WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: HidingTurtle
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◈ The Wandering Knight and the Moving Castle ◈
Chapter 40: What It Means to Become a Commander (3)
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The stew made with crushed hardtack and salted pork was perfect field fare for mercenaries.
“Ahh! I never thought I'd get to eat porridge this rich out in the field.”
“It's nice and salty, with plenty of meat to chew on, but it isn't greasy.”
The herbs Varda had picked made all the difference. They got rid of the unpleasant smell of preserved meat and added a fresh note to balance out the heaviness of the hardtack.
Then one mercenary began showing off a newly commissioned weapon, and the conversation shifted into a debate over which weapon was best.
“Obviously, it's the sword. What weapon is more versatile than a sword? It goes well with a shield, and the more you swing it, the more you feel yourself improving.”
“If you swing it wrong, the edge gets chipped right away. It's a flimsy weapon. If you're a mercenary, you should use an axe. Repairs are cheaper, and the power is incredible.”
A mercenary carrying a spear tapped the shaft against their neck and joined in.
“Are you guys really mercenaries? The best thing for a mercenary is not getting hit at all. You need to retire with your body intact. And if it comes down to it, you can at least put up a fight against cavalry.”
“Oh, is that so?”
The mercenary plucking at a crossbow string grinned.
“Sir Knight! Don't you think the sword is best too? You took down the Wendigo with one, after all.”
The mercenary who had first praised swords asked Eugene expectantly.
‘That bastard is dragging Sir Knight into this?’
‘What a cheap trick!’
A sword was practically the symbol of a knight. The others shot cold looks at the mercenary trying to borrow his employer's prestige.
“I like that one best. It's easy to support you from behind while you're fighting.”
When Eugene pointed at the long-handled flail standing nearby, everyone nodded. Not for the sake of their employer's dignity, but because they genuinely agreed.
“You know that guardian angel a priest once told me about? I understood it after fighting alongside Sir Knight.”
During the battle in the village, enemies they had been fighting suddenly collapsed without even a groan, accompanied by a thunderous boom.
“I looked up at the sky, wondering if lightning had struck.”
They all laughed heartily as they chewed on dates from their rations. The next topic was what lay ahead.
“We might have to fight as soon as we arrive at House Morad. Things around there look really bad.”
“What's so strange about that? It's common for what you hear when you take a job and what you find when you arrive to be completely different.”
Eugene, who had been listening, grew curious as well. In a world without anything like labor laws, mercenaries each had at least one bizarre story.
“Could you give me an example?”
“I once volunteered for a garrison assignment because I thought it'd be safe, only to get thrown into a siege. The castle fell while we were on the way there, so we had to attack it alongside the reinforcements that arrived late.”
“That sounds like an obvious scam.”
“But what could we do? The noble commander said they'd execute anyone who tried to leave on the spot. It was sheer luck that I made it back alive.”
The mercenaries spoke comfortably with Eugene. They couldn't help but be impressed by an employer who listened to them even on matters like guard duty and marching routes.
Naturally, they did not mistake that tolerance for weakness and cross the line. They had seen plenty of mercenaries suffer for doing exactly that.
* * *
About twenty people traveled under the lead of a single knight. They were the welcoming party House Morad had sent to receive Eugene.
Though the wind was weak, the count's banner swayed. That was because it was being carried by a boy in his early teens. Holding a banner while riding a horse was no easy task for someone so young.
“Tell me if it gets too difficult.”
“No, Sir Gauss! I'm happy to have been given such an honorable role!”
Gauss patted his son's head at the spirited answer. The boy who had once followed him around crying, “Father! Father!” and clinging to him was now on his first assignment, properly distinguishing his official duty from his relationship with his father. Gauss could not have been prouder.
The boy liked the sound of his father's scale gauntlet near his ear.
“The area is more dangerous than we imagined. If the Duran bastards attack us...”
The elderly clerk spoke worriedly.
House Morad was currently on the verge of war with House Duran, which supported the Emperor.
One knight and a young Squire, ten house soldiers, six male and female servants, an old clerk, and a carriage loaded with supplies for entertaining guests.
It was enough to welcome an invited guest, but if the enemy house mobilized knights and launched an ambush, they would be in a terrible situation.
“No declaration of war has arrived yet. No matter how reckless they are, they won't ignore even the barest customs.”
“Sir Gauss, I don't know if we can expect that much from the Duran bastards.”
The clerk sighed inwardly. Honorable knights tended to judge their opponents' behavior by their own standards.
“We cannot turn back now. Making Sir Eugene find his way to the castle alone would disgrace House Morad.”
“That is true, but...”
“The other forces are busy with their own duties. We should be grateful to the lord for assigning us even this much.”
The knight was not taking the situation lightly either. There was simply no other option given his orders and circumstances.
“I hope we meet that knight soon.”
“Once he joins us, there won't be anything to worry about.”
Gauss and the clerk agreed with the servants. If they could only join Eugene, there would be no concern at all about the return journey.
But things always went wrong at moments like this, especially when combined with an old man's worries.
When the party reached a crossroads, a group of more than thirty people approached from the left.
“...Prepare for battle.”
Gauss's face twisted.
Three knights stood at the head of the approaching group, with well-armed mercenaries behind them. Their greedy expressions made their purpose obvious.
“Greetings! What a pleasure it is to meet the honorable Sir Gauss like this!”
The knight who appeared to be their leader smiled slyly. He was a retainer of House Duran whom Gauss knew.
“Sir Godrick. This is Morad territory. What brings you here with so many men?”
“I came to send those traitors who defy His Imperial Majesty straight to the underworld.”
The three Duran knights drew their swords, and the mercenaries behind them raised their weapons as well.
“Everyone, attack! Kill the Morad bastards!”
“You honorless sons of bitches!”
Gauss and the house soldiers, enraged, leveled their weapons.
But the knights and soldiers were outnumbered three to one. Everyone wore despairing expressions as they faced a battle with no chance of victory.
“Kill them, loot them, rape them! Hahahaha!”
The Duran attackers descended upon the party sent to welcome Eugene.
* * *
“Sir Knight. There are people resting ahead.”
The mercenary serving as a scout ran up to report.
“How many?”
“Their group seems slightly larger than ours, and they have two knights.”
“They may be the people sent to welcome me. It should be about time for them to appear.”
It was only proper for a welcoming party to come out if the guest had been invited by the lord of the house.
“But I don't see the banner of Count Morad's house that you showed us. The atmosphere is far too hostile as well.”
The mercenaries quietly stopped chatting. They tightened their armor, checked their crossbow strings, and loaded bolts.
Soon, the mercenaries resting ahead came into view. Just as reported, two heavily armed knights were among them.
As Eugene drew closer, he noticed that they had already fought a battle. Several people were bleeding beneath armor they had thrown on in haste.
“Stop.”
The knight blocking the road shouted, holding out a palm.
“Who are you, and where have you come from?”
“...”
Instead of answering, Eugene looked deeper into the enemy camp.
Three men were tightly bound and forced to kneel in a corner. One of them wore a clerk's clothes that did not fit a place like this.
“Aaaah!”
“Won't this bitch stay still? Do you want to be strung up too?”
The mercenaries roughly gathered the half-naked maids in one place. Corpses were piled beside a broken carriage, and a boy hung from a nearby tree, swaying by his neck.
“Young Master.”
The old man in clerk's clothes, forced to his knees, stared blankly up at the tree. Tears ran down his wrinkled face.
Eugene took in the entire scene in an instant.
“I asked you a question. State your identity.”
The opposing knight asked, placing a hand on his sword hilt.
Finally, Eugene's gaze stopped on the banner of House Morad, covered in dirt where it lay on the ground.
“Rain of House Mild.”
As he answered, Eugene moved a hand behind his back and signaled for battle preparations.
“...!”
The mercenaries' breathing faltered for a moment, but they kept calm without changing their expressions.
“Never heard of you.”
“That makes sense. I'm from an insignificant house on the frontier. And you are?”
“I am Godrick, a knight of the great House Duran.”
The wariness in the two knights' eyes vanished, replaced by contempt. Eugene spoke with the accent of a commoner. They looked at him as though he were the son of a newly rich family who had been made a knight with money.
“It looks like you went through a rough battle. Could you tell me what happened?”
“By His Imperial Majesty's command, we punished fools who dared oppose him. They should have stayed shut inside their castle, but they scurried around like rats and got caught.”
“Traitorous bastards!”
The knight beside Godrick spat at the corpses. Gauss, House Morad's knight, had managed to take one of the Duran knights down with him despite being outnumbered.
Having lost a longtime friend, they still could not calm their anger, even after hanging Gauss's son.
“Sir Rain. What brings you here?”
“If a knight leads mercenaries into land that reeks of war, isn't it obvious?”
Eugene formed a circle with his thumb and index finger, and the opposing mercenaries snickered from all around.
“Ahem.”
Godrick, on the other hand, found Eugene's behavior vulgar. His accent and manner of speaking made him seem utterly uneducated.
“Have you decided where you're headed?”
“Not yet.”
Eugene shrugged.
“I came up from the backwoods, so I have no connections. I heard there was war in Roman, so I came here first. Looking at things, it shouldn't be hard to find work.”
“Then your timing is perfect. Would you be interested in working for House Duran?”
“As long as the pay is good.”
“I guarantee no one around here can reward you as generously as we can.”
After pretending to consider it for a moment, Eugene readily nodded.
“You've made the right choice. This will surely be a chance for you to rise in the world.”
“I'm grateful. My dream was to receive a fine fief in Roman.”
Godrick did not like the knight before him on a personal level, but he considered Eugene an acceptable addition to their strength.
He had good equipment, a large build, and a fair number of mercenaries following him. Eugene and his mercenaries could be useful as a detached force, at least.
‘I've taken down House Morad's bastards and gained new strength. The gods are blessing me.’
Godrick smiled in satisfaction, pleased that he would be able to report a great achievement to his house.
Eugene took a bottle of wine from his saddle, drank deeply from it, and approached the two knights.
Gulp, gulp!
After letting out a loud belch, he offered it to Godrick.
“We're practically friends now, so want a drink?”
It would be rude to refuse the goodwill of a knight who had just become an ally. Besides, the fragrance rising from the wine bottle was so fine it made Godrick's mouth water.
Gulp.
As soon as the wine entered his mouth, Godrick's eyes widened.
“This tastes wonderful. Where did you get it?”
Godrick exclaimed in admiration and passed the bottle to his fellow knight.
“Benjamin gave it to me.”
“Ah, Benja... What?”
The knight beside him, who was drinking, burst into a violent coughing fit.
“Cough! Cough!”
The wine had gone down the wrong way. They could not even raise their head properly as their upper body shook as though they were coughing up blood.
“He gave it to me as a gift, saying I absolutely had to come to House Morad.”
Eugene's gauntleted fist flew into Godrick's stunned face.
Thud!
Godrick's body flew backward, spraying a magnificent nosebleed. Eugene had held back, so he would not die.
“You bas... Cough!”
The other knight tried to draw their sword and attack, but the wine in their airway left them unable to think straight. Eugene grabbed the wrist holding the sword.
Crack!
“Aaagh!”
The sword fell to the ground with the sound of bone breaking. Eugene grabbed the disabled knight by the collar and threw them backward.
“Welcome!”
The waiting mercenaries rushed in and bound them in an instant.
“You damned bastard! How dare you pull a trick like this!”
“Isn't that excellent treatment for someone worse than a dog?”
Eugene answered calmly, then looked at the enemy mercenaries. They were half out of their minds from the sudden turn of events.
“We are subjugating these vicious bandits! Follow me!”
At Eugene's command, his mercenaries charged.
Pheee!
At Homi's signal, Eugene's crossbowmen fired bolts as if they had been waiting for it.
“Urgh!”
“Ghk!”
The House Duran mercenaries, hurriedly reaching for their crossbows, fell one after another.
They had lost their strongest fighters, the knights, from the beginning. They were already exhausted and injured from the previous battle, and now they had been ambushed. The battle was already lost.
‘At last, ransom!’
Eugene thought of the two captured knights.
Champion rewards, subjugation pay, spoils of war, even the byproducts from killing monsters. Eugene had experienced many ways a knight could make money, but the one thing he had never tasted was now in his grasp.
His effort to capture them alive, even going so far as to act when he normally would not, had paid off.
Footnotes:
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