Mercenaries were not a rare thing in this world. In fact, the history of this profession could be traced back to the Dark Ages of the Kingdom of Gondor. No matter how dynasties changed, how civilizations rose and fell, it seemed that people always needed such a group of armed men wandering in the gray area to fill the gaps in the functioning of society. They were the "Bloody Gloves" of the nobles, the "Money Warriors" of the merchants, and when there was a lack of employers, they were the outlaws of the wilderness.
Mercenaries were legal. They even had official guilds and a rough registration system. However, almost every mercenary had done illegal things before. But so what? In this barbaric and backward world, "law" itself was not something glamorous and just …
According to the information from the spies, about twenty well-equipped mercenaries were eyeing the refugee settlement with a population of over a hundred, and there were at least three low-level Knights and one or two mages. Even if the rest did not have a profession level, their combat power should be higher than ordinary soldiers. This kind of "elite group" of mercenaries was really rare in this profession, and it aroused Gwen's great curiosity and suspicion. In order to eliminate these unruly mercenaries, Gwen quickly ordered the Knight Philip to organize a team of thirty men, and prepared to personally lead the team into battle.
No matter where the mercenaries came from, they were a threat to the refugees in this land, which was also a threat to the future population of Cecil Hill. Gwen would not allow this to continue — they were all labor!
And a Legendary Knight leading thirty fully-armed Cecil Warriors against twenty mercenaries seemed to be making a fuss over a minor issue, but Gwen had his own intentions.
The thirty fully-armed Cecil Warriors were the new generation of "magic-powered infantry" that had just finished changing their equipment. Amidst the roar of the machinery factory, the first batch of standard magic-powered equipment had come out of the production line. The thirty soldiers were equipped with brand-new heat ray guns and enchanted combat backpacks, and had undergone basic shooting and coordination training. This was a rather inexperienced unit, and even if half of the members were veterans, they had little experience in new weapons. But Gwen believed that these new warriors who could casually fire a high-energy beam were definitely more powerful than traditional soldiers, so he wanted to test them in actual combat.
The thirty "magic-powered infantry" gathered on the south bank of the Whitewater River. Behind them was a bridge that had just been completed not long ago and was temporarily used to connect the two sides of the river. The citizens who had heard the news, including the serfs and slave workers who had just entered the territory and had yet to gain the status of freedmen, gathered nearby and looked curiously at the army that was very different from what they remembered.
The soldiers were neatly dressed in enchanted light armor that was enchanted with basic strengthening magic. Each soldier had a strange-looking steel arm guard on their left hand, and a new generation of hardened combat backpack on their back instead of traditional military bags. Enchanted longswords and backup swords were fastened to their waists and sides of the backpack with iron buckles. They looked majestic.
Gwen had trained these soldiers for a long time with strict discipline and a system of rewards and punishments, and they themselves knew that it was a special honor to be the first batch of "magic-powered infantry". So at this moment, every one of them stood straight. Even when a large group of civilians pointed at them with envious and amazed gazes from afar, none of them turned their heads.
Knight Philip came forward and said, "My lord, the soldiers and the supply convoy have been assembled. We can depart at any time."
Gwen nodded and glanced at Amber beside him. This time, apart from Amber and Philip, he did not bring more people. He believed that with the thirty magic-powered infantry and himself holding the line, a mere twenty mercenaries would not be able to do much. "Then we'll —"
Before he finished, he suddenly noticed a faint commotion among the civilians in the distance. A loud voice came from the crowd. "Excuse me, excuse me … Thank the Holy Light for giving me the time … Holy Light, you stepped on my foot … Excuse me, thank you, for the sake of the Holy Light …"
Gwen was stunned to see the crowd split in the middle, and then the Schwarzenegger-style missionary named Wright ran all the way to them.
He was wearing a shabby priest's robe of the Holy Light. The robe was a little tight on his body, and the lines of his muscles were bulging out from under the robe. It looked like he was going to perish together with a few heretics.
"Holy Light! I'm here … "Wright ran to the front of the troops and looked up at Gwen, who was riding on a horse. But just as he said a few words, he suddenly froze." It's you? Aren't you … the manager of the construction site? "
Without Gawain's permission, no one had told the cleric that the lord of this land was the big guy who had been chatting with him on the pile of bricks that day.
Gawain did not expect to meet Brendel again under such circumstances. Moreover, he could not hide his identity, so he nodded with a smile. "I didn't lie to you then. I am indeed the person in charge of this land. The lord is also considered a person in charge, isn't it?"
"Holy Light! You're the lord of this land?! The legendary Gwen Cecil who jumped out of his coffin because of his unworthy descendants?! " Wright exclaimed and drew the symbol of the God of Holy Light on his chest with his hand. "I thought you were the foreman!"
Gwen was speechless.
Felipe, who was standing beside him, immediately pulled out his sword. "Cleric! Watch your words! No — "
"Ahem," Gwen quickly stopped Philip's duel request. "Don't get too excited. This … is one of the versions of the rumor that I let Byron spread."
Amber rolled her eyes. "You asked for it. Who knows how many versions of it will continue to spread in the future."
Philip and Gwen were speechless.
After a moment of awkwardness, Gwen had to divert everyone's attention. He looked at Wright and said, "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you my real identity when we first met. I just want to talk to you as an ordinary person, so that I can understand the clergy of this era."
"That's understandable. It's a prudent and wise move." Wright smiled freely. "Then it seems that I don't have to worry about my document being delivered to the lord."
Gwen twitched the corner of his mouth and looked at the missionary curiously. "Why are you looking for me? You should know that we're about to go to war. "
"That's why I'm here." Wright immediately straightened up. "I want to go with you."
Gwen was surprised. "Why? You're not my soldier, and you're not the lord's advisor. Why do you want to go with us? "
"How can the army go without a priest?" Wright said matter-of-factly. "And as the only priest of the Church of Holy Light here, I have the obligation to use my strength to help everyone in this land, especially when it comes to justice. I heard that you're going to rescue a group of starving refugees in the wilderness. I can't not go."
Gwen could not help but raise his eyebrows. What Wright said was in line with the doctrine and people's moral concepts. But in this era, how many priests of the Church of Holy Light really took these doctrines seriously? This guy … No wonder he was kicked out of the church in the central diocese.
Even if it was just a thought, Gwen could guess that this weird guy was not well-liked in the church.
However, Philip, who was also a devout believer and adhered to the Knight's spirit, greatly praised Wright's speech. The young and rigid Knight seemed to have forgotten that he had just drawn his sword and was about to duel with Wright. At this time, he praised, "What a righteous man's speech, Pastor Wright. You're not only a good priest, but also have the Knight's spirit!"
Gawain, on the other hand, sized up Wright and began to ponder.
His first reaction was to refuse this eccentric priest of the Holy Light.
Military operations, even if it was just a small operation to eliminate a wave of mercenaries, should be rigorous and serious. A priest of the Holy Light who suddenly asked to "cut the queue" made Gwen instinctively feel that something was wrong. But after thinking for a moment, he felt that it was okay to bring this priest.
Perhaps this was a good opportunity to observe him. And what Wright said was indeed right — it was necessary to have a priest in the army.
Although the soldiers all brought the healing potions made by Pitman and his assistants, it was certainly better to have a professional healer in the team. At this time, the old Druil was carrying out a key experiment to mass-produce the plant accelerant potion and could not come along. Wright could fill this gap.
As long as the priest could listen to orders.
"Please rest assured, it's not my first time as a priest in the army." Wright heard Gwen's request and smiled confidently. "Although the central region is peaceful, there are often lords who organize troops to eliminate bandits and monsters in the mountains. I'm often sent by the church to be a priest in the army, so I'm very familiar with all this."
Gawain looked at this priest's muscular body and wondered if he was following the army to battle or leading the charge.
Finally, a strange priest of the Holy Light was added to the team.
Under the watchful eyes of the subjects, the team set off.
At the same time, across the forest and wilderness to the north of the White Water River, across the starving refugees in the wilderness and the greedy thugs who treated the refugees as prey, the Kant family's family castle, which had been passed down for generations, still stood quietly on the hill beside Kuilin Town, just like it had in the past hundreds of years.
This glorious family had ruled this land for more than three hundred years. Before the decline of the Cecil Family, it had already existed as one of the few "independent nobles" in the Southern Territory. After the decline of the Cecil Family, the Kant Family was lucky enough to escape the storm that overturned the entire situation in the Southern Territory. They were still firmly rooted here and had continued to this day.
Three hundred years was enough to polish the most glamorous and magnificent fortress in the past. Even though it had been renovated and repaired many times, Kant Castle still inevitably showed its old appearance. Its narrow and long windows that were in line with the tradition were embedded high on the thick stone wall. Even at noon, every room in the castle was filled with vague darkness.
Viscount Viktor Kant, who was already old, was sitting in his study. A little bit of sunlight shone into the room from the narrow window behind him, making his hunched body look even gloomier. He lowered his head and looked at the stack of parchment that he had just finished writing. The parchment was full of unknown symbols and graffiti-like words. Then, he raised his head and looked at the butler who was as old as him. "Mr. Carter, have those 'hounds' found new prey?"
"Yes, Master." The old butler bowed slightly. "In the forest in the south, there's a group of malnourished homeless people. They don't know their impending fate, but the hounds haven't made a move yet."
"They want money, more money," Viktor Kant's head trembled as if he was angry, but there was a smile in his tone. "Dogs need the reward of food to work for their masters. Dogs with two legs are the same. Then give them 'food'. Mr. Carter, send someone to the hounds with a money bag. Tell them to hurry up and bring the homeless people to me. If they delay again, there won't be a next time. It's the Frost Moon now. They should know very well that there are not many opportunities to make such money. "
"Yes, my lord."
After the old butler left, Victor Kant lowered his head again and buried himself in the messy symbols and lines. The noon sun shone into the study through the narrow window with difficulty, as if there was a thick and thick layer of fog in between, dim and blurry.
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