Gufia Grassland, Fire Festival, a tent somewhere in the center.

Inside the tall tent, a warm red flame burned quietly. A blue-haired girl sat on a wooden chair. The chair was made according to the orc's body shape, so it was very high. The girl's feet could not even land directly on the ground, but were suspended in the air an inch or two above the ground.

Loran Hill gently shook her legs, her slender calves appearing and disappearing between the hems of her white gauze skirt. She leaned back in a wooden chair, looking at a thick book in her arms. The cover was a bit old, and the copper edges were polished to a shine. The paper was also very thick, and it was a yellow color like fallen leaves.

This book tells the story of the establishment of the Mad Fang Empire, once the kingdom of orcs.

Since the beginning of the First Age, when the elves emerged from the World Tree and defeated the Giant King's Court, the giants did not immediately become extinct. The remaining few migrated to the south and west.

Because of the sharp reduction in their numbers, these giants were unable to resist the silver elves' cavalry. The southern part of them supported the local orcs, and the western part supported the local ogre tribe.

Similarly, the beliefs of the orcs were greatly influenced by the giants, and they also worshipped the sun and fire. Unfortunately, these giants did not multiply because of this. Due to the constant hunting by the silver elves and the orcs' initial weakness, the giants gradually became extinct.

It was several hundred years later that the Fang King Kedaren conquered the tribes and established the Crazy Fang Empire. Then came the story of humanity establishing the True Red Empire and its subsequent fall.

Reading the legends and stories in the book with relish, Loran Hill turned over the thick pages, then picked up the teacup on the small table and took a small sip.

The Fire Festival was coming to an end today. After revealing the [Red Clover] last time, she had spent the past few days teaching the orcs how to cultivate it. Fortunately, this grass was very simple to grow, requiring little effort, and many shamans had quickly mastered it.

After finishing the teaching, Loran Hill did not ask for any reward. He just wanted to read some ancient books collected by the orcs and learn about the ancient era in the past.

That was the age when humans had not yet escaped ignorance, the age of giants and dragons.

Although most orcs have not experienced it, they have inherited a lot of knowledge about giants and have found some clues. The giants were once very powerful. According to the ancient myths, it seems that the king of giants reached the level of gods, that is, the level of Sequence 10.

Unfortunately, even the dragons, as rivals to the Titans, have Sequence 10 members. Legend has it that the massive canyon in Emenas was created by Bahamut's attack.

The giants and dragons were both powerful beings, but for some unknown reason, they engaged in a brutal and undying war. The leaders of both sides tore apart the sky and severed the earth, splitting the once united continent into two parts, east and west.

The scattered parts of it became islands, such as the archipelago in the south.

It is said that these god-like Sequence 10s also perished together and dissipated in this world, and both races suffered heavy losses. Otherwise, with the strength of the elves, they would not be able to defeat the giants who once ruled the world.

In addition, since the giants worship the sun, the king of the giants should be the incarnation of the sun. But in fact, early ancient texts did not use the sun to refer to the king of giants, but rather the follower or favored one of the sun.

After the giants' demise, the myth gradually changed to a description that the giant king was the sun.

Did Ailani really exist? Her story is also quite strange.

Just then, the curtain of the quiet tent was lifted, and Nia walked in with a little joy.

"Luo Lan, the last day's party has begun~"

After solving the food problem on the grassland, the girl with goat horns became much more cheerful. She wore a white top and a gray cashmere skirt. Her style was also more lovely, not as depressed and simple as before.

Niya walked briskly behind Luo Lan and hugged the girl who was still reading a book. Her little hand couldn't help but touch the ends of her green hair.

Loran Hill shook her head gently to let the ends of her hair escape the clutches of her roommate, then turned around unhappily. Recently, Niya has become more and more bold, wanting to come up and touch her hair whenever she has the chance.

"I won't go to the party." Thinking back to the fanatical looks those orcs gave her these days, the blue-haired girl was a little scared. If she went out tonight, she would probably be surrounded by people again and wouldn't be able to escape easily.

"No, the Shaman specifically instructed me to invite you to be present." Niya shook her head and said with a little determination.

"I promised the Shaman that I would free you from the absolute seal of the tent."

"What? You make me sound like a sealed evil dragon." Loran Hill said with a smile.

"Because Luo Lan has been hiding in the tent these days and refused to see anyone, the line of people waiting to see him is really long."

Niya raised her hand, gestured in front of her, and then spoke happily.

"Thanks to Tololan, everyone is much more friendly this year, and no one died in the Flame Festival."

"Did a lot of people die in past games?"

"Yes, everyone is proud to kill the opponent." Recalling last year's wildfire showdown and the opponent who fell in the sea of ​​fire, Niya's voice became a little low.

It took her a while to recover.

"Loran, a lot of things have changed..." Nia leaned her head against Loran Hill's back, looked at the burning fire, recalled the experiences and observations from childhood to adulthood, and murmured.

From a young age, she'd been forced to fight with her peers. Winners got food, losers went hungry. No one had ever taught her the importance of knowledge and culture, nor had she ever seen a life other than herding and fighting. Life seemed monotonous and cruel, with only occasional warmth between fellow tribesmen.

The emerald green grasslands were not a gentle haven, but a battlefield rife with bloodshed. The adults shouted at each other, raised their scimitars, and expounded their own doctrines. No one paid attention to the ancient poems, and no one looked up at the beautiful starry sky.

The anxiety about food locks everyone into the trivialities of life, forcing them to be unable to relax and run around all the time.

Sometimes I eat a full meal today, but I have to worry about where my next meal will come from tomorrow.

Like a wild animal trapped in a cage, its fate is already determined and it can only chase its own tail and eat each other to survive.

But fortunately, a girl passing by finally opened the bloody and rusty cage with her hands, releasing the beast trapped inside, allowing it to run under the starry sky.

The green wilderness finally returned to its original beauty.

As free as the wind, as bold and unrestrained as flames.