I built a manor in the Middle Ages

Chapter 84 Horse Thief

It was late at night, but the dim tavern was bustling with people. Drunk men with red faces were bragging about the women they had slept with. In the dark corners, there were scattered guys squatting and vomiting. The nauseating vomit and the smell of alcohol filled the whole tavern. The kept prostitutes kept walking close to the crowd, causing some people to stare at this not very beautiful woman with their eyes as red as burning coals.

In this environment, a group of men armed with knives and swords slowly pushed open the door of the tavern.

"Boss, are there any rooms available? If so, please prepare four beds and a clean meal."

The leading man said as he looked around at the people in the room, his brows unconsciously furrowed.

This person is none other than Luc.

Hoffman finally sold the tall man named Hans to himself for one hundred and forty pfennigs. Of course, the weapons belonged to Hoffman. As for the short bandit, he had already died.

And it was because of Hans' joining that Luc decided to stay in Cooper Castle for one night and buy some food before setting off again.

"Sir, these people should be mercenaries."

Old Ek, who had experience as a mercenary, was very familiar with the smell of the people in the tavern and whispered to Luke.

Luc nodded, it was pretty much what he had guessed.

Since Baron Berry of Cooper Castle participated in the first crusade, he would surely not miss the second one. Hiring some soldiers to fight for him is indeed the norm in wars between lords.

"Keep everything in good condition."

Luke gave an order and followed the tavern owner into the tavern. The supplies on the cart were already carried closely by One-Eyed Gil, and the war horses and mules were taken care of by others.

The entry of Luke and others instantly attracted the scrutiny of the mercenaries in the house, but they immediately withdrew their gaze after seeing their equipment clearly.

After serving some food, the innkeepers left tactfully, and Luc then looked at the big guy Hans who had been hanging his head.

He picked up a piece of black bread from the plate and threw it to Hans. The strong man who was so ferocious at the bridge was now as obedient as a lamb. He took the black bread and swallowed it silently without raising his head.

Luc and Old Eike looked at each other, and the corners of their mouths couldn't help but curl up.

In fact, Luc had his own plans for buying Hans.

Hans is strong enough and brave enough in combat, but his intelligence is not high. Now that his only cunning brother is dead, it is a good opportunity for Luc to recruit him and send him to work in the mountains or serve as a guard.

As for how to convince the other party, Luc was not worried at all.

Luc had already noticed something was wrong. Perhaps due to past experiences, Hans had a natural fear of the nobility. After being bought, Luc had Gilles pick some herbs and apply them to the wound on his right arm. He also hadn't participated in Hoffman's extermination of them, and even buried his brother's body. Although Hans was a bit clueless, he could still distinguish between good and evil, so he remained quiet throughout the journey. To avoid unnecessary trouble, Luc and the others deliberately lagged behind Hoffman's caravan.

However, Luc also knew that this level of obedience was far from enough. Hans was a double-edged sword. If he couldn't control it well, he might hurt himself. So he needed further training. But for now, it would be enough if he could calm down. Besides, if he really wanted to rebel, Luc didn't think he couldn't kill the unarmed Hans even with armor and a sword.

Hans finished his bread quietly, still sitting there obediently. Luc turned around and talked to Old Eck about business:
"Old Eck, you know Cooperburg much better than I do. Tomorrow morning, get up early and see if there's any more grain available. The rye we bought from Hoffman this time is enough for us to plant another four acres, but you can never have too much grain. Ask around and see if you can buy a larger share."

"it is good!"

Luc patted Old Eike on the shoulder and said, "By the way, you were a mercenary in your youth, right? How much do you estimate Baron Berry spent on these people?"

Old Eike was sipping vegetable soup when he glanced around. There were about twenty people sitting in the room, mostly infantrymen. He held up three fingers and said, "Three hundred pfennigs. That's about three hundred pfennigs per person per month. The captain of this group of mercenaries might get double that."

"Three hundred pfennigs a month."

Luc nodded. It wasn't as expensive as he had imagined, but it wasn't cheap either.

"After dinner, go to bed early. Our beds are in the same room, so it's relatively safe. We can sleep with one eye open. We have too much supplies, and I'm worried that these risky guys might cause trouble at night."

"Okay sir!"

Old Ek and One-Eyed Gil spoke in unison, and they quickened their eating pace. Soon they had finished their meal, and then they surrounded Luc and went upstairs to the dim room.

Luc arranged Hans on the bed in the corner and slept on the side against the wall. All the supplies were placed around him, close to him.

Old Ek and One-Eyed Gil slept on either side, and all three of them were wearing armor and holding weapons as they lay on the thatched wooden boards.

As the night grew deeper, the noise downstairs began to stop. In the middle of the night, Luc was awakened by the screams of a woman next door who was not soundproofed. He saw that Hans was not asleep at all. Instead, he was lying on the window, staring down motionlessly. The moonlight shone in his slightly dull eyes, which looked very strange.

"Hans, what are you doing?"

".Sir, I'm looking out the window, and there's a person outside."

anyone?

Luc sat up, and old Ek and Jill, who were already light sleepers, also woke up. The three of them looked at each other, and a bad feeling flashed through their hearts. They immediately looked out the window with Hans.

Through the thick night, Luc saw a man with messy hair in the stable of the tavern. He didn't know what method he used, and there was no livestock making any noise in the entire stable. At this time, he was using a knife to cut the reins tied to the wooden stake bit by bit. The horse next to the man was his Percheron!

"Damn it, it's a horse thief!"

"Hurry, don't let him steal the warhorse!"

Luc was the first to react. He quickly took the bow and arrow from the wall and asked Old Eike to hurry downstairs and stop the other party.

Old Ek picked up his shield and flail, pushed open the door, and rushed out of the house like a flash. One-eyed Gil, relying on his strong body, jumped directly from the second floor, shouting and scolding the horse thief.

The noise of the few people alarmed the horse thief. Knowing that he was exposed, he ran back without looking back.

At this time, Luc had already drawn the arrow to its full extent and shot it, which hit the ground in front of the horse thief. It was too dark at night and there were wooden stakes blocking the way, so Luc could only block the horse thief's retreat.

"What are you standing there for? Go and help! That guy stole our things!"

Seeing Hans standing there stupidly out of the corner of his eye, Luc scolded him angrily.

Hans seemed to have just reacted and ran downstairs. Under the surprised and angry gaze of the tavern owner who had rushed out after hearing the news, he picked up a stool and ran out the door.

(End of this chapter)