Giant Python

Lothar asked, "Hans, how much do you know about my current situation?"

Hans looked apologetic. "Forgive me, my lord, but I do not know much. This world is the Middle Ages from history?"

"Yes, but not entirely."

Lothar nodded and briefly summarized his recent circumstances and the background of the era he was currently living in for Hans.

The Crusades were likewise a crucial turning point for the Teutonic Knights.

Hans had come from the Teutonic Knights, so he naturally knew something about the history of this period.

Hans suddenly understood. "So that's how it is... Does this world also have the Teutonic Knights?"

"Of course, though they have not gained much influence yet."

"I am a knight of the Habsburg family. You should have heard of that illustrious name too. But that was in later generations. The Habsburg family has yet to rise to prominence; one of its only two heirs is holed up in some poor mountain valley in Switzerland, while the other is me, preparing to head for the Holy Land."

Hans said respectfully, "With you here, I have no doubt that the Habsburg family will rise just as the records of our world said it did."

"Heh, I'll take that as a good omen. Hans, from today onward, you are my squire. Once you have earned enough merit, I will elevate you to a true knight."

"When that time comes, you may use either a black eagle on white or a black cross on white as your personal heraldry."

Lothar rested the arming sword in his hand on Hans's shoulder. "Now, swear fealty to me."

"Hans, are you willing to swear loyalty to me, to be my faithful knight for the rest of your life, and serve me with your courage, martial skill, and wisdom?"

Hans immediately dropped to one knee and said respectfully, "Heavenly Father above, I swear to devote my loyalty to my master, Lothar. I shall uphold the virtues of knighthood, remain steadfastly loyal, and never leave his side."

A system prompt sounded: Your intimacy with retainer "Hans" has risen to Friendly.

"That really was simple."

Lothar felt somewhat helpless. Compared with Prajna, Hans's intimacy had risen far too easily.

Still, even a low-star retainer was a respectable source of combat power. Hans was certainly much stronger than the two "squires" Lothar had brought from Eagle Fortress.

But he was still only within the bounds of an ordinary person, utterly incomparable to those high-star retainers who were practically minor Supermen.

Hopefully, his next draw would give him a high-star retainer specialized in offense.

After introducing Hans to Ryan and Moder, Lothar left.

He had no intention of letting Hans share a room with him too.

Seeing Hans's fine equipment, Ryan could scarcely believe it. "Hans, are you really the lord's newly recruited squire, not the illegitimate son of some high-ranking lord?"

Moder's face was filled with envy. "Even proper knights probably could not afford equipment like this, right?"

"Are those Viking horns on your helmet? It looks incredibly imposing!"

Hans looked a little embarrassed and smiled. "They are only decorations. I pledged myself to my lord with my own equipment. I once received knightly training at a religious order, but I never received an official knighthood."

The night grew deeper.

Flickering candlelight reflected in Prajna's brown eyes, while her Black Long Hair cascaded over her snow-white arms.

She was like a statue. Even during idle moments, she rarely spoke and never made little movements to amuse herself.

At times, she seemed rather dull.

But beautiful people were works of art in themselves. Even doing nothing, they were still pleasing to the eye.

Then a flicker of surprise suddenly passed through her cool eyes.

She turned to Lothar and asked, "What did you do?"

Lothar raised his head and pointed to the pile of coins on the table. They had lost their golden luster and become dull and dim; all the gold within them had been extracted.

"I just looked into the Top-Up System and raised you ten levels. I did not expect it to be so expensive."

After First Battle Victory, his own experience bar had also moved upward. He was only a little short of reaching Level 2.

But leveling up had limited effects on him. Six-star retainers were powerful not only because of their strong skills, but also because they gained six attribute points with every level.

As a lord, he could only gain three attribute points per level.

Fortunately, if a lord's intimacy with a retainer was high enough, he could also use the retainer's skills. He might not be able to defeat a six-star retainer in the future, but his combat power would certainly not be low.

"You have limited funds, so do not spend them on me. My current strength is enough for now. If we encounter a powerful enemy, it will not be too late to improve me then."

Prajna frowned.

Since ancient times, anyone who wished to accomplish something great could not do without money.

Recruiting soldiers, buying horses, and procuring equipment.

If used properly on the battlefield, fully armed armored knights could easily crush several times, or even dozens of times, the Magyar light cavalry they had encountered before.

Yet the money required to equip a single knight was no small sum even for a King.

Lothar wore a broad smile. If not for the system prompt announcing that their "intimacy" had increased, he might truly have believed her.

He readily went along with it. "All right, then we'll leave it at this for now. Once we seize a territory in Jerusalem and make a fortune, I'll definitely raise you to max level."

Prajna nodded faintly. "Thank you."

Lothar said, "It is late. We still have to continue our journey tomorrow, so get some rest early."

"Good night."

"Mhm."

In the depths of the night.

The streets suddenly became utterly silent. The chirping of insects and croaking of frogs vanished completely, as though they had witnessed some terrifying giant and were too frightened to make the slightest sound.

As Lothar slept, a powerful sense of danger suddenly surged into his heart, making every hair on his body stand on end.

He opened his eyes and found Prajna standing by the window, staring outside.

He looked at her questioningly.

Prajna shook her head and pointed out the window, signaling for Lothar to come closer and look.

Lothar walked to the window. The sight immediately drenched him in cold sweat.

In the street outside the window, a Giant Python as enormous as a train and covered in black scales was slowly winding its way along the muddy road through the center of Small Town.

It left a deep furrow in the mud behind it.

At that moment, it seemed to notice their gazes as well. Its head, which had been about to move away, rose high and stretched toward the two of them on the inn's second floor.

Clang—

Prajna raised the black Ghost Face Shield before her. A terrifying aura of death spread outward, her black hair whipping wildly without wind. Her fearsome presence was like a storm, sending all the furnishings in the room flying.

It was Lothar's first time witnessing that Prajna possessed such terrifying power. For a moment, he could scarcely believe that such a slender body held such awe-inspiring majesty.

The Giant Python's utterly emotionless eyes resembled two great lanterns as it faced off against Prajna.

Though it appeared devoid of any emotional response, it had already regarded Prajna as a formidable enemy capable of threatening it. Its scales began to ripple in a rhythmic pattern.

After a long while.

The Giant Python lowered its head and slithered away into the distance.

Lothar let out a breath of relief.

"It left?"

Prajna nodded. "Yes. It was not certain it could defeat me. Or rather, even if it could, it feared being severely wounded."

"Prajna, you're actually this powerful!"

Prajna shook her head. "Not really. This Giant Python is very strong, far beyond what I can fight in my current state. It was frightened away only because my aura startled it."

Lothar nodded. "I understand."

According to the setting, max level was the true state of a six-star retainer. Enhancing them through top-ups merely unlocked the seals on their bodies.

Even if their strength had not reached the required level, their "status" remained.

"What exactly is that monster?"

"I don't know."

Prajna shook her head, her tone unusually grave. "It seems this world truly is not simple."