episode_0124

There is no one better to take captive than a knight.

A knight’s value on the battlefield comes from his outstanding military power, but off the battlefield, his value has a different meaning.

Killing him is more difficult than capturing him, and since he even has a thief willing to pay the ransom, there is nothing better.

You might have had similar fun if you had wizards as prisoners, but since most of them were in the rear of the rear, it was almost impossible to capture them unless it was a one-sided victory.

But that is only a practical story.

To lose a battle and be saved with a few gold coins, isn’t this a shameful thing, let alone honorable? So it wasn’t strange that there was a knight struggling like this.

“Hey, that guy! Run away! If you don’t want to be beaten to death by the captain, catch him right now!!”

“Yes, hold on to it!”

“Gi, knight!”

After all, those struggling are meat grinders who have spent at least ten years on the battlefield.

Even if you were tied up with a rope, you should not look down on it. Some ingenious people have already managed to solve it halfway. It was natural for the campsite to become chaos after the sealed monster was released.

Meanwhile, there was someone screaming and running towards me. I couldn’t let the walking loot escape, so I blocked its path.

You cannot brandish a weapon against an unarmed opponent. If that really happened, it would split in half.

so.

“Get out of front!”

“Hug me.”

-Wood!

I didn’t really want to give him a free hug, so I hugged him as hard as I could.

What can be done if the knights and soldiers lined up nearby join in?

Of all the irrationalities in the world, the scariest thing was the violence of numbers, so no matter how wild it was, it was bound to calm down eventually.

I dragged several knights who were trying to escape. The situation seemed to be calming down somehow.

They gathered all those who tried to escape and this time tied them up more tightly so that they could not even dream of escaping.

He was a high-class man and a semi-nobleman, so he would have been well fed and treated, but was emotional connection in an unfamiliar environment an issue?

Realizing my responsibility for this, I decided to become a companion to the knights who were captured one after another during this battle.

“You were that person back then… … .”

“Do you remember me?”

Among them, one of the knights who had been silent despite all the commotion recognized me and stiffened. And then he started muttering quietly.

“This doesn’t make sense.”

“What do you mean?”

“How can such an unreasonable power exist?”

Not long after, as I searched through my still clear memories, I was able to recall that he was the knight who stood at the forefront of the second charge.

At the time, I didn’t know his face because he was wearing a helmet, but I remembered him for the clothes he was wearing underneath.

Obviously, he must have had outstanding skills as he occupied the position in the cavalry charge.

Considering that he moved his body at a moment when others might have hesitated in confusion, it was not an unfounded claim.

Even if it was an enemy, it was a great thing. I spoke to him with pure admiration.

I remember who Sir “ was. A mace that was swung instinctively without much thought. Did one of our knights suffer from that blow? There is sure to be a lot of experience and effort in it.”

“… … .”

“It was an extremely difficult technique, but it was indeed a good example.”

but.

Now I am just a prisoner.

After chatting for a while to keep from being bored, the princess came up to me.

For a moment, I thought I should have told them to stay back because it was still dangerous, but I stopped because the situation was almost settled.

Heine looked around for a moment and then spoke softly so that only I could hear.

Is it time to evaluate the skills of the knights who will be commanded in the future? I was confident and prepared an answer.

“That, sir.”

“Yes, Your Highness. The matter was resolved well.”

“No, I’m talking about Lisia.”

“Did something happen with Lisia?”

I saw that the girl was friendly with the princess, and she didn’t have the personality to be rude. If so, it must be another reason.

“Your Highness?”

The princess just kept opening and closing her mouth as if she wanted to say something to me who asked that question.

And after a while, he broke the silence and sighed softly and said this.

“… No, sir. It’s not a matter for me to get involved in.”

He may have been trying to talk about something important, but the conversation ended so abruptly.

I decided not to pay any more attention to the conversation that had ended, and began to unpack the bundle of stories to the prisoners as I had done a moment ago.

*****

The criminal always returns to the scene of the crime. The same was true for the army after the battle.

If you think about it a little, it is an obvious fact. Isn’t this a place where all kinds of things that couldn’t be taken away are lying around without owners?

Most of the ones that were noticed when the enemy retreated were recovered on their own, but there were still some who enjoyed good luck.

“Here! Knight’s Helmet! I found it!!”

“What, it wasn’t there when I just looked… … !”

“Tsk, you should have worked hard for that. Where is the state… oh! There are only a few dents and scratches.”

Armor, swords, and nobles’ clothing were trophies and pocket money given to tired soldiers.

In some cases, it was possible to obtain accessories or warhorses, and it was said that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Of course, now that some time had passed after the battle, it was difficult to expect much in kind. However, small money pouches and pieces of precious metal were found inside.

This is because in a world where there are no institutions such as banks to entrust money to, people usually carry their assets with them.

The items acquired in this way were either used directly for later meritorious work, or sold to buy a house.

In other words, the place that was the battlefield is a treasure trove that can make up for some of the money and supplies lost during the battle.

Therefore, the one who comes back first is usually the winner, or if not, the one with a slight chance of winning.

Once in retreat and once in the returning army.

The battlefield, which has been plowed twice in this way, ends with the residents living nearby gathering for the final bite. Only then will the plunder end and the land find rest.

After a hyena bites a deer killed by a lion, an eagle pecks at the remains.

It is a great cycle of plundering ecosystem that ensures that nothing is left behind on the land after the battle is over.

“I’m rich now! Just live off the land, you lowlifes! I leave work first!”

“You don’t deserve to be called a lowlife just because you picked up a broken sword. Take care of your pocket tonight.”

“I have a condition that makes it difficult for me to hear poor people, so could you speak a little louder?”

Already on the battlefield, several soldiers were swarming around and tearing up the ground. They must have had a lot of fun, and I could clearly hear cheers coming from far away.

However, as knights, they could not bow down and search around like ordinary soldiers.

I took out the long stick I had prepared. A compass relic was attached to the end.

Now it was clear what to do. All you had to do was stretch out the stick and point it here and there along with the needle.

And when it starts to shine, collect the relics from underneath it. People also had to use their heads.

Still, a soldier who recognized me couldn’t hold back his curiosity and asked if it still looked strange.

“Sir, what is that?”

“It’s a detector.”

“Detector… … ?”

My sword or armor was often detected if I carried it close to my body, so I used a particularly long stick to keep it away.

The soldier who glanced at the appearance, which may have seemed quite strange to those who did not know the situation, soon convinced himself that he would take care of it since he was a knight, and disappeared. This is why it has a good reputation.

-Paaah!

“It’s a protection ring.”

The search started in the morning and continued until around lunchtime. In the meantime, I was able to obtain a few relics that are easy to miss if you don’t look closely, such as rings or broken necklaces.

As it did not protect the original owner, it did not have a strong effect, and could only be viewed as a small amount of side income.

But where does this even go? It was enough for me to be okay without having to bother looking around like I used to.

-here… not!

-for a moment… Something like that… !

When I was about to lose my concentration after wasting away for a while, I raised my head when I heard a commotion in the distance.

Usually in times like this, there is a lot of fighting over the loot, but is that the case this time as well? This wasn’t necessarily the case, but there were cases where greed led to harm.

If that was the case, we had to intervene quickly. I went straight to the scene, grabbed a soldier who was watching, and asked.

“What’s going on?”

“We are asking to allow an outsider to come in.”

“It doesn’t look like it’s a fight between soldiers. By the way, is there any way that could be a problem?”

“Well, I guess… … .”

As I listened to the soldier’s story, I realized that a priest had stopped by this place while passing by.

I could see why the soldier looked slightly troubled.

Although there was no specific law prohibiting this, the order of looting by nearby residents was implicitly determined to be followed by soldiers. Even so, you couldn’t have told me to get out of there because they were going to loot it first.

Still, there is no need to see blood for such a trivial reason. When I was about to make a rough mediation and get it over with, even if necessary using a little of my own money, the priest spoke.

“I think there is a bit of a misunderstanding. That’s not the reason.”

I gently took my staff away, snapped the cap of the compass shut, and asked the priest.

“ Father, what brought you here? ”

“If there are people who need help, we are here to help.”

“The injured are already being sent to a nearby church. Is there a need for them to be here?”

“Aren’t there some people who can’t afford that? It’s sad that people are dying for money, so maybe we can show them a little kindness.”

The priest floated a small sphere of light above his hand. It meant that magic could be used.

In short, they were saying that they would use healing magic for free.

Free dedication and service.

It was a human image that is very rare to see these days when war and plunder are rampant.

While I was inwardly admiring this, a soldier watching nearby asked me a question.

“Couldn’t he be a spy?”

It was a valid point. But after thinking for a moment, I quickly shook my head.

For a spy sent by Rudolph, it didn’t seem like he would be this blatant.

Wouldn’t it be so noticeable if they disguised themselves as ordinary refugees and sent a priest who could even use magic?

Even if he could use magic, he would have kept it secret if he wanted to act as a spy. It’s not like you’re giving here and there to get noticed like this.

Above all, it would have been better if he had joined the military and not been constantly leaking confidential information.

I might be able to clear up a few unfounded rumors by asking a few healed soldiers, but it didn’t really matter if they were known.

“What is your name?”

“Sacré-Coeur. It means sacred heart.”

“It’s not the name of the Remus Empire. Are you from the western kingdom?”

“Oh, yes.”

Since it was not a name commonly used in the empire, I asked him vaguely, and sure enough, he seemed to be an outsider.

It didn’t seem like he was riding a horse or had an attendant, which also meant that he had walked a lot of distance.

“Is there a separate destination?”

“Right now, I’m just walking around wherever I can. When I come across a church, I just ask to stay there for the night, and when I reach a holy place, I just pray.”

Even though he was a foreigner, he didn’t seem that suspicious. Rather, it was something worthy of praise for faithfully keeping the doctrine.

If there was any problem, I could just watch from nearby. It was a little disappointing that I couldn’t go looking for relics, but I wasn’t in a hurry for money.

“It seems like I took up a lot of the priest’s time. You can leave now.”

“Thank you. May God be with you.”

As I was about to open the compass and turn it back, I immediately stopped.

The compass was shining brightly, pointing not at my sword or armor, but at the priest.