Mercenaries and Adventurers

The spring floods that flooded the countryside raged outside the city for three or four days.

After the third day, the size of the flood became smaller and it could no longer submerge everything. Some sturdy shrubs more than one meter high had already popped up in the flood.

By the fourth day, the flood receded rapidly, leaving only a large area of ​​yellow-black silt. Only farmers like these things the most. Migrants who first come to Kendall County are always surprised that there is such fertile land in the world.

With such fertile fields, the most luxuriant wheat fields will surely grow and the strongest and most plump wheat seeds will grow. Just a handful of peeled wheat kernels can be used to cook enough wheat porridge to fill your stomach, and then ground into wheat flour to make delicious wheat cakes and bread.

However, when the floods receded and the running water walls surrounding the city and farms disappeared, the first people to organize their way out of the city gates were a large number of farmers organized by the Church of the God of Saturn.

Thousands of farmers carried various farm tools, and under the leadership of knowledgeable agricultural priests, they divided the silt land into fields according to the field planning of previous years.

At the same time, after the flood receded, the militias from various places in the city called by the local lord baron also quickly reorganized. Temporary accommodation tents were also moved from the guard bunker at the city gate and set up on both sides of the road outside the gate of Kendall City.

-

Keir was putting the final touches on his luggage. He no longer lives in the hunter stronghold. He had said goodbye to his fellow hunters two days ago. The old hunters warned Kil to be extra careful on the battlefield and not to trust other soldiers he was unfamiliar with.

They don't know each other. Although they won't fight each other with swords, it is very likely that they will completely ignore the interests of Kiel, a lone ranger, when faced with a choice.

Keir also nodded in understanding at that time.

At this moment, he packed his last luggage, held it with one hand and walked downstairs. In the hall on the first floor, fellow hunters who had fought against the wolves in the North had gathered together. The old hunter Tost gave a hunting bow and two barrels of refined arrows to Kiel who was about to assemble.

He hugged Kil and warned him to be careful.

Kil smiled and hugged the old man hard.

"You kid, be gentle, I'm already old, and my body can't withstand the strong embrace of a young man like you!" Tost complained, and then stepped aside to let other companions come up and say goodbye to Kiel.

Kil and everyone else hugged each other vigorously. Although they only got to know each other for one winter, they all fought together and formed a deep friendship.

The young people will continue to fight for the Lanissa Knights in the days to come, but the way of fighting is no longer to fight against large groups of northern wolves, but to reduce the pressure in the area of ​​Umihu Village and Hekou Town through hunting and setting traps. The number of wild animals will provide safety guarantee for the subsequent construction of the sub-village in the north of Wumi Lake.

The three old hunters no longer officially participate in the battle, and instead take on the task of training a new generation of young hunters. They will go to various villages and settlements in the county to find young people who love wild life and hunting, train and train them, and provide fresh blood to the hunter team.

I heard that Knight Lanessa once said that when the number of teams increases, they will train a team of elite archers from hunters who can officially participate in the battle.

Kiel didn't quite understand what kind of combat unit this elite archer team was. After all, the local militiamen all carried crossbows during battle. In Kiel's opinion, the combat effectiveness was very strong.

How powerful is the elite archer team?

Bidding farewell to his companions, Keir walked out of the stronghold house. In the front yard outside the door, a single horse was ready, and behind the horse, a small carriage pulled by a horse was also ready.

Kil's carriage, which could only be controlled by two horses before, was no longer needed. After all, one of his horses had died in the battle with the werewolf Wolf. Only the three horses awarded to him by Knight Lanissa were left. Of the two horses, one was used for daily riding, and the last remaining one could only pull a much smaller pony carriage with him.

In fact, there were not many supplies carried on the carriage, just some common supplies for long journeys. He had packed the other items into large wooden boxes and sent them to the dreamland for long-term storage.

The dream was constructed by Ms. Apolifina, and Keir felt that there might be no place in the world where he felt safer than there.

New full-body iron armor, excellent weapons captured in past battles, some of his own property, enough water, water, clothing and other items to last at least half a year, various unused materials found in ruins such as huge stone swords and elven gems.

All these things were stored by Keir beside the pond of memory water in the dream.

At the same time, he also stored a huge number of elven silver plates that he had previously buried in the dreamland. After this winter, he could only carry a portion of the silver plates every day, struggling to shuttle between reality and dreams.

On his carriage were only the hard cowhide full-face armor normally worn in battle, as well as some commonly used changes of clothes and travel supplies.

At this time, Keir loaded the packed dog-skin bedding into the carriage, then covered the carriage with thick, waterproof oil-soaked linen cloth and tied it tightly with ropes. He got on his horse, held the reins of the cart horse, and said goodbye to his fellow hunters behind him for the last time: "I'm leaving! Goodbye, everyone!"

"Kiel! Don't die! Come back alive!"

"Of course, I will live well."

"War is not about fighting beasts, use your brain more!"

"Okay old man, I will fight smartly."

"Kiel! Will you come back?"

"If I die, I won't come back! If I live, I will definitely come back one day!"

"You brat! God is watching everyone in the sky, can't you say something nice? It's true."

After walking out of the stronghold gate, Kil walked along the road outside the city.

-

After the floods subsided the day before, Kiel found Knight Crow, who asked him to prepare as soon as possible. After packing, he went to the militia camp outside the city to find him.

After greeting the guard friends guarding the city gate, Keir rode a horse and led a horse-drawn carriage out of the city.

The defensive pit outside the city gate is actually a place where guards usually discard garbage. Both sides of the road in and out of Kendall City are covered with triangular tents. Occasionally there will be a colorful dome tent, and Keir will Carefully identify the family crest on it and look for the tent where Knight Crow lives.

Fortunately, although the triangular tents where the militiamen live are everywhere, there are not many tents for the knight lord. Apart from Baron Kendall's large tent, there are only two colorful striped dome tents left. .

The family coat of arms of Knight Crow is not complicated. It is just a cavalry shield with multiple swords standing in front of it. The whole thing is very simple.

After all, it was only the first generation. Before Knight Crow, their family was not a knightly noble. It was only after Knight Crow became famous that he integrated the family members and established the knightly noble family.

Kiel knew from some local drama stories that the coats of arms of the nobility were not added casually. There was a unified management system called the Church of the God of Nobles. For example, the coat of arms of the Crow Knights only had military honors on it. It became the shield heraldic background of the knightly nobles. Secondly, the many swords he drew represented the experience of Knight Crow serving in multiple knights after becoming a strong knight, and also represented the things he valued and was proud of. .

Crow Knights are proficient in the use of a variety of weapons.

The noble heraldry hanging on Baron Kendall's tent is quite different. The circular heraldic background represents that his family did not obtain the nobility qualification through force, and the circular heraldic background also has a Kendall drawn with gold lines. The general shape of Dale County declares this is the main territory controlled by the Kendall family.

At the center of the coat of arms is a simple architectural symbol representing the city, which intuitively reveals the Kendall family's greatest achievement - the establishment and actual control of the prosperous Kendall City. On both sides of the city logo, one side is a hoe for farming, and the other side is an iron felt forged by craftsmen. This also represents the two main forces of Kendall City, which support and prosper the city. Above the city logo, there was a gleaming gear, which made Kiel not quite understand.

Another knight's tent among the militia tents is a knight named Rumi. This knight has never been seen by Kiel. The coat of arms of the knights and nobles on the tent is a traditional shield shape, with interesting left and right figures inside. Two trees, and in the center of the four trees is a long sword pointing downwards.

Geir estimated that this meant that the knight's origin was still a martial one, and his territory was densely forested. He was firmly rooted in the forest through the force connotation of the long sword.

He guessed so.

After all, although noble heraldry appears strange in families that have been passed down for a long time, for these nobles whose families have been nobility for less than a hundred years, these obvious things are all they can show to others. .

By observing their noble coat of arms, others can briefly understand their origins, what they are good at, and their family heritage before meeting them.

This facilitates communication especially for other nobles who are not familiar with them. As soon as the coat of arms appears on a letter or announcement, people who understand it will naturally understand it.

Before finding Knight Crow's tent, the two guards guarding the door knew Kiel and knew that this young man was very promising to Knight Crow and even deliberately contacted and trained him.

"Is Lord Knight Crow here? I came here to join this troop dispatch at the request of Lord Knight."

Kil jumped off his horse and asked the two guards.

A guard replied directly: "My lord is not here, but he has promised that after you come, the tent will be built next to his tent. The place has been reserved for you, Kiel warrior."

Kil laughed: "Just call me Kil. In that case, let me put up my tent first?"

"It's up to you. Do you need help?"

The guard asked casually.

"No, thank you. These are all things that were just packed up in the city. All you need to do is unfold them. In fact, after the wooden shed on top of my carriage is erected, you can barely sleep inside. It doesn't need to be set up all the time. tent."

Keir pointed to his little carriage. He had absorbed the experience of using the previous carriage. This little carriage that he had just bought could be used just like the previous one. Strong wooden strips were inserted on both sides of the carriage, and then the waterproof Put a tarpaulin on top and fasten the bottom tightly, and it can become a place where you can sleep in the carriage overnight.

But now we don't know when we can set off, so Kiel took out the materials from the carriage and quickly put up a small tent that could sleep one person.

After thinking for a while, Kil changed out of his ordinary coat and put on his hard cowhide armor.

The helmet hung on his waist, and he did not wear a wolf fur cloak that would cause heat. Kil simply put on an oil-soaked, waterproof cloth cloak over the armor.

A long hunting sword hangs on his left waist, a helmet and a steel dagger hang on his right waist, a shield made of elf material that has been re-wrapped in animal skin hangs on his left back, and the two-handed ax of the Overwater Head is also made of solid wood. The ax handle was attached, stuck on the back with a metal hook, and covered with a waterproof cloak.

Not knowing when Knight Crow would come back, Kil had nothing to do, so he took out the hunting bow and arrows given to him by his fellow hunter, and felt familiar with them.

After dealing with the werewolves and sunken fish, Kil still practiced some bow skills in the hunter's stronghold. Although he couldn't compare with other young hunters in the team, he could at least shoot the long ears normally at a distance of twenty or thirty meters. A target the size of a rabbit.

At that time, the old hunters teased Kil. With this skill, he could at least live a self-sufficient life in the wild.

Kil thinks so. It's a long-distance attack method. Although it doesn't hurt people and defeat the enemy, it can at least hunt animals to fill his stomach.

After playing with the hunting bow for a while, Kil lowered the string of the hunting bow, found a piece of cloth to wrap the two, and placed them in the carriage box.

Since he was traveling far away, some of his wooden training tools that took up space had already been given to his fellow hunters. At this time, he took out his shield by the tent and practiced shield fighting.

After a while, a loud voice rang from the side: "When using a shield, don't be so weak and think about getting beaten! Kil, the shield is also a weapon! Step, step hard! Then swing your left arm!"

Although Kil was startled, he knew it was Knight Crow as soon as he heard it. Since someone wanted to teach him, he had to be 100% motivated!

Kil shouted: "Yes!" Then he followed Knight Crow's command and stepped forward with his left foot. As the sole of his foot fell, he shook his left arm and barely waved the shield.

Knight Crow glared at the personal guards guarding his tent, making the guards who were watching the joke become serious. Then he strode over and continued to guide Kiel.

"Hmph, don't wave it weakly like this. Stand the shield at attention, and with your footsteps on the ground, push the whole thing forward half an arm's length straight."

Kil did as he was told, and after standing up again, he stepped forward with his left foot, then controlled the shield with his left arm to stand in front of his chest, neck, and face, and slammed it forward.

Boom! call!

"Very good! Where's your right hand? What are you doing standing there in a daze? One blow from the shield will knock the enemy back half a step, and the right hand will naturally receive another one! Hurry!"

As Knight Crow shouted, Kil pulled out the steel dagger with his right hand and stabbed directly with the shield.

Knight Crow was just reluctantly satisfied: "That's all. Although it's too soft and weak, keep going! Just practice this move until dark!"

"yes!"

Keir yelled yes.

He himself also felt that the stabbing with the dagger just now was not strong enough, so he started practicing on the spot.

It's already past noon, and it's still early before dark, but when he met Knight Crow before, he didn't teach him how to fight. Does this mean that the previously agreed knight training has begun?

Maybe it wasn't a formal start, but at least Knight Crow had officially included him as his trainee knight through this act of teaching.

Kil was practicing hard on the spot, but the guards next to him didn't smile. Apparently they didn't expect that Kil would get individual instruction from Knight Crow.

How did this guy Kiel fall into the eyes of Knight Crow?

They couldn't figure it out. After all, they thought they were better than Kiel, a guy who had been in Kendall for less than a year.

-

At night, illuminated fires were lit on both sides of the road outside Kendall, and the aroma of the food gradually spread.

The militiamen had not received their respective weapons, so they had nothing to do but fall into the ranks that had been arranged a few days ago and gather together for dinner according to the ranks.

Some militiamen with a little money in their pockets informed their captains after eating, and wandered into Kendall City in small groups, either going to pubs or going to some red houses that specialized in their business.

Kil was currently eating with Knight Crow and his personal guards. Because it was very close to Kendall City, their dinner was prepared in the mansion by the chef of Knight Crow's family, and then brought by the servants for them to eat.

Keir took advantage.

The spiced broth, the freshly baked whole-wheat bread that was soft and delicious, and the roasted boneless goose all made Keir's mouth water.

The fatigue from the afternoon practice was immediately soothed by the delicious and plentiful food.

Knight Crow seemed to be inactive, but his appetite for food far exceeded even Kil's thirst after a long day's work. Curious about this, Kil asked why the knight was so edible.

The knight and the two guards laughed. The guards seemed to be used to the knight's big appetite, but Knight Crow did not give Kiel an answer to this question.

"You'll know, Kil. I'll tell you when we get to the road. But not now."

Knight Crow didn't say much, but Kil understood that the issue of food intake was already related to knight training.

The Dharma cannot be taught to six ears, which is probably what it means.

Early the next morning, Kil was called by the knight and asked to leave his things here first, and then he followed the knight directly.

"I'll teach you my skills, but you have to follow me. Of course, you have to help me with some things!" Knight Crow hooked Kil's neck and whispered in Kil's ear.

Keir didn't need to think too much and nodded directly in agreement.

Later, he was taken by Knight Crow to handle the material preparations for the expedition.