Knight and Wand

Chapter 48 Prisoners of War
Passing by the lobby, many of the women who had taken refuge in Olivia's home had already woken up.

They organized themselves spontaneously, some began to help clean up, and some left the house to prepare food for everyone.

No matter what kind of hardships and sorrows you go through, life must go on.

Leon followed Olivia into the old blacksmith's room. As soon as he entered the door, he saw the strong old man trying to get up from the bed.

"Father, you should rest more now."

Olivia frowned, looking somewhat dissatisfied and angry. She walked forward, pushed her old father back onto the couch, and covered him with the quilt again.

"Oh, I'm not that fragile, Olivia." Old Brian complained with a wry smile, but seeing his daughter's tough attitude, he had to give up.

He leaned back against the head of the bed and turned to look at Leon.

Looking at the young man wearing silver armor and carrying a sword on his waist, the old man was slightly stunned. He didn't know what he was thinking of, and his expression was full of emotion and a little sad.

"Now you are here, young man, please forgive me for being so rude and not standing up. Please sit down."

Brian propped himself up and sat up as straight as possible, bowed his head and apologized: "Before talking about anything else, let me apologize to you for my attitude and suspicion last time."

Leon waved his hand: “It’s okay, Uncle Brian, Olivia also found other suitable residences for us that day, I didn’t take this little thing to heart.”

He then said, "Besides, things are unpredictable. If you hadn't rejected our idea of ​​renting the farmhouse that day, I'm afraid that when those Kantardars attacked, most of us would have died."

Leon's words were not polite.

A blessing in disguise.

If the old blacksmith had agreed to rent them a place to live, the three of them would have not moved to the mill tower outside the village. They would have probably faced a sudden attack from the Kantadar army in the village.

By then, let alone finding an opportunity to sneak in and rescue people, they would not be able to protect themselves. It is very likely that they would die early in the chaos before the griffin's unexpected intervention.

"Let's put it this way. My unintentional behavior cannot offset my previous disrespect to you. What's more, you risked your lives to save my daughter."

When Brian said this, there was some regret in his eyes.

He looked at his daughter and said with sincere gratitude, "Olivia, you told me what happened. I really don't know how to thank you. It doesn't matter if my old bones die, but if Olivia has an accident, I will never be with you even if I go to hell."

The old blacksmith's lips trembled with excitement.

"Father, don't say such things anymore. Please cherish your life. Isn't this what you taught me?" Olivia comforted him while sitting beside the bed.

Looking at his sensible daughter, old Brian stopped his inappropriate words in time. He nodded, suppressed his emotions that were almost out of control, and gradually calmed down.

He looked at Leon again and said, “Although Selva is no longer a safe place, I can assure you that if you have no place to stay, my house will always be open to you.

If you are short of money, please don't hesitate, I will try my best to provide any help I can."

Looking at the old blacksmith whose attitude towards him suddenly changed again, Leon felt deeply moved by the love of all parents in the world.

Judging from the man's age, he estimated that he was in his fifties or close to sixty. Then considering Olivia's age, this child could be said to be a blessing in disguise for the old blacksmith.

I haven't heard that Olivia has other brothers and sisters. It seems that the only remaining child is much more important to his parents than his own life.

"No need for money, but one of my friends was injured and it seems that he really needs to recuperate in your house for a while."

Leon simply exchanged a few pleasantries and said to Olivia: “I won’t disturb Uncle Brian’s rest. I want to go see Azerien. Is he still in the original room?”

"Well, Azerien is next door. I just sent him some food. And remember to go get breakfast from Aunt Milia." The girl reminded.

After the young man politely stood up and said goodbye and left the room, Old Brian turned around and looked at his daughter with fear in his eyes. "It was a terrible nightmare. Fortunately, you are fine in the end. Whether these children admire your looks or are simply chivalrous, I can't repay them."

Olivia turned around and looked at Brian unhappily. "Father, please don't make groundless assumptions about my friends and insult their kindness. Do you think I'm a princess in a fairy tale? I'm just a country girl. I'm not worth dying for."

Old Brian opened his mouth, but in the end he could only nod, as if he just didn't want to make his daughter angry: "Well, at least it has been proven that your ability to judge people's character is more accurate than your father's."

Olivia's mood darkened. "I would rather everyone in the village survive. Uncle Matt, Grandpa Andro, Grandma Rona, and many brothers and sisters in the village are gone forever."

"It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself unnecessarily." Brian comforted.

The girl couldn't help but think: "What if all the militiamen in the village hadn't been conscripted?"

"That will only increase the number of casualties." The old blacksmith reached out and ruffled the girl's hair.

"Not everyone can be as strong as you, daughter. Besides, if even you can't protect yourself, what can we do about the young men who have been conscripted from every household in the village?

Do you expect them to defeat those ferocious Kantardar cavalry with their spears and short swords? It is better to say that they escaped the disaster by not being in the village. If they were killed, the whole village would be completely destroyed. "

"I know, father, but if, if I could become stronger..." The girl lowered her head unwillingly, looking at the sword that was always on her waist.

Brian watched his daughter staring at the hilt of the sword in a trance. He couldn't help but hesitate to speak, and finally sighed helplessly: "I will no longer stop you from learning swordsmanship. The world is getting more and more chaotic. I am old and it is difficult for me to protect you. Even a remote place like Selva is inevitably involved in the war."

As he spoke, the old blacksmith looked out the window and said, "If it doesn't work, when I recover from my injuries, I will give this house to the three young men and we will move to the north."

"How was your rest?" Leon walked into the guest room where Azerien was sleeping and greeted his companion who was having breakfast in bed.

Azerien chewed some bread and dried meat, turned around and saw Leon in full armor, his eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but joked: "Your outfit is nice, I want to get out of bed and bow to you, Lord Leon."

"That is too much for a commoner to bear, Sir Azerien." Lion leaned forward and said exaggeratedly, holding his sword.

Azerien was amused by his companion's strange etiquette, but he immediately shook his head and said, "I didn't inherit the title and territory, so I can't be called a knight. But even if I have the opportunity to take back my father's territory from the Kantardars in the future, don't be so sarcastic. It will give me goose bumps."

After experiencing so many life and death battles together, the friendship between the three of them is such that they no longer care about each other's background.

"Okay, no more jokes. How do you feel? There's a set of armor in the warehouse waiting for you to try it out." Leon moved a chair over, sat next to his partner, grabbed a piece of bread from his plate and started eating it.

"Everything else is fine. I don't feel much pain after a good sleep. But my leg was badly injured in the fall, so I can't walk for a while." Azerien replied.

"Then you should rest well these days. After saving Olivia, Uncle Brian now regards us as his benefactor. No one will chase us away anymore, and we don't have to run around anymore."

"Where's Lohak?" Azerien asked.

While chewing the bread, Leon answered casually: "He is helping the village to look after the prisoners. A knight of Cantadar survived, and we don't know what to do with him."

"Wait a minute, Knight Kantadar." When mentioning Lohak and the captives, Leon seemed to suddenly think of something.

The boy on the bed looked at him puzzledly.

Leon finished his food in no time and quickly stood up: "I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you to come with me and help me. I'll carry you over."

"That's no problem for me, but what do you want me to help you with?" Azerien put the tray on the table beside him and asked curiously.

“Do you remember the Kantardar officer who bought Lohak’s sister?”

Leon stepped forward to help his companion up and explained, "I still remember the white bird emblem on the noble officer's robe. If we are lucky, the Knight Cantadar who is under Lohak's care may know which noble family the emblem represents. You understand Uriah, so you can interrogate him carefully."

(End of this chapter)