How to Live as a Wandering Knight

Chapter 337: ????? ??????? (1)

By some means, the news had ascended north and reached the ears of the feudal lords. Despite the differing time it took for the message to arrive, the feudal lords, upon hearing the news, showed similar reactions.

“. . .What did you just say?”

“W-Well. . .”

The cautious feudal lords were careful with their actions, mindful of the gazes around them, while the hot-tempered ones exploded with fury accompanied by curses.

“You dare say that to me now?! You want me to become a vassal to the duke?! What deficiency do you see in me that I ought to pledge loyalty to the duke and offer him my soldiers? Speak!”

“T-That’s not it. The Holy Land was conquered, but there are still quite a few enemies left, aren’t there? His grace the duke intends for us to unite in order to prepare for those enemies. . .”

“Whose will are you delivering now!”

The messenger was suddenly caught in the crossfire. The messenger, who had been trying to calm the count’s anger, hurriedly lowered his head.

“My family came here over a hundred years ago. Both this land and this castle were built with the power of my family. And now a westerner comes here and tells me to become his vassal!”

The count stopped his ranting at the steward’s words. But his anger did not subside.

Becoming another’s vassal meant pledging oneself as a vassal, offering taxes and military service. Of course, this was quite significant, but what mattered most was pride.

To the feudal lords who had crossed the sea and settled down, their pride was, above all else, a serious issue.

They had lived like kings in their own fiefdoms without bowing their heads to anyone, and now they were being told to bow their heads. This was absolutely unacceptable.

“However, the duke’s army is strong and their numbers. . .”

Not all the vassals showed their pride. The cautious and wise ones spoke up with concern.

The expeditionary force from the west this time was fierce and strong, and their numbers exceeded ten thousand. Moreover, since the duke enjoyed authority from his great expedition, he would be able to use them as his arms and legs.

When the sultan’s army landed just recently, the feudal lords here had trembled in fear.

Thinking back on how the feudal lords had groveled before the duke for help at that time, their current tantrums honestly felt laughable.

However, people tend to forget kindness once the danger has passed, and nobles tend to forget even more quickly. None of the people here brought up that story. The Count was definitely not the type of person who would feel ashamed even if he heard it.

Rather, he would just get mad. . .

“Why do you think that expeditionary force was able to fight well here? It’s because we supported them from behind.”

“. . . . . .”

The count’s vassals were momentarily taken aback at his words. They had roughly expected what the count would say, but this was a bit too brazen.

When the expeditionary force first arrived, the feudal lords here did not particularly welcome them. Even now, most of their supplies were coming from the fleets arriving by sea, and they had not asked the feudal lords here for anything in particular.

Of course, the feudal lords had provided soldiers and quite a bit of funding, but compared to the overall scale, it was nothing more than a drop in the bucket.

“You’re right. Considering the duke’s fame, he won’t turn his spearhead towards us just because we reject his proposal.”

“But wouldn’t the other nobles under him incite him?”

“That’s why, even if that happens, if we cut off their supplies, they won’t be able to last long. . .”

“If we let them into the ports that are currently open, it could turn into a long-term war. . .”

“Quiet!”

The count cut off the noisy debate as his vassals’ opinions were divided. His mind had been made up from the start.

“I absolutely refuse to kneel to those from the west! Tell the duke that if he wants an oath of fealty, he should come here himself and make me kneel!”

After the furious count’s outburst, the vassals led by the steward spoke to the scribe.

“Absolutely do not write it down as he said.”

“Yes. Understood.”

Their opinions were divided, but they agreed on one thing.

They had to send a reply as politely as possible, even if it was a rejection.

There was no need to provoke the duke and incur his unnecessary wrath.

??????

The old king who ruled the Ineressa Kingdom also received similar news.

The old king, who had taken a liking to the duke through various incidents, frowned as if troubled.

“To make such a proposal. . .”

“He’s so arrogant!”

“The duke isn’t that kind of person.”

“. . .Thinking about it, that sounds right. Maybe the people around him incited him!”

The court vassals who had opened their mouths thinking that the old king would get angry quickly changed direction upon his unexpected response.

“Well, when someone accomplishes great things at such a young age, he’s bound to attract greedy people. . . Tsk tsk. The nobles of the empire, I don’t understand why they’re so greedy.”

If the nobles of the empire heard those words, they would have drawn their swords. Just recently, the earlier expeditionary forces had suffered greatly because of the old king’s lack of support.

And yet, he was calling them greedy.

“Hmm. . .Tell him that I will carefully consider his proposal.”

“D-Does that truly mean what you say?!”

The vassals were taken aback. This was a completely unexpected response.

No matter how fond he was of the duke, this was going too far. Especially considering how much the old king was obsessed with honor. . .

“The other feudal lords will reject him anyway. Just think about their personalities. But the duke will be grateful to me.”

“Ah. . .! How brilliant!”

The vassals exclaimed in admiration, realizing his intentions. Although he had made mistakes in various ways, the old king’s political prowess was still intact.

To predict the actions of others and respond like this, it was truly a brilliant response.

“Your majesty! Your majesty!”

The vassals frowned at the sight of the messenger riding his horse and rushing towards them from in front of the inner castle gate. Unless it was truly urgent news, he should have dismounted and walked towards them.

Has anything happened recently that’s worth all this fuss?

“It seems that the other feudal lords have rejected the proposal. Perhaps one of the hot-headed ones insulted the duke.”

The old king made predictions as if intoxicated by his own judgment. Since his words sounded quite plausible, the vassals nodded unknowingly. If the duke, angered by the insult, sent the messengers again. . .

“Did the duke send you?”

“Yes? No. Your majesty. They say that the sultan’s army has appeared in the north! They are rapidly marching south through the Black Mountains.”

“. . . . . .”

“. . . . . .”

The atmosphere turned cold and frosty at the unexpected news. The first reaction was denial.

“What nonsense are you talking about? How is that possible?”

It was natural for the vassals to react this way.

It hadn’t been long since the sultan’s great army landed in the south. The sultan could not mobilize that many troops so easily.

And yet, they were saying that another army was approaching from the north.

Logically, this story made no sense.

“But it’s true! You must prepare. The captain of the guard testified to it, and the knights who went on patrol also testified to seeing them.”

Everyone was at a loss for words. It felt as if God was angry with them. They had already gone through one ordeal, and now another ordeal was upon them.

They could not understand why the sultan was doing this.

“We need to call up the soldiers and hire mercenaries.”

“We need to call the expeditionary force from the west! We don’t know when the sultan’s army will arrive here!”

“T-That’s right. You’re right.”

The old king belatedly snapped out of his shock. His vassals’ words brought him back to his senses.

“Your majesty. You needn’t worry. Our castle walls are tall and strong, and the people of our fiefdom are strong and loyal. We can hold out!”

“. . . . . .”

When the old king did not seem very convinced, another vassal spoke up.

“The duke leading the expeditionary force will prioritize Your Majesty over the other feudal lords. Aren’t you much closer?”

Only then did the old king’s expression relax a little.

??????

“Ah. I told you it would be futile.”

Johan replied to Ulrike, sounding as if he hadn’t expected much. From the start, the plan to make the feudal lords here his vassals was too overly optimistic.

Unless the feudal lords had arrows in their heads, they would resist fiercely, and repeating another long battle in a distant land would be a losing proposition.

No matter how threatening the atmosphere was here or how much he intimidated those from their fiefdoms, weren’t the feudal lords comfortably settled in their own small, sturdy strongholds?

Even if he took hostages and threatened them, they would not yield.

“Don’t worry about useless things. Take care of the Holy Land while I’m away on my expedition.”

Johan spoke as he put on his armor. He had originally thought long and hard about whether he should go south to capture Manansir, but he had changed his mind.

The eunuchs who he had intended to execute without much thought had brought up an interesting story.

??? ???? ??????? ???????? ?? ???? ????????! ???? ????, ??????. . .!

“I’m not sure if I can trust eunuchs.”

“They wouldn’t have risked their lives to lie. And even if it’s a lie, there’s nothing to lose. All we have to do is return.”

Johan didn’t trust the eunuchs, but he figured that they wouldn’t neglect something that risked their own lives.

Ulrike felt slightly annoyed at the duke who didn’t even change his expression as he embarked on such a risky expedition that was close to gambling. Ulrike decided to throw in a provocative question.

“Aren’t you worried about what I might do in the Holy Land while Your Highness is away?”

“What nonsense are you talking about?”

“?”

“You’re not that kind of person. Well then, I’ll leave it to you.”

Johan walked away without looking back after his reply. Ulrike was speechless, caught off guard. Only after the duke had walked away did Ulrike open her mouth.

“Hey. . .”

Ulrike, who had belatedly tried to call out to him, realized that he was already too far away to hear, and she closed her mouth. Beside her, a servant asked, completely unaware of the situation.

“Master. Should I call His Highness back?”

“. . .No need!”

??????

How could the eunuchs have promised to hand over Viceroy Manansir, who was hiding deep in his fiefdom in the south?

No matter how terrifying the expeditionary force was, the feudal lords under the viceroy were not so spineless as to surrender easily. Conquering those castles and fortresses one by one and capturing Viceroy Manansir would require a great deal of time and effort.

However, the eunuchs came up with a brilliant idea.

“We will send a forged letter from the sultan! They won’t dare to refuse!”

“. . . . . .”

When he first heard it, Johan thought that the eunuchs were just bluffing because they didn’t want to be thrown away. How could they forge a letter from the sultan?

In Johan’s case, a letter containing his orders was written on high-quality white paper that only a few among the nobles could write. The texture of the paper, the color of the ink, each of those served as proof.

Of course, that wasn’t all. The duke’s seal, which was the most important, was imprinted inside the letter and also stamped on the sealing wax outside the letter. The ring with that seal engraved was a very important item to nobles.

The sultan would likely go through a similar process. There was no way the eunuchs could have the sultan’s signet ring. Unless the sultan had lost his mind. . .

“Actually, we have the signet ring. It’s a forgery, though.”

“. . .What?”

Johan was genuinely surprised. The other subordinates who were listening were also shocked.

What crazy b*stards!

The power of the eunuchs depended on how close they were to the sultan. Although he is a useless eunuch, he can influence the life and death of people by inciting the Sultan.

However, the sultan was also human, and there were times when it was difficult to persuade him.

In such times, wouldn’t it be convenient if they could create fake orders instead of trying to persuade him? The sultan, who was burdened with his heavy workload, would also be happy not to have to bother with such trivial matters.

“. . .It’s out of loyalty that we’ve done this! Really!”

“Aren’t you crazy b*stards??”

The subordinates behind could no longer hold back and spoke up. No matter how much they tried to brush it off thinking, ‘????’? ???? ??? ?????? ??? ?? ??? ????’, it was going too far.

And Johan agreed with that opinion.

By some means, the news had ascended north and reached the ears of the feudal lords. Despite the differing time it took for the message to arrive, the feudal lords, upon hearing the news, showed similar reactions.

“. . .What did you just say?”

“W-Well. . .”

The cautious feudal lords were careful with their actions, mindful of the gazes around them, while the hot-tempered ones exploded with fury accompanied by curses.

“You dare say that to me now?! You want me to become a vassal to the duke?! What deficiency do you see in me that I ought to pledge loyalty to the duke and offer him my soldiers? Speak!”

“T-That’s not it. The Holy Land was conquered, but there are still quite a few enemies left, aren’t there? His grace the duke intends for us to unite in order to prepare for those enemies. . .”

“Whose will are you delivering now!”

The messenger was suddenly caught in the crossfire. The messenger, who had been trying to calm the count’s anger, hurriedly lowered his head.

“My family came here over a hundred years ago. Both this land and this castle were built with the power of my family. And now a westerner comes here and tells me to become his vassal!”

“Your excellency. There are many who are listening.”

The count stopped his ranting at the steward’s words. But his anger did not subside.

Becoming another’s vassal meant pledging oneself as a vassal, offering taxes and military service. Of course, this was quite significant, but what mattered most was pride.

To the feudal lords who had crossed the sea and settled down, their pride was, above all else, a serious issue.

They had lived like kings in their own fiefdoms without bowing their heads to anyone, and now they were being told to bow their heads. This was absolutely unacceptable.

“However, the duke’s army is strong and their numbers. . .”

Not all the vassals showed their pride. The cautious and wise ones spoke up with concern.

The expeditionary force from the west this time was fierce and strong, and their numbers exceeded ten thousand. Moreover, since the duke enjoyed authority from his great expedition, he would be able to use them as his arms and legs.

When the sultan’s army landed just recently, the feudal lords here had trembled in fear.

Thinking back on how the feudal lords had groveled before the duke for help at that time, their current tantrums honestly felt laughable.

However, people tend to forget kindness once the danger has passed, and nobles tend to forget even more quickly. None of the people here brought up that story. The Count was definitely not the type of person who would feel ashamed even if he heard it.

Rather, he would just get mad. . .

“Why do you think that expeditionary force was able to fight well here? It’s because we supported them from behind.”

“. . . . . .”

The count’s vassals were momentarily taken aback at his words. They had roughly expected what the count would say, but this was a bit too brazen.

When the expeditionary force first arrived, the feudal lords here did not particularly welcome them. Even now, most of their supplies were coming from the fleets arriving by sea, and they had not asked the feudal lords here for anything in particular.

Of course, the feudal lords had provided soldiers and quite a bit of funding, but compared to the overall scale, it was nothing more than a drop in the bucket.

“You’re right. Considering the duke’s fame, he won’t turn his spearhead towards us just because we reject his proposal.”

“But wouldn’t the other nobles under him incite him?”

“That’s why, even if that happens, if we cut off their supplies, they won’t be able to last long. . .”

“If we let them into the ports that are currently open, it could turn into a long-term war. . .”

“Quiet!”

The count cut off the noisy debate as his vassals’ opinions were divided. His mind had been made up from the start.

“I absolutely refuse to kneel to those from the west! Tell the duke that if he wants an oath of fealty, he should come here himself and make me kneel!”

After the furious count’s outburst, the vassals led by the steward spoke to the scribe.

“Absolutely do not write it down as he said.”

“Yes. Understood.”

Their opinions were divided, but they agreed on one thing.

They had to send a reply as politely as possible, even if it was a rejection.

There was no need to provoke the duke and incur his unnecessary wrath.

??????

The old king who ruled the Ineressa Kingdom also received similar news.

The old king, who had taken a liking to the duke through various incidents, frowned as if troubled.

“To make such a proposal. . .”

“He’s so arrogant!”

“The duke isn’t that kind of person.”

“. . .Thinking about it, that sounds right. Maybe the people around him incited him!”

The court vassals who had opened their mouths thinking that the old king would get angry quickly changed direction upon his unexpected response.

“Well, when someone accomplishes great things at such a young age, he’s bound to attract greedy people. . . Tsk tsk. The nobles of the empire, I don’t understand why they’re so greedy.”

If the nobles of the empire heard those words, they would have drawn their swords. Just recently, the earlier expeditionary forces had suffered greatly because of the old king’s lack of support.

And yet, he was calling them greedy.

“Hmm. . .Tell him that I will carefully consider his proposal.”

“D-Does that truly mean what you say?!”

The vassals were taken aback. This was a completely unexpected response.

No matter how fond he was of the duke, this was going too far. Especially considering how much the old king was obsessed with honor. . .

“The other feudal lords will reject him anyway. Just think about their personalities. But the duke will be grateful to me.”

“Ah. . .! How brilliant!”

The vassals exclaimed in admiration, realizing his intentions. Although he had made mistakes in various ways, the old king’s political prowess was still intact.

To predict the actions of others and respond like this, it was truly a brilliant response.

“Your majesty! Your majesty!”

The vassals frowned at the sight of the messenger riding his horse and rushing towards them from in front of the inner castle gate. Unless it was truly urgent news, he should have dismounted and walked towards them.

Has anything happened recently that’s worth all this fuss?

“It seems that the other feudal lords have rejected the proposal. Perhaps one of the hot-headed ones insulted the duke.”

The old king made predictions as if intoxicated by his own judgment. Since his words sounded quite plausible, the vassals nodded unknowingly. If the duke, angered by the insult, sent the messengers again. . .

“Did the duke send you?”

“Yes? No. Your majesty. They say that the sultan’s army has appeared in the north! They are rapidly marching south through the Black Mountains.”

“. . . . . .”

“. . . . . .”

The atmosphere turned cold and frosty at the unexpected news. The first reaction was denial.

“What nonsense are you talking about? How is that possible?”

It was natural for the vassals to react this way.

It hadn’t been long since the sultan’s great army landed in the south. The sultan could not mobilize that many troops so easily.

And yet, they were saying that another army was approaching from the north.

Logically, this story made no sense.

“But it’s true! You must prepare. The captain of the guard testified to it, and the knights who went on patrol also testified to seeing them.”

Everyone was at a loss for words. It felt as if God was angry with them. They had already gone through one ordeal, and now another ordeal was upon them.

They could not understand why the sultan was doing this.

“We need to call up the soldiers and hire mercenaries.”

“We need to call the expeditionary force from the west! We don’t know when the sultan’s army will arrive here!”

“T-That’s right. You’re right.”

The old king belatedly snapped out of his shock. His vassals’ words brought him back to his senses.

“Your majesty. You needn’t worry. Our castle walls are tall and strong, and the people of our fiefdom are strong and loyal. We can hold out!”

“. . . . . .”

When the old king did not seem very convinced, another vassal spoke up.

“The duke leading the expeditionary force will prioritize Your Majesty over the other feudal lords. Aren’t you much closer?”

Only then did the old king’s expression relax a little.

??????

“Ah. I told you it would be futile.”

Johan replied to Ulrike, sounding as if he hadn’t expected much. From the start, the plan to make the feudal lords here his vassals was too overly optimistic.

Unless the feudal lords had arrows in their heads, they would resist fiercely, and repeating another long battle in a distant land would be a losing proposition.

No matter how threatening the atmosphere was here or how much he intimidated those from their fiefdoms, weren’t the feudal lords comfortably settled in their own small, sturdy strongholds?

Even if he took hostages and threatened them, they would not yield.

“Don’t worry about useless things. Take care of the Holy Land while I’m away on my expedition.”

Johan spoke as he put on his armor. He had originally thought long and hard about whether he should go south to capture Manansir, but he had changed his mind.

The eunuchs who he had intended to execute without much thought had brought up an interesting story.

??? ???? ??????? ???????? ?? ???? ????????! ???? ????, ??????. . .!

“I’m not sure if I can trust eunuchs.”

“They wouldn’t have risked their lives to lie. And even if it’s a lie, there’s nothing to lose. All we have to do is return.”

Johan didn’t trust the eunuchs, but he figured that they wouldn’t neglect something that risked their own lives.

Ulrike felt slightly annoyed at the duke who didn’t even change his expression as he embarked on such a risky expedition that was close to gambling. Ulrike decided to throw in a provocative question.

“Aren’t you worried about what I might do in the Holy Land while Your Highness is away?”

“What nonsense are you talking about?”

“?”

“You’re not that kind of person. Well then, I’ll leave it to you.”

Johan walked away without looking back after his reply. Ulrike was speechless, caught off guard. Only after the duke had walked away did Ulrike open her mouth.

“Hey. . .”

Ulrike, who had belatedly tried to call out to him, realized that he was already too far away to hear, and she closed her mouth. Beside her, a servant asked, completely unaware of the situation.

“Master. Should I call His Highness back?”

“. . .No need!”

??????

How could the eunuchs have promised to hand over Viceroy Manansir, who was hiding deep in his fiefdom in the south?

No matter how terrifying the expeditionary force was, the feudal lords under the viceroy were not so spineless as to surrender easily. Conquering those castles and fortresses one by one and capturing Viceroy Manansir would require a great deal of time and effort.

However, the eunuchs came up with a brilliant idea.

“We will send a forged letter from the sultan! They won’t dare to refuse!”

“. . . . . .”

When he first heard it, Johan thought that the eunuchs were just bluffing because they didn’t want to be thrown away. How could they forge a letter from the sultan?

In Johan’s case, a letter containing his orders was written on high-quality white paper that only a few among the nobles could write. The texture of the paper, the color of the ink, each of those served as proof.

Of course, that wasn’t all. The duke’s seal, which was the most important, was imprinted inside the letter and also stamped on the sealing wax outside the letter. The ring with that seal engraved was a very important item to nobles.

The sultan would likely go through a similar process. There was no way the eunuchs could have the sultan’s signet ring. Unless the sultan had lost his mind. . .

“Actually, we have the signet ring. It’s a forgery, though.”

“. . .What?”

Johan was genuinely surprised. The other subordinates who were listening were also shocked.

What crazy b*stards!

The power of the eunuchs depended on how close they were to the sultan. Although he is a useless eunuch, he can influence the life and death of people by inciting the Sultan.

However, the sultan was also human, and there were times when it was difficult to persuade him.

In such times, wouldn’t it be convenient if they could create fake orders instead of trying to persuade him? The sultan, who was burdened with his heavy workload, would also be happy not to have to bother with such trivial matters.

“. . .It’s out of loyalty that we’ve done this! Really!”

“Aren’t you crazy b*stards??”

The subordinates behind could no longer hold back and spoke up. No matter how much they tried to brush it off thinking, ‘????’? ???? ??? ?????? ??? ?? ??? ????’, it was going too far.

And Johan agreed with that opinion.