kingdom of nations

Chapter 27 Wolves and Jackals (Part )
Now, Count Etienne and his entourage each had to face a dozen mouths with sharp teeth, dozens of howls, and hundreds of flickering eyes. It was not that they were not brave, nor were they afraid of death, but humans always had an innate aversion to these apostles of the devil.

If the count could turn back time, he would rather go back to the Holy Cross Castle of King Alaska and accept the challenge of those young knights, one on one or one on ten. It would be more noble to die under the spear of a Christian than to die in the mouths of these beasts.

The most hateful thing is that if someone was wearing armor or chain mail, he could try to rush out of here, ride out on horseback to report the news. Even if he couldn't find the people, or found the people but they were unwilling to rescue them, he could at least collect their bodies and anoint them with holy oils, so that they would not be harmed by the devil and be sent to hell for not performing the last sacraments!

But who caused their ship to run aground? Although their lives were not in danger and they had brought out horses, wine and some food, their bodies were soaked in sea water. Several servants who were about to be promoted were wearing chain mail (they had been wearing chain mail in order to get used to its weight as soon as possible), but they were worried that the chain mail would get damp and rust, so they took it off, oiled it, and hung it on a branch nearby.

The same is true for monks and knights wearing leather armor and armor.

These beasts, called the devil's servants, are so smart that they seem to know that once humans put on armor, they will be helpless. So from the very beginning, they dispatched some strong members to prevent them from getting and wearing armor.

And as for the horses, if they hadn't tied them together, the frightened horses would have run away in all directions long ago. Now it is not known whether this is a good thing or a bad thing.

Wolves and jackals are very familiar with this large deer-like animal. They carefully shuttle between the horses' hooves and bite the horses' tails and legs. There are also wolves that are good at jumping. With the help of their companions, they jump onto the horse's back and bite the horse's neck, causing it to bleed.

They treat horses as they would treat people, trying their best to make them fall. Once they fall, the main force of the wolf pack will immediately divert their attention and change their hunting targets, because by then, the horses will no longer have the possibility of fighting back or escaping.

There were also wolves and jackals that were trampled by horses' hooves or thrown off their horses because they failed to react in time, but this sacrifice was completely worth it.

Count Etienne heard two consecutive howls. He glanced quickly and saw a servant being dragged away by a wolf. The other voice sounded very much like that of a monk in their team. In a flash, the wolf had bitten his sword. The wolf's teeth rubbed against the steel, making a squeaking sound. Even if the sword blade cut his tongue and gums, it would not let go.

For the first time, the Count stared into a pair of living wolf eyes at such a close distance. The wolf's eyes were yellow-brown, with huge pupils. Count Etienne hoped it was an illusion. He seemed to see an endless abyss and burning coals in them. Hell, it's hell! He shouted in his heart.

"Please help me, Lord Jesus, please save me!" He shouted at the top of his lungs, but the people here had exhausted their strength. The wolves and jackals had cut them apart, ensuring that there was only one person in each area who was surrounded and attacked by them.

"If this is God's will!" Count Étienne cried frantically, "Please protect me, Saint Pelagius! Protect your apostles, protect your followers! Saint Pelagius!"

He called upon the name of the saint whom he had visioned, who had discovered the tomb of St. James in the ninth century, and a shield which had been held by an angel and which was later venerated by the Roman Church as the Shield of St. Pelagius, and which was said to protect mankind from all evil spirits.

As the earl prayed, a scorching flame suddenly rose from under his feet. It first pierced the wolves' noose like a spear, and then suddenly opened up, covering everyone. The knights and monks reacted quickly. They fought hard to repel the wolves in front of and around them, and rushed towards the earl. The flames illuminated their faces and hands, setting some wolves and jackals on fire, but did not hurt humans at all.

But at the same time, Count Etienne felt a burst of weakness bursting from deep within his body. "I can't get better." He whispered. Even if a knight helped him onto the horse's back, he couldn't hold the reins or step on the stirrups. He knew that he would definitely not be able to leave today. He only hoped that his nephew, or perhaps others, could escape. "Please apply oil to me." His eyes were red and he couldn't see anything clearly. He could only grope for the people around him.

He felt his hand being held firmly by another person. "Praise Jesus Christ!" he said, but instead of rubbing him with oil, he took the sword from his hand. Another pair of hands took it from him. Someone sighed, and then a few fingers wiped his forehead. The count took a deep breath. He was about to ask the monk to rub oil for others, but he felt his knees half-kneeling on the ground trembling. He felt strange because he had no fear in his heart, but he immediately thought of a possibility.

This is the vibration coming from the horse's hooves hitting the ground, one of the most familiar touches for knights!

He raised his head, and although he couldn't see the scene clearly, he could hear the people around him cheering, someone came to rescue them!
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Geoffrey's previous behavior did not meet Cesar's approval. Although he had received the favor of the Knight Templar, his conscience always tormented his heart, which did not belong to this era. However, these complicated feelings immediately dissipated in the howling wind after Geoffrey knelt down for the fifth time, recited the Lord's Prayer, and asked his beloved Saint Erastus for guidance.

"Thank Jesus Christ! Thank Saint Erastus!" The old knight stood up and shouted excitedly, "We found them, we found them!" He immediately jumped on his horse and rushed forward like an arrow. His speed was so fast, faster than a bird, and behind him, there was no one who held him back, not even Cesar, who had only practiced riding for a few months.

Of course, he couldn't ride the pony Castor given to him by Baldwin this time. It would be a fine and majestic horse in the future, but in this kind of weather, to gallop day and night, he would need a strong adult Peshmerga or Marwari horse.

Cesar was riding a Peshmerga horse, which was sent by the Gerard family as a return gift for the bucket and mop after they heard that he was leaving the castle. The horse had shiny dark brown fur, and only its hooves and tail were white. It was certainly not comparable to Castor, but Cesar liked it at first sight.

As for how the horse came to like Cesar, it was, of course, because Cesar had given him all his share of fruits, vegetables, and candy without hesitation. Riding a full-grown horse feels completely different from riding a pony, and the feeling of a galloping horse is also very different from that of a leisurely walk. Back when people still needed riders to deliver messages, it was common to see horses exhausted after long journeys, and riders nearing death—this was because a person couldn't sit on a galloping horse unless they were willing to break every bone in their body.

Cesar's teacher was Baldwin, who taught Cesar that when a horse is galloping, you can't say to yourself, "I am riding a horse." You should say to yourself, "I am standing on a small boat." Your feet should be firmly on the stirrups, ensuring that you are as stable on the horse's back as an anchor. Your knees should be bent, rising and falling with the horse's motion like waves. Your hands should hold the reins tightly, just like a sailor pulling the rope of the sail. Only in this way can you steer this spiritual boat through hurricanes and rainstorms instead of being swallowed by them.

And in these few days, Cesar truly felt how precious this teaching was - although these may not be Baldwin's original words, but he borrowed the words of his previous martial arts teacher (this person may even be Raymond, Count of Tripoli or Amalric I himself).

In the beginning, he was a bit clumsy, and his legs were often injured due to collisions and friction. If it weren't for the fact that his body didn't look like an ordinary boy's... in other words, it had great strength, healed quickly, and had little pain sensitivity, he would have been abandoned by the Templars because he couldn't move.

Geoffrey had not liked him from the beginning.

It was not until he tried to ride a horse according to Baldwin's instructions that he truly felt the excitement and joy of riding a horse. The little grudges between him and the horse disappeared without a trace, and they had a tacit understanding like one person. Although he and the horse were walking on land, it was like passing through the rolling waves, and the wind was the invisible tide - he even caught up with Geoffrey and followed closely behind him, and he also saw the fire that seemed to be extinguished at any time.

He heard Geoffrey calling out the name of his saint, and he rushed towards the fire like a heavy hammer hitting the iron net of hell. His horse threw his head forward, lowered his ears, and with a great leap he plunged into the heart of the wolves.

Cesar also saw it, but he was not panicked. He had participated in several hunting trips before. As long as people were on horses, medium-sized beasts such as wolves and jackals could not pose a threat to them. On the contrary, even if the horses were not trained, they would subconsciously trample, kick and bite them.

He grabbed the reins, raised his body, and told the horse to raise its front hooves and stomp down hard. This time, he hit the chest of a big wolf. It died with a wail. Cesar only felt a slight bump. The horse snorted and turned around in the field, shaking its body constantly.

Two sergeants and a retainer arrived shortly afterward, finally tipping the precarious balance between wolves, jackals, and humans. However, unlike the leader wolf's expectations, the scales didn't tilt toward one side of the pack, but toward the other. Hidden in the darkness, he assessed the power of humans against the strength of the wolves, even though the favor bestowed upon Count Etienne by Saint Pelagius had already run out...

The original goal could no longer be achieved, it raised its head and let out a long howl, and the wolves' offensive suddenly slowed down. The experienced old wolf even abandoned its opponent, picked up the jackal corpse on the ground, and ran quickly into the darkness. The other wolves followed suit, and the jackals also realized that something was wrong. The leader jackal roared angrily, but could do nothing.

The beast left a pile of corpses on the ground and left without hesitation. Count Etienne and his companions, who survived the disaster, fell to the ground one after another, their hands and feet trembling and their heads dizzy. Only the Count walked towards the Knights Templar with the help of his servants.

"Hail to the valiant knights!" he gasped. "I thank you, for if it had not been for you and your squire (who could now see more clearly), we would all be lost!"

"Thank God, thank the Virgin Mary, thank Their Son, and thank my patron saint, Saint Erastus. Without their blessings, we would not be able to find you, let alone help you!" Geoffrey scanned the battlefield to make sure there was no cowardly bastard here, and finally his gaze stopped on the guide.

"King Amalric I of Alazarus heard that your ship had suffered a shipwreck, so he sent us to find you." He said to Count Etienne. Of course, this statement was highly doubtful. There were countless ships that had suffered shipwrecks. Even if there were other survivors who found villages or cities elsewhere and told the story, and a messenger immediately went to report to Amalric I, it would take at least ten days to go back and forth. How could they be found so quickly?

But since the Templar said so - the guide also realized that this might be his only chance to escape. He hid behind the monk and slowly moved towards the dark place where he would not attract other people's attention. But just when he was about to walk out, he heard a "ding-dong" sound.

A gold coin fell and landed on a broken dagger. The sound was loud and crisp, and everyone heard it.

Everyone looked over subconsciously. The guide looked at them in horror. He instinctively grasped his purse filled with gold coins. It had been firmly tied to his belt and hidden under his leather armor. However, because it had been constantly bitten and scratched by wolves and jackals before, even the toughest calfskin could not hold out and it cracked into several pieces - the gold coins before were just the beginning. Now, as long as the guide moved, these golden little guys would fall down continuously.

Count Etienne's monk took the initiative and picked up a few gold coins that had fallen at his feet before the guide could. He weighed them and examined them. They were Roman gold coins commonly used in Alaska, each weighing about 4 grams today. As we've said before, Roman gold coins were enough for a knight to buy all his gear - in any case, a guide shouldn't have such a large fortune...

He looked at the guide and slowly grasped the hammer handle. The guide stepped back in fear, dropping more gold coins, but where could he escape to?

No one noticed that the guide's eyes were changing from fear to ferocity, and no one expected that when he shrugged his shoulders, bent his knees, and acted cowardly, he was actually gathering momentum and lunging towards Count Etienne with one side of his body!

(End of this chapter)