Chapter 573 Gwent

Slightly higher?

A little tougher?

Galio suppressed the urge to curse and spoke very quickly: "The price of bread has increased to three times the usual price, rice has increased three times, and the price of tools and ironware has increased five times."

"Yes, citizens with a small amount of wealth can still survive, but it's just a little more difficult. But the people at the bottom - stevedores like us can't even afford a loaf of bread with a day's salary."

Saman sighed softly: "That's a shame. I hope the church can take such responsibility."

With a sincere expression of regret on his face, he said to the unknown Coptic recruit: "It is the responsibility of the clergy to give alms to those who cannot afford to eat. But that is not mine. I am just a person from afar. Sasanian, small businessmen who work hard to contribute to the prosperity of this city.”

small businessman

Galio clenched his fists.

"Yes, only when your efforts are needed, you will depreciate yourself as a small businessman. But who doesn't know that you, Mr. Salman, are the uncrowned king of this city? Which industry or industry does not have people like you? "

"That's enough, Galio."

Hans coughed and scolded the angry young man. He looked at Mr. Saman opposite, who still had a calm expression, and said leisurely: "Sir, the Duke is kind."

"This is obvious, otherwise he could have demoted everyone into slaves when he attacked this city!

Then I will ask you for a large sum of money at the cost of freedom. This was the rightful power of the victor, but he relinquished it, for the sake of his Christian brothers, and to show the forbearance of God. "

"But this does not mean that the Duke is a weak target and can be bullied. If we can put down the sword, we can naturally pick it up again."

Saman's expression was very calm, but his mood was extremely bad: "No one will think that the Duke is weak and can be bullied. On the battlefield, he has already proven his reputation, but the operation of a city requires order, General Hans."

"If possible, I would like to meet and talk to an adult."

Saman still hopes to get a series of privileges.

Because the old privileges will obviously be revoked after the death of Governor Mahli.

This matter is not without discussion.

He was confident that he could reach an agreement with this greedy demon duke.

Hans nodded slightly:

"I will convey your request, but Master Salman, before that, you must give me your answer first. Is it to refuse the Duke's order, or to obey?"

Saman took a deep breath and nodded: "If you insist, I will do as you wish."

Hans said "Yes": "That's good. If there are difficulties, Mr. Saman, please try your best to overcome them, because they are your difficulties, not mine. Do you have anything else to say?"

Saman shook his head: "I will try my best to overcome all difficulties and give you a satisfactory explanation."

"That's good."

Hans sighed with pretense of regret: "I originally thought there would be another battle tonight, just to test the training level of these young guys."

Saman forced a smile on his face: "General Hans is joking. As a devout Christian, I absolutely dare not refuse the Duke's request. Before, I was just worried that I would miss the Duke due to my limited personal ability. event."

With Saman's expression of being too angry to speak out, Hans led a group of recruits out of the mansion.

As soon as they went out, everyone's faces showed uncontrollable smiles.

"Who would have thought that Mr. Saman, who used to be so arrogant in the past, would one day have to bow to us?"

"Gario, you were really good just now. I also wanted to question that old guy, but unfortunately my words are really bad."

Galio waved his hands quickly and said, "Now that I think about it, I'm still a little scared. That was Mr. Saman. In the past, even a dog he raised could kill me."

"yes."

For a moment, all the recruits couldn't help but sigh.

The arrival of the Crusaders, from this point of view, does not seem to be a bad thing.

…

Damietta.

In the bustling tavern, pilgrims and crusaders from all over the world were eagerly discussing the major events that had happened recently.

Duke Lothar made another victory and captured Semanud, the gateway to the west.

There are also rumors that the Knight of the Wild Hunt appeared in the world and killed the evil mage who desecrated the dead.

The combination of the two made Duke Lothar's march this time, which was not too outstanding compared to his past battles, been given a lot of legendary color for nothing.

The crusaders and knights under Richard have now become the darlings of the taverns in Damietta City. The crusaders who did not participate in this battle are happy to spend a drink to listen to the experiences of these people who have experienced it.

"Those dead cavalry tied their heads to war horses that were so rotten that only skeletons were left. The weapons in their hands were also made of white bones. They were accompanied by black mist when they ran. As long as they were swallowed by the black mist, no matter how brave the warrior was, they would not be able to survive. He will die immediately and not even a scum will be left."

"Fortunately, Duke Lothar showed up in time with his troops, otherwise all of us would have been dragged into purgatory by the pagan devils."

"But I heard that the one who defeated those headless horsemen was not the legendary Wild Hunt?"

"Yes, it was Wild Hunt, but Duke Lothar also contributed a lot. The former specifically dealt with the army of the dead summoned by the heretics, and the Duke defeated the heretics. This may be the will of the Heavenly Father."

"Yes, this must be the will of Heavenly Father, otherwise how could there be such a coincidence in this world?"

"Your Excellency the Duke can even command the Wild Hunt... but isn't that an army of the dead?"

"Stupid!"

A crusader from Northern Europe mocked with a loud voice: "The Wild Hunt is an army of heroes under the command of God Odin, specializing in fighting evil! Only the bravest warriors are qualified to be taken to Valhalla by Valkyries."

"What God Odin, Your Excellency the Duke is the Son of God, the Son of the Father, what does he have to do with pagan gods?"

"You know shit!"

"You know shit!"

"You are a Viking who has converted to Christianity but still clings to the old gods. You, a dirty soul, dare to come to this sacred place?"

For a while, the two sides started to curse each other, and they were about to fight in the street.

In the Franks' cognition, the Vikings were more barbaric than the Normans. Even if they had converted to Christianity, they were still full of the old gods. The Viking devils who plundered everywhere on longboats from time to time are still bedtime stories that many parents use to scare their children.

In fact, at the end of the 12th century, with the continuous increase in population, economy and military strength of European countries, the Vikings had already declined.

"Stop!"

"This is Damietta, the territory of Duke Lothar. The Duke strictly orders that private fights are prohibited!"

The city militia who maintain order came upon hearing the news and quickly pulled the two sides apart.

The two sides did not continue to entangle.

It's not that these city militias, which were organized by Lavinia and rushed into battle without much training, really have this ability.

But Lothar's reputation is well-known, and even the Crusaders on Richard's side are very convinced of Lothar.

In their view, Lothar is definitely a hero who saved their lives. After the war, he generously gave them most of the spoils. If they had not been loyal to Richard, they would have wanted to defect on the spot.

…

At this time, Richard, who didn't know that his men almost clashed with the Crusaders from the Vikings, was excitedly opening the book in front of him, called "The Demon Hunter".

The texture of the paper is very good, as white as snow. The cover depicts a white-haired middle-aged man wearing chain mail and carrying two swords. The details are very detailed, and the chain mail buckles and the beard on the man's face are clearly visible.

This extremely realistic painting style, which is very different from this era, makes Richard's eyes light up.

"This painting is really good."

Turning to the first page, the title is "Monster Encyclopedia", and the monster named "Water Ghost" is drawn on it. Every detail is vivid, and its habits and weaknesses are marked with boys below.

"I seem to understand why this book is so popular. Even if the content is average, the illustrations alone are worth collecting for every noble who comes to pilgrimage."

"It's a pity. Just looking at the name, you know that this is not a knight novel."

Knight novels of this era can be roughly divided into three categories. One is about the story of Alexander's period; one is about the story of Charlemagne in Gaul; and the other focuses on King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table.

The moralists criticized the novels for being heretical, believing that they were full of absurdities. But in fact, if real knights could be like those described in knight novels, the whole of Europe would become much more peaceful.

Captain Fuller of the Earl's Guard explained expressionlessly: "This book mainly tells the story of Van Helsing hunting monsters. Miss Martha said that although there are many fictional contents in it, there are also many places that are very accurate when talking about some monster habits."

Richard continued to flip through it, without looking up and asked: "I heard that this book has been popular in the Holy Land for a long time. The popular Gwent card is based on this book?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Fuller, go buy a few decks of cards, and let's try to play."

"Your Majesty, I have to remind you that this This kind of card comes from the property of Marquis Losa. Every gold coin we spend is the capital for Marquis Losa to recruit soldiers. "

Richard couldn't help laughing and said: "Fuller, you are really a petty guy. Although this marquis and I are competitors, our goals are the same, which is to recover the homeland of Christianity and expel pagans."

"The competition between us is fair and aboveboard. His temporary lead does not mean that he can really grab the greatest results of the Eastern Expedition. Do you think I will be defeated by Losa, who was born as a country noble? "

Fuller sighed.

This monarch is really not very competent.

He is both irritable and domineering, tyrannical and cruel, but he is also a fair and generous person. Fuller always feels that his master will suffer a big loss one day because of being too fair and aboveboard.

"Well, go ahead and buy it. I heard that this is a very brain-testing and enjoyable pastime. Anyway, we have to stay in Damietta for a long time. We can't just wait like this during this time, right?"

Richard stayed in Damietta to recruit soldiers. This job is obviously not something that can be completed in a short time.

Fuller said helplessly: "Your Majesty, you must want to buy this thing because of Lord Randall's invitation today, right?"

In his opinion, his own king is already not doing his job properly, and now he seems to have a tendency to get new bad habits, which makes him feel deeply powerless.

Richard's face froze.

"Well, I knew I couldn't hide it from you. That guy who only knows how to ask for flowers and ask willows and hang out with fireflies all day, dared to show me that expression because I don't know this thing - he actually laughed at me for being old-fashioned!"

Fuller said: "Lord Randall didn't say that."

"Yes, of course he didn't dare to say that, but his expression clearly said that!"

Richard slammed the table, furious: "He said that playing cards on the chessboard was a more civilized way of dueling for knights. The barbarians from Northern Europe he hired couldn't learn it at all - —That’s a fart. I have to show him that I can beat him even in just one night!”

(Note: Richard is a Norman, and his ancestors also belong to a branch of the Vikings)

Fuller sighed: "Okay, as you wish, Your Majesty. But I have to remind you that to collect a set of powerful enough cards, you need to spend a lot of gold coins. With our current poor economic situation, Even if you ask for it, I can only allow you to spend a maximum of three hundred Surides on this matter."

"Three hundred should be quite a lot."

Fuller hesitated for a moment, nodded and said, "It's indeed quite a lot."

Fuller knows Gwent very well, because now almost every tavern has a dedicated Gwent battle area. Every crusader who comes to the Holy Land can easily get in touch with it. Even if they don't play it in person, they can easily get it. Just by watching, you can understand the logic and inner story of the game.

"You hesitated!"

Richard raised his voice and said, "In other words, three hundred Sulades gold coins are not much. Good guy, I didn't expect that this toy created by Lothar would become a daily income for him." A wealth of money!"

Fuller smiled bitterly.

"Actually, it's not just in the Holy Land, Your Majesty. Even in the European countryside, this stuff has become popular in many places, but most of the cards they use are made by themselves."

Lothar has never been afraid of piracy of Gwent cards, because the Gwent cards he made, the paper used, and the printing technology are all unique to him. If others want to imitate similar ones, the cost will be high.

If it was a low-quality Gwent card, Lothar didn't need to care.

Medieval aristocrats attached great importance to the word "respect". Using such low-quality cards seemed to them to be too demeaning. Although the poor people didn't care about this - Lothar never intended to make money from the poor people with this thing. money.