafts on their backs and ran towards the designated location.

Just as Horn was about to leave, Carrie opened her arms, pursed her lips, and closed her eyes.

"Ah."

Horn touched her head and asked, "What?"

"Where's my reward?"

"I didn't say I'll give it to you right away. Wait until you're free." Horn put his arm around her waist and pushed her to the patient camp. "Go and carry those with limited mobility onto the carriage."

"You goat-like bastard!"

"Hey, you bastard, who taught you to fuck a goat like that?!"

Although she complained like this, Carrie still went to the sick camp obediently and loaded the seriously ill patients onto the carriages.

There was a loaded carriage here, urging the people to get on the road. Horn turned around and saw Cosse again, pushing aside the crowd jogging back and forth.

"What's wrong?" Horn asked hurriedly, looking at Koser who was running towards him panting.

Kosai took two breaths and said, "We have too many patients. The car can't accommodate them all."

"Then let the Guards or the Black Caps carry their own luggage. Put it on the horses. Only the sick or wounded are allowed to ride!"

After intense preparations, Horn finally set off across the country within half an hour.

On the long road, the wheels squeaked as the villagers carried their luggage and the wounded with difficulty. On both sides of the road, the puddles and ditches that had once stretched as far as the eye could see gradually disappeared, replaced by dense Metasequoia trees.

The water spider slithered across the surface of the water, passing a large water snake dragging the rotting corpse of a water vole.

The Metasequoia seems to be a roadside tree or a sentinel, silently watching the marching crowd.

The villagers looked tired and their clothes were soaked with sweat.

The children have stopped laughing. They follow their parents and relatives silently, holding the adults' clothes tightly with their little hands.

The sick villagers looked increasingly weak, and coughing sounds continued.

The feet were raised and lowered mechanically. As they walked, a villager would fall to the ground or faint and had to be moved to the carriage.

Horn also walked forward with the group of villagers.

He placed three wounded soldiers on the horse he usually rode.

"The pursuers are still 40 miles away, Your Majesty." A child soldier ran down the hill and reported in a low voice.

"What about us?" Horn forced open his eyelids that were weighed down by sweat.

"It's still 8 miles to the river crossing point."

Horn had previously contacted the nearby beastmen and told them that if the pursuers passed by their village, they should tie a red linen ribbon on the tallest tree on the mountain.

At the last report, the Royal Knights were still 50 miles away from them, and they were still 10 miles from the scheduled crossing point.

The last report was only an hour ago.

If they continued at their current speed, they would be captured by the Imperial Order Company just as Horn reached the river crossing point.

It’s too slow, the speed is only half of the usual speed.

Although the floating bridge was built in advance, it still takes time to cross the bridge. It takes at least half an hour to walk across.

"We're only eight miles away from the destination. Everyone, hurry up." Horn shouted to the people around him, "Faster, faster."

Despite Horn's urging, the marching speed was still slow, after all, there were so many sick people.

Here, Horn was still worried about the march in front, but the tail of the team became noisy again, and there was even some movement.

Helplessly, Horn went against the flow of people and walked through the crowded crowd to the back row: "What's going on?"

"Flick, there are a bunch of older people who said they don't want to leave."

"It's already this late, why are you still acting like a fool?" Horn pushed the kids away angrily and jogged off to the back.

Sure enough, at the end of the queue, Chilvis was still earnestly persuading these elderly people to hurry up and catch up with the convoy.

Horn took a big step forward and shouted at them, "What are you doing? Hurry up and get up. We have to go."

"Your Majesty, the Holy Grandson, I really can't walk anymore." An old man with rosacea leaned against a tree and drank wine, saying drunkenly.

"The Imperial Knights' pursuers are still 40 miles away. We still have time."

"You guys go first." Frick, the leader of the riot, sat on a big rock with his legs apart. "We really don't want to leave."

Horn stepped forward and grabbed his arm: "What nonsense are you talking about? Get up quickly, or we will be caught up by those knights of the imperial decree."

Frick shook off Horn's hand and said, "I'm tired. I won't leave! Didn't you listen to me? Let's go!"

(End of this chapter)