How to Live as a Wandering Knight

Chapter 359: ????-????? (3)

Johan did not accept right away, but it wasn’t because he particularly didn’t trust Jaivir. He just didn’t trust him at all.

After all, if he agreed, Jaivir would go around saying, ’? ??????? ??????? ?? ??? ????? ??????? ??? ????? ???? ????? ??????? ?????? ???? ??? ??????????? ?? ??? ??????, ??????? ??????????? ???? ???? ?????, ??? ???????? ?? ??? ???? ????.’

“What if you go around dropping my name and end up making a mistake?”

“Your Highness! How could that happen?!”

The duke’s bluntness had hurt Jaivir deeply. His eyes were even brimming with tears from the offense. Johan felt slightly apologetic, so he nodded his head.

“Fine. I will act as your witness.”

“Thank you. I will never disappoint Your Highness.”

“Rather than using it myself, it would be better to match the perfume to the people I am gifting it to, so it would be better to have my subordinates ask about their preferences.”

“Do I really need to go that far. . .?”

The wizard’s perfumes were always popular, and the nobles would buy them regardless of their personal preferences. They wanted popular items, not scents that suited their tastes.

“The receiver needs to be satisfied. What are you talking about?”

“Your Highness. I guess you don’t trust me. . .”

“What are you talking about? Are you saying I should trust you?”

“N-No, my apologies. Please forgive my rudeness.”

Johan’s sudden irritation made the wizard bow deeply. The duke before him was lenient, but there was no telling when he might swing his sword. The wizard had heard vivid stories about the nobles and knights of the sultan’s camp being slaughtered.

‘?? ????? ?? ?? ?????-??????. ??’? ??? ? ?????? ??? ???????.’

Johan thought to himself.

Of course, Jaivir’s so-called “best-selling perfume” could be given as a gift, but honestly, he didn’t trust it very much.

It would be better to just have one that was custom-made. There would be no room for failure!

??????

Ulrike had a scribe, who had been drafted nearby, read the books out loud to her. The books obtained from the sultan’s camp were a pain for the nobles to read directly because they were written in a mixture of Eastern characters, the script of the old empire, and even a dialect.

“. . .Therefore, you shall burn the statue and perform a ritual. Then, a spirit of darkness shall appear. . .”

“What a useless book about paganism. Next.”

“Yes. This one is titled, <The Feudal Lord, His Spouse, and the Knight Who Went to War>.”

“What kind of book is it?”

“Judging from the title, it seems to be a collection of wise sayings about the art of governance and the wisdom of managing subordinates.”

“I see. Let’s hear it.”

However, the scribe stopped reading there. A servant of the duke had come to them. He carefully bowed his head and spoke.

“Abner-nim, His Highness wishes to see you.”

“His Highness?”

Ulrike turned her gaze, looking puzzled.

Nothing special was going on, and she was just about to head back, so what could it be?

“His Highness has ordered a wizard to create a perfume as a gift for Abner-nim, but we do not know what scent you would prefer, so he has sent me to ask.”

“!”

Ulrike was delighted at his words. A heartfelt gift was always welcome, and it was even better if it was from someone close.

“That’s not a difficult request. I will prepare right away, so tell the wizard to come.”

“Yes. And His Highness also wishes to give gifts to Jarpen-nim’s daughter and Countess Abner, so he was hoping Abner-nim could offer some advice.”

“. . . . . .”

Ulrike’s expression instantly fell.

Do you really need to give them some too?

Not only did she realize that this was not a gift for her alone, but she also wondered why she had to give one to her spouse. Ulrike’s mother, the countess, was a powerful figure, so that made sense, but her spouse was someone she wasn’t particularly close to.

“Fine. I will help prepare them. Hmm. Let me see for a moment.”

Ulrike said as she scanned the inside of the tent. According to noble customs, one would send a gift in return, even if the initial gift was not that expensive.

“My lord said it’s fine even if you don’t send anything in return. . .”

“Even so, it’s not right to send nothing at all. Ah. Give him that book.”

At Ulrike’s order, the scribe carefully wrapped the book he was holding in silk again. Books were expensive items in themselves. It was not easy to obtain books that had their pages gathered, handwritten, and filled with text. It wasn’t for nothing that wizards were crazy about books.

Furthermore, <The Feudal Lord, His Spouse, and the Knight Who Went to War> had a fairly impressive appearance. The book, with its leather cover embroidered with gold thread, looked like a splendid gift.

“Thank you. I will deliver it.”

“Yes.”

??????

“???”

The high-ranking members of Johan’s camp who were present—including Iselia and the wizards—were testing out the completed perfume.

Suetlg was pleased with the scent that reminded him of his hometown, the Ipaël River. Of course, it wasn’t an extravagant scent that nobles liked, but so what?

“But why?”

Suetlg asked, puzzled, when the duke made a confused expression.

“Do you not like the perfume?”

“I wasn’t really interested in it in the first place. . . I received a book as a gift from Ulrike-gong, and I’m a bit bewildered.”

“What kind of book did you get?”

“It’s a storybook, but the story is a bit. . .”

“?”

“You know, the story about a lord going to war while his spouse enjoys herself with a knight.”

“Ah. That kind of book.”

Suetlg was also taken aback. Not all books contained useful and excellent information. Sometimes, books with strange and vulgar content were published to cater to the tastes of eccentric lords.

However, that was one thing, and giving such a book as a gift was another matter entirely. Caenerna, who was testing the perfume next to him, also turned her gaze, looking flustered.

“It seems like there’s some kind of hidden meaning. . .”

“Do you think she heard about her spouse having an affair?”

Caenerna and Suetlg put their heads together and pondered. Ulrike-gong was not someone who would send a book without any meaning. If she sent such a gift, there must be a reason behind it.

Ulrike-gong’s spouse, Caccia of the Jarpen family, had not accompanied them on the expedition and was instead guarding the fiefdom. Furthermore, in Suetlg’s opinion, the two had opposite personalities.

Ulrike-gong was as cold and indifferent as ice, while Caccia had a fiery temper.

It wouldn’t be strange for one of them to have an affair while the other was away on an expedition, considering that they had married for the sake of their families.

Caenerna remarked in surprise.

“Was Ulrike-gong the type to care about such things? I thought. . . she wouldn’t care at all.”

“Everyone gets jealous.”

Originally, most marriages between nobles were marriages of convenience, so it was common for them to turn a blind eye to each other’s affairs.

However, it was impossible for anyone to be completely free of jealousy. Furthermore, since their spouses were often of lower status, swordplay or assassination was not uncommon.

“Some people don’t want to see their partner enjoying themselves, even if they themselves are free to do so.”

Caenerna nodded as if she understood. Suetlg added to that.

“Ulrike-gong is rather abstinent, so she must be even angrier.”

“. . .Can you really tell all that just from a book?”

Johan asked, looking bewildered, after listening to them. Just from a single book, it seemed as though Ulrike’s spouse was already confirmed to be having an affair.

“Iselia, what do you think?”

“Hmm?”

Iselia, who had just finished testing the perfume and was now oiling her newly acquired sword, perked up her ears and turned her gaze.

“You called? Sorry, I was checking my sword. . .”

“. . .It seems you didn’t hear, so let me explain again.”

Suetlg kindly explained the situation. Johan listened and then looked puzzled.

‘. . .????’? ??? ????? ??? ? ??? ???? ?????????’

It seemed like Ulrike’s anger and Caccia’s affair, which hadn’t been mentioned before, had been added.

Iselia, who had been listening, asked, looking puzzled.

“Why would she try to kill someone just because they loved someone else? Ulrike-gong is not that unfair of a person.”

“But Bluea-nim, think about it. Everyone has emotions and can get jealous. How would you feel if you saw His Grace rolling around with someone else?”

“Why are you dragging me into this. . .”

Johan was taken aback. The sparks were flying in his direction. Iselia took it seriously again.

“Who is it?”

“Does that matter?”

“If they are sick or evil, shouldn’t we try to stop them?”

“. . .Let’s say they are neither sick nor evil.”

“Then isn’t it fine? Ah! No!”

Iselia finally exclaimed as if she had realized something. Suetlg looked forward to it slightly, thinking that she had finally understood his point.

“Johan and I are close, but I’m not rude enough to just barge in whenever I want. If I don’t notice what’s going on inside, I’m not fit to be a knight!”

“. . . . . .”

Suetlg gave up. Iselia, who was a knight through and through, could not possibly understand the concept of jealousy.

“Hmm. I trust the duke. There must be some kind of misunderstanding.”

However, despite Iselia’s words, the two wizards did not change their minds.

“Anyone can get jealous.”

“That’s right. Jealousy is like a malevolent spirit; once you’re possessed by it, it’s too late. I think that must be the meaning of this book.”

“So let’s say Ulrike-gong heard the news and became jealous. Why did she send this book?”

“It’s obvious. What else could it be? Revenge.”

Caenerna nodded in agreement with Suetlg’s words, her curly red hair swaying.

“Revenge?”

“The other person’s family must be pretty decent. They could be a baron somewhere, or maybe a wealthy knight family. You can’t just summon and execute people like that. It would be seen as petty. But assassinating them is also. . .”

“. . .She’s quick-witted.”

Caenerna continued. Having been in the emperor’s court, Caenerna was familiar with such political dramas. The emperor’s lover, a beautiful young boy, and the count’s spouse had an affair, and the count’s lover got involved out of jealousy and swung a sword. . .

“Those who sleep with someone of a higher status tend to be quick-witted. If you summon them, they’ll just come up with excuses like ghosts. Ulrike-gong probably wants to deal with it as quickly as lightning.”

Leading an army to punish them or summoning them would be noisy and time-consuming, so she would ambush and kill them on the spot, then disguise herself as a rogue group.

It was a traditional method that many people used.

“So this book. . . is a suggestion for me to join her in killing her spouse’s lover?”

“If Your Highness joins us, we’ll have a solid ally.”

“It’s highly likely.”

Johan became flustered when the two wizards said so in unison. Suetlg gave him a strong warning.

“You need to persuade her and calm her anger. It’s something that no one else can do. But since you’re close to her, she might listen to you.”

“That makes sense. . . But what if she’s trying to kill not only her lover, but also Caccia of the Jarpen family? The civil war just ended, and now the west might catch fire again.”

The two wizards wanted Ulrike’s cold anger to subside. They didn’t want to create a new spark after finally putting out such a huge fire.

Johan pondered for a moment and then nodded.

“I understand. I’ll try to persuade her.”

“I trust you. For the peace of the empire.”

“. . .For peace.”

??????

“It truly is a beautiful sea.”

“?”

When the duke suddenly said something unexpected while standing on the deck of the large ship, Ulrike-gong looked puzzled.

What is he talking about?

“When I see such a vast sea. . . I sometimes think about how petty grudges and jealousy are.”

“What are you talking about? The sea is the sea, and grudges are grudges. Just because you see the sea, your grudges don’t become insignificant. Your Highness, why are you saying this?”

“. . .You’re right. The sea is the sea, and grudges are grudges. I just said something strange for a moment.”

Johan gave up right away. To be honest, persuasion was only possible if he himself believed in it; it was difficult to persuade someone with logic that he himself didn’t believe in.

Ulrike looked at the duke’s back, dumbfounded. However, the duke’s strange behavior had only just begun.

Johan did not accept right away, but it wasn’t because he particularly didn’t trust Jaivir. He just didn’t trust him at all.

After all, if he agreed, Jaivir would go around saying, ’? ??????? ??????? ?? ??? ????? ??????? ??? ????? ???? ????? ??????? ?????? ???? ??? ??????????? ?? ??? ??????, ??????? ??????????? ???? ???? ?????, ??? ???????? ?? ??? ???? ????.’

“What if you go around dropping my name and end up making a mistake?”

“Your Highness! How could that happen?!”

The duke’s bluntness had hurt Jaivir deeply. His eyes were even brimming with tears from the offense. Johan felt slightly apologetic, so he nodded his head.

“Fine. I will act as your witness.”

“Thank you. I will never disappoint Your Highness.”

“Rather than using it myself, it would be better to match the perfume to the people I am gifting it to, so it would be better to have my subordinates ask about their preferences.”

“Do I really need to go that far. . .?”

Jaivir was perplexed.

The wizard’s perfumes were always popular, and the nobles would buy them regardless of their personal preferences. They wanted popular items, not scents that suited their tastes.

“The receiver needs to be satisfied. What are you talking about?”

“Your Highness. I guess you don’t trust me. . .”

“What are you talking about? Are you saying I should trust you?”

“N-No, my apologies. Please forgive my rudeness.”

Johan’s sudden irritation made the wizard bow deeply. The duke before him was lenient, but there was no telling when he might swing his sword. The wizard had heard vivid stories about the nobles and knights of the sultan’s camp being slaughtered.

‘?? ????? ?? ?? ?????-??????. ??’? ??? ? ?????? ??? ???????.’

Johan thought to himself.

Of course, Jaivir’s so-called “best-selling perfume” could be given as a gift, but honestly, he didn’t trust it very much.

It would be better to just have one that was custom-made. There would be no room for failure!

??????

Ulrike had a scribe, who had been drafted nearby, read the books out loud to her. The books obtained from the sultan’s camp were a pain for the nobles to read directly because they were written in a mixture of Eastern characters, the script of the old empire, and even a dialect.

“. . .Therefore, you shall burn the statue and perform a ritual. Then, a spirit of darkness shall appear. . .”

“What a useless book about paganism. Next.”

“Yes. This one is titled, <The Feudal Lord, His Spouse, and the Knight Who Went to War>.”

“What kind of book is it?”

“Judging from the title, it seems to be a collection of wise sayings about the art of governance and the wisdom of managing subordinates.”

“I see. Let’s hear it.”

However, the scribe stopped reading there. A servant of the duke had come to them. He carefully bowed his head and spoke.

“Abner-nim, His Highness wishes to see you.”

“His Highness?”

Ulrike turned her gaze, looking puzzled.

Nothing special was going on, and she was just about to head back, so what could it be?

“His Highness has ordered a wizard to create a perfume as a gift for Abner-nim, but we do not know what scent you would prefer, so he has sent me to ask.”

“!”

Ulrike was delighted at his words. A heartfelt gift was always welcome, and it was even better if it was from someone close.

“That’s not a difficult request. I will prepare right away, so tell the wizard to come.”

“Yes. And His Highness also wishes to give gifts to Jarpen-nim’s daughter and Countess Abner, so he was hoping Abner-nim could offer some advice.”

“. . . . . .”

Ulrike’s expression instantly fell.

Do you really need to give them some too?

Not only did she realize that this was not a gift for her alone, but she also wondered why she had to give one to her spouse. Ulrike’s mother, the countess, was a powerful figure, so that made sense, but her spouse was someone she wasn’t particularly close to.

“Fine. I will help prepare them. Hmm. Let me see for a moment.”

Ulrike said as she scanned the inside of the tent. According to noble customs, one would send a gift in return, even if the initial gift was not that expensive.

“My lord said it’s fine even if you don’t send anything in return. . .”

“Even so, it’s not right to send nothing at all. Ah. Give him that book.”

At Ulrike’s order, the scribe carefully wrapped the book he was holding in silk again. Books were expensive items in themselves. It was not easy to obtain books that had their pages gathered, handwritten, and filled with text. It wasn’t for nothing that wizards were crazy about books.

Furthermore, <The Feudal Lord, His Spouse, and the Knight Who Went to War> had a fairly impressive appearance. The book, with its leather cover embroidered with gold thread, looked like a splendid gift.

“Thank you. I will deliver it.”

“Yes.”

??????

“???”

The high-ranking members of Johan’s camp who were present—including Iselia and the wizards—were testing out the completed perfume.

Suetlg was pleased with the scent that reminded him of his hometown, the Ipaël River. Of course, it wasn’t an extravagant scent that nobles liked, but so what?

“But why?”

Suetlg asked, puzzled, when the duke made a confused expression.

“Do you not like the perfume?”

“I wasn’t really interested in it in the first place. . . I received a book as a gift from Ulrike-gong, and I’m a bit bewildered.”

“What kind of book did you get?”

“It’s a storybook, but the story is a bit. . .”

“?”

“You know, the story about a lord going to war while his spouse enjoys herself with a knight.”

“Ah. That kind of book.”

Suetlg was also taken aback. Not all books contained useful and excellent information. Sometimes, books with strange and vulgar content were published to cater to the tastes of eccentric lords.

However, that was one thing, and giving such a book as a gift was another matter entirely. Caenerna, who was testing the perfume next to him, also turned her gaze, looking flustered.

“It seems like there’s some kind of hidden meaning. . .”

“Do you think she heard about her spouse having an affair?”

Caenerna and Suetlg put their heads together and pondered. Ulrike-gong was not someone who would send a book without any meaning. If she sent such a gift, there must be a reason behind it.

Ulrike-gong’s spouse, Caccia of the Jarpen family, had not accompanied them on the expedition and was instead guarding the fiefdom. Furthermore, in Suetlg’s opinion, the two had opposite personalities.

Ulrike-gong was as cold and indifferent as ice, while Caccia had a fiery temper.

It wouldn’t be strange for one of them to have an affair while the other was away on an expedition, considering that they had married for the sake of their families.

Caenerna remarked in surprise.

“Was Ulrike-gong the type to care about such things? I thought. . . she wouldn’t care at all.”

“Everyone gets jealous.”

Originally, most marriages between nobles were marriages of convenience, so it was common for them to turn a blind eye to each other’s affairs.

However, it was impossible for anyone to be completely free of jealousy. Furthermore, since their spouses were often of lower status, swordplay or assassination was not uncommon.

“Some people don’t want to see their partner enjoying themselves, even if they themselves are free to do so.”

Caenerna nodded as if she understood. Suetlg added to that.

“Ulrike-gong is rather abstinent, so she must be even angrier.”

“. . .Can you really tell all that just from a book?”

Johan asked, looking bewildered, after listening to them. Just from a single book, it seemed as though Ulrike’s spouse was already confirmed to be having an affair.

“Iselia, what do you think?”

“Hmm?”

Iselia, who had just finished testing the perfume and was now oiling her newly acquired sword, perked up her ears and turned her gaze.

“You called? Sorry, I was checking my sword. . .”

“. . .It seems you didn’t hear, so let me explain again.”

Suetlg kindly explained the situation. Johan listened and then looked puzzled.

‘. . .????’? ??? ????? ??? ? ??? ???? ?????????’

It seemed like Ulrike’s anger and Caccia’s affair, which hadn’t been mentioned before, had been added.

Iselia, who had been listening, asked, looking puzzled.

“Why would she try to kill someone just because they loved someone else? Ulrike-gong is not that unfair of a person.”

“But Bluea-nim, think about it. Everyone has emotions and can get jealous. How would you feel if you saw His Grace rolling around with someone else?”

“Why are you dragging me into this. . .”

Johan was taken aback. The sparks were flying in his direction. Iselia took it seriously again.

“Who is it?”

“Does that matter?”

“If they are sick or evil, shouldn’t we try to stop them?”

“. . .Let’s say they are neither sick nor evil.”

“Then isn’t it fine? Ah! No!”

Iselia finally exclaimed as if she had realized something. Suetlg looked forward to it slightly, thinking that she had finally understood his point.

“Johan and I are close, but I’m not rude enough to just barge in whenever I want. If I don’t notice what’s going on inside, I’m not fit to be a knight!”

“. . . . . .”

Suetlg gave up. Iselia, who was a knight through and through, could not possibly understand the concept of jealousy.

“Hmm. I trust the duke. There must be some kind of misunderstanding.”

However, despite Iselia’s words, the two wizards did not change their minds.

“Anyone can get jealous.”

“That’s right. Jealousy is like a malevolent spirit; once you’re possessed by it, it’s too late. I think that must be the meaning of this book.”

“So let’s say Ulrike-gong heard the news and became jealous. Why did she send this book?”

“It’s obvious. What else could it be? Revenge.”

Caenerna nodded in agreement with Suetlg’s words, her curly red hair swaying.

“Revenge?”

“The other person’s family must be pretty decent. They could be a baron somewhere, or maybe a wealthy knight family. You can’t just summon and execute people like that. It would be seen as petty. But assassinating them is also. . .”

“. . .She’s quick-witted.”

Caenerna continued. Having been in the emperor’s court, Caenerna was familiar with such political dramas. The emperor’s lover, a beautiful young boy, and the count’s spouse had an affair, and the count’s lover got involved out of jealousy and swung a sword. . .

“Those who sleep with someone of a higher status tend to be quick-witted. If you summon them, they’ll just come up with excuses like ghosts. Ulrike-gong probably wants to deal with it as quickly as lightning.”

Leading an army to punish them or summoning them would be noisy and time-consuming, so she would ambush and kill them on the spot, then disguise herself as a rogue group.

It was a traditional method that many people used.

“So this book. . . is a suggestion for me to join her in killing her spouse’s lover?”

“If Your Highness joins us, we’ll have a solid ally.”

“It’s highly likely.”

Johan became flustered when the two wizards said so in unison. Suetlg gave him a strong warning.

“You need to persuade her and calm her anger. It’s something that no one else can do. But since you’re close to her, she might listen to you.”

“That makes sense. . . But what if she’s trying to kill not only her lover, but also Caccia of the Jarpen family? The civil war just ended, and now the west might catch fire again.”

The two wizards wanted Ulrike’s cold anger to subside. They didn’t want to create a new spark after finally putting out such a huge fire.

Johan pondered for a moment and then nodded.

“I understand. I’ll try to persuade her.”

“I trust you. For the peace of the empire.”

“. . .For peace.”

??????

“It truly is a beautiful sea.”

“?”

When the duke suddenly said something unexpected while standing on the deck of the large ship, Ulrike-gong looked puzzled.

What is he talking about?

“When I see such a vast sea. . . I sometimes think about how petty grudges and jealousy are.”

“What are you talking about? The sea is the sea, and grudges are grudges. Just because you see the sea, your grudges don’t become insignificant. Your Highness, why are you saying this?”

“. . .You’re right. The sea is the sea, and grudges are grudges. I just said something strange for a moment.”

Johan gave up right away. To be honest, persuasion was only possible if he himself believed in it; it was difficult to persuade someone with logic that he himself didn’t believe in.

Ulrike looked at the duke’s back, dumbfounded. However, the duke’s strange behavior had only just begun.