Assembling Troops, Taking a Bath

"Sir Davis Tevalin," he'd never seen this old dried-up husk before, but he still reined in his horse in time.

Armor like mountains, lances like a forest, the banners on the lances fluttered in the wind. On this not-so-wide street, a mere thirteen men actually displayed the might of thousands of heavily armored cavalry.

Sir Ramai, nearing forty, plump and fair-skinned, originally wanted to maintain his status and uphold the dignity of a knight.

But facing such a formidable cavalry unit, he couldn't help but wonder, "When did Tevalinburg get so many court knights? Could this Davis be old Nordus Tervain's illegitimate son? Why does it feel like he's giving his nephew too much?"

Sir Ramai still maintained some self-restraint, but the group of court knights were completely different; their attitude was much more respectful.

Never mind the gossip flying everywhere about Baroness Nordsa and Sir Davis, as long as they still had a chance to acquire fiefs, they wouldn't dare disrespect Sir Davis, who might become a baron.

Ergons, wearing the face of Sir Davis Tevalin, scanned the court knights bowing and saluting. He ignored the knight who clearly looked cleaner and didn't mention what they were doing.

"I need to ask you about someone's whereabouts. Where is the Baron?"

Among the court knights, a dirty-looking knight with a full beard, who seemed to be a vagrant, replied, "The Baron should be in the wilderness near Tevalinburg. He and his troops are heading to Tewain Village."

"I need to ask you, who is in charge here? Who do you take orders from when you gather here?"

Ergons' question made the group of court knights instinctively look at Sir Ramai, the only one with a fief. The plump knight was straightforward and chuckled, lowering his head, "We gather here, naturally, we take orders from the lord of Tervalin, Sir Tervalin!"

He deliberately spoke ambiguously, kicking the decision-making power back to the other party, waiting for them to state their purpose by retreating to advance.

Glancing at his cheap brother-in-law, Ergons reprimanded him without mercy, "Alright, now list the number of troops each of you is leading, their affiliations, and create a ledger for me. Also, report on your previous patrol missions and their results. And verbally explain what you know about the invading pirates, including but not limited to: their numbers, movements, combat strength, the losses of the villages they plundered, casualties, and your response strategies, future defense priorities, rectification of hidden dangers, and lessons learned."

They were stunned!

These nobles, who were more like well-born brutes than knights, had never seen anything like this before.

"Like this, how can I believe you can become qualified lords?"

Ergons deliberately frowned. The others present didn't even dare to breathe.

Even Sir Ramai, who was indirectly implicated, instinctively stood a little straighter, tucking in his protruding belly.

"Maintain a proper attitude. Gather everyone at the village entrance. I will call out names and assign you guard duties. Until the Baron arrives, all actions are subject to my command."

The crowd dared not disobey this person, who was the third most powerful in the barony. As they were lowering their heads and agreeing, they heard a very untimely applause and cheer.

"As expected of Sir Davis Tevalin, a leader of the Northern Knights! I am gratified that our country has such an outstanding young man!"

It was Pastor Ramses Bolton, riding a mare, and his page who had arrived. Seeing a black-robed priest, the knights suppressed their offended displeasure and nodded again.

"Disperse and carry out the orders of the lord of Tervalin!"

Pastor Ramses greatly admired the abilities of "Sir Davis Tevalin." He thought to himself, As expected of someone chosen by the Bishop. Such a person shouldn't be wasted. In this small country town, if he were in Gaudy City, he would have already become a prominent figure!

What was most commendable was that Sir Davis Tevalin genuinely wanted to become a qualified priest, a fact that many archdeacons within the church praised.

Although he is greedy, greed is never the original sin. Lack of strength and ability is.

When these scattered people finally gathered at the north gate of the village, they looked nothing like the elite iron troops of the Northern Legion. They were chattering amongst themselves in a disorganized manner. Once the crowd grew, they were noisier than flies, buzzing and irritating.

"Silence!"

Adamson stood at the north gate. His build alone was like an iron tower, and he held a massive war greatsword as if it were a one-handed sword, exuding great authority.

After everyone quieted down a bit, "Sir Davis" made his appearance.

"I will now call out the roll. In the assembly list you gave me, there should be 17 court knights, but only 7 are present. 7 sealed knights, but only 2 are present. I have brought 12 court knights and 2 clergy members. Sir Ramai brought heavy infantry... 12 heavy infantry, 5 auxiliary soldiers, 3 stewards dispatched by the court, and 15 heavy infantry?"

He didn't actually call out each name individually but rather tallied the numbers. Then he issued his orders: "First, the heavy infantry and auxiliary soldiers will repair the watchtower at the northwest river bend. Everyone will withdraw from the village and must not disturb the civilians. Second, everyone will take turns bathing. Don't you realize you all stink? Do you still have the appearance of nobles?"

Initially, no one had any objections to the arrangements for the auxiliary soldiers, but they were a bit reluctant to be ordered out of the village.

However, the seven court knights glanced at Sir Ramai and found that he didn't dare to speak up either.

Comparing their absolute strength, they truly lacked the confidence to contend with Sir Davis. Therefore, the soldiers spent half a day dragging their feet as they withdrew from the village.

The auxiliary soldiers, who were also peasants in their own territories, reluctantly bid farewell to their status as the overbearing lords of the Northern Legion and had to return to doing manual labor alongside the other peasants in the village.

The knight lords and heavy infantry also had to follow "Sir Davis'" heavy cavalry for daily training.

"Don't be resentful. The lord of Tervalin means well. You soldiers have become too lax. Living amongst the villagers in the settlement, if a sudden situation arises, you won't be able to form effective combat power."

Whether the knights truly listened to Pastor Ramses Bolton's words or not, they had to act as if they had suddenly understood.

Everyone sat around the campfire roasting meat. Ergons was naturally present, observing everything but offering no explanation.

It was William Adena who spoke up, "What kind of people are you all? You know yourselves. Toby, do you want to be a court knight for your entire life? I heard your second son can already walk, right? Do you want the three of you to serve under the same lord?"

Toby, a knight with a dirty, bushy beard, looked somewhat sheepish. He rubbed his large willow-wood hoop drinking cup and remained silent!

William continued to call out names, "Josev, don't think you're young. Based on your skills alone, do you really think you can survive a pirate attack? Dream on!"

The youngest and most hot-headed also fell silent.

William Adena, as the Baron's nominal brother-in-law and a renowned instructor among the Northern Knights, was someone these people really couldn't afford to offend.

Seeing that they were all silent, he continued to lecture with satisfaction.

"In our Tevalinburg, we only have these court knights. Everyone knows each other's situation. Those ten cowards, their usual behavior isn't much better than yours, and some are even worse!"

"Yeah, especially Luther and Joe, they're two perverts who can't walk when they see a woman. They never go out without causing trouble!"

Toby chimed in loudly, as if demeaning others would make him seem less terrible.

The court knights also nodded one after another, listing the shortcomings and mistakes of the ten court knights who were not present.

If you can't find the book by its title, you can try searching for the author; maybe they just changed their name!

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