The sound of hoofbeats was immense, almost overwhelming.
With hearing as precise as Caleb's, one could even hear the clashing of iron armor.
In the Freljord, aside from higher-end Iceborn, an ordinary warmblood was already doing well if they had a single chest plate protecting their heart.
Yet even Sejuani's Winter's Claw tribe did not have spare metal to forge a full suit of armor for Bristle.
That was also related to their limited forging techniques.
But as they looked at the cavalry drawing closer and closer, as well as the steeds wrapped in iron armor, the pressure rose all at once.
Still, everyone here had seen plenty of the world. They had already experienced countless small wars.
This cavalry unit only had around a hundred riders. Split evenly, each person only needed to deal with ten riders.
Even if both rider and horse were fully armed, they were not actually difficult for these people to handle.
"Are they looking down on us?"
The corner of Caleb's mouth twitched.
If these Frostguard truly refused to be polite, then Caleb would have to answer with force.
In Caleb's eyes, now that he possessed the World Rune, using one or two runes would be more than enough to deal with cavalry like this.
Even the Youmuu's Wraithblade that Ornn had strengthened should be able to cut through that armor as easily as a hot knife through butter.
Just as Caleb had expected, the cavalry did not charge at full speed. Instead, they began slowing down two hundred meters away from the group, finally stopping ten steps away.
For Caleb, this was a somewhat awkward distance. The surrounding mountain rocks were not steep enough to serve as hiding places for his Shadow Step.
But if he used Arcane Shift to get over there, there would still be a small stretch left.
The wind inside his scabbard had not accumulated yet either, so it was not enough for Caleb to dash straight to the front.
Still, the problem was not that serious. These heavy cavalrymen did not look like they used bows or crossbows.
At worst, Caleb could just go over and cut them down.
After Caleb thought for a moment, the cavalrymen ten steps away actually dismounted together.
After discussing among themselves for a bit, one of the Frostguard leaders still stepped forward and walked a few steps closer.
Now he was completely within Caleb's attack range.
"Lady Lissandra wishes to meet with you."
The other party's voice sounded somewhat unnatural, likely due to nervousness.
"Her?"
Caleb almost wanted to laugh. Could this trap be any more obvious?
Threats and temptation. In the end, it was only those two methods.
In any case, mortals did not live that long. As long as she stabilized them, then as the years passed and they grew old, the forces on this side would have plenty of time for Lissandra to develop properly, right?
Even if she only retreated to the Howling Abyss, no tribe would dare approach that place.
"Lead the way."
Caleb's answer made all one hundred cavalrymen secretly breathe a sigh of relief.
They had all been adopted as orphans and had received strict training since childhood.
Because of that, they deeply understood the value of their own lives.
However, rumors about this man from Ionia had already been treated as strange stories across the west over the past few days.
And yet Lissandra had personally delivered an order, telling them to invite this group of people.
The consequences were self-evident.
If talks went smoothly, then even if they were still on edge like they were now, at least they could guarantee they would remain alive before reaching the Frostguard Citadel.
But if talks failed, the only thing waiting for them would be a miserable death.
There was no doubt about it.
The Frostguard were proud of their own abilities. They had killed many people according to Lissandra's orders.
However, when the Warmothers of the two largest tribes in the entire Freljord joined forces, that alone was enough to make their hearts pound.
And that was not even mentioning Caleb, the "main point" of concern.
It was precisely this man's actions that caused two tribes that should have been as incompatible as fire and water to unite instead.
The Ice Children, who had originally served as Lissandra's chess piece, like a nail driven deep into the east, had occupied such a geographical advantage, yet they had lost almost all their fighting strength in a single night.
This person's name was now terrifying in the Freljord.
The Frostguard rode far ahead, maintaining a pace that was neither fast nor slow.
In truth, carrying so much weight was a heavy burden on the steeds beneath them, but the Frostguard did not dare defy this group of dangerous monsters.
If they truly angered those members of the other party who looked rather bad at thinking, the consequences would be ugly.
Freljordians generally had fiery tempers. The Frostguard knew that too.
If those people truly started hacking away, the Frostguard would not dare fight back. They could only wait until the attackers were satisfied.
Or wait until someone from their own group pulled them away.
Otherwise, if they really retaliated, it would probably turn into a chaotic battle in the next second.
At that point, none of them should even think of walking out alive.
Even Ashe, the Warmother who seemed easiest to deal with, could send out ice arrows from that longbow of hers that were more than enough to terrify these cavalrymen.
"Could there be something suspicious about this?"
Along the road, Sejuani looked left and right, then climbed down from Bristle's back and asked in a low voice.
"There will definitely be something suspicious."
Caleb, meanwhile, kept his eyes forward, still thinking about the ancient evil beast he had dealt with earlier.
That thing's single-eyed attack kept reminding Caleb of another champion from the game in his previous life, Vel'Koz.
And Vel'Koz's title was the Eye of the Void.
When he connected that with the sealed "Void Watchers"...
Caleb's thoughts grew even heavier.
"It'll be fine."
Kai'Sa gently patted Caleb's shoulder, comforting him in a soft voice.
The Void here might be more violent than the one in Shurima, but after spending these days together, Kai'Sa believed that as long as they united, suppressing a Void that had already been sealed and only occasionally had cracks should not be a problem.
After all, in Shurima, she had been almost the only one doing that work, and she had handled it extremely well.
Caleb smiled bitterly.
Maybe that so-called "ancient evil beast" was also related to the Void?
Then why had Kai'Sa not sensed the Void's presence?
And how had the Ursine allowed those things to move freely through their territory?
Caleb still could not understand it. That thing was so sinister, and they really just let it wander across the frozen sea without doing anything?
Thinking about the so-called "Ursine territory" there, it was still questionable whether anyone even lived there. After all, Volibear had already moved his treasury to the west.
He had even abandoned Ursine territory, and now these evil beasts had been released?
Caleb silently thought of one possibility.
And the consequences behind that possibility were something Caleb no longer dared think about too deeply.
If that were true, the alliance Caleb had built might collapse in an instant.
The World Rune entered his hand, and Aery circled around Caleb.
"You got a new pet?"
Yuumi looked over somewhat unhappily.
"It's a rune."
Caleb pressed her head down.
"This layer is a shield."
Unlike before, when it disappeared after blocking the Balestrider's attack, Aery stayed around for much longer this time.
The towering fortress that pierced the clouds came into view, and Caleb's expression grew heavy as well.
"So we've finally reached the main event?"
Every action Caleb had taken in the Freljord over nearly the past month had been laying the groundwork for today.
If the operation here failed, then it would mean Caleb would have to abandon the lives in this place and let them fight the Void on their own.
Now, Caleb only hoped they could have more time to prepare.
More and more time.
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