Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 528 Calming the Raging Spirit (Part 10)

The looting itself was not a big deal, but the consequences it caused could be big or small, so the Wenduo people in the tent were waiting for Batu to make a statement.

Winters deliberately waited a moment, his cold gaze sweeping over everyone in the tent. Then, he asked in a stern voice, "[Herd] old man, are those who took your horses, your family, and your relatives in this tent?"

The tall, thin old man shook his head: "[Hede] Back Batu, he's not here."

"[Herd] is in this camp?"

“[Herdos] Back to Batu, not here.”

"[Herd] Is it permissible to graze on pastures where no tribe is allowed?"

“[Herdos] Back to Batu, not here.”

"[Herd] Can you let him know that you have sworn an oath to me and are under my protection?"

"[Hede] returned to Batu and made him aware of it."

"[Hede] He still took your horses, your family, and your relatives?"

“[Hede] returned to Batu, and he still took my horses, my family and my relatives.”

Winters turned to Pierre: "This old man's whole family has been captured and enslaved by a tribe. I'm entrusting you with the task of rescuing his family. Is there a problem?"

Pierre didn't agree immediately. Instead, he thought for a moment and asked, "Were the Harts who arrested his family members inside or outside the newly reclaimed land?"

"From what he said, it seems they were robbed by some tribe outside. You can try negotiating with the Teldun tribe first."

"What if the negotiations fail?" Pierre asked cautiously.

Winters smiled and said, "Then I authorize you to use a more persuasive negotiation method."

Pierre's eyes lit up, but he still hesitated: "I'm worried... that someone might accuse you of starting a war with the Herd tribes."

“It’s a long way off before the newly reclaimed lands are formally established as provinces. Who knows how long it will take to get this done. However, as long as the National Assembly hasn’t formally passed the resolution, no one can interfere in the affairs of the newly reclaimed lands.” Winters changed the subject. “Besides, I’m not afraid, so what are you afraid of? Just go ahead and do it.”

Pierre pondered for a moment, then nodded emphatically: "I understand, please leave it to me."

Winters' lips curled up involuntarily. He stood up, glanced around at the crowd inside the tent who had been eavesdropping on his conversation with Pierre, and spoke in the most accurate possible accent of the southern tribes:
"[Herd] When you swore allegiance and took my arrows, I promised to protect you. Today, the elders under my command have been harmed without cause. So I promise you, old man, even if I chase you to the end of the great river and the top of the mountain, I will bring your family and relatives back, and let everyone know that I keep my word."

Then, Winters gestured for Pierre to rise, took Pierre's hand, and stood before the members of the Vendor tribe, proclaiming in a loud voice:
"[Herd] This is my ear that hears at night, my eye that sees by day, my arrow that shoots near, my eagle that shoots far, my falcon, my steed, my mastiff..."

As Winters sang his praises, the way the members of the Wendor tribe looked at the young man beside him became increasingly unusual.

“[Herd’s words]…To disobey him is to defy me; to disrespect him is to dishonor me; to oppose him is to betray your oath.” Winters solemnly declared:
"[Hede] I will let my mastiff rule this grassland in my place. And it will also be through him that the wronged old man be reunited with his family."

After saying that, Winters gently pushed Pierre in front of him.

Pierre gritted his teeth, held his head high, and accepted the scrutiny of everyone in the tent.

Inside the tent, it was so quiet you could hear a heartbeat; the air was so heavy it seemed stagnant.

Pierre's heart was pounding and his chest felt tight, but he did his best not to show any abnormality.

Suddenly, a tall, thin member of the tribe, dressed in tattered robes, stood up abruptly—Pierre recognized him as the middle-aged escaped slave who walked with a limp.

After the middle-aged runaway slave got up, his two nephews hurriedly followed suit.

Immediately, all the members of the Wenduo tribe inside the tent stood up in a flurry.

The crowd, though of varying abilities, bowed respectfully to Batu's representative, placing their hands on their chests.

Pierre's eyes welled up with tears—not from emotion, but from excitement and some other inexplicable feeling. Regardless, he did feel a little like crying.

He also returned the greeting to his followers by placing his hand on his heart, in accordance with the customs of the wilderness.

Outside the tent, Bell let out a long breath.

“Pierre’s appointment has finally been settled,” the little hunter thought, “and now it’s finally time for some strong liquor.”

Next, all that's needed is to get everyone drunk until they're completely unconscious, and the "feast" will be a success, and Bell's mission will be complete.

"That was really tough," the little hunter thought, wiping the sweat from his brow.

He made a gesture, and the servants who had been waiting for a long time filed into the palace tent carrying leather bags full of strong liquor.

……

In the Hed, it is considered polite to get completely drunk at a "banquet".

Because wine is a very precious thing, not drinking it all would be disrespectful to the host.

However, Winters always hated the feeling of being out of control, so he only took a symbolic sip before leaving the table.

However, he still left the young hunter in the palace tent to maintain order—mainly to prevent some of the more drunken members from getting into a fight over a disagreement. The "regulation" in the so-called "banquet regulation" not only refers to providing food, but also to "maintaining order."

Pierre, having failed to return to the old camp in time and missed the opportunity for the "banquet of discipline," was fortunate in a way that he was able to escape from the feast.

Winters retreated behind the curtain and left the palace tent through a small door.

As soon as he left the palace tent, he immediately ordered Pierre behind him: "Go and bring that skinny old man over. I have something to ask him."

Although the elderly people who came to petition were all quite thin, Pierre didn't even need to ask to know which "thin old man" Blood Wolf was referring to.

“I’ll go right away.” Pierre saluted crisply. “Where do you want me to take him?”

“Take him to my bedchamber…” Winters glanced at a guard who had followed him out of the palace tent, then changed his mind: “No, take him to the side tent. I’ll see him later.”

To his disappointment, one of the guards did not react at all.

After watching Pierre's figure disappear behind the walls of the palace tent, Winters turned and walked toward his sleeping tent at the back of the camp.

The first thing he did upon entering his bedchamber was to loosen the wide belt that was as tight as a woman's corset.

Without this thing, Winters might not have been able to sit still for hours on that low cot, which was as low as a small stool.

Winters, having removed his belt, stretched his limbs with a mixture of pain and pleasure, his joints cracking and popping all over.

The guard who had been standing to his right front throughout the banquet also followed him into the sleeping tent.

Coincidentally, the first thing the guard did upon entering the tent was to quickly remove his helmet and armor, shedding these heavy burdens. After all, Winters had been sitting the entire time, while the guard had been standing.

Winters had an idea. He crept closer to the guard, seized the rare opportunity, and kicked the guard in the buttocks.

The guard was kicked and staggered several steps, but did not fall. He turned his head, ripped off his helmet, and revealed Father Kaman's face.

Father Kaman clenched his fists, his saintly face contorted with rage, not even realizing he'd uttered a curse: "Damn it! What are you doing?"

Blood Wolf, about to be brutally beaten, seized the last chance before the iron gauntlet shoved the eyeballs into his eye, roaring as he retorted, "You dare ask me what I'm doing?! I should be asking you what you're doing?!"

Winters, now in control, angrily demanded, "The Reformed Order has even extended its reach into the Heard Wasteland?!"

"Huh?" Father Kaman was stunned. In his shock, he no longer cared about investigating whether someone was using their position for personal revenge, and asked repeatedly, "What did you say? What do you mean?"

“What do you mean?” Winters maintained his outward appearance of anger while scrutinizing Father Kaman’s reaction:
"What else could it mean? Of course it means that old man! Humph, I don't even need my nose, I can smell the weird odor on that old man with my knees! What kind of bullshit 'wandering group' is this? I think it's a religious order! You Reformed Secretaries have actually managed to reach out to the narrow valley between the two mountains without anyone noticing! Reach out to the Hed Wasteland! Reach out to our backside, our butt?! What are you trying to do?"

Father Kaman was rendered speechless by the hail of questions. He struggled to process Winters' words, while solemnly and formally declaring, "I'll say it again, and for the last time—I! Am not! A member! of the Reformed Order!"

“Hmm~ right~” Winters sneered and curled his lip: “After all, the Reformed Order has already been ‘excommunicated’.”

Upon seeing the expression of complete disbelief on someone's face, Father Kaman's anger surged, and his iron gloves creaked as he gripped them tightly. But in the end, the priest put the important matter first.

“Tell me again, carefully,” Kaman pleaded through gritted teeth. “What ‘old man’? Which ‘old man’?”

Winters noticed that Kaman's reaction didn't seem like he knew the inside story, nor did it seem like he was faking it. However, he couldn't lose his composure, otherwise his life might be in danger. So, he spoke with a tone that was still angry: "Which other old man could it be? That skinny old man?"

Kaman was furious: "Which of those old men from Hurd's family isn't thin?"

“Don’t ask me, just go and see for yourself—I had Pierre take that strange old man to the side tent.” Winters scrutinized Father Carman for a moment, until the latter felt uneasy, before asking suspiciously, “You really don’t know?”

Kaman, who was on the verge of losing control, punched the wall of the sleeping tent, tearing a hole in the felt and staggering himself in the process.

He awkwardly regained his balance and angrily said, "Of course I don't know! How many times have I told you? I'm not a member of the Reformed Order! The Reformed Order is gone! It doesn't exist anymore! It hasn't existed for a long time! Do you understand?!"

Winters calmly faced the storm, and only after Kaman had exhausted his strength did he smack his lips leisurely: "Got it, got it—why were you in such a hurry?"

He smiled and patted Father Kaman on the shoulder, his eyes sincere: "I believe you."

Kaman nearly choked to death on the spot.

“But in the end, all these misunderstandings between us are because you never explain to me what your relationship with the Reformed Order really is,” Winters added.

Kaman was too exhausted to argue or fight anymore. He took out the holy emblem from his clothes, pressed it to his forehead, and whispered prayers.

“But that old man is definitely suspicious, whether you know it or not.” Winters saw that the time was right and the revenge was almost complete, so he put away his smile and said seriously, “So I think you’d better go and talk to him first—before I talk to him.”

"Okay." Kaman nodded weakly, "I'll go."

Despite saying that, Father Kaman did not move immediately, but continued to recite his unfinished prayer.

Winters waited a while, and seeing that Kaman was still chanting scriptures in the same spot, he mustered up his courage and kicked him again: "Aren't you going yet?"

The next moment, an iron gauntlet appeared in his field of vision.

Happy Labor Day everyone!
[Because the chapter released on May 1st was actually scheduled to be released before May 1st, there is a slight discrepancy in the timing, {{{(>_<)}}}]
[Thank you to all the readers for your collections, reading, subscriptions, recommendations, monthly tickets, donations, and comments. Thank you everyone!]