This was the fifth day since Laurist had received the urgent news and rushed to Monolith Castle.
The bugle horn sounded outside the castle once again. Knights were challenging each other once more.
There had been a total of three duels yesterday afternoon. Overkiss had won two in a row and earned two ransoms for himself. In total, he had earned more than thirty Gold Fords. It was only during the second duel that he had suffered a light injury on his arm. The next person to replace him was Padt. He fought his opponent on foot, then used his defensive advantage as a Shield Bearer to wear out his 2-star Silver rank opponent for more than an hour. The opponent had no choice but to give up his weapon and admit defeat.
Early in the morning, when Laurist went to patrol the castle walls, he discovered that the spectator tents that the lords had set up yesterday were still in the empty space in front of the castle. He had a feeling that the lords would still come to challenge the knights today. As expected, around nine in the morning, another knight came to the castle and blew his bugle horn to challenge.
Padt went out again. This time, it was a duel on horseback. However, Padt had trained dynamic vision, and after fighting on horseback for more than ten minutes, he defeated his opponent, who was also a 1-star Silver rank, and won.
Under normal circumstances, for the sake of fairness in a knight duel like this, the victorious knight could rest for half an hour before accepting the next challenge. Thus, Padt returned to the castle. Unexpectedly, as soon as he left, a wandering knight rushed out from the camp of the Battleground Merchant Group and issued a challenge to the family knights of the lords. Then, it became lively. Many wandering knights and independent knights came out of nowhere and challenged each other in the empty space in front of the castle, turning the battlefield into a knight's carnival. The castle and the knights of the Norton Family were already forgotten.
Wandering knights against wandering knights, wandering knights against independent knights, wandering knights against the family knights of the lords, independent knights against independent knights, independent knights against independent knights, independent knights against family knights. The duels were a complete mess. In the afternoon, a few more lords came. They weren't invited by the Kenneth Family, but came because they heard that there was a knight duel going on here. After arriving, the family knights of the lords didn't wait to set up camp before throwing themselves into the heated duels.
"Sigh … We've been forgotten." Overkiss looked at the lively scene in front of the castle and sighed. His left arm was wrapped in bandages.
There were three pairs of knights fighting fiercely below...
"My Lord, I really don't understand why so many wandering knights and independent knights would come to participate in this duel. In other places, wandering knights and independent knights would only participate in a duel held by a lord. This is a battlefield, and now these wandering knights and independent knights are taking over. "Butler Boris was baffled.
"This …" Laurist pondered for a moment before replying, "Compared to other places, the north is relatively barren. The nobles of the territories rarely hold the Knight Tournament because it costs a lot of money. In the past two years, the Northern Region has not been peaceful, with frequent wars. Many lords have lost their territories or been annexed, and the knights under them have become wandering knights or free knights, losing their income and living security. "
"You should know that the ransom for winning a knight duel like this is almost the income of a family knight for two to three years. Therefore, when they heard that there was a knight duel going on here, how could they not go crazy? They don't care whether this is a battlefield or not. Anyway, the rules of the knight duel are like that. If they perform well, maybe a lord will recruit them to be a family knight. Why not?"
"Yes, Jim came back at noon. He said that four wandering knights lost all their weapons and mounts this morning, so they had no choice but to join the mercenary group as temporary mercenaries," Padt interrupted.
"Right, where did Jim go?" Laurist just remembered that he hadn't seen Jim since this morning.
"Oh, over there, in front of the Battlefield Merchant Group's camp. He's acting as a banker, betting on the victory of the knights who are participating in the duel. He seems to have made a lot of money," Laurist said.
"Damn, this bastard still can't change the mercenary's customs. It's fine to gamble a little, but gambling is a big taboo for knights. When he comes back, I'll find someone to teach him the etiquette and manners of a knight," Laurist said.
"My Lord, should we pick a few of these wandering knights and free knights to become family knights?" Old Man Barlek looked at the duel below and had an idea.
"Well, we can consider that, but I haven't found anyone I like since this morning. I feel like they're all average, and none of them are particularly outstanding in martial arts. Look at the three pairs of knights in the duel below. None of them are a match for Auvikis. The free knight named Vasimir who won three duels in a row this morning is passable. Padt, go with Camp Thor tonight and ask him if he's willing to train with our family for a period of time, "Laurist said.
"Yes, my Lord," Padt replied.
This didn't mean that the wandering knights and free knights would immediately become family knights after being recruited by a lord. This was just an opportunity that the lord provided to these knights, and at the same time, it was also a choice that these knights would make regarding their future. Recruiting or being recruited was a very serious two-way choice for both the lord and the knights. After a lord extended an olive branch to a wandering knight or free knight, these knights could follow the lord for a period of time if they accepted the invitation. It could be as short as a month or as long as half a year, depending on whether they were compatible with each other. During this period of time, the treatment they received was the same as that of a family knight. Just like the saying that Laurist had heard in his previous life, "The king chooses his vassals, and the vassals choose their king." If the lord didn't satisfy these knights, they could leave and continue wandering or return home.
Old Man Barlek shook his head, "My Lord, that Knight Vasimir might be difficult for us to recruit. He's a free knight, unlike those wandering knights who don't know their place and wander around. In the North, this Knight Vasimir had a great reputation, and his family was quite well off. His father was a Gold Knight who had followed the late emperor to participate in the last battle against the Ford Trade Union, and unfortunately died. Vasimir was only seven years old at the time, and inherited the knight's manor left behind by his father. However, when he was young, people called him the Stupid Vasimir. Many people thought that he wasn't made for martial arts because he was slow, unintelligent, and hard to understand. However, this Knight Vasimir was very resilient since he was young. He had been practicing the secret martial arts books left behind by his father, and finally awakened combat aura at the age of 23. He's only 29 now, and he's already a 3-star Silver Knight. I heard that he even rejected Duke Lucinus's offer. I don't think he'll be interested in the Norton Family … "
"No wonder I felt that his martial arts skills were so stable this morning. Now that you've mentioned it, it's clear that he's put in a lot of effort. His foundation is very solid. Let's go and try. How will we know if he's willing or not? "Laurist nodded.
"Haha, I'm wondering what kind of expression Viscount Gaimus will have on his face right now. He wanted to attack our castle, but it turned into a knight duel. He must be pissed," Padt said with a laugh.
"Those lords aren't idiots. If we occupied the Gammus Family's Red River Valley Manor, they would still fight to the death if Viscount Gammus invited them to reclaim the Red River Valley Manor. But now, we're burning the Red River Valley Manor to the ground and retreating to our own territory. What choice do you have? They say they want to reclaim the Gammus Family's territory, but there's no one from the Norton Family there. They only have a few knights, a few dozen guards, and two to three hundred soldiers. Just look at Monolith Castle and you'll know that attacking us is suicidal. So it's best to use this kind of knight challenge. Not only will they placate Viscount Gammus, but they won't completely offend the Norton Family. It's the best of both worlds. "
"It's just that they didn't expect this battle between nobles to turn into a competition between knights. It's something they can't control. Look, there's another group coming. Maybe it's another lord who heard the news and came to join in the fun. "Laurist pointed into the distance with a smile.
… …
Viscount Gammus was about to explode from anger. He smashed everything he could in the tent.
He didn't accept the lords' invitation to watch the knight challenge. On the contrary, he felt that he had been greatly insulted. He had invited those lords to attack the Norton Family, not to organize a knight's competition. Moreover, those lords clearly knew that he didn't have any knights in his family. Yet, they still invited a knight challenge. This was clearly mocking the Gammus Family for being a merchant family and not a noble family.
Of course, Viscount Gammus was also a 2-star Silver rank fighter, so he could also participate. However, the Viscount knew his own capabilities. He had painstakingly trained his fighter to the Silver rank not because he wanted to compete with others, but because he wanted to seduce women and show off in bed. He could stand at the back and give orders, but he couldn't even think about taking the lead.
What Viscount Gammus didn't expect was that the 2,000 soldiers his family had recruited with great difficulty would almost mutiny after two failed attacks. Even now, they still wouldn't listen to his orders and accused him of commanding indiscriminately. The seven lords he had spent a lot of effort to invite didn't even put in any effort. They didn't attack the city, but instead waged war against the nobles. Now, the target of the crusade, the Norton Family, was watching the show from the castle, but there were so many wandering knights who came from nowhere to challenge him. This was outrageous. He couldn't wait to kill all the disobedient soldiers and wandering knights.
"You're really doing well as a lord. Staying in the tent and smashing things …" A cold voice came from the entrance of the tent.
Viscount Gammus felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He quickly stood up, "F-Father, you're here …"
"If I didn't come, would I have just watched you destroy the future hope of the Gammus Family?" Three people came in from outside the tent. The one in front was a well-built and kind-looking old man. However, his face was tense at the moment, and his eyes were filled with a sinister and ruthless aura. He was the head of the Gammus Family, the former president of the largest construction company in the Christen Empire, and the father of the viscount.
The head of the Gammus Family came in front of the viscount. Without saying anything, he raised his hand and gave him two slaps.
Although the viscount was a silver-level rank-2, he did not dare to move in front of his iron-level father. All he could do was to let his father hit him.
"Do you know why I hit you?" The head of the Gammus family asked.
"I don't know …" The viscount replied.
"Slap! Slap! "Another two slaps landed on the viscount's face. The corner of his mouth was broken, and blood flowed out.
"Let me ask you. Why did you force the soldiers to attack the Norton Family's castle?" The head of the Gammus family asked.
"No. Didn't they burn our manor, steal our resources, and occupy our construction site? I … I want to take it back … "The viscount covered his mouth as he answered.
"Is that so?" Slap! Slap! Six slaps.
"How dare you deny it! Do you think I don't know that you have 100,000 Gold Merit Points? Let me tell you, Duke Lujins has his eyes on the 100,000 Gold Merit Points. He asked the Norton Family to give him the 100,000 Gold Merit Points and the resources that were stolen from our family. In the end, the people he sent were chased away by the Norton Family. The arrogant Gold Knight, Tabek, who went with them had both of his hands broken. He has injuries all over his body, and it will take him a year to recover. "The head of the Gammus family told the viscount a shocking news.
The viscount was overjoyed, "Then, let's attack the Norton Family now. Let's take back the 100,000 Gold Merit Points before Duke Lujins takes it …"
"Idiot! What right do you have to attack the Norton Family? They don't even care about the Duke of the Northern Region, and they even crippled Tabek. What confidence do you have to take back the 100,000 Gold Merit Points? "
"But, but last time, I attacked their family's manor castle and besieged them for three months." The viscount was not convinced.
"Then do you know why the Norton Family is so stubborn? Why the Flying Feather Mercenary Group disappeared? Why our manor and castle were burned and our resources were stolen? You don't know, do you? The second young master of the Norton Family has returned, and he brought a group of people with him. I heard that one of them is a Gold-ranked Sharpshooter, and Tabek was beaten up by the second young master himself. Now, do you still have the confidence to attack the Norton Family's manor and castle? "The head of the Norton Family sighed deeply and found a chair to sit on.
"Is this reliable?" The viscount was a little doubtful.
"Duke Lujins' butler told me himself. I even spent a lot of money to bribe a few Silver-ranked Knights from the Northland Army to go to the Norton Family. They saw it with their own eyes. When I rushed over, Lujins was organizing a team to punish the Norton Family, "said the head of the Kennet Family.
"That's great. We can attack the Norton Family together with the Duke's army," said the viscount.
"Bastard!" The head of the Kennet Family was furious. "Do you have a pig's brain? Do you only care about the Norton Family or your 100,000 Gold Merit Points? Do you think you'll have a good ending if you mess with the Duke? When his army arrives, our family's armed forces will become their cannon fodder. Do you want to destroy our family's last hope? The most important thing now is to avoid the Duke's army and find another target. We have to give up on our original plan. "
"But we've lost so much, and the Norton Family has robbed so many of our resources …" the viscount said weakly.
"Just think of it as a lesson! If we run out of slaves, we can buy them again. If we run out of supplies, we can raise them again. If we run out of gold coins, we can earn them again. If we find out that our target is too strong for us to handle, then we'll really be doomed if we don't turn back. It's our fault for not looking for a good opponent. The Norton Family is indeed a noble family with two to three hundred years of history. I thought they were at the end of their rope, but their second young master came back and turned the situation around. That's good. With the Norton Family in front of us, I believe Duke Lujins won't notice our movements until the Norton Family surrenders. I'm looking forward to them fighting to the death … "said the head of the Kennet Family.
"Then, then what is our family's next move?" asked the viscount.
The head of the Kennet Family took out a leather map of the Northland and punched it. "Here, we'll attack here …"
…
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