WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: HidingTurtle
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Wandering Knight and the Moving Castle ◈
Chapter 54: The Bird That Cannot Be Caged (2)
──────
“Is the village under effective control?”
By land, it borders the territories of four noble houses. By water, it is surrounded by too many factions to count.
“For now, yes. But there are limits to how long we can hold it with our family name alone.”
Even the Emperor had little power beyond the fief, so a count would be no different.
“It’s too far away to protect, but too valuable to abandon.”
“This isn’t a matter of profit. What would happen if we neglected a fief we acquired only a year ago?”
“We’d be in an awkward position when others later try to claim a fief whose succession rights have been left unsettled.”
‘You can’t even manage the land you took last time. What makes you think you can take more?’
If rival nobles attacked them with that logic, they would have no answer.
The count needed a capable lord who could protect a distant place independently, without much support.
“If you accept this fief, I’ll exempt you from the obligation to answer summons.”
“Are you sure that’s all right?”
“It’s far away. Even if I summoned you, it would be difficult for you to come all this way. And we wouldn’t be able to help if you were in danger.”
“That’s true.”
A vassal contract was a mutually beneficial arrangement. A lord had the right to summon a vassal, but also the duty to protect them from dangers they could not handle alone.
That was the objective view, of course. For the count granting him a fief, this was certainly a considerable concession.
“This is an important matter, so there’s no need to answer right away.”
“No. I’ve already made up my mind.”
“You want Northfork, don’t you?”
“How did you know?”
Count Morad smiled faintly.
“A bird of prey cannot be kept in a cage. I thought you’d prefer a place filled with both possibility and danger over a few peaceful villages.”
“I’m simply grateful.”
“You’ll become involved with many factions in the future, but keep your relationship with our family in mind first. For now, that will be enough.”
* * *
After hearing the situation from Eugene, Varda nodded.
“It isn’t a bad choice. The count is an excellent connection, but being too tightly bound would be troublesome.”
A vassal relationship was much like a mercenary contract. Its core was the summons order a lord issued in an emergency. Remove that, and the remaining minor obligations meant little.
“You’ll practically be an independent lord, so it’ll be easier to build relationships with those around you.”
“To those who want ties with House Morad, I can emphasize that I’m a vassal. To those wary of that, I can point out that I have no obligation to answer summons.”
It might seem convenient for him to shift his stance like that, but vassal relationships were never absolute to begin with.
Viscount Baldwin, who had enabled the main force to retreat safely from Goldford, had originally served another house before changing banners. Nobles contracted with more than one lord all the time.
“If things go well, the count may even form ties with northern houses through you.”
“...That’s too distant a possibility. I’m still only a knight leading a force no bigger than a speck of dust.”
Still, Eugene suspected the count did have such expectations. After all, he had the west firmly under control.
Afterward, Eugene sought mercenaries to form a new unit. There were plenty who had withdrawn from Cordon Castle and Goldford, making it easy to choose.
“How many are you thinking of? You’ve earned a great deal, so you could afford to stretch a little.”
“I intend to make the force elite. Supplying them would become difficult if the numbers grew too large.”
He rebuilt his unit with around forty cavalrymen.
‘When it comes to hunting dangerous monsters, I have to step in anyway.’
No matter how much experience and equipment mercenaries had, they were still mercenaries. Unless they were knights, they lacked the ability to stand shoulder to shoulder with Eugene and face monsters.
It would be easier if they rode horses and harassed enemies with plenty of ranged weapons. If they got lucky and hit an eye, that would be welcome.
Following that doctrine, he equipped most of his troops with medium crossbows.
“I set aside the spoils from the fall of Cordon Castle that were still in good condition.”
“They’ve been well maintained. Are you really lending these to us?”
“I’ll advance them to you, and you can repay the cost whenever it’s convenient.”
“Thank you!”
The mercenaries eagerly accepted. Their bodies were their capital, and ranged weapons were their best companions. Skilled shooters were even lent expensive mounted reloading devices.
* * *
“An ordinary knight would have accepted the villages farther inland. They’d want to live grandly as the lord of a comfortable place and stay close to Father.”
Roxanne looked exactly as though she had expected Eugene to choose Northfork.
“I even found a local agent in case it was needed, but now I’ll have to tell them they’re out of a job. They must be grinning from ear to ear. I wonder if they’ll shed a few tears.”
When the tiger is absent, the fox becomes king. When there was no lord, an agent wielded absolute power. It was the highest position a commoner who entered the bureaucratic path could reach.
“Congratulations on becoming castle lord and commander.”
“As commander, only until my foolish brother returns.”
Roxanne had taken over the army Timothy once led.
Count Morad was not without military talent, but his true strengths were diplomacy and internal administration. To give his children experience, he focused on securing supplies and troops from the rear.
“Judging by the retainers and Count Morad’s attitude, they don’t seem particularly eager to bring Timothy back.”
“He’s the eldest son of the family, so they’ll retrieve him for the sake of appearances. They simply won’t negotiate from a weaker position. They don’t want to bow to those Duran bastards.”
A delegation had already visited once.
“There is no precedent for exchanging one hostage for a castle. Demanding Cordon Castle is excessive.”
“Your heir is in our hands. Aren’t you afraid to speak to us this way?”
“We trust in House Duran’s honor. Surely you wouldn’t harm a noble simply because negotiations don’t please you?”
“Think of Timothy’s humiliation and suffering as he lives as a prisoner in enemy territory.”
“He, too, will endure while thinking of the family’s future. We all share one heart and believe in Timothy’s strength of will.”
“...”
The Duran envoys had no choice but to leave in anger at House Morad’s confident negotiating stance.
Timothy was actually being kept safely. Regardless of the hostility between the two houses, he was their best bargaining chip. He was also the only gain House Duran had made from this war.
“May the Goddess’s blessing be upon your path.”
The farewell handshake Eugene shared with Roxanne was as firm as any knight’s.
* * *
“Are you all sure you don’t want to return to Bonyard City?”
Eugene asked the mercenaries who had been with him from the beginning.
Leaving a place where they had built a reputation over many years was not easy, especially a pleasant city like Bonyard City.
“If not now, when will we ever escape that backwater?”
“People ought to swim in bigger waters.”
The mercenaries who remained were still hungry for more. Their pay was never delayed, the treatment was good, and they won wherever they went. There was no reason to leave.
They were also curious. How far would that knight leading from the front with his black cloak billowing go?
If they were still behind him when that day came, what sort of sights would unfold before them? They all wanted to see it.
That feeling grew even stronger at mealtime. With fewer people in the group, they could provide more substantial supplies.
“I feel more at ease when I oversee everything my subordinates eat myself.”
When he led around a hundred people, including those House Morad had provided as support, they had to eat meals provided by the supply merchants.
“Grapes can be this sweet?”
“Hey, Hoffman! Eat them one at a time! How are you making a quarter of the grapes disappear with each one you pop in your mouth and suck on?”
A mercenary eating fresh grapes for the first time exclaimed in amazement. They had only ever drunk poor-quality wine now and then.
In an era with poor refrigeration and distribution, fresh grapes were a rare food only wealthy nobles could enjoy. As an honored guest of House Morad during harvest season, Eugene had received several crates for free.
“You are a very strange knight, both in strength and personality.”
“Isn’t it natural to want to see your subordinates enjoy delicious food?”
“That is a noble virtue. But usually, it only means throwing them whatever remains after they’ve enjoyed their luxuries.”
Thus, a small but tightly united army headed north.
Thud, thud, thud, thud.
The sound was deafening with so many heavily armored soldiers riding behind him. More than the fief he had received, Eugene felt the reality of his success in the hoofbeats behind him.
“Ahh!”
“Straighten your back. Keep your legs firm.”
“Whoa!”
“Don’t pull the reins carelessly! It’s even more dangerous if you panic!”
Those who could not ride were learning in earnest. Eugene had given the order because they traveled with several spare horses, and everyone threw themselves into the lessons.
It was an opportunity they could never enjoy outside Eugene’s service. Being able to ride would also help when they quit being mercenaries and sought work with a merchant company or city guard.
‘Mounted combat would be too much, but even marching will be far better.’
With many cavalrymen joining them, it also became easier to procure food through hunting.
Squeeeal!
Bolts flew in from all directions, and a boar collapsed.
When the mercenaries hung it from a nearby tree, Eugene drew a dagger. It was part of the spoils he had obtained from the heretical mage’s altar during the bandit subjugation.
“This isn’t work for you, sir. Leave it to us.”
The startled mercenaries tried to stop him.
“It’s fine. I want to test the magical dagger.”
“It’s a magic weapon? It certainly looks extraordinary.”
Even uneducated mercenaries could tell that a dagger used in a sacrificial ritual was something special.
Bleeding an animal was essential to remove the gamey smell from its meat. The best method was to drain the blood while the prey’s heart still beat. Its effectiveness was reduced when the animal was already dead, as it was now.
But what if the bloodletting magic took effect?
Slice.
As Eugene cut the dead boar’s artery, blood began to pour out.
“Wow. It really drains well.”
All the mercenaries under him had hunting experience, whether they did it themselves or assisted under a knight. That was why they could tell the bloodletting was going more smoothly than usual.
“Hmm.”
Eugene, meanwhile, sensed the flow of magic activated by the dagger the instant it cut. It felt as if the dagger held another secret beyond simply forcing bleeding.
He turned the dagger around in his hand, then followed his instincts and plunged it into the boar’s heart.
Thunk!
Thump!
As the blade sank in, the dead heart trembled and vibrated. The dagger’s magic had become an invisible hand gripping it.
Splash!
“Whoa!”
The mercenaries watching nearby hurriedly stepped back.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Like a magical hand performing CPR, it forced the dead heart to beat. Blood rushed violently through the boar’s veins and spilled onto the ground.
“Oh. So this is how it’s used.”
Having discovered the bloodletting dagger’s true use, Eugene let go.
It was not only his instincts as a warrior that whispered guidance to him.
The blood he had inherited from his mother also whispered magical advice whenever he encountered mysteries.
The newly joined mercenaries grew even more fearful as they watched the knight handle a magical implement without hesitation.
“Do you have no intention of taking knights into your service?”
“I looked carefully, but no one caught my attention. Those who are useful already have lords, and recruiting unproven knights indiscriminately would be too expensive.”
The wages of two or three knights would equal those of all the mercenaries Eugene currently led. Even for the wealthier Eugene, it was enough to take his breath away.
“For now, my attack power is sufficient on its own. I think obedient mercenaries in greater numbers are better. Holding shields and enduring, or pulling crossbow triggers, are the same whether it’s a knight or a mercenary.”
“That isn’t exactly wrong.”
Varda found it difficult to argue after seeing Eugene defeat the Wendigo, the Bugbear, and bandits.
“Still, you must recognize your position as a lord now. When negotiating with someone, having mercenaries behind you and having knights behind you are entirely different matters.”
“Thank you for the advice.”
Even if he could not act on it right away, there was no harm in remembering Varda’s words.
“I plan to decide after reaching Northfork and estimating its income.”
Expenses that continued even when one did nothing had to remain within one’s fixed income.
It was common for nobles here to live in debt, but Eugene did not want to live as a debtor for even a moment.
Footnotes:
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
