Medieval: Kingdom Come: Deliverance

Time flies, and three days have passed.

6 month 2 day.

Instead of the Count's vengeful army arriving in the Troski region, a troop of cavalry from out of town came.

Their group, consisting of six people, six horses, and one dog, sped along the road through the oat fields.

The leader was handsome and dashing, clad in full plate armor, with a perpetually upturned smile that seemed to invite mockery at any moment. His warhorse, draped in a full-length yellow trousers, galloped with steady and powerful strides.

Following them was a man with brown hair, prominent brow bones, and wide-open eyes, who looked somewhat Tang Dynasty-like. He rode a gray pony, with a dog running alongside the army, keeping pace with them.

The other four were also riding fast horses, wearing heavy armor, and carrying shields with yellow backgrounds and black crosses, looking very fierce.

"Audentes fortuna iuvat!"

The handsome young man, seeing that he was about to arrive at the territory of Troschi, happily opened his arms and shouted a Latin phrase.

The big-eyed boy spurred his horse forward and asked, "What are you shouting for, Young Master Hans?"

"My God, Henry, you don't know Latin, do you?"

The handsome young man, none other than Hans Capon, the future lord of Rattay, spoke teasingly to his squire, Henry. Before the Renaissance, over 90% of medieval lords and nobles spoke only their local dialects and could neither speak nor write Latin. Let alone a knight's squire.

"I'm sorry, sir. Please forgive me for being too busy shoveling poop and digging up vegetable scraps to learn any Latin."

Henry responded with a smile.

This is a lie.

Henry, the son of a blacksmith in Skarlitz, possessed some skill in blacksmithing but was idle and dissolute. Until March 23rd, when he witnessed King Gigi leading the Prague puppet army and Cuman mercenaries to destroy Skarlitz and kill his parents, he was inspired to strive for success. He joined the Royal Warden Raddy's army, repeatedly distinguishing himself in battle. He forged a deep friendship with Hans, the young lord of Rattay, became a kindred spirit with Davis of Talmuburg, and developed a father-son bond with Raddy…

In just two months, he used the time others spent drinking and sleeping to practice swordsmanship, blacksmithing, alchemy, sneaking around, and lock picking, eventually becoming a powerful master swordsman, lock picking master, assassination master, alchemy master, and blacksmithing master...

But he simply didn't have time to shovel poop or dig up vegetable roots...

"My bad, Henry, you must find a way to correct this. An illiterate person can't be my personal bodyguard."

Hans, the young master who knew Henry's background, joked.

"Shouldn't I have come here as a knight's squire, a prospective nobleman? How did I end up as a bodyguard?"

Henry widened his eyes, feigning surprise.

"Ahem, don't worry about these little details, Henry. It'll make you unpopular with women."

Hans, the young master, smirked and gave Henry a stern critique.

"As you wish."

Henry shook his head and chuckled, changing the subject, "So what does audins...auden... mean?"

"Audentes fortuna iuvat! -- Fate will favor the brave!"

Hans proudly corrected Henry's pronunciation and explained its meaning to him.

"Interesting. How much courage does it take to just hand a letter to Count Otto von Polgar? Consider it a horse-riding exercise."

"My goodness, Henry, stop being so stubborn like an old man. We're finally getting away from that dreary Rattay Castle, away from Hannah's nagging, and you're such a spoilsport. We could be enjoying the adventures along the way, don't you get any excitement at all?"

Young Master Hans was like a lion cub venturing out of home for the first time, full of curiosity and excitement about everything. "Don't you want to see this world, meet some new girls, and have some fun?"

"Why wouldn't I want to?"

Henry perked up at the mention of "new girl." He was a well-known philanthropist in the Lathai region, a true benefactor of bathhouse maids. Even now, arriving in Troski, he couldn't help but feel a surge of desire. "But you and your guardian, Lord Hannes, have an agreement that you must behave like a pendulum when you're out and about, so I have no choice but to reluctantly take on the responsibility of ensuring your safety; you can't go anywhere."

Henry added with a hint of resentment, "Forget it, what's fun in a backwater like Trostki? And what I don't understand is, why do we have to travel three days to the even more remote Trostki when Rattay is much closer to Prague, only a day's journey away?"

"Fool. Prague is Sigismund's stronghold. Do you think we can get out once we're in?"

Hans was somewhat speechless. His attendant seemed quite wise, so why did he always say such foolish things? "The Marquis of Jobst has discovered a crucial piece of information: Count von Polgao's son has been captured by bandits in Troski. He is currently gathering his vassals and raising funds to return to Troski and rescue his son! Only in territories far from Prague can von Polgao be persuaded to betray Sigismund."

"Will it be that easy?" Henry asked skeptically.

Hans replied, "It's precisely because it's not easy that it takes courage to accomplish it. Do you think we're here just to hand over a piece of paper? No, we need even more courageous action, Audentes fortuna iuvat!—Fortune favors the brave!"

"Audentes fortuna iuvat! -- Fate will favor the brave!"

Henry spoke more fluently this time.

Just then, a heavily armored cavalryman announced, "Sir, Trossky has arrived."

"Great, we've finally arrived."

"drive!"

The group rode their horses up a high slope and looked into the distance. Troski looked like a huge basin, surrounded by mountains and rivers. In the middle, there were lush forests and fields. On a hill in the middle, there was a magnificent castle that could be seen clearly even from twenty miles away.

"My God, this place is so magnificent. Compared to this, the city gates of Ratai look like latrines."

Hans couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

"It's not that exaggerated, young master, although this place is indeed very nice."

Henry also retracted his previous assessment that it was "a godforsaken place".

"Why do you think Count Saïds sold such a valuable asset to von Polgár seven years ago?"

Hans exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, young master, I'm just a servant. You don't even understand these kinds of transactions between important people, how could I possibly know?"

Henry humbly pretended not to know, which is an essential skill for a servant when facing his lord.

"Ah, since you don't understand, then I'll explain it to you...blah blah blah...blah blah blah..."

The man's damned competitive spirit excited Hans the young master again, and he began to explain to Henry the explicit and implicit rules of land transactions among nobles. Although he didn't really understand them, that didn't stop him from making up stories based on his own observations and understanding.

As the group rode along, Henry endured the bumpy ride and Hans's incessant chatter. He genuinely regretted letting the young master start talking.

Ten minutes later, the group arrived at the crossroads on horseback, only to find a row of houses along the roadside, a roadblock made of barricades erected in the middle of the road, and two four-meter-high towers with archers on top, their sharp eyes scanning the area. They had already spotted them and struck a gong.

Fifteen heavily armored soldiers rushed out of the roadside bungalows. They wore three layers of armor, covered by white linen overcoats, with red griffins emblazoned on their chests. Some carried shields, some held guns, some wielded swords, and some carried crossbows. They stood in a defensive posture behind the barricades.

"Don't make any rash moves, obey my orders."

Seeing that the other side had a large number of people, Hans quickly stopped Henry and his men, as well as the hunting dog that was about to pounce.

"Halt! What are you doing here?"

Today, the one leading the team on duty at the crossroads is Redbeard Andrei. He looks at the six cavalrymen opposite him, a force not to be underestimated, and he cannot help but be cautious.

"Hey, judging by your insignia, you must be the local lord's guards. Is this your usual way of treating guests?"

Young Master Hans, displaying the air of a nobleman, sat on his horse, head held high, gesturing with his nostrils towards Andrei and the others below.

Andrei wasn't buying it, coldly scoffing, "Our hospitality only applies to friends. State your purpose, and don't make me ask a second time!"

"Very well, barbarian. I am Sir Hans Capon of Pixstein. I have come on Lord Hans to deliver a letter to Lord von Polgów."

Hans reluctantly pulled out a parchment letter with a wax seal from his pocket and handed it over, gesturing for the other person to look at the emblem on the red wax seal.

"Hanscarpon? A letter to von Polgar?"

Redbeard Andrei took the rolled-up parchment with surprise. There was indeed a seal of the Lepe family on it. The yellow background and black cross might not be recognized by an ordinary team member, but Redbeard Andrei had been a mercenary and bandit in many parts of the Holy Roman Empire and had some knowledge of this kind of emblem.

"Handle it gently, don't break the wax seal."

Hans noticed Andrei examining the letter repeatedly and quickly offered a reminder.

"That's right."

Andrei nodded in agreement, but then handed the parchment to a teammate behind him, instructing, "I heard you, handle it carefully, don't break the wax seal."

"Hehehe! What do you want to do!"

Hans panicked; this letter was an important tool for him, and he couldn't afford to lose it! Henry and the others also spurred their horses forward and gripped the hilts of their swords.

Andrei and his fifteen men crossed the barricades and surrounded Hans and his six companions and dog. The crossbows, already cocked, were aimed at Hans, the young master, while the archers on the tower aimed at the cavalry.

"Why, you ask? Because we are the proud Red Griffin, not the flying fish Borgo."

Andrei sneered. The surrounding team members also wore mocking smiles.

"Ah, red griffins? You're robbers? How could robbers have a family crest?"

Hans was somewhat bewildered. It was also his fault for not studying heraldry well enough that he hadn't even memorized the coat of arms of a great noble family like the Borghese.

"Wait a minute, I have something to say. This is a huge misunderstanding!"

At the critical moment, Henry stood in front of Hans and said urgently.