Chapter 1038: Chapter 451: After the Battle (2)
"Hmm..." Laine did not have much opinion on this matter, as Theodoric said, just when the scales of the battle were swinging back and forth, Theodoric and his two hundred knights successfully played their role.
Then, the Duke’s fearless charge brought great trouble to Kemler, who was initially concentrating his forces to resist Laine but was forced to divert his attention to fight Theodoric.
Don’t underestimate the battle that lasted only twenty to thirty seconds; the effect Theodoric achieved was similar to the duel between Laine and Guer. Forced to divide his focus, Kemler lost the best chance to escape and the opportunity to command the Undead Legion to cover his retreat, otherwise, this Undead Grand Mage might still have been able to flee.
That’s the nature of battles in the Holy Sanctuary; defeating the opponent is easy, but killing them is extremely difficult.
With this in mind, Laine’s expression improved somewhat. Regardless of Theodoric’s personal virtue, this timely support played a decisive role in the war. Perhaps it was indeed Theodoric’s opportunistic act, but as the primary beneficiaries, Francois and Laine had to acknowledge his favor, so it’s justified to let the old fellow enjoy some pride.
Having been in Brittania for nearly a decade, Laine started to understand the court, to understand the officialdom: "Thank you for your support, Lord Theodoric."
"No need to thank me. If you truly wish to express your gratitude, help me with some compensation funds." Theodoric shook his head and looked back at his knights, the Borelion Knights who had been reduced from over two hundred during the charge to eighty-something, who were scarred yet still gazing at their duke with loyal eyes: "They are the backbone of this Kingdom! Knights should not bleed tears and blood."
"Indeed!" Francois had no objections to this, and the Duke of Winford readily agreed to provide the compensation.
"Hey-ho~ hey-ho~" Belgar and the dwarves of the Angland Clan arrived, the King of Eight Peaks being the first to come: "Ah! You Brittania people! How come it’s over, leaving no opportunity for the dwarves to shine!"
"There will be opportunities for you, King Belgar." Laine said with a grinning expression to Belgar, the Lake Fairy’s Divine Chosen Champion suffered significant injuries in the duel with Guer, drenched in blood: "You and your clan have shown us the glory and resilience of the dwarves, and I am honored to fight alongside you."
"So am I," Francois said with a smile.
"Hehehe! I killed one hundred fifty-nine! I remembered!" Enjoying being acknowledged by the crowd and having been complimented, the King of Eight Peaks was very proud, Belgar raised his Hammer of Angland: "Dwarves never disappoint their friends, tell me, Laine Brothers, how many did you kill?"
"How many I killed is insignificant, what matters is seeing you unharmed makes me very glad." Laine had no intention of disputing with Belgar: "My friend, King Belgar."
"So am I, Laine Brothers." Hearing Laine’s response, Belgar was stunned for a while, then murmured strangely: "Alright, I admit your words sound better—you must have rubbed the secret barbecue sauce of our Angland Clan on your lips."
"Hahahahahahahahahahaha!" Laughter filled the battlefield after the war, even the originally stern-faced Wood Elf Lord Alaros couldn’t help but smile.
After the laughter, Francois’s expression turned serious, he approached Kemler’s headless corpse, removed his Storage Ring, and handed it to the Lake God Prophet for purification. Then, the Duke of Winford gripped the black arrow lodged in Kemler’s chest: "Whose arrow is this? Who hit Heinrich Kemler? Stand forth!"
"It was me, my Duke, this is my black arrow." Battalion Commander of Charon Forest Patrol Battalion Bertrand approached the crowd with some trepidation, his heart pounding as Francois, who was at Holy Sanctuary High-Tier and subtly advancing due to resolved inner conflict, stared directly at him. Bertrand licked his lips, hurriedly bent over, and bowed: "This is my black arrow! Everyone can attest!"
"Indeed, this is Bertrand’s black arrow, he showed it to me before." Laine also stepped forward to testify.
"Hmm... Using tendons from the Sub-dragon Heart, this is a Dragon Heart Arrow specially designed to break enchantments. No wonder it pierced Kemler’s body." Alaros reached out to extract the black arrow from Kemler, examined it, and for once spoke kindly: "Humans can actually produce this kind of arrow, although still a wasteful use, it did serve its purpose after all."
"Yes... yes!" Bertrand faced the duke directly, this "Green Arrow" well-known in Laine Territory trembled slightly. From a peasant turned rogue, now able to speak directly with a duke brought him supreme glory.
Many peasants never have the opportunity to speak with a Baron in their lifetime, and now one can converse with a Duke—what an honor!
"Kneel." Francois’s voice was solemn.
"Pa!" Almost immediately upon hearing the duke’s command, Bertrand dropped to his knees, Francois clapped his hands and his close attendants presented a gleaming Unicorn medal.
"Wow!" Everyone understood what was about to happen, nearly all the peasants watching this scene had their eyes turn crimson with envy, jealousy, longing, and desire.
A gleaming medal! Noble title! Nearly all peasants swallowed a gulp of saliva.
"The descendants of Purifier Lidmond do not falter, I remember my promise." Francois took the silver dish from his attendant, handing it over to Laine: "He is your subordinate, Laine, take this."
Laine’s Standard Bearer Armand accepted the silver dish, while Laine drew his sharp sword, the burning platinum flames of the Goddess of Revenge pressing directly onto Bertrand’s shoulder.
"I, Count Glamorgan, Baron Gene, Lady’s Divine Chosen Champion, Laine Macado, hereby officially grant Bertrand the honorary title of Knight of Winford! May you, with your actions and honor, continue to guard this realm, fighting for the light and glory of Brittania!"
"Yes!" Bertrand’s body trembled, tears in his eyes as he knelt down and bowed to Francois and Laine.
One touch on each shoulder, the medal affixed to the chest, the awarding ceremony was complete.
No words can express Bertrand’s excitement, from peasant to rogue, from soldier to knight.
From today on, no more Peasant Bertrand, Rogue Bertrand, Soldier Bertrand.
There is Honorary Knight of Winford, Sir Bertrand!
This heroic thief’s story is destined to become yet another legend!
With the great battle over, that evening the entire army celebrated with feast and revelry, even the always elegant Francois indulged in excessive drinking. Everyone sang "Lady Bless Brittania" in high spirits, the knights loudly celebrated the victory, and the entire monastery was engulfed in a sea of joy.
Partway through the drinking, Laine walked out alone from the banquet, the cold autumn wind blew across his face, slightly sobering the Count from intoxication, he sighed deeply, exhaling a puff of alcohol: "Ooh~"
The bustling La-Mesnil Abbey was filled with merriment and firelight, Laine cast his gaze towards the distant snow-covered Gray Mountain Range, nodding to himself, then reached out to catch a package coming his way: "What’s this?"
"You’re very brave, Lord Laine." Wood Elf Hero Alaros appeared calmly from the side: "Choosing you as a trade partner, Eslelin felt satisfied; for this victory, Eslelin felt joyous, representing our friendship, this is venison jerky processed and blessed by us."
"Thank you, unfortunately, I have nothing to give you in return now." Laine knew how precious the deer jerky made by Wood Elves was; in Brittania, such delicacy only appears at royal annual banquets.
"This victory is the best return gift." Alaros nodded, he walked to Laine’s side: "What are you thinking about? You seem troubled."
"I’m wondering if we are celebrating too early, Mathew Bade and his Musillon... Forget it, currently, the military is extremely fatigued, we’ve suffered significant casualties; humans aren’t dwarves, the battle’s end means Mathew Bade and his undead will at least remain quiet for a few years." Laine frowned: "Victory is always brief."
"That’s how the world is, but at this moment, we can still celebrate the victory."
"Precisely!"
After exchanging a few words, Lake God Witch Mogiana appeared: "Laine?"
"Hmm?"
"Come over, I need to speak with you."
