Mount & Blade: Rebuilding Rome from Mercenaries

"Listen up, you people outside! I challenge your leader to a duel, and the winner takes all!"

The pirate captain, stubbornly resisting, hid in a civilian house with his confidants, hoping to turn the tide through a duel.

Oh? Another duel invitation?

"【The Aspiring Swordsman】I'm just one point away from leveling up. If I defeat him, my ability will level up again!" Tankred raised an eyebrow slightly.

However, after waiting for a long time, the system notification still did not appear!

"You pirate, trying to outsmart me?" Tankred thought with a cold laugh.

"I am the leader of the mercenary group, and I accept your duel! Come out, and I'll have the others step back!"

As he spoke, he quickly made several subtle hand gestures to old John.

Old John's eyes sharpened, and he immediately nodded to the mercenaries without making a sound. Soon, the mercenaries deliberately made pacing noises while gripping their bows and crossbows, quietly aiming them at the door.

"No, how can I be sure you're not playing tricks? Swear on your honor, swear on your gods!" the pirate captain persisted.

""

Tancred's tone was solemn, with a touch of fanaticism and piety, as if he were truly a believer who valued honor and loved God.

If he hadn't taken off the crossbow from his back...

The pirate captain behind the door fell silent, seemingly weighing the weight of the oath. After a moment, he finally spoke again:

"Very well, I believe you. Tell your men to back off further, I'm coming out!"

After hearing another clatter of armor from the mercenary group (actually, they were just standing still), the bolt on the stone house door finally clicked open.

"Bang!"

The wooden door was kicked open, and with a loud roar, the pirates pounced out like hungry wolves.

What duel? It was clearly a desperate last stand by the cunning pirate captain and his last few henchmen. If Tancred had truly upheld his promise of a "fair duel," he would probably have been hacked to pieces by the pirates by now!

However, Tancred disappointed the pirates; instead of a devout knight, they were greeted by a low hum of machinery.

"Bang! Bang bang!"

The crossbows and bows, poised to fire, unleashed a torrent of arrows. At such close range, the bolts effortlessly tore through the pirates' armor, carving deep into their flesh. The pirates at the forefront screamed and collapsed to the ground, pinned to the muddy earth.

The pirate captain shielded his trusted men in front of him, and seeing that the situation was not good, he reached out to close the door and escape back into the house.

But the quick-thinking Tankred wouldn't give him the chance; his crossbow bolt hadn't been fired yet, but was waiting specifically for this cunning leader.

"bass!"

The Unstoppable Force feat activated, and the crossbow bolt swiftly pierced the pirate captain's chainmail, pinning his entire right shoulder blade firmly to the door panel. The scimitar in his hand clattered to the ground.

"Ah~ You despicable! Shameless Norman bastard!" The pirate captain's face contorted in pain as he cursed, his words filled with filth and curses directed at Tancred. "You swore an oath! Your gods will punish you! You have broken your promise, your soul will howl in the fires of hell..."

Tankred calmly tossed aside his crossbow, took a heavy one-handed battle axe from the mercenary beside him, and walked toward the cursing pirate captain.

"You cunning foxes, predatory northern jackals, bandits in disguise! You steal others' gold coins, plunder their homes, and then gild them with lies! You are demons from hell, the most despicable blasphemers!"

Tancred stopped in front of him, weighed the axe in his hand, and his gray-blue eyes showed no anger, only a smugness from being praised:

"You're absolutely right, Mr. Pirate!"

"That's how we Normans are!"

The single-handed axe slashed in an arc and landed precisely on the pirate captain's neck.

「叮！你用单手斧击杀了【海贼首领】，单手武器熟练度+8（31→39），个人经验+100，当前等级Lv6（42/500），可用属性点 2」

Cheers of relief erupted from the caravan camp. Many civilians and servants knelt on the ground, making the sign of the cross on their chests, and thanking God for His protection with tears streaming down their faces.

"I was the one who saved them!" Tankred said with a helpless shrug.

There was no way around it; after all, these medieval people genuinely believed in the existence of God.

Fortunately, the system's text appeared before his eyes, bringing him more tangible comfort:

"Ding! You have wiped out the pirates, protected the caravan, and earned the respect of the caravan members. Your personal prestige +10 (-110 → -100)"

Sure, as long as the benefits are right!

Amidst Old John's rough shouts, the survivors began clearing the battlefield, tending to the wounded, and moving the corpses. Bashir, along with his few recruits who had shed much of their naiveté, began skillfully stripping the pirates of their spoils.

The recruits were lucky; apart from two unlucky ones who were hit by stray arrows while chasing the pirates, the rest of them were unharmed.

After a while, the remaining caravan guards helped each other as they struggled down from the stone tower. Only six of them were still breathing, two of whom were seriously injured and were being carried by their companions on makeshift stretchers.

A young guard with brown curly hair was pushed forward by his companion and walked toward Tankred.

"So you're the newly chosen leader?" Tankred asked first from afar.

He already knew about the caravan guards' ordeal from Bashir.

Despite suffering such a heavy blow, the guards held out against the pirates' fierce attack until reinforcements arrived. Their resilience and professionalism impressed Tankred deeply.

Most importantly, after last night's bloodshed and fire, Tankred was certain that the remaining caravan guards were definitely not Giscard's men. Taking advantage of the fact that these elite guards were leaderless, Tankred couldn't help but consider recruiting them.

"Yes, Commander Tankred, my name is Henry," Henry straightened his back to appear more confident. "After the captain's unfortunate death, they elected me as the new leader. Thank you for saving me; I'm truly sorry to have made you laugh."

"‘Only those who persevere to the end will be saved,’ this is the Lord’s teaching in the New Testament. Your experience is not a disgrace, Captain Henry, but rather a glory before God. The Lord will not forget those who hold on in dire straits, those who dare to fight in the face of death!"

Henry was genuinely surprised by Tancred's fluent recitation of these religious classics, given his Knowledge 14.

He glanced back at his companions, then at Tankred, took a deep breath as if he had made up his mind:

"Commander Tanker, what are your mercenary group's next plans?"

"Of course, we will fulfill the contract and escort the caravan back to Aversa safely," Tancred replied flawlessly, pretending not to understand him.

"You know that's not what I meant, Commander Tancred," Henry shook his head helplessly, "Our leader was good to us, but he's gone. We have to find a way for ourselves and for our fallen brothers. We saw how you led your troops, how you fought, and how you treated your men. So..."

"If your 'Conteville Mercenary Group' is still willing to accept veterans who can wield a sword, we...would like to follow you in the future."

Awesome!

Tankred was overjoyed, and the system notification gave him a double surprise:

「叮！你成功地用诺曼人的方式获得了商队护卫的好感，魅力+5（20→25），个人经验+5，当前等级Lv6（47/500），可用属性点 2」

"Ding! Your charm has reached 25. You can choose one of the following traits:"

[Diplomat]: You reduce the other party's goodwill loss when negotiations fail (negotiation penalty -15%).

[Initiating Conversation]: When you first encounter the lord and introduce yourself, there is a 10% chance to directly increase their favorability slightly.

"Add a point! [Take the initiative to start a conversation]!"

Tancred judged that he would soon be in contact with the Norman lords, and it was very important to make a better first impression on them!

With a tremor, Tancred felt that he had gained some new ability to read people's expressions. He could tell whether a person liked or disliked a certain sentence or thing by observing some micro-expressions.

In other words, the increased charisma doesn't mean you've brainwashed others, but rather that you've improved something like your "emotional intelligence," making it easier to gain their favor.

That makes perfect sense!

Tankred watched the busy figures of the mercenary group members, and thought about the equipment he had captured after this battle, and he was overjoyed.

What a rewarding day!

Why do I always feel like I've overlooked someone?

Tankred turned his head and glanced at the luxurious carriage in the caravan.

"Mr. Isaac, I think we need to settle some accounts!"