My Villains Chapter 513
67. Lord of Icebobalt (6)
Due to the prolongation of the last night’s party, the conscripts’ camp didn’t start being cleared until around noon the next day.
Hangover-stricken men shoveled embers and scattered soot and ashes from the muddy ground as the shallow snow melted. It was late afternoon when all the spears and helmet tents were rolled up and loaded onto the cart.
After greeting the platoon members, Egon headed for the north gate with a few men from Brinst. The boy’s goal was to find a recruiter and apply for enlistment, while Alban and Adan and others were on their way to solve their own business.
Egon was given a silver coin and a coin ahom poon. The training fee is a silver coin, and the travel to and from Sovanhalts and Eisbowald is nine pennies.
Truly a merciful lord…. Considering that it was the price of suffering for just a week, it was no small amount of money.
Looking back, even if the brother-in-law farmed hard for a year with his brothers, children, and nieces and nephews and sold the harvest to a large village, he only received fifty or sixty silver coins.
It wasn’t all that was left over, so after paying the taxes, bringing in a priest to boost intellect, servicing farm equipment, and buying a few farm cows and brood hens, less than half of the money was left over.
‘It’s much better to be paid as a soldier than to earn a pittance by working in the fields.’
Of course, you won’t get any money while you’re wearing your apprentice rank right after enlisting. However, even if you survive six months and become a regular soldier, you will receive a silver coin every week.
If you become a skilled soldier, you will receive three times that amount. If you are lucky enough to become a sergeant or officer, your salary will increase again, and if you become a major or higher, from then on, you will receive land in addition to your existing salary.
The new lord abolished three of the chiefs who belonged to Bangbaeklyeong, while cutting the other two into small pieces. It was also given to officers and subordinate knights of the rank of field officer or higher.
However, it was a little different from the general burial mounds, so what was given to them was not a fief that could be hereditary. When the officers left the military gate, the knights had to return the land they had been given after death.
However, Egon had no way of knowing such details. The boy only recognized that if he reached a high rank by making vague achievements, he would be able to acquire land and lead the serfs belonging to the land. In the eyes of him and other villagers, it was no different from becoming a nobleman.
“……Whoa.”
Joining the line in front of the castle gate with his party, Egon fidgeted with his shield, which had many small scratches during training, and strengthened his resolve.
A strong wind blows from the north. It seems that the colorful flags hanging on the gate tower and the castle wall are cheering the boy with strong applause.
Until yesterday, Egon had been worried about whether he would be able to attain a high position among the fierce soldiers. But now, holding silver coins and coins in my hands, my fears disappear like smoke and I feel that my motivation is rising vigorously.
“City visitors go to the West Gate!” At that time, a young sergeant who was dealing with conscripts at the small gate next to the tightly closed gate shouted at the line.
“Anyone who has something to say to the council of the Yeongju-gwan Court! The combat brigade city guard has business! pass through here! The rest of us go to the West Gate!”
Judging by his poor Gellan language, he must have been a private soldier brought by the prince from Milanol.
Egon looked at him.
The sergeant wore a lattice-patterned shoulder strap over a handsome plate breastplate. Seeing that, Egon could tell that he belonged to the guards. The shoulder belts of the officers and sergeants belonging to the training battalion had a vine pattern drawn on them.
Most of the conscripts who were standing in line turned their steps at the order of a guard sergeant who seemed to be from Milano.
“If things don’t go well, come to the Black Barrel Inn. It’s close to the plaza, so it won’t be hard to find.”
“Nothing will go wrong.”
“It’s okay, come. Since you came all the way to Eisbobalt, you should taste Ines’ lips!”
When Alban and the people from the town giggled and left the boy behind, only twenty or so were left. Thanks to this, Egon was able to stand in front of the gate in no time.
” name.”
“I am Egon, the son of Obon.”
The sergeant, who had scribbled something on a thin wooden board, glanced over at the boy. As his sharp gaze scanned his body, Egon tensed up for nothing.
“… Egon. Native.”
“This is Sovanhaltz.”
“Sovanhaltz. Pioneer horse near Brinst O ”
“Yes, sergeant. you’re right.”
The boy felt a sense of incongruity for a moment. This is because despite the awkward accent of the sergeant from Milanol, only the pronunciation of Sovanhalz and Brinst was relatively accurate.
“Uh, recruiter—so I’m here to enlist.”
He nodded and gestured toward the other side of the gate. A man wearing a sergeant rank badge runs right out.
“It’s the shift of the sluice department.”
“Yes, Sergeant O’Brien. I will take turns.”
“Egon goes with me. Follow me.”
concise commands. Egon was hesitantly following the sergeant, but a soldier stopped him and took his spear away. In Ice Bobalt, except for those with specific qualifications, bows, crossbows, long swords, as well as swords longer than a certain length, could not be carried.
The passage through the lower gate was deep and dark like a cave. The boy, carrying only a round shield and a small cloth on his shoulder, passed the torches with quick steps. And it was only after he set foot in the city that he realized that he was surrounded by four soldiers. All of them were soldiers wearing chain armor and iron helmets with nose pads and chain draperies.
“…Uh”
“Is there a problem?”
At the glance of the sergeant on the horse, the boy quickly waved his hand.
“Oh no. doesn’t exist.”
“Then come follow me. It’s already late.”
What and why are you doing this – Egon was confused. The sergeant and four guards started moving without any explanation.
Like Egon, the strong men who had passed through the third gate before him also wanted to become members of the Red Army. But other people don’t even see nose plucking. It’s a strange thing. I don’t think they would guide all conscripts in this way.
Egon, who hurriedly chased after the sergeant, had no choice but to put his worries aside. It was because he had escaped from the area that was blocked in all directions by gate towers, stone stairs, towers, banner carts, and guard posts.
“Whoa.”
The sergeant and guards took the boy and headed for the center of Eisbowald. Thanks to this, Egon couldn’t keep his mind awake from the crowds and various noises from the buildings tightly packed to the left and right.
“Get out of the way, get out of the way! It passes!”
Countless wagons and carts passed along the paved road.
Workers from the yard near the wall piled up a cart full of lumber and headed for the workshop. Young or young craftsmen in the workshop carefully loaded furniture, barrels, doors, etc. onto wagons headed for the auction house. The lumber of Zelntree was famous for its high quality, so those products would be supplied to the whole of the Prince of Dfelken and sold to neighboring estates.
Next to the deafeningly noisy Gyeong store, there are two large storehouses with wide roofs. It was mainly peddlers with several handymen who roamed the crossroads in front of them, and stalls targeting such people were lined up on the left and right.
Even though the distance was wide enough for two wagons to come and go, Egon was suffocated by the overflowing crowds and buildings with three or four stories on each side. The sun hadn’t even set, but the shadows on the streets were already quite deep, and those in a hurry hit the bushes to light them up.
By the time they reached the northwest plaza, Egon realized he was lucky to be with the guards. The sergeant on horseback led the way and the soldiers with spears flashed in their eyes. It was a shame. The city of over 7,000 people was much larger and busier than the boy had imagined.
Instead of leading the party across the square, the sergeant turned into an alley. The guards passed the narrow road between the trading post teeming with peddlers and traders and the bustling permanent market as if they were used to it. The inhabitants of the dark alleys hid in the shadows or closed their windows, hearing only the dull hooves of horses and the jingling of chains.
After leaving the alley, Egon faced another world again as if he had been enchanted.
The road paved with hewn flagstones and luxurious ivory-colored buildings were colored vividly by the setting winter sun. As I turned my head following the high spirits, I saw a cathedral with a tall gray dome.
Thinking to himself that this is the Horhiu Cathedral, the sergeant busily hit the reins before the boy could properly look around. The street was so quiet that it could not be compared to before. As the guards moved as if they were running, Egon had no choice but to hurry.
The boy glanced around the sword as he ran, fixing his shield.
It was a quiet atmosphere, but there were no people passing by. It was an upper-class street, so not only rich people and aristocrats and priests came and went, and there were not many people dressed as neatly as the streets and buildings. Most of them were servants or errand boys who served their masters.
Gentlemen’s polished shoes had prickly soles, and coats of moleskin or wool seemed as soft as silk. Underneath them, all of them wore doublets embroidered with wonderful patterns, making them look like officers or knights without armor.
The rare ladies were usually dressed in white kerchiefs and colored kirtle tunics, but a few wore narrow trousers and large overcoats embroidered with ornate patterns, almost sorcererly attire. That’s the ‘fiancée’ outfit that’s been in vogue in this city lately, Egon nodded inwardly.
Uuuuu “
Then suddenly, the boy felt people staring at him and let out a small moan.
It was only natural that people walking down the street were interested in Egon. A shabby coat with a hood and quilted armor bursting here and there didn’t suit this place at all.
In particular, the gazes of the boy’s peers or younger children made Egon uncomfortable. The image of him wearing neat clothes with a white face and carrying books or a wooden sword carved from a birch tree is in stark contrast to his dark face and running around with an old shield.
Unconsciously, the boy accelerated his steps and soon came to a building that he was confused about whether it was a mansion or a small castle.
The outer walls of the three-story, dull building seemed very sturdy, as it was surrounded on all sides like a wall. Beyond the arched entrance, guarded by two armed men, was a small hall for talking. Several red curtains with plaid patterns were hung on the outer walls, and at each corner of the roof fluttered the heraldic flag of Defelken. Egon was able to notice that this was the headquarters of the Ice Bobalt City Guard.
The sergeant got off his horse and was about to go inside when a figure appeared from the building.
” Leader.”
“Obryn.”
He was about half a hand shorter than Egon, but he was a stocky man with shoulders twice as tall. He wore a black surcoat over shiny plate armor and a shoulder girdle with silver blade marks representing the rank of lieutenant colonel.
The lieutenant colonel, who was greeted by the sergeant, glanced back at Egon. Those eyes were so sharp that the boy instantly drew in a breath.
It is a face that is difficult to describe as having features like a stone statue. because he had no nose. A bone with thin skin and flesh adhered to it remained like a stump near the black hole. It is a face that is hard to forget once you see it.
It was Dylan, the ‘Silent Watcher’, the commander of the Eisbowald City Guard and a knight of the Defelken family.
“Is that the child?”
“Yes, I am sure. Sipal, I worked as a gatekeeper for three hours waiting for that bastard.”
Dylan asked O’Brien, taking his eyes off the boy whose face was bewildered by the conversation in the unfamiliar Milanese.
“What about ‘masked shadows’?”
“I don’t know. Do you want me to know?” Standing with a helmet shaped like a flat tower on his side, the captain of the guards just stared at him without saying a word. The sergeant then shrugged.
“In the first place, they decided to only move when he leaked somewhere else. You came to me as planned, so there’s no reason for us to care.”
“You know it’s not that kind of problem.”
“Then what? Would you like to go to those shady servants and say, ‘Work is over, let’s disperse’?”
“Ah, I get it. You can do it right next time. He cooperates well…
O’Brien slurred and then grumbled a little. Ugh, even if they only resemble half and half of Mrs. Ranun, I wouldn’t have gone this far… No, is that a resemblance? Leaving behind the sergeant scratching his head like that, the captain of the guard stood in front of Egon.
“Oops.”
The boy let out a small moan. I felt like I’d rather pass out when I saw an ugly face right in front of my nose. One wonders how he could have married Miss ‘Ilse’, who is famous for being a wise man in the Otiaren family, with such a face.
“Are you Egon?”
“…Uh yes. you’re right.”
The captain of the guard looked at the boy for a long time before spitting out words.
“I don’t know.”
“Eh yes?”
“let’s go.”
As if that was enough, Dylan turned around, took the reins from his subordinate, and mounted his horse. O’Brien, who had been with him this far, also caught up with him, and the guards glared at Egon as if he was standing still.
“Uh uh uh.”
I don’t know where the courage came from, but the boy, who was pushing as if pushed, shouted behind the captain of the guard.
“Are you going to Yeongju-gwan? To see the lord?”
“no.”
It wasn’t the captain of the guard who answered him, but Sergeant O’Brien.
“I’m going to the mansion.”
“mansion? What mansion is it?”
“excuse me.”
Following the direction he pointed, Egon slowly raised his head. What caught his eye was a tower standing tall among luxurious houses. A massive granite building that seemed to be eight stories tall… The
boy opened his mouth.
“…the mansion of the fiancées.”
A tower full of all sorts of ghost stories, rumors, and absurd stories
was waiting for Egon.
