From the outside, village chief Duden's house looks no different from an ordinary free farmer's house, except that it is larger in size, but there is something special inside.
The first thing that caught Coliff's eyes was the hay covering the ground. They all looked clean and they must have been put on recently. Secondly, there was a fireplace built of stone beside the wall, with the remaining firewood glowing with dark red sparks.
The large oak table next to the wall was covered with a white linen cloth. On the table were a plate of uneaten bread rolls and two pieces of cheese cut into triangles. Next to the dinner plate stood a copper lampstand with a half-used white candle on it.
On the other side was the bed of Duden and his wife.
Unlike farmers who sleep on the grass on the ground, Duden's bed is made of several thick hairy beech sticks, filled with hay inside, and covered with a piece of red linen as a bed sheet. Both beautiful and comfortable.
"Hey, stop looking," Duden pushed Cliff, who was in a daze, "Do you still want to lie down on my bed and sleep?"
Cliff shook his head quickly, put the flour in the corner, and wiped the huge beads of sweat on his forehead uncomfortably.
Duden opened the finely crafted armchair with a click and sat down comfortably. He thought that although this guy Krieger was annoying, he had to admit that his carpentry work was indeed good.
"Simon went to find you? What did he say?" Duden asked as he picked up a piece of cheese from the dinner plate and ate it.
"He asked me if there was a new group of gangsters nearby. He also warned me that if I participated in the attack on the ranch, he would chop off my head." Colliff was a little nervous and stammered. .
"How did you reply to him?"
"I made up a story that, in my opinion, had no flaws to deal with him."
"Maybe it's full of flaws," Duden put all the cheese into his mouth and said vaguely while chewing, "What story did you make up?"
"I said that a stranger from a foreign land and his accomplices came to me in the middle of the night with copper coins in exchange for food, and warned me not to tell anyone about this, otherwise they would kill me and my wife."
"Not bad, it seems you are not a useless fool who will move our heads." Duden clapped his hands and swallowed the cheese. "I feel relieved that you have dealt with it. I sent Adam to find it. The three gangsters were from the Principality of Upper Lorraine. Adam was wearing a hood to hide his face at the time and did not reveal any information about us. He just handed over the mission. Even if they were caught, they would not know who was behind it. "
"Huh," Cliff took a deep breath and felt a little more relaxed, "Where did the three gangsters go after they killed the livestock?"
"I asked them to send a man to find Adam at the old place outside the village after they killed the livestock. Adam gave them the other half of the reward there, and then asked them to leave this place immediately," Duden showed a victorious smile, " The further away the better.”
"Then I'll be relieved." The stone in Colif's heart fell to the ground, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up.
…………………………
On the forest path in the Dehes Forest, two hounds lowered their heads, sniffing through the mud and broken branches shrouded in mist.
The soldier holding the dog leash looked a little tired. Sir Bill had a bow in one hand and an arrow in the other, cautiously following the hound.
Sheriff Old Kevin was already out of breath. When he first set off, he could still chat with Bill with great interest. They talked about hunting skills, bandits and bandits, and from damn bandits to bows and arrows. After a break, Old Kevin gradually closed his mouth. ——He felt like he was about to run out of energy.
Later, due to physical exhaustion, old Kevin was now the only one in the group riding a horse.
Bill got off the horse early because he was not used to chasing "prey" on horseback. In order to make it easier for his beloved horse, he also asked the soldiers to remove the saddle and put it on the back of the gray packhorse at the end of the team. The poor beast was also carrying a large basket of food and weapons.
"Did you find anything?" Old Kevin licked his dry lips, took the kettle from his waist and unscrewed the lid.
"Your Excellency Sheriff, at present there is not." The soldier holding the dog leash responded.
"Damn gangsters, they can really run away!" Old Kevin muttered and complained in a low voice.
After crossing a stream and walking for half a day, they would enter the territory of Baron Siegburg next door.
Lord Simon was not familiar with this baron. Compared with Baron Karl and Baron Wolf, who are familiar with them, it will only be more difficult for them to hunt down fugitives in unfamiliar territory.
What's more, if these fugitives cross the creek on foot, their scent will be much lighter, making them more difficult to track. If they bathed in the stream, there would be nothing Bill could do.
Everyone continued walking along the forest path in silence for a while, and the sudden barking of the hounds cheered them up again.
"There's movement."
The soldiers wiped away the fatigue on their faces. The two lazy soldiers quickly took out their shields from the large basket and held them in front of their chests, holding on to the armed axes in their hands.
Old Kevin quickly took out the Sheriff's ball peen hammer from his waist and held the iron helmet on his armrest.
"Keep your voice down, it should be nearby." Bill stretched out his hand and motioned for the soldiers to search on both sides of the trail.
With their hearts in their throats, everyone moved cautiously through the forest.
"Hey!"
An unfamiliar and rough shout attracted everyone's attention, followed by the sound of swords clashing and the abuse of armed soldiers.
"Come on," Bill and the soldiers ran in the direction of the sound, shouting through the mist, "Don't kill him, the Baron will live!"
When they arrived at the place where the sound came from, the armed soldier had already pinned down the gangster whose head was covered with blood and whose mouth was muttering foreign curse words.
Gangsters without any formal training are far inferior to fully armed soldiers who have gone through the trials of sweat and blood, life and death.
"He has alerted his accomplices, you should hurry up and chase him!" the soldier pressing down the gangster said anxiously.
Sure enough, Bill and the soldiers continued to search, and they found a small campsite set up in an open space. The bonfire in the center of the small camp had not been extinguished, but now there was no one left.
"They fled in that direction!" A soldier identified messy footprints on the wet soil. One of the footprints looked like he was barefoot and didn't even have time to put on shoes.
"Let me do it!" Old Kevin pinched the horse's belly and galloped in the direction where the footprints disappeared.
When Bill and the soldiers trotted forward for a while, they saw two gangsters lying on the ground among the grass, and old Kevin on horseback holding a ball peen hammer proudly.
"I hope those two hammers just now won't kill them!" Old Kevin said, putting the ball-peen hammer back on his belt.
"Oh my God," Bill's eyes were full of surprise, as if he was getting to know old Kevin again. He shook his head and put the arrow back into the quiver, "Hann, Baoch, go and see those two Is the guy who was knocked down still breathing?"
…………………………
It was already dark, and Simon, who was waiting for news in the wooden castle, gradually became anxious.
"Have Bill caught those damn thieves now?" Simon paced back and forth in the hall. "According to the normal traveling speed, they have probably searched the territory next door."
"Master, let's have something to eat. The rabbit porridge has been cooked." Little Klein, who was holding a big spoon next to the firepit, said to Simon.
"No. I have no appetite." Simon touched his stomach uncomfortably and shook his head.
His anorexia returned. He could clearly feel his stomach growling with hunger, but he didn't want to eat anything.
Little Klein sighed and fiddled with the red-hot iron in the fire: "Would you like me to help you warm a bowl of fruit wine?"
"I think so." Simon nodded and handed over the empty wooden cup on the table beside him.
When little Klein handed the warm fruit wine to Simon, the guard's loud call came from outside the door.
"Sir, Sir Bill and the others are back!"
Simon drank most of the glass of fruit wine in one gulp, placed the wooden cup heavily on the table, and walked quickly towards the door of the tower.
The guard inside the door helped Simon open the door, and Simon immediately saw three people on horseback in the inner fort - they were tied tightly and could not move.
"Bill, you really lived up to my expectations!" Simon stepped forward and patted Bill on the shoulder happily.
"Of course, my lord. In fact, Sheriff Kevin also played a big role in this operation to capture the fugitive." Bill smiled and pointed to the scars on the bare feet of a man on the horse. He Muba's gangster said, "He and the other fugitive were captured by old Kevin."
"Really?" Simon looked at Old Kevin next to him with some surprise. The latter had just stepped off the horse, lowered his head slightly and saluted Simon.
In Simon's mind, old Kevin's sword was rusty and he could at best act as a guide. Surprisingly, he was able to subdue two gangsters with his own hands. This was really surprising.
"Good job Kevin, have a good rest tonight."
"Yes, Sir Simon." Old Kevin felt that Simon's eyes were much softer than before setting off, and he knew that he had received preliminary approval.
Before that, whether Simon looked at him or spoke in a tone of voice, there was always a sense of impatience.
"Take those dirty gangsters to the dungeon," Simon said to the armed soldiers standing by the stables. "Keep them under tight guard and don't let anyone get close. I will interrogate them personally tomorrow."
"As you command, my lord."
.
