"Mr. Rot, the first ring of ice walls has been repaired."
The Thin Man stood in the howling gale, looking at Rot as he spoke quickly.
"Good. Start reinforcing the ice walls now." The howling wind swept across Rot's cheeks. He nodded lightly, then shifted his gaze from the departing Thin Man to a young man running over from the other side. "Has everyone been evacuated?"
"The last group has already reached the harbor," the young man replied quickly. "They just joined up with us."
"Good. Have their constables arrange places for them immediately," Rot said swiftly.
"Yes." The young man answered and immediately turned to leave.
The howling gale, mixed with swirling snow, lashed across Rot's face. He raised his head, looking at the bustling crowds around him and the ice slate in his hand, inscribed with crooked writing. Then he shouted, "Has anyone from the Storm Priest's temple been found? Are there any survivors? Anyone from the Storm Priest's temple?!"
The storm around him was fierce. He had to raise his voice to its limit to drown out the wind.
"I'm here, I'm here, Mr. Rot!"
A young man in a plain robe emerged from the crowd. He looked up at Rot and answered nervously.
"Just you? No one else?" Rot asked in confusion.
"The people left behind in the temple all turned into monsters," the young man in plain robes said tremblingly. "Luckily, the temple was close to the south exit. I ran as soon as I sensed something was wrong, or they would have eaten me too."
"You didn't eat the meat?" Rot asked, puzzled.
"When the Priest left, she told us not to eat meat," the young man said quickly, apparently still shaken. "But no one else obeyed. They even sent me to guard the