69novels Chapter 75 Henry of Scalitz
Chapter 75 Henry of Scalitz
Chapter 76 Henry of Scalitz
Ron stood on the sidelines, watching the young man named Henry. Erwin had somehow walked up to Ron and followed Henry's back until the young man walked off the field before speaking.
"Ron, you've noticed too, haven't you? That kid's weird. At first, I thought he was a spy." Erwin moved the notepad under his other arm.
"He has clearly received military training. His swordsmanship is superb, and he can hold his own against the guards for a short time. His archery skills are also far superior to those of ordinary recruits. Well... apart from his horseback combat skills, which are a bit disappointing, everything else is excellent."
He paused, then adjusted his glasses.
"But now I'm not so sure. He said he was from Skarlitz in Bohemia, a place I've never heard of, and I've never seen it on any map in the academy. A spy wouldn't choose such a ridiculous excuse to forge an identity."
He looked at Ron, his tone slightly mocking, "You think he's like you guys? Maybe he's a Calradian too?"
Ron didn't reply immediately, but looked thoughtfully at the label "Bohemian Knights Squire" hanging next to Henry on the troop interface, just like the various labels on the old Raven's Den troops.
He turned to Erwin and shook his head slightly. "No, he's not a Calradian, nor is he a spy, but I do have some questions I need to discuss with him. Tell Henry to come to the main hall to see me."
When Henry entered the hall, Ron was flipping through today's assessment roster. Henry's name was circled by old Gort, with a hastily written note next to it: "Excellent archery, outstanding swordsmanship, skilled in lockpicking?"
Erwin sat in a chair against the wall, a notepad on his lap, and turned to a page.
Henry hesitated at the door. The hall was not unfamiliar to him. Before each patrol, all the soldiers would line up in the courtyard, and Ron would occasionally give a few brief instructions on the steps at the door.
But this time... this time he was called in alone. Henry walked to the long table, stood up straight, as if he were being inspected.
Ron put the roster he was holding on the corner of the table, looked up, and noticed that Henry's shoulders were a little tense, but he didn't say anything, just spoke in a casual tone.
"Henry, you also arrived here through the conjunction of the celestial spheres, right?"
Henry paused, his lips parted slightly, as if he were reorganizing his thoughts. "Sir, I...I'm not sure. We don't have any sorcerers there, and no one has studied magic, but from what I've experienced, it's probably...that's how it is."
"Sit down, don't be nervous, tell me from the beginning."
Henry took a deep breath and began to recount his experiences, albeit haltingly.
"I come from Skalitz in Bohemia, a small town rich in silver mines. My father was a blacksmith, and although he wasn't my biological father, he raised me. My biological father's name was Radji Kobila, the lord of Skalitz, and I was his illegitimate son."
He paused, quickly looked up at Ron, then looked down again.
"Skalitz was a peaceful little village, but then the Cumans came. They massacred all the villagers and burned Skalitz to the ground. My foster parents... died in that massacre. I escaped and later became a nobleman's squire. Then, for some reason, I went to Kutenberg, which is a large city on our side, probably about the same size as Novigrad."
"In Kutenberg, I was investigating a spy case," Henry's voice slowed, as if recalling a past event.
"That evening, I bumped into a young woman with gray hair. She seemed suspicious, not like an ordinary person, so I followed her to see where she was going. As she turned into an alley, a bright blue light appeared inside. The light engulfed me completely, and that's how I ended up here."
He stopped and caught his breath. "At first, I didn't know where I was. I only knew that there was a war here. I barely survived by relying on my own skills until I heard about you. There were rumors that your troops also came to this world by accident. Sir, I thought that this was better than me wandering around aimlessly. I swear to God, I joined your army with absolutely no bad intentions."
He sat ramrod straight, watching Ron nervously.
Ron and Erwin exchanged a glance, then turned to look at Henry, their tone much gentler than usual.
"Henry, you are an excellent sergeant. Old Gott has a very high opinion of you. No matter where you come from, you are already a member of this unit, and no one here will kick you out for that."
Henry visibly relaxed and nodded vigorously.
Ron stood up and patted him on the shoulder. "You've had a long day, go back and rest."
Henry turned and walked toward the door, but stopped after a few steps, looked back, and saw the hall door slowly closing behind him.
Ron turned to Erwin. "Erwin, keep a close eye on this lad. See if he can be groomed to be an officer."
Erwin raised an eyebrow. "You think highly of him? That's quite rare."
Ron didn't explain the reason, but the label on the troop panel flashed through his mind: Bohemian Knight Squire.
This is the first time he has recruited a soldier who can be promoted to the sixth rank. Perhaps it's because of Henry's noble blood? Even illegitimate children count. This is good news, as it adds another recruitment avenue for him in the future.
Nighttime, the manor's open-air tavern.
Several long tables were pushed together, with ale on them, and Brom, Yuna, Todd, and Erwin were sitting around them.
Brom, holding several Gwent cards, was gleefully playing a Spy card onto Erwin's board when he drew two cards from the deck, his beard bristling and his voice louder than usual.
"See that? This tactic is called sending someone over to get the cards for yourself. That's how I turned the tables on you last time. You never learn!"
Yuna, holding her wine glass, added from the side, "Why didn't you mention losing five games in a row earlier?"
"That's a warm-up!" Brom slammed his hand on the table, knocking one of the cards off. Todd quickly picked it up and wiped it clean.
Ron walked over, his gaze lingering on the cards for a moment. Erwin noticed his expression and pushed the spare deck in front of him.
"Ron, would you like to try Gwent? The rules aren't complicated. This is the Northern Realms deck. The ability is that you can draw an extra card after winning a game. It's divided into three columns: melee, ranged, and siege. Different units are placed in the corresponding columns."
Ron took the deck of cards, flipped through them in his hand, and then sat down.
A few days later, at the port of Novigre, the Seagull slowed down, and the purple flag on the mast flapped loudly in the wind.
The outline of Novigrad slowly emerged, with the spires on the temple island and flames dancing in the wind atop them.
The harbor was densely packed with gun pylons, and countless merchant ships, fishing boats, and cargo ships crowded the docks. The various flags on the gun pylons were whipped into a ball by the wind.
Behind the city walls were layers upon layers of wooden roofs, piled up from the riverbank all the way to the distant hills, each layer packed full, but the soldiers on the ship's side did not speak.
As the ship docked and the gangway was lowered, Ron, wearing his light armor and with the standard longsword at his waist, stepped onto the port of Novigrad for the first time.