Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 83 Red Pine
On the winding dirt road, two riders were galloping at full speed, kicking up a trail of dust.

The rider lagging behind suddenly slowed down, and the rider in front noticed something was wrong and reined in his horse.

The rider behind simply dismounted, walked with an unnatural pigeon-toed gait, and led his horse to catch up with the rider in front: "Oh dear, sir, I really can't ride anymore, let's rest for a while. My buttocks feel like they've been poked by a red-hot iron rod, and the flesh on my inner thighs has been rubbed off."

"You lazybones, where are you going to rest in this desolate wilderness?" the rider in front scolded his personal servant. "Stop dawdling. You'll get plenty of rest when we get back to the manor. Get on your horse, we have to get home before dark."

The old servant sensed the softening in his master's tone and pressed his advantage, complaining incessantly, "Master, we're already here. Even if we walk, we'll definitely get home before dark. I really can't ride anymore. Ouch, my butt is burning with pain... Why don't you ride ahead and I'll walk back slowly?"

"Hey, you lazybones." Poker had served Kalman faithfully as his personal servant for over twenty years, the two of them growing from young men into gray-haired old folks. Kalman, the owner of Red Pine Manor, though still scolding him, had softened his tone: "Look at this desolate wilderness, where do you think you're going to rest?"

The old servant Poker was overjoyed and pointed into the distance: "Look at the smoke rising from behind the woods over there. It must be some hunter resting. Let's go ask for some water, and maybe we can even get some meat."

"You little rascal, are you craving meat? Have I mistreated you?" Kalman said with a laugh.

Old servant Pok realized he had let something slip, so he changed the subject and patted his chest to assure everyone: "We'll just go ask for a drink of water, and after that we'll go home, without stopping for a second."

After walking through the woods to the place where the smoke was rising, the master and servant realized that they had made a grave mistake.

In a small clearing between the woods and the stream, several large vehicles circled a campfire, and a few people wrapped in cloaks lay on the ground dozing off beside the fire.

Two iron pots were placed over the campfire, simmering something. The smoke that the master and servant saw was coming from these pots.

So it appears to be an ordinary convoy, but the problem lies not in that, but in the people around the campfire.

The small camp was filled with strong men carrying sailor's daggers. Several spears and muskets were casually leaning against the side of the vehicle, the dark red bloodstains on the spear tips still wet.

Judging from their clothing and appearance, Kalman concluded that these people were damned pirates.

The Chiliu Island Council tacitly approved of the pirates' disposal of stolen goods; everyone knew it. The pirates' loot brought prosperity to Chiliu Island, but the island's inhabitants also suffered greatly at the hands of the pirates.

Most pirates are outlaws, and if conditions permit, they certainly wouldn't mind doing some side jobs on land. Moreover, after committing a crime on land, they can simply board a ship and escape, which is extremely convenient.

Murders are frequent on Chiliu Island, and most of them remain unsolved cases. However, the island's residents all know that the killer is the damned pirate.

The council has repeatedly declared its intention to crack down on serious crimes committed by outsiders on the island. However, the pirates have no chance of robbing the high-ranking council members. On the contrary, selling stolen goods for the pirates makes them incredibly wealthy. As a result, the banditry on Chiliu Island has never been resolved.

Now, the pirates have brazenly entered Chiliu Island, terrifying the island's civilians.

Poker's face turned deathly pale. Kalman glared at his old servant, signaling him to be quiet and leave quietly.

However, it was too late; the pirates in the camp had already discovered the master and servant.

"Hey! Stop right there!" someone in the camp shouted at the master and servant.

Kalman leaped onto the saddle and spurred the horse's ribs, disappearing into the woods in the blink of an eye. But Poker wasn't as agile as his master; his movements were a bit slower, and another person rushed out from behind and grabbed the reins of his horse.

The others in the camp immediately gathered around, and those who had been dozing off immediately grabbed their weapons as soon as they woke up.

Having already run some distance, Kalman saw his old servant being captured and, with no other choice, turned his horse around and returned.

Seeing that there was no way to leave, Kalman simply dismounted and said loudly, "We are just passersby who have come to ask for a drink of water."

Another pirate snatched the reins from his hand and pushed Kalman next to Pok, and the group of pirates vaguely surrounded the master and servant.

The pirates ignored him. One of the taller pirates sternly reprimanded the one who had captured Pok: "How did you keep watch? They've already gotten close to the camp!"

The reprimanded pirate lowered his head in shame.

Seeing this, Kalman guessed that the tall pirate must be the leader of the group, so he mustered up his courage and said to the tall pirate, "We are just passing by and want to ask for a drink of water. We did not mean to disturb you. Please let us go."

The tall pirate gave Kalman a deep look, then turned and walked toward the campfire without a word, gesturing for the two to follow.

Poker was so frightened that he trembled all over, his jaw clenched tightly, and the muscles in his cheeks bulged out.

Kalman patted the old servant on the back and comforted him, "It's alright."

"Master, I'm sorry, I'll never be greedy again." Poker finally couldn't hold back anymore and cried with snot and tears streaming down his face.

The master and servant were forced into the camp surrounded by carts. A gap-toothed pirate who ran down from a cart saw the two of them, walked up to the tall pirate with a fierce look in his eyes, and made a "chop" gesture.

The tall pirate remained noncommittal, then bent down and picked up two cups from beside the campfire, handing them to the two men.

"What... what do you mean by this?" Kalman was a little confused.

"Didn't you ask for water?"

"Oh, thank you, thank you." After thanking him repeatedly, Kalman took the cup but didn't dare to drink it. The terrified old servant, Poker, however, took the cup and gulped it down in one go.

"Who are you people?" the tall pirate asked expressionlessly.

“Just passing by,” Kalman replied cautiously. “We’re just farmers from the neighborhood.”

"Do farmers also have fine horses to ride?" the tall pirate asked with a half-smile.

“We are…were wealthy farmers with a little more land.” Seeing that the other party didn’t seem bloodthirsty, Kalman gritted his teeth and asked, “And who are you?”

"Me?" The tall pirate laughed. "I'm Captain Kidd's supply convoy."

As the tension eased slightly, Kalman's thinking ability gradually returned, and he instinctively tried to glean more information from the physical characteristics of the pirate leader before him.

Although his face was smeared with soot, the man was young, judging from his voice. His hands were long and clean, hands that hadn't been ravaged by rough work. And his teeth, skin, physique... if the gap-toothed pirate was what a pirate should look like, then this young man didn't look like a pirate at all, but rather more like a monk.

The key feature is his eyes; they are cold and deep-set eyes.

Their eyes met, and Kalman avoided the other's gaze, explaining to himself: "If I didn't have some skills, how could I become a pirate captain at such a young age?"
Under the scrutinizing gaze of the other party, Kalman and Poker both lowered their heads. Just as Kalman mustered up the courage to say something...

"You can go now." The pirate leader waved his hand at his men. "Let them go." The other pirates looked reluctant, but upon hearing the young pirate's order, they handed the reins back to the master and servant and made way for them.

Kalman mounted his horse in disbelief, hastily tipped his hat to the pirate captain, and led his old servant away at breakneck speed. The two men kept looking back as they ran, fearing pursuers.

"I know what you're worried about." After watching the two strangers walk away, the pirate leader said to his men, "But we are not pirates."

……

Kalman and Poker didn't dare slow down their horses at all, urging them to gallop back to Red Pine Manor.

He strictly ordered his old servant not to tell anyone what happened today, and seeing how frightened Poker was, even without his order, Poker dared not tell anyone.

The gentle Mrs. Kalman noticed that her husband seemed preoccupied after returning home, but since Kalman wouldn't say anything, she didn't press him further.

Even after returning home, the feeling of having his life in someone else's hands still left Karaman with lingering fear. He summoned the manor's captain of guards, inquired about any unusual events that had occurred near the manor recently, and repeatedly instructed him to be vigilant against pirates.

The captain of the guard nodded in agreement, but inwardly he didn't quite believe it. Pirates, at most, would rob people on the road; they wouldn't dare attack a guarded plantation.

As darkness fell completely, the Red Pine Manor also drifted into slumber.

After finding and cleaning his matchlock gun and dagger, Karaman blew out the candle and climbed into bed.

"Why did you take the gun out again?" Mrs. Karaman said uneasily, and couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong with you today? You seem restless since you came back."

“I ran into the council’s grain requisition team today, and they were full of pirates.” Karaman sighed. “With war raging outside, our home isn’t safe either.”

"Sleep, sleep." Mrs. Karaman didn't know what to do either, so she could only hold her husband's hand and drift off to sleep.

Unbeknownst to Mrs. Karaman, who was fast asleep, a small group of men was lying in wait outside Red Pine Manor, ready to strike.

Originally, the three warrant officers believed that as one of the two pillars of the Federation, the plantation owners must have plantations with high walls and deep moats on the outside and elite private soldiers on the inside, making them heavily guarded and impregnable.

However, according to the intelligence brought back by Bard and Andrei, who were in charge of reconnaissance, the plantation's defenses were utterly inadequate, so weak that the three warrant officers found it laughable.

The outer wall was just a wooden fence less than a person high, and Bad and Andrei counted again and again but couldn't find a sixth guard with weapons.

Winters led the remnants of Veneta's army in an ambush outside the manor for half a day but no patrols came. It seemed that there was only one dog guarding the night.

“I don’t think there are any night patrols here,” Andrei said in a low voice. “There are only five guards; they can’t possibly schedule night shifts.”

Winters hadn't expected the famous plantation's defenses to be so lax. He had gone to great lengths to devise a detailed raid plan, and he found it both infuriating and laughable.

"Let's do it." Winters gave one last instruction: "The plan remains the same. If anyone resists, kill them on the spot. But the owner's family must live."

Bard shot the arrow, which was bound with poisoned flesh, at the Night Watch.

The night guard barked a few times before starting his feast.

After a while.

The night guards at Red Pine Manor are still lively and energetic.

Andrei, his voice low with anger, cursed Gold: "[Using profanity] Didn't you say this trick was particularly effective?"

“It works! It really does! But I’ve always used rat poison before, I’ve never used poisonous mushrooms before,” Gold replied, feeling wronged.

Andrei turned his gun on Bader again: "What's going on? Didn't you say those mushrooms were extremely poisonous?"

Bard sighed, stood up, drew his bow to its fullest extent, and shot down the night guard of Red Pine Manor.

"Why didn't you just do this earlier?" Andrei said angrily, "What have we been doing lying on the ground for so long?"

"Isn't it you who wanted to use poison? Get down to business." Winters said helplessly, "Don't let anyone escape."

Bard and his men stood guard outside to prevent anyone from escaping, while Winters and Andrei led the remaining men into the guards' quarters.

After swiftly dispatching the five guards, the Venetta soldiers lit torches and brazenly stormed into the main house.

Kalman was awakened by footsteps downstairs, but before he could do anything, the bedroom door was kicked open and several men carrying scimitars and torches rushed in.

The firelight blinded Kalman, but the other man laughed and shouted, "Sir, what a coincidence! The sparrow we released has flown back into our hands."

……

Kalman, the owner of Red Pine Manor, was brought before Winters. Glaring at the pirate captain before him, Kalman asked angrily, "You followed me here, didn't you?"

Winters shook his head: "No, we originally came to find the owner of Red Pine Manor."

“So it turns out our family was doomed.” Kalman seemed drained of all his strength, and looked much older: “Money, jewelry, food, you can take whatever you want, but please don’t hurt my family.”

“No, I’m not here to rob you.” Winters sheathed his scimitar. “You’re a doctor, right? I’m here to ask you to save someone and to ask you some questions. If you grant me two requests, your family, your estate, and your money will all be safe.”

“There are many good doctors in Red Sulfur Harbor, why come to me? I am a manor owner in a remote place, what do you have to ask me? You…” Kalman suddenly understood. The blue accent, the appearance that did not resemble a pirate, the strange grain requisition team, he understood, he understood everything.

Kalman's eyes widened, his pupils contracted sharply, and his trembling right finger pointed at Winters' nose: "You...you...you're a Venetian...you're a Venetian officer..."

Winters nodded slightly: "Winters Montagne, Commander of the 100th Company, Chief Battalion, Grand Vinnetta Legion. It's a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Kalman."

Thank you to all the readers who voted for the book, especially writersblocks, unknown name, and Yuan Hongjian. Thank you everyone.

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(End of this chapter)