PS. This book will be on the shelves on the 1st of next month. Please be kind to me, and I will keep you posted.
Valdemar looked surprised. He subconsciously reached for the sword at his waist, but then he remembered that the sword had been handed over to the guard before entering the door. The knights of the kingdom immediately rushed towards Albert, trying to take it.
He is a hostage.
The result made him despair. In his impression, his swordsmanship was average. Albert, who rarely went to the battlefield, dodged with extremely fast reaction speed, and then slashed Valdemar's thigh with his sword. The knight of the kingdom was injured in the leg and collapsed.
He was pushed to the ground by two guards.
"How...how did you find out?" Valdemar knew that the situation was over. He was pushed to the floor by two guards. Then more guards rushed in, tied him up, and then used a halberd to hold his arms.
neck.
"Obviously, my knight betrayed me." Albert's face turned red, and the veins on his head swelled, making the Earl in his forties look very ferocious: "He has dedicated the people of this city to
The barbarians in the north are the bloody sacrifices of the barbarians, am I right?"
The guards looked at the kingdom knight in disbelief. The guard captain Emil walked to Albert and whispered: "Earl?"
"This traitor is in harmony with the barbarians! He has surrendered to the barbarian army outside the city. He dedicated my city and my people to Berig, and he will become the city's knight as the kingdom knight of Mjordenhaven.
The only noble among them who resisted to the end, he persisted until the arrival of imperial reinforcements, so the king must reward him." Al.
Bert walked to Valdemar's side and whispered in his ear: "The best result is that the great bamboo pole knight Valdemar, the hero of Miljödenhaven, will take over the role of the late Earl Albert.
I will give you the title of Te-Bek and become the new lord of this city. Am I right? If I am not wrong, your people have been arranged on that passenger ship, right?"
Valdemar's face turned blue and white, and the knight of the kingdom simply remained silent.
"You're not talking, are you? Emil?" Albert gave his guard captain a look. The guard captain with a scar on his face rushed up and punched Valdemar's beautiful face hard, beating him beautifully.
His face was bruised and bruised.
"You don't understand me from the beginning to the end, my knight!" Albert Baker put the long sword into the scabbard and said bitterly: "You think I can't see that all this is your handiwork? The whole city
Up and down, there are no more than ten people who know the gunpowder storage point at the East City Gate, and you are responsible for the defense of the East City Gate. Only you can find loopholes in the patrol and send people to detonate the gunpowder!"
"And you came too fast. This is too abnormal. I know you. You can never be on duty at this time. You should be sleeping with prostitutes (Harmony) in a bar owned by a halfling!" Albert kicked him!
After kicking Valdemar in the face, the knight of the kingdom shed two nosebleeds.
"So what?" A crazy voice answered the count: "Albert, do you think you can defend this city? Just rely on the broken city gate? Just rely on the rabble you recruited temporarily?
"
"Wake up! You stupid ass! Everyone will die! The whole city will be reduced to ashes by the barbarians' axes and torches!" Valdemar shouted crazily: "The more you resist, the more likely you will die.
The world will become more miserable. The end will eventually come and everything will be destroyed. Only those who understand
The only way to survive is to kneel down and obey! I am thinking about the people of this city! Birig promised me that if I surrender, he will only kill half of the people in this town! Only half! I can save him
How many people? This is the right choice, you don’t understand at all!”
"...You are really crazy." Albert was too lazy to argue with this man. He motioned to his guard captain to drag Valdemar out: "From today on, the Kingdom Knight Valdemar will be removed from this world. You
Your family history will be erased, your family will become slaves, and you... will be violently buried in the wild, and you will never be able to rest in peace!"
"No! You can't do this to me! No! I have done great service for Nord! I have shed blood for the old count! I want to see His Majesty the King! I want to see His Majesty the King!!!" Valdemar was dragged out by the guards.
, the guard captain Emil stepped forward and asked: "Count, how should we deal with this traitor?"
"Beheading, execute immediately!"
"Yes!" The guard captain left in a hurry.
Albert turned around and took a deep breath, then turned his eyes to the entire set of plate armor placed in his room, and uttered a sentimental soliloquy: "So, the war is finally coming."
"Valdemar has never figured out how I, the hereditary great earl, inherited it." Looking at the armor passed down by his ancestors, Albert lowered his head and said, as if he was speaking to himself, but also as if he was speaking.
Listen to the portrait in the bedroom.
The name of his ancestor is written on the portrait: Baker I, Earl of Millodenhaven.
"During the great holy war one hundred and fifty years ago, the evil army pressed upon the territory, and the elector of Nordland, King Stadler VIII of the North, chose to bow his knees to the second Eternal Chosen One of Chaos, 'Anointed One' Isaku
Vaal surrendered. At that time, almost all of Nord had fallen, and only three counts were left who refused to surrender. They fought to the last moment. In the end, under the wise leadership of His Majesty Ludwig, Chaos was repulsed."
"In order to reward these three counts and their descendants who fought to the last moment, even if the Kingdom of Nord replaced the Nord Electorate, the titles of these three counts were not replaced by the Nord feudal system. Ludwig
I hope that Your Majesty will confer upon our three families all the highest honors of hereditary and replaceable counts!"
"This territory was earned by our ancestors with their blood and lives! If I choose to surrender, how can I face my ancestors who are buried in Moore Cemetery???!!!"
The captain of the guard soon came in carrying an iron plate with Valdemar's head covered with red cloth: "Count!"
The count closed his eyes.
"Now, the only option is to fight to the bitter end!"
"However, Valdemar's suggestion is not without merit. Emil, send my family to the passenger ship. If something happens to me, please ensure their safety!"
"yes!"
The next afternoon, when Ryan led the Nord army back to Miljödenhaven, what he saw was the collapsed city gate, the severely damaged moat, and the civilians who were in despair and panic.
The original joy of successfully intercepting the barbarians also disappeared.
As soon as the army entered the city gate, Lane and others were stopped by the guards sent by the lord: "Mr. Lane! Mr. Nicolai! The Earl has an urgent military situation!"
Twenty minutes later, Earl Albert's castle.
Albert was fully armed, with the trefoil family crest shining brightly. His guards stood in two rows in the large room. When he saw Ryan and Nikolai walking into the room, the 40-year-old Earl nodded: "How is the battle going?"
"We have successfully blown up the Aarhus Bridge, which should at least delay Brig's troops until dark." Ryan and Nicklay hurriedly approached, and they learned about Wald from Albert's mouth.
Ma's story: "Then if Brig moves the fastest, he will arrive at Kalzenhaven by noon tomorrow."
"My scout told me that the empire's reinforcements will not arrive until noon the day after tomorrow at the earliest." Albert nodded, and then the count turned to look at his kingdom knights.
The person who was hit the hardest by this incident was Nikolai. He really couldn't believe that Valdemar, who was also a knight, would actually do such a thing.
"Betray the people! Betray the country! Betray our compatriots! Oh my God, what did Valdemar do? Is he sick?" Nikolai was very sad, and he had no regard for his superior standing right next to him.
In front of him, Walnut Knight found a place to sit down and brushed his face with his hands: "I...I really...don't know what to say."
At the end of the sentence, Nikolai's voice was choked with sobs.
"Now is not the time for you to be sad and miserable, my friend. Our top priority is to decide what to do next? Should we go out to fight in the city? Or hold on and fight in the streets? Tell me, White Wolf Knight, what would you do if it were you?
"A flash of pain flashed across Albert's face. The Earl walked to his long table and took out a bottle of wine: "Gentlemen, would you like a glass? This is Winford's wine 'Lusalus',
I’m worried that if I don’t drink it now, I won’t have the chance to drink it in the future.”
"Of course! It's always good to have a drink." Ryan closed his eyes helplessly, and the White Wolf Knight understood what the fairy in the lake's prophecy was.
He and Birig will eventually have a battle.
Once he thought there was no problem with his plan, but reality slapped him in the face. Now he is in a dilemma, which can be described as a true portrayal of the White Wolf Knight.
"No, I don't have to." Nikolai still couldn't get over the shock of his colleague and friend's betrayal. He leaned slumped on the armchair: "Can you just give me a few minutes to be quiet?"
"Then let's start first!" Albert shrugged. The blond earl's eyes were slightly darkened, but he was in great spirits. He took out two tall glasses from his cabinet and removed the corks of the wine.
Unplug.
The sweet wine is different from the normal wine produced in Winford. Its grape fruit aroma is very weak, replaced by a strange sweet aroma.
Ryan took the wine glass from Albert's hand, raised it and shook it at the tip of his nose: "Rich, plump, long-lasting, delicate and soft, let me think about it, honey, apricot preserves, lemon... and peaches
?”
"I didn't expect that 'Sledgehammer' Ryan is also a person who knows how to drink? I thought that like your father Norman, your favorite is Kislev liquor, and once you drink it, you won't finish it, and you must burn your face.
He drank till he was a monkey's butt, and then fell to the ground like a brown bear before he stopped." Seeing Ryan's knowledge of the goods, Albert suddenly smiled and said.
So at this moment when the troops were approaching the city, the White Wolf Knight and the Lord Count each held a glass of sweet wine and stood on the balcony of the room, overlooking the entire city.
Under the reflection of the white snow, this largest and most prosperous port city in Nord was not disrupted by the war and the large influx of refugees. Under the Earl's quick response and command, the remaining defenders quickly controlled the situation, and the Church of Justice
The paladins and priests of the Life Church also mobilized collectively, and the situation was quickly brought under control.
However, the fear among them could not be dissipated, and groups of people were lying in the open air on the streets. Especially the large number of civilians and refugees near the east city gate were migrating towards the city. People were crowded, and many people were stagnant.
Under the Earl's Castle in the city, it seems that this last fortress in the city can give them a little sense of security.
The count's balcony was specially designed so that people below could not see above.
"Wynford... is really a fertile place. The wine there is famous all over the country, and the scenery there is said to eclipse heaven." Tasting the wine in his mouth, Ryan could feel the sweet aroma filling his throat and trachea.
"But I still love my land and my people." The Earl held up the wine glass with his hand and gestured to Ryan to look at his city: "In my eyes, there is no place more beautiful than Miljödenhaven. Look,
Those houses, that park, were all built after I inherited this location."
"I have carefully adjusted the tax rate in the city. I hope that any young man who wants to do a good job can get enough opportunities in my city. I hope that my dock can be as prosperous as Marienburg."
"Salute to you, Your Majesty the Earl." Ryan held up the wine glass: "Let us toast to the prosperity of Miljödenhaven."
"Hahaha~ Cheers!" Albert laughed, the glasses collided, the wine splashed, and then the count and the White Wolf Knight drank the wine in one gulp.
For some people, they may not agree with the importance that nobles in the Middle Ages attached to defending their territories and protecting their people. Many nobles would fight to the death to defend their territories without any benefit.
But this is the case for the nobles in this world. Territory is their foundation and a symbol of their glory and status. Giving up their territory is equivalent to giving up everything. Not only will they lose their reputation, they will also lose their title and the king's status.
Support, the money will always run out, and their ending will be absolutely tragic.
Look at the nobles of the old empire who gave up their territories and fled because of the invasion of Chaos. Even the serfs could insult and laugh at them at will.
After drinking the wine, Albert set his sights on his city and laughed: "It's a pity that this scene will probably never be seen again. My city will be reduced to ashes, and my subjects will die."
Under the slaughtering knife of the barbarians, I will shed my last drop of blood and tell me, White Wolf Knight, will you follow me and fight to the death for this city? Just for that glimmer of life?"
Ryan didn't answer.
The White Wolf Knight deeply understands that if he agrees, it means that he must stay and fight the barbarians, and as a member of the Kingdom Knight and the White Wolf Knights, Ryan has the right to refuse this invitation, because he is not this
A vassal of Earl Albert.
The vassal of my vassal is not my vassal. The war here has nothing to do with Ryan. He had reason to refuse to fight and left by ship.
But... there are only two legendary strongmen in this city, and that is him and Theresa. If he chooses to leave, the sorceress has no reason to stay here.
If there is no legendary strongman to fight against Berig, the fall of this city is only a matter of time. Ryan is too aware of the role of a legendary strongman in the war. The defenders of Miljödenhaven themselves are at a numerical disadvantage.
After losing the protection of the city wall, defeat was their only outcome.
Then, the entire city will be reduced to ashes, and the barbarians will completely destroy the shining pearl on the west coast of Nordis before the imperial army arrives, and then retreat. Even if the imperial army from afar can completely destroy them, it will be of no avail, because the city and territory
People will never come back again.
He recalled the prophecy of the Lake Fairy: You and Birig will eventually have a battle, and by that time, you will understand what the true virtue of a knight is.
True...virtue?
Seeing Ryan's silence, disappointment flashed in Albert's eyes, and he did not force it: "It doesn't matter, I can arrange a boat to take you out of Miljödenhaven..."
"Leave the city and face the enemy head on."
"What?"
"I said to assemble all the troops and face the enemy head-on at the gate of the city." Ryan's eyes became more and more determined. He seemed to be missing something, but also seemed to have something more: "Only a duel between champions can save this city.
Save this defeat."
In the void, upon hearing Ryan's suggestion, a beautiful figure nodded in approval, her dazzling blond hair flashing with a moving luster. (To be continued)