Winter was a time of no harvest for most Northerners, especially for towns near the Hermes Plateau. The Month of Demons brought not only continuous rain and snow, but also cold, hunger, and death. But "Peg-Leg" White was different. Every winter, the Church's messenger would come to his door, asking him to drive to the border of the Wolfheart Kingdom for a few trips, picking up the suffering orphans and loading them onto the carriage to the Old Holy City.

This was a good deal. One trip would earn him nearly twenty silver wolves, and it was a great deed of charity. The Month of Demons was almost at its end this year, and this carriage was probably the last trip.

"Sir, why don't you stay in the carriage? The snow outside will keep falling for a while. You're not like us, who eat wind and snow every day. Don't catch a cold."

"It's nothing," the messenger took out his flask and took a swig. "The New Holy City is much colder than this. On the plateau, leather clothes and armor can't keep out the cold. They're like devils that seep into every part of your body. Without cold-repelling pills, it's not a place for ordinary people to stay."

"You're right," White nodded repeatedly. He had never been to the New Holy City and didn't want to go. What was good about a place with only ice and evil beasts? But as an experienced coachman, he could always find new topics, and this messenger was much easier to talk to than the previous one. "Your gloves, are they made from the special wolf skin from the Western Region of Graycastle?"

"Oh? You know that?"

"Hey, sir, I've been doing this job for almost thirty years," White said proudly. "First driving for the baron, then for the countess, and even for the little princess of Wolfheart. If it weren't for an accident that broke my leg, I might still be in the count's mansion. They have nothing else, but gold dragons are plentiful. Furs and silverware from Graycastle, jewels from Everwinter, handicrafts from the fjord – they never stop talking about them once they get on the carriage. My ears are calloused from listening."

"I see," the messenger nodded. "So that's where your nickname comes from? What kind of accident?"

"Alas, it was a riot of refugees. Those thugs would do anything for a bite to eat." White spat. "They surrounded the carriage at the time. To protect the countess, I had to spur the horses to run wildly. As a result, the horses were startled and threw me off, and the carriage overturned."

"So you broke your leg?" the messenger asked curiously. "What about the countess?"

"She was better off than me. There were cushions and thick quilts in the carriage, so she only suffered a bruised nose and swollen face," White said indignantly. "She crawled out and ran away, leaving me on the road. I dragged my broken leg home and spent all my savings to get a prosthetic leg for myself," he tapped the bronze rod exposed outside his trousers. "But the count's mansion kicked me out on the pretext that I could no longer drive. Those damned nobles!"

"That's a pity," the messenger paused. "But God hasn't abandoned you. You're now driving for the Church. Heaven is merciful."

"Yes, sir. Heaven is merciful." No, if God were truly merciful, I wouldn't have encountered such a thing, White thought. He didn't save me when I needed him most.

At this moment, a girl's cry came from the carriage.

"Stop."

White tightened the reins, allowing the two horses to gradually halt. The messenger jumped out of the carriage and went to the back. Soon, the sound of a whip lashing could be heard from inside the carriage.

Poor children, he sighed. Endure it, this is your savior. Without the messenger, you wouldn't even survive this winter. You would only become unattended corpses on the street.

After a while, the messenger came back and climbed onto the carriage. "Let's go."

"Hold on tight. Giddy up!" White shook the reins, and the carriage started moving again. "Are they all from different parts of the Wolfheart Kingdom?"

"Almost. Churches in various towns in the kingdom take in some orphans. Especially when food and clothing are scarce in winter, we take in several times more people. The monks of the Church simply can't take care of them all, so they also entrust carriage companies to hire some reputable coachmen to help us transport them. You're doing a great job, White. My predecessor praised you highly."

"It's my honor to participate in such good deeds," White's mouth split into a grin. "Sir, will they all be sent to the nunnery? Excuse me for being nosy, although they are all orphans, their character is different. Some of them, although young, have done everything. Will such people pollute the holy land?"

"God will make a judgment. Even if they are guilty, they can still have the opportunity to be saved."

"Is that so? That's really a good thing." White raised his head and looked at the sky. "It's getting late, sir. Should we spend the night in the next town? If the weather is good tomorrow, we should be able to reach the Old Holy City by noon."

The messenger breathed a sigh. "Find an inn, one with a courtyard, enough to park the carriage. Go and prepare some food for them."

"Alright!" White replied.

This town was a must-pass on the way from the Wolfheart Kingdom to the Old Holy City. It wasn't his first time here, and he quickly found the inn where he often stayed. He drove the carriage into the courtyard, took the money from the messenger, and went to buy food for the orphans. As usual, sweet potato porridge was the most suitable choice, cheap and tasty. Watching them finish the porridge, White limped back to the inn, ordered a portion of butter bread, and sat at the bar to eat. As for the messenger, he definitely had a better place to go.

If it were ten years ago, before he broke his leg, he would have gone to the tavern to order a glass of wine and found someone to roll a few dice with – his luck was always good at that time. Now... White touched the money bag in his arms. It's better to go back to the room and rest early.

In the evening, he heard some noise in the courtyard. Getting up and lifting the curtains, White saw the drunken messenger opening the carriage door lock and crawling in. After a while, he dragged out two orphans. Behind him stood two other people, dressed like nobles.

White dropped the curtains and returned to the warm bed.

This wasn't the first time he had witnessed such a thing. The previous messenger often did this. Living is the greatest luck, he thought. Compared to temporary pain, it's better to endure it. When you get to the Holy City, you will have a new life. At least in the nunnery, you don't have to worry about going hungry or cold. White yawned and fell into a deep sleep.

As soon as it was dawn, he continued on with the messenger. Everything went smoothly, and the two of them arrived at the Old Holy City half an hour earlier than expected. There were already Church carriages waiting for them there. It seemed that these poor ghosts still had a way to go, but that was no longer his concern.

"This is your reward." The messenger tossed over a cloth bag.

White took it and counted it twice in his palm. It was indeed twenty silver wolves. He nodded and bowed, "I hope to see you again next year."

The messenger didn't answer, waved his hand, and gestured for him to leave.

White noticed that besides him, there were other carriages doing the same thing. Perhaps they were sent from other kingdoms? He thought, but one thing was strange. It seemed that all the people getting off the carriages were little girls. Did the Church only adopt girls when adopting orphans?

He shook his head and threw these questions to the back of his mind, driving the carriage on the way back.