You will reap what you sow (2)
There was a huge canyon that seemed to rise from the ground.
The edge of the canyon, which was as sharp as an awl, seemed to pierce the sky, and its steeply slanted shape made it look like it was about to plunge into the wasteland at any moment.
“That’s it.”
A wasteland filled with dry dust.
Peter lowered the cloth covering his mouth and quietly looked at the canyon blocking his path.
Through my narrowed eyes, there was a large city gate visible in the distance.
“That’s the Holland Gate that I’ve only heard about. father.”
“okay.”
Peter quietly nodded his head at the words of his son who quietly approached him.
As Rutger said, the gate that stood as if blocking a narrow canyon was the Olympian Gate, one of the proud gateways of the West.
The natural fortress, so famous that it was known even to the north, where there was little exchange, was located inside the canyon and completely blocked the road to the west.
“It is indeed the western wall, and as I heard, it does not seem to be easily breached.”
Rutger looked at the Holland Gate in front of him, blocking the sunlight with his palm.
It is said that the narrow, winding canyon that resembles a snake passing through it was once a place where a river passed through.
Perhaps at that time, the place where they were standing now would not have been a dry wasteland, but one of the great rivers.
“The advance… let’s stop here.”
When Peter gave the order, thousands of soldiers who had reached the entrance of the canyon stopped in an orderly manner.
It was exactly the point where you could see the soldiers lounging on top of the gate in the distance.
“I think it will be enough here.”
After giving the command, Peter raised his head and looked at the entrance of the canyon they had entered.
Although it wasn’t as good as the gateway in front of us, it was also narrow and rough.
The terrain seemed like it could fulfill its role, even if it was a clumsy fortress, if it were built at all.
“What about the Allied forces?”
“They say it’s coming down two days away. “Count.”
“good night.”
After hearing advisor Ragmus’ report, Peter looked towards the Olympus Gate.
Just as I heard, the western gate looks like it will not allow any intrusion.
“…Just put the lid on and this war will be over.”
However, the narrow and deep path may not only apply to those who want to enter.
Those who wanted to get out also had to go through the gap, so the disadvantages created by nature would be equal for everyone.
“We will wait here until the Allied forces arrive.”
“All right.”
At Peter’s command, thousands of Bayezid’s troops began to camp within the mouth of the canyon.
However, the western forces in front of them could only watch the scene and had no intention of moving forward.
“Let’s end this war here.”
The executives around him nodded at Peter’s quiet words.
It started with Gaidar, but it ends with Bayezid.
By blocking the Holmvar Gorge, the gateway to the West.
The Northern Allied forces, who were still coming down from behind, were coming to set up a fort at the entrance to the canyon according to Steelworker’s instructions.
From now on, the newly built fortress was scheduled to become the southernmost outpost of the Northern Allied Forces, which would block the west and target the center at the same time.
※※※※
Shoara on a sunny afternoon.
The light coming through the window was warm, but Goat, who was facing it, just broke into a cold sweat.
“……okay. Goth. Welcome back to Shoara.”
Is it because I turn away from the sunlight, or is it because the shadows in my eyes have become darker since I couldn’t see them?
Josef’s face looked dark as he looked at Goth.
“Thank you persimmon.”
Fang- Fang-
But there was something more difficult for Goth to handle than Josef’s dark face or Xayar’s murderous gaze.
“Isn’t this a knot?”
“…….”
The sound of Vlad’s rope coming from the side.
The squire’s fault was the knight’s fault, and as a result, Vlad, who had been dragged in without knowing why, was quietly tying the knot by his side.
The rope, which was thick enough to support an adult man, was gradually turning into an ominous knot at Vlad’s fingertips.
It’s like something you would use on a gallows…
“Okay. “We’ll decide whether we’re right or wrong later.”
Got, who had been distracted by the rope for a moment, tried to gather his mind and decided to focus on Josef’s words.
Although he was famous and insignificant, he was the one who insulted the count’s son-in-law, and the punishment for him was to be given by Josef in front of him.
“I heard it came from the central region. “I’d like to hear stories about that place.”
“yes! All right!”
Josef’s eyes began to scan Goth’s movements.
Her cheeks were sunken and her clothes were torn and dirty here and there.
Just a quick glance showed that the journey so far had not been easy.
“I parted ways with Lord Vlad a few months ago in the city of Marsina…”
The memories begin from Goth’s hometown.
Goth, who urgently took refuge after the battle with Collin the wild boar, eventually broke up with Vlad because he could not ignore his family.
“Marsina would be a city with its own foundation.”
“That’s right. “It was definitely like that.”
As Josef said, the city of Marsina was a nice place.
Even though war was on the horizon, it was a city that could not be expected to be easily taken over, so Goth was planning to leave for Shoara again as long as he could secure his family’s safety with the money he received from Vlad.
“The central region is not in chaos right now. As if they had been waiting for this moment, there was war everywhere and looting by bandits…”
But in the end, Goth was unable to find a safe land to put his family down.
Goth and his family, who managed to escape the city just before Marsina fell, wandered around several nearby cities, but all they encountered was the fire of war that had begun to spread everywhere.
“Is it that serious?”
“Don’t even talk. Territory wars are taking place everywhere in the central region, to the point where cities that are not on fire are rare.”
Thinking about that time, Goth’s expression began to turn pale, as if he was sick of it.
How dare he bring his old mother all the way to the northern city of Shoara.
Josef could not believe it deeply, but he knew that Goth was a person who would not do anything foolish, so he just nodded quietly.
“Right.”
Although there were telegrams sent by crows, they belonged to Bayezid’s father, Bayezid’s owner, and Josef could only obtain fragmentary information.
Meanwhile, after listening to the vivid testimony of an experienced person, Josef was able to recognize that the situation in the central region was much more serious than he had expected.
“Take a break and come back here later in the evening. “I need to mark the path you took on the map in detail.”
“All right. Josef!”
According to Gott’s words, the central control that had been creaking even before the emperor’s death seemed to have finally collapsed.
Then, now that the emperor is dead, things will start to shake even more.
Since they were proposing an emperor with very weak legitimacy, there would be no good news for the nobles who had been holding their breath.
“Of course, you will have to get an apology from Miss Charles first before coming to me. “Vlad?”
“……All right.”
Vlad stood up at Josef’s command, clicked his tongue, and began to untie the knot.
Goth, who saw that, was relieved that he had survived, but did not see Vlad tying a knot in a different shape.
At first glance, the knot with the blunt end looked like a whip.
※※※※
“Uuuu……”
“Stop being so harsh.”
Vlad frowned when he saw Goth struggling towards his back that he couldn’t reach.
“Don’t you think you have to have marks like that to look at it?”
“That’s true, but…”
There were several sharp scratches etched across Goth’s clothes.
Josef lightly told Charles to get an apology, but it was only natural that the process would not be smooth.
“No, just looking at him, he was a flawless stable keeper.”
“Shall we change the knot?”
“…Why were you doing that? “Why on earth?”
Even the quick-witted Goth couldn’t tell from Charles’ appearance that he was a girl, let alone a nobleman.
This may be because the girl’s eyes were full of venom.
“They said the nanny was crying and making a fuss. So, when you go there, lie down like you’re dead.”
“……okay. Leader.”
After hearing Goth’s dejected answer, Vlad scratched his head and thought of Charles’ nanny, Martha.
Even when she was pierced by an arrow, she was a woman who protected Charles rather than herself.
Although she did it out of ignorance, what Goth did was clearly an act of insult to nobility, so her anger will probably not be eased easily.
“How many more hits should I give?”
“…Is that so?”
As Vlad looked at Goth’s back and pondered whether a wound of this magnitude would be enough to calm her anger, he began to hear the sounds of soldiers murmuring from outside.
“what? “What happened?”
“Mind your own business.”
“No, it looks like everyone is running in.”
When Goth shrugged his shoulders and nodded to look over there, Vlad stuck his head out the window.
As expected, as Goth said, the guards were running into the city hall.
A person who rides a horse in a hurry. A person who jumps in a hurry.
However, one thing they all had in common was that they looked very embarrassed.
“what?”
By now, all the guards would be patrolling the city.
The fact that they are flocking to City Hall means that there is an incident that needs to be reported urgently.
“hey.”
“yes? Yes, Vlad!”
The guard who had been running down the hallway recognized Vlad and hurriedly saluted him.
“What’s going on?”
“That’s it!”
Although he was out of breath, he seemed to be feeling better.
Because the only knight who could move in this city right now was Vlad.
“A suspicious ship is approaching up the river right now!”
“Suspicious ship?”
Although he was saying it was a suspicious ship, it was a guard with his arms wide open.
“Is it really big?”
“yes!”
A very large suspicious ship sailing up the river.
In front of the gasping guard, the knight and squire began to face each other.
※※※※
What is that!
I’ve never seen a ship like that in my life!
Shoara’s guards were pushing back the people who were beginning to flock to the dock.
However, there was nothing that could be done about the crowd of back alleys that were already there.
“boss!”
“…What is that?”
Captain Hoover, the boss of the back alley, was watching a boat coming up the river from the highest point of his building.
It was a sight that even he, who had been wandering on the sea for decades, could not help but open his mouth wide.
“How did it get up here?”
The experienced Hoover knew.
A ship of that size could never sail up the river.
The river of Shoara was wide, but the water was shallow, so if the boat were that big, the bottom of the boat would have touched the river bottom.
Considering the fact that the two ships that were captured during the Nassau expedition are still anchored in the sea, the sight you see now is absolutely impossible.
“Watermill?”
However, Hoover could not help but open his mouth wide as he watched the ship gradually reveal its majesty.
There was a ship there that even the old captain, who had been sailing the seas for a long time, had never seen before.
“We are not suspicious people! Put away your spear!”
Contrary to what the man who was shouting on the deck said, the ship that appeared in front of the people was clearly a suspicious ship.
An unidentified ship that has its sails folded but is moving.
On both sides of that strange ship, watermills were constantly pushing the current.
“Lord of humans. Call Josef Bayezid! We have come here to Shoara to answer his letter!”
The voice of a small but sturdy man was echoing throughout the docks of Shoara.
A high-pitched voice, as if a horn had been attached to one’s throat, began to echo across the docks of Shoara.
“Without Josef Bayezid! “Please also call the human knight Vlad!”
Vlad, who had just arrived at the dock, widened his eyes when a man he had never seen before found him.
“what. “Does the captain know someone?”
“That… doesn’t seem to be a person?”
In response to Goth’s question, Vlad narrowed his eyes and looked into the distance, soon starting to see a flag waving on a ship.
The flag had a completely different shape engraved on it than any emblem I had ever seen.
“We are from the Dwarven Liberation Front!”
A pattern that looks like a hammer hitting an anvil.
It was the flag of the Dwarven Liberation Front, Nidavellir.
