El galloped across the field with a few riders, and upon spotting
"My Lord, we've won a decisive victory. We even captured their camp!" El's face was flushed with excitement as he called out to the three from a distance.
When he arrived, Lorist asked, "What are you doing? Taking them for a ride?"
"No, Knight Bodfing ordered me to search the surrounding area and make sure not a single member of the slave catchers escaped," El replied.
"You're saying we captured the slave catchers' camp?" Lorist asked.
"Yes! Locke, you were absolutely terrifying — you killed so many of them they collapsed and tried to flee back to their camp. We charged right after them and took the camp in one push. Right now,
Lorist also felt most at ease around El precisely because of this. "Were our casualties heavy?"
"Casualties? Not at all. Two slave soldiers got a bit too enthusiastic in the chase and didn't watch their footing — one twisted his ankle and the other took a nasty fall and split his lip. Those two poor bastards are getting roasted by everyone. As for the slave catchers, more than half of them are dead. The remaining hundred or so have all been captured. Oh right, Locke, hurry back. There are still over two thousand captured slaves in that slave catchers' camp — whether to keep them or set them free is up to you," El said.
"There's no rush," Lorist said, then turned to ask the old man trailing behind his horse. "Hey, old man, where did your camp get all those slaves from?"
The old man looked rather pathetic — bound tightly with ropes, the end of which was held by Dolles riding ahead. He also had five bundles of javelins strapped to his back. Since Lorist was mindful of his horse's stamina and worried about overloading his mount, he had unloaded all the javelins and made the old man carry them instead. He said that despite looking old, the man was a Gold Three-Star, with a sturdy physique — otherwise he wouldn't have been able to run all the way here without stopping. Five bundles of javelins were nothing to him. The old man had just barely escaped with his life and knew full well that Lorist was finding creative ways to torment him, but he could only endure it.
Now that Lorist was questioning him, the old man hastily answered, "Master, these slaves were all bought or captured from the Kingdom of Redlis over the past half year. I heard that the last few times they went, they raided several villages — killing all the old people and capturing the young ones."
Alas, in these troubled times, human lives were cheap as dogs. As peasants, they not only had to deal with their lord's endless levies and labor drafts, but also had to dodge the ravages of war — especially watching out for those savage slave traffickers who looted in times of chaos. Once these slave catchers broke through a village, the peasants who had been with their families one moment would find their families murdered and themselves turned into slaves the next.
Lorist said with undisguised contempt, "Old man, as a Gold Three-Star swordsman, why did you join forces with these inhuman, worse-than-beast slave catchers to do such evil things?"
The old man cried out in grievance, "Master, I had no choice! Six years ago, I was passing through here with my granddaughter, heading for
The old man had formerly been the city defense captain of a small town in the old Krisen Empire. His family had lived reasonably well, until the Third Prince's succession struggle sparked a civil war that first devastated the region where the old man lived. His son and daughter-in-law both died, and his wife, heartbroken beyond recovery, passed away as well. Fearing for his only granddaughter's safety, the old man deserted the army, carrying his twelve-year-old granddaughter on his back as he crossed mountains and valleys on the way to Morant City. But at Aymetlin Harbor, the little girl fell gravely ill from the change of climate. At his wit's end, the old man encountered the slave catchers' leader, Slov. To save his granddaughter, he had no choice but to join them, and had been with them ever since.
The old man defended himself, saying that the slave catchers' leader Slov knew he didn't like going on slave-catching missions, so he had been assigned to guard the camp. Over the years, he had helped many slaves avoid harm.
"But they still ended up being sold, didn't they?" El scoffed from the side. "Old man, if you knew slave trafficking was immoral, why didn't you leave after your granddaughter recovered? You stayed with them for six years — obviously birds of a feather flock together. A nest of rats shouldn't pretend to be good people."
"You think I wanted to stay? Could I have left?" The old man smiled bitterly. "After my granddaughter recovered, we were taken to Slov Manor and have lived there ever since. That's Slov's stronghold — heavily guarded. It was fine for me to go in and out alone, but there was no way to escape with my granddaughter. Besides, Slov himself is a Gold-rank swordsman, and his cousin Pike is a Great Swordmaster. As time passed, I could only resign myself to fate."
Lorist's expression grew serious. "Old man, tell me about this leader Slov — and this so-called Slov Manor. And the background of his cousin, this Great Swordmaster named Pike. The more detail, the better."
Having spent six years with the slave catchers, the old man knew these matters quite well. He said the slave catchers' leader Slov had been a mercenary in his early days. Later, for reasons unknown, he came into contact with a slave trader in Nubit Harbor and formed the slave catchers to go into the business of capturing slaves. The civil war in the old Krisen Empire gave the slave catchers the perfect opportunity to fish in troubled waters. Over the past six years, their business had grown enormously, and the organization had expanded to a scale of nearly three hundred people. Even the local lords could do nothing about Slov.
On the hills to the west of the town, he had built a manor estate spanning several thousand mu as his base of operations. Inside lived the families of the slave catchers' members, along with nearly eight hundred slaves who tended the estate's several-thousand-mu vineyard and performed daily labor. In recent years, the grape wine produced by Slov Manor had become quite famous.
Slov Manor's defenses were formidable — first because of the terrain, and second because of sufficient manpower. However, in recent years, Leader Slov had been pursuing a noble title, wanting to transform himself into a landed noble. Last month, he had taken a group of men to the royal capital, and then planned to go to Nubit Harbor to settle accounts. According to schedule, he would be back in about ten days. Since the slave catchers were still operating out here, Slov Manor's defensive strength was at its weakest — only a dozen-odd Silver Swordsmen and a fifty-man
Leader Slov himself was a Gold Two-Star swordsman, but having grown wealthy and lived in luxury these past years, he had put on weight and his strength seemed to have declined somewhat. His backer was that Great Swordmaster Pike — reportedly they were cousins...
"Have you ever fought that Great Swordmaster Pike?" Lorist asked.
The old man nodded. "I have. Two years ago, at the Harvest Festival banquet, some of the slave catchers egged on Master Pike to show off his skills. Master Pike chose me as his opponent. I exchanged about ten moves with him, and when I noticed his expression growing displeased, I quickly dropped my sword and admitted defeat. In truth, I estimate that within a hundred moves, it would have been a draw."
Lorist nodded, having gotten the picture.
"Oh. Old man, what's your name?" Lorist asked.
"My name is Ingelik," the old man replied.
...
By the time they finished talking, they had arrived at the camp. Lorist saw the slave catchers' camp gates wide open and rode straight in, only to find Fatty Shi sitting on a couch in the middle of the camp square, fuming. The reason was that Fatty Shi was injured and couldn't write, so he had casually asked a senior student to keep records for him. But the senior student's handwriting was terrible and he kept making mistakes, which frustrated Fatty Shi to no end. The senior student had quite the temper as well — after Fatty Shi scolded him a couple of times, he threw down the paper and brush in his hands and declared, "My hands are for wielding swords and cutting people down, not for scribbling with a pen! You ask me for help and then make all these demands? I'm not serving anyone!" He then turned and left without a backward glance, leaving Fatty Shi half-dead with anger.
Lorist held back his laughter, dismounted, and picked up the paper and brush. He handed them to Dolles. "Dolles, go over to the slaves and find a few who write well. Have them report to Knight Shrade for orders first. El, go find Knight Bodfing and
Terman, Bodfing, and his two comrades hurried over.
Lorist first gave a brief overview of Slov's situation, then proposed that they take advantage of Slov Manor's current weak defenses to launch a surprise attack. They would seize the manor first and then deal with Slov and his cousin, Great Swordmaster Pike, when they returned in ten days.
Lorist planned to have the surrendered old man, Ingelik, lead him in to bluff their way through the gates. Then Terman would lead his men to attack, striking fast to eliminate resistance. Finally, Dolles would lead the slave soldiers to occupy and clear the entire manor. El would take a group of horse-riding slave soldiers to seal off the perimeter, ensuring not a single person escaped. Once the dust had settled, they could abandon this camp and everyone would relocate to the manor.
During the assault on the manor, the current camp would be held by Bodfing to ensure nothing went wrong.
No one objected to Lorist's arrangements, though Bodfing was worried about Lorist going alone with just the Gold Three-Star old man to bluff open the gates. At that moment, Rod Wells, who had been standing to the side, spoke up: "How about I accompany Mr. Norton? There's nothing to do here anyway, and I'm starting to feel bored."
Bodfing was overjoyed at Rod Wells's offer and clapped him on the shoulder, thanking him repeatedly. Lorist quickly bowed in gratitude: "Mr. Rod, I'm sorry to trouble you. Thank you so much for your aid and everything you've done for us..."
Rod Wells hurriedly returned the bow. Having witnessed Lorist's skill and composure, he was now remarkably courteous: "Mr. Norton, there's no need for such formality. If you don't mind, you can call me Ross, just like Bog does."
Lorist laughed heartily and clasped his hand. "Very well, Ross. And you can call me Locke — all my friends do."
...
Lorist first took a bath and changed out of his bloodstained clothes. He also had the old man named Ingelik cleaned up and his soiled trousers replaced. Seeing that everyone was ready, he set out with Ross and Ingelik under guard, riding toward Slov Manor.
Slov Manor was about six or seven kilometers from the slave catchers' camp, located on the hills visible after turning west off the main road past the small town. Lorist chatted and laughed with Ross the whole way, and they arrived before long.
Ross was a straightforward and generous man. He said his father had also been an old mercenary who had obtained a high-level
Hearing that Lorist planned to purchase slaves to build the Norton family's private army and march to the Northland, Ross had grown interested. He dragged along Mons Malek, who also had no desire to stay in Nubit Harbor, and the two of them came here to join Bodfing.
The process of seizing Slov Manor went smoothly. Ross didn't even need to draw his sword — Lorist's javelins took care of everything. The gate guards saw the old man in front and had no suspicions, quickly lowering the drawbridge and opening the manor gates. Lorist swung his longsword a few times and slit their throats. The other Silver Swordsmen guarding the manor, seeing that Lorist's group was small, rallied about a dozen men and swarmed forward.
Lorist drew the javelins strapped to his horse and hurled them with the force of thunder and the speed of lightning. One javelin after another flew out in a continuous rain of spears. Over half of the dozen-plus charging Silver Swordsmen fell immediately. The remaining few who were prepared managed to cut down some javelins with their swords, but the relentless barrage that followed still pierced through their bodies. By the time all three quivers of javelins were spent, not a single enemy remained standing before Lorist.
Old Ingelik's legs were shaking, and he felt immensely grateful that he had been wise enough to surrender quickly — that was what had saved his old life. Ross stood to the side, watching in admiration and exclaiming that it was a marvelous skill.
Terman led his men in to secure the main castle. Then Dolles and Terman worked together to clear the entire manor. Although they met resistance from the Black Iron rank garrison that guarded the slaves, after Terman and the senior students attacked and killed over a dozen of them, the rest stopped resisting and surrendered without a fight. Not a single one of Terman's men was hurt. Dolles remarked that these prisoners had been asking for it — attacking fully armed Silver Swordsmen with leather whips and short swords was proof there was something seriously wrong with their heads.
Lorist ordered Terman to take men back to camp to notify Fatty Shi and Bodfing to relocate, bringing everyone to Slov Manor. He also had Terman haul all the camp's transport wagons to the docks, so that
Next, Lorist had Dolles gather all the slaves in the manor and await further orders. Then he had him detain all the slave catchers' family members, with orders to kill anyone who resisted. He also sent word to El to strengthen the guard. In an instant, there was more activity than anyone could handle.
In the main residential area where the slave catchers' families lived, wailing erupted as fearsome slave soldiers broke down doors and drove everyone out. Occasionally, shouts and curses would explode from houses and courtyards.
But the resistance was quickly suppressed. A few bodies dressed in fine clothes lay by the roadside and in doorways, a testament to the ruthlessness and brutality of the slave soldiers.
Lorist followed Ingelik on horseback toward the small courtyard where his granddaughter lived. Along the way, the slave soldiers standing guard at the roadside all saluted Lorist, while the captured family members of the slave catchers who had been driven from their homes stared at them with looks of fear or hatred.
Lorist let out a sigh of relief. He found that the slave soldiers were well-disciplined and obedient. During the operation, although a few resisters had been killed, nothing undesirable had happened — no one had assaulted women, and no one had stolen valuables. Perhaps knowing that taking anything wouldn't benefit them and would only result in punishment, they simply drove people out of their homes and then stood at attention by the roadside, awaiting the next order.
Ingelik's granddaughter was indeed quite pretty — fair-skinned and quiet, holding a book in her hands. She stood outside the courtyard with a servant girl of about fifteen or sixteen, her expression still carrying a trace of alarm. The moment she saw the old man, she threw herself into his arms and held on tight.
Lorist nodded to the saluting slave soldiers, looked the old man's granddaughter over, pointed to the small courtyard, and said to the old man, "Let's talk inside."
The small courtyard wasn't large, but it was neatly kept. Lorist entered the room and saw a half-finished manuscript on animal skin lying on a table. He picked it up and looked — the handwriting was neat and elegant, except for the last character, whose strokes were messy and dragged out long, clearly because the slave soldiers' intrusion had panicked the writer and ruined her penmanship.
"You were copying a book?" Lorist asked the girl supporting the old man. She nodded shyly.
"Very nice handwriting," Lorist commented.
"Ingelik, time to bring out your treasures," Lorist said.
The old man's face went grey. He went into the adjacent room and brought out a small chest and a book on animal skin. Opening the small chest, a golden glow dazzled the eye — it was filled with gleaming gold Fordes.
"This... this is everything I've saved over these years — one thousand four hundred and thirty-seven gold coins," the old man said, his heart aching.
Lorist picked up a gold coin. "Old man, do you know how much suffering and blood and tears are packed into each of these gold coins? This money is dirty and cursed. If you spend it, you'll face retribution — either on your own head or on your descendants'. Let me take it and help you ward off that disaster."
He took out a money pouch from his pocket and tossed it to the old man. "There are only a dozen or so gold coins in this pouch, but every single one is clean — none of them carry the stench of blood and resentment that yours do. You can spend these with a clear conscience, and even sleeping with them under your pillow at night will give you peaceful rest. Consider yourself lucky — I'm giving you this pouch for free."
"As for this water-attribute Combat Force manual..." Lorist flipped through the animal-skin manual and tossed it to the girl. "Have your granddaughter make a fresh copy. The original stays with you. You two stay here for the next couple of days — and this servant girl can stay with you as well — while you await your disposition. If you need anything, just tell the soldiers standing guard outside. Understood?"
The old man hurriedly bowed. "My Lord, thank you. I will follow your instructions."
Lorist walked away carrying the small chest full of gold coins.