Way of Overlord
Chapter 211: Winter in The Great Steppe

Chapter 211: Winter in The Great Steppe

It has now been two weeks since the siege of Nurshira and the victory of the Steppe people against Yan people for the first time since a long time

Now, the winter has come in full force

But the Brolgadhr feel this winter would not be as harsh as the winter before. They have full granaries and full of meat and food

The territory of the Brolgadhr had expanded. Before, they live in small communities, now they are large and populated.

The construction of the city has begun, the walls is risen up by stones and the people are paid by food

Some are given grain; some are given meat and some are given horses and other necessities

Nestled between the rolling hill and amidst the silent whisper of the winter winds, the Brolgadhr tribe thrived like they never before

The people of Marynku, the people of Ashran, the people of Eresian is the people of the Steppe

Those who spent ten winters in the Steppe could call themselves the Steppe people

Because the winter winds in the Steppe is harsher than the winter winds in other parts of the world

At least the world that they know off.

They could not know that in the far north, further north than they ever though, that there is a land filled with snows all year round

They could not know that far toward the west, further west that they ever though, there is land so hot it felt like you would be boiled alive

There is many things they did not know

But to the people of Roma, to the people of Yindu, to the people of Yan, the coldness of their lands is nothing compared to the coldness of the Steppe in the winter

In Yan, the common people always fear the winter. But the Steppe people once went to the south and felt the winter winds of Yan and they only scoff at it

What the Yan people fears, the winter cold winds, to the Steppe people felt more like a breeze.

And they scoff and they think this is why Yan people are weak.

The cold of the Steppe is harsh and because of it, its people are also harsh, brutal just like the winter in their Steppe

The lives of the tribes in the Great Steppe has always been intertwined with the rhythm of the seasons, and as the warmth of summer faded, the Steppe transformed into a frozen expanse beneath the winter sky.

The only exception to this frozen expanse is the water of the Empatarah river. But that does not mean that it is not affected at all. The water could still be taken but the area where they could take the water is not large

Brolgadhr tribe welcome their first new winter since Aeryon took the helm as the leader of the tribe

The Elders look outside their tents and their eyes narrows

They are adorned in fur-lined robes adorned with intricate patterns

The storytellers gathered around the people of the tribe. The Elders would also join and even help the storyteller gathering the tribe

In the past such gathering is lonely on small parts of the area. The tribe at that time was small and so the gathering is small and one gathering place is enough

But after Aeryon commenced his conquest toward the west, many warriors joined, many small tribes defected, many other clans joined.

There is now thousands of them and the tents of these tribes is scattered all over the area

If one could gather them all they would able to form a terrifying army

Some storytellers gathers the people in the north and some gather them in the southern area of the tribe dwelling. Some on the east and some in the west

They gathered the tribe, set up a small campfire, and amidst this warmth, they tell the stories of the Steppe to those who wanted to listen

There is not many entertainment activities in the ancient world. The one entertainment activities that is known universally and beloved is storytelling

The storytellers all tell different stories but everybody listens to it all the same. These storytellers are all masters of their craft

When they tell their stories, the stories seems to dance with life in the flickering light of the communal campfire

Most of the tales are tales of bravery, of great feat, of mythical gods and monsters, and giants and great men and women

It teaches resilience, and the importance of never giving up, a quality that the people of the Steppe understood very much

In winters, families and clans would help each other to prepare their felt tents. In the past, there is always a few who would die of the winter cold

This winter however felt different

Aeryon gave hides and all the necessary ingredient to make tents for those who come under him

There is the warriors helping the common people of the Steppe to reinforce their tents with thicker hides and furs

All of these hides and furs come from the Kan treasury.

By now, everyone has called Aeryon the Kan of the Lower South.

This title seems to indicate something to those chief

Those who have surrendered under Aeryon all urged Aeryon to pick a day to declare taking the title of Kan and many of the generals and great warriors under Aeryon also decided to ask Aeryon to do that

But Aeryon wanted to create new titles for himself and for his people and because of that it was delayed but the people of the Brolgadhr still call Aeryon Kan

Kan title is an honourable title and in the times of the Empire of the Steppe, the Kan is powerful people that answers to the Qayan

The equivalent of this title is King or Duke

Aeryon himself did not like declaring himself this title so early.

To him, there is still much to do and there is many threats that are still surrounding his tribe.

It is not time yet for him to be joyful

But clearly the tribe did not share the same feeling as him. They are quite content and happy.

The young could now channel their ambition toward conquest, the old is now supported and did not have to die when winter came

Ambitious and opportunistic people come in drove toward Aeryon tribe.

Some offer their service and some sell themselves so that they would become the warriors under Aeryon

In the Steppe, strength is a virtue.

And to those ambitious warriors and people, they clearly wanted to back the person they believe could prevail over the others

As for the opportunistic one, they come to reap the rewards. But to differentiate between the ambitious people and the opportunistic one is hard. Sometimes, their actions also overlapped with each other

But Aeryon accepted them all. He said everyone have a use and since they wanted to be used by me, I would find a way to use them

Ambitious people could be sued and opportunistic people could be used. This shows that Aeryon wanted talents.

The chief that is slightly enlightened would understand Aeryon but how many chiefs in the great Steppe learn the art of war and methods of rulers?

There is only a few and there is not many that could understand Aeryon method. Because if such people in such an abundance, the Southern Great Steppe would have been united a long time ago

It is precisely because of this gap of knowledge that Aeryon appears like some kind of God of War mowing down enemies and expanding his tribe in just a short time, making him appears like an unstoppable force.

Those who understand, admire such method.

Because if you look past the military victory, you would see that the foundation of the Brolgadhr tribe is very brittle.

It is like a castle built on pillars of sand; one strong gust could bring down this castle down.

Why? Because Aeryon lack talents.

The Brolgadhr tribe was a small tribe.

Other than Belarion and Mayeux who is slowly making a name for himself, and Aeryon, when one thought of the Brolgadhr tribe, they would not think of any other talents in that tribe.

This is the lack of people. After the conquest, Aeryon got a lot of warriors.

And then instead of stopping he keep fighting and as he fights, talents began to appears , honed by the constant battle.

The potential of his tribe soars and to quickly assimilate the other tribes with his tribes, Aeryon seems to be making some reforms to the way things are done.

He seduces talents and hosted banquets and invited great men and heroes all across the Steppe.

One that could catch his eyes would be given rewards in the form of foods and jewellery. The Brolgadhr tribe under Aeryon is like a well-oiled military machine.

There is order, there is laws and there is rewards and punishment

And people rush toward the Brolgadhr tribe to join this rising power. Hundreds and then thousands and now, Aeryon tribe is truly a strong tribe.

A season passes and the world changes so quickly that all the chiefs in the Southern Steppe could not help but feel the impermanence matters of the world.

And it is because of that there is such a lively scene in what to be the city of Brolgadhr.

Thousands of people, coming out of the tent, lively scene of a city even though there is no walls

The Brolgadhr tribe main area is close to the Wall of Yan and because of that compared to the other parts of the Great Steppe and parts of the Southern Great Steppe, their tribe is not as cold

But this is just a relative measurement.

Coldness of winter is still the coldness of winter. When it rains, it pours and when it storms, it could wreck a settlement, when the snow falls, the old and child dies.

Winter is terrifying. This sis something that ancient people learns with their own blood sweat and tears.

While the warriors help the tribesmen preparing and strengthening their tents, the children helped gather dried grass and twigs

The fire is started and the children would ensure the warmth of the fire remain constant as they giggle when they throws these twigs into the fire

The snow keeps falling

On the other side of life of this tribe, there is the hunters. The common people stock their food and strengthen their tents.

Those who are strong would still hunt in the winter.

Belarion today decided to go hunting. There are many that follows him

It is known that one whose hunt with Belarion would never return home without a meal.

Belarion after the battle in Nurshira resumes his duty, mostly training his men.

But winter has come and so he trains them outside, to follow him hunt.

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