Chapter 76, the Local Caravan Falling Behind
Kil ordered a dinner at the campfire in the middle of the military camp outside, and then returned to Knight Crow's camp.
The two personal guards of Knight Crow greeted him friendly and asked about the incident and result.
"Oh, there are some ups and downs. I thought it was just an ordinary murder, but I didn't expect that there were thieves from the Southern Thieves Guild behind it."
As he spoke, Keir patted his horses and used the brush on his car to brush the hair along the backs of the two horses.
"The murderer was the apprentice of the thief. He was lawless. In the end, he persuaded the local lord to send troops to wipe out the gang controlled by the thief, and then he was caught."
He briefly spoke to the two guards and told them that if they wanted to know the details, they could go to Kayan and Zambirus among their town guards.
After finishing speaking, Kil dragged his own tent, which had not been used for several days, from his carriage, stood it up with a clank, and then took advantage of the time before going to bed to practice for a while and then rest.
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The next day, as usual, the army bypassed the neighboring villages and towns and continued to move southeast along the trade road.
According to Knight Crow, they will take the nearest road into the southern province on this trip, and this trade road is the main road connecting the two places.
However, due to the influence of the local environment, the roads in the western provinces are not as clear as those in the northwestern provinces. With the occasional rainfall in the spring, the weeds and shrubs on the ground grow wildly. If it were not for the presence of lighting and guiding stone pillars to guide business travelers, the vast and gentle road would be There was no way to find the path on the grass.
Although the local chambers of commerce and caravans are very familiar with the local area, they are afraid of their army coming from afar and will not join the army's accompanying chambers of commerce to provide information, experience, guides and other assistance to the army.
Not to mention providing logistical support to the military, don’t even think about it.
Even so, many caravans still followed the army for an hour's walk, clearly using the power of the army to avoid troubles such as horse bandits in the wilds of the western provinces.
In response, at noon, Kiel was called by Knight Crow.
"Kiel, mount your horse, put on your armor, and when we set up camp tonight, follow me to the back to negotiate." Knight Crow ordered.
At dusk in the evening, the sky was full of clouds, and the clouds were very low. It looked like it would rain at any time, but I couldn't tell when it would, because this situation had been like that since yesterday.
Knight Rumi chose the location to camp tonight on the gentle slope on the west side of the village next to the trade road to prevent rain in the middle of the night and let the soldiers' tents soak in the rain.
Kiel, on the other hand, rode on horseback and wore armor, followed the Crow knights, and led three small groups of militiamen toward the local caravan that fell behind the Kendall army not far away.
When passing by his own military caravan, Kil waved to the red-haired Chamber of Commerce carriage looking over. The merchant Ouluobi, who was packing the goods on the carriage, saw Kiel and Knight Crow. He also saluted the knights first, and then waved hello to Kiel.
After Knight Crow saw it, he thought about it and said to Keir: "Is it the chamber of commerce that died before?"
"Oh, yes, the guy waving is named Puss-Oluobi, I know him." Kil looked at the knight riding a tall war horse in front of him and returned.
Nodding, Knight Crow ordered: "Then call him and negotiate with the local businessmen later, maybe it will work."
In response, Keir turned the horse's head, knocked the horse's belly, and let the horse run towards the military chamber of commerce.
Seeing Kil coming after waving, Ouluobi climbed down from the carriage of the Chamber of Commerce, handed the things in his hands to the guys from the Chamber of Commerce, and walked over to meet Kil.
After the two got closer, he spoke first: "Thank you again, Kil. Thank you and others for helping us."
"That's right. Orobi, Lord Knight Crow is going to negotiate with the local caravan that fell behind us. Come and help us, let's go and take a look together."
Ouluobi turned to look at the knights and thirty militiamen who had stopped to wait for the two of them. After rubbing his hands, a smile appeared on his face: "Okay, it should be, it should be. Let's leave now."
He said hello to the people from their chamber of commerce, and then he was pulled by Kiel and put on the horse behind Kiel.
Horses originally have a small area behind the saddle for carrying supplies, and it is not impossible to carry one person for a short period of time.
Compared with the saddle, it will be much bumpier. After all, the position of the saddle is in the middle of the horse's body, and the position where Oluo Bi is sitting astride the horse's two hind legs is below.
Kil rode back to the team, and Orobi was the first to greet Knight Crow.
"Your Excellency, the brave knight Dodel Crow, your subject Pus Ouluo will send you greetings, and the Red-haired Chamber of Commerce will also send greetings to you. May your bravery grow like the wealth of Bingshuguan year after year."
Ouluobi always said good things when he spoke, but Knight Crow had seen many such merchants and was not curious about the red-haired chamber of commerce, which was neither big nor small. He just turned his helmet and nodded.
Seeing that the knight didn't pay much attention to him, Orobi didn't dare to disturb him anymore. He talked quietly with Kil and asked about the specific details of their trip.
In fact, it's nothing. They just negotiate with the caravan that has been following their army. Either get away and don't take advantage of the army; or join the army's caravan and sign a contract. The army will provide security guarantees, while the caravan will Providing supplies to support the army during the march.
In this way, Baron Kendall did not have to spend much cash, which was enough to sustain the supply and loss of the entire army.
Because Kendall's army is composed of Kendall's militia, even before a formal battle occurs, Baron Kendall does not need to pay the militia much, as long as they provide above-average food.
And like the previous battles on the march, after each battle, the logistics clerk distributed a small but not large amount of monetary rewards to the militia teams participating in the battle.
This is one of the reasons why militia teams actively participate in every battle.
For the militiamen, although they participated in the lord's southern expedition this year, they missed most of their family's farming work this year. But compared with the harvest of spoils after participating in the war, the harvest from farming is much less.
The citizens all know this clearly. Even though you may die in war, you may also die from accidents and diseases. In comparison, it is more cost-effective to join the army and fight. After all, the militiamen have all participated in the winter militia training organized by Crow Knights in previous years. Emotionally and experientially, they have great confidence in Crow Knights, Rumi Knights and others.
They felt that under the leadership of a knight with such powerful abilities, they could escape unscathed no matter what.
-
The local caravan that fell behind the Kendall army and the accompanying caravan was not too far away from where they camped tonight.
They did not dare to get too close to this elite army from the north of the kingdom, but they also did not dare to stray too far, so they found a place to camp at the other end of the village.
When Knight Crow got closer, he felt that it was a mistake to come here at night.
Because as far as he could see, compared to the size of what he saw from a distance during the day, there were at least half as many carriages camped here to spend the night together.
He frowned and muttered: "Why are there so few people? I remember that there were at least twenty carriages?"
Kil looked over, and with the last light of the cloudy sky and the firelight in the caravan camp, Kil also noticed that there were only eleven or two carriages in the camp at this time.
And unlike the chaos seen during the day, these carriages were divided into several groups at intervals, apparently composed of several larger caravans.
However, Ouluo Bi could see where the problem was at a glance. He hesitated and coughed lightly: "Lord Crow?"
"What's wrong?" Knight Crow turned his head to look at the businessman this time.
Seeing that the businessman had something to say, he spread his palms and said, "If you have anything to say, just say it. What do you know?"
Seeing the knight asking the question, Ouluobi immediately replied: "Sir, if I read correctly, the carriages here are composed of several larger caravans. The other merchants you are wondering about are all composed of one or two trucks. Small merchants and small caravans. They don’t dare to spend the night outside the village or town, let alone camp halfway.”
The businessman turned around and pointed to the village not far away on the trade road: "Those people should have entered the village. On the one hand, they can spend the night safely, and on the other hand, they can do some business or make supplies."
The knight raised his head after hearing this: "I see. I came at the wrong time. I should have looked for them at noon. But they have already come, so that's it." After the knight finished speaking, he said to everyone in the team: "Light the torch and form a formation. Expand and follow me.”
It was cloudy again at dusk, and the sky was dark, but not enough to light a torch, so when they came here just now, they walked over normally.
When the knight gave the order, three groups of militiamen lit up six torches for lighting. Before coming here, the captain and deputy captain of the militia team had withdrawn it from the logistics department.
Naturally, there is no need for torches for lighting in the camp, they are only needed for missions at night.
-
And when the torches on Kiel's side were lit, the small caravan camp not far away noticed Kiel and his group.
The armed guards protecting the caravan were frightened, and immediately there was the sound of swords being unsheathed. The stewards, merchants and guys in the caravan were in a mess. Some people ran to the carriage, some slipped under the carriage; some picked up burning sticks and swords, and some went directly to the half in the distance. The man slipped away into the grass.
However, when Kiel and the others got a little closer and saw clearly the size of the visitor and the neat equipment, everyone in the caravan camp breathed a sigh of relief.
At least not a bold horse bandit.
"That's right. There is an entire army right next to us. No horse bandits will be foolish enough to attack us and risk their lives."
A merchant who was leading the caravan was relieved and immediately shouted for everyone to come back and not to embarrass the merchants of their western provinces. I had made it clear before that the army heading south was a passing army from the northwest province of the kingdom, and they could not lose face in front of the people from the provinces.
It's actually been lost.
The messy caravan camp quickly came to order. The armed guards who were originally preparing to fight put away their shields and swords and threw their spears. They didn't care about anything else and gathered around the campfire to wait for dinner. If they were not horse bandits but an army, then As guards, they have no additional protection responsibilities.
Besides, they don't have the ability to provoke the army.
Seeing that the hired guards ignored him, the merchant who was in charge of the caravan cursed in a low voice and immediately discussed with the other two caravan stewards the purpose of the army's arrival.
"What are they doing here? Coming here so late." said a caravan steward.
"I guess they are here to drive us away. After all, if it were me, of course I would be wary of outsiders who follow me from afar and then drive them away." Another person expressed his opinion.
The last person was more experienced. After some thought, he guessed: "Perhaps it is absorbed into their own caravan? After all, there is another group of caravans following this army in front. I think this possibility is very high, you two What do you think?"
"I followed them when there was an advantage to be taken. Otherwise, judging from the direction of this army, they were heading towards the southern province. That ghost place is not an easy place to do business at this time. It would be no good if we followed them there. Result." The businessman with a machete at his waist crossed his arms and shook his head.
The other two people naturally knew what this man meant. Ever since conflicts and frictions broke out between the border areas of the southern province and neighboring countries, chaos spread from the border. Not to mention that last year we suffered a defeat with the neighboring army, which had an even greater negative impact.
Even if some bold businessmen can make a fortune from the chaos in the southern provinces, for some large-scale chambers of commerce, it is enough to make money safely and steadily, and there is no need to get involved. Losing money is a trivial matter, but losing one's life is the end.
"Then let's listen first and see what they are going to do. But everyone has agreed not to get involved too deeply. The water is too deep and we can't control it. After all, they are a strange army in the north. They will forget about the benefits when they see them. It’s possible for a dangerous businessman to swallow him whole.”
The three of them reached an agreement on this, nodded, and agreed together.
However, when they saw the strange knight riding a tall and strong horse at the front of the approaching team, they immediately forgot about everything else and rushed over to say compliments.
They all want to have a good relationship with the knight who has inhuman strength.
-
Knight Crow glanced at the situation in the camp, and then jumped off his horse.
Kil and Orobi also came down. The militiamen did not hear other orders from the knights, so they subconsciously lined up in a dense formation.
The soldiers of the strange army were arranged neatly and their equipment was consistent and well-equipped, which immediately caused the whole camp to murmur.
The armed guards immediately saw that the militiamen were carrying simple wooden crossbows on their backs, and knew that they could not handle an army equipped with such projectile weapons in batches.
So they huddled around the campfire even more, waiting for their meal.
The three caravan stewards also looked at each other, grinned ugly, and asked the knight's purpose while constantly complimenting him.
Knight Crow pressed the hilt of the sword on his waist, glanced at the three of them expressionlessly and said: "We are an army from Kendall County in the northwest province, and we are going to the border of the southern province of the kingdom to support the war there. Now we are crossing the border. It’s normal here, but why have you people been following the army at a distance these past two days?”
"Sir Knight, you may have misunderstood. We are all just doing business normally. The so-called following the army is just because this is the only trade route under our feet. It is all a misunderstanding."
A businessman in charge immediately defended himself.
"Really? Then why is the caravan, which is lighter and lighter, walking behind us even though it is faster than my army? Explain it!"
Another businessman immediately stepped forward to explain: "Sir, sir, please listen to my explanation. Neither you nor your army are locals. Naturally, you don't know that our western province has flat terrain and luxuriant vegetation. Compared with other places, farming is difficult." Farming is even more difficult. So many people rely on the convenient flat environment and rely on trade to make a living."
He asked for a map of the Western Province from his staff, pointed to the punctuation points and connecting dotted lines of towns and villages on it, and said: "Look, except for the provincial capital and the towns near the borders of other provinces, most of the Most villages and towns are located on several trade routes. Moreover, the location and distance of each village and town are determined by the Earl, in order to provide protection for the merchants trading on the trade routes, that is, us."
The map is made of soft cowhide. Although it is not large, the markings are extremely clear and clear. All villages, towns and cities in the entire western province are marked and numbered so that they do not take up space. Compare the serial number with the names of towns and villages on the back of the map to know the detailed names.
"Sir, if you look carefully, the distance between every village and town is basically the same. This is to allow us who are walking on the road to set out every morning and after a day of progress, we can have a place in the evening. Settlement. After all, unlike other places, our western province is so flat that people can build their settlements anywhere, so why not build them like this?"
What this person said was detailed and very reasonable. Although I don’t know if it is true, the other person’s reason is obviously very normal. After all, he walks the same distance every day. You said he was following your army. He said it was a coincidence. After all, he walks the same distance every day. You can only go so far.
No matter what, unless all the horses are moved and the trucks are not loaded with goods, they will naturally be able to cover more distances every day. But this kind of thing that has no economic significance can only be done like Kiel did before.
Knight Crow was not annoyed. Anyway, he just asked casually, and he didn't care whether the other party's answer made sense or not. Now, what interests him is the map of the Western Province in the hands of this businessman.
He chuckled and said, "Let me take a look at your map. The lighting here is not good. It's hard to see clearly from a distance."
The businessman felt something was wrong, but what the other party said was fine, so he came closer with the map in hand.
Kil curled his lips secretly, couldn't he see clearly? How is it possible? These knights have the same excellent eyesight as animals, no, they have the same excellent eyesight as animals. How can they not see the things on the map clearly?
Ah, no, he is also training as a knight now, eating monster meat every day and exercising his ability to control life energy. Such a curse includes himself.
However, what does Knight Crow mean by saying this?
When the businessman brought up the map of the Western Province, which was compiled and drawn by their chamber of commerce in most of the Western Province, Knight Crow reached out and grabbed the map.
"Hmm, let me take a closer look. Interesting, interesting." Knight Crow said, reaching out and patting Kil's shoulder. The steel on Kil's armor shoulder made a loud impact: "Kil, you are not drawing. Not bad, come on, find a piece of clean leather and copy down the content on it."
"Ah, ah?" Kil was stunned for a moment, but he still reacted.
He rubbed his nose with the fingers covered with steel armor on the back of his hand, feeling a little embarrassed: "Sir, I understand. But I don't have any suitable sheepskin on hand."
The knight raised his chin: "Isn't this a caravan? There must be blank sheepskin rolls or whole cowhide in the caravan. Just buy one now."