Chapter 776: Ib

"Damn, why'd I have to run into you today?"

"Like steppin' in dog shit."

In the brightly lit tavern, a man wearing boiled leather armor with iron studs, a double-bladed battle axe by his side, spoke in a coarse voice.

He held a mutton leg in his hand, opened his mouth wide revealing a row of crooked square teeth, directly tore off a chunk of meat, and chewed vigorously.

On the other side, an equally burly and stout Ibbenese raider named Ibb, wielding an axe in one hand and a long-haired round shield in the other, bluntly sat down beside him and retorted without mincing words.

"Fuck you!"

"Goron."

"I'm the one who stepped in dog shit seeing you."

This place was Ib, an island nation located north of Essos on the Shivering Sea.

The largest island of Ib is Ibben, an island covered in forests and mountains. The largest cities on it are the capital Port of Ibben and Ib Nor.

South of Ibben, numerous small islands are scattered in Whale Bay. To the southeast of Ibben is Far Ib, a medium-sized mountainous island with the city Ib Sar.

The Ibbenese are burly, stout, and hairy, both men and women, as if not fully evolved, with exceptionally broad chests and shoulders.

Furthermore, the Ibbenese have a very distinct "reproductive isolation" from other races in this world.

If a Westerosi or someone from another continent impregnates an Ibbenese woman, the result is invariably a deformed or stillborn fetus.

Similarly, if an Ibbenese man impregnates a Westerosi or other continental woman, miscarriages are common, either deformed or "natural," like mules.

The Ibbenese also have their own unique way of greeting.

"Oh, fuck me."

"Why'd you all come over to join in the fun?"

"Am I having a wedding feast here?"

Goron, the Ibbenese warrior holding the mutton leg, took a swig of strong liquor from the wooden cup beside him, then bit off a mouthful of mutton, watching his companion sit down in front of him with dissatisfaction.

"What?"

"Someone else came by just now too?"

However, this Ibbenese man with a head of messy yellow hair, holding an axe and shield, didn't seem to hear Goron's displeasure.

Instead, he sat down opposite him without ceremony, put down his weapons and shield, then pulled out a small knife, cut a piece of meat from Goron's mutton leg, put it in his mouth and asked.

"Thos!"

"That son of a bitch Togg Thos!"

Goron didn't hide it either, speaking bluntly.

This Togg Thos was an Ibbenese raider who was once a member of the Brave Companions, also known as the Bloody Mummers. Their leader was called Vargo Hoat, a Qohorik.

It's said that many years ago, they went to Westeros to make their fortune and got beaten by dragons.

The captain of the Brave Companions died on the spot, so they scattered like birds and beasts. From then on, the Brave Companions disbanded, and the Ibbenese Togg Thos returned to his homeland.

After returning to Ib, Togg Thos joined another mercenary company, which happened to be the mortal enemy of Goron and the others. That's why the two couldn't stand each other and had some conflicts in the tavern just now.

But if you asked Goron, Togg Thos was just a deserter from the Brave Companions!

He even made up an excuse, something about being attacked by dragons? This was simply laughable enough to make one snap their shit in half. Are dragons that common? And why would dragons bother attacking them for no reason? It's like using a cannon to shoot a mosquito.

However, at this moment, a roar suddenly echoed faintly outside the tavern. It wasn't very loud, penetrating the white blizzard as if coming from a great distance. If one didn't listen carefully, they wouldn't hear it at all, let alone in the noisy, chaotic tavern.

Ib was also currently plunged into a long night, with no daylight.

However, as the rulers of Ib, the Shadow Council also reacted very quickly, stabilizing the local situation and preventing the unrest from spreading further.

Now people didn't know what exactly happened, why the sun disappeared.

Those with clever minds knew to quietly stockpile some food, while most people had to continue living. With no sun, what else could they do? They could only continue eating what they should eat, drinking what they should drink. Even if doomsday was just around the corner, they had to struggle a bit, not just commit suicide for nothing.

However, that faint roar from outside continued. At first, no one paid attention, perhaps because it was too far away. It sounded like the shrill whistle of the fierce cold wind outside the tavern squeezing through the cracks of the door.

But as the sound drew closer and closer, penetrating the blizzard and echoing in the sky over the Port of Ibben, some of the people sitting in the tavern seemed to realize something was amiss, sensing the unusualness.

Ib is roughly at the same latitude as the Frostfangs in the North, but when the long night fell, it snowed abruptly. Now it was still snowing heavily outside.

"Hmm?"

Goron, who was gnawing on the mutton leg, reacted first. He stopped what he was doing and asked.

"Wait... Did you hear that?"

Then Goron held his mutton leg in one hand, frowning and listened intently.

After waiting to hear clearly, his face suddenly changed. He quickly put down his mutton leg, picked up his double-bladed battle axe and long-haired round shield.

The many Ibbenese in the tavern also reacted without his prompting.

"What's going on?"

"What sound?"

The crowd in the tavern at the Port of Ibben all stood up abruptly, grabbing their weapons.

Dong— Dong— Dong—

Then the sound of the alarm bell rang out in the Port of Ibben. This bell only rang when foreign invaders attacked.

The Ibbenese people were fierce, and the whole population were warriors. So when facing an invasion, they would ring the bell to summon all Ibbenese warriors, men and women alike, to take up their weapons and resist the enemy's aggression.

"Who invaded Ib?"

"The wood men of Ifequevron? Or the Dothraki?"

The two major powers closest to Ib were the Dothraki and the Kingdom of Ifequevron, the legendary "forest walkers."

They lived in the forests and had only one city called Vaes Leisi. The Ifequevron people were said to wield forbidden magic. Although they were neighbors of the Dothraki, the horse lords never dared to provoke them, instead avoiding them.

However, the Ibbenese in the tavern all had blank faces because, theoretically, the Dothraki feared the sea and would never cross the water to attack Ib.

As for their other neighbors, the wood men of the Kingdom of Ifequevron, although they couldn't be said to love peace and would kill outsiders who intruded without mercy, the wood men had never left the forest.