Chapter 92 Negotiation
It wasn't until Abelly had truly eaten his fill for the first time. There were no corpses in this forest except blood on the ground. Paladin looked at Tony, who was still vomiting, and Kalechi, who was sitting on a tree trunk to comfort himself. He was no longer in the mood to pay attention to these people. He walked out of the forest on his own, returned to the tent and lay on the quilt.
Some people say sleep calms and relaxes people. But Paladin couldn't sleep when he was most agitated. He hasn't slept in more than two months. Normally it would be fine, but now he had just killed someone and discovered the fatal weakness under this extremely strong power. But I couldn’t sleep! Can't even eat! With nowhere to vent his resentment, Paladin even had the urge to stand up and roast everyone in the camp! So Paladin lay in bed with his eyes open until dawn.
When the first ray of sunlight entered the tent in the morning, Paladin immediately squinted his eyes. The familiar all-powerful eye on his forehead immediately appeared. In a flash, Paladin sat up slumped. "Oh, Father, you woke up so early!" At this moment, a soldier wearing a chainmail holding a spear opened the tent, and when he saw Paladin who had woken up, he couldn't help but asked unexpectedly. Paladin immediately smiled, put the cross on his body, took the scepter, and said devoutly: "As a servant of God, praying to the true God every morning and shouting the name of the true God, Enos. This is the most basic thing."
The sergeant was very surprised, and a look of respect gradually appeared in his eyes: "Your Excellency, Auxiliary Bishop, please change your clothes and come out. Our lord, Lord Torch, would like to invite you to have breakfast." After hearing this, Paladin He was also stunned. Although he was wondering in his heart what such a big noble wanted to do with him, on the surface he said very politely: "Please wait a moment, I will change my clothes and come back."
After saying that, he immediately put on a brand new set of lace and gorgeous robes. Put away the purely decorative scepter. Trying to put on a gentle expression, he walked out of the tent. "Your Excellency, where are you going?" Tony, who had just walked out of the tent and had obviously just woken up, couldn't help but ask when he saw Paladin in formal attire. "Oh, Lord Earl invites you. You should do your morning homework first." After saying that, he gave the former a look, and Paladin followed the soldier to the tall tent in the distance with a smile. But I was very unhappy inside. What he fears most now is being invited to dinner by others. Because he couldn't eat anything at all. If it's just water, it's barely enough to drink a little. But once any food is eaten, it will inevitably be vomited out with extreme nausea.
Under the courtesy of the soldiers, Paladin walked into this gorgeous tent. At first glance, he saw the long table inside. Burnales, Count Torch, was cutting a piece of smoked pork on the plate. There was fresh fruit and white bread on the side. "Your Majesty, Earl, are you calling me?" Paladin met the Earl with great respect and noble etiquette. But the earl didn't even raise his head, he just stretched out his hand and shook it and said: "Paladin, come here. You haven't had breakfast."
Paladin came forward and sat down with a smile on his face, and said in an apologetic voice: "Don't get me wrong, Earl, I never eat breakfast. At this time, I am praying to the true god Enos." Hearing this obvious excuse, With these words, the earl nodded in disbelief. After chewing the pork in his mouth and swallowing it, he put down his knife and fork. He picked up the napkin on his chest and wiped his mouth. Turning to look at Paladin. At this moment, the long golden hair hanging down the shoulders could not cover up the count's penetrating and far-reaching eyes. However, under such gaze, Paladin still smiled. Not moved at all.
After a while, the earl suddenly laughed and continued to pick up the knife and fork to eat, then he said to himself: "Your Excellency, the auxiliary bishop, do you know a mercenary named Harvey?" At this point, he He also specifically added: "He has a beard and a bad temper. He likes to be clever and loves mercenaries wearing iron armor." Paladin's pupils shrank rapidly, but he kept a smile on his face and shook his head: "Harvey? I'm sorry, my dear Earl. . I don’t know this person.” “Don’t jump to conclusions so quickly. The development of things cannot only be seen with the eyes, but also with the mind.” The Torch Earl immediately waved his hand and said something profound, but Paladin still smiled. shook his head and denied knowing Harvey.
Seeing that Paladin refused to admit it, the Earl, who obviously had some information, was not angry. Instead, he showed an appreciative smile and asked an inexplicable question: "Your Excellency, Auxiliary Bishop, do you know that my army of 800 people is going to... How much does it cost to lead a war?" Paladin was stunned for a moment, then frowned in thought. "An army of eight hundred people, food, daily necessities, military pay, armor, weapons, etc. It should cost eight thousand gold coins." Paladin came up with an ambiguous answer. After all, he has never been exposed to these things and does not understand them at all.
The Earl of Torch nodded and said in a melancholy voice: "My army of eight hundred people cost me ten thousand gold coins in two months!" Paladin was a little surprised, not only because he was surprised. Considering this huge number, he was even more surprised as to why the count would tell him these things. But he heard the count continue to say helplessly: "I am the count of the principality, and the territory I inherited from my father is far larger than this title. I own a big city, a dozen towns, and more than thirty villages. Half of the territory is It is divided among the nobles under my command. Half of the taxes submitted by them are collected every month, and the other half is given to the Grand Duke."
At this point, the earl, who seemed to rarely express his resentment, took a sip of water, sighed and said: "One month is just tax. I can get seven hundred gold coins. Plus the profits made by my businessmen, the important things in the territory are The foreign trade of iron ore, as well as the trade and taxes from the border Warcraft Forest. I can also get a little share, 1,900 gold coins a month. But I also have to spend money, decorate the facade, and give money to the people below. The officials pay. What they actually get every month is only five hundred gold coins."
Paladin seemed to understand what the count meant. The earl continued: "Although I am an earl, my Torch clan has never been on the battlefield for generations. I have always been arranged to wait for the battle reports from the front. I don't know how to fight, and I can't fight. I have never seen a battle. Yes, you will die in battle, but as a noble, for the glory and reputation of your family, isn't the battlefield the place where you make achievements? Look at the Marquis of Camon, his territory is just a castle and a big city. The wealth he can possess is even more shabby! But he has three thousand private soldiers under his command! They are one of the main combat forces of our principality."
The Earl frowned deeply. Maybe this problem had troubled him for a long time: "The Camon family has been on the battlefield for generations, although their heirs have been killed from time to time. But because of years of training and experience, and repetition from generation to generation, he has many people under his command. A mature soldier who kills enemies on the battlefield to gain gold coins and skills! Most of his soldier equipment comes with him. He does not need to spend a penny at all! I have never been on the battlefield, and I also want glory and status. I also There are no loyal elite soldiers and valiant knights. So, Paladin. Do you recognize Harvey now?"
PS: This chapter was so painful to write. If you feel uncomfortable watching it, please forgive me.