I built a manor in the Middle Ages

Chapter 208 Byrne August
The neighing of horses stopped in front of the gloomy castle. The decaying fence was surrounded by a lot of horse manure. The hunched old butler leaned shakily against the door frame, watching the dust rising at the end of the road.

"The master is back! Quick! Go and prepare the food!"

The old steward uttered a few syllables from his thick beard and gave instructions to several servants before finally seeing Pons emerge from the dust.

But before he could speak, he caught a glimpse of Pons's gloomy face and the dejected soldiers around him, and immediately swallowed his words.

“Baron,” Pons said in a low voice.

"Master!" The old butler stepped forward and bowed slightly, "Is there anything you need?"

"Go and take stock of the losses, see how many people are still missing, and also notify Knight Gal's family and relatives to prepare a ransom; he has been captured."

"Also, help me contact that Jewish businessman; I need to borrow some money from him."

Baron opened and closed his mouth, and finally agreed.

Since their mining site was seized three years ago, it took the master three years to save up enough to pay off the compensation and loans. This time, he recruited soldiers and horses, hoping to avenge the previous defeat and win back the losses, but he did not expect to be defeated by that guy Berg again.

"I don't know how many years it will take to repay this time."

Baron sighed and turned to leave, but Pons suddenly turned back and called him again: "Oh, and remember to give Byrne the reward he deserves."

“I understand.” Barron nodded deeply.

……

"Please wait, esteemed knight."

At the bridgehead of the Ale River, Luc and his party were suddenly stopped by a group of spearmen guarding the bridge.

"This is Baron Ponce's private bridge, therefore..."

"Do knights also need to pay bridge tolls?"

Luc glanced at the Alle River Bridge, which, like the Treff Bridge, was a rather dilapidated wooden bridge with a guard post at one end. The only difference was that a polished cross-shaped stone tablet stood next to the guard post.

“You misunderstand. We are not charging a toll for crossing the bridge, after all, you are a noble knight. However, the Baron has decreed that everyone who crosses the bridge must kiss the cross to show respect to God. I think you must be a devout apostle and would not refuse this offer.”

The guard, with his excellent speaking skills, responded to Luke with a wink.

Upon hearing this, Luc looked at the stone cross beside him in surprise. Pons had actually sent people to supervise passersby kissing it?

"God resides in the heart, not in the external world." He disgustedly looked away from the stone tablet; it had been kissed by countless people, and he had no desire to lick it.

"Besides, I am not only a knight of Burgundy, but also the contractor of the Church of Saint Vincent. I have come here with God's blessing. Just take me to see Baron Pons!"

The guard's expression initially showed resistance, but it softened upon hearing the words "St. Vincent's Church." After a moment of contemplation, he said, "Alright, please follow me."

Holding the church banner, they arrived at Ponce Castle in no time, led by the guards. The entire castle was still shrouded in the atmosphere of defeat. The serfs who had lost their husbands and fathers remained silent, numb to this kind of life. Only one priest was going from house to house praying for them.

Upon hearing that they were contractors for the Church of St. Vincent, Pons allowed Luc and his party to enter. After examining the wax-sealed documents and the knight's coat of arms, the elderly Pons managed a slight smile:
"Sir Luc, I'm sorry you've come to the wrong place. I lost the quarry a long time ago. If you want to build a church, you'll have to buy it from Berg."

Pons' tone revealed a sense of helplessness.

He was very interested in helping to repair the church, after all, he was a devout man to the point of being almost fanatical, but he could only sigh deeply when he thought of the war that had just occurred.

“As far as I know, Berg doesn’t seem to be a reliable person.” Luc put down the wine in his hand, which Pons had specially prepared for him.

“He is not as devout and merciful as you. If he goes there to buy stones, he will not sell them cheaply for God’s sake. He may even double the price like those damned Jews.”

Recalling Berg's cunning and having learned from Pons' experience of borrowing Jewish gold coins, he couldn't help but agree, saying, "You're right, but what can we do? I've already lost."

The old baron was honest enough not to hide his situation.

Luc, however, seemed to be deep in thought as he glanced around at the knights surrounding the Baron.

One of the knights with thick eyebrows glanced at Luke a couple more times, feeling that he looked somewhat familiar, but he couldn't remember who he was.

Luc's gaze bypassed the knight who had "killed" him. An outsider's perspective was clearer; in his view, Pons' strength wasn't actually that much greater than Berg's. The difference of a few dozen peasant soldiers wasn't insignificant, but the key difference lay in the number of knights and their troop deployment. Pons had fewer knights, and their command skills were lacking; they charged forward in a chaotic frenzy, while even Berg knew to lead his cavalry to flank. Therefore, Pons' apparent losses in the previous battle were merely a matter of exchanging a knight with Berg.

"Where is that rearguard knight?" Luc's blue pupils shifted. There were two knights around Pons, but the fierce cavalryman and his fat squire were nowhere to be seen.

“Baron Ponce, if I can help you win the war, would you be willing to sign a long-term stone contract with me?” Luc asked suddenly after downing his wine in one gulp.

……

"Sir, we're only building a church once, why do we need to sign a long-term contract?"

As they left the castle, George followed behind Luc, looking left and right, his gaze habitually fixed on the stables.

Luc strode toward the tavern. His slaves couldn't possibly live in the castle; they needed a place to stay. Hearing George's words, he said noncommittally, "We'll need more stones sooner or later."

Limestone can be used for more than just building. Luke suddenly realized that the limestone Jason mentioned that could make iron ore melt better seemed to be limestone!

Iron smelting was of paramount importance to Luke's plans for the future development of Knightsburg. The production of just a dozen or so hoes had consumed an enormous amount of wood ash, to the point that even the efficiency of charcoal production was beginning to wane.

—He doesn't have that many professional lumberjacks.

Luc couldn't talk to George about the iron ore, so he glanced at the oval sign on the tavern sign and instructed George, "Instead of wasting your time, why don't you go and check on our progress in getting the materials we need?"

"And also, don't steal other people's horses!"

Luc glanced at George, knowing he would likely be working with old Pence in the future, and he didn't want any rifts between them.

"Definitely, definitely." George scratched the back of his head and smiled awkwardly.

Watching George leave, Luc pushed open the tavern's wooden door, which reeked of a foul stench. He had decided to help old Pons reclaim the quarry, and not just for the sake of securing a long-term source of stone in Berg. If possible, Luc wanted to eliminate this only remaining threat.
A group of burly men in armor and carrying swords rushed into the tavern. Several sensible farmers gave up some seats. The eloquent tavern owner introduced his delicious food to Luke, who shook his head slightly as he listened.

Luc had been to quite a few places, but the food in the taverns of both Maconshire and Ponsburg was not as delicious as that produced in Knightsburg. He casually ordered some dried fruit and other food from the tavern, but his eyes were suddenly drawn to a pair of master and servants who were enjoying their meal at a corner table.

Picking up two glasses of ale, Luc walked alone toward the master and servant.

"Excuse me, my name is Luc, and I am a Burgundy knight."

Luc placed two glasses of ale on the oak table and smiled slightly at the two men who were looking at him with a puzzled expression. "If I'm not mistaken, you two are knights employed by Baron Ponce, aren't you?"

The Wandering Knight.

Luc didn't say the whole thing aloud, but since he wasn't with Pons, he was probably the same kind of person as Henry.

The scene before him further confirmed his suspicions: no conscripts were following, and the swords and shields in their hands were all worn and sharpened. Hearing Luke's words, the plump squire stood up to make room for Luke, and before getting up, he stuffed a piece of tenderloin into his mouth. His squirrel-like cheeks made him look quite comical, and the way he was sucking on his greasy fingers made it hard to imagine that he was on the battlefield.

"Thank you for the drink. I am indeed a wandering knight."

The man reached out his broad hand, grasped the wooden cup, and drank it all in one gulp. A few drops of cloudy liquor landed on his light brown beard, and he exhaled heartily, "Not bad, but it's not as good as Saxon mead."

"You're from Saxony?"

"Of course! My master is..." The fat man beside him swallowed hard, opening his hand as if to gesture something, when the man suddenly stopped him.

"Shut up, Grimbald!"

As the fat man sullenly lowered his head, the man pushed the wooden cup toward Luc. "My name is Byrne August, and I am indeed from Saxony."

Luke raised an eyebrow and looked at the strange master and servant. The wandering knights were a mixed group, including poor knights who had been down on their luck for many years and only had a title left, as well as the illegitimate son of a great nobleman.

Unlike the impoverished Henry, who only had a tattered leather armor and a wounded warhorse, the man named Byrne possessed a decent set of chainmail and an equally sharp sword. The fat man beside him even had a chain mace with a leather-wrapped oak handle and a leather-covered round shield, hardly resembling a down-on-his-luck knight.

Seeing that Byrne didn't want to elaborate, Luc didn't press further. He tapped the table and said, "If you still want to be employed, I kindly advise you not to leave yet."

"Oh? Pons wants to hire me?"

“I think that’s highly likely, but even if he doesn’t hire you, I will hire you and have you rejoin Pons’ army.”

(End of this chapter)