kingdom of nations

Chapter 172 The Third Informant (Part 2)
"A witch, a complete witch," the servant cried inwardly, clutching the cross to his chest in fear, hoping that God and His will would protect him from the witch's curse. Seeing him like this, Witt's mother laughed even more maniacally. "Let me go and spy on that traitor, that laughable hermit-style goldsmith. Fine." She stretched out her thin, bony hands. "Give me the money."

"This is just a very simple job."

“Even the simplest task is still a job. I’ve never heard of asking someone to do something without paying them.”

"Okay, how many do you want?"

"I want ten gold coins, not Christian ones, but Byzantine ones."

The servant nearly screamed, “Are you crazy? All I’m asking you to do is go to that Isaac craftsman’s workshop and see what he’s doing, and that’s worth ten gold coins?!”

In his opinion, ten silver coins would be enough to hire a large group of people to empty the workshop. Their requirements were not high: "If you really don't understand what he's doing, you can tell us verbally."

His words were already a tactful warning, but Witt's mother didn't take the bait or accept his kindness: "If it's so easy to take a look, why don't you go yourselves, or send some other people?"

Why? Of course, it's because of her special status. She is Lego's sister, and Lego is Haredi's best friend and benefactor. He took in Haredi, who had fled all the way from Fosterstadt. If Haredi hadn't insisted on going back, he would have given her a job.

Out of friendship and gratitude, Haredi wouldn't refuse his visit. What about the others? The others weren't familiar with Haredi, and Haredi was such a reclusive person, with no women or companions around him. Even his own people thought he was eccentric.

If a stranger suddenly approaches him, even if he claims to want to customize jewelry or utensils, it's difficult to get any concrete information from him.

However, before the servant set off, his master had instructed him to make sure the matter was completed properly.

Even though he knew the woman Isaac was extorting him, he still had to grit his teeth and take out his money bag, counting out ten gold coins to give to her.

He saw that the woman's eyes were still fixed on the money bag that was still jingling, and he couldn't help but curse with disgust, "A heretic like you who can only see money is sure to be cast into hell."

The woman Isaac only gave a hoarse laugh, then her expression changed, revealing a hideous and terrifying face. She glared at the servant and hissed in a low voice, "Oh dear, if your master can really find the person who harmed my son and bring them out, whether they are hanged or beheaded, it doesn't matter."

"If he could do it, God, I swear to Him, whatever he asks me to do, whether it's walking barefoot on burning coals or fishing in a frozen river, I would do it, without asking for a single penny!"

She jumped, literally jumped, her feet leaving the ground, the soles of her shoes making a crackling sound as they hit the floor.

The woman Isaac roared in an extremely venomous tone: “I did agree to work for your master, but what about the reward he gave me? What about all the things he promised me? Hey! I only see them eating and drinking to their hearts' content, enjoying themselves every day, while my son has turned into a pile of bones.”

Go back and tell your master that he must give me either the flesh and blood of my enemy, or some warm money. Without either, I won't utter a word or take a step for him. Go back, you fool!

She shoved the servant out of the room, and then with a bang, the door slammed shut.

A rude complaint came from the next room. The servant quickly grabbed his hat, put it on his head, and hurried away, as he had to report back to his master.

A moment later, Witt's mother also came out. The hotel owner frowned when he saw her. Many guests were complaining to him that although he had arranged for this woman to be in the most secluded room, she often cried and laughed, shouted and yelled, making a lot of noise in the room, making it impossible for others to rest properly or do their own things in peace.

But he was also somewhat helpless. He was also an Isaac, but he was not yet qualified to enter the synagogue, while Lego and Jacques were influential figures in the city.

If their position is now precarious, this woman is rich enough.

His room cost only fifteen copper coins a day, but Witt's mother gave him a silver coin every day. He didn't know where the woman got the money, nor did he care.

Anyway, he had sneaked into the room when the woman left to check and confirmed that she wasn't practicing any witchcraft. Moreover, he had heard that his relatives were also planning to send her away as soon as possible. Once she was gone, he could clean the room and then the rest would be none of his business. Why wouldn't he take the opportunity to make a fortune?

Haredi's apprentice knew this woman. Although she had been expelled from the Isaac community, her brother and daughter dared not take care of her directly, and the child from her previous marriage had died, she might still have some money.

She stayed in a hotel and was always acting strangely. She wandered around every street and alley in Bethlehem, staring fiercely at everyone, and occasionally she would yell at someone in a corner or cry.

Some said she was insane, others said she might be a witch. If she weren't Legolas' sister, she might have been burned at the stake long ago. Their parents had also instructed them that if they encountered this woman, they should not have any contact with her, speak to her, or accept any gifts from her; this was the fate that every converted Isaac should suffer.

But when she came today, her palms were full of candied fruit.

Although the apprentices have parents and families, their families are not well-off. Otherwise, their parents would not have sent them to be apprentices. For families like theirs, such expensive food is something they might not be able to afford even during the New Year.

They were caught in a tug-of-war between doctrine and desire, revealing expressions of both longing and wariness.

“Eat up, children,” said Witt’s mother. “You deserve something good to eat today, like dried apples preserved in honey and sugar—this is not against the doctrine, and even if your teachers or parents were here, they would have no right to criticize you. This is a right given to you by God.”

The apprentices had to admit they weren't that greedy, and Haredi wasn't harsh on them, occasionally giving them a few copper coins as pocket money. But the woman's words undoubtedly stirred up the saddest memories in their hearts.

That is, even during the New Year, apprentices cannot leave the workshop to return home and reunite with their parents. The workshop is their home, not the place where their parents and siblings are. "Just a little something," an apprentice mumbled.

“Okay, I’ll just have a little,” his companion said.

The two apprentices, only eleven or twelve years old, had no idea what had happened to them. In retrospect, they could only say that the witch had cast a spell on the food or mixed it with drugs, which made them so confused and disoriented that they accepted her gift and brought her into the house.

When she heard that Haredi had accepted a new order, and that it was commissioned by the Knight of Bethlehem, Witt's mother did not easily give up her goal.

She went to Harry's room, intending to knock on his door, but then she suddenly stopped. If it were truly something important, Harry would have hidden it well or simply memorized it.

She couldn't see anything, nor did she understand the goldsmith's blueprints and secret codes. Even if she could see them, it would be difficult for her to figure out what they were.

The woman stood quietly in front of the door for a while, then, without disturbing the people inside, tiptoed back into the reception hall, where the two children were still enjoying the food she had brought.

Besides the honey-soaked dried apples, there was also wine, which was originally meant for Harry, but she gave it all to the two children.

Children's mouths are often the easiest to open, not to mention alcohol.

She sat there, speaking to them gently, stroking their hands and their hair. She understood these children's hearts all too well; after all, her poor Witt had been sent to the castle at the same age.

How reluctant she was to part with him! But out of love for her child, she mistakenly believed her husband's brother's words, thinking that by sending him to the castle to become the prince's squire, he would have a smooth journey and no worries.

Perhaps in the future she could become a knight like her father, or perhaps that was what she deserved all along. However, after her husband died on the battlefield, those shameless Christians, out of greed, refused to acknowledge the marriage.

They drove her and Witte out of the house, took all their possessions, and didn't even tell her where her husband was buried, because his affair with an Isaac woman was a disgrace to him and his family.

At that time, she was almost in despair, and the helping hand extended by Witt's father's brother truly became her only hope.

When Witte first arrived at Holy Cross Castle, he was not used to it. His father was a knight after all, and there were servants in the house before he died. Witte had always been served, not served.

His mother doted on him so much that he didn't begin to learn to read and write until he was eight or nine years old. His father should have taught him how to be a knight, but unfortunately, he was always fighting alongside the king and rarely came home.

Moreover, neither his colleagues nor his master were willing to accept a child with half Isaac blood, and he could not send Witte to any castle.

After being taken away by his uncle, Witt often secretly ran away from the Castle of Sainte-Croix to meet his mother who was waiting outside the castle. He would scold her and then cry in her arms.

Any child who arrives in a strange place, surrounded by people who look down on and despise him, has to do countless chores every day. If he doesn't do them well or is slow, he will be beaten with a stick.

When he pulled up his sleeves and trouser legs to show his mother the scars on his body, her heart almost broke.

But this situation soon changed. Her child proudly told her that he had discovered that her master, Prince Baldwin of Alassa Road, was a weak, woman-like fellow who never scolded them harshly, let alone beat them with whips and sticks. He even managed to get money from the prince.

But at the same time, he felt a different kind of resentment.

He said he saw red spots and rashes on the prince's body; yes, he was a leper, punished by God. "He should have come to serve me! To wipe my feet with a cloth!"

The woman clearly remembered how Witt clenched his fists, stomped his feet, and shouted fiercely.

"But just because he is a prince—and I am also the son of a knight, why should I have to serve him? What kind of logic is that?"

If Witt's mother were a reasonable and grateful person, she would surely have advised her son not to be blinded by greed and to stop his wishful thinking. But how could she? She was never that kind of person.

Although she married a Christian knight, it was because he was young, handsome, brave, and wealthy. Deep down, she still considered herself an Isaac—God's chosen people, forever superior to other races.

Instead of rebuking Witte for his nonsense, she wholeheartedly agreed with him, believing that what he said made a lot of sense.

Witt's tragedy was at least half her doing, but Witt's mother didn't think so.

Now she's using the same method on these two children. Unconditional pampering and flattery, like honey, can silently erode a person's heart.

The two children were laughing so hard that they completely forgot she was someone they shouldn't have approached or talked to, and like Witt, they complained to her about everything.

(End of this chapter)