Now it lives up to its name (3)
Winter in the North is cruel, but winter in the West is no less.
Winter in the desolate wasteland, with nowhere to hide, treated the people of the West harshly with its razor-sharp winds.
Like right here and now.
“…You should have sacrificed your neck instead.”
Gaidar’s lobby. Hall of Knights.
The man sitting at the highest point had an intimidating stature that could be seen by anyone.
“I can’t believe my sword was taken away. “Can you still call yourself a knight?”
Count Sigmund Gaidar.
The new western loser who drove out the Romanov family was looking down at his son without hiding his anger.
“sorry. father.”
Stephen, who was trembling with fear as usual, could only bow his head at the harsh words coming from Sigmund.
bang-!
“I thought I was finally settling down, but you set me off like this!”
Red bloodshot eyes and trembling beard.
The armrests of the chair cannot withstand the pressure and fall apart.
The greedy loser of the West was feeling his whole body boiling with anger at the news of defeat brought by his son.
“Not to that brilliant Rutger guy, but to this pale-faced brat who just got a knighthood?”
It was a duel that should not be lost.
To be precise, it was a duel I was sure I would win.
However, Stephen was defeated and gave up his sword in return.
To be precise, he had handed over all influence over Deirmar to Bayezid along with his sword.
“What did you do! “What on earth were you doing while my son was being treated like this?”
Painful mistakes and losses.
Sigmund’s anger spread everywhere as he felt the bitter taste of defeat for the first time in a long time.
“There is no shame. “Count.”
Although the anger was violent, Godin just stood with an upright posture.
“I heard you knew him!”
“…If I were to be specific, he would probably be related to the Count.”
There was an old relationship.
Even though it was a bad relationship and I thought I had finally broken it off, there was still a thread of connection left in Shoara.
“This is the one that escaped knight Jorge raised. “The talent he had was great, and the level of knights surrounding him was also excellent.”
Sigmund paused for a moment when he heard the name Jorge.
“More than anything, they took advantage of the home base’s advantages. “It was an unexpected challenge.”
In the duel that day, Istvan was crossing swords with Vlad, but Godin, who was standing as an observer, was engaged in an invisible struggle of strength with Xayar, who was standing on the other side.
It was a knight who had such a strange aura that one wondered why his name was not widely known in the North.
“Jorge…that bastard.”
Sigmund recalled old memories while listening to Godin.
The knight whom his uncle, who was the previous head of the family, especially cared about, was also someone who did not acknowledge him until the very end.
So I killed him.
“You’re going to spoil me until the very end.”
The Troublesome Dwarven Liberation Front.
And even the northern cat that raised its head anew.
The ashes scattered by the knight named Jorge were still bothering Sigmund.
“…Gaidar must not be taken away.”
Whatever you are holding in your hand, somehow put it into your stomach.
So, use your remaining two hands to steal and hold on to what belongs to others.
Only then can you survive in this wild west.
My whole life was taken away, destroyed and destroyed.
To enemies, to others, and to family members with whom I share blood.
So, the only person left here and now.
“Somehow, bring back my son’s sword. Godin.”
“All right.”
He is a usurper who cannot tolerate defeat. It was Count Gaidar.
※※※※
“Are you really not going?”
A snowy morning in Shoara.
Vlad was standing in front of the stable that Marcella had specially built, looking at Noir.
Hehehe –
I’m not going to work today.
Vlad clicked his tongue as he looked at the black horse that seemed to be saying that.
“I don’t think this is right.”
[It’s a problem even if you’re very smart.]
The stable is spacious enough to accommodate five horses.
But there was only one horse resting inside, Noir.
The piles of hay piled up here and there to keep from being cold and the warm boiled fodder clearly showed what kind of bounty this guy was enjoying from the smile of a rose.
“…Who would believe that that guy was a wild horse?”
Noir follows the boy and gives up his freedom, but instead enjoys the clear benefits of civilization.
When Vlad saw Chat Noir lying comfortably and smiling while showing his gums, Vlad was filled with jealousy.
At least he came running to me when it was a mission, so I had to take that as comfort.
“Oh, it’s cold.”
Vlad left Noir, who was disobedient until the end, and headed to Shoara’s city hall, stepping on snow that was up to his ankles.
Now that he was a knight, it was enough to call a carriage and ride around, but the sorrow of hunger that had ingrained itself into his bones always made Vlad a frugal person.
“This is my first time receiving a salary.”
Vlad had lived his entire life without receiving fair compensation.
From the time he was a streetwalker to the time he was Jorge’s dagger and Josef’s squire.
The occasional pocket money was the boy’s means of surviving, but that would change from today.
“Bordan. “It’s me.”
“It’s like a knife. “Please come in.”
A knight who cannot lift a sword.
Standing in front of Bordan’s office, Vlad entered, smelling the sweet smell coming from all directions.
“Your face is full of color.”
In a place where piles of snacks were strewn about, there was a fat man who looked like he needed to take care of his health just as much as Josef.
“Shouldn’t you at least get some exercise?”
“If you move too much, you will die early.”
Bordan said something that was not knightly at all and took out a small pouch from a drawer and placed it on the desk.
“You knew how to read, right? Then, I will give you a statement as well, so just wait.”
Even though knights were in a semi-noble position, there were many who were illiterate.
However, Vlad could read and understand even though he stuttered, so it would be more appropriate to write it down on paper instead of giving it verbally.
“…….”
Bordan writes down the statement with a crunching sound.
Vlad, who was looking at him, opened the gold coin bag with a quick gesture and checked what was inside.
It was indeed the dexterity of a former pickpocket.
“It’s 4 gold.”
Bordan’s eyes were on the paper, but his ears seemed to be on Vlad, as he calmly told him the amount of this month’s salary.
“why? “Is it disappointment?” “……No. no.”
Although I said it out loud, I was honestly disappointed.
‘If you calculate it in a year, it’s 50 gold…’
Before meeting Josef, the money Vlad had saved his whole life was a little less than 1 gold.
The now broken, unadorned sword was worth 5 gold.
Although it was definitely an impressive amount compared to before, 4 gold was definitely not enough to satisfy Vlad now that he had become a knight.
“What a kid.”
Bordan let out a small sigh as he looked at Vlad, who was still acting clumsy.
Because I felt like I knew why Zayar was still hanging around the boy.
“A driver doesn’t save money through salary.”
“sure?”
Bordan put down his feather pen with a clicking sound, as if he had finally finished filling out the statement, and looked at Vlad with a meaningful smile.
“A knight must follow honor, have duty, and have responsibility accordingly.”
“…I see.”
Vlad was taken aback by Bordan’s words, which suddenly moved from talking about money to the fundamentals of knighthood.
“It’s all about money.”
All valuable things can be converted into money.
Vlad knew that money was precious, but he had no idea how to make it.
He was so eager that he starved his whole life, but because he had never experienced it, he didn’t know what to do.
“The price of honor will be paid all at once at the end of the year. “It’s called a special allowance.”
A well-fed cat doesn’t hunt mice.
If you want to get money and fame, you have to make that much effort.
“You can look forward to it.”
As Bordan said, the boy was one of the main characters who raised Bayezid’s name this year.
Peter, the head of the family, Rutger, who borrowed the boy, and Josef, the original master, will certainly take that into consideration.
“Then what is the price of duty and responsibility?”
Vlad, who was finally starting to understand Bordan’s words, looked forward to the next gold coin with sparkling eyes, but Bordan only shrugged his shoulders.
“I don’t think this is the right thing to ask when you bring the Hainal family’s treasure.”
“That’s not mine. “It was definitely borrowed.”
Vlad protested to Bordan in an aggrieved voice.
Because I felt like I was remembering the teasing I received from senior knights all the way to Shoara.
“If I had known that was the case, I wouldn’t have accepted it.”
“okay. Maintain that posture even in front of others. “That’s the justification.”
“…….”
I had no idea that amber was an object that could be interpreted in this way.
It was just an amber stone that I brought with the risk of being pampered by Alicia. If it had been such a meaningful item, I would have thought twice.
“Even if you become a noble later, you must not forget me.”
How about aiming for success as a knight?
Bordan looked at Vlad, who was trying hard to hide his fiery ambition, and gave him an expression that said he knew everything without saying anything.
With the words that Josef is looking for him.
“You knew, right?”
[…That’s good. Nobleman.]
Vlad, who went out into the hallway, could only sigh in response to the voice he heard.
There is no one in the world to believe in.
Since it was a world where those who suffered were criminals, Vlad could only blame his mental state, which had softened for a moment.
※※※※
“I will give you the patrol area.”
A wine bottle heated near the stove with a fragrant smell.
A one-eyed knight sitting at the guest table, leisurely closing his eyes.
And even Stephen’s sword standing on the wall.
“Now that you have become a knight, you must take on more responsibilities and obligations.”
Josef, who had finally put down his documents, picked up the wine bottle that was sitting next to the stove and began pouring it into a glass.
Among alcoholic beverages, he liked whiskey the most, but in the winter when the days got colder, he would drink warm wine with spices that were good for the respiratory tract.
“Do I do it alone?” “I will hand over the guards, but you will be the only one in charge.”
Vlad has been doing well so far.
He performed his duties well and brought even more value to Bayezid.
So we need to grow it even more.
“It will be a completely different position from the leader I was in during my mercenary days.”
“All right.”
Vlad, who was handed the wine glass that Josef offered, accepted the warmth rising with both hands.
“A back alley would be a good area, right? “Other people might find it a pain, but for you, it’s like home.”
“That’s right.”
From the time he opened the castle door with just a single word on a dark night until now, Vlad was still unaware of his location.
It’s okay though.
Time and experience will be medicine for Vlad, who is still young.
“There will be a shortage of people. “Guards are people who need to be used here and there, not just patrolling.”
There are six knights in total in Shoara.
Except for Xayar and Bordan, who were on special missions, everyone was in charge of security in their own areas, just like Vlad is now.
And to ensure that mission, Josef maintained security by hiring his own men and not only the troops provided.
Because it was both a knight’s duty and a privilege.
“I will support the salaries of up to four people. Try hiring people who will work under you.”
A knight is one who takes the lead.
A person who can become a representative anywhere.
Now that Vlad was a knight, he was qualified to hire and employ his own people.
“Now I have to live up to the name of a knight.”
More Responsibilities More Duties.
And more interest.
Even now, Rose’s smile was full of merchants waiting for Vlad.
Everyone had predicted the current situation.
