How to Live as a Wandering Knight

Chapter 343: ???????? (3)

Ulrike was angry, but she could not ignore the apologetic response sent by the castellan. Ulrike was not a crazy noble who would ignore an apology and choose war out of pride.

“Tell me the reason. Why didn’t you open the door in the first place?”

“That’s. . . because the castellan said it was to protest Your Highness the Duke not respecting their rights as a feudal lord and acting rudely.”

“. . . . . .”

Ulrike had a stunned expression at the unexpected answer. It was such an apt response that it was rather an unexpected answer given the current situation.

The Duke was indeed acting quite rudely at the moment.

The only reason why those who were captured and dragged here did not protest was because they had committed many crimes. If they started arguing over who was at fault, they would be at a very disadvantageous position, so they obediently kept their mouths shut.

But people like the Atig castellan were different.

Since he had followed Johan’s orders from the far south, he was in a position to protest rude behavior.

If he was very fearful, he would have read the situation and the army and been more cautious, but the castellan also had a rather stubborn personality. Since there was nothing to lose, he stood up to protest.

‘? ???? ? ???????. . .!’

Ulrike twisted her hair and bit her lip.

She had made a rash judgment because she was slightly annoyed by the actions of the nearby feudal lords. No matter how annoying the feudal lords were, she should have carefully considered each one. The feudal lords all had different thoughts and quirks. . .

In the end, the Duke’s judgment, which had seemed too cautious, was right. Ulrike felt her face flush with embarrassment.

“I will go and explain personally. Guide me to the castellan.”

“You don’t need to worry about it. . .”

“Not required! The castellan should know who made that suggestion.”

Anyone could make a mistake, but at the very least, one had to take responsibility for it. Ulrike scolded herself and took a step forward.

??????

Castellan Atig was an old human woman who looked to be about the same age as Suetlg. Even so, her back was straight and her eyes sparkled with energy.

A thought of Countess Abner crossed Ulrike’s mind, making her feel even more ashamed. She had made the duke looked bad because she had misunderstood people.

“It’s alright now, Your Highness duke. I have resolved the misunderstanding thanks to the warm gift Your Highness sent.”

The castellan spoke politely in a firm, powerful voice.

Apparently the duke had not only sent an envoy a second time, as a threat, but had sent the envoy with great courtesy and kindness. This attitude had moved the castellan.

As the leader of a powerful expedition, the duke could have easily ignored the castellan, who ruled over a tiny territory, and attacked in a fit of rage. Instead, he had sent another gift.

The castellan was ashamed of her narrow-mindedness.

“I was hasty and rude to the castellan. I apologize.”

“No! My lord’s grace toward a humble noble. . . I am very grateful.”

A monotheist, Castellan Atig was located at the northernmost point of the feudal lords and was thus plagued by more enemies than anyone else due to her location.

Starting with pagan nobles, there were also bands of rogues and monsters streaming out of the Black Mountains. The castellans in this area inevitably became battle-hardened. If it weren’t for the fact that the surrounding area was poor and not worth much, the masters would have changed hands several times by now.

Of course, the other feudal lords were not grateful for such hard work. With a small number of fiefdom citizens, soldiers, and wealth, the castellan always had little say. Even if they wanted to provide support, they couldn’t do that either.

In the midst of all this, the young duke, who had led an expedition and defeated the pagan army and reclaimed the Holy Land, even though it was none of her business, could not help but be contrasted.

The feudal lords who had been in this land for nearly a hundred years were only concerned with their own interests.

In contrast, the duke came from across the sea, endured hardships, and fought only with the pagans without causing any problems, even reclaiming the Holy Land.

No matter how hard the castellan tried to break her own stubbornness and beliefs and side with the feudal lords, she simply could not bring herself to do so. She felt he would have to become something less than human, more like a beast, to side with the feudal lords.

“. . .In fact, it was my suggestion. Castellan.”

“I see.”

The castellan did not say anything to Ulrike’s words. Given the difference in their status, she could not get angry with Ulrike.

However, Ulrike could clearly sense it. The castellan had cast a look of contempt at Ulrike. The castellan probably thought of Ulrike as ’? ?????????? ???-??? ???????? ?? ??? ????’? ?????????.’

‘??, ??!’

And what made it even harder to bear was that the current situation was such that it couldn’t be helped!

Even Ulrike herself would have thought so. Ulrike bit her lip at the humiliating situation she had created.

“Castellan. I want to stop the enemy here if possible.”

The nobles of the expedition were drunk on victory due to their ridiculously easy victories. Some of them even argued that they should go further north and attack first.

??? ?? ?????????? ????????? ?? ????? ??? ?????? ????? ?? ??? ???? ?? ??? ???????????? ??? ???????? ??? ?? ???? ???????? ??? ?????? ???? ??? ???????? ??? ????. ??? ?? ?????? ?????!

???????????!

‘????? ????? ?????. . .’

Of course, Johan had no intention of doing such a thing. It would be to their advantage if the enemy came to them, so why would they go into the enemy’s territory?

Johan was impressed by the castellan’s words.

“You are wise indeed! If we were to force our way through, it would be difficult to feed so many soldiers. Your Highness.”

“Indeed.”

Even if they were to divide the large army and deploy it, it was important where the supply lines reached. Johan planned to wait for the enemy here. Besides, there was one more advantage to this area.

“There’s a big river ahead. How many places can we cross?”

“It’s marked on the map. The boats and bridges on the river have all been destroyed long ago, and the fiefdom citizens on the other side of the river have all been relocated to this side long ago.”

“. . .!”

This time it was Johan’s turn to be impressed by the castellan’s words. Johan was very pleased that the castellan had scratched his itchy spot.

“Excellent! You’ve already made such preparations.”

“It’s just a cowardly trick I learned to survive with a small number of soldiers. Your Highness. I am rather ashamed when you say that.”

“No, anyone who calls this cowardly doesn’t know what tactics are. It’s not just about facing each other head-on with spears. The point is to create a situation where you can win.”

“That’s. . .”

Even though they had only met a day ago, the two of them seemed to understand each other like old friends of ten years. When the castellan brought up tactics, Johan praised her, and when Johan brought up tactics, the castellan was impressed. Ulrike felt lonely.

Ulrike herself agreed with the castellan’s tactics. . .

However, Ulrike knew very well. She knew that if she tried to intervene here, the castellan would see her as a young yes-man who knew nothing and was just trying to take credit.

In the end, she had no choice but to sit here and listen obediently. Ulrike tried hard to respond to the castellan’s words in order to regain the trust she had lost.

??????

“This is as far as we go. Keep a close eye on them so that you don’t miss any of them crossing over to this side.”

“Yes.”

As soon as the sun rose, Johan and his men scouted the area around the river. It was wide and deep enough that many would die if they tried to cross it recklessly.

‘?? ???’? ?? ?????? ??.’

Except for a few shallow spots, the only way to go around was to go all the way east. It was not easy to lead such a large army around.

“Your Highness. There are cowards among those who have joined this honorable expedition. They say we should stop here and not move any further.”

“I gave the order.”

“. . .I apologize!”

The oblivious feudal lords became the advance party again. They cautiously crossed the river to the other side as punishment for their lord’s loose lips.

“Were you going to go with them?”

“No, Duke. Those kinds of people need to learn their lesson the hard way.”

The centaurs spoke sternly. Even those who were careless become serious after being punished a few times. It is also the duty of adults to raise the young well.

. . .Of course, the advance party crossing the river right now was not young.

“I’m worried that they might be annihilated if they make a mistake.”

“If they lose, that’s their fate.”

“We can just send more.”

“. . . . . .”

Johan glanced around briefly. Fortunately, there were no knights listening. If they had heard, the centaurs’ reputation would only have grown.

“Let’s go back. Your Highness. I’ll signal you when they return, so you can come out again then.”

When Johan did not move from his spot near the river, the centaurs advised him to return to camp.

To be honest, there was no reason to wait here just because those annoying feudal lords and their dastard knights had gone out on patrol. He could have just rested in his tent and come out later.

It was cold and windy, so why. . .

“No. I’ll wait here. You can go back if it’s too hard. The enemy won’t come out here anyway.”

“Hey. How can we go back alone? We’ll wait with you.”

The centaurs sat down next to Johan grumblingly without leaving. Achladda checked the string of his bow, combed his mane, and yawned.

“I’m bored. Anyone want to bet while we wait? Who will bring back the greatest prey from across the river? I’ll bet a gold necklace.”

“I’m fine with what I have, thank you. . .”

“Me too. I don’t want to get my body wet.”

“. . . . . .”

Achladda was taken aback by his men’s reaction after they had eaten their fill. His comrades on the prairie would not believe this. They would fight over a single piece of gold, but now they were saying they didn’t want to bet because they had too many gold necklaces.

“Hey! Huh! Look over there!”

“Oh! Okay. Are you going to bet?”

“No, look over there! It’s the enemy!”

Achladda hurriedly got up. He could see dust rising on the other side of the river.

The enemy’s advance party had finally arrived.

??????

“Retreat! Retreat!”

The feudal lord, who had been riding his horse fearlessly and quickly, was terrified when he encountered the enemy. The experience of making eye contact with the enemy slowly climbing up from below as he crossed a low hill sent shivers down the spine of even a battle-hardened veteran.

????! ???!

He turned his horse around in fear and gave the order to retreat, but the enemy did not let this opportunity slip away. They hurriedly rushed forward as if they wanted to catch him at all costs.

Unlike the allied knights, who were heavily armed and had traveled quite a distance, many of the enemy knights were lightly armed. In extreme cases, some of them didn’t even wear metal armor.

“The duke is trying to kill me! The duke!”

“Master! Listening ears. . .”

“Anyway, they are my subordinates and we are caught here, why would I care about listening ears!”

The feudal lord exploded in anger. He could feel the arrows, which had not been visible until a moment ago, flying in close, and the enemy following him on both sides.

???! ??!

“?”

However, the enemy who had been following him closely suddenly turned their horses around in a hurry. The feudal lord was bewildered.

‘????? ???? ???? ?? ????? ??? ???? ????????’

“Master!! Reinforcements have arrived!”

While he was so focused on running away that he didn’t notice, the duke had crossed the river with his men.

“Charge!”

Although it was impossible, the feudal lord felt like he could clearly hear the sound of something breaking. If the horde of enemies that had been chasing him were a single living creature, it was the sound of grabbing it and breaking its spine with brute force.

The duke’s charge was that fierce.

“Oh my God!”

He saw an experienced subordinate knight gasp and cross himself. The duke and his men had charged into the enemy and were literally slaughtering them. It seemed unreal as enemies fell every time they swung their weapons.

The feudal lords who had not participated in the previous battle could not imagine how the duke had won despite the difference in numbers.

They had only vaguely or abstractly imagined a miraculous scene like that.

However, at least the feudal lord himself who was here could instinctively be sure of how he had won.

That was how he had crushed the enemy’s bones and flesh and won!

When he had cut down more than twenty of them while holding his breath, the rest of them could not bear it any longer and ran away. Johan approached the feudal lord covered in blood. At the sight of his overwhelming aura, the small rebellious spirit that had been in the feudal lord’s heart completely disappeared.

“Are you okay?”

“I was wrong. . .!”

“???”

,

Ulrike was angry, but she could not ignore the apologetic response sent by the castellan. Ulrike was not a crazy noble who would ignore an apology and choose war out of pride.

“Tell me the reason. Why didn’t you open the door in the first place?”

“That’s. . . because the castellan said it was to protest Your Highness the Duke not respecting their rights as a feudal lord and acting rudely.”

“. . . . . .”

Ulrike had a stunned expression at the unexpected answer. It was such an apt response that it was rather an unexpected answer given the current situation.

The Duke was indeed acting quite rudely at the moment.

The only reason why those who were captured and dragged here did not protest was because they had committed many crimes. If they started arguing over who was at fault, they would be at a very disadvantageous position, so they obediently kept their mouths shut.

But people like the Atig castellan were different.

Since he had followed Johan’s orders from the far south, he was in a position to protest rude behavior.

If he was very fearful, he would have read the situation and the army and been more cautious, but the castellan also had a rather stubborn personality. Since there was nothing to lose, he stood up to protest.

‘? ???? ? ???????. . .!’

Ulrike twisted her hair and bit her lip.

She had made a rash judgment because she was slightly annoyed by the actions of the nearby feudal lords. No matter how annoying the feudal lords were, she should have carefully considered each one. The feudal lords all had different thoughts and quirks. . .

In the end, the Duke’s judgment, which had seemed too cautious, was right. Ulrike felt her face flush with embarrassment.

“I will go and explain personally. Guide me to the castellan.”

“You don’t need to worry about it. . .”

“Not required! The castellan should know who made that suggestion.”

Anyone could make a mistake, but at the very least, one had to take responsibility for it. Ulrike scolded herself and took a step forward.

??????

Castellan Atig was an old human woman who looked to be about the same age as Suetlg. Even so, her back was straight and her eyes sparkled with energy.

A thought of Countess Abner crossed Ulrike’s mind, making her feel even more ashamed. She had made the duke looked bad because she had misunderstood people.

“It’s alright now, Your Highness duke. I have resolved the misunderstanding thanks to the warm gift Your Highness sent.”

The castellan spoke politely in a firm, powerful voice.

Apparently the duke had not only sent an envoy a second time, as a threat, but had sent the envoy with great courtesy and kindness. This attitude had moved the castellan.

As the leader of a powerful expedition, the duke could have easily ignored the castellan, who ruled over a tiny territory, and attacked in a fit of rage. Instead, he had sent another gift.

The castellan was ashamed of her narrow-mindedness.

“I was hasty and rude to the castellan. I apologize.”

“No! My lord’s grace toward a humble noble. . . I am very grateful.”

A monotheist, Castellan Atig was located at the northernmost point of the feudal lords and was thus plagued by more enemies than anyone else due to her location.

Starting with pagan nobles, there were also bands of rogues and monsters streaming out of the Black Mountains. The castellans in this area inevitably became battle-hardened. If it weren’t for the fact that the surrounding area was poor and not worth much, the masters would have changed hands several times by now.

Of course, the other feudal lords were not grateful for such hard work. With a small number of fiefdom citizens, soldiers, and wealth, the castellan always had little say. Even if they wanted to provide support, they couldn’t do that either.

In the midst of all this, the young duke, who had led an expedition and defeated the pagan army and reclaimed the Holy Land, even though it was none of her business, could not help but be contrasted.

The feudal lords who had been in this land for nearly a hundred years were only concerned with their own interests.

In contrast, the duke came from across the sea, endured hardships, and fought only with the pagans without causing any problems, even reclaiming the Holy Land.

No matter how hard the castellan tried to break her own stubbornness and beliefs and side with the feudal lords, she simply could not bring herself to do so. She felt he would have to become something less than human, more like a beast, to side with the feudal lords.

“. . .In fact, it was my suggestion. Castellan.”

“I see.”

The castellan did not say anything to Ulrike’s words. Given the difference in their status, she could not get angry with Ulrike.

However, Ulrike could clearly sense it. The castellan had cast a look of contempt at Ulrike. The castellan probably thought of Ulrike as ’? ?????????? ???-??? ???????? ?? ??? ????’? ?????????.’

‘??, ??!’

And what made it even harder to bear was that the current situation was such that it couldn’t be helped!

Even Ulrike herself would have thought so. Ulrike bit her lip at the humiliating situation she had created.

“Castellan. I want to stop the enemy here if possible.”

The nobles of the expedition were drunk on victory due to their ridiculously easy victories. Some of them even argued that they should go further north and attack first.

??? ?? ?????????? ????????? ?? ????? ??? ?????? ????? ?? ??? ???? ?? ??? ???????????? ??? ???????? ??? ?? ???? ???????? ??? ?????? ???? ??? ???????? ??? ????. ??? ?? ?????? ?????!

???????????!

‘????? ????? ?????. . .’

Of course, Johan had no intention of doing such a thing. It would be to their advantage if the enemy came to them, so why would they go into the enemy’s territory?

Johan was impressed by the castellan’s words.

“You are wise indeed! If we were to force our way through, it would be difficult to feed so many soldiers. Your Highness.”

“Indeed.”

Even if they were to divide the large army and deploy it, it was important where the supply lines reached. Johan planned to wait for the enemy here. Besides, there was one more advantage to this area.

“There’s a big river ahead. How many places can we cross?”

“It’s marked on the map. The boats and bridges on the river have all been destroyed long ago, and the fiefdom citizens on the other side of the river have all been relocated to this side long ago.”

“. . .!”

This time it was Johan’s turn to be impressed by the castellan’s words. Johan was very pleased that the castellan had scratched his itchy spot.

“Excellent! You’ve already made such preparations.”

“It’s just a cowardly trick I learned to survive with a small number of soldiers. Your Highness. I am rather ashamed when you say that.”

“No, anyone who calls this cowardly doesn’t know what tactics are. It’s not just about facing each other head-on with spears. The point is to create a situation where you can win.”

“That’s. . .”

Even though they had only met a day ago, the two of them seemed to understand each other like old friends of ten years. When the castellan brought up tactics, Johan praised her, and when Johan brought up tactics, the castellan was impressed. Ulrike felt lonely.

Ulrike herself agreed with the castellan’s tactics. . .

However, Ulrike knew very well. She knew that if she tried to intervene here, the castellan would see her as a young yes-man who knew nothing and was just trying to take credit.

In the end, she had no choice but to sit here and listen obediently. Ulrike tried hard to respond to the castellan’s words in order to regain the trust she had lost.

??????

“This is as far as we go. Keep a close eye on them so that you don’t miss any of them crossing over to this side.”

“Yes.”

As soon as the sun rose, Johan and his men scouted the area around the river. It was wide and deep enough that many would die if they tried to cross it recklessly.

‘?? ???’? ?? ?????? ??.’

Except for a few shallow spots, the only way to go around was to go all the way east. It was not easy to lead such a large army around.

“Your Highness. There are cowards among those who have joined this honorable expedition. They say we should stop here and not move any further.”

“I gave the order.”

“. . .I apologize!”

The oblivious feudal lords became the advance party again. They cautiously crossed the river to the other side as punishment for their lord’s loose lips.

“Were you going to go with them?”

“No, Duke. Those kinds of people need to learn their lesson the hard way.”

The centaurs spoke sternly. Even those who were careless become serious after being punished a few times. It is also the duty of adults to raise the young well.

. . .Of course, the advance party crossing the river right now was not young.

“I’m worried that they might be annihilated if they make a mistake.”

“If they lose, that’s their fate.”

“We can just send more.”

“. . . . . .”

Johan glanced around briefly. Fortunately, there were no knights listening. If they had heard, the centaurs’ reputation would only have grown.

“Let’s go back. Your Highness. I’ll signal you when they return, so you can come out again then.”

When Johan did not move from his spot near the river, the centaurs advised him to return to camp.

To be honest, there was no reason to wait here just because those annoying feudal lords and their dastard knights had gone out on patrol. He could have just rested in his tent and come out later.

It was cold and windy, so why. . .

“No. I’ll wait here. You can go back if it’s too hard. The enemy won’t come out here anyway.”

“Hey. How can we go back alone? We’ll wait with you.”

The centaurs sat down next to Johan grumblingly without leaving. Achladda checked the string of his bow, combed his mane, and yawned.

“I’m bored. Anyone want to bet while we wait? Who will bring back the greatest prey from across the river? I’ll bet a gold necklace.”

“I’m fine with what I have, thank you. . .”

“Me too. I don’t want to get my body wet.”

“. . . . . .”

Achladda was taken aback by his men’s reaction after they had eaten their fill. His comrades on the prairie would not believe this. They would fight over a single piece of gold, but now they were saying they didn’t want to bet because they had too many gold necklaces.

“Hey! Huh! Look over there!”

“Oh! Okay. Are you going to bet?”

“No, look over there! It’s the enemy!”

Achladda hurriedly got up. He could see dust rising on the other side of the river.

The enemy’s advance party had finally arrived.

??????

“Retreat! Retreat!”

The feudal lord, who had been riding his horse fearlessly and quickly, was terrified when he encountered the enemy. The experience of making eye contact with the enemy slowly climbing up from below as he crossed a low hill sent shivers down the spine of even a battle-hardened veteran.

????! ???!

He turned his horse around in fear and gave the order to retreat, but the enemy did not let this opportunity slip away. They hurriedly rushed forward as if they wanted to catch him at all costs.

Unlike the allied knights, who were heavily armed and had traveled quite a distance, many of the enemy knights were lightly armed. In extreme cases, some of them didn’t even wear metal armor.

“The duke is trying to kill me! The duke!”

“Master! Listening ears. . .”

“Anyway, they are my subordinates and we are caught here, why would I care about listening ears!”

The feudal lord exploded in anger. He could feel the arrows, which had not been visible until a moment ago, flying in close, and the enemy following him on both sides.

???! ??!

“?”

However, the enemy who had been following him closely suddenly turned their horses around in a hurry. The feudal lord was bewildered.

‘????? ???? ???? ?? ????? ??? ???? ????????’

“Master!! Reinforcements have arrived!”

While he was so focused on running away that he didn’t notice, the duke had crossed the river with his men.

“Charge!”

Although it was impossible, the feudal lord felt like he could clearly hear the sound of something breaking. If the horde of enemies that had been chasing him were a single living creature, it was the sound of grabbing it and breaking its spine with brute force.

The duke’s charge was that fierce.

“Oh my God!”

He saw an experienced subordinate knight gasp and cross himself. The duke and his men had charged into the enemy and were literally slaughtering them. It seemed unreal as enemies fell every time they swung their weapons.

The feudal lords who had not participated in the previous battle could not imagine how the duke had won despite the difference in numbers.

They had only vaguely or abstractly imagined a miraculous scene like that.

However, at least the feudal lord himself who was here could instinctively be sure of how he had won.

That was how he had crushed the enemy’s bones and flesh and won!

When he had cut down more than twenty of them while holding his breath, the rest of them could not bear it any longer and ran away. Johan approached the feudal lord covered in blood. At the sight of his overwhelming aura, the small rebellious spirit that had been in the feudal lord’s heart completely disappeared.

“Are you okay?”

“I was wrong. . .!”

“???”