Chapter 87 - The Country Bumpkins of the North County
Chapter 87: The Country Bumpkins of the North County
The dinner went great.
Kant and Baron Dylan exchanged a few more words before parting with each other in the dead of night.
The maid led them to the rooms that had been arranged beforehand in the official residence. Manid, the five Sarrandian Horsemen, and the desert bandits who did not attend the dinner were also placed in rooms that were close to Kant’s room. They were given rather good treatment.
However, the torches in the Lord’s Hall were still burning, causing the entire space to be filled with the choking smell of smoke.
Baron Dylan sat quietly on his chair.
Excitement gleamed in his eyes.
Two burly figures pushed the main entrance’s door of the hall open and entered. As the light shone on them, it was clear that they were the two of the vassal knights from before. They were also Baron Dylan’s right-hand men.
“Lord Dylan.” The two of them came over and bowed respectfully.
“Yes,” Baron Dylan nodded.
He pointed at the chair beside him and said, “Sit down. You two were in the next room, you should have heard.”
“Yes, sir.” The two of them did not refuse. They sat down and nodded at the same time.
While Kant and Baron Dylan were talking, the two vassal knights were in the next room.
After all, Baron Dylan needed protection. Even though guards were guarding the door, the five Sarrandian Horsemen in the Lord’s Hall still gave everyone in the hall the creeps.
It was the pressure of facing elite soldiers.
However, Baron Dylan was not thinking about this. Instead, he was thinking about the jar of the white salt that was placed on the table in front of him.
“Is there a salt mine in the Nahrin Desert? ”
Baron Dylan asked faintly, “If I remember correctly, we have been stationed at the Stone Pass for almost ten years. How come we never know anything about it? ”
The two vassal knights looked at each other and lowered their heads in shame, “I’m sorry.”
“There’s no need to apologize.” Baron Dylan shook his head.
Squinting, he had got a dangerous look in his eyes, “Even if there is a salt mine, it would probably be very deep inside the Nahrin desert. After all, when we went into the desert to kill the Jackalan tribe, there was no salt mine around the Oasis Lookout. ”
The vassal knights nodded and waited for Baron Dylan to continue speaking.
Baron Dylan went on, “But this is an opportunity. I didn’t expect little Kant to survive in the Oasis Lookout. He even found a salt mine. It seems like he is doing great.”
Thinking of the Sarrandian Horsemen who were fully armored, Baron Dylan narrowed his eyes and said, “Could it be that Princess Sofia’s forces are still secretly supporting him? ”
“That’s impossible. ”
The two vassal knights narrowed their eyes slightly, and there was a solemn look in their eyes.
They knew Baron Dylan. Both of them came from the civilian class as well. They had been following Baron Dylan for more than ten years and were trusted by him on the battlefield. Otherwise, they would not have been treated as trusted aides by Baron Dylan.
“It’s possible,” Baron Dylan snorted coldly.
Thinking of the unequal treatment he had been subjected to since he came to the Stone Pass in the North County, he was enraged.
Clenching his fist, he slowly said, “Let’s wait quietly. Time will prove everything.” He paused, his voice was low, “But our fate must be held in our own hands. With the money from the table salt trade, I can recruit more knights and buy more armor. By then, even Viscount Wayne who rules the North County will be afraid of our strength.”
“We will follow your orders.” The two vassal knights nodded with a determined look on their faces.
***
In the room, Kant was resting quietly.
Manid had just left.
They chatted for a while, but due to the poor soundproofing of the room, they did not talk too much.
They only talked about today’s trade briefly.
In other’s territory, they absolutely could not reveal any secret information. Who knew if there were any secret agents of Baron Dylan right next to these rooms?
Kant did not harbor any so-called sincerity towards this uncle Dylan.
As the saying goes, only children care about right and wrong. To noble families, profit is the only eternal thing.
Now Kant had offered profits that Baron Dylan could not refuse, and at the same time, he had also revealed a small part of his strength. The cooperation between the two parties had basically been established.
Kant was not sure about how long that would last.
But at the very least, both parties would remain in a friendly and peaceful atmosphere for a year, the honeymoon phase.
A year later, Baron Dylan, who had tasted the sweetness, would become stronger as a result of this trade and might want to continue sharing Kant’s profit, which had already given him enough benefits. By then, he would realize that Kant, who was originally just a little snake, had become a terrifying dragon.
In a year, with the help of the system, Kant wouldn’t stop developing his territory, would he?
This gave Kant his confidence!
There was a proverb in the Dukedom of Leo, “A lion is strongest when it is an adult.”
Even a sand gazelle would dare to kick a lion cub with its hooves, let alone a hyena. This was because they knew that lion cubs did not have sharp claws, fangs, or a strong body.
Only by relying on the protection of the adult lions could they survive.
Kant and his “Drondheim” were like a lion cub. They were hungry for all the nutrients and would seek protection from all the adult lions.
For this, they were willing to sacrifice some of their food.
But once a grown lion had developed sharp claws and a strong body, who would dare to plunder its food?
No one would dare.
This was the law of the jungle, the survival of the fittest.
He drifted off to sleep.
But Kant remained vigilant.
The night passed peacefully.
When Kant woke up the next morning, he, who was sleeping on the soft bed, could not help but stretch.
He must admit that the room in the official residence was set up very well, especially the soft bed. Kant, who was used to sleeping on a hard bed, felt that his waist was a little sore.
Of course, the quality of the sleep was very satisfactory.
When he walked out of the room, Manid and the cavalry also stepped out.
The maid led them to the Lord’s Hall, where breakfast would be served.
The vassal knights of the Stone Pass were the first to arrive at their seats. They laughed and talked about all sorts of things, but the topic was none other than women and wine, or how heroic they used to be on the battlefield.
After Kant entered, the noise in the hall stopped.
But they continued to reappear along with the sound of discussion.
However, some vassal knights here occasionally looked at Kant and his associates with an unfriendly expression, especially at the chain armor under the linen robes of the five Sarrandian Horsemen. Their eyes were filled with envy and some sort of evil and greed.
“Humph!” Kant snorted.
Kant settled into his seat while Manid and the horsemen beside him also sat down according to yesterday’s arrangement.
They talked softly and stayed out of the vassal knights’ business.
The truly capable vassal knights had long been conferred with titles and left. They had their own fief around the Stone Pass. Those who remained here were all boors who did not have much ability and only knew how to fight.
Moreover, just by looking at their boorish appearances, they were no match to the five Sarrandian Horsemen.
“No wonder he is called a country bumpkin knight.”
Kant’s lips curled into a mocking smile. The interesting news that he had heard in Lion Fort crossed his mind.
The North County was a barren place, and that causes the knights’ equipment and the soldiers to be of low quality. They were considered the troops of the lowest quality in the entire Dukedom of Leo. Every time they started a war with the enemy, the lord and troops of the North County were second-rate cannon fodder.
That was why they were called a bunch of country bumpkins from the North County, the brainless boors.
Kant could even make an inference.
Looking at the unfriendly expressions on these guys and the way they drooled over the five Sarrandian Horsemen beside him, Kant estimated that he would encounter a small accident after leaving the pass.