The next two days passed slowly. As they traveled north, more and more of the wilderness was broken up into patches of farms and fields. The land was the same everywhere - a jumble of fences demarcating whose fields went where, farmyard stalls scattered haphazardly across the property, and the occasional barn. Strangely, nothing is built of stone. All wood. It was a sign of how backward everything was beyond the borders of civilization. What would they do if the house was on fire? Even demons built of stone were barely human. But not these Keltars. Fully human, not even close relatives like the orcs, and they can't cut stone.
"Boy." Question. Do you Skywalkers call the people here stonemen even though they are not built of stone? he asked.
Hua said: "Yes. You are stone people because your ears are small and you have no tail."
Pepper added: "You look like you're made of stone. You're covered in flat skin, no fur."
"What are you talking about? I'm hairier than you all put together! Didn't you notice his beard?" Androx said, trying to look indignant.
"But that's because we're so little! When we grow up, our hair will all grow out and we'll look normal instead of bald." "Flower said. He sounded a little angry.
"Besides, stone people are called stone people. That's what you call them." Pepper added nonchalantly.
After thinking for a moment, Androx realized that having the boys around now seemed normal and a blessing. They all loved his stories and were very obedient and lovable. When they recover and more of their true selves emerge, it's almost like discovering a hidden treasure. Nikon always said little boys were obnoxious and rebellious, but Androx didn't understand that. No wonder Della cursed him because they had no children. She must know their true colors.
Toward the end of the second day, the road was almost crowded with Kelturs carrying their goods in baskets and the occasional carriage, and soon he reached the village. It's a bit small, maybe only a hundred buildings, and the surrounding walls are made of rough tree trunks. There was a door at the end of the path, more evenly carved than the others, and it opened on huge hinges like a door. All the trees and shrubs had been cut down, about two hundred cubits in each direction, and the area was uncultivated, which seemed like a waste, but he supposed there was a reason for it.
The rickety wooden walls were completely unimpressive. They won't protect anyone from any harm other than chasing away a stray bear. If Androcles came here with the army of the Legion of Glorious, the village would fall in a day or two. Set the wall on fire and that's it.
It seemed to Androcles that the clothes worn by the natives were as crude and crude as the walls of the village. Most were undyed woolen shirts and trousers, although some had leather vests or jackets, but most were plain and cheap-looking. There was embroidery on some of the clothes, but it could only be described as half-hearted. Don't they have the right needles?
Wearing bright yellow robes and red cloaks around their necks, he and the children stood out like paint on marble in this brown, dirty, uncivilized village. On the final stretch, people stopped and openly stared at him. Although he was tired, he pulled the car high and tried his best to make it look easy and give them a wonderful show.
Only a single guard stood in front of the sloping, creaking wooden door leading into the village. He was clad in leather armor like those worn by knights in days gone by, and on his head was an unpolished conical bronze helmet. His round, unintimidating face certainly didn't suit his status, and his arms didn't look very strong. He was a little taller than most of the locals, but not nearly as tall as Androx. As Androcles approached, the guard took his lance from the one leaning against the gate and thrust the butt into the ground.
"Welcome, travel. What business are you doing in Basket?" the guard asked.
Basket? The village was named Basket? That's not only unseemly, it's stupid. Andrew sighed and thought for a while before answering; he was originally going to announce that he had several orphans to give to a good family, but suddenly he changed his mind. It would be wise to look around first to make sure the village is suitable for living. He didn't want to leave the children in some horrible place. "I'm looking for a hotel where I can stay for a few days and if you have beer here, there's a lot of beer," he said.
"We have beer, and it's good, but we don't have a hotel. That looks like a merchant's carriage, and you don't look much like a merchant. No offense. So what the hell are you?"
"Why don't you have an inn?" Androx asked angrily.
"It burned down, the owner was in it, and no one cared about strangers building another one to run it."
"I understand," Androx said, his voice dripping with annoyance. He had been looking forward to sleeping indoors.
"Are you here to trade, or not?" the guard asked. "Because if not, you might have to convince me to let you in."
"No, I'm not here to trade. Just passing through, but it's a long road and I was hoping to rest my feet for a day or two. We had a storm a few days ago."
"It doesn't rain much here. If you're not here to trade, why should I let you in?" the guard asked.
"Why don't you let me in?" What kind of town is this? Androcks asked. He could feel his temper starting to rise and he pushed it down. Killing a group of locals would make it difficult to achieve his purpose here. "Don't you have a place for me to stay?"
The guard thought for a moment and then said, "Oh, I didn't say we didn't have a place for you to stay. I said we didn't have a hotel. However, what we have is not something anyone can have. You are a big man with a lot of scars." , frankly, I wouldn’t turn my back on you to escape a burning house. Now is not the time to trust strangers. No offense. I need something to warrant your behavior.”
"How much trouble do you think I'm going to get into with a truckload and two skinny Thunderboys?" Androx said. "Maybe you thought I'd pick it up and run away after stealing your wife's virginity?"
The guard frowned at this. "Then where did you get the child?"
"They are my slaves and none of your business. My business is none of your business. What's wrong with you underneath the skinny manhood of Turos?" Androx reconsidered covering up his temper. The guard could probably tell, because he gripped the spear tighter.
"My question," the guard said, his voice turning serious; he began to betray a homicidal intent, albeit a laughably weak one. "His roads are filled with Malian thugs, bandits and slave thieves. My problem is that our people are being taken before the harvest. I don't want it if you steal those tools or that car." Deal with the people who are here to kill you. You are an armed giant covered in scars. I can't let you in for nothing. If you don't like it, you will be taken by the crows!"
The guard was either very brave or very stupid in trying to block Ankerix's path; the man must have known how a fight would end. But he did make sense. The roads are not very safe these days. Androcles considered what he would rather do now: enjoy scaring a weakling fool, or leave the children somewhere while he moved on. There's also a big jug of beer, so find a place to sit. Warm, frothy beer and delicious food. Maybe a woman, if there was a place for travelers here and he could find a place to tuck the children in.
Maybe, just maybe, if the guard thought Androx had a somewhat passive personality, he would be stupid enough to gamble tonight, and Androx would be gone tomorrow morning with all the man's money.
Androx sighed, looking dejected. "Mr. Guard, I know what I look like, but I'm an honest man and I'm doing business. It's a tough road, dragging this car in the rain, and I have to deal with wolves and worse. I've They haven't had a good rest in weeks, and neither have my poor children. Look how thin they are!" As he said this, he walked back and pulled up Pepper's sleeves to show him how thin the arms of the toolbox were. "If anyone in town has a place for us to stay, I'll pay good money. Even if there's no room, I can have a beer, you won't believe it, and the kids can have something hot to eat before we leave." .”
The two eaglets looked nervous and pitiful; they probably didn't understand what was going on here and believed Androx was sincere. They must have been shocked to see his humility.
The flower even boldly begged: "Please let us in." Master Androcks is the best stonemason here. "The boy's voice was weak, uncertain, unsteady, pathetic. It was perfect. A
d
okles had to try very, very hard not to smirk. perfect.
The guard looked unsure, but his attitude changed. His murderous intent disappeared and his posture became more relaxed.
"Oh my God, Kemen, you idiot!" said a woman behind them. "He doesn't understand that you're asking for a bribe, and you're too greedy to notice. You're holding up the queue with all this stupid nonsense." Both adults and children looked back in surprise. A woman stood there, short and plump, with ash-brown hair pulled into a knot. Both of her arms were covered with dried mud, her forehead was also covered with mud, and on her belly was a large box filled with some kind of tawny vegetable. Dirt made her age difficult to determine, but he thought she was a little older than him.
Androx was stunned by her audacity, but no one seemed to care.
The guard retorted angrily: "I have every reason to be concerned about his appearance! Don't interrupt us."
The incredible woman snorted and said, "If you do this, you are even dumber than I thought." Have you ever seen a bandit dressed like this? If those slaves were stolen, they would be chained Get up, you short stick idiot. He is honest, slaves are staying where they are because they want to be, and you are wasting everyone's time. Especially mine. "
The guard, apparently named Kemen, said: "If I let them in, I have to give them guest rights. What if armed men come looking for him?"
"Then you can bargain with them at the door and ask them to bribe you, just like you did with the others." She turned to Androx and said, "Give him a silver coin and get it over with. You know he's just Wants your money, right? He always does."
"I'm going to give you a five, you stupid scorpion! This guy looks like he might really be trouble!" The guard knew he had lost the argument and he tapped his foot impatiently without looking at Anjie carefully. Les.
"A silver coin, then," Androx said, turning out his money bag. He carefully opened it from the back of his cloak so the guards couldn't see how much money he had.
Then he threw the silver to the man, who caught it and said, "Go in. I'm not kidding about the hotel. You're on your own. Don't let me catch you sleeping on the street like a bum." .”
"I am a civilized man, and civilized men do not sleep in the streets. Or ask for bribes," said Androcles, a little angry because he had forgotten the savages and their taste for bribes.
He grabbed the lever and was about to walk in, when the woman patted the back of the carriage and said, "Wait for me, stranger. I'll show you around." He nodded and leaned on the carriage.
She placed the box at Kemen's feet and crossed her arms. The man sighed, took out a roll of cheap brown paper, and counted the vegetables she brought in. When he finished counting, he said, "Put these in the second barn. I want to divide the harvest so that we don't lose everything like we did last spring if one of them burned down."
"Got it," she said. Then she put the box on his car, knocked the wheel, and said, "Okay, stranger. Let's go."
Androchus was shocked by her behavior. He had never seen a woman behave like this in public. Never, not even for slaves and prostitutes. Argue with a man and use rude language? And win? He loves it. This would not work in a glorious country, where a woman's honor is her virtue and purity, but in a place like this it is quite pleasant.
"So, lead the way, woman. Where are we going?" he said.
"The second granary. Then I'll take you to a place where you can sleep for free, but the door can't pee on the wall." Andrew wasn't sure what she meant, but he still found it interesting.
Ankerex had to admit, the interior of the village looked a little better than the walls. The village was arranged in a large circle around an ancient-looking stone circle, perhaps ten arms wide in diameter. In the center of it, there is a simple wooden altar dedicated to some god. Of course, no part of the circle compares to the Temple of Glory. Although the villagers decorated it with wreaths and flowers, they did not paint it. Several old women stood outside the circle, selling various products. Inside, some younger children were playing a game of drawing wooden balls.
Most of the buildings are small round buildings of rough stone, all with conical thatched roofs. Many houses are decorated with patterns made of dried harvested plants tied together, some painted. The ground is mostly dirt, but the main road through the village is paved.
The people all wore plain long coats of thick wool, even the children; however, many women wore jewelry in their hair and around their necks, some of which were gold. Their appearance is generally neat and clean, which is a relief. He didn't want to leave the children where no one was bathing.
"The name of the town is Basket Town because of the stone ring." The curious woman explained as she walked. "They say it's been there since God created the world, and our first generation of parents walked out of it on day one. I think that story is worth spitting on, but don't tell anyone I said that. Whatever. How, now it's sacred to Mary, she was the goddess of the wilderness. The altar is hers. We only have God here. I believe you heard the wolf howl? That's because her hair was tied in a knot. By the way My name is Argen. What's yours? I've forgotten. It's not particularly memorable."
"Androchus, son of Palamonos. Your name sounds like ', so don't laugh at my name," he said with a smirk.
"Ha! Where are you from, Androx?"
"Coming from the Glorious Zone, far south of here. My city is Dikaia."
"Arrogant Southern bastards, I've heard that. Call yourself honorable and everything, like you don't stink if you don't shower," she said with a laugh.
"It would be arrogant if our land wasn't the greatest and best in the world. But it is, so it's more descriptive than hopeful." Gods, if only the men in his army It would be great if his friends could see him joking with women in public. They didn't know whether to gape or burst into laughter.
"Are all the people there so tall?" Or are you a freak? She asked, looking at his appearance. She noticed his arms in particular, and he flexed them subtly for her with a goofy smile.
"I'm also taller than most of them. And stronger, faster and prettier," he said.
She smiled approvingly and said, "I've been waiting for someone like you to rock the boat. Make sure you don't make a mess before you leave."
At the end of the village, close to the north gate, Aguna stopped and pointed to a house without a door. "This is a traveller's house, we live here, not a hotel. But the door probably doesn't want me to show you, so here we are. The little man will be taken by the crows, I don't care. You can do whatever you want Stay, but if other travelers show up, you'll have to make room. You can park here. No one will steal here. You won't need that sword and shield either. We are harmless people unless You kick our campfire or spit in our beer.”
