Knight and Wand

Chapter 7. Brother Brin?

As the edge of the woods was getting farther and farther away from the road extending to the north, Leon and his two companions did not dare to walk out of the woods and continue traveling in the wilderness as before, fearing the danger ahead. They had to shift their direction to the west, gradually moving away from the traversed road.

After walking through the difficult and rugged terrain in the dense forest, the terrain ahead became higher and higher, until there was no way to go forward. Then they realized that they had unknowingly arrived at the edge of a cliff in a canyon, and the view ahead suddenly became clear.

Below the cliff is a vast and vibrant river valley plain.

However, the three of them were not in the mood to appreciate the magnificent scenery before them. As they looked out, their sights were immediately attracted by the chaotic scene in the distance that seemed to pollute the natural landscape.

The upper reaches of the river stretching eastward have completely become a bloody battlefield that tears apart the tranquility of the valley.

On the distant land, figures in neat array were moving densely, and the ranks with fluttering flags reflected the metallic luster of armor and swords under the bright sun.

In the center of the most intense battlefield, deafening shouts and the neighing of war horses resounded over the riverside. Groups of armored cavalry shuttled through the rain of arrows and galloped on their horses. The infantry's gun formations collided with each other one after another, leaving countless corpses lying on the ground.

Even though it was so far away, Leon could still hear the deep sound of the horn.

Looking at the bloody battle breaking out between the two huge armies in the distance, Leon felt a little relieved. Although they lost their way in the woods, they were lucky enough to avoid the most dangerous place.

"Looking at the scale, there are probably thousands of people. The ones in the north should be the Orland army." Azerien squinted his eyes and tried to carefully distinguish the flags on the battlefield. However, they were too far away standing on the cliff and it was difficult to see clearly.

"Have we entered the territory of Orland? Is it a coincidence that the Kantadar bastards are fighting the northerners at the same time?" Lohak asked in confusion, scratching his head as he looked at the fierce fighting on the river bank in the distance.

"Although we are not far from the border between the two countries, we are probably still in the territory of Mamor County." Azerien pointed to the mountains beyond the plains. "If I'm not mistaken, that should be the Galak Mountains in the north of Mamor County. This means we haven't left Kantadar yet."

"So, in the current battle, it's not that the Kantadars are invading Orland at the same time, but rather that the Orlanders are taking the opportunity to invade Kantadar." Leon speculated, touching his chin.

Thinking about it this way, his original judgment was generally correct. It was just that because he was not familiar with the Northern Kingdom, he overlooked that the Orland people would actually take the initiative to provoke a war against Kantadar.

"Ha! That's a good thing. God of Israel, I hope the people of Orland will make those bastards bleed like a river." Lohak immediately looked at the battlefield again with anticipation, wishing he could become a member of the Northern Kingdom's army and avenge his dead parents with his own hands: "Tsk, I wish I could join them now."

Leon shook his head helplessly: "Why rush? Someone like you who has received combat training will have plenty of opportunities to join their army when you arrive in Orland. Since there is a war going on, the North must be recruiting soldiers now."

Having said that, without stopping, everyone continued to move westward along the cliff.

According to Azerien, since the Galak Mountains can be seen here, they are very close to the border. Now they can reach the territory of Orland whether they go west or north, but they definitely cannot take the road to the north. In this case, they must try to go west through the forest and take a detour.

After slowly trudging westward through the forest for a whole day, they followed traces of frequent animal activity to find a nearby water source. After filling their kettles, the three of them found a clearing in the woods nearby and set up camp next to an exposed boulder in the clearing.

They were lucky today. Before dark, Leon successfully caught an animal that looked like a fox near the water source. Now that they had eaten all the food, this prey really gave everyone a rare and satisfying meal.

Everyone sat around the campfire and chatted to kill time before bed. Leon casually asked his two companions, "What are your plans when we get to Orland?"

Lohak said with a determined look, "I must go save my sister, but I don't know where she is, so I want to join Orland's army first, so that I can make some money. With money, I can go find my sister's whereabouts. If I can make more money on the battlefield, maybe I can redeem my sister from the slave owner in the future."

Leon was a little surprised when he heard this. He thought that Lohak, who was full of hatred for Kantadar, would only choose to use violence to forcibly snatch his relatives back from the Kantadars.

Seeing Leon's surprised look, Lohak was a little embarrassed: "Hey, don't look at me like that. I have thought carefully about what you said before. Yes, I am alone and weak. Even if I hate those Kantadar bastards, if I act blindly, I will only lose my life and my sister's life in vain."

As he spoke, he clenched the sword in his hand and said, "The most important thing now is to rescue my sister. As for the revenge for my father and mother, there will always be a chance to make those butchers slowly pay for their blood debt later."

Leon couldn't help feeling relieved when he saw that this reckless and fearless young man finally had a clear goal for survival.

"Joining Orland's army is an option, but I will probably go to the local lord to see if I can find a job." Azerien added some branches to the campfire and continued, "I can read and write, and I also understand the etiquette of the nobles. It would be great if I could become a retainer of a noble. At worst, I can do some accounting and copying for the local lord. If Kantadar withdraws from Rolandar in the future, I will find a way to go back."

"What about you, Leon?" asked Lohark.

After thinking about it, Leon felt a little confused. Apart from finding a way to survive, he had no long-term plan.

Joining the army with Lohak to make a living is one way. After all, the original owner knows how to draw the bow and shoot arrows, and his archery skills are not bad. However, being a soldier in this chaotic world is also risky. It is very likely that he will become cannon fodder and die on the battlefield.

Could he seek a job with a noble like Azerien did? Maybe the local lord needed a hunter.

As for whether to seek revenge on the Kantadars for their dead relatives, the tragedy of the original owner did make him sympathize, but Leon also knew that this was not his memory. If there was a chance, he would not mind killing the enemy for the original "Leon", but if the price was to sacrifice his own life, it would not be worth it. In any case, after this difficult escape, the three of them might have to go their separate ways.

Night fell quickly, with the sporadic chirping of insects accompanied by the eerie swaying shadows of the trees. Apart from the crackling sound of the burning campfire, the only sound around was the terrifying sound of the wind blowing through the forest.

After sleeping through the first half of the night, Leon, who was in charge of guarding the second half, was soon awakened and took turns on guard with his companions. Fortunately, he had become accustomed to this erratic schedule during his escape.

The forest in the middle of the night was horribly silent. The weak moonlight could hardly penetrate the dense treetops. Beyond the small area illuminated by the campfire, it was pitch dark. Leon stared blankly at the deep darkness around him, sometimes thinking about the future, but more often just staring blankly in a meaningless daze.

It would take at least several hours to sit on guard until dawn. This extreme boredom made Leon miss the mobile phones and computers on Earth every moment.

Ok?
what is that?
firefly?
Leon narrowed his eyes and stared at the faint light flickering in the darkness until he noticed that there were more and more pairs of reflective spots.

His blood froze instantly. Those were not fireflies! They were pairs of eyes reflecting the light of the campfire!

"Everyone, get up! There's danger!!"

Leon yelled to wake up his companions. He stood up and held the pitchfork in both hands, aiming at the moving figure hidden in the darkness.

Lohak and Azerien, who were already light sleepers, were awakened almost immediately. Without hesitation, they turned over, grabbed their weapons and climbed up, standing on both sides of Leon with their eyes wide open and their spirits raised.

"what?"

Lohak remained calm, holding the sword in one hand and on guard. With the other hand, he pulled out the simple pine oil torch that he had prepared in his bag, inserted it into the campfire, lit it, and waved it to illuminate the shadows outside the camp.

The dim flames swept across the dense forest ahead, illuminating the outlines of the things hiding in it. The ugly and distorted faces let out strange cries in an attempt to cover up the dazzling light. Only then could Leon see clearly what those things looked like.

Goblin?!

This name was the first thing that flashed through Leon's mind. The bald, ugly head with pointed ears and the naked, short human-like figure looked very much like the small fry that often appeared in fantasy works in his past memories.

But he still noticed the difference between these things and the goblins he had in mind. Their skin was brown instead of green, and their faces were not human-like. Instead, they were more like the heads of canines, with sharp fangs, twisted and hideous.

But just like the goblins in his impression, these creatures were obviously not simply mindless beasts. Leon could see that these ugly things were holding either rough short spears or rusty broken knives picked up from somewhere in their claws. They could obviously use tools and weapons.

"Little Forest Monster? No! It's a wild goblin!" Azerien was the first to recognize this evil life that almost only existed in books.

Leon frowned. The original owner and his father had lived in the forest for so long and had never seen such a thing. Although he had accepted his current situation of being in a different world due to his previous experience of casting spells, this was also the first time he had witnessed this inhuman intelligent life that was beyond common sense.

"What? Wild goblins? Isn't that a story made up by adults to trick children?" Lohak said in disbelief as he looked at the little monsters in front of him.

"The monsters and demons near the Holy City were killed by the church and the army hundreds of years ago. It's normal that you haven't seen them." Azerien said in a deep voice.

But his calmness was only on the surface, as the boy was also panicking inside. According to the records in the monster book, although these little monsters posed no threat to the army, they were recorded as being able to ambush and kill lone travelers in the wild in groups at night. When there were large numbers, the wild goblins would even try to attack the village at night.

At this moment, with only three of them, they had undoubtedly become prey in the eyes of the wild goblins.

Seeing that they had been exposed, the wild goblins hiding in the woods roared in extremely unpleasant and sharp sounds, jumped out of the bushes with a roar, and surrounded Leon and others in groups of three or five with weapons raised.

Leon looked at the group of ferocious little monsters in front of him, and his scalp tingled: "How should I deal with these bastards? Should I fight them or just rush out and get rid of them?"

"If the book is correct, these guys can see at night. Once we leave the campfire and run into the forest, it will be more dangerous if we can't see the road! If we fall into the trap they set, it will be over." Azerien tightly grasped the round shield and pitchfork in his hand: "Let's wait until dawn! The eyes of the wild goblins are very afraid of sunlight. They will return to their nests before the sun comes out."

"Be careful!" Lohak saw a shadow flying out of the darkness with his sharp eyes.

Azerien quickly raised his shield to block his companions, and the flying spear was blocked with a bang. The rough spear head and the slightly insufficient force could not even allow the spear to penetrate the round shield.

Although this spear throw did not succeed, it was like a starting gun, and a large number of wild goblins rushed forward howling.

(End of this chapter)