Chapter 010: Awakening from a Dream

The snow had cleared, and spring arrived early. Unnoticed, spring had come to the northern lands. In the small border town of Ruijin in the Province of Kote, greenery covered the land. Here and there in the town, there were still a few silver highlights, which, when illuminated by the sun, reflected a variety of colors. Under these colors, it seemed as though the entire town had been washed clean by winter.

This year, winter in Ruijin was unexpectedly shorter, and spring came a bit sooner. Yet, whether poor or rich, commoners or nobles, everyone was quite satisfied with the arrival of spring. The commoners were happy no longer having to worry about the cold, while the noble ladies spent time at various banquets, showing off their new spring dresses. Although the nobles of Ruijin were considered insignificant compared to those in the capital or even the southern regions, they were still the rulers of this small town.

What kind of life could one lead in such a small town?

A few idle soldiers held their rusty long spears, basking in the sun at the city gates. From time to time, they yawned or stretched slightly, leading an extremely comfortable life.

One of them, who seemed to be a squad leader, seemed quite displeased with their behavior. His worn leather shoes made a creaking sound as he stepped on the snow-covered ground. After walking for a while, he said in a low voice, “You fools! Can’t you be more energetic? If Lord Carol sees this… you all will get whipped… It doesn’t matter if you get whipped, but I’m afraid you’ll end up harming me as well! I’m not in good health these days, and I certainly don’t want that bastard Carol to send someone to whip me again.”

The soldiers laughed at his words. One of them said after laughing for a while, “Squad Leader Harry, that’s your mistake. We, the local guards, aren’t under the control of those Northern Legion guys. Why should those bastards beat us? Didn’t the city lord say it? In our area, only we are the masters. Those Northern Legion guys are nothing but trash.”

The squad leader, called Harry, changed expression. After scanning the surroundings for a moment, he stepped forward and slapped the soldier hard, saying, “Idiot! What do you know? Every year at this time, it’s when those barbarians from the northeast like to provoke everyone. Besides the men of the Northern Legion, who else can deal with those brutes? If your words drive away the men of the Northern Legion, what will you do when those barbarians come? Send you to fight? Look at you—acting like a big shot in front of women, but on the battlefield, you’re nothing but a coward who wets his pants!”
The soldier turned red with anger, but he knew the squad leader was telling the truth. Though hatred flashed in his eyes, he still bowed his head and said, “Yes! Yes! It’s my fault! I spoke recklessly again! It’s all my mistake! Squad leader Harry, please spare me this time… Otherwise… I just freed that little bitch Vera from slavery. To avoid being discovered by my mother, I’m keeping her in the civilian district of the East City… If you’re interested, squad leader… maybe you could come with me sometime?”
Harry’s lust surged. His eyes gleamed as he couldn’t help but ask, “Is that the bitch who supposedly costs a gold coin per night? How did you have the money to free her?”
The soldier didn’t dare hide it and quickly whispered, “It was because a merchant came to our city last time. Seeing the valuable goods he carried, I found a dark corner and…”
As he spoke, the soldier made a gesture of cutting someone’s throat.
Harry’s expression changed again. Though he had done similar things many times himself, he felt annoyed now. He slapped the soldier again and then said in a low voice, “Idiot! You fool! Doing such things at a time like this? If the men of the Northern Legion find out, how will you explain it? With your own head?”
The soldier chuckled and said, “What are you afraid of, squad leader? Haven’t we gotten used to this? We can just say they’re spies from the barbarians. After all, since we’ve killed them, what can the Northern Legion do to us? Once this period passes and they leave our city, won’t it still be ours?”
Squad leader Harry thought it made sense. His anger subsided slightly, and he was somewhat satisfied. But soon he realized what he was doing and glared fiercely at the soldier.

How could the soldier not understand what he meant? He felt furious, wishing he could slap himself—by making things clear like this, wouldn’t he have to share some of the profit with Captain Harry? His anger reached its peak, but he didn’t dare say much. After fumbling in his pocket for a while, he finally pulled out a few gold coins and handed them to Captain Harry. Captain Harry counted them carefully and was quite satisfied with the amount. He smiled and gently patted the soldier’s head. The other soldiers, of course, knew what the two of them were up to. One of them laughed and said, “Captain Harry, you’ve made some money again today! Should we all go to the bar tonight and find some prostitutes to have some fun?” Captain Harry nodded in agreement, but inwardly he sneered, thinking, “Go to the bar for prostitutes? Do you really think I have so much money I can’t spend? Besides, I still need to see that Vera tonight! Hmph, that bitch—she refused even to let me lick her before. Tonight, I’ll make her regret it!” At these thoughts, Captain Harry felt a surge of excitement. He tilted his head back and stared at the scorching sun, wishing it would set faster. After watching for a while, he suddenly froze. The reason he could become a leader was that he had practiced some combat energy, albeit only at level one. But that was still far better than those ordinary soldiers who relied solely on brute force. On the battlefield, it wasn’t a problem for him to fight two or three enemies at once. His eyesight and hearing were also much sharper than others’. Right then, he spotted several dark figures appearing on the horizon. After thinking for a moment, Captain Harry coughed and said, “You slackers, stop slacking off! It seems we’re lucky today. If I’m not wrong, another group of merchants is coming into town. Damn it! We’ve been frustrated by those guys from the northern army lately and haven’t had any fun for ages. These guys seem promising. Everyone, stay alert! If anyone shows any weakness, I’ll kick their balls so hard they’ll never be able to be men again!” Hearing that business was coming their way, the weak soldiers immediately became energetic, as if on stimulants. They stood their rusty spears beside them, and the small captain walked back and forth at the city gate, looking quite imposing at that moment.

Captain Harry walked for a while before suddenly seeming to remember something. He pointed at a soldier and said, “You, go to the back and keep an eye out. As soon as you see anyone from the Northern Legion, bring me word right away. We need to make money, but we also need to stay alive. We can’t give those guys from the Northern Legion any chance!”
The soldiers nodded eagerly, all agreeing that their captain was wise.
After pretending this way for a long time, the so-called merchants finally came into sight. The soldiers acted as if they were on duty seriously, but their eyes were fixed on those easy targets. To them, they weren’t people at all—just piles of gold coins shining in the light.
There were about four or five guards in this group, all riding special horses from the north. Although these horses weren’t fast, they had great endurance. Each one was worth dozens of gold coins. Under the protection of these guards, the carriage in the middle slowly approached, its wheels leaving deep tracks in the mud, as if to show how valuable the goods inside were.
In no time, the group of merchants reached the gates of Rui Gen City. The guard at the front quickly rode to the side of the carriage and whispered, “Third young master… we’ve arrived at Rui Gen City… Should we enter the city or keep going?”
A moment later, the carriage window was slowly pushed open, and a boy who appeared to be around sixteen or seventeen appeared. After glancing at the not-so-tall city of Rui Gen, he said indifferently, “We’ve been on the road for half a month. Since we have a place to rest, let’s rest here for the night.”
The guard who had asked quickly nodded and said, “Understood, third young master!”
Then he rushed back to the front of the group and waved, causing the convoy to move forward again.
At this point, the soldiers sensed something was off. One of them whispered, “Captain Harry? This doesn’t look like merchants at all. It seems more like nobles. If that’s the case, it’ll be hard for us to act!”
Harry glanced over and said disdainfully, “There are no family crests on the carriage, and the guards can’t even afford proper armor. How could such people be nobles? I guess it’s probably the son of some wealthy merchant traveling with a few mercenaries. How could we afford to offend them? Get ready everyone. When we act, do it quickly and cleanly. After splitting the money, we can all have some fun tonight!”