Mercenaries and Adventurers

The guard captain who went out alone noticed that the priest who came over had his hands empty, but he had a simple set of armor on his shoulders and chest. The priest's church robe was stained with a lot of blood, and he looked suspicious. .

The priest himself is also a young man, but he does not look as ferocious as he imagined. Instead, he has a solemn expression and a bit of determination.

The bloodstains on his clothes and the swaying horses prevented the captain of the guard from seeing clearly which church the other party was a priest from. It was not until the priest opposite reported his name that he realized that this was actually a priest from the Church of Saturn.

‘This is not good, people from the Church of Saturn. ’

The guard captain secretly calculated, and then he also said: "Hello, Lord Priest, I am Blue Dog Nus, the caravan guard captain of the Burning Furnace Chamber of Commerce. As you can see, there are my people behind you. A guarded caravan. Then, may I ask you."

‘Blue Dog’ Nusi pointed at the hundreds of people blocking the trade road not far away and said, “May I ask what you are leading these suspicious people to do?”

He looked around nervously, but the people on the left and right of the trade route were not as he suspected. Someone took the opportunity to try to hide and outflank them. It was quiet, just like the usual wasteland and mountains, there was no difference.

Priest Batal quickly waved his hands and said: "Misunderstanding, misunderstanding. Those people behind me, they are not suspicious people."

"No? But I saw many people, well, many of them had weapons in their hands, and they were dressed like bandits plundering in the woods, right?"

Speaking of this, Blue Dog Nus choked. To be honest, he even felt that Priest Batal was not a real church priest. Although the suddenly amplified voice before did indeed sound like various priests at festivals or celebrations. The magical methods used are similar, but he also knows that besides magical methods, there are many methods that can achieve similar situations.

You don't have to use popular magic to claim to be a priest of the Church of Saturn.

And when it comes to the Church of the God of Agriculture, he doesn't want to have contact or friendship with these people recently.

"That's right, they are all refugees brought out from the White Stone City Wall Checkpoint by me and the Kiel Warriors, no, the Kiel Knights. As you may know, the tariffs at the White Stone City Wall Checkpoint have been increased dozens of times, and many of them have no property. The refugees are all blocked there, unable to pass and unable to return home."

Priest Batal sighed, and then said: "That place is too small to support so many people, and everyone's life is very difficult. Knight Kiel and I passed by there, and the elders among the people came forward and decided. Lead the young people among them back to our southern province to find a safe place."

He pointed to the blood stains on his body: "But you saw it, after leaving the White Stone City Wall level, we encountered a large number of bandits. After the knights and everyone fought hard, we finally defeated those bandits. These blood stains are from when I was treating the injured. on. And the people also seized a large amount of bandits’ clothing and weapons.”

"Master Priest, where are the evidences you mentioned?"

The guard captain did not simply believe the other party with empty words, so he asked for evidence. At the same time, he also noticed the words spoken by the priest. The rider who had not come not far away turned out to be a knight.

That's right, the equipment looks like a knight, but the equipment is not that interesting, and the armor is not bright and powerful enough.

"You can come with me and take a look. If you take a closer look, you will know whether they are bandits or refugees. In my team, there are not only young people holding swords in the front, but also a large number of people behind them carrying materials seized from the bandits. And there are also some kidnapped businessmen who were rescued from the bandits.”

"Didn't you trick me into kidnapping me?"

"Absolutely not. You can send a trustworthy loyal subordinate or companion over to have a look and you will know. We are not bandits and will not attack the caravan. Of course, I have knights here, so I am not afraid of you. It’s best if we can avoid unnecessary misunderstandings among these twenty-odd caravan guards.”

"Of course, and I hope that's what you said."

After saying that, the two of them rode back.

-

Priest Batar returned to Kiel and took the long amber metal staff that Kiel threw over.

"What did you say?"

The two people spoke quietly, and the horses around them were neighing, so Keir couldn't quite hear what they said.

"After explaining it, the other party obviously misunderstood that we are bandits. I asked him to send someone to get closer to the team to take a look."

Keir laughed: "If we are really bandits, is there still anyone alive in this caravan? We should ambush a group of people on the other side's way in advance. When we see that the large group is about to turn around, where is there a chance to escape now?"

"Stop saying these words, it's scary."

Priest Batal knew this was a joke and shook his head.

-

After 'Blue Dog' Nusi returned to his companions, someone immediately said to him: "Captain, I think there is something wrong with the other rider. How can he not be afraid when he faces twenty of us by himself?"

Rolling his eyes, 'Blue Dog' Nusi said: "The priest said he was a knight, but I don't know whether it is true or not. By the way, they said that the people on the other side were actually not bandits, but a group of refugees running west, and they ended up blocked at the White Stone City Wall. Unlucky guy. Under the leadership of those two people, they returned to find a place to live and survive. But they were attacked by bandits before and defeated the guy who captured the bandits. "

"This is all fart!"

Someone immediately cursed with disdain.

‘Blue Dog’ Nusi frowned: “But it doesn’t sound like they were lying when they said they would send someone over to take a look.”

"Will the deceiver be killed in the past?"

Shaking his head, 'Blue Dog' Nusi continued: "No way, just send one person. So, which one of you is the most loyal and dares to risk the other party's deception and go and take a look on behalf of everyone?"

The twenty riders looked at me and I looked at you, all hesitant.

Speaking of loyalty, many people would risk their lives to protect the captain himself. But many people have to weigh things like this, which are obviously likely to be in vain.

Finally, a young man who was less than twenty years old urged the horse out: "Captain, I'm going! I'm willing to explore for you and everyone. If I die, everyone must run away quickly. My family, please It’s time, brothers.”

‘Blue Dog’ Nusi waved his hand: “Don’t worry, the death benefit will be doubled, and I will pay another amount.”

Others also expressed that they would donate another sum of money to take it all to the family of the young man who bravely investigated.

The young man hit the wooden shield on his left arm hard with his right fist, making a bang sound like a heartbeat.

Then, he kicked the horse's belly fiercely and drove the horse forward.

The eyes of his companions have been following his back. At the same time, everyone is nervously holding a shield or bow and arrow in one hand, and holding the reins tightly in the other hand. They can quickly change the direction of the horse at any time and retreat quickly.

-

A young rider rushed over on horseback. Kil whispered to Priest Batar, but he did not move. The priest turned around and rode side by side with the young rider who approached and passed by.

The young rider looked at the 'knight' and was frightened by the metal scratches all over the opponent's armor. Not only the armor, but also the metal shield was full of scratches.

I don’t know how many harsh battles it took to achieve such a result.

And when he got close to the 'knight' and passed by him, he could clearly feel the hair on his body standing on end, like a jerboa being stared at by a wild cat.

It seems that he can be easily pinned to the ground with one claw by the other party, and can be bitten to death or played with at will.

With a shudder, the young rider increased his speed and moved away from the man.

The two rode horses and quickly approached the hundreds of 'robbers' they had seen before. Upon approaching, the young rider was startled by dozens of refugees holding swords. Because they were wearing animal skin clothing commonly worn by bandits in the mountains, these people were really no different from bandits.

But when he slowed down and looked closer, he could tell the difference.

The clothes on these 'robbers' are all in tatters, especially the vital parts of their bodies that are often stained with blood and damaged. Young riders who have been in several battles know that this is a characteristic of captured clothing. Clothes taken off the bodies of the killed are like this.

Because when fighting, no one would think about the appearance of damaged clothing after defeating the enemy before defeating the enemy.

He even noticed that there was a figure in the crowd who looked like a leader. The simple leather armor he was wearing had huge tears on the chest or abdomen. The clothes worn inside could be seen, and they were obviously confiscated.

The damage was probably caused by the metal spear on the horseback of the so-called 'knight'.

Thinking that the simple leather armor he was wearing seemed to have been modified to be lightweight for the convenience of putting on and taking off every day while traveling, and the protection was not as good as other people's damaged leather armor, he nervously touched the surface of the leather armor on his chest.

"What's wrong?" Priest Batal saw that the other party's face was wrong, so he asked.

"Nothing, nothing." The young rider responded immediately.

As he got closer, the young rider could look past the dozens of people in front of him who stared at him unkindly, and saw other people in normal clothes behind him.

Indeed, from a distance, they appear to be unarmed. At most, they only carry a dagger or short sword around their waists. At their feet, there were small boxes unloaded from their backs, or large boxes carried by wooden sticks.

These people all carried more or less supplies, and there were men and women among them, with more women. They were dressed normally and looked normal, and they did not look like they were being coerced by bandits.

"Can I go over and take a closer look?" Thinking of being responsible for everyone, the young rider risked his life and proposed to pass through the team of hundreds of people to take a look behind.

"Of course, everyone, please get out of the way."

Priest Batal responded, and then loudly called for everyone in front to make way for the horses to pass through.

The armed people in the front immediately moved left and right to make way for a road, while the people behind who had been sitting down to rest got up again with curses and carried the boxes and supplies they were responsible for, making way for a crooked road.

Then the priest Battar rode ahead, and the young rider followed.

"Master Priest, why did we stop? How far can we all go in one day if we walk and rest like this? I would say, walk for half a day at a stretch, take a break at noon, and then walk for another half day."

On both sides of the narrow road, religious people complained to the priests.

Priest Batal smiled and said: "We met a caravan ahead. Please wait a moment. We will set off in a moment. Aren't we discussing who should let whom? Please wait a moment."

Regarding the subsequent proposal, he pretended not to have heard it. This is just complaining, because everyone has different physical strength and physique. How fast a team can go does not depend on the speed of the fastest people in the team. On the contrary, it depends on the speed of the slowest people in the team. A group of people determines the speed of action of an entire team.

This is a principle taught to him by the Kiel Warriors.

This principle is simple but very profound. It can be applied not only to traveling but also to many other matters.

Similar to when he was stationed in Changmai Village, the quality of public security in the village was not judged by the young people from the most promising families, but by the poorest and most difficult villagers in the village. At the same time, when discussing things in the village, it is not about how many people agree with a certain proposal, but when some people in the village who least agree with something relax, then things can be done.

"The other party must let us go. There are so many of us, and there are also Knights of Kiel and Priest Batal. Can the other party still make way for us?"

"You're right!"

Someone was discussing loudly next to them. These words were heard by the young rider, and he silently took note of them.

Soon, he passed through the front line and came to the crowd of ordinary people.

The horses slowed down here for fear of hitting the resting people.

After taking a closer look, the young rider finally breathed a sigh of relief, because this group of people was definitely not bandits.

However, it is a strange thing that the refugee group of several hundred people did not go to the western province to escape the war, but instead ran to the southern province, which was becoming increasingly chaotic.

After passing through the crowd of people in the queue, the young rider saw several more carriages, two of which were filled with large and small boxes. Although they looked many, they did not seem to be very heavy.

The two Northland horses pulling the cart were staying in place, their bits loosened, and they were feasting on the grass fed by the driver. Grass is pulled casually from the roadside. This is how it is in the wild. You can pull some grass to feed livestock, but this is not possible in towns. A handful of hay or firewood will cost money.

At the end of this team were some embarrassed businessmen and some women wrapped in inappropriate clothes. These were the rescued businessmen and people.

Behind them, there were dozens of other armed people. The young rider looked at the way these people came from, but found nothing strange, and then the two of them returned the same way.

The two men passed through the crowd and then returned to the place where they faced off.

Priest Batar halted beside Kiel, and the young rider trotted back to his group.

-

"How about it?"

Seeing that the person was back safely, 'Blue Dog' Nus probably made a decision.

"It is indeed a large number of people, all carrying things, not bandits. There are dozens of armed people in front and behind, wearing tattered animal skin clothing and damaged leather armor seized after the battle, and the weapons are also It was very chaotic. At the same time, there was no ambush behind the opponent’s team.”

The young rider stated all his observations in one breath.

The guard captain thought for a moment, then asked everyone to stop where they were. He drove his horse forward and approached the two to talk.

As soon as he got closer, he felt a sense of discomfort and danger from the 'knight', but after looking at the armor on the other person's body, he roughly understood the reason.

The wear and tear on the armor looked very exaggerated. Blue Dog Noos thought that most of it might be deliberately done to deceive people, but a small part should be superficial scars caused by real combat.

It was normal for him to feel uncomfortable after such a combat experience.

"Both of you, my people have just seen it. Indeed, it is a normal refugee team."

Keir spoke: "So, now can we discuss how to protect each other during the interweaving process of our team?"

"Sorry, I'm just the captain of the caravan's guard. This kind of matter ultimately has to be decided by the caravan steward accompanying the caravan."

Kil narrowed his eyes and looked at this man, making him shiver for no reason. He said in a bad tone: "Are you kidding me? Why don't you hurry up and take care of the caravan behind you? Now, immediately, call over. ! Let him come over and take a closer look. Then, I will let you pass, you let me pass, and we will discuss a result as soon as possible. "

He raised his head and glanced at the cloudy sky: "Is it difficult for time to be delayed like this?"

With his heart pounding and cold sweat dripping from his head, Blue Dog Nusi nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, I will bring people over right away."

"Now!"

The guard captain immediately turned his horse's head and galloped back.

As he passed his companions, he shouted: "I'm going to call the caravan manager, you just stay here and don't move."

The caravan guards looked at each other in confusion, but after the young rider's explanation, they understood that they were not bandits, but refugees, so they all relaxed.

On Kiel's side, Priest Batal complained that Kiel spoke too hastily, but Kiel curled his lips and said, "That's how it should be. If you don't urge him, he won't know how many times he will have to delay it. It's not a big deal in the first place, and it won't take too long. good."

"Who would have thought that now that caravans rarely run trade routes, we can still encounter a caravan here. In the past, maybe everyone just gave in and passed by, but now everyone is more vigilant. If not, it will be very difficult. It’s easy to fight.”

Priest Batal complained. He could see with his naked eyes that the life of the southern province, which used to be stable, was getting worse day by day, and the tension was clearly revealed from these small things that he had not paid attention to before.

The two of them talked and waited for a while, and then two horses ran over from the caravan that turned the carriage in the distance.

One of the riders was none other than the guard captain ‘Blue Dog’ Nuss who had just passed by, and the other was a caravan steward dressed as a merchant and wearing a cloak, but wearing a funny leather armor outside the cloak.

The steward was holding the reins with one hand to keep the horse running, and the other hand was pressing the waterproof deerskin soft fur hat on his head.

The front of the hat was inlaid with several rubbles and decorated with a bright red bird feather. It didn't look cheap.