Northern Province.
"Run, then! Why don't you run faster? Weren't you so good at running?"
"Hahaha! It's your honor that we took a liking to you, you fool who doesn't know whether to live or die. You actually dared to resist?"
Crack!
Five burly men on horseback were chasing a teenage girl as if toying with her, occasionally raising their whips to lash her, leaving horrifying wounds across her body.
Even being toyed with like this, even if she might run until she died without ever escaping the Northern Province's borders, the girl's steps remained firm. A look of readiness to face death even flashed through her eyes.
Whatever the era, ordinary people generally lived lives that left them half-dead. If they happened upon a good ruler, their lives would probably have at least some minimum security. But if they encountered a mediocre emperor, some unforeseen incident might very well cause their sudden deaths.
In the Northern Province, ordinary people became the private property of various factions from the moment they were born. Men were either sent to the mines or kept to cultivate the few available fields. As for women, their only path was probably to sell themselves or be sold.
Escape.
That was her only thought. Whether she could escape, what abuse she would suffer if she were caught and brought back-she did not know, and it did not matter.
As this tragedy unfolded, whispers suddenly came from a seemingly empty stretch of snow nearby. "Uncle, aren't we going in yet?"
Several "snowmen," wearing white cloaks, with deathly pale skin and crude rifles painted white, were watching the brutal horsemen warily, almost blending into their surroundings.
"You foolish child. From my experience, these men are probably Soul Ancestors. If we can't kill them with a single headshot, we