The news about the whereabouts of the heathen wanted by the Church of Wisdom elated the whole castle of Viscount Obson. Adam and a group of knights and mercenaries were tasked to set out right away. The preparation for the journey did not even take more than five hours. It was common knowledge that it was faster to travel by horse than on foot, especially if the group was only comprised of elites and experienced horse riders. The Viscount seemed very eager to rescue his youngest child so he ordered the rescuers to go as fast as they could. Each rider was even given extra horses with them so once the one they were riding on became exhausted, they could rest for some time, feed it then continue with the travel using the backup horses.
It was in this way that in just two weeks, Adam"s group immediately covered half the distance of what Jiang Li had traveled in one and half months.
But while this sounds like a feat, Adam and co did not actually travel all day long. Every night they stopped by a town or village. Although the people from the Obson castle could actually do some more traveling at night and even sleep outside, only one time did they spend a night camping and sleeping in the open when they really couldn"t find a village to enter.
As for why it was so, it was not Adam"s consideration for his men. It was because they were with an esteemed n.o.ble"s son. They had to be considerate of this person and was challenged to make the ride as fast yet also as comfortable as possible.
The esteemed n.o.ble"s son who suddenly tagged along with them was the guy who stayed with the bishop of Penemue for three months. He said his name was Benedict, and he had received a decree from the king of Borleans. He was ordered to come to the Holon Kingdom and deliver a secret message to the Royal Consort. Before the departure, the bishop repeatedly warned them not to slight this royal messenger hence the numerous stopover.
"It is nearing dusk again!"
Adam lightly swept his gaze to the left to see who shouted that. There he found the n.o.bleman looking at him. It was apparent that the words were said to him.
Closely following the male lead behind were the mounted soldiers of Castle Obson. Not many of them truly were that loyal to the young lady so when they saw a village in the distance, they immediately pointed it out to Adam.
"Leader, there is still an hour or two before sunset. Are we going to pa.s.s by or stop there for the night?"
The armored knight was referring to Adam. Yup, he was the one leading this time, not because his liege was giving him chance to redeem himself, but because the captain was not to leave the Lady"s side per the Viscount"s order.
The male leads" hands, like the rest of the men riding with him, were holding more than one rope. All of them, apart from Benedict, only had one hand tightly grasping the rein of their own horse, the other was securing the rope binding the other horses by the neck.
Yet Adam did not seem worried that he could fall off at any time. Without commanding the horse to slow down, he craned his neck towards the village spotted by his companion, his gaze seemed to be at what was beyond it.
"I"m afraid we will not be able to find another place to stay." His vice-leader came to his side and said.
The male lead frowned. If he was given a choice, since the sun was still high in the sky, he wanted everyone to venture further. But seeing how the men were low in spirits, he then announced loudly so those whose ears might be ringing due to the wind could still hear him, "Although it"s still early, let"s check the place."
His colleagues nodded in agreement, secretly glad that they would not have to simply pa.s.s by and pretend that the settlement did not exist. Adam led them to the village"s direction, exiting a mini-forest and crossing a shallow river. Their lower garments became wet and dirty due to the mud from the waters.
Once they officially entered village under the gazes of several locals, Adam asked the first villager he saw how far was the next town and village. Then after hearing that the nearest would take half a day on horseback, he came to a decision, "Everyone, it seems we can only stay the night here."
Upon hearing this, the knights gave him a weak grin. They slowed down to not cause an unnecessary commotion and then stopped near the center of the village.
The male lead took a deep breath before getting off from the horse"s back. It was probably around 4:30 in the afternoon when they came there. A couple of minutes or so, he went out of the village head"s house, obtaining permission to pa.s.s the night there. Since his men had been accompanying him on this journey for weeks, he allowed them to do whatever they want for the rest of the day. If they want, they could visit the tavern, or just sleep early.
He saw the n.o.ble son get off his own horse, frowning for a couple of seconds before heading towards the sole inn at the center. He was sure this person who was amiable when talking to knights was not happy to settle in a small village. But who cares about his opinion? There was no better choice anyway.
Adam? He walked around, gathering information. Since there was still some time before dusk, the villagers were still outside, maximizing the light from the sun to get some more work done. He took advantage of this fact and like what he did in the previous towns and settlements. asking around about his lord, the Viscount"s daughter, and the scammer, a boy aged seventeen and eighteen. He considered all scenarios and focused on inquiring if there were two people pretending to be a couple, brother and sister, or just anything possible who came here together. He emphasized that one could be sick and had to lie all day in a cart or be carried by the other.
"This place is frequented by people crossing the borders of the Borley Kingdom and the Holon Kingdom. If you mean if we saw a pair of travelers pa.s.sing by, then there are two many to mention, Sir Knight. ," said a kind and honest looking middle-aged farmer, shaking his head. "It"s hard to remember all. I"m just a farmer who"s even having trouble counting more than four dozen."
"Can you dig more into your memories? Perhaps, there"s one among the many pairs who stood out more than the others. I"m sorry to trouble you, but please do try to recall."
The farmer adapted a thinking pose, falling silent. Half a minute later, he spoke. "Hmm…. There"s indeed a pair. But they are with a caravan protected by several mercenaries. They stayed for several days since the head merchant of the caravan fell ill. When this merchant recovered, he did not immediately lead the people away as he had many things to purchase from the locals. Because of this, that pair also stayed longer with us. One always wore a hood, looking gloomy and cheerful at the same time. It"s hard to describe this person. I only know she"s quite talkative. As for the other…"
Looking at the man before him who suddenly paused, Adam had a weird feeling in his heart. Several fragments of memories flashed across his mind. This same situation... had happened in the other places too….
"Is there a problem with the companion of that hooded girl?" he asked anxiously.
The farmer temporarily placed his plowing tools down and wiped the sweat on his forehead. "That young philosopher is a true man of wisdom so it"s hard to forget about him. Young Sir Knight, you won"t believe what he"s done for us. Many in the village are illiterate so it"s really moving when that person left us a complete set of teaching material which helped many of the children learned to not only recognize the alphabet, but even write them. Wait for me, I"ll just wrap things up here then you can come with me to my house so I can show you."
"Thank you for your kindness." Adam"s face was expressionless as he helped the farmer carry the heavy iron tools.
A dozen minutes later, the male lead of Borley Kingdom was feeling complicated upon seeing familiar yet unfamiliar handwriting which he had seen in the other towns and villages. It was really the same person… But as for which kingdom"s writing had been imparted by that scammer, he had yet to know. It was not his place too to judge whether that person"s deed was n.o.ble or not. He only knew that for these people who had been mocked for not even knowing what reading and writing were, his deeds were huge acts of kindness.
Adam bid farewell to the farmer and roamed around more, doing the same. When the night sky formally descended, he then followed his friends and got himself a room in the inn.
Hearing of what he did before coming there, Benedict, the kind but judgmental n.o.ble son, jokingly said, "Great Sir Adam, I heard you"ve been mingling with the local peasants before coming here. Why are you even asking around when you know they are located in the capital of the Holon Kingdom?"
The man only gave a thin smile and replied, "Your Grace, I"m aware of how my deeds will look like to others. But I can"t just relax without doing anything to check milady"s health and mental state on the journey."
To Adam"s good show of loyalty, Benedict fell silent. The disguised prince then praised him and openly said his wish to have a knight as thoughtful as Adam under him. He was not aware that he had been fantasizing too much to ask for the loyalty of a lovesick male lead.