Chapter 651: For those words alone
Riva's shocked outburst was hardly surprising. Everyone around him understood how devastating this news would be to anyone.
After all, war was a distant concept to most people. The four kingdoms of the Soma People had enjoyed over forty years of peace. The worst disturbances the Savage Beastmen caused were their raids before winter each year. If they were lucky, they could plunder plenty of food; if they were unlucky, they had no hope of breaking through the Soma People's frontier defenses.
Once winter arrived, vast stretches between the eastern and western regions would be sealed off by ice and snow. Traveling recklessly at a time like that meant gambling with your life.
But once the spring thaw came, the Savage Beastmen who had survived the winter would welcome the most important harvest season of the year: the early-spring harvest of Mira Icegrass and Green Ice.
Mira Icegrass took root deep within the hard-packed ice and snow. Its veined leaves lay buried beneath endless white snow, yet it could absorb nutrients and grow through the bitter cold of winter. Not only were its roots and rhizomes highly nutritious, but its tiny, sparse leaves were also important medicinal ingredients and even additives for nobles' drinks. Green Ice, meanwhile, was a ring of ice-like material that froze around the roots and resisted melting. Sweet and cooling, it was the most prized ingredient for making sugar.
These were an important source of wealth for the Savage Beastmen, priceless treasures that never lacked buyers. Every year, large numbers of merchants from among the Savage Beastmen, the Soma People, and even other races braved the dangers to trade these resources for profit, through legal or illegal channels.
Every region had specialties it took pride in, and none of them