Mercenaries and Adventurers

After lunch, everyone went their separate ways.

Kiel brought the secretary Imore and two local soldiers. The soldier was asked by Mr. Pavey to follow him. Kil didn't say anything, he just thanked him for his kindness.

He also understood that the local knight lord asked the other party to come over just to watch over Kiel and the others and prevent these outsiders from causing trouble that was not under the control of the local forces.

Maybe if something happens, it's okay, but their people must be involved.

So Kil did not refuse the other party's arrangement, and took the other three people to rest in the restaurant, and then walked towards the algae head Parian who was imprisoned in the town prison.

After asking the soldiers who were following them at the prison location, they found out that there were two of them. One is a larger prison, built in the military garrison building at the southeast gate of the town.

The lawbreakers who committed crimes in the town are all locked up here. They are basically locked up here for fighting, extortion, fraud and banditry. For more serious crimes, they were either directly punished corporally, or they were all taken by soldiers and escorted to other places to do hard labor that rarely allowed them to come back alive. Naturally, some of the most serious criminals did not need to be imprisoned and were simply beheaded by executioners in public places.

In addition, there is a smaller prison built underground in the knight's mansion, mainly used to detain erring soldiers among the soldiers.

So a few people quickly braved the scorching spring sun and arrived at the large prison at the southeast entrance of the town.

Different from the building materials used in other places, this prison built in the city gate garrison was built with rock bricks that are rare in the local area.

Large rocks pulled from unknown sources formed the outer wall of this building, which looked far stronger than the houses where the soldiers lived next to it.

With the introduction of the two soldiers, Keir and the secretary walked into the building together.

Originally, Kiel should not have been allowed to enter with a lethal weapon, but the soldier at the prison door carefully looked at Kiel's sword, and then took out a small chain with a lock.

"This is a thing specially used to restrict the sidearms of foreign dignitaries. After all, you can't leave your sidearms to us for safekeeping, right? So put a lock on the hilt and scabbard of the long sword, and unlock it when you leave. Just open it.”

The soldier who followed explained that Kil didn't expect someone to have such considerate means.

That's right, for a sword like Kil's Hunting Long Sword made of valuable magic materials, it would be impossible for him to temporarily store the weapon in someone else's hands when entering some important buildings.

Weapons are the lifeblood of a warrior. They can neither be left behind nor handed over to others for safekeeping.

And because most of the people who can use this kind of weapon are big shots whose status and strength are higher than those of prison managers, this method is chosen to deal with the conflict between prison safety and reality.

"I don't think it's anything, it's pretty good."

Kil chuckled, pressed the hilt of the long sword, and asked the soldier guarding the door to wrap the thin chain around the body of the long sword hunter, and finally fixed it with a lock.

It's difficult to open this thing in a short time without a key.

Wei Wei felt a sense of grievance coming from the sword. Kil patted the hilt and muttered in a low voice: "Just for a moment, it will be untied soon."

Then the sword became quiet.

The soldiers who came with him knew that Kiel was going to question the algae-headed Parian who had just been sent over, so he took a step ahead to explain the matter to the guards in the prison on Kiel's behalf.

It wasn't like they were taking people away, they were just asking questions. They had their own soldiers' arrangements, so the guards didn't care and quickly brought Keir to the door of a prison.

The prison built of rock is not only strong, but also well isolated from the temperature inside and outside.

It was a warm spring afternoon outside the prison, but inside the thick stone walls, there was a low temperature environment that could make water mist come out with every breath. Not only was the temperature in the prison very low, but the smell was also unpleasant.

When passing by single cells and multi-person cells separated by thick and strong wooden pillars, Kiel could see that they were empty and empty of anything. The prisoners were barely covered with a smelly animal skin. Sleeping directly on a ball of soft hay.

The smell of moldy hay and the smell of excrement in a wooden barrel in the prison, mixed with the smell of rancid food that fell on the floor of the cell, hit Keir's nose directly.

If he hadn't developed a nose that wasn't afraid of smells in the swamp outside Kendall, he would have been embarrassed at this moment.

Imole, the secretary who came with him, couldn't bear it anymore. He covered his mouth and was about to vomit out all the delicious food he had just eaten. He pulled a jailer's arm, and the jailer understood what he meant just by looking at Ymol's face without saying a word.

"Please don't vomit outside, we still have to mop the floor. If you want to vomit, just vomit in any cell next to you. The prisoners are responsible for the hygiene of each prison."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yimol hurried to a passing prison and vomited out all the good food he had just eaten through the wooden pillar as thick as his arm.

"Go away! Go away! Don't vomit! Hey, don't vomit!" No matter how the prisoner in the prison yelled, Yimol couldn't care less.

After spitting out the stuff, things got much better. The clerk looked apologetically at the prisoner inside, apologized amidst the other's curses, wiped his mouth with his handkerchief, and hurriedly caught up with Kiel and others who were waiting for him.

The jailer looked at Yimol's vomit through the light leaking from the side window of the ceiling, and with a strange smile on his lips, he continued to move forward with Kil and others, towards the prison where the algae head Parian was.

When everyone walked away, the prisoner who was cursing just now changed his expression, ignored all the stench around him, and shook his nose as hard as he could: "Suck, sniff. What did that guy eat? It smells so good."

Then, under the gaze of the prisoners in the cell next to him, the prisoner moved directly next to Ymol's vomit and lay down like a wild beast.

"Good guy, it's meat. That guy ate a lot of meat." The prisoner looked greedily at the chewed meat pieces in the vomit.

Other prisoners in the nearby cell were aroused by the word "meat": "Lucky guy, I didn't expect that one who is as weak as a duck can eat so well."

"Idiot, you don't understand, those guys with legs as thin as your arms are usually guys who are well-dressed and well-fed. The food is so good!"

"Stop smelling it! I haven't eaten meat for a year. Even if it's other people's vomit, I'm willing to do it. Good brother, give me a piece to try!"

But the prisoner lying next to Ymol's vomit devoured the meat in the vomit like a wild beast.

"Don't even think about it, it's mine, mine, it's all mine. Woo hoo hoo, delicious, delicious. #@#@@, those jailers really treat us like grass rats."

Amid the envious looks and curses of all the locked up prisoners, this guy finished all the meat in just a few strokes. After eating, he lay down on the ground, pulled out a piece of still solid hay and poked it between his teeth, with a satisfied look on his face.

-

The algae-headed Parian was imprisoned at the other end of the prison. The guy was dejected, lying on a pile of newly moved hay with his eyes closed in thought.

As Kiel and others approached, all the listless prisoners sat up and looked at Kiel and his group.

"For what?"

"I don't know. I walked by and found someone new."

"Algae Head, I know him. He's not a great guy."

The algae-headed Parian was awakened by the voices of other prisoners. When he looked up, he was startled. The young man from out of town who tortured him before came again.

"What's going on? I told you everything I know! Don't come here!"

Parian kept shrinking back into the prison, but was immediately kicked out by an inmate who was in the same cell as him.

The jailer neatly opened the cell door made of hard wood and waved for Parian to come out.

But Parian, the algae head, had no intention of coming out. Kil smiled and said, "It's okay, I'll just go in. Just ask and I'll be out soon."

After speaking, Kil took out a silver coin from his purse and quickly handed it to the jailer.

The flash of silver reflection surprised the jailer, and he immediately changed from expressionless to flattering: "Okay, okay. If you don't mind the smell inside, you can do whatever you want. We are just standing here waiting for you. "

Kil nodded, bent down and got in through the half-height wooden prison door.

Immediately, the jailer closed the cell door and locked it.

The clerk looked uncomfortable as if he had vomited, but he still leaned in a lighted place beside the prison, took out his book and pen, unscrewed the cork of the ink bottle at his waist, and prepared to record.

The jailer and the two soldiers estimated that the questioning would not be quick, so they moved a few wooden benches and sat in the middle of the passage outside the prison to wait.

As soon as Kil, who was wearing armor and carrying weapons, entered the prison, the original prisoners in the prison shrank directly into the darkest corners of the prison, and even put hay on themselves to try to cover themselves.

None of the prisoners are thinking about escaping or anything like that. They can't commit crimes. The prisoners who can stay here are all with shorter sentences. The ones with longer sentences are in front of the prison building. Every time the jailer comes in, he can see them at first sight. No matter how long they are, they will no longer be locked up, but will be sent to some quarries or mines in the western provinces to engage in dangerous and heavy manual labor.

"There's no need to be afraid like this. I tortured you just now because you didn't tell the truth."

Kil knelt down and spoke to Parian, who was smiling awkwardly.

"Then what are you asking now? I have told you everything about what happened last night."

Keir shook his fingers wearing protective gloves: "No, no, no, I just thought about it while eating and felt something was wrong."

Swallowing, "What's wrong? It's really the whole thing."

After exhaling, Kil smiled: "In this case, you are not an ordinary citizen in the town, you can be regarded as a guy with some industry, right?"

"A bit of industry? Forget it. It can only be said that I have been around for a long time. My friends thought I was pitiful and would give me a hand."

"Really, there's no need to be modest. In your line of work, you must be well-informed, right? Before what happened last night, did you really not feel anything was wrong? Your business has not been affected recently?"

Kil noticed that Parian, who was sitting on the ground opposite, narrowed his eyes. Although he didn't speak, the silence and expression seemed to say something.

"It seems I guessed right. Before the rain came the clouds. You should have another opinion about what happened last night, right?"

"I can't say it's an opinion. It's just that I've heard some news and speculation." After saying that, Parian, the algae head, looked at Keir carefully again: "But you are a foreigner, don't you just blow by the wind?" The grass can only bend the grass, it can't change anything. And I want to live here, and I don't want to lose my life for this!"

Keir licked his lips, feeling that the conversation had finally made some in-depth progress.

"Strong winds can also lift grass into the sky."

"But the grass roots are still there. As long as it rains, they will pop up again."

"Them? Who?"

"What's the use of what I said? What can you do?"

Seeing the disdain on Parian's face, a middle-aged man in his thirties or forties, Kil smiled.

It seems that he was underestimated.

The other people who came to investigate the case with Keel would not tell him what he could do. They had already seen what Keel was capable of during the march.

However, it is useless for him to brag at this time. If you say it to someone who has never seen it in person, the other party will only treat it as bragging.

So Keir said it differently.

"I may not be able to do anything, but your lord of Grass Rat Town, Knight Rusvis-Anvina, may not be happy with the existence of those guys who are misbehaving in his territory."

"You're lying! The lord never pays attention to these little things!"

Faced with Parian's rebuttal, Kiel gave his set of reasons: "Maybe you don't know why my people and I came to investigate this matter, right?"

Parian said nothing.

"Because the master of our army, Lord Baron Kendall, has previously expressed his intention to protect the caravan accompanying the army. But now a steward of the caravan has died in your town, and our army is not far from the town. Although it is not many, it is Hundreds of extremely elite soldiers and two knights from the army are not people your lord is willing to deal with."

Keir stretched out his finger and pointed at him: "You know? Not to mention the 'they' you don't want to tell, I will kill you, a few other thugs, and the boss of the Burning Prairie Tavern now." , I can also walk out of this town swaggering."

"Because compared to the war caused by the conflict between the two lords, these are not things. Do you understand? They are not things. Soldiers, prisons, jailers, and punishments are all tools of rule, and the tools are held in the hands of the lord When he needs it, this tool is like a riding crop, crackling. When he doesn't need it, it's like a wooden table knife that can't cut any meat."

Keir stared at the other person tightly and said nothing more.

It's not necessary. He said too much, and the other party really thought he was begging him to speak.

Outside the prison, Clerk Imore looked embarrassed. He didn't know whether to erase the words recorded in the book. After all, what Kil said was too explicit.

Sure enough, the three guys sitting next to him were stunned. They roughly understood what they had just heard, so they felt shocked and incredible.

One's perseverance and responsibilities, daily work, hard training, etc., etc., it turns out that this is how the nobles see it.

As for the other prisoners who didn't know a single word, most of them didn't hear it clearly or didn't understand it, and looked confused.

Imore shook his head and ignored it. Anyway, the people who will read this record in the future will be either the Baron or the two knights. It doesn't matter. He just needs to do his job well. Maybe by writing these words, he can make a serious and reliable impression in front of a few adults.

After a while, the voice of the algae-headed Parian sounded again in the quiet prison: "Can you keep me?"

"You're just a character that doesn't matter. You know? How I see it."

Kil's words attracted the attention of Algae Head Parian again: "If nothing happens, or if we outsiders can't find out what's missing, guys like you are the most dangerous group of people in the matter."

"We just walked away. No matter who the other party is, they don't have the ability or energy to take care of us anymore. And they will definitely focus on you, who must know something, and the tavern owner. They may find you Weaknesses to blackmail you, even if you know nothing about it, they will still do it. Because doing this is truly safe and insured."

"Does what I say make sense?"

The algae-headed Parian said in a daze: "That's right, that's right. It's like this, it will definitely be like this."

"Oh." Kil smiled: "But what if? I know who those 'they' are, and then I can't deal with them. What should I do next? I will go to Knight Anvina and tell him everything. Guess, will I finally leave here as I wish?"

The person on the other side gulped and said, "Of course, the lord is so powerful that no one can be his opponent. Oh, at least there is no one in the town. Those people will be eliminated, even if there is endless trouble."

Endless troubles?

Keir paid attention to such an adjective. (Note: Similar idioms are replaced by similar phrases in the story. Don’t worry about why people from other worlds speak idioms, it’s all to enhance the reading experience.)

He smacked it secretly. It seemed that the real murderer was quite powerful. At least the knight lord in one place could deal with it, but he couldn't suppress it.

Is it an organization?

What organization.

"Still the same question, who are they? This is the last time I ask."

After speaking, Kil stood up from his crouching position and looked down at the thin middle-aged man sitting on the ground.

The algae head looked around cautiously, but unfortunately, the prison was so big, no matter what they said, other prisoners would hear it.

"Can you?"

"It's not necessary. No one has gone out recently, right?" Kil turned to the jailer outside the cell and said.

"Yes, yes. I will imprison them in single cells in a moment. I promise not to leak the news." Touching the silver coins in his belt, the jailer immediately replied: "But you still speak in a low voice. The best point."

"Haha, okay, do you hear that? Mr. Parian? Please lower your voice."

"Yes, it is."

Then, the algae-headed Parian's voice was indeed much softer, and the clerk outside the prison, Ymol, had to prick up his ears to hear clearly what the two said.

The clerk's job is really hard.

-

Soon, Kil led three people out of the tall stone prison.

"Where are we going now?" The clerk looked strange, his eyes wandering from side to side, and he even covered his money bag tightly.

Kil sneered: "Don't worry about that thing of yours. Now, well, I have to find someone to confirm it. Confirm whether this information is reliable."