Chapter 40: The Student of the Epic Knight (seeking a monthly pass)
A wide, sparkling river flows through one of the slightly desolate plains and mountains. Large ships, either gorgeous or loaded with cargo, are sailing towards the city of Kalkat. Whenever they pass a place where the waves are too fast and it is impossible to go in the opposite direction.
There will be many coolies gathering, shouting slogans, dragging the ropes, and pulling them over one by one.
In the wind that would feel cold to normal people, these trackers were all naked from the waist up, and there was a faint white steam steaming around their skin.
"If I hadn't left home to become a mercenary, maybe I would have become one of them, a tracker on the Negnin River..." Katrina was quietly listening to the familiar sound of the trumpet, her ears
Suddenly a slightly hoarse male voice sounded.
This large river is the "main artery" of the Shahran Empire, the mother river "Negnin River" that gave birth to many prosperous cities. It originates from the snow-capped mountains controlled by the Vladimir family in the northwest province and flows through the northern province.
, advancing all the way to the southeast, and finally poured into the Storm Strait at the junction of the Shahran Empire and the Northland coastal corridor.
Katrina turned her head, looked at the young man next to her, and smiled: "Everyone has the opportunity to change their destiny. It just depends on whether you can grasp it. Obviously, Yakov, you are the strong one who has defeated yourself.
If you don't go out with the determination to die and always follow the waves, then you will be like all the trackers on the Negenin River and it will be difficult to live beyond the age of thirty-five."
Yakov is a mercenary with short, light yellow hair. He is under thirty, but has a full beard, full of vicissitudes of life. He is tall and has a rough appearance. He is called "brown bear" by the people in the mercenary team.
"Then you chose to become a mercenary with this determination?" Yakov asked with a wandering look and a smile.
Since the Shahran Empire is vast and sparsely populated, with many magical creatures and bandits, it is very dangerous to travel far away, especially in the north. Therefore, a beautiful girl traveling alone is very eye-catching, unless she
With the strength of a knight, by the same token, joining a caravan without company will also attract a lot of extra attention.
In order not to be suspected by the clergy and noble knights of the Northern Church, Katrina carefully chose to pretend to be a mercenary, forged the certificate of the mercenary guild, and got into a team escorting the caravan to Calcutta City. Erya
Kofu is the leader of this mercenary team, a knight who inspired the blood of the Frost Giants by himself.
Affected by the teacher's habit, Katrina's mouth twitched slightly. Just as she was about to answer, a clear female voice said in front of her: "Let me guess, sister Katrina, are you trying to escape from marriage? Are you like this?
You are a beautiful girl who must have come from a well-bred aristocratic family. Then you were attracted by some powerful noble scum and forced you to be his wife, so in order to escape, you had to choose to become a mercenary and leave?"
"Anna, you have listened to too many bard stories..." Katrina glanced at the female archer wearing leather armor next to her in a funny way.
Anna is a mercenary who is less than twenty years old. She has long blond hair, green eyes and good looks. She has a cheerful and lively personality, much like Heidi, so Katrina and she hit it off and have a good friendship.
Katrina, who is expressive, tall and well-spoken, is full of curiosity - having been influenced by bard stories and growing up, she intuitively believes that there must be a "twisting and moving" ups and downs hidden behind Katrina.
As everyone knows, her thoughts are also the speculation of most members of the mercenary team. Although Katrina uses the long sword well and is very agile, and has the strength of a high-level knight attendant, a few female mercenaries also have delicate temperament. She is as beautiful as her appearance, but she has a gentle temperament, and when she occasionally thinks about problems, she has an indescribable "aura of knowledge", which is basically absent among mercenaries.
Yakov once secretly cooperated with an official magician known for his "eruditeness", but he did not have a similar temperament.
Anna laughed twice, looked at the city of Kalkat that was getting closer, and asked with some anticipation: "Sister Katrina, we will follow Boss Yakov to settle here. What about you? Will you leave?"
Yakov had inspired his bloodline power in previous adventures, and this time he returned just for the title of knighthood. After the title, he would obtain a nearby manor and a territory on the desolate plain, and his mercenary team was willing to stay will become his knight squire or butler.
For most mercenaries, it took them a long time to get such an opportunity, so they naturally agreed without hesitation. With the support of a noble, stimulating the power of bloodline will not be as difficult as in the future. It's just as difficult for a mercenary without a foundation.
Hearing Anna's question, Yakov and several nearby mercenaries quietly pricked up their ears, as if waiting for Katrina's answer.
Katrina smiled and reached out to rub Anna's long golden hair: "I came to Calkat City to gain wealth. Maybe I will be able to get a satisfactory harvest in a few months. At that time, I will return to mine." It’s a place where I have my family and friends. Being able to meet you on this adventure is a memory worth cherishing.”
The underground covered by the forests and desolate plains near Kalkat City contains many resources and magical creatures, so there are caravans coming and going here, and countless mercenaries are active.
Many adventurers came here because of this, hoping to find undiscovered gem mines, magical plant gathering places and other things here, so as to get rich overnight. Most of them ended up quietly leaving in disappointment or leaving forever. Lying deep in the forest and under the plains, there are also a few lucky ones who have truly experienced adventures. They have inspired generations of adventurers to come here.
There are many special products nearby that play a very important role in the magician's research and alchemy. That's why the official magician! Came on the adventure, but was involved in the devil worship incident and died inexplicably in the city of Calkat. If he hadn't He came with his companions, and the remaining people returned to Arlinge. The council did not notice the disappearance of a magician like him, let alone send someone to investigate.
"Family...Friends..." Anna muttered a few words in a low voice, and said melancholy: "Sister Katrina, before you leave Calkat City, you must visit me often."
Yakov said in a low voice: "Katrina, if you need help in any way, don't be shy, just come to me, we are companions."
Katrina nodded slightly, and quickly changed the subject when the scene seemed to be dull, and asked Anna and others about the affairs of Calcutta City - she was not yet ten years old when she left here, and she only had a rough and vague impression.
During the discussion, the mercenary team protected the caravan and gradually approached the city gate. At this time, a group of cavalry rushed out from the city. The sound of horse hooves was rapid but unusually neat. It was obvious that they had undergone long-term training.
This cavalry team wore black full-body armor, and the visors of their helmets were lowered, giving them a cold and cold feeling, as if they came from a battlefield littered with corpses.
Their left arms were engraved with blood-red coats of arms, with a giant red bear inside, and a head held high in the left palm.
"Count Vladimir's Blood Bear Legion..." Yakov introduced Katrina in a low voice.
Katrina is actually no stranger to this. Although the territory of the Vladimir family is the Northwest Province, they also have a certain influence on the neighboring northern provinces. For example, the city of Kalkat is the hereditary count of the Vladimir family.
The lord is called "Count Calcutt", and the blood bear emblem, which symbolizes strength and glory, is the exclusive emblem of their heirs.
Anna beside her said with envy and fascination: "The Blood Bear Army seems to be going to greet Viscount Andre!"
"Viscount Andrei?" The name was too common and popular, and Katrina wasn't sure what his deeds were, although it sounded like he was the next Count Calcutt.
"Well, Viscount Andre became an official knight at the age of twenty and was promoted to a Grand Knight at the age of twenty-five. He reached the peak of the Grand Knight two months ago and was favored by the epic knight Nineel.
Became his student! He will definitely be promoted to a Sky Knight in the future and become the most powerful Count Calcutt." Anna said in a dreamy tone, as if she was discussing the prince or bard story in her mind.
Protagonist.
Ninel "Death Storm" Ninel Katrina was a little surprised. This first-class epic knight is the current head of the Furtado family and the actual ruler of the Northern Province. It is precisely because of his promotion that Saint
Ivanburg is considering raising the title of the Furtado family from marquis to duke. But isn’t the Furtado family at odds with the Vladimir family? Are you dissatisfied with their interference in the affairs of the northern province?
If Andrei Vladimir really needs an epic knight as a teacher, the Vladimir family is not without them. "Ice Age" Thom Vladimir stopped serving as the Grand Duke more than a hundred years ago even though he is old.
Noble title, but there is no doubt that he is still alive and is expected to break through to the legendary third level epic knight!
Is there any secret hidden in this? Is this information important to the parliament? Katrina thought in confusion.
Looking at her shocked expression, Anna showed even more envy and admiration: "Becoming a student of the epic knight is also a very rare adventure for the heavenly knight, let alone the great knight. Viscount Andre must have extraordinary abilities.
place!"
"Forget about the epic knight, I would be satisfied if I could have a heavenly knight as my teacher. Without the gift and care of the Lord, this kind of thing would never happen." Yakov sighed with a hint of bitterness and longing,
Comparing people with each other makes people angry.
Other mercenaries even laughed at themselves: "If we could have a great knight, no, a formal knight, as our teacher, we would all be willing to go to Heaven Mountain in advance."
During this discussion, they escorted the caravan into the city and found a hotel to stay temporarily.
When Yakov went to the city hall to report, Katrina took Anna to a nearby pub.
As soon as she stepped in, the beautiful Katrina was immediately "welcomed" by the whistles of the mercenaries and adventurers, who kept making vulgar jokes.
Anna glared at them fiercely and drew out her dagger. Katrina did not shy away from holding her long sword in front of her and looked around indifferently.
In this situation, the weaker you are, the more likely you will be bullied.
Sure enough, their toughness made the drunkards restrain themselves a lot and they were able to walk to the bar smoothly.
"Hi, little Anna, welcome back, who is this beautiful girl?" The owner of the tavern is a lustful middle-aged man.
Anna chuckled and said: "Uncle Gurf, do you want to enjoy the trampling of the brown bear? By the way, has anything big happened in recent months?"
"The biggest thing you must know is that Viscount Andre became the 'Death Storm'. Your Excellency's student, the younger one, had a demon worship incident in the noble district next door. Dozens of people died at the scene inexplicably." Gur.
The husband put away his lewd smile.
"The devil worship incident?" Anna asked curiously.
Katrina breathed a sigh of relief. With a local mercenary as a companion, it would be much easier to find out about things, and it would not arouse others' suspicion. Otherwise, if a "foreigner" asked about this matter rashly, he would definitely be noticed by interested people.