Chapter 262: Chapter 259: Chivalrous War (Part 2)
The old village chief, kneeling on the ground, suddenly raised his head upon hearing the news and hurriedly said, “Thank you, thank you, noble knight.”
Fearing that they might go back on their word, he quickly stood up, showing no signs of age, and leaned on his cane to shout at the kneeling villagers:
“Rejoice! The noble knight has promised to protect us.”
The villagers stood up one after another, cheering in a scattered manner.
The ape-faced knight tugged at the reins, fully aware that this was a cunning tactic from the peasants, but he couldn’t just leave like this.
The knight with black hair and black eyes said, “Brothers, let us enter the church to pray to the goddess. She will protect us.”
The six knights dismounted together, ignoring the ape-faced knight.
“Fool.” The ape-faced knight cursed, having no choice but to dismount as well.
“My lord.” The old village chief bowed low and walked over to the knight with black hair and black eyes. Although his eyes were cloudy, he realized that the knight with black hair and black eyes was the leader, “The sacred artifacts in the church are the pride of our village. You may take them for your use.”
“If they were of any use, why would they be in this remote village?” the ape-faced knight replied angrily, “What sacred artifacts?”
The old village chief looked at him and said, “The sword and armor left by ancient warriors.”
The ape-faced knight drew his knight’s sword and said, “You dare to ambush a lone knight and strip them of their armor! I will slay you.”
The knight with black hair and black eyes shielded the old village chief and said, “Stop! If you are afraid, do not stay.”
The other knights echoed in agreement.
The ape-faced knight angrily said, “You fools! The wound on my neck was left by a peasant! They actually dared to attack a lone knight.”
As he spoke, the ape-faced knight removed his helmet and violently tugged on the chainmail at his throat, revealing a hideous wound on his neck.
The knights lowered their accusing hands, half-believing him.
“How could that be possible? Foolish and weak peasants, how dare they strike?”
“Peasants? They are much more cunning.” The ape-faced knight said, “More cunning than goblins, they know how to dig traps and use daggers to slit throats. I nearly died at their hands, and afterward, I swore to kill one whenever I saw one.”
The knight with black hair and black eyes asked, “How did you survive?”
The ape-faced knight avoided the question and simply said:
“Later, I called upon the local knight lord and had that village chief and several young men killed. If it weren’t for the fact that it was his village, I would have burned the whole thing down. Trust me, they are nothing but dishonorable animals, simply wanting us to die.”
The knight with black hair and black eyes glanced at the trembling old village chief and the thin villagers. He thought that if the peasants weren’t cunning, they likely wouldn’t have survived.
He said, “We must defend the holy ground and cleanse the shame. If you wish to leave, then go.”
The other knights said:
“Coward.”
“Coward.”
The ape-faced knight said, “Bah, you fools with bad brains, you are all the same.”
At that moment, the lock on the wooden door of the church suddenly broke and the door swung open on its own.
The old village chief knelt down and said, “The goddess has manifested! It must be the bravery of the noble knights that moved her.”
The ape-faced knight said, “Liar.”
“We must go, we cannot disappoint the goddess.” The knight with black hair and black eyes said, striding towards the church.
The ape-faced knight hesitated for a moment before spitting at the old village chief and sheathing his sword, then he too marched into the church.
Inside the simple church, the seven knights knelt on one knee before the statue of the goddess, explained their intentions, and began searching for the sacred artifacts.
What lay out were hair, charred remains, or teeth, along with tattered, rusty swords that were little more than refuse.
The knights inspected them and found the craftsmanship to be crude.
Finally, they found a stone coffin, with a statue of a knight in armor carved on the lid. They lifted the heavy stone coffin and found several items of equipment inside.
The knight with black hair and black eyes picked up a sword that, though covered in dust, gleamed brightly when drawn, radiating a faint glow.
The knight with black hair and black eyes said, “Blessings from the goddess.”
All seven knights received sacred artifacts, donned them, and prayed for the goddess’s protection.
After praying, they exited the church.
They found the villagers driving away livestock, carts piled high with goods, while women followed the carts, holding crying children. Many young men were also carrying large bundles, all fleeing together.
But none of the knights spoke, not even the ape-faced knight, who had been so indignant.
They mounted their horses, and the seven knights rushed toward the stone bridge.
At the bridge’s entrance, more than fifty archers had gathered. According to the laws of the Baruto knight kingdom, when peasants had downtime, they could only engage in archery, which explained the large number of longbowmen, whereas there were only a little over a dozen spearmen.
The knight with black hair and black eyes sat high on his horse, looking down at the old village chief and said, “You’re still here?”
The old village chief, wearing a half-rusted helmet, bowed and said, “If I don’t stay, no one will. Noble knights, there is food here, please eat something to fill your stomach.”
It was black bread, half made with bran and half with peas, along with freshly drawn well water.
Some knights turned their noses up, while others dismounted to eat the bread.
The knight with black hair and black eyes commanded the farmers’ soldiers, “You all climb onto the rooftops and shoot arrows directly at the bridge.”
“What if we accidentally hit you, my lords?”
“Hahaha.” The knight with black hair and black eyes laughed, “Your arrows wouldn’t even pierce through steel armor.”
“They’re coming! They’re coming!”
The farmer sentinels on the rooftops shouted in panic, “So many wild beasts are coming!”
He was even scared enough to roll off the roof.
“Knights! Dismount!” The knight with black hair and black eyes drew his sword and waved it above his head, “Pray to the goddess, prepare for battle.”
With that, he was the first to kneel, holding the sword upright with both hands. The other knights, including the ape-faced knight, knelt down on either side, praying.
“Goddess, please bless me…”
The distant howls of beasts grew louder, and the ground seemed to tremble beneath them.
The knight with black hair and black eyes mumbled the prayers but could hear the beating of his own heart.
What if the goddess did not bless these cowards?
At that moment, amidst the sounds of astonished exclamations, a faint blue light descended upon them. The knight with black hair and black eyes felt a surge of passion, a sense of fervor rising in his heart, because he could sense the goddess watching over him.
He stood up, looking at the knights enveloped in the same faint blue light, and said, “The goddess is watching us!”
“Roar!”
A beastly roar echoed from across the bridge.
“Knights, mount up and prepare for battle!”
The knights all leaped onto their loyal warhorses.
A large group of horned beasts and lesser horned beasts did not stop for a moment, their mouths stained with blood and their eyes glowing red. The taste of human flesh and the thrill of slaughter drove them into a frenzy, surging onto the stone bridge. With so many of them, numerous lesser horned beasts were pushed off the bridge, plunging into the raging river below.
The knight with black hair and black eyes was calm, suppressing his growing fervor; he shouted when the beastmen were about to surge down the bridge, “Charge! Rush through!”
The warhorses galloped, the lances raised. At that moment, the knight with black hair and black eyes heard the old village chief shout, “Fire!”
A small rain of arrows fell at the bridge’s entrance. As the beastmen descended, they instinctively scattered, and those hit by arrows fell, blocking the crowd of beasts behind them.
The seven knights plunged into the loose group of beasts, raising a storm of blood. They tossed aside their lances as they galloped through the chaotic mist of beastmen, slashing at them with swords or warhammers. When they burst through the hordes, many beastmen lay dead on the ground.
Then, they turned around and charged again, the same slaughter ensuing.
The rain of arrows indiscriminately shot into both sides engaged in combat.
The knight with black hair and black eyes, just as he beheaded a horned beast, felt a sharp pain in his shoulder as an arrow struck his shoulder guard, redirecting slightly to the side.
A horned beast with its chest pierced by an arrow charged toward him, but it was hindered by the injury and moved slowly. The knight with black hair and black eyes spurred his horse forward and killed it with a swift strike.
Next to him, the ape-faced knight’s horse stumbled suddenly, causing him to roll off. The beastmen surged forward, and the lesser horned beasts pressed down on him, trying to stab the tall knight through the gaps in his armor.
The knight with black hair and black eyes rushed over to save him.
With a furious roar, the ape-faced knight surprisingly pushed off the beasts crushing him, waving his sword and shouting, “You will not kill me! You farmers!”
The knight with black hair and black eyes struck down a horned beast behind him.
The ape-faced knight glanced at him and said, “This is how I carve a path through blood.”
He still remembered the accusations from before.
The surrounding beastmen scattered in panic, fleeing from the battlefield piled with corpses. The retreating soldiers and the incoming beastmen were jammed together on the bridge.
The knight with black hair and black eyes dismounted, saying, “Let’s simply walk over and kill.”
The ape-faced knight looked at his beloved horse struggling on the ground and said, “I’m sorry.”
He stabbed his beloved horse through the heart with his sword and then charged onto the bridge.
The seven knights rushed onto the narrow bridge, which had enough space for a cart and people to pass through.
The beastmen cried out in dismay and many jumped into the water to avoid the knights’ swords.
The knights hacked at the beasts’ backs, and after breaking through the bridge’s exit, they finally stopped and returned to the bridge.
Standing on the stone arch bridge, they looked down to see the beastmen packed below, a dark mass holding spears and axes, encircling them, yet hesitating to come up.
This was also because the bridge was piled high with bodies, and the river echoed the wails of drowning beasts. How could they dare to come up?
The knight with black hair and black eyes panted, standing on the blood-slick bridge and feeling a sense of pride as he beheld everything, momentarily forgetting the pain of his injuries.
“See, even beasts can be afraid,” he turned back and laughed, “Is everyone still alive?”
The first thing he saw was the ape-faced knight, whose arm hung limply at his side, followed by three other knights, one of whom was severely injured, leaning against the railing, forcing himself to stand.
His heart sank, and he searched for the silhouettes of the other two knights.
A knight’s corpse lay beneath a pile of beastmen corpses, pinned to the ground, his helmet torn off, a dagger stuck in his eye socket.
Another knight lay on the ground, impaled with several spears. His limping warhorse stood beside him, lowering its head to lick its master’s cheek, trying to awaken the lifeless owner.
They fought to the last breath.
Just then, the knight with black hair and black eyes heard a furious beastly roar.
He saw a tall, horned bull-man missing an antler; the missing antler was tied with a familiar stag’s antler, the one that belonged to their commander’s helmet.
The one-eyed bull-man glanced at the five knights on the bridge and shouted, “Shoot them dead!”
Over two hundred lesser horned beasts surged forward, bowstrings drawn as they prepared to fire.
Arrows like a swarm of flies rushed toward them from all directions.
“Bless us, goddess!”
They bowed their heads and lifted their iron gauntlets to shield their helms’ eye slots.
A faint blue cloak enveloped them; arrows veered away from their bodies, even bouncing ineffectively off their armor.
The rain of arrows continued for over ten minutes before stopping.
The knight with black hair and black eyes lowered his gauntlet, feeling a numbness in his hands as he looked around. The stone bridge was littered with arrows in its cracks, and the five knights still stood on the bridge, while the quivers of the lesser horned beasts were already empty.
“Follow me!”
The one-eyed bull-man brandished a massive battle axe and shouted. This axe had previously severed the head of the knights’ leader.
“We cannot let them cross the bridge!”
The knight with black hair and black eyes shouted, charging alongside the ape-faced knight.
The one-eyed bull-man swung his axe.
It looked large and appeared slow, but its speed was much quicker than expected.
The blade grazed the chest of the knight with black hair and black eyes, the sound of metal warping echoed as his vision darkened, and he tumbled back, rolling on the ground.
After a moment, he staggered to his feet.
The sounds of slaughter and beastly roars rang clearly in his ears; dazed, he touched his ear and realized his helmet was gone.
The beastmen were already raising their shields, charging down the bridge despite the rain of arrows. Only two knights stood before them now, and the one-eyed bull-man sported only a few bleeding wounds.
The knight with black hair and black eyes shook his head vigorously, bent over, and spit out blood mixed with bile. He whistled, and his loyal warhorse came to his side; he mounted and seized a spear handed to him by the old village chief and several militia as he gritted his teeth and charged at the one-eyed bull-man.
The one-eyed bull-man noticed him, grinning as he raised his massive battle axe, the muscles in his arms tensing.
The knight with black hair and black eyes felt goosebumps; he remembered the bull-man taking this pose, waiting to ambush and having killed many knights.
But he could only charge recklessly, lowering his lance as he aimed for the bull-man’s chest.
Ten steps, eight steps, six steps… he could see the grotesque smile on the bull-man’s face, sensing that in the next moment, the axe would cleave his skull.
“Goddess, above!”
With a roar, a figure suddenly burst forth from the group of beasts— the ape-faced knight, swinging a sword at the one-eyed bull-man. Caught off guard, the bull-man swung his axe at the ape-faced knight, but he deftly dodged and his sword struck the bull-man’s wrist, severing the thick hide.
The one-eyed bull-man roared in anger as the knight with black hair and black eyes thrust his spear deep into the bull-man’s chest, piercing through the chest armor. The sharp metal tip emerged from the back, breaking with a snap; the knight with black hair and black eyes rushed past, and the one-eyed bull-man fell to the ground, clutching the broken shaft of the spear embedded in his chest.
Enduring the sharp pain in his chest, the knight with black hair and black eyes raised the sacred sword and shouted, “Slay them!”
The beastmen could no longer hold their ground; they turned to flee, jumping into the river, crowding onto the bridge as the knights hacked at their backs.
After crossing the bridge, the knight with black hair and black eyes could no longer bear it. He clamped his legs tightly around the horse’s belly as his head leaned back.
The beastmen scattered into the woods, the distant forest aflame, black smoke rising into the sky.
The knight with black hair and black eyes pulled on the reins, leading his horse back, its hooves crashing over the stacked bodies on the bridge, crossing over.
Only two knights remained standing, including him.
The old village chief, with a helmet on his head, looked flushed and excited, followed closely by five spear-wielding militia who surrounded him and said, “Wonderful! The village is saved! Noble knight, please dismount and rest.”
“Be careful, don’t dismount!” The ape-faced knight muttered, supporting himself with his sword, “You peasants want to take the opportunity to kill us?”
At this moment, the knight with black hair and black eyes noticed several spear tips aimed at him; he immediately reined in his horse and sternly shouted, “What do you want?”
“Nothing.” The old village chief replied, turning around, “Don’t aim your spear tips at the noble knight! How many times have I told you!”
“You didn’t say either.” A militia member defensively shifted the spear tips away from him.
“Better safe than sorry.” The ape-faced knight said as he staggered over to the knight with black hair and black eyes, “Though the village is nearly empty, there are still sixty skilled archers hiding behind, ready to shoot.”
The longbowmen on the rooftops were coming down; the knight with black hair and black eyes estimated that given the situation now, the two of them could not take on the villagers.
Just as the knight with black hair and black eyes was doubting, he suddenly felt a red light emanating from his body. A surge of strength flowed into his limbs, and the sharp pain in his chest vanished instantaneously, the power embedding itself into his muscles, which grew robust.
The knight with black hair and black eyes couldn’t believe it; as he slightly flexed his muscles, they pressed against his armor, the straps of his gauntlets actually bursting. He hammered his chest with his fist and felt no pain at all.
He was brimming with energy; the smell of blood mixed with the air filled his nostrils, deliciously sweet. He felt restless, eager for another bloodbath.
The red glow around him disappeared.
The knight with black hair and black eyes turned to look at the ape-faced knight, who was staring at his own hand now able to lift.
“Do you feel your wounds healing suddenly?” the knight with black hair and black eyes said, “It must be the goddess’s blessing.”
“I feel like I could fight again.” The ape-faced knight said, “Is this really the goddess’s blessing?”
“It must be! We have cleansed the shame and defeated our stronger foes.”
After saying this, the knight with black hair and black eyes turned to the old village chief. He didn’t notice that his eyes were turning red, “Come on, if you wish to challenge us, feel free to do so.”
The old village chief’s legs trembled, saying, “My lord, what nonsense are you talking? We can’t thank you enough.”
The knight with black hair and black eyes suppressed the killing intent in his heart as he looked around at the battlefield, now strewn with corpses.
The sky had turned red with the setting sun. For some reason, it appeared extraordinarily blood-red, and the distant woods were still burning, black smoke polluting the sky.
The flames devoured the forest, a fiery blaze sweeping through the treetops toward them.
“What a strange fire.”
“It must be the wind fanning the flames?”
A black and red figure burst forth from the flames, black for armor and armor coloring, red for hooves and the fully red-tipped lance.
The demon knight rode a hellish horse, charging toward the stone bridge, shouting:
“The Blood God admires you! You are worthy of a battle!”
“Just in time, I want to kill a few of the demon tribe.” The knight with black hair and black eyes said, “Bring me another lance!”
The demon knight stormed onto the bridge, the hooves crashing down, shaking the entire bridge.
The remaining two knights charged forward…
Fifteen minutes later.
The village was ablaze, black smoke rising from the church.
The demon knight placed the old village chief’s head on a skull pedestal. Nearly a hundred fresh human heads formed the base of this small skull pedestal.
The old village chief’s white-haired head rested at the top, his gray-white eyes wide open, gazing at his burning homeland. Before his death, the old village chief had led the charge, madly rushing toward the demon knight with a spear.
To show respect, the demon knight placed his head at the highest point.
After positioning the old village chief’s head, he turned back, walking toward his demonic horse, which was clad in armor and impatiently stamping its red-hoofed feet on the ground. Two heads of knights hung from its neck.
The demon knight mounted his horse, looked toward the fiery clouds in the sky, and rode in a certain direction. He ignored the fresh tracks on the ground, realizing that chasing after them would only find him more weaklings.
The hellish horse galloped continuously for nearly an hour, eventually reaching the demon knights’ makeshift camp.
They needed no food, wearing their armor without worry, thus had no tents or campfires. The only important thing was the skull totem.
A black metal pillar stood in the mobile camp, adorned with hundreds of knights’ heads.
The demon knight dismounted and hung the heads of the knight with black hair and black eyes and the ape-faced knight together.
The heads swayed slightly as the knight with black hair and black eyes wore an expression of disbelief.
…
…
Leann Port, Outskirts Camp.
Brother George rode on his warhorse, accompanied by his attendants, stepping into the camp under the red sunset.
Around his horse’s neck hung an enormous horn from a horned beast.
A noble knight approached on a flying horse. He lifted his visor first and walked toward Brother George.
Brother George felt honored, raised his hand, and hurried to lift his own helmet visor.
“Dragon-slaying George.” He said, “It’s a great honor to see you again. May I ask if you still lack valiant knights riding flying horses in your retinue? Your guard will have an honorable knight.”
His hand hesitated briefly as he lifted his visor, he said, “I am not George.”
“Oh, then who are you?”
“A chivalrous knight, from the Hammer family.”
The flying horse casually responded, “Oh.”
With a tug on the reins, he turned to leave.
On the way, several people mistook him for George.
Brother George seethed, pulling down his visor and putting on a stern face. Upon inquiry, he discovered that the illegitimate son was wearing brass-edged armor identical to his own.
“That imposter.” He muttered under his breath, dismounted, and walked into the king’s steward’s tent.
Upon entering the door, he said, “First, let me clarify, I am not George.”
The steward standing up maintained his smile, “You are the knight here to report?”
“Yes, I represent the Hammer family to fulfill my knightly duties.” He strode toward the table, staring at the steward’s face and said, “Everyone on the battlefield will remember me, along with my family.”
“Excellent, the king will be proud of you.” The steward said, flipping through a thick book as he looked at Brother George’s coat of arms, finding a particular heraldry. He glanced at the line below it.
“You are actually brothers with George? He saved the entire principality.” He looked up, his face flush, “What an honor! Your family has fulfilled its knightly duties, yet continues to serve; the king will remember your family’s contributions.”
Brother George clenched his jaw, his face turning red. He turned and left without saying a word. After stepping out of the tent, he suddenly erupted, shouting, “I will! I will!”
After a few more shouts, he mounted and rode away.
————
Suddenly realizing that there isn’t a thirty-first day this month.
Six thousand words per chapter, even accounting for the thousand words owed. Now I still owe… ten thousand words!
