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𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐇𝐮𝐧𝐭 (𝟒)
Being a knight didn’t always mean adhering to honorable methods. As humans, knights could be just as dishonorable.
Compared to the various cunning deceptions used in war, infiltrating in such a way wasn’t particularly surprising.
Of course, getting caught meant life could not be guaranteed.
“Let’s flay his skin off!”
“Sir Knight, please give me a chance!”
The warriors wanted to flay the knight’s face with their sharp daggers. Johan raised his hand to stop them, and surprisingly, the ferocious warriors quieted down.
The awakened knight looked at Johan with startled eyes. It was astonishing to see an outsider handle these fierce tribes so well.
How exactly?
“You have two choices: Speak before being flayed, or after. What will you choose?”
“. . .There’s nothing to hide. I’ll speak.”
The knight, Botan, readily revealed his purpose for being there.
He was ordered by Boriska to secretly enter the tribal community, eavesdrop on information about their prey, and if possible, disrupt them.
Achladda glared fiercely at Botan.
“I’m sorry, Sir Knight. I didn’t expect other scoundrels to also covet the werewolf.”
“For a prey of that caliber, it’s not unusual for rumors to spread across the plains. Don’t worry too much. Since they’re resorting to such tricks, they clearly haven’t succeeded in tracking it down.”
Indeed, it wasn’t surprising for others to covet prey that the Centaurs had been eyeing for a while.
‘𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘯𝘨.’
Johan thought of Boriska and other knights. While using deception was always an option, the type of deceit varied among individuals.
Dressing as barbarians and infiltrating a tribe was a ruse not typically considered by knights.
Surely?
“Who among your allies devised this strategy?”
“. . .!”
Botan was shocked. He had no choice but to assume Johan already knew about the Arrowhead Mercenary Group.
Botan was already disgruntled before arriving. To think he had to stoop so low because of a mere mercenary’s scheme.
Even the mercenaries didn’t partake in their own plan. No matter the money offered, they didn’t want to venture near the barbarians unarmed.
This prompted Botan to speak freely. He even disclosed the fact that they had hired mercenaries. The warriors were shocked. Even mercenaries?
“A guy named Galambos from the mercenaries came up with it.”
“And what does he do?”
“He’s a hunter, originally a ranger from the east. That’s all I know.”
Achladda, overhearing this, asked Johan in a whisper.
“Sir Knight, how did you know that Boriska had allies?”
“Just guessed it.”
“. . . . . .”
Despite saying it was a guess, Achladda still looked at Johan with admiration. Modesty aside, intuitively uncovering such things was indeed a warrior’s instinct.
“Do you wish to be treated as a prisoner?”
“. . .I don’t expect such from these barbarians. If you’re going to kill me, just do it.”
“Well, this elder here is about to skin you. . .”
“Enough.”
Johan restrained the warriors who were about to attack again, and called them aside.
“This man’s life is mine, right?”
“Yes, it is.”
“I’m thinking of letting him go, what do you think?”
The warriors, instead of reacting angrily to Johan’s unexpected proposal, nodded in agreement.
“Truly like a Sir Knight from the Empire.”
“I know what that is. That’s a yoke, right? Did I use it correctly?”
“Seems a bit different, but since Sir Knight caught him, do as you please. It’s a pity we can’t skin him, but it can’t be helped.”
“. . .No, it’s not for honor.”
Achladda asked with curiosity.
“Are you planning to release him and then follow him? It’s impossible. We are masters of tracking, but he will notice since he has eyes.”
The plain was a cumbersome place to secretly follow someone, especially when the other party was alert and on guard.
If he had a brain, he would check his surroundings repeatedly.
“Why not torture him and find out where he was supposed to meet? It can’t be far.”
“No. I thought about that too.”
‘𝘏𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵?’
Achladda had to suppress a laugh. He liked what Johan was saying.
“The ones who sent this knight must have prepared for such a situation. They wouldn’t have failed to anticipate his capture.”
“. . . . . .”
Achladda agreed with Johan’s words. Indeed, the enemy would have prepared for such a scenario.
“Even if we locate their hideout and ambush them, it won’t be much fun. They’re likely in a place well-suited for a fight.”
“Indeed. But Sir Knight, even if they are prepared, we are confident of victory.”
“I know that.”
There was no reason to spare the knight who crawled here and tried to infiltrate, as he would not yield any useful information.
Johan’s reasoning lay elsewhere.
“Think about it. You send a subordinate on a secret mission and he returns safely, but his face is a mess and his weapon gone. What would you think in such a situation?”
“. . .!”
“Already seeming discontented, wouldn’t he be more suspicious? It seems better than walking into a trap they’ve prepared.”
“Sir Knight is truly like Tanggru!”
“I heard that Tanggru name before, who is that?”
“He was a warrior from our tribal myths, fought and died bravely.”
“Oh. I like that.”
Achladda smiled satisfactorily at Johan’s response. It was a relief that he didn’t react negatively like other knights might have, deriding their polytheistic deity.
“Tanggru, the destroyer of worlds and the embodiment of pure rage sent by the gods, burned cities from west to east and turned the weak into slaves.”
“. . . . . .”
Isn’t that just a madman?
Johan almost blurted that out but restrained himself, out of respect for the other’s beliefs.