How to Live as a Wandering Knight – Chapter 232

𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐠𝐮𝐞 (6)

The young king blurted out reflexively in surprise at the unexpected words.  

“It’s a trap!”

And he changed his words again.  

“No, if it was a trap, they would have called someone like Ulrike-gong. They wouldn’t have called the count for sure.”

“. . .What do you mean?”

“Oh. . .that’s. . .um. . .”

Angoldolph had excellent swordsmanship and undaunted courage, but he wasn’t very eloquent.

Ulrike also knew that well, so she didn’t bother to interrogate him. Although she despised the elf king, it would be of no benefit for the relationship between them to worsen.  

“It definitely doesn’t look like a trap. Saying we can even enter armed.”

Johan also didn’t think it was a trap. There would be no trap that says to come armed while asking to meet.  

Rather, there was a high possibility that he had something he wanted to tell Johan first. From Johan’s position, it was a welcome thing. Because he could negotiate ahead of others.

“Still, let’s just ignore it. What reason could there be to send the count for no reason?”

The elf king said to Ulrike. He wanted to avoid any possible accidents. He was against Johan entering, even though Ulrike entering would be fine.  

“Certainly. . .”

Surprisingly, Ulrike had a similar thought. While the elf king entering would be fine, Johan entering was a bit. . .

“Alright. Let’s respect the castellan’s honor. If we refuse after he’s gone this far, the castellan will have no path forward either.” 

“A cornered rat. . .”

“Shh. Shh.”

Johan stopped the elf king’s mouth. If he insulted like that in front of the castellan’s attendant, it would go straight to his ears.  

No matter how driven into a corner the castellan’s situation was, excessive insults were not good. Because who knows what desperate people might do.

“I’ll go in and come back.” 

“Wait a moment. Listen. Go in and try to pass on to try to meet with other nobles. If you convey it properly, I’ll give you a reward, but if you don’t convey it properly, you’ll be held responsible. . .”

“Enough. Stop it.”

Johan stopped him and headed towards the inner gate with his escorts. Ulrike realized late.

‘𝘞𝘢𝘪𝘵 𝘢 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦. . .𝘐’𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘯𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦!’

This b*stard. . .

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

In fact, Johan was calm, but the middle-aged soldiers escorting Johan were extremely tense. They would growl at the slightest movement of the servants. 

“Stay calm.”

“. . .Yes. I’m sorry.”

━𝐆𝐫𝐫.

On the contrary, Karamaf looked calmer. Karamaf’s attitude was one of the reasons why Johan could stay calm. Karamaf often showed sharper instincts than Johan.  

“Please come inside.”

The castellan of Pelheim looked on the verge of collapse. The castellan, whose height barely reached Johan’s chest, couldn’t even make proper eye contact.  

He was so shaken that the attendant next to him had to clear his throat to help the castellan.

“. . .Castellan. Let’s start with a greeting first. I am Johan of Yeats. If you are uncomfortable, please take a seat.”

Johan decided to reassure him first. He felt he had to restore the other’s mental state in order to hear the story he wanted.  

“I-I’m honored to meet you, Your Excellency Count.” 

“No need for honorifics. This is the castellan’s land, and I respect the castellan’s rights.”

“Th. . . Thank you.”  

There was warm power in Johan’s words, and every time those words struck the eardrum, the castellan seemed to regain his senses.  

As his blurred vision returned and the dizziness in his head disappeared, the castellan gathered the courage to open his mouth.

“Your Excellency Count. . . Can you guess why I dared to meet Your Excellency Count first?”

“I don’t know.”

“Because I couldn’t trust the other two outside.”

“. . .?”

Johan wondered what he was talking about. However, the castellan was serious.  

While Johan knew Ulrike’s temperament, he had never feared her that seriously. They had kept an appropriate distance from each other, and since then they had been so far away that it was difficult to even hear news of one another.

In contrast, central nobles had a firm perception that the Abner family was a ambitious family.  

It was almost impossible to completely innocently believe the heir of the Abner family leading an army and touring fiefdoms.

“But Castellan, didn’t Ulrike-gong swear to eradicate the undead?”

“Your Excellency Count. . . You won’t let anything I say leak out. . . right?”

“I swear on my honor to keep silence. Go ahead and tell me.”

“To be honest, I couldn’t trust the oath made by the heir of the Abner family.”

“. . . . . .”  

If Ulrike had heard this, she would have drawn her sword, but there was nothing to be done. While the castellan was a bit overly timid, many other nobles would likely think the same.  

“So you rejected the proposal because of that?”

“Yes.”  

Fear played a big part in both refusing to come out to greet them and refusing their request to be admitted inside. He didn’t know what kind of scheme the heir of the Abner family might be plotting.

“You should have at least offered the payment.”

Even if the castellan did not come out, he could have given the money. However, the castellan shook his head and said,  

“That’s something Your Excellency says because you don’t know the Abner family. They could have used that as an excuse to plot something.”

“Huh. . .”

Johan felt a little sorry for Ulrike. While it was the family’s fault, it must have felt bad to be suspected like that when trying to build friendship without any ulterior motives.  

A fox that had bitten and killed several deer wouldn’t be trusted if it came to another deer and offered to get rid of other enemies in its burrow.  

Not even paying compensation and just forcing their way in was a bit much, but. . .  

“By the way, what does that have to do with me meeting you first?”

“Well, I could trust Your Excellency. . .”

“. . .I see, thank you.”

Johan was perplexed, but the Castellan was sincere.  

Compared to the belligerent and ferocious Elf King or the notorious heir of the Abner family, Johan looked like a saint.

“If Your Excellency the Count promises me my rights, I should rightly open the gates of my castle and treat the others as well. I should also be able to pay the proper price.”

“Uh. . . yes, that should be fine. I’ll help.”  

Johan nodded nervously. He didn’t know why the other person was trusting him like this, but when someone puts so much faith in him, he can’t say ‘I’m not trustworthy.’

“I, Johan of House Yeats. . . if Ulrike-gong of the Abner family takes this castle by scheme and tries to attack the Castellan, I swear I will mediate from the middle.”

“Tell His Majesty Angoldolph as well.”

“Alright. Alright. If the young Elf King tries to take it, I will also properly mediate from the middle.”

“Thank you! Now I can rest easy!”

The Castellan smiled happily, seeming genuinely delighted. Johan thought things were going well for him, even though nothing much had changed.

“By the way, Castellan. . . I heard you have a relic. . .”

“Oh! You knew?”

“If it’s alright, I’d like to borrow it. I’ll give it back once the undead subjugation ends.”

“. . .I can lend it to you, but one of my people is sick. The priest who was handling that relic is also in poor health, so he’s waiting.”

“Hmm. In that case. . . I have an excellent wizard in my camp. Let me introduce you.”

When contacted, Suetlg hurried over in puzzlement. After checking the Castellan’s sick person’s pulse, he said:

“Hmm. . . Have you been unusually dizzy lately, lost your appetite, become irritable, and had frequent fits of temper?”

“Yes. . . yes!”

“A malevolent spirit has possessed you. Fortunately I can exorcise it.”

“!”  

The Castellan grabbed Suetlg’s hands excitedly and shook them several times before letting go. Johan asked doubtfully:

“I didn’t sense any magical energy though?”

“What malevolent spirit. If you don’t eat proper meals and only drink alcohol and eat fruit, this is what happens.”

Suetlg didn’t seem particularly surprised, as if he had done this several times before. 

In times like these, it was better to blame a malevolent spirit rather than alcohol and meals.

If you tell them to drink some hot water to warm their blood and have proper meals so the malevolent spirit flees, even nobles will listen.

“On the other hand, the priest really is in poor health. With his age and a cold on top of that weak body, even if he recovers, he’ll need further recuperation.”

“We’ll have to tell the Castellan to prepare a new priest.”

“Did you borrow the relic?”

“Yes. Thanks to you, I was able to borrow it smoothly.”

“Then why was the door barred and locked when I came in?”

Johan explained what had transpired between him and the Castellan. Suetlg laughed a few times and nodded.

“I understand.”

“What do you understand?”

“You’re close so it’s fine, but for unrelated feudal lords, the Abner family can only be distasteful. Weren’t they just in dispute with the Jarpen family?”

“Alright. I should go tell them they can come in now.”

“Break it to them gently so they aren’t shocked.”  

Suetlg’s advice hit the nail on the head. The two proud nobles might not be able to bear the blunt truth.

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

“. . .So the castellan had some misunderstandings because of the rumors. He apologized for that and promised to treat us properly. He said he called me first because he didn’t dare face you two.” 

“Is that so? What a timid man. I see. Let’s go in!”

Angoldolph didn’t think too deeply about it and called the elf knights. In the first place, the castellan of a place like this wasn’t someone he was very interested in.

It was annoying that we weren’t treated properly right away, but it could have been overlooked if he regretted his mistake. 

“. . .Something’s weird.”

However, Ulrike did not let it go easily. She realized something was off right away. Johan nodded and said, 

“I was worried it might upset you so I hid some of what he said.”

“What did you hide?”

“He said they were too afraid to open the gates for the two of you. Of course they would pay the fee.”

“. . .?”

Ulrike wondered what he meant, then realized late and frowned. 

So in other words, they were afraid she would take over the castle. . .?!

“Wait. Just a moment. And the count believed that?!”

“Well, he said he believed me so I couldn’t exactly tell him not to.”

Ulrike was flabbergasted but had no choice but to accept it. From the castellan’s position, there was nothing else he could do. 

Heir to a family that has territory not far away and constantly causes conflict.

Compared to that, a honorable knight with strong faith who had hunted monsters here several times and had no particular interests.

‘𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘣*𝘵𝘤𝘩. . .’ 

Of course she understood, but she couldn’t help cursing internally. If you can’t trust someone then you should at least communicate to narrow the distance instead of shutting them out thinking ‘I might get caught in a scheme the moment I answer’.

“They must have paid a proper fee. We’ll finish off the undead in the forest as soon as we’re ready.”

Ulrike nodded. Despite the absurd situation, they had gained something. 

‘They’re more vigilant than I thought.’

She had thought the western nobles might seem more moderate compared to the insane emperor, but it didn’t seem to be the case. To the central feudal lords he probably seemed just as he was. 

Thinking ahead, she should have placated them earlier. 

Since force could not suppress them, seduction was all that remained. Ulrike thought of several methods as she walked. They were considerably wary so they wouldn’t be easily swayed, but there were several ways.

‘𝘓𝘦𝘵’𝘴 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘢 𝘵𝘳𝘺.’

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

. . .Despite Ulrike’s determination, the castellan had a very sociable and friendly attitude.  

“When Count Yeats was. . . Are you listening? Are you listening?”

“I’m listening, Your Majesty.”

“Yes. He rushed in like lightning and broke his neck.”

“Good heavens! Such a thing!”

The elf king and the castellan sat with Johan in between them. Every time the young king drained a cup, the castellan obligingly refilled it. Then the king would happily pour himself another. It was the elven custom to drink the harsh, nearly undiluted wine straight, without adding any water.

Johan had an expression that said he was bored and annoyed, but the other two kept Johan there, chatting away happily. They seemed quite drunk.

‘𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴?’  

Ulrike found it disgusting and looked away. Seeing the two she hated clinging to Johan when they weren’t giving him anything made her naturally recoil.

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