Horn Summon Ranger Corps

"Sarah, Ralph called himself Count Oden's Knight Commander, not a knight... That was the problem itself. An ordinary knight would never introduce himself that way..."

Indeed, an ordinary knight would simply state his own name, perhaps mentioning his hometown or fief at most, such as "Knight of Farland" or "Lord of Jialing Village."

But they would never call themselves a "Knight Commander."

Nor did knights sworn to great nobles hold a title like Knight Commander—at most, there was a Chief Knight.

The title Knight Commander generally appeared in local armed forces, namely the various knightly orders. It was a position within an order, not a marker of noble status.

Moreover, as everyone knew, it was impossible for a noble not to fly their family banner.

Especially a knight leading troops into death and hardship.

The lower a knight stood among the nobility, the more they would use their coat of arms everywhere—it bore witness to a lifetime of honor. Their descendants would enjoy for generations the blessings they had won on the battlefield, and it was something worth boasting about.

If someone truly had no banner, it was usually only because they had not had time to make one yet, just like Li Ang now.

Li Ang had only left the Noble Council a few days ago. He truly had not had time to arrange for a banner to be made, not because he did not want one—without a banner, lords of enemy nations might consider you an illegal armed force rather than a noble. If they encountered you on the battlefield, they would show no mercy.

In this era, a banner could save your life.

Nobles might be connected by marriage, and no one knew whether enemies today might become allies tomorrow. Thus, nobles had an unspoken understanding: unless one sought death or died by accident, surrendering in time would preserve one's life.

But someone like Ralph, commanding a garrison yet flying no banner of his own, was almost unheard of—unless he was not a noble and had no right to use one.

Sarah thought back carefully, then agreed with Li Ang's observation and memory.

"Then he probably really is a commoner. But my lord, what does that have to do with getting him to buy this camp?"

She only agreed that Li Ang's powers of observation were sharp. Sarah did not understand his intentions. Confusion was written all over her delicate face. How was this business supposed to be negotiated?

Being this lord's External Affairs Officer was not going to be easy...

"A commoner who became commander of Long River Town's garrison and could command over a thousand men—what do you think is the likeliest explanation? And he is supposedly a Knight Commander."

Li Ang rolled his neck and asked Sarah in return.

"It means he isn't an ordinary commoner... nor a knight in the usual sense... Wait, my lord, do you mean he is the Knight Commander of the Horn Summon Ranger Corps?"

Sarah began to understand. That was the only explanation.

Long River Town had a unique armed force, a formidable force that patrolled and defended the border. It had also been the foundation of Count Oden's rise to power.

This force was called the Horn Summon Ranger Corps.

Back when Duke of Lionheart Alfred usurped the throne and declared himself king, most knightly orders within the realm that remained loyal to the old Kingdom of Pendor were forcibly disbanded. Only the Lion Knight Order, the national order, remained.

The Lion Knights might indeed have been powerful, but the Lionheart Kingdom had at one point faced invasions from the Bacchus Empire in the south, pirates in the west, and the Gatu people in the east all at once, leaving the realm's sole legal knightly order run ragged.

Long River Town was still a frontier then. To its northeast stretched the vast Gatu Grasslands, and Gatu cavalry often entered Long River Town's territory to burn, kill, and plunder.

These grassland barbarians were immensely formidable, and their methods of raiding were especially horrifying—they took every woman and all property, including food and tools.

And aside from women, whom they regarded as property, every male taller than a wagon wheel would be slaughtered.

Moreover, the all-cavalry Gatu people came and went like the wind. By the time lords from various places rushed over with their armies, the Gatu people had already returned laden with plunder.

Such unrestrained raiding finally became intolerable to some local knights of Long River Town. They formed the Horn Summon Ranger Corps of their own accord, specializing in dealing with the Gatu people.

These knights patrolled the borders of Long River Town in small squads. Once they spotted Gatu cavalry, the patrol squad would blow the horns they carried while launching a charge.

Nearby knight squads would immediately hurry over to support them upon hearing the horn.

This highly efficient mobile defense system successfully prevented the Gatu people from raiding the border villages. The Horn Summon Ranger Corps rose to fame from then on, and these knights became guardian angels in the eyes of the local people.

At the same time, they became a knightly order tacitly recognized as legal by the Lionheart Kingdom.

Count Oden, it was said, had received the full support of this armed force—Oden was a native of Long River Town, and he had likely once been a member of the Horn Summon Ranger Corps. He might even have been its Grand Commander.

Over time, the Horn Summon Ranger Corps gradually developed into a highly distinctive organization. They wore signature green armor, and their horses were fitted with green caparisons as well—in grasslands and forests, this camouflage gave them the initiative in scouting and skirmishes.

At the same time, with victory after victory, the kingdom's territory—or rather, Long River Town's jurisdiction—gradually pushed into the edges of the grasslands. They began bringing in large numbers of fine horses for breeding, raising geldings unique to Long River Town.

These warhorses, which did not go into heat, startled easily, and were extraordinarily docile, allowed them to hold the upper hand even in mounted archery against the Gatu people, who were skilled riders and archers.

That was probably why Ralph had considered it "only natural" to capture or kill that hundred-man Gatu cavalry unit after hearing about them.

They truly had the ability to swiftly wipe out those Gato Raiders.

Though they were also called a knightly order, the Horn Summon Ranger Corps had one notable difference from other knightly orders on the continent—their core members were not necessarily noble knights.

As long as they had the resolve to protect their homeland and sufficient skill, any resident of Long River Town could start as a sentry and gradually become a core member of the Horn Summon Ranger Corps.

By comparison, this knightly order did not particularly value status or rank. That might also have had something to do with Count Oden.

Of course, the Grand Commander could still only be a noble.

Ralph, this Knight Commander, was presumably such a case—he was not a noble knight in the usual sense, but the "Knight Commander" of the knightly order known as the Horn Summon Ranger Corps.

That was actually quite remarkable. There were still many nobles within the Horn Summon Ranger Corps. Ralph must have possessed exceptionally distinguished achievements to become their leader.

"Sarah, in a place like Long River Town, facing a power struggle between two high-ranking nobles... do you think Ralph, as a commoner, might find it very uncomfortable?"

Li Ang twisted his neck and spoke slowly.

Sarah froze for a moment, then immediately understood. "My lord, Ralph does not seem very good at being a bureaucrat. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been pressured by you... wouldn't have provided you with so many supplies..."

Li Ang smiled and nodded. "Exactly. He is a warrior, an outstanding warrior. I can tell that his skills are probably even better than Kloze's... The stage meant for him should be the border battlefield, not the intrigue and deception between nobles."

As he spoke, he looked at Sarah. There was none of a businessman's mercenary shrewdness in his eyes—only concern.

"Sarah, I think you can persuade him to buy this vital passage for the Gatu people and station his elite sentries here... If he does, he may very well become a second Count Oden!"

Sarah's eyes gradually widened. The clever fox spirit had already grasped what Li Ang meant.

"My lord, you think the Gatu army will launch a large-scale invasion of the Lionheart Kingdom from here?!"

Yes. That was why Li Ang could only discuss this with Sarah. Before the camp's defenses had been properly organized, he could not let the mercenaries hear it—or more than half of them might flee.