Chapter 26: Chivalric Literature and the Bastards Part 1

After seeing off Baron Volpen and Sir Werner, who were heading to Carlton Village, Keldric set off on his journey again.

It was a short distance from Yalta to Belam, his destination.

Although he would have to camp outdoors for a day, Keldric didn’t mind.

He had already traveled four and a half days by horse from Carlton Village to Schafendorf, so this was no challenge for him.

Compared to the country roads where snow had been only partially cleared, the cobbled roads, packed hard, had been cleared of snow or had melted away, soaking into the earth.

This showed that many people passed through the area.

Keldric, Alyssa, and Jorgen’s mercenary band, the Nussan Ram, walked along this path.

When night fell, they camped at a spot with enough snow cleared, and by early morning, they had already been walking for quite a while.

At just before noon, Keldric gazed in awe at the city he saw in the distance.

On a slightly lower hill, a city surrounded by walls and spires stretched out before him.

Not wanting to walk further, Keldric stopped Boreas, and Jorgen, who had also halted his horse, spoke to him.

“That is Belam.”

If Bogenberg was a bridge connecting the tundra and the Empire’s center, Belam was the cradle of the north.

In the eternally cold tundra where snow fell year-round, many people gathered, seeking opportunity and refuge in the city.

“Still, we got here quickly.”

“Thanks to the wizard, of course.”

“What do you mean, thanks to me? It’s because of Sir Keldric.”

As Jorgen and Alyssa continued their conversation, Keldric stood transfixed, staring at the city walls of Belam.

The walls were massive, with conical-roofed spires at each corner.

It looked so sturdy that even with siege weapons, it seemed impossible to breach.

The cradle of the tundra, existing even before the founding of the Empire, gave Keldric a sense of satisfaction beyond his expectations.

“Are there two outer walls?”

“Yes, though there’s only one moat.”

Keldric nodded.

To dig two moats around such a large city would be a monumental project, and if the ground was weak, the results could be unpredictable.

“Still, a city this size probably hasn’t fallen before.”

“Haha… I thought so too, at first. But I’ve heard it’s fallen twice since it was built.”

Seeing the grandeur of Belam, Keldric understood the worry of Baron Volpen, who had been troubled by a lack of iron.

For a city of that size, iron was an essential resource, and without it, chaos would likely follow.

Keldric momentarily pushed his thoughts on Belam aside.

He just wanted to unpack before nightfall and have a hearty meal.

“Is there a good inn?”

“That depends on how much money you have. If you have enough, you’ll get the best experience.”

Indeed, the inns in Belam were far superior to those in a small village.

Keldric nodded as he listened to Jorgen’s words.

“By the way, Sir Keldric, will you be staying at an inn?”

To his surprise, it was Alyssa who asked.

Keldric looked at her with a puzzled expression.

“What do you mean?”

“There’s a Sir Hermann of the Kassel family staying in the city. If he knows you’ve arrived, he’ll probably invite you.”

Keldric nodded at Alyssa’s words.

She was right.

A knight assigned by their lord to oversee a city would be expected to welcome other knights visiting the city, as it was a matter of honor and courtesy.

Even a wandering knight like Keldric adhered to such principles.

When visiting another’s house, the guest must be respectful, and the host should offer proper hospitality.

Alyssa’s suggestion that they could expect a suitable reception, if not Hermann’s lavish hospitality, seemed reasonable.

“And you two?” Keldric asked.

“We’ll stay at the inn, of course. You should…”

“I’ll stay with Sir Keldric. After all, I’ll need to speak to Sir Hermann about this mission.”

In that sense, it surprised Keldric that Sir Hermann would treat Alyssa as a guest, given her origins as a fallen noble.

But it seemed that she wasn’t disliked by Sir Hermann.

“Then let’s go,” Keldric said, urging his horse forward.

Their first stop on the long journey was now within reach.

Keldric shifted his gaze to follow Jorgen’s finger.

Right next to the city, on a small hill, there was a house nestled among the trees.

“What’s that place?”

“That’s where the executioner lives. All three soldiers became the executioner’s victims and disappeared there.”

Keldric was lost for words.

It was one thing that the soldiers had beaten up a noble like a dog on a hot day, but he couldn’t understand why a knight, who had been beaten up in the first place, was knocking on the gate in his underwear at midnight.

“I heard he was drunk and went out hunting in the middle of the day. In the process…”

Before the attendants could catch up, the knight had wandered all over the forest, and so drunk that he drank as if he was gulping from a barrel.

In the end, the knight, too intoxicated to stand, threw off all his armor because it was too heavy and arrived at the gate while still mounted on his horse, according to Jorgen’s explanation.

“That’s just…”

Keldric, who was about to say something, was left speechless, his mouth opening and closing but no words coming out.

It was so absurd that he didn’t even know what to say.

“It must have been a thunderstrike.”

“I dare say… yes. For the soldiers, it was a complete thunderbolt.”

From the soldiers’ point of view, it was truly unfair.

They had only tried to chase a drunken man away.

But that drunk man wasn’t just any ordinary person.

In the dark yard, his face wasn’t even visible, and he was barely able to speak.

Of course, they had to grab their clubs.

But, who would have known that the drunk man was a knight?

“Anyway, it seems like the soldiers are on edge because of that incident. It wouldn’t hurt to be cautious.”

“Mm…”

Keldric looked sympathetically at the gatekeepers who were leading Jorgen and the mercenaries into the city.

Keldric was unusually merciful, while most knights were still terribly violent.

It was rare for knights to wander freely like Keldric, but there was a chance he might come across other knights a few more times in the future.

Keldric hoped that the soldiers wouldn’t end up on the executioner’s block as he urged Boreas into the city.

Upon entering the city, Keldric was immediately summoned to the castle without having a chance to take in his surroundings.

It wasn’t that he was urgently called, nor was it in an impolite manner, but Keldric couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed.

“I wanted to take a look around the city.”

“You’ll have time tomorrow. Lord Hermann won’t hold you up for long.”

Keldric glanced down at Alyssa, walking beside him.

She didn’t mind staying at the castle due to Lord Hermann’s consideration, but now that she was being summoned before him, her expression clearly showed she wasn’t keen on it.

That said, it wasn’t that she thought Lord Hermann was unpleasant.

According to Jorgen, Lord Hermann was a decent knight.

There was a slight difference between being a decent person and a decent knight, but from Jorgen’s point of view, he had seemed respectable.

“What kind of person is Lord Hermann?”

Since Jorgen wasn’t familiar with Lord Hermann, it was only natural that Keldric would ask Alyssa.

Alyssa glanced at him and then sighed softly.

“Lord Hermann… He’s a fine man. He doesn’t have much friction with the city council, and he works hard to keep Belam running. He doesn’t do anything that would make the citizens upset.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. But…”

Alyssa trailed off, her tone filled with some unease.

Keldric unconsciously swallowed.

He had a feeling that meeting a knight with such a troublesome personality might not be a pleasant experience.

“But?”

“…It’s hard to explain.”

“Even a simple explanation would be fine.”

“Keldric, do you have a book you enjoy reading?”

Alyssa’s question was unexpected in that context.

Keldric, with a confused expression, recalled a few of the books he had read from the Bellaf family library.

They were mostly dull and boring, but among them, there were a couple that were somewhat interesting.

“I think I enjoyed ‘Gerhilt of Caldren’.”

“Then there’s no problem.”

Alyssa still spoke cryptically.

However, before Keldric had a chance to question her, the two of them had already arrived at the outer keep where the regent resided.

As they were led inside, a servant knocked on the door, and a hearty voice came from within.

“Bring them in!”

The door opened, and Keldric was finally face to face with Lord Hermann, whom he had only heard about.

“Oh! The famous Keldric of the Bellaf family, I’ve heard so much about you!”

“Welcome! I am Hermann of the honorable Kassel family!”

Lord Hermann, wearing a feathered hat, had the body of a knight well-practiced in physical training.

He had a well-built physique and a decent size, not quite comparable to Keldric’s, but still very much the body of a knight.

However, it didn’t take long for Keldric to understand why Alyssa had been wary of Lord Hermann.

“Lord Keldric! I’ve heard of your heroic adventures from your lord!”

“Oh… really?”

“You shouldn’t underestimate the speed of messengers! You’ve done legendary deeds! You killed a rock troll with your bare hands?”

Although rumors had distorted the story, it was true that Keldric had indeed killed a rock troll with his bare hands.

Keldric, taken aback, nodded, and Lord Hermann’s eyes gleamed as he looked at Keldric.

“Let’s sit down and talk. It’s uncomfortable to stand and talk, isn’t it? And someone, bring me a scribe!”

“No, I…”

“Come now, don’t be shy. Let me pour you some wine. Alyssa, come and sit as well!”

Once Keldric was seated, he looked around the room and was amazed at the rows of books.

‘Gerhilt of Caldren, The Bearded Knight and the Sword, The Lady and Knight of Santiago…’

All the books on the shelves were knightly literature.

There was no other kind of book to be found.

“Could you tell me more about your honorable stories, something akin to knightly literature?”

Keldric looked at Lord Hermann, who was staring at him expectantly, with a rather uncomfortable expression.

Lord Hermann seemed to be addicted to knightly literature.