Chapter 350: 125. Moonstone
“Get in, hurry up!”
Inside the territory of the Snow Fox Tribe, armed members of the Turan Family roughly dragged a few diminutive members of the Snow Fox Tribe into a room, followed by the injured Balzak, Selti, and Heidi Lin. Heidi Lin had been struck by a Snowflake Knight and was not in good condition; she had been coughing along the way and occasionally spat out blood-tinged saliva, making Selti beside her look very pale.
This room seemed to be a storage room for items in the Snow Fox Tribe, now just suited for imprisoning them. From here, a short distance inward to the depths of the Snow Fox Tribe was the quarantine area previously arranged by Dar.
Balzak, covering his severed arm, glared at the Turan Family member exiting the room, and incredulously said while glancing at the limp Dar, “How dare the Turan Family do this?! Are they trying to wipe out your entire tribe just because you sheltered Miss Valentina? Do they not fear the enmity of other subhuman tribes by brazenly attacking one? How foolish!”
Juna placed the small wooden basket on the ground, looking anxiously at the hopeless Dar. She was very worried and felt utterly powerless; distance from the quarantine area was not too far, and she could still faintly hear the screams of those infected with Dead Rot Disease. This desperate situation made her want to cry, not understanding how things had become so dire.
However, Dar, who had been in a daze for a long time, sighed deeply, shaking his head and whispering, “It’s not that simple, young man. You can call the Turan Family’s people vile and despicable, but you cannot say they are foolish. Truly unfortunate, the heavens want to wipe out my Snow Fox Tribe. Ancestors, is this the price we pay for failing the Moon Princess? But… our clansmen, they are innocent.”
Balzak turned to look at Dar with disbelief, not understanding the meaning of his words. He watched as Dar sadly raised his head, surveying the small room filled with some shimmering ore. The luster of the ore was clear, catching one’s eye even during the day.
“Young man, do you know what moonstone is?”
“Moonstone?”
Balzak gazed at the ores stored in the room. Although they were still a far cry from the expensive processed jewelry sold on the market, he could barely recognize that the items in this storage room were moonstones, a decorative ore quite precious in the Northern Region.
“How could I not know? The price of this stuff is high in the Northern Region. Wait, are you saying their actions are related to moonstone?”
Dar nodded but quickly shook his head, asking Balzak, “Do you know why the Moon Princess is called the Moon Princess? These noble titles were not given by the Phoenix King, but rather bestowed by their clans after receiving their lands. Among them, the Moon Princess was honored for her love of moonlight, and this ore that emits moonlight naturally gained her favor. Otherwise, why would the Moon Princess’s fortress be built in the most remote northern part of the Northern Region? Because there are abundant mineral deposits that produce many of her favorite gems.”
Balzak opened his mouth, finally understanding why there were so many ores near the Snowflake Fortress where the Turan Family resides. It happened that the Turan Family’s pillar of business was mining, and the “moonstone,” which was only produced in their area, was especially valuable.
While Balzak was in shock, Dar’s voice continued, “In our Snow Fox Tribe’s ancestral residence, there are also moonstone deposits that rival those near the Snowflake Fortress. Because our ancestors were affiliated with the Moon Princess, we often presented her with the moonstone ornaments she favored. Time has passed, and about half a year ago, a mineral exploration team from the Turan Family suddenly came to visit, hoping to mine our tribe’s moonstone ores, but we firmly rejected them.”
“Although our Snow Fox Tribe stays hidden, we have good relations with many surrounding tribes. I was planning to send you to them for care. The Turan Family probably took this into account and decided to give up their pursuit of our moonstone mine. Their chieftain even sent us many gifts to apologize for the offense; that envoy was quite friendly. Ha, we didn’t take it to heart, thinking it was over, and even left with a good impression of them. Otherwise, why would I think of contacting the Turan Family first when our tribe suffered from the plague?”
“Little did I know, letting the Turan Family learn about our tribe’s epidemic was my dumbest decision. To prevent other tribes nearby from being infected by the epidemic, I alerted other tribes not to recklessly come to my tribe’s territory before we voluntarily contacted them to announce the epidemic was cured. Little did I know, this allowed the Turan Family to kill two birds with one stone; they not only wanted Valentina but also our moonstone.”
“When he crushed the medicine we brought back, I, an old relic who hadn’t left the tribe for a long time, realized how ruthless the Turan Family could be; they wanted to annihilate my entire tribe.”
In these ancient subhuman tribes, their methods of dealing with epidemics remained primitive. Once it was confirmed that the epidemic could not be treated, they would sever contact with other tribes. Thus, even if a tribe perished completely from the epidemic, it would not harm other tribes, and once all members of the tribe died, the epidemic would soon disappear.
In fact, during the historical outbreak of Dead Rot Disease in Shivali, this treatment method could suppress the epidemic’s spread. However, it was during the war with Nali, and the war had mobilized national resources while many deaths occurred. This unprecedented frequent movement of people, combined with large-scale deaths and extremely poor sanitary conditions, ultimately led to the epidemic spiraling out of control, becoming an uncontrollable horror disaster.
So even if the entire Snow Fox Tribe died, other tribes would not suspect the Turan Family.
But Balzak still found it hard to believe; he looked at the few pieces of moonstone on the table and said, “But what do they want with the moonstone? This thing is at most used to make ornaments. Are they that short on money?”
“Ah, how would I know what they want to do with it? However, I did indeed feel a strong desire for that stone from the group of Turan people negotiating at that time.”
Just then, Heidi Lin, lying in the corner of the room, suddenly scoffed and spoke, “Cough, how could the Turan family not know the characteristics of the Snow Fox Tribe? The decision-makers hide in the Snowflake Fortress, and the ones delivering messages and surveying are merely their subordinates who have no clue about the whole situation. Even if the Snow Fox Tribe can smell it, it’s just the scent of those envoys; they probably really thought the family wanted to befriend the Snow Fox Tribe.”
“As for the moonstone… cough cough, I’m not very clear about this matter, but it seems to be related to Miss Valentina. At that time, she resurrected Haldor, and I heard the name moonstone in the deal the family made with that mysterious person. Ever since then, the snowflake knights trained at a high price by the family transformed entirely into those flying monsters.”
If Fisher were here, he might immediately understand how the situation unfolded. He guessed right; the deal between the Turan Family and the Mechanism was not just to resurrect Haldor; they saw even more valuable items in it, namely the “Mechanism.”
The Mechanism crafted useful mechanisms for the Turan Family, and in return, the Turan Family provided the Mechanism with stable moonstone and funding sources. Originally, it was a mutually beneficial deal, but the moonstone previously supplied by the Turan Family to the Mechanism had ceased production, directly causing the Mechanism to have no materials to manufacture other combat mechanisms after the battle with Erwind, ultimately leading to the Mechanism being ambushed and killed by Erwind.
The moonstones required for crafting mechanisms were beyond what the Turan Family had imagined. Their large orders for snowflake knights drained the last bit of ore reserves, leading them to start searching for other sources of moonstone.
Dar sighed in despair, his fur standing up messily. He covered his furry face with self-reproach and said, “This is my fault. If I had been more careful… it’s just that my four children and wife were all infected by the plague, suffering in bed, and I hurriedly came out seeking medicine. I truly feel guilty towards my clansmen.”
Balzak pressed his lips together, helplessly sighing as he sat on the ground. The most troubling thing in the world is the roof leaking just as a rainstorm hits, and a twine breaking at the thinnest part. Dar was already struggling with impending annihilation from the epidemic while encountering the opportunistic and covetous Turan Family. No matter whether Dar had sympathy in taking Valentina away, they would still be caught by the Turan Family exploiting the epidemic’s flaws.
The little room’s feeling of self-blame and guilt certainly could not dispel the shadow hanging over the entire Snow Fox Tribe. The patients infected with Dead Rot Disease were wailing and crying, yet the armed personnel of the Turan Family on guard seemed to hear nothing, idly holding their firearms, chatting and joking within the desolate Snow Fox Tribe.
Until, in the distance, a solitary figure gradually walked through the snow-covered wind and snow.
It was a strange figure wearing a black trench coat, walking alone with hands in pockets amidst this vast expanse. Uncertain whether it was an illusion, the figure flickered indistinctly in the snow, and although its pace was slow, it quickly approached this quiet Snow Fox Tribe. The Turan Family personnel on guard, just now squinting at the distant figure, in the next moment, the strange figure appeared right at the tribe’s entrance.
The strange figure wore a beak mask that seemed embedded in its face, with a slender form that didn’t seem cold. Upon reaching the Snow Fox Tribe, it made no other movements but observed the quiet atmosphere. However, the guard personnel felt their body hair stand up the moment they saw that figure, causing them to scratch their arms in confusion.
“Hey, where are you from, traveler? Hurry back! This is the Turan Family’s territory, and you are not welcome! If you don’t leave, I’ll show you no mercy!”
Two guards swaggered forward with firearms, waving at the frail lost traveler, seemingly ready to give a lasting lesson to this poor soul. But just before they could close in, the bird-beak figure suddenly turned to them, saying, “It seems… he has gone up the snowy mountain. What a pity.”
“Huh? You crazy, talking to oneself…”
The guard’s words abruptly stopped, leaving the stained red snow and wind unchanged.
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(End of Chapter)
