Soft Ribs and Armor

A crescent moon hung in the sky, its halo dimming the moonlight.

In the dim moonlight, somewhere in the wilderness of the Duchy's Northbound Province, two people, covered in wounds, could only lick each other's wounds.

They didn't even dare to light a fire, eating the family of sand rats that the one-eyed first mate, whose injuries were relatively lighter, dug out of the sand.

Eating them raw.

"This tastes a bit more fishy than sashimi."

The one-eyed man still had the heart to joke with his captain. This strength infected Horus, who was feeling a bit down, and he also laughed.

"The earthy taste is too strong. When we get to the nearest farm tomorrow, I'll show you if my cooking skills have regressed. After all, it was my turn to cook every Tuesday on the ship, and you all seemed to enjoy it."

The slight surge of motivation they had just felt ended with this sentence.

The two men, who had been filled with renewed vigor and laughing heartily, suddenly became dejected, their hands slowing as they brought food to their mouths.

The despair in their eyes grew heavier, and tears streamed uncontrollably from their eyes.

"Yeah! Because I took that mission, the heads of those who ate my cooking every Tuesday have all moved away."

Horus hated it!

He couldn't forget the bodies of his brothers falling heavily to the ground one by one. He couldn't forget how the armored soldiers indifferently cut off their heads with swords and axes and tied them to their belts.

They had killed many people and knew they would eventually be killed by others, but what he couldn't let go of was the attitude of the other party when they spared him!

He didn't hate the nobleman who slaughtered his entire crew for sparing him!

He hated the act itself.

The other party completely disregarded his feelings. Whether it was for a plan or some political maneuvering, letting the two of them survive was meant to make them scapegoats.

Yet, they could only flee in a sorry state.

The other party didn't care at all that he might seek revenge; they simply ignored it.

This was utter disregard and an almost arrogant confidence.

Horus still remembered the indifferent attitude and the condescending look in the young nobleman's eyes when he said he would spare them.

"Stop crying!"

His fingernails dug fiercely into his palm, crushing the rat meat in his hand. It was unclear whether it was the rat's blood or his own that flowed freely.

Horus growled like a wild beast, "Eat these rats, we need to regain our strength! He's driving us into that viscount's territory, but we can't do as he says!"

"Right, let's go back! Let's get him! Let's avenge our brothers! We won't be dogs driven around by him!"

The two beasts, licking each other's wounds, could only huddle in this dark corner, eating rats raw. Was it tragic?

They didn't think it was tragic. Those who had spent their lives at sea understood that being alive was already a gift from the sea god.

But hatred was difficult to extinguish.

At the same time, the "late-night snack" to welcome the soldiers in Tervain Village was drawing to a close.

Tervain Village was wealthy and had resources, so their celebrations were always casual.

This was the second feast in a short period, nominally a welcome party for the soldiers stationed at the manor.

In reality, it was more of a celebration of their victory and the fact that they had all received the divine favor.

Gratitude for being able to follow the Divine Favor.

Under William Adena's mediation, the old sergeant was drinking with Adamson, and the light infantry was wrestling with the young heavy cavalry. The feast looked quite chaotic.

This was fitting for the barbaric and backward era, reflecting how the ignorant and unknowledgeable natives would celebrate and yearn for all things beautiful.

In the center of the banquet, the two men wrestling had a winner.

Although the light infantry from the castle was older and had more combat experience, he was no match for this young boy.

After all, the stats on his panel didn't lie.

However, after the match, no one mocked the loser; instead, everyone cheered loudly and toasted them.

Ergons Tervalin stood up as usual to give a toast. After some thought, he decided that since he wanted to show the Baron that his sword was still sharp, he couldn't be too emotional at this moment.

"A toast to the Baron, to the Holy See, and to those who love this land and gain the capital to survive from its love!

Some say that acquiring land and continuing to govern the people here for the Duchy and the Holy See is the best gift I've received today.

In reality, the best gift I've received is you all!"

Ergons Tervalin's words were infectious, making him sound like a devout believer and a noble gentleman.

"As a believer, I am overjoyed that I can do more for the people under my command.

In the past, you were my weakness. Now, because you follow me, you are my armor. With your support, I can become better, do more for Lord Baron, help Lord Count, and allow the Duchy to develop in a better direction."

William Adena had privately told him that most of these people were "loyal" to the Holy See.

In other words, they were all placed by the Holy See, but at the same time, they were also the Baron's men. In reality, none of them truly pledged allegiance to the Holy See.

Therefore, he could speak more freely to these soldiers from the castle, saying things that seemed a bit out of place.

"My sword shines with silver light, and now all of you gathered here before me, under the guidance of my blade, will fight for the Duchy and the Holy See."

There was nothing wrong with what he said, because he had transformed into Sir Davis Tervalin, and was now a patrolling officer of the Northern Legion. These soldiers sent from the castle, no matter who they were truly loyal to behind the scenes?

On the surface, they were subordinates of Sir Davis Tervalin.

Although they weren't truly loyal to Sir Davis Tervalin, and Ergons Tervalin wasn't Sir Davis Tervalin either.

By the time the feast ended, it was already very late into the night, or rather, the dawn's light illuminated the world as these people dispersed.

With Old Adam around, arranging for these people to rest was not a problem at all; he didn't need to consider it personally.

The only slightly unkind thing was that the resting place for this squad of 20 people had just seen off about 20 pirates.

That's right, Old Adam used the excuse that the weighing house was the closest to the main castle, and arranged for these people to stay in the weighing house where a group of pirates had just died.

Even the bedding they used was the same one that had covered dead people the day before.

And after letting them rest for half the morning, before lunch, the first task Ergons assigned them was to inspect the pirate corpses.

Those pirates had not yet been buried. Their heads had been sent to the Baron, and the bodies were all gathered in the weighing house closest to the granary.