Chapter 20: Truly

After arriving at the small ferry of Riverbank Village, the soldiers lined up to disembark, and Arthur paid the boat owner the fare.

The boat owner symbolically accepted fifty Silver Stags as the transport fee.

Originally, hiring a boat like this would cost far more than fifty Silver Stags, but the boat owner insisted on accepting only this small amount, saying that since the time spent was minimal, he would charge less.

Arthur and Andrew both expressed their gratitude, which made the boat owner very happy.

His boat regularly ran the route from the upper reaches of the Red Fork to King's Landing, and building a good relationship with the landowner Bracken was necessary.

This time, it only cost half a morning to gain the friendship of a high-ranking officer and minor lord of the House of Bracken, which was still worth it.

Upon seeing the Bracken banner of the golden stallion and Lord Arthur, the farmers of Riverbank Village ran out to offer some melons, fruits, and food.

They also reported that Blackwood soldiers had taken away several women and the family of the Village Chief Jiesi.

The soldiers happily accepted the food, while Arthur worried for the abducted villagers.

Soldiers, in the vast majority of eras and planes, are synonymous with bandits.

Falling into their hands likely meant nothing good.

After a simple meal, the soldiers assembled into formation, and Arthur led them to set off.

The family castle was not far east of Riverbank Village; he estimated they would arrive just at noon.

Arthur still had no clue how to handle it.

Andrew also said to play it by ear.

Arthur wanted to discuss a countermeasure with him, but Andrew was intrigued by Arthur's prophecy and kept guessing which lady had kidnapped Edmure.

He was also speculating which three unlucky souls would die because of this.

Seeing his slightly cheeky expression, Arthur knew he did not believe it.

But Arthur did not mind; instead, he encouraged him to tell it as a joke to every Bracken soldier he knew.

A few months later, this would no longer be a joke, but another instance of a correct prophecy made by Arthur.

The reason he said "another instance" was because Arthur had thought of a source for making money.

There were plenty of people in King's Landing who believed in this; it was only a three or four-day ride from here to the capital, so he would find an opportunity to go there and play the mystic to make some money.

"My lord, a large group of Bracken soldiers is coming from the east, estimated to be over a thousand," a sentry reported.

Santaga put down his whip, looked at the three corpses in front of him, and a flash of satisfaction crossed his eyes.

He had a penchant for abusing people, but due to his low status, this hobby could only be deeply hidden in his heart.

He never dared to reveal it.

This time, taking advantage of Brynden being tied up in this small castle, he released his repressed inner self a little bit.

If it weren't for the considerable number of subordinates around, he could have screamed with excitement.

This excitement was enough to numb his nerves, so it took several breaths after hearing the report for him to react to what it meant.

"You mean over a thousand Bracken soldiers?" He showed doubt on his face, "How is that possible? Not to mention the assembly time, could their ships transport that many people?"

The sentry knew his lie would not work, but he really had seen hundreds of soldiers.

Lying was just to get his superior to order a retreat.

"Perhaps a little less, but there is indeed a large force approaching; should we consider avoiding their edge?" the sentry replied cautiously, trying not to make his superior Santaga angry.

The sentry's suggestion did not have any effect; Santaga was in high spirits.

"You must have seen wrong; there are simply not that many people," Santaga shouted loudly, "Call the men guarding the other gates; we will go meet them and let them know the meaning of Blackwood."

"But Young Master Brynden is still inside the castle," someone reminded him.

Santaga thought of that willful young master who would not listen to his advice, that Brynden who only listened to his distant cousin; let him pay for his own willfulness.

"They will not kill the young master; this is the tradition for treating high nobles," Santaga said.

Someone else reminded him: "If they take the opportunity to escape..."

"Wouldn't that be perfect? They won't get very far on the plains," Santaga rudely interrupted his subordinate, "Do as I say, go teach the Brackens a lesson."

Thus, no one dared to question him again; one hundred and fifty soldiers quickly assembled and set off, and several hostages were also taken away.

After marching not far, the two armies bumped into each other.

"Damn sentry, why didn't you warn me they had so many people?" Seeing the formation of hundreds of men on the opposite side, Santaga was both terrified and afraid, and even a little bit angry.

Angry that the sentry did not tell the truth.

The sentry did not dare to run in front of Santaga at this moment and answered from afar: "I told you."

Before Santaga could vent his anger on the sentry, he saw one person from the opposite side spur his horse forward.

The horse stepped slowly, carrying the man closer.

The man had a refined and handsome temperament, a straight nose and thin lips, bright eyes and white teeth, and a tall stature; except for being a bit thin, he had no flaws.

If he weren't wearing extremely ordinary chainmail, Santaga would definitely have thought this was the heir of some top-tier noble family.

He was simply too dazzling.

"Is it you who abducted my people?" the man spoke, his arrogant manner like a king.

Santaga thought for a good while before he realized that this was Arthur Bracken.

Just a minor noble.

"It is I," Santaga replied.

The army of hundreds finally made him a bit more sober; he was thinking about how to leave with dignity.

A head-on conflict was impossible.

With the small force he had on hand, the battle could be over in less than the time it takes to eat a meal.

At least four to one, and they were all armored, full-time soldiers; how could he possibly win?

"How are they?" Arthur asked.

Santaga thought for a moment and answered truthfully: "Because your men wouldn't open the castle gates, I killed three of them to make them open them; the rest are tied up in the back."

"I will report this matter to Lord Edmure and Duke Hoster, and we shall handle it according to their wishes then." Arthur paused, "For now, shall we discuss how to handle the current situation?"

"You kidnapped young master Brynden of my house; I will also report this matter to Duke Hoster." Santaga did not yield in his momentum.

Arthur laughed, "You, a common soldier, can you even get in front of a Duke? Talk of reporting—are you worthy?"

Santaga did not want to entangle himself with him on this issue; he only wanted to take his men and leave.

As for Brynden, let Count Tytos have a headache over it himself.

"Yes, I am not worthy. How about this: I will take my men and leave, and we shall each report this matter to our superiors."

Arthur snorted coldly: "You think you can come and go as you please? Do you think the one thousand soldiers behind me are just for show?"

"There are nowhere near one thousand here." Santaga corrected him; by his estimation, there were only about five hundred.

With his lie broken, Arthur did not blush at all, "The rest are still on the way; we have so many soldiers that a few ships couldn't carry them all at once."

With only these five hundred soldiers, and a penalty of one hundred Gold Dragons for every one that died, Arthur felt a bit like a clever housewife unable to cook without rice.

"How about this, I don't want to make things difficult for you common soldiers." Arthur was being hypocritical; in truth, he really wanted to cut these men down to grind some experience.

"How about you send one person to duel me? If I win, you surrender; if you win, I let you go."

Hearing this, Santaga was suddenly a bit excited: "For real?"

Why were these nobles always in the habit of showing off?

Did he think that with his scrawny appearance, he could beat a veteran of over ten years like himself?

Arthur was also a bit happy; at least he didn't have to worry about Bracken soldiers dying anymore.

"For real!"

PS: Seeking recommendation votes and monthly votes.

Thanks to the friends who voted at this time; I will compile them on Friday and post a thank-you list.

(End of chapter)