Chapter 293: ๐๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ (1)
Biorarn was astonished at Ulrikeโs flustered state; it was rare to find Ulrike in such a bewildered state.
โWouldnโt it be better to send knights to escort His Highness the Duke?โ
โ. . .Let it be done.โ
โUnderstood. Knights of honor, come forth! We have a fiefdom to enter!โ
While Biorarn did that, Ulrike sank into thought.
Initially flustered, she realized upon reflection that the Duke was not a naive person. He was not one who would easily accept the invitation, even if it was from Count Ineresa.
What on earth was the Duke thinking?
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
โInvitation?โ
โHe has quite a poor reputation among the pilgrims. There are a lot of bad rumors circulating. Even the feudal lords from the west flatly refuse the Countโs invitation. . .โJohan had also received an invitation from Count Ineresa, or rather the self-proclaimed king. As the pilgrims had their own sources of information, they tried to dissuade the Duke from accepting the invitation. There were seriously sinister rumors circulating.
โEven though it seems rather exaggerated, the invitation is definitely somewhat suspicious.โ
โItโs dangerous dealing with someone who calls himself honorable, my dear.โ
Suetlg and Iselia also agreed. Once a bad rumor spread, it tended to snowball, but even considering that, the invitation from โKingโ Ineresa was. . . suspicious.
If he were to be captured so far away from home, dealing with the aftermath would be a headache.
โWhile we should cooperate with the monotheist feudal lords here, cooperating with someone like that could stir up trouble. Wouldnโt it be better to attract another lord?โ
โHmm. . .โ
Johan pondered and shook his head before saying,
โNo. I will accept the invitation.โ
โReally?โ
โYes. There is no reason to refuse.โ
In Johanโs view, it didnโt seem like a personal whim of King Ineresa. Rather than a single person acting crazy, it was more likely that the atmosphere in this region was like that.
It had been a long time since they had crossed over, and communication wasnโt great, so it wasnโt surprising that the feudal lords, after growing more powerful, had appointed themselves as kings.
And if that was true, it would be quite troublesome to seek cooperation from these lords. As they would not unconditionally favor the lords from the west, but would feign neutrality and watch cautiously.
From Johanโs experience, there was no more annoying opponent than those who tried to walk the tightrope between the two sides in such a fight.
Even if they were to ignore the self-proclaimed king and seek out another feudal lord, there was no guarantee that this situation would not repeat itself. To negotiate, they needed to take the reins first.
โIf we avoid the count here, the other feudal lords will hear about it and wonโt take our army lightly. In that case, it would probably be better to persuade the Count directly.โ
โThat sounds reasonable. . . but isnโt that assuming that he can be persuaded?โ
Suetlg expressed his concern. While it didnโt matter if they couldnโt persuade him, it would still be a huge headache if the self-styled king were to do anything crazy.
โYou donโt have to worry about that.โ
โ. . .?โ
โI plan to go in prepared so that they canโt do anything crazy.โ
As soon as Johan finished speaking, his subordinates stepped forward one by one. For an invitation from a noble to enter a fiefdom, it was. . . well, quite a large number of soldiers.
Caenerna asked in a surprised voice,
โSurely you donโt plan to take all of them with you?โ
โWe need an escort.โ
Caenerna burst out laughing at Johanโs cheeky response. They probably thought that the other party would bring a few dozen attendants at most.
How would they react when they saw this army?
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
โHis Highness the Duke wishes to see you.โ
โReally!โ
King Ineresa exclaimed with delight. The old kingโs outburst caused the surrounding attendants to breathe a sigh of relief. If even Duke Yeats declined the offer, one of the attendants might have been whipped.
While he had been quite wise and humble when he was young, King Ineresa had long since lost that demeanor as he aged. The current King Ineresa was closer to a blind feudal lord who only listened to flattery.
โHow wonderful. The Duke, upon hearing of Your Majestyโs reputation, dared not refuse!โ
The chamberlain opened his mouth, gauging the kingโs mood. The king nodded in satisfaction.
โThatโs right. . . Thatโs how it should be! Would it make sense if those who came to this land for the Holy War did not seek out the descendants of the family that successfully completed the Holy War?โ
The refusal of the invitation by the feudal lords from the west was a considerable blow to his pride. Though he didnโt show it, anyone could guess from his foul mood.
That said, they couldnโt attack the arrogant army from the west head-on, and they had no choice but to keep the gates closed and adopt an attitude of โ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ตโ๐ด ๐ด๐ฆ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฐ ๐จ๐ฆ๐ต๐ด ๐ช๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ง๐ช๐ณ๐ด๐ตโ. . .
This time, the Duke had accepted the invitation. He couldnโt be happier.
Not to mention, who was Duke Yeats?
He was a noble with such fame and honor that even in this distant land, rumors of him could be heard. His feat of defeating the emperor and emerging victorious from the civil war was a rare achievement even in these eastern lands.
โMake sure you prepare properly to receive the guest. Now, hurry up!โ
The old king clapped his hands and urged them on. Preparations were essential to welcome noble guests from afar.
Silverware was placed one by one on the tables set up in the grand hall, and rare fruits and ice, hard to come by in this season, were piled up nearby.
In addition to these special luxuries, the basic dishes were also prepared quite lavishly. Whole fattened calves were roasted and stuffed with eggs, cheese, dates, and spices, making the slave preparing them salivate.
Of course, not all of this was prepared out of pure goodwill. This was a kind of show of force and a preemptive strike. The more lavishly the host prepared, the more naturally the hostโs power and authority would be revealed.
Of course, Johan was someone who was completely unimpressed by such things, but there was no way the old king could know that.
โDonโt forget. When the meal starts and the fun is at its peak, you will open your mouth and speak.โ
โWill there be any? Donโt worry.โ
The old king had a specific request for this banquet. It was for the Duke to acknowledge his title.
No matter how much he didnโt care about the west and claimed to have appointed himself as king, people like him tended to be more concerned about others in secret.
If he were to have the title he declared acknowledged and recognized by those who had come to the Holy War this time, his family would be eternally honored with this royal title.
โBut. . . what if His Highness the Duke refuses?โ
โWe canโt let him refuse. Donโt ask stupid questions.โ
The chamberlain was irritated by the clueless young attendantโs question. If the old king had heard that, he would have gotten angry right away.
The old king had no intention of arbitrarily capturing the guests who had come from afar. No matter how tempting it was, he wouldnโt go that far.
However, he did intend to hint at it and threaten them.
Since the Duke had entered after receiving the invitation, the old king had no intention of letting him go easily until he gained the Dukeโs recognition.
โThat seems like a very insulting proposal.โ
โIt canโt be helped if itโs insulting. The Duke will also realize that itโs better to declare a few words than to be unnecessarily captured.โ
Even if his pride was hurt, it was better than being captured here. And the old king was someone who would really capture and detain them if things didnโt go as he wanted.
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
โ. . . . . .โ
โT-This. . .?โ
The soldiers guarding the gate were shocked to see hundreds of people passing easily. For a moment, they thought that the feudal lords from the west had launched an attack.
However, there was only one Dukeโs flag flying in front.
โWait a minute! Iโll go and contact them.โ
โFine. Is there any need to bother His Majesty with this?โ
โNo, I have to contact. . .โ
The soldiers knew, unless they were complete *ssholes, that something was strange about the current situation with hundreds of escorts. They were trying to buy time and report to the king.
And of course, Johan knew that too.
๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐๐ฅ๐!
โQuickly go and report. . . who the hell opened the gate?!!!โ
The defenders on the ramparts were terrified by the sight of the approaching enemies, no, the Dukeโs escorts. It was as if someone had raised the gate from inside and they were pouring in.
Sub-captain Bars, who was leading the slave soldiers, was the first to rush up to the ramparts. As he looked around with his eastern eyes sparkling, the defenders naturally took their hands off their weapons.
โDo. . . do you know what youโre doing. . .?โ
โHis Highness the Duke has arrived with an escort. Is there a problem? Is there a problem!โ
At the murderous words, as if he would swing his sword at any moment, the captain shook his head and said hurriedly,
โNo!โ
โOf course! Unnecessarily keeping the gate closed and wasting time is a tremendous disrespect to His Highness the Duke! He acted himself to avoid such disrespect. Be grateful!โ
โTh. . . Thank you. Thank you!โ
The soldiers on the ramparts had to thank the Duke awkwardly for no reason.
Suetlg, who was below, looked at Bars and was impressed. Not just Bars, but the other sub-captain Alangka and the slave soldiers moved faster than anyone else.
โThey really work hard.โ
โSub-captain Bars? Heโs so loyal that I donโt know how to reward him.โ
โWhatโs new? Are you the only one with such loyal followers? If you just give them a town, theyโll be loyal to you until the end of the world. Since I canโt give it to them now, I guess Iโd better make up for it with warm words.โ
As they were talking, things were almost sorted out. The โescortsโ that Johan had brought with him surrounded the defenders. It wasnโt exactly capture, but it was a subtle position that gave the impression of being captured.
The captain didnโt know anything else, but he just wanted to ask how they had opened the gate. He had no choice but to endure it, as his life was precious. . .
โ๐๐ข๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ฏ ๐ช๐ฏ๐ด๐ช๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ณ? ๐๐ท๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐ช๐ง ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ข๐ด ๐ข๐ฏ ๐ช๐ฏ๐ด๐ช๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ณ, ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ธ. . .?โ
๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ๐ธ
โDeploy soldiers at the gates. Make sure no one escapes from the castle. Itโll be troublesome if they escape.โ
โYes. I will guard it with my life.โ
โYou donโt have to guard it with your life. If your life is in danger, retreat and report back.โ
โThank you. . .! I will do it with my life.โ
โ. . .T-Thatโs right. Work hard.โ
Johan started to say something to Sub-captain Alangkaโs blind words, but stopped. He was dealing with someone who didnโt understand jokes.
โ๐ ๐ฎ๐ช๐ด๐ด ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ค๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ข๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ด ๐ข๐ต ๐ต๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ญ๐ช๐ฌ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด.โ
If it was a mercenary captain, a joke like โ๐๐ณ๐ฆ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ช๐จ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฎ๐ฆ?โ would have been possible. Then the mercenary captain would have smiled and accepted it.
If he made such jokes to slave soldiers, a few of them would definitely hang themselves.
โWhat. . . what. . . what. . .???โ
The chamberlain, who came running out of the inner palace late, didnโt seem to understand the situation and just kept his mouth agape. He had a puzzled expression on his face, unable to tell if they had come as enemies or if there was something else going on.
๐๐๐ง๐ !
Johan put both hands on the chamberlainโs shoulders and said in a friendly manner.
โWe have come at His Majestyโs invitation. Guide us.โ
โTh. . . th. . . the soldiers. . .?โ
โIs there a problem with my escorts? Think carefully and answer.โ
โ. . . . . .โ
Only then did the chamberlain, who had finally come to his senses, realize the situation and was aghast.
Just as the old king had hinted at the possibility of capture and tried to threaten him, the Duke was now subtly hinting and threatening him.
And he was risking his life!
He had heard a lot about the Duke being a hero who had accomplished great things at a young age, but even so, he couldnโt believe that he would bring an army into the castle and do something like this in broad daylight.
โYour Highness. . . a pagan. . . a devout. . . a real one. . . if this is the case. . .?โ
โWhat did you say? I canโt hear you well.โ
โ. . .I will guide you. Please come this way!โ
As Johanโs voice dropped menacingly, the chamberlain decided to protect himself instead of asking any further questions. He had done what he could.
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Translation-(COMPLETED) โ How to Live as a Wandering Knight
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