Unknown Knight

Everyone was eating and drinking happily when a sudden movement in the pub attracted everyone. They saw a few ruffians surrounding a girl drinking at the bar. The girl had a great figure when viewed from the side and gave people a feeling of arrogance and inviolability. She ignored the hooligans surrounding her and just sipped her beer. Perhaps it was the girl's ignoring behavior that completely angered the drunken hooligans. One of the leaders actually stretched out his hands to the girl. There was a howl of "Ah!" and everyone saw a flash before their eyes, and a spoon was already on the back of the hand reaching out to the girl.

Just as Aix was hesitating whether to act bravely, a man rushed out from the corner and shouted:

"Let go of that girl!"

This man brought with him a breath of alcohol, and it was obvious that he was drunk. He was holding a sword with the scabbard and the blade wrapped together with a cloth strip, and he started to hit the thugs on the head. Axe was sure that if the scabbard was removed, the 5 or 6 thugs on the opposite side would definitely fall down. However, the sword with a scabbard was equivalent to a stick, and the thugs were not vague. After they reacted, they grabbed the wooden stool or table legs next to them and waved them around, surrounding him and the girl.

Seeing that the man and the woman were about to suffer, Aix was not willing to do it. In the original world, he had never done anything heroic, mainly because, firstly, our public security was so bad that he could hardly meet them, and secondly, he did not have the courage, wealth, and popularity. Now, he had killed robbers and had no shortage of courage. He had more than a dozen brothers under him, and there were seven or eight of them present. He also had no shortage of popularity. In addition, he had just drunk a lot of alcohol, so he somehow aroused his heroic blood. He did not care about anything else and slammed the table and said:

"Calling brothers!"

After saying that, he took the lead and picked up a stool and rushed forward. The other members of the caravan saw this and rushed forward with their weapons. They surrounded the thugs again and the two sides started fighting. The tavern was immediately in chaos. It seemed that a major case was about to happen. Someone shouted loudly:

"The city defense troops are coming, run!"

Those hooligans must be habitual criminals with criminal records. When they heard the shout, they immediately dropped what they were holding, holding their heads and desperately jumped from the armpits and even the crotch of the crowd to the door of the tavern. In the blink of an eye, they disappeared in the alley at night, leaving the people who didn't understand the situation confused. At this time, the tavern owner came over with a smile and said:

"Dear guests, don't panic. Those rascals are habitual criminals in the area. They often blackmail and bully strangers. They have been in and out of the city's jail many times. They drank a little today but still didn't change their ways. The lord said that if they are caught again, they will be sold as ship slaves. So don't be afraid. As long as the city defense army comes, they won't dare to cause trouble even if they have the courage. Everyone, eat and drink as usual. Don't worry, don't worry."

As soon as he heard his voice, Aix judged that it was probably this man who had just called for the city defense army to come, and threw a silver coin to him and said:

"One drink for everyone tonight."

After saying that, he walked straight to the girl and said softly:

"Are you okay Miss? Do you need a bandage?"

This was a girl with an unusually fair face. Her slightly upturned eyebrows were as heroic as those of men. Her freckles, under the dim light of the tavern, revealed a savage nature that pierced people's hearts. Aix, who had been influenced by the clip-on beauties that dominated the Internet in the original world, had never seen such a style before. He swallowed his saliva unconsciously. Fortunately, the girl's personality was completely consistent with her appearance. She didn't shyly push up her slightly torn skirt and tidied her slightly messy brown-red hair. She didn't respond to Aix's well-intentioned inquiry, but generously stretched out her fair little hand and introduced herself:

"Cress."

"Aix."

Seeing this, Axe reached out and held the girl's hand. The back of the girl's hand felt very soft and smooth, but Axe felt some calluses on the palm. This contrast made Axe have a strong desire to explore the owner of this hand. He unconsciously lowered the tone of his alto voice to a bass, and concentrated the magnetism of his whole body on his throat and said:

"It's an honor to meet you, beautiful girl. May I have the honor of buying you a drink?"

"can."

The girl named Kress didn't say much. She just walked straight to Axe's seat and sat down.

Seeing the girl sitting down, Aix turned to the sword-wrapped warrior. The man seemed a little drunk. His swaying body needed Bandak's support to stand steadily. His bloodshot eyes were dull and lifeless, and he seemed to be very sleep-deprived. His messy sideburns set off his serious and solemn face. What was somewhat funny was that there was a big bump on the forehead of this serious face, which was so abrupt that it made people laugh. Resisting the urge to laugh, Aix hurried forward to greet him, led him to a seat, and called a waiter to replace Catherine, who was on duty at the hotel to watch the goods, to come and bandage him.

Soon Catherine came over to bandage the wound and check. After confirming that the bearded man who called himself Fatis was fine, she sat down next to Cress.

An outsider generously hosted the dinner in Aix and asked Bandak to help order the dishes. Basically, all the dishes that could be served in a tavern were served, including two large grilled fish, a pot of stewed chicken, a ham platter, half a roasted lamb, as well as plenty of cheese, white bread, beer and mead that the women loved to drink. The tavern owner also gave away fruits and vegetables for free, and the table was full of delicious food.

Even a wedding banquet these days cannot have such a sumptuous table. The atmosphere gradually became lively as the glasses were passed around. Even the serious and dull Fatis perked up. After a few beers, he and Bandak became brothers. Kress and Catherine, who were sitting together, also got along well. The two were like close friends of many years. They ate and chatted with many topics. It was obvious that Kress, who was originally thought to be quiet, just didn't want to talk to strangers, but once he got familiar with them, he could also be a chatty person.

The reason why such a sumptuous meal was set up was not only because it was time for dinner and Aix, a Chinese, was being polite and courteous, after all, everyone had fought side by side in the melee just now, but more importantly, Aix was interested in making friends with these two, especially the bearded Fatis.

The sword in his hand is very powerful. If the scabbard is really gone, all those hooligans will be killed by him. This is the original words of Bandak who has been on the battlefield. His character is even more valued by Axe. It is rare to see a person stand up for another stranger these days. It can be said that he is rare and more precious than endangered species. It is not an exaggeration to say that he has a chivalrous heart that only Chinese people have. To say that he risked his life to stand up for Kress, does he have any impure purpose in his heart for the girl? He is just a reckless man who thinks with his lower body. Axe can be sure that it is not the case. From his observation, this man has never even looked at the girl directly except when Kress thanked him and toasted him. The only thing that interested him after sitting at the table was chatting with Bandak about some past events on the battlefield.

Moreover, through observing Axe, he found that this person was by no means an ordinary person. Generally, people with great skills are usually arrogant, brutal, and rude. Even if they can hide it under normal circumstances, it will be revealed after drinking. But this person is the opposite. He speaks humbly and politely like a priest. This capable yet humble and low-key character made Axe want to make friends with him. I believe that not only him, but everyone would be willing to make such a friend.

As for the girl Cress, a girl who can drink alone in a pub outside her hometown these days is definitely not an ordinary girl. Just based on her amazing move of piercing a gangster's palm with a spoon and her ability to remain almost unscathed under the siege of the gangsters, she is worthy of Axe's high regard for her. And seeing that she can chat so well with Catherine when they met for the first time, she is definitely not a bad person.

After three rounds of wine and five dishes, everyone was already very familiar with each other. Through the chat between Bandak and Fatis, Aix had a better understanding of him. It turned out that this man had served in the army and became an officer of medium status, and he was doing quite well. As for why he left the army and ended up getting drunk in this tavern, Fatis blushed and hesitated to explain in detail. I guess he had his own unspeakable secrets that he didn't want to tell others. Aix tried to interrupt and chat for a few sentences, asking him about his recent situation. At this point, his face darkened, and it was obvious that he was not doing well. He sighed, lowered his head and said:

"Alas, there is nothing good to do right now. I plan to travel around the world and broaden my horizons."

Seeing his dirty and worn coat and his bleak face, Aix thought to himself, why don't I believe it? Thinking that now that he has sufficient funds, Aix plans to expand the caravan and needs to add reliable personnel. Isn't this chivalrous and humble Fatis the best candidate? So he continued to say to him:

"I see that you are quite skilled. Why don't you join our caravan? We also travel around the world doing business. We won't delay your travels and you can earn a good salary. If you find a good place to go in the future, you can leave without any worries. What do you think?"

Bandak, who already had common topics with Fatis, seemed to understand him better and patted him on the shoulder and said:

"Everyone in our caravan gets along well with each other, and the food is also very good. I bet you will eat delicious food that you have never eaten before."

After hearing what Bandak said, Fatis seemed to be somewhat touched. After thinking about it, he nodded and said to Aix:

"Your chivalrous act towards Miss Cress is admirable. I think it would be a very good choice to follow a noble man like you."

The sedan chair was carried by many people. Fatis's sincere compliment made Aix happy. He patted Fatis's shoulder, and the two of them clinked glasses. Then he called the worker next to him and asked him to get the red smock and chain mail that he was reluctant to sell from the truck and put it on Fatis himself. Not to mention that Fatis' temperament immediately looked different after putting on the red smock and chain mail, revealing a kind of majesty and temperament unique to soldiers, worthy of being from the regular army. The two smiled at each other and sat down to continue eating and drinking.

As for Cress, Aix also took a fancy to her skills. Although she was a woman, there was not much difference in treatment between women and men these days. Not only could women do the same work as men, they could even be lords. After entering the Nord Kingdom, Aix saw female warriors in the city defense army, but he always felt that she was suspicious and was a little worried about her, especially since she talked a lot with Catherine but never said much about herself. She just said that she was from a small mountain village in Virgia. The gossipy Catherine used all the chat tricks between women on her, but couldn't ask her why a girl came all the way to Tihar City from so far away. This made Aix decide not to recruit her to join the caravan and wait until Catherine understood clearly. If she was really unreliable, he could only give up. Although her wild beauty was very attractive and her figure was top-notch, Aix was reluctant to let her go from the bottom of his heart, but the living environment in the Middle Ages was harsh, and he couldn't afford to make mistakes in this situation. Reliability was still the most important thing when recruiting people.

After a meal, it cost more than 6 silver coins, which is equivalent to the income of an ordinary family for half a year. The tavern owner wiped zero. Bandak kept saying that the boss was black-hearted and the food was too expensive, but Aix didn't feel bad at all. Compared with the blouse and chain mail, this money was less than one-fifth of its value. The most important thing was that he recruited Fatis, whose melee force value exceeded Bandak. After a night of eating and drinking, Aix learned that Fatis had also been a swordsmanship instructor for a certain nobleman. To be a swordsmanship teacher, his swordsmanship must be extraordinary, which Bandak could not compare to. His highest origin was only to be the personal guard of the Marquis of Craggs. Since coming to this world and experiencing several real swordsmanship battles, Aix has always felt that his life safety cannot be reliably guaranteed. Now there is such a swordsmanship master around, and the safety factor has increased geometrically. Just thinking about it makes people feel at ease, and I shouted in my heart that this wave is worth it.

That night, the caravan stayed in the inn with Fatis and Kress. What happened the next morning confirmed Aix's worries. Kress left without saying goodbye. That was fine. The key point was that she took away 20 silver coins. Why did she take them instead of stealing them? Because she left a letter.

When he woke up in the morning, Aix found a piece of paper with a dagger stuck in it on the small table next to his bed. This is the letter left by Cress. It is more like a painting than a letter. Obviously, Miss Cress is illiterate. There is only a crooked outline of a woman drawn on the painting. The painting of this woman is very simple but lifelike. It is obvious that the girl has put a lot of effort into it. In the painting, she is taking out a purse from under the pillow of a sleeping person. There are many small circles behind the purse, and there are twenty of them. There were more than eighty silver coins in the purse that Aix carried with her, and she put it under the pillow. When she took it out and counted it, there were only more than sixty silver coins left. Even so, Aix could not be classified as a thief, because if she was a thief, she would definitely take the purse, not just twenty silver coins, and then go to the trouble of drawing such a picture. The key point is that this painting has a second part, which is a woman handing a purse to a man. Obviously, this is a scene of returning the money, and the couple also agreed on a date. A half moon and several stars were drawn on the first painting, and the moon became a full moon in the second painting, which means that the couple agreed to return the money within half a month at the latest.

After understanding the meaning of the whole painting, Aix didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He didn't expect this young lady to have such a straightforward side. It was obvious that the girl took the money for urgent use. Aix no longer had the illusion that he could get the money back. Who made him have a delusion about the girl? He just regarded it as a peach blossom calamity, he comforted himself in his heart. Fortunately, no one woke up yet, and he didn't plan to make it public, because this kind of thing is not easy to explain. A man and a woman, the woman took the man's money, and then everyone would have many scenarios that could be understood and imagined. He had to fold the letter and secretly put it in his arms.