Raymond's home was a well-located stone house in the town of Gene. The entire house was built of sturdy and attractive stone, with Ryan's family crest hanging at the entrance, symbolizing that he was one of the count's soldiers. Brightly colored flowers were planted at the door, and there was a large water basin.
Halberdier Raymond had made significant contributions in the Battle of Blackstone Keep, earning Ryan's recognition and being promoted to sergeant. His status in the army had risen accordingly. It was confirmed that during the Battle of La-Maisontaal Abbey, he was the first to spot Kemmler, giving Bertrand the opportunity to strike a fatal blow.
Yes, a fatal blow. After all, Brittany would not promote the narrative that Gohr beheaded Kemmler.
The Lady's sorceress Morgiana posthumously awarded Bertrand and Raymond the special honor of being allowed to live in stone houses.
The carriage slowly stopped in front of the house. Juan was the first to get off, followed by Ryan, who then extended his hand to help his wife Sulia down. Only after Sulia's high heels touched the ground did Ryan take a good look at Raymond's house. The count himself smiled, "This family fled from Leonasse, enduring countless hardships to reach where they are today."
"That's all thanks to your excellent leadership, my husband." Sulia looked at the clean, tidy two-story stone house, feeling very pleased. She held her husband's arm, her face full of happiness.
The large wooden door was wide open, and Raymond's family, including his elderly mother, Raymond, and his younger brother Thomas, came out to greet them, along with Sir Bertrand and his men Hugo and Guy.
"Greetings, Lord Ryan, Lady Sulia! May you be healthy, and may the Lady forever bless this blessed land." Upon seeing Ryan, everyone immediately knelt in salute.
"Good morning, everyone." Ryan nodded calmly and motioned for everyone to rise. "It's hot outside; let's go in and talk."
"Yes!"
Before sitting down to talk, Ryan and Sulia toured Captain Raymond's entire house. It seemed the house was cleaned thoroughly, knowing Ryan would visit. The family lived comfortably in the spacious two-story house. Raymond's elderly mother no longer had to do needlework for nobles and soldiers to make ends meet and instead focused on household chores. They even hired a servant. Compared to a few years ago when they fled, the old mother's health and complexion had significantly improved.
Raymond's younger brother Thomas had been sent to study at the Church of Justice under Alfred's tutelage. The young boy, just over ten years old, was healthy and ruddy-faced, wearing white linen clothes with tousled brown hair. He shyly greeted the elegant Lady Sulia and presented her with some handmade crafts from his church's workshop, like a small wooden hammer, a wooden cross, and a wooden skull.
Sulia was evidently very pleased with her influence among the people. She happily patted Thomas on the head.
"Thomas! How rude of you!" Sulia's gesture scared the old mother, who hurriedly pulled Thomas aside, ready to spank him.
How could a lowly serf be worthy of being patted on the head by someone as noble as Lady Sulia?!
"It's okay, it's okay~" Sulia quickly signaled not to do that.
After the tour, everyone sat in the dining room, where a long wooden table was set. They were to discuss matters, with Ryan and Sulia naturally seated at the head, Sylvia and Juan standing behind them, followed by Bertrand, Raymond, Hugo, Guy, and others in order.
"It seems you're doing well, Mr. Raymond?" Ryan asked after sitting down. "Haven't you thought about getting married? This house seems a bit quiet!"
"Hahahahaha~" Laughter erupted from the long table. The young sergeant looked down awkwardly. "I haven't planned on it yet, my lord. I'm still young."
"What are you laughing at, Bertrand? I remember you're not married either." Ryan turned the focus to Bertrand, making the forty-year-old knight feel embarrassed, causing another round of laughter at the table.
By making friendly inquiries and jokes, Ryan successfully strengthened his relationship with his subordinates. After some small talk, the conversation gradually turned to serious matters.
"Bertrand, Raymond, you recently investigated around the Duke of Connaught's territory, near Mousilon. Did you discover anything significant?" Ryan asked. "I need first-hand information. Tell me everything you know in detail; otherwise, I wouldn't have come to visit you."
"My lord, we found many things during our investigation of Mousilon and Leonasse." Bertrand nodded respectfully and began, "First, we noticed that the Mousilon quarantine line has been reinforced under Duke Lawn's orders."
Ryan nodded silently, knowing this was a sign of impending military action.
The Mousilon quarantine line consisted of more than twenty towers and walls, manned by less than a thousand troops, forming a barrier to isolate Mousilon's connection to the outside. These troops and towers couldn't stop a vampire army, but the knightly kingdom never intended to. The original purpose of the quarantine line established by King Taylor was to isolate vampire corruption and disease, as no one wanted another outbreak of plague.
The quarantine line's primary goal was to prevent serfs from leaving and spreading disease to other duchies. Each tower could achieve self-sufficiency through farming and grazing. Most duchies in the kingdom sent small detachments to guard two to three towers, rotating soldiers every two months. Most towers housed a knight.
"Duke Lawn ordered more troops to the quarantine line and encouraged questing knights and rangers to patrol frequently." Bertrand produced a permit signed by Duke Francois of Winford. "Of course, knights can freely pass through the quarantine line, and those with a ducal permit can also enter and exit freely. While passing through, I chatted with the guarding knights and soldiers. A bit of wine and smoked meat can easily get these bored men talking."
"Sir Bertrand clearly has his ways of gathering intelligence." Sulia praised with a smile.
"Not at all, Lady Sulia. I just know some people's habits from my days as a brigand." Bertrand quickly demurred. "Back to the point, the quarantine line rarely faces attempts by serfs to leave Mousilon. Most serfs don't even know what the world outside their village is like, let alone leave Mousilon. The real trouble for the guards is the relentless outlaws and smugglers."
"Outlaws and smugglers?" Ryan mused.
"Yes, many outlaws try to cross the quarantine line to find a living in Mousilon, and numerous smugglers frequently cross the line to trade contraband. The guards often have to deal with these challenges." Hugo, the small man, added quietly. "My lord, I secretly tried to pry information from the guards. It turns out that with enough bribes, smuggling often happens, provided it satisfies the guards' and lord's desires and has nothing to do with cults. The knights often have secret passages for disposing of stolen goods and arranging for smugglers to pass. If anyone tries to force their way through, the guards use force to resolve the issue."
Just as expected, Ryan thought, sending Bertrand and his men to investigate Mousilon was indeed the right decision.
These former bandits and thieves knew best how to navigate such gray areas.
"That's the situation with the quarantine line. What about inside Mousilon?" Ryan continued. "How are the people living? What about vampire activity?"
"Very bad, Lord Ryan." Bertrand frowned deeply. "Before the floods and wars, the people's lives were tolerable. But after Duke Lawn's two sweeps through Mousilon, the serfs have plunged into extreme poverty. The entire region is now swamped, with nothing but swamps everywhere. The villages are dilapidated, with many houses severely damaged. The roads are like sewers, and many serfs prefer hiding indoors, eating rats and drinking dirty water, waiting to die rather than go hunting or work the fields."
"When we traveled through Mousilon, we carried many 'little gifts' like small bottles of wine, some dried meat, and bread. But when we offered these to the villagers in exchange for information, their first reaction wasn't joy but extreme fear." Bertrand's face showed pain. "They looked at us like we were something terrifying, fleeing until they were out of sight."
"In the muddy roads and swamps, there are corpses everywhere. The dead are not properly buried, and their bodies and souls will never rest. They either rot away or rise again as wandering zombies."
Ryan also felt troubled hearing this. The harsh environment of Mousilon made it difficult for human armies to fight there, explaining why Lawn encountered so many problems during his attacks on Mousilon.
Sulia closed her eyes, unable to bear the tragic descriptions. Juan looked furious, thinking this evil place needed purification, while Sylvia showed disgust, seemingly affected just by discussing this matter.
Only Ryan remained unmoved, his expression barely changing except for a slight frown. "Continue, Bertrand, Raymond, what else did you investigate?"
"We checked several villages, and the situation was similar, Lord Ryan." Bertrand continued, his face weathered and showing some sympathy. "Most serfs are inbred, deformed, and disease-ridden from years of corruption and poor hygiene. Eventually, we found a young man willing to talk, driven by near-starvation. After devouring the food we gave him, he told us that all the people of Mousilon are terrified. Duke Lawn's two invasions led to him establishing Grail Courts everywhere, resulting in almost the entire village being burned at the stake."
"Duke Lawn's knights couldn't distinguish between Chaos mutants and deformed serfs, so they treated all as Chaos creations and burned them all."
"Thus, the locals'
first reaction to seeing us was to run. The young man spoke to us only because he was starving and desperate, having eaten just one full meal in three months—live frogs from the swamp."
Bertrand choked up a bit.
Raymond took over, speaking cautiously. "The wilderness of Mousilon is incredibly dangerous, with various undead, beastmen, and Chaos creatures. We encountered several attacks, and if not for Sir Bertrand's archery skills and our firearms, we might not have made it back."
"That place remains as corrupt and depraved as ever." Ryan sighed.
The room fell silent, broken only by Thomas's voice counting outside. Raymond awkwardly wanted to stop him, but Ryan signaled him to let it be.
"Did you get close to the lord's castles?" Ryan asked next.
"Yes, there are many lord's castles in Mousilon." Bertrand answered, having the best eyesight. "Many castles are dilapidated, some taken during Duke Lawn's invasions, but others still stand. They all have numerous corpses outside, some from Lawn's knights slaying vampire lords, but mostly victims of the vampire lords as warnings."
"From the serfs, we learned that these lordly vampires stay locked in their castles, wearing black armor and helmets, possibly ruling for centuries. In Mousilon, nearly all lords are undead, and they are reportedly furious with the current false duke, Mallobaude, for retreating to Mousilon twice, ignoring their interests."
"Good, we've essentially figured out Mousilon's situation." Ryan acknowledged. "Good, you've completed most of your task. Now, what about Leonasse? Raymond, I heard you went back to your original village?"
The atmosphere in the room changed noticeably at this question, which both Ryan and Sulia noticed, indicating an important discovery.
Ryan signaled Juan to close the door.
"The situation is very bad, my lord. Leonasse is in a terrible state." Raymond finally spoke, sounding mysterious. "Noble infighting, serf uprisings, and small-scale civil wars, along with threats from beastmen and Norscan pirates. The whole duchy is like a lid on a powder keg, with the fuse already burning inside."
"This duchy could explode at any moment, anytime."
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