Chapter 101: Twelfth Episode: Chapter 1 (2/2)

”It’s not what you imagined, they are just refugees relocated by the border military regions. As the number of refugees increase, the military regions encountered trouble to accommodate them all so the Imperial Army sent these Persian refugees to affluent cities and towns. However, the people from the hometown are not very friendly to these refugees, especially the children who can’t stop throwing rocks into the refugee camp. There was once a refugee who died from the stone attack. Your fatherspent so much effort to quell the anger of the people.”

Murat finally let go of the young soldier’s collar. He adjusted his body, and sighed toward the sky. ”Hopefully father can deal with all these conflicts, those Persians better not create any trouble.”

Young Kirk shook his head, ”They are mostly just women and children, also some wounded and the old.”

After a long silence, young Kirk moved closer to his division commander.

”Division commander, do you remember the Grano family who lives in the end of Linston street?”

”Of course! Grano senior is my uncle, my mother’s brother. I can’t see where is this conversation going?”

”Hehe! Hehehe!” Young Kirk scratched at his head and began to laugh, ”I know Miss Grano… very well, she always come to the back of my house… to watch me practice sword, and then… I will walk her home after my practice, and…”

”What are you trying to say?” Murat sensed something fishy about that.

”I’m trying to tell you that… before I’m enlisted I’m engaged to Miss Grano!”

Once again Murat’s hands flew to the young soldier’s collar, however this time harder than the last. He almost lifted the young man entirely off the ground, but glanced over at the rest of the sleeping knights.

”Little bastard, you mean you’re marrying my niece? My young Lena? She’s… she’s only ten!” Murat lowered his voice in order not to awaken the sleeping men, but one could still hear his anger from the words spitted through his gritted teeth.

”Division commander, that’s… that’s not true! That would be eight years ago, Lena is already eighteen years old!”

Murat was stunned for a second. The young soldier was right, the last time he saw his adorable niece was eight years ago. Lena at that time often used his sword to fight with the boys!

Young Kirk was frightened by his commander’s ferocious features that he couldn’t speak coherently, ”I… Miss Grano and I… pronounced our love for each other in a church in front of the God, we were blessed… blessed by the parents of both parties, even your father and brother were there! You… if you could calm down!”

Murat bent his head to one side and thought about that for a second, ”Exactly! It’s only right that my niece is married to a Narcissus Knight! Why am I so tensed?” Murat looked at the young soldier who looked like a terrified little quail, ”Moreover… this one here look like a good guy, at least… he doesn’t look the kind who would make my niece cry!”

Murat let loosed of Kirk’s collar, and laid back to the ground again. ”Young man, you should’ve told me about this on the first day you enlisted to Red Tiger!”

”No!” Young Kirk shook his head in disapproval, ”My brother said that it’s not something to boast about. A qualified Narcissus Knight should not gallop into the battlefield only through nepotism.”

As his commander continued looking at him with hints of suspicion, Kirk started to explain himself again, ”What I’ve just told you… actually… actually I have been so excited from the moment you entered the house, I never imagined you to sleep beside me, I… my words are not making sense anymore. I become even more thrilled especially when you asked about hometown! I… please don’t ridicule, since the day I was enlisted… I began to think of my family, my home, and the feeling only got stronger as I moved further and further away from home, I… I only wanted to share with you stories from hometown…”

”Alright, that’s enough!” Murat tugged the corner of the young soldier’s blanket underneath his neck. ”Go to sleep now! Don’t trouble yourself with all these thinking, there’s still a long way to go before we can go home! But I promise you, that I will host the wedding of you and Lena. Therefore, listen to my order now, and go to sleep immediately! We have to hurry on our way tomorrow!”

Touched, tears filled the young soldier’s eyes. He quickly shut them tight to prevent the tears from flowing out, but almost immediately he opened them again.

”Division commander, let’s change our sleeping position. Cold wind enters from the slid underneath the door! It’s not good for you to sleep there…”

”Don’t be so long-winded! Go to sleep now!” Murat impatiently rolled over to one side, and pulled the blanket tighter around himself. Anyway, he was glad to discover his own niece has chosen a good husband for herself.

Young soldier blinked his eyes, and was lost for words as he stared into his division commander’s cold back.

The snow hasn’t stopped falling outside of the window, and glass windows were covered with beautifully designed frost. During that time, glass was hard to come by, and was often utilised by the rich as a symbol to show off their wealth and status. Most often than not one could predict the host’s financial situation by simply judging the windows of their residences. Practical rich people normally made use of glass to build their windows instead of those shabby blinds.

Oscar sat in front of his desk in the room. He adjusted the kindling rope of the oil lamp, and then checked again at the concentration of the writing ink. His Highness spread out a piece of clean white paper, tried out the tip of the writing brush, before he finally began on his mandatory weekly task.

”Dear Sasha.”

”Have you accustomed yourself with the life in Swan Hill Castle? How’s everyone else doing? I hope Alanis and her ridiculous friends will not come to harass you. Also, can you please stop strolling by the frozen lake again? How many times should I remind you of that? It’s too dangerous. What if there’s a massive ice hole on the lake, and you missed it… oh my God of Light! I don’t even dare to imagine that! You naughty little girl, I’m going to note down every one of your misbehaviors, and each of them is going to be returned with a spanking on the butt.”

”North is still the same as I’ve mentioned in my previous letter. However, it has started to snow again. The knights are not too optimistic as we might be stuck in the valley, but don’t you worry, I will not be so unfortunate to encounter with snowstorm.”

”I realised my knights are rather despondent these days. The sudden drop in temperature a few nights earlier has frozen more than twenty of our warhorses to death, and I’ve no idea how to comfort the knights when they cry at night. Perhaps… perhaps my decision was wrong from the start, to visit the North during winter is definitely not the best idea.”

”Come in!” Oscar shouted as he heard the faint knocking on the door.

”Your Highness, you’re still awake?” Kamille Rayen entered the room, on his hair and clothes were dusted with tiny snowflakes.

”I’m writing a letter. How are my knights doing?”

”They’re all asleep. It must be hard for them, having travelled more than hundreds kilometers in the past few days.”

”Are they all equipped with woollen blankets?”

”Yes, you can be rest assured. Division commander Murat and the rest of us distributed blankets to every group.”

”Alright then! You should also go to rest soon. The baron has prepared rooms for each of you.” Oscar returned his attention back at the letter.

”Um… Your Highness!”

”Is there anything else?” Oscar turned around, astounded.

”Division commander Murat is spending the night together with the soldiers, so us regimental commanders should not be under the comfort of our quilts too…”

”Okay, you can do as you wish!”

”Please rest earlier, Your Highness.”

Oscar waved his hands to dismiss the paladin. As soon as the door was closed, young prince rubbed at his hands and took another sip of the cold tea, before returning to his writing.

”My beloved Sasha, please don’t worry about your brother, as I’m doing just fine over here. The only thing that devastates me is how much I miss you. It’s still tough for me to accept the fact that we’re so far apart from each other. Four hundred kilometers! Anyway, it was a journey that I’ve chosen for myself, and I’m grateful that my decision was supported by blessings from father, the family, and most importantly you. No matter how much danger and perils I might encounter I will continue this journey without complaint or regret.”

”Sasha, you know what? Recently. my knight caught a small animal called a snow badger that has incredibly soft white fur. Shamelessly I took the animal from the knight using my power, but although I felt embarrassed fortunately the knight wasn’t too bothered. I would like to send this fur to you along with this letter, so you can wear it as a muffler in order to keep your respiratory tract warm when you go out.”

”Sasha, I miss you all the time. When I march, when I chew on the cold bread as hard as ice, when I repair the carriages with the knights, when I get up in the morning, when I watch the sun sets, when I sleep, when I dream, and also when I wake up from my dreams with a start. In short, I miss you all the time.”

”Oh yes! Suddenly I was reminded of Annie. She has had a history of lung infection, so she definitely can’t stand winter in Dulin. Make sure you watch after our Lady Countess, please put on this snow badger muffler around her neck if she intends to go out. I would let my scouts be more alert in catching a glimpse of this small animal. If we’re fortunate enough, it shouldn’t be hard to capture another one. However, perhaps Annie has to wait a while, as according to the locals, snow badger is scarce and quite hard to come by, but I’m convinced that a silly badger with shiny fur would soon run itself into my arms. By then... you and Annie will both become a pair of cute baby badgers. I’m looking forward to seeing you wear the muffler.”

”Sasha, my dear, is it okay if I stop now? To be honest, I’m now battling with my eyelids as they stubbornly want to force themselves close. I need to rest now. According to the schedule planned, we were to travel a journey of sixty kilometers tomorrow in order to arrive at Grizzly Castle by this weekend. Send Alanis my regards if you bump into her, but don’t mention anything about the muffler, as I’m not planning to prepare one for her. Besides, extend my regards to Annie, tell her that I still worry about her. Also talk to my secret agent, hopefully he can withstand the loneliness. Not to forget small Godot, I’ve heard the news about his wife’s pregnancy, is that true? Sasha, you should invite the family over to Swan Hill Castle and let the servants serve them. As for the rest, you can pass along my regards to them.”

”And so… goodnight, my darling. Love and kisses.”

”Your dear brother, O’Neil Andrew Morisette, night of year 797, 17th day of 1st month, signed off in Kudra Town of Zolas Province.”

Oscar moved the letter closer to the oil lamp to fasten the drying process of the wet ink. Then, he carefully folded the letter and put them away in the envelope. He meticulously licked on the side of the enveloped before pressing on them hardly. Lastly, he removed a small sachet from his arms and revealed his personal official seal from within.

His Highness searched through every nook and cranny of the mayor’s residence to finally locate a red sealing wax. As the fire burned slowly, the melted red wax dropped on the opening of the envelope. Before the it cooled down to hardened again, Oscar hurriedly pressed on it his official seal. Without any hesitation, he then kept the red wax into the tiny sachet, as he was certain he would need it again in the future.

”Ola! I’m finally done!” Oscar shouted while stretching his arms in the air. He plopped himself down in the bed. Within seconds, his loud snores were heard by everyone in the residence.

The heavy snowfall finally stopped when the night was still dark. As the knight on duty sounded the bugle to signal the arrival of the sun, the whole town shook to rise as if an earthquake passed.

Well-dressed knights flocked out from each house like swarm of bees. In a fast but orderly pace, they gathered in front of their respective houses on a squad-unit basis. Each platoon captain shouted the familiar words of command, and began announcing the morning task when their members were in line.

Followed by the bugle call and the noise of brisk activities of the knights, residents of the town also arose from their dreams. Normally they wouldn’t wake up so early during winter, however it wasn’t often that the town was visited by an Imperial Highness Prince and Narcissus Knights. Early in the morning the residents lighted fire for cooking, they didn’t mind entertaining these heroes with their own winter supplies.

The most excited group of people were definitely the children of the town. They gathered silently to watch the knights arrange and sharpen those frightening long swords. When they got bored, they would suddenly disperse to find another group of more mighty soldiers equipped with more enormous weapons.

Murat thought of a thorny problem as he looked at the smoke rising from the chimneys of every household. The residents’ winter supplies would not be enough to last themselves for the winter if they were to share it with a troop of 3,000 soldiers. He promptly asked for his own messenger and ordered him to bring a platoon of knights to go from house to house, in order to remind the residents to only prepare breakfast for their respective households. The Narcissus Knights have their own cooking camp. They used only the water from their wells, and would not even receive a gram of flour from the town residents.

The chefs of Red Tiger were as occupied as usual. The head chef was a captain named Arden, who was brought in by Battle Commander Colonel Kamille Rayen from the original unit. Every Red Tiger knight adored the head chef who was excellent in both fighting and cooking. They addressed the man affectionately by the names ”Head” or ”Big Brother Arden.”

”Big Brother Arden, the sausages from today’s breakfast were magnificent!””Big Brother Arden, what’s wrong with this fried egg? It tastes exactly the same as the way my mother cooks it!””Big Brother Arden, are you married yet? I have two elder sisters and three younger ones.”

Arden moved his pans around the kitchen impatiently. ”Chatter heads, stop nagging please! If sausages and fried eggs are not enough to keep you all shut, then starting from today your meals would just be tomato soup and white bread!”

”NO...” The knights protested in the streets. However, judging from their silly faces it was clear that they didn’t take Arden’s threat seriously at all.

In the more secluded areas of the small town, groups of soldiers were being kept in the people’s courtyard. The knights struggled hard to remove the potatoes and toasted bread that the enthusiastic northerners kept cramming into their backpacks. Finally, the highly disciplined Red Tiger prevailed. The mayor had to come forward and persuade for the whole morning before the residents finally stopped doing these futile actions. However, that left the people with regrets. Narcissus Knights were not like those Imperial Army ruffians, who rushed forward at the sight of a potato, or the bandits who kill men and set people’s house on fires. Narcissus Knights were the guardians of Holy Land of the West assigned by the God of Light, they deserved only the most beautiful things in life.

Eventually, the people returned to their house. Looking at the barley soup left untouched on the tables, countless hosts appeared disappointed like children who didn’t receive gifts on the Holy Day of God.

”Excuse me! Excuse me please!” A platoon of knights rushed their way forward to the main street of the small town.

All the knights out in the street gathered around, ”Hey! Everyone! The scouts are back!””Brothers, how are the paths in front?””Yes, tell us more!””Isn’t it mountainous in front? Can we pass through them?”

The crowd became bigger and the scouting knights had no choice but to jump off the horses.

The young captain walked slowly while simultaneously explaining his discoveries to his comrades, ”I’m not optimistic about it! The sky is still cloudy, and the mountainous area is definitely still snowing! The path in front is not an easy one, we can hardly identify the roadbed. I’ve also encountered a couple of experienced hunters, and they advised me to be careful of the bandits in the mountains!”

”Division commander!” The young captain was startled when he saw the officer who came his way.

”Alright, I’ve heard it all! Seemed like you did a great job!” Murat passed over a pot of hot tea toward his knights who were covered with snowflakes. ”This is for you and your soldiers. Warm your stomach, so you wouldn’t get uncomfortable later at breakfast.”

The young captain remained silent. He only performed the most immaculate and precise salute to the commander.

”So, do you have any suggestion on how we should start our journey?”

The young captain who only just took one sip of the hot tea immediately stood to attention.

”Report to division commander, I think we should start our journey as soon as possible. If so, we should have sufficient time to search for an appropriate place to stay in the mountains. Otherwise, if we can’t find a place that can shelter us from the strong wind, I’m afraid some of us would freeze to death tonight! The mountains are not the same as flat plains. As for the bandits mentioned by the hunters, I don’t think they are bold enough to pick trouble with us.”

Murat nodded slightly and turned his head around, ”Hurry up and settle your breakfast! We might as well depart now!”

The knights dispersed like the crowd of small children. Most of them haven’t even had breakfast. There were still so much equipment to be put in order!

Oscar exited the mayor’s house, and jumped on his Raytheon. His Imperial Highness Prince declined politely the mayor’s invitation to breakfast. Although it was such a pity to have missed the sumptuous breakfast, but Murat already ordered such a command! Oscar was part of the troop, he must also comply with the discipline and regard Murat’s order with seriousness, even though he himself was the highest commander of the entire troop.

”Set out!” Under the command of the young man, the bugler sounded the hurried call of departure. A reorganized cavalry consisting of 3,000 soldiers began to move. First was the platoon, then the company, followed by the group, and lastly the whole troop. The red cape of the soldiers fluttered as the northern wind blew. Watching from afar, the troop of cavalry moving forward resembled a flowing blood vein, which beat rhythmically under the violent calls of the northwest wind.

Standing behind the mayor was all of the residents of Kudra Town, included men and women, old and young. If it wasn’t for Murat’s order for a platoon to stand guard at the entrance of the town, these enthusiastic northerners would definitely send the Red Tigers off as far until a few kilometers away from the town.

As expected, snow began to fall once Red Tigers entered the mountains. However, Oscar and his knights were already accustomed to the cold.

”Your Highness!” Murat dashed forward to the prince who was at the front of the line.

”What’s the matter?” With much difficulty, Oscar turned his head back in the falling snow.

”There’s a sword fighter in Battle Group names Kirk Dexton, and I wish to arrange him… transferred him to your… to your…”

Oscar raised his brows in confusion, ”Murat! Speak your mind clearly and properly!”

”No! I’ve said nothing at all!” Murat who rode on the horse shook his head firmly.

He thought about it for a second, and smiled to himself. ”Kirk is a good fella, he might despise me as his Division Commander if I really transferred him to somewhere relatively safer.”

The path vanished without trace, and Red Tiger began to search their way in the snowy white landscape.