.....
The desert wind stirred up small clouds of dust that danced along the entire caravan. At that moment, as if the merchant's story were still floating in the air, no one said anything. The atmosphere became subtle and silent, with only the sound of hooves hitting the sand and the howling wind.
Griffith remained silent, still digesting the story about the Dothraki that the merchant had just told. To be honest with himself, even he didn't know that such a story about the Dothraki existed.
Perhaps he had read the first book, but so much time had passed that he had forgotten everything except for a few important events. As for the television series, he had seen a few episodes due to the furor it caused at the time, but he doubted that such a past would be recounted.
After all, many segments had been cut to shape the television series, but in any case, what the merchant recounted sounded quite interesting to him. Griffith sighed; this world was full of things like this.
"My lord, we must punish these repugnant pagans. If things continue like this, sooner or later they will stain the earth with the blood of the innocent." Alaric broke the silence, and when he spoke, Griffith and the merchant turned to look at him.
At that moment, Alaric's face was extremely distorted, and immense fury was reflected in his eyes.
"They worship nothing but horses, fire, and violence, my lord. They do not know the true light of the Father. And if you do not stop them, my lord, who else will?" As Alaric continued to speak these last words, his face was filled with devotion as he looked at Griffith as if an envoy of God had come down to spread the gospel.
....
Griffith's lips twitched at that moment. He didn't know whether to cry or laugh out loud at Alaric's words.
"Are you joking? Face Khal Drogo? No matter how you look at it, doing this now is obviously complete madness. It's just him and three hundred men. What can he do to Khal Drogo, a man who commands 100,000 fierce Dothraki?
If he did, it would be in the future when he had more troops. Doing it now is practically suicide, but he is sure to face this tribe of nomadic barbarians. After all, he has a continent to evangelize, and the Horse Lords are a major inconvenience to his plans. As for subjugating them? That idea never crossed his mind. Getting a tribal civilization to adopt feudalism is a laborious task that will take months or even years.
After all, barbaric customs are very difficult to eliminate, not to mention evangelizing them. Doing so requires a great deal of time that he does not plan to spend, and besides, these guys don't like progress, and forcing them will bring many problems.
"So be it, Alaric, but now is not the time," Griffith replied, his voice firm and convincing. After all, he has a reputation to uphold and cannot look bad in front of his subordinates.
"God will be with us, by the sign of the holy cross, amen!" Alaric replied as he performed the sign of the cross.
"Amen," Griffith replied, doing the same.
...
The merchant, seeing and hearing the conversation between the two, didn't know what to say, so he simply took his leather canteen and drank some water. Seeing Alaric and Griffith perform the sign of the cross made him curious.
Suddenly, he wanted to know more about the religion these people professed.
.....
"Is there anything else to say about Essos?" Griffith asked after a few moments of Catholic ceremonies.
"Ah, this..." The fat merchant lowered his head and sank into deep thought. After a few minutes, he raised his head suddenly and exclaimed, patting his big belly and bursting into laughter. "HAHAHAHAHAHA! Of course I remember! If there is anyone almost as famous as Khal Drogo, it is the Beggar King."
....
"The Beggar King?" Alaric muttered, obviously distracted. The fat merchant looked at Alaric and said with a smile, "HAHAHAHA, you heard right, my good friend, the Beggar King. Have you heard of him?"
....
Alaric shook his head, clearly distracted. He had no idea who he was, but seeing the fat merchant's enthusiasm, he thought he must be some kind of court jester or something.
"HAHAHAHA, my good friend the Beggar King is well known from Essos to Westeros, after all, he is one of the remaining Targaryens who escaped from the hands of Robert Baratheon, King of the Seven Kingdoms."
"He is called the Beggar King because he calls himself King when he has no lands or crown on his head. At first, he was not known by that name, but due to a certain incident, he was given this nickname."
"Oh, what incident are you referring to?" asked Griffith, raising an eyebrow. Although he knew Viserys Targaryen's nickname, he did not remember the reason why he was called that. Hearing that the fat merchant knew, he became curious.
The fat merchant smiled slightly and said mockingly, "When the Beggar King lived in Braavos, it is said that he sold all the Targaryen relics, including his mother's crown, to finance his attempt to regain the Iron Throne. It was then that he began to be called 'the Beggar King'. The funny thing is that at one point, Viserys Targaryen offered a feast to the commanders of the Golden Company with the gold obtained from the sale of his dynasty's relics. He did this in the hope that they would support his cause and help him retake Westeros.
The mercenaries contemptuously accepted the Beggar King's proposals with a smile, ate their food, and enjoyed their banquet. The next day, Viserys never saw them again.
The merchant stopped laughing, sighed, and shook his head. "I don't know if this Beggar King is stupid or just arrogant. Doesn't he know that the Golden Company is made up of the descendants of the Blackfyre Rebellion?
It's obvious that these people would never agree to help him. It's no wonder they spread this story throughout Essos. Helping a Targaryen would be like mocking the efforts of their ancestors."
"Tsk, tsk, it's a shame those guys from the Golden Company now have the last crown belonging to the Targaryen Dynasty. Otherwise, I would definitely try to acquire it. It would undoubtedly be the envy of my brother," said the fat merchant with regret and a bitter face.
.....
Griffith was at a loss for words at the merchant's last remark. He shook his head and smiled slightly, one of his doubts resolved. In the end, he sighed. This guy Viserys has a bad reputation throughout the known world.
"True, true, true HAHAHAHAHA, now that I remember, there's still the Beggar King's sister. She's said to be the most beautiful woman in all of Essos, not even the courtesans of Braavos can compare to her. Perhaps she's the only good thing about the Beggar King," said the fat merchant, laughing with a lecherous look on his face.
......
Griffith didn't know what to say. It was the third time he had been left speechless by the fat merchant's words. Finally, he sighed and laughed softly as he shook his head helplessly.
At that moment, as if he had remembered something, he stopped laughing, looked at Griffith, and asked cautiously, "Sir, may I ask you a somewhat personal question?"
"Oh, what is it? Tell me," Griffith replied with a raised eyebrow.
"My lord, by any chance, are you a Darkfire?" The fat merchant glanced at Griffith's appearance, silver hair and beautiful features, all of which indicated that he was a Targaryen or a Darkfire remnant. His curiosity was piqued, so he finally asked.
Griffith laughed softly and shook his head. "I don't know. I've been an orphan for as long as I can remember, so I have no idea. Maybe yes, maybe no. Maybe I'm just a Valyrian remnant like so many others."
Griffith wasn't lying. In Essos, these Valyrian remnants do exist. After all, not everyone died in Valyria. As far as he knows, most of those who died were the Dragon Lords along with their dragons that inhabited the fourteen flames.
Speaking of the fourteen flames, these people must have been completely insane to inhabit a mountain range full of active volcanoes. It's no wonder that when they exploded in unison, not even God would remain in that place.
Thinking about this, Griffith asked himself, "Was this event something that happened naturally or something related to magic?"
Griffith didn't know, but to be honest, he was curious. "Would it be possible to visit Valyria, the Land Cursed by the Gods?"
He shook his head and sighed. These things were too soon to be carried out. He was just starting to walk, and he already wanted to run.
"I see," replied the fat merchant, lowering his head and sinking into his thoughts.
DING HIDDEN MISSION COMPLETED PROTECT THE CARAVAN FROM THE PAGAN SCORCH.
REWARD
1-2000 ARMORED SERGEANTS OF THE ORDER.
DESCRIPTION
ARMORED SERGEANTS ARE PROFESSIONAL WARRIORS FROM THE LOWER CLASSES. THEY POSSESS A CERTAIN SKILL IN COMBAT AND ARE WELL EQUIPPED WITH LONG SPEAR, LARGE SHIELDS, AND CHAIN MAIL ARMOR.
GOOD FOR MAINTAINING FORMATION AND CRUSHING CAVALRY.
2-1000 ENGLISH LONGBOWMEN
RECRUITED FROM AMONG ENGLISH LANDOWNERS, WHO WERE REQUIRED BY THE KING TO UNDERGO MILITARY TRAINING, THEY ARE EXTREMELY SKILLED RANGE COMBAT TROOPS, WEAR LIGHT ARMOR, AND ARE EQUIPPED WITH A LONGBOW FOR RANGE COMBAT. IF THEY ENTER INTO CLOSE COMBAT, THEY Wield A LARGE METAL MACE TO CRUSH THEIR OPPONENTS' ARMOR.
THEY ARE SKILLED AT CREATING DEFENSIVE WOODEN STAKES TO KEEP ENEMIES AT BAY.
THEIR LONGBOW GIVES THEM A LONG RANGE OF FIRE.
3-SUPPLIES FOR 5,000 TROOPS
At that moment, the translucent panel reappeared, causing Griffith to raise an eyebrow. Seeing his rewards, he felt satisfied.
DO YOU WISH TO SUMMON THE TROOPS?
Griffith flatly refused to summon them from here, as it would seem strange. If they appeared as the Teutonic Knights did, they would undoubtedly label him a sorcerer.
DING, NO NEED TO WORRY, HOST. THE SYSTEM WILL MAKE THEM APPEAR IN THE DISTANCE, AND THEY WILL BE ABLE TO REACH THE HOST AT ANY TIME, WHICH WOULD BE MORE NORMAL FOR THE HOST'S COMPANIONS.
Upon reading the system message, Griffith sighed with relief. It was good that the system had such a function. He was about to summon the troops when suddenly the system notification arrived
BEFORE SUMMONING, PLEASE CREATE THE BANNER AND COLORS OF THE ARMY.
...
Griffith was delighted with this function. Seeing how the panel changed to show a panel with colors, designs, and brushes, he felt excited.
"What do I do now, System?" Griffith asked inwardly with some urgency.
JUST CUSTOMIZE IT WITH YOUR MIND AND THE SYSTEM WILL OBEY.
At that moment, upon hearing the mechanical words of the system, Griffith tried it out after a few tests and began to customize his troops.
First, the banner. After thinking about it for a few moments, he decided to use the same one Griffith had created when the Falcon Gang began.
Two sky-blue stripes on the left and right, while the center is completely white, and right there is a sky-blue shield with a white falcon spread out. It is practically the same design as the one in the movies.
As for other designs for the banners, he chose one with a white background and a blue falcon in the center, quite simple and not so cumbersome.
Finally, in terms of troop customization, for the spearmen he opted for the same design as the Teutonic Knights, a completely white tabard with a black cross on the chest. As for the shield design, he used the same colors and shapes.
white background and black cross in the center. On the other hand, as for the English longbowmen, he honestly did not know what design to use, but in the end he opted for the same design, only this time with a red cross.
With a mental touch, the system saved the design.
DO YOU WISH TO SUMMON HOST?
"Summon them then," Griffith muttered to himself.
SUMMONING SUCCESSFUL, PLEASE COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING MISSION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
DESCRIPTION
THE HERETICS HAVE HIRED YOU TO ESCORT THEM SAFELY TO THEIR DESTINATION. AS A FAITHFUL CATHOLIC, YOU DECIDED TO SACRIFICE YOURSELF DESPITE THE FACT THAT THEY ARE VULGAR PAGANS. AFTER ALL, THE KINGDOM OF GOD ON EARTH NEEDS FUNDS.
OBJECTIVE
PLEASE ESCORT THE CARAVAN SAFELY TO THEIR DESTINATION.
REWARD
UNKNOWN
Upon seeing the mission description, Griffith's mouth twisted, not knowing what to say. At that moment, the sand began to shake slightly.
...
"Sir, what shall we do now?" asked the fat merchant, panicked at the sight of the huge army in the distance.
....
At that point, the entire caravan had stopped, and the fear that had dissipated returned, causing them to panic.
Griffith, hearing the fat merchant's trembling voice, raised his head and, seeing the huge crowd of soldiers, was filled with an indescribable emotion.
The falcon banners waved in unison in the air, while elsewhere the typical Catholic cross could be seen waving in the wind as if foreshadowing the purge of heretics.
...
At that moment, seeing the huge army approaching them, the fat merchant began to panic completely.
Thousands of people dressed in white with a black cross on their chests, wearing chain mail armor and nasal helmets, appeared everywhere he looked. Worst of all, they were well equipped.
Completely white teardrop-shaped shields with a black cross adorning their center, long spears radiating absolute coldness, and the faces of the men were indifferent, as if they were war veterans.
Seeing the merchant's panic, Griffith patted the fat man on the shoulder. Feeling the hand on his shoulder, the man looked at Griffith in panic. Seeing this, Griffith quickly said with a friendly smile, which calmed the merchant's agitated heart.
"There's nothing to worry about, these are all my soldiers."
.......
"Alaric, go get them and have them join our march," Griffith added as he looked at his subordinate.
"As you command, my lord," Alaric replied, bowing slightly, then he waved his reins and set off toward the newly arrived troops.
At that moment, the fat merchant wiped the excess sweat from his forehead. Seeing Griffith's army, he went from initial panic to total excitement.
"It's as if the gods are listening to my prayers. Can we turn the situation around with these mercenaries?!" thought the merchant. At that moment, he lowered his head and sank into his thoughts.
"I'll talk to him as we go along, and as the situation unfolds, I'll ask him if he's willing to accept a new assignment," thought the fat man as a plan began to take shape in his mind.
NOTE
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Hey guys, here's today's chapter. I hope you enjoy it. I probably won't be posting a chapter tomorrow, guys, because it's exam season and I'll be pretty busy handing in projects.
Thank you for your support. It encourages me to upload more :))))