"Protect the Pope!" a dozen knights besieged the city, centered on Pope Constance, who seemed to be alone. Bode secretly felt bad in his heart, these dozen or so people gathered together, but it was easy for each other to surround them.

The cavalry of the Knights from the north charged with battle axes in hand, and Pod fended off the blow with his shield and disemboweled the leather-clad East Vigian cavalry with a backhand. On a small slope not far away, a dozen crossbowmen did not stop their arrows, and a dozen knights trapped by the campfire raised their shields to defend. Several knights had crossbow bolts in their shins and arms, but all of them stood stubbornly.

From his shield, Bode saw that there were at least fifty enemies around. The other party kept rushing up, and was cut down at the feet of the well-equipped noble knights. A dead northerner fell headfirst to the ground, and Constance in the middle saw it and couldn't help but scream in horror.

"The False Pope is there!" shouted the enemy, and they rushed up. Several horsemen cut off their cavalry spears and kept poking into the gaps in the duke's guard's shield wall. In an instant, several knights were already covered in color.

"Fill the vacancy, Bird!" shouted Duke Wackwood. A knight could not support himself with too much blood to support him, and he fell to the ground, and a crossbow that had already been aimed at him killed him in an instant. Two enemies pounced, and the Duke slammed his shield at the approaching enemy, piercing the other with a single sword that didn't have time to stop.

"My lord, we can't escape if we go on like this. Pod said to Duke Wickwood.

"What do you want to do?" said Duke Wickwood helplessly, looking at the swarming enemies.

"Spread out. In a mess, the two adults took the opportunity to take the Pope to escape on horseback, and the rest of the people could only be left behind. The opposing team dismounted. ”

"Whew!" said Duke Wykewood slashed down an enemy with a sword. He said, "That's easier to be caught! I'm with the Duke of Savallon, and you take the Pope away!"

Bodelen paused for a moment and said, "What, my lord?"

"There's no time to talk nonsense with you right now. Between the huge ransom for the captives and the capture of the Pope, the other side can only choose one. Disperse first, then assemble. Duke Wickwood approached Duke Savaron and spoke briefly. Then move to Bod's side.

"In the stables, there are the deserters' horses. Obey my commands!Three, two, one! Disperse!"

"Whew!" the dozen or so surviving people scattered. Fighting with a suddenly overwhelmed enemy blocked the path of the knights' riders. Duke Wakewood grabbed Constance's slender arm and rushed to the stables. Disgusted and dizzy from the bloody battle, Constance was at their mercy.

"Your Majesty, let's split up, you and Bode wait all the way. We're the other way. ”

"What...... What?" Constance looked at Bode. "And this person?"

"Are you crazy to entrust the Pope's crown to such a mercenary?" was taken aback by Duke Savallon, who thought it was a knight in charge of escorting the Pope.

"We go with Her Majesty and we only make the target more enticing. A knight can survive if he is captured, but a mercenary cannot. He is more capable than a knight, and now one can only count on him. Bode, you know what happens to you if you fail...... What happened to Virginia. ”

"Yes, sir. ”

"Nope. I refuse. Constance said.

"There's no time to argue now, Your Majesty. Duke Wickwood said.

"That'...... So what should I do?" said the Bishop of Berlitz.

"Your Excellency. You can only be martyred for the Lord. "Duke Wickwood said maliciously that the election was over, and that the Bishop was useless.

Bode mounted his horse, and Duke Wakewood carried Constance to the back of the saddle. Constance turned away from Boy, who tried not to negotiate with her. A dozen people behind the palace had already been defeated, ten knights were splashed with blood on the spot, and the remaining few people retreated while parrying. After a few neighings, they looked back and couldn't help but hate and annoy. Their duke and the Pope, who had sworn to defend them to the death, had abandoned them and galloped away from the stables on horseback.

Constance reluctantly hugged Bode's waist and looked sideways to see that the survivors of the battlefield had already surrendered with their swords raised. Some of the knights' riders uselessly chased after them, and the rest hurried back to the distant horses. On the hillside in front of the stables was a knight-like man, yelling for the crossbowman to release his arrows. The arrows whizzed by, and among the five or six men who managed to escape, one of the knights beside Boud was shot off his horse and fell heavily to the ground.

"Open the gates!"

"Who are you?" shouted the guards at the gates to Sir Roland.

"Miss Eleanor and her retinue of Wickwood, open the gates!"

The guards at the gates had disappeared, apparently to report to the main castle and Count Varina. Sir Roland tugged at the cotton coat in his armour, and the men outside the carriage were soaked with a sudden rain a few hours earlier. Eleanor lifted the curtain and said uneasily, "Won't they let us in?"

"No, miss, it'll be fine in no time. ”

After a while, only the click of hinges was heard, and the reinforced gates were slowly pulled up. Sir Roland surveyed the castle with the eyes of a soldier. Fort Varina is as historic as Frost City, and its grey limestone castle served as a strategic point to guard the Avely Mountains before the conquest of East Vegia. The castle is as old as Frost City, but Count Varina takes great care of the castle's maintenance. Roland even felt that the gate of such a castle was stronger than the gate of the huge Frost City.

The castle was built on a hillside, and the winding road up the hill was made of stone bricks, and the down-and-out merchant in the coachman's seat complained about the crooked path of the Count of Varina, but Sir Roland knew that it was an excellent way to keep the battering ram from approaching. Down the hill is a small town, and there are many such villages and towns in Vigia under the lord's castle, most of which have developed from many years of bazaars.

At the city gate, a richly dressed lord rode out slowly, followed by a young man dressed more luxuriously. The Count of Varina had been in charge of the fur business from East Virgia for many years, and was therefore one of the few wealthy lords of West Virgia, although his fiefdom was not very rich, and above all, he was loyal to the Holy See.

"Hello, sir. I'm Roland of Wakewood. We escorted Miss Eleanor all the way from Frost City. ”

"Good work, Sir, please come in. "Count Varina looks to be in his fifties. But he is still full of blonde hair, and his figure is slightly fat. Count Varina slowly approached Roland again, poked his head out of his horse, and said, "Frost City has fallen. Pigeons are faster than you. ”

"So...... Is there any news from Lord Duke Wickwood?" Roland asked uneasily, watching Eleanor's carriage slowly drive into the castle.

"Not yet, it looks like you've escaped...... There is no news from the Pope either. ”

"The Knights will pay the price. ”

"Yes, but we have to pay for their misdeeds first. The Count of Varina pointed to the town below the castle, and Sir Roland saw it. Thousands of refugees continue to pour into the town.

"The citizens are indeed pitiful...... But they must be dispersed to other villages, or they will all starve to death in front of my castle before the Knights come. ”

"Your territory, you have the final say. My lord. Sir Rowland said.

"Damn the Knights, I must wash my sword with their blood!" said the young man beside Count Varina. Roland noticed him at this time, he looked very similar to Count Varina, and should be the heir of Count Varina.

"Matt. You should save your anger until they come. Instead of yelling in front of distinguished guests. Count Varina said.

"It's been a long time since I've heard such a refreshing word, Master Matt. Sir Roland smiled at the young man.

The young man was quite pleased with the compliment of a knight of Wickwood, and said to Roland: "The war has finally begun, and the old men of Vegia should give glory to the young man!"

"Say no more, Matt. Count Varina said.

Eleanor got out of the carriage and entered the main castle accompanied by her servants. The down-and-out merchant family in the carriage knew that something was wrong, and quietly walked out of the back door of the castle with their children in their arms, enduring the eyes of the servants in the castle.

Eleanor enters Varina Castle. He looked at the curious people in the castle with trek. The maid bowed her head and guided Eleanor into the burning stone hall. On a chair on the side of the long table. There was a girl who looked like an aristocracy.

"You may be seated...... Miss Eleanor. The girl raised her head, with a goose egg face, golden eyes under her long brown hair, and seemed to be very shy about the living.

"Thank you. The servant pulled back from her chair, and Eleanor sat down slowly, rubbing her hands, which were sore from the rain.

"Ah, sorry, I haven't introduced myself yet...... I am the daughter of Count Varina, Margaret. ”

"Hello, Miss Margaret. Eleanor was preoccupied and reluctant to negotiate more, and it seemed that Margaret was a noble lady who was not well versed in the world, and had nothing to ask.

The Earl of Varina and Sir Roland entered the hall talking to each other, intermingling with Matt's voice. Count Varina saw Eleanor and bowed his head and kissed her outstretched hand. Matt saluted, but his eyes were fixed on Eleanor. When it was his sister Margaret's turn, Matt was much more casual.

When Eleanor saw the siblings, she couldn't help but blurt out the worry in her heart: "Lord Count Varina, have you sent a team to search for Duke Wackwood?"

"You sent out a scout team before you came, miss. Count Varina said with some embarrassment. Eleanor blushed, instantly ashamed of her recklessness.

"I beg your pardon, my lord. ”

"It's fine. After you've rested, I'll send a guard to escort you back to Wickwood. ”

"I'm going to wait for the Duke of Wickwood to arrive. Eleanor said.

"Your castle is also the first safe checkpoint from Frost City to West Virginia. Sir Roland interjected. Count Varina smiled and sat down at the top of the long table. He clapped his hands, and the servants immediately began to serve the wine.

"All right, please begin to eat and drink!" said Count Varina, holding up his glass.

"May the Lord bless the Duke!" said Eleanor, seeing that the Count of Varina was not very concerned about the Duke's whereabouts.

"May the Lord bless the Duke!" said Sir Roland, and poured a glass of wine. Matt and Margaret watched as the guests began to feast before they began. Count Varina ate and drank in silence, while Matt's eyes looked at Eleanor from time to time. Margaret was quiet, just like her father. Sir Roland was so hungry that he could not care for others, and feasted and drank with the appetite of a soldier.

"Miss Eleanor, you don't have a fiancé yet, do you?" said Count Varina coldly.

Eleanor, who was forking a piece of meat into her mouth, was startled and said, "This kind of thing...... It's still up to the Duke to decide......"

"Well, that's right, when the young lady of the duke's family got married, the dowry was not ordinary. Count Varina smiled and said, "You, like my daughter Margaret, are of the age to be married." ”

"Miss Eleanor has no intention of marrying, sir. Sir Roland sensed that something was wrong, and said.

"I'm sorry, I was abrupt. ”

"What is your young lady's plan?" said Sir Roland.

"The young lady of the aristocratic family should naturally find a good lord to add glory to the family. Count Varina said, pinching his beard.

"Father, you're thinking about how to exchange Margaret for land. Matt said unevenly, Eleanor saw it, and Margaret looked at her brother gratefully.

"A woman's destiny is to marry a good husband and teach her children. As for the land, it was necessary for marriages between nobles, you know. Count Varina reprived Matt.

Eleanor wanted to object to Count Varina's arbitrary words, but as a guest, she didn't want to disturb the atmosphere. Eleanor looked at Sir Roland pleadingly, who only shook his head slightly.

When the feast was over, Count Varina clapped his hands again, and the well-trained servants hurriedly removed the plates and wiped the table. The Earl of Varina had Margaret serve Eleanor to rest in the bedroom upstairs of the main castle, while Sir Roland was accompanied by Matt to the tower to wait for the Duke's procession. (To be continued......)