It did not take long for the caravan to reach the village.
This village at the edge of the Forest of the Dead only had a population of two to three hundred people. Dozens of wooden houses were separated on both sides, leaving a wide road for the caravan to pass through.
Other than the direction towards the forest, the rest of the village was farmland. The villagers were farming. When they saw the caravan, they would raise their heads to take a look, but they were not surprised.
This village was like a small ant leaning against the green giant in the forest. It was not trampled to death by the giant, but survived.
The caravan stopped at the side of the road for a short rest and to see if they could replenish their food in this village.
Of course, these things did not need to be done by Padding, the leader of the knights. That was the work of the attendants.
Those who came to receive the caravan were the prestigious people in the village, as well as some diligent villagers who knew how to do business.
The old village chief came to Padding's side. His weather-beaten face was full of scars.
"Sir Knight, what can I do for you?" The village chief's stooped body appeared even smaller in front of Padding because of his respect.
"After replenishing our food, we will set off immediately and will not disturb your life." Padding said, "After the beginning of spring, how is the road condition in the Forest of the Dead?"
This village was at the edge of the forest.
In a village, generally speaking, the village chief was the most knowledgeable and had the most information.
That was why Padin had asked about it.
"A month ago, because of the continuous rain, the Forest of the Dead became difficult to enter and exit... Not to mention the small roads in the forest, even the main road into the forest became muddy."
The village chief said, "But now there is no downpour like a month ago. The occasional light rain does not affect the road condition.
The next heavy rain that will turn the road into a muddy waterway will probably only appear in summer.
Now is the best time to set off, Sir Knight. "
Padding raised his eyebrows.
There was no need for the village chief to say more. It was precisely because of the refreshing weather that the caravan set off at this time of the year.
"Are there any abnormal beasts howling in the forest?" He continued to ask.
There were naturally dangerous beasts in the Forest of the Dead. Padding was cautious by nature. He wanted to know if there were any abnormalities in the forest he was about to enter.
The village chief stroked the messy beard on his chin. "From the southern part of the forest to the central part of the west, we haven't seen any traces of magic beasts for a long time. We also haven't heard the terrifying roars of wild beasts.
Roughly counting, it had been five or six years of peace.
This way, we won't have to live in fear every day. "
Padding didn't know if this was good news or not. In such a large forest, half of the area was devoid of the cries of wild beasts.
That didn't sound like a good thing.
The village chief continued, "It has been like this since a few years ago. The southern part of the forest has quietened down, and the nearby villages are living better lives than before.
Thank you, Emperor … Thank you, God of Light. "The village chief drew a cross in front of his chest.
These words were meant for Padding, the nearby villagers, and even himself.
The emperor he spoke of was, of course, not the emperor of the Double Eagle Empire, but the emperor of the Crescent Empire.
Padding felt that the scene in front of him was a bit ridiculous. This old man was actually crossing himself to thank the pagan emperor?
Although he felt that it was ridiculous, the pagan emperor had never cared much about the beliefs of his people. He had never cruelly persecuted the believers of the God of Light. Compared to the Church of Light in the far west, he was particularly tolerant.
When Padding left the western part of the land that was covered by the gospel of the Church of Light, there was a witch hunt and a massacre of the pagans.
It seemed that all creatures that didn't believe in the God of Light were burned to ashes under the light of the God of Light. The ones who burned them to ashes were the believers, monks, and knights of the Church of Light.
Padding was far away at the eastern end of the Eurand Continent. He didn't know whether this crazy and fanatical thing had ended. Perhaps he could ask around when he reached the Weiss Republic.
While Padding and the village chief were talking, the sound of quarreling came from the carriages behind them. It seemed that there was a dispute.
Padin immediately rushed over, and Existence followed behind him. "What's going on?!" he shouted, stopping the quarreling parties.
Near the carriage carrying goods, three mercenaries wearing rough leather armor surrounded a young man. They looked unfriendly, and their hands were already touching the axes or swords at their waists.
One of the mercenaries' forehead was bleeding for some reason. He looked very angry.
The surrounded young man had a head of brown hair, which was messy like a hedgehog's head. He was wearing thin clothes that had been mended in many places, and the straw sandals on his feet were so rotten that his toes were exposed.
The young man's slightly immature face hadn't even grown any hair yet. He glared at the mercenaries who surrounded him.
He was still holding a small stone in his hand. It seemed that he was the culprit who had broken the mercenary's forehead.
"How dare this brat throw a stone at me!"
The mercenary whose forehead was smashed looked very angry. His hand was pressed on the handle of the axe at his waist, as if he was going to pull out the axe in the next second and chop the head of the detestable youth in front of him into two halves.
However, the commotion was so loud that the church knights came closer. The attendants and villagers who didn't have the ability to fight hid far away, leaving a large space.
"You bastards, how dare you touch the girls in the village!
If I had a sword, I would've stabbed you to death long ago!
You filthy, boorish, treacherous scum! "
The young man leaned against the carriage, facing the three fierce-looking mercenaries. He didn't panic at all, and even scolded them back.
"Despicable heretics, go back to the North!"
These mercenaries had obvious northerners, and it was easy to tell that they weren't the easternmost inhabitants of the Euran Continent. This made the villagers who were watching from afar even more afraid.
For these villagers, the fear that had lasted for generations didn't come from the Crescent Empire's rule, but from these mercenaries — the ancestors who came to plunder these so-called 'heretics' under the banner of the Holy War.
Hearing the young man's words, the approaching knights' faces became a little unfriendly. Although these people were no longer citizens of the Double Eagle Empire, they still believed in the same god as the villagers. Now, they were being harassed by mercenaries who were no different from bandits?
Led by Leon, the knights vaguely surrounded the three mercenaries.
When the three mercenaries saw that the knights had surrounded them, and Padding, the leader of the knights, was also attracted, they wanted to retreat. However, the other mercenaries gradually gathered around them, shouting and jeering, making it difficult for them to back down.
If they gave in now, their status in the mercenary group would drop by a lot.
Their boss, Gris, had never liked cowards.
At this time, the people who were involved in this dispute formed three circles, and a bloody conflict seemed inevitable.
Olga, who had been staying beside the noble lady Romuona's carriage, heard the commotion and hurried over. After asking a servant about the whole story, he quickly walked into the circle of mercenaries and stood in front of the young man.
"Back off, the Mullenin Family didn't hire you to be bandits and villains!"
Olga's angry roar made the three mercenaries angry. "That kid dared to throw a stone at me, so he has to pay the price!
Get out of my way, old man! "
One of the mercenaries had already drawn his sword halfway, and the mercenaries behind them were also shouting, afraid that the situation wasn't serious enough.
The knights also began to become nervous, their hands on the longswords at their waists and the shields beside them.
Seeing that the situation was going to develop in a bad direction, Padding took a deep breath and shouted, making everyone quiet down.
"Stop!"
His shout even shook the dust on the muddy road, deafening the servants and the villagers. They almost couldn't stand still. The village chief beside him was already sitting on the ground; the mercenaries were frozen and didn't dare to make a sound. Everyone looked at each other with fear on their faces; the knights and Olga were the least affected, with a relieved expression on their faces.
The young man who was blocked by Olga had to lean on the side of the carriage to prevent himself from falling to the ground. His eyes were shining as he looked at Padding who made everyone quiet down with just a shout.
"Amazing, really amazing." Someone clapped his hands and approached Padding from behind.
It was a huge man who was almost two meters tall, wearing leather armor made of animal skin, with a wolf-head shoulder guard on his right shoulder. He was bald, with green tattoos and scars on his face.
This huge man was the mercenary group's leader, Gris.
"You are indeed a Silver-ranked knight, Knight Edgar.
My boys have troubled you, I am very sorry. "He apologized, but there was no sincerity in his tone.
Padding helped the village chief who had fallen to the ground, comforted him a few words, told him not to worry, and then let him stand to the side.
Padding walked in front of Gris, his head only reaching Gris' chest.
He punched Gris' chest, "Take care of your men, this is not a place where you can do whatever you want.
If you are unlucky enough to encounter a New Moon Knight on patrol, your end will be very miserable. "
To the Crescent Empire, these pagans who believed in the God of Light were the empire's property, and no one was allowed to plunder them.
In the mountains in the west, the bandits might be able to survive, but on the plains, the frequent patrols of the New Moon Knights and swordsmen were the bandits' nightmare.
Padding's words were both a reminder and a warning.
Gris was punched by Padding, but his body was like a mountain, towering and unmoving.
"Of course, I will listen to your instructions, Edgar Knight."
When Gris said "Edgar Knight", he deliberately dragged out the syllables, making it sound like an unpleasant sad music.
Padding was unmoved.
He was in the prime of his life, and was not a person who could be impulsive over such a small matter.
Gris walked towards his mercenaries, shouting loudly for them to stand by in their original positions.
The mercenaries dispersed, and the knights also breathed a sigh of relief, putting down their hands that were on their weapons.
Just like that, a dispute was resolved.
Olga also let go of his right hand that was on the sword at his waist.
He turned his head and punched the boy's chest, "Before you want to be a hero, you should consider whether you have the ability to do so, boy." He didn't use any strength in his punch, only making the boy's body lean back slightly.
"If I can be like that person, can I be a hero?" The boy asked, of course, he was talking about Padding.
Olga showed a smile, "No, you are far from it.
You probably won't be able to catch up with that knight in your lifetime. "
A village boy and a Silver-ranked knight, the difference between them was like heaven and earth.
In the future, even if this young man met a kind-hearted warrior, he would at most be a Bronze-ranked warrior, similar to these mercenaries.
And if he was like these mercenaries, he might as well be a farmer. As long as there was no war or bad luck, his life would not be in danger.
But this boy seemed to be very good at finding trouble for himself, even if it was out of good intentions.
Olga didn't want to give this boy false hope, so his words were not polite at all.
People like him who might not leave the village in their lifetime, it was better to learn to accept reality and live a slick and humble life.
Today, he was lucky to meet good people like him and Padding.
If it wasn't them here today, what would have happened to this boy?
Death wasn't the worst thing, the worst thing was that the people around him would suffer the same fate. That was the most painful and regrettable thing.
At this time, the village chief had already come close, pointed at the boy's nose and scolded, "Julius, how dare you treat a guest like this!
If these old men get angry and let the whole village suffer the same fate as you, even ten lives won't be enough to make up for it! "The village chief was emotional, his face and ears were red, even his neck had turned red.
It wasn't strange that he was so angry, but if something like this happened again in the future, without these noble knights to help him out, then today's dispute would develop into an irreversible result.
The boy called Julius was not afraid of the village chief's scolding at all, he raised his head and retorted, "Stinky old man, if it wasn't for my help, your mean granddaughter would have been dragged away to be defiled!"
The village chief pointed at Julius, his hand trembling, but he couldn't say anything else. "You, you …"
Olga took a step forward and walked in between the village chief and Julius, separating the two. "Alright, this meaningless quarrel should end!"
He said to the village chief, "Village chief, go find your granddaughter, stay in your house and don't come out for the time being.
There won't be any serious or bad results from this matter, after we leave the village and enter the forest, we won't return here.
Those mercenaries, we will keep a close eye on them. "
After Olga's words of consolation, the agitated and uneasy village chief calmed down, he held Olga's hand and thanked him profusely, then left Olga's side to bid farewell to Padding.
After today's incident, and hearing Padding's roar that shocked everyone, he was already mentally and physically exhausted.
He had to rush back to comfort his poor granddaughter.
The village chief came in front of Padding and shed tears of gratitude, almost kneeling down in front of Padding.
"Lord Knight, thank you so much, if it wasn't for you, today's matter would have gone out of hand."
"I should apologize to you, village chief."
Padding held the village chief's hand, an imperceptible light flowed out from his palm and seeped into the village chief's body – he was using his faith and power to repair the village chief's spirit that had been shattered by his roar.
If he didn't do this, the village chief, whose courage had been shattered, probably wouldn't even live to see the next spring.
This time, the village chief's mood was completely calm, and the wrinkles on his face seemed to have become much lighter.
"Lord Knight, you are as noble and noble as Paladin, thank the God of Light for allowing you to appear and protect the village …"
A slight smile appeared on Padding's face, but it looked a little bitter.
How could he dare to stand side by side with Paladin?
Paladin's name was known from the land at the end of the Dark Sea in the east, the Holy City in the desert across the vast sea in the south, the coast of the Endless Sea in the west, and the icebergs of the Frozen Sea in the north … Everyone knew about him, and even the pagan warriors praised his nobility and bravery, calling him the "Moon God's Heroic Spirit that was stolen by EsGod".
In the legends, he wore a glorious plate armor, held a knight's spear in one hand and a greatsword in the other, and could pierce through mountains with a single spear and split the sea with a single sword.
He was the most loyal defender of the Double Eagle Empire, a knight destined to enter the ranks of the Holy Disciples of the Holy Ghost Church.
However, this Knight of Light had already become history.
In the civil strife that caused the Double Eagle Empire to fall apart more than a hundred years ago, he disappeared in a battle in the Forest of the Dead.
At first, there were people who didn't believe that he was dead, but time flew, and now, no one believed that he was still alive.
Since then, the Double Eagle Empire no longer had a knight that protected the country.