Temple Sword

Chapter 211 The Rakfi Family

1326, the 4th of St. George's month (April)

Visegrad, Hungary

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The sky was already glowing slightly, and the sun had not yet emerged from behind the mountain. At this time, a young man had already stepped out of the door of this noble building before the first cockcrow.

The gate leads to a modest little dirt road, from where you can see the whitewashed tower of Santa Maria Maggiore.Behind him is a long porch and a two-story stone house with a tile roof.

The building is located close to a German settlement. Its previous owner mysteriously disappeared during the coastal campaign three years ago. Before that, it may have been occupied by a noble who supported Matei Chak when Visegrad became king. When they arrived, he and his servants disappeared.

István Lakfi, the king's court knight and the White Dragon of Hungary, is the current owner of the house—to whom the king has entrusted the safekeeping of the property and its servants until they can ascertain whether Antal Bator is alive or not. die.

The boy, who wakes up earlier than anyone else, is the youngest of eight brothers and has just turned 14.He had shoulder-length, straight brown hair in a ponytail, and a stray beard on his chin that wasn't even hardened.

Only a loose shirt hung on his thin muscles, and even though it was a spring dawn, the weather was still a little hot.He wore a buffalo leather belt around his waist, from which hung his dagger, money bag, and meat cleaver.

The boy was carrying a long linen bag with a knot at the top, but he didn't bring anything else.He stood in front of the door and hesitated for a moment, looking around in the light of dawn.

Not far to his left was a small river, beyond which lay the German Quarter.On the right are the houses of the nobles, then the royal palace, and beyond that the Lower Castle with Solomon's Tower and the fortifications on the hillside.

The boy chose the third direction and rushed forward, towards the Danube.

He ran faster and faster, and at the same time he did not forget to breathe regularly. He inhaled the fresh and moist air deeply through his nose, and then exhaled in a long breath from his mouth.

He clenched his hands into fists at chest height and waved his fists as he ran.Soon he reached the river bank, where he took a more difficult section with several fallen tree trunks and large and small bushes.

The boy ran while avoiding these obstacles, or jumping over them, all in order to make himself sweat more. His hands were always doing something else: punching the air, and sometimes he imitated throwing a javelin. movements, sometimes he imitates fighting with a sword.

None of his older brothers had this determination. In the past two years, Paul Larkfield tortured his body every day. Just like a blacksmith strikes iron before the sun rises, he also strikes before the rooster crows. Exercise your own muscles.

At first, he found it difficult to wake up early, but after more than half a year, he got used to it, and now he can't sleep for long even if he wants to.

He wanted to be a warrior, a warrior stronger and more agile even than his eldest brother Istvan.Stephen enjoyed the king's favor and rose through the ranks of the nobility with unprecedented speed.

A few years ago, he was just a banner captain in charge of a hundred Sekai infantry, but now he is a palace knight, serving as a commander in large and small battles.

Thinking of this, young Paul Larkfield quickened his pace, crossed the rotting tree trunks, and avoided the bushes like a nimble rabbit.He wasn't satisfied with himself until he felt searing pain in his thighs and calves.

He stopped, took off all his clothes, threw himself naked into the cold Danube River, swam against the river, and challenged the power of nature.

After landing, he put on his clothes again, including white underwear, woolen socks, leather shoes, and his linen gown. At this time, the first rays of sunlight shone on the calm water, shining like the first fishermen. Also appeared on the pebbly shore.

"May God bless you!" They greeted the boy, who only nodded to them because his teeth were chattering, then tensed his neck and shoulders and walked in the direction of home.

However, he did not enter the house, but walked around the manor in the town after wiping himself off.He and his brothers had only arrived two days ago and hadn't had a chance to really see what was going on in Visegrád.

He noticed the beautiful scenery on the banks of the Danube at first sight, surrounded by mountains, sometimes green and lush, sometimes with rugged rocks. This magical majestic beauty is full of majesty, as if God made it the residence of a king.

It's a miracle, but no rulers before Charles Anjou had thought of establishing a center here.

Paul walked toward the river at the southwest end, but stopped before he had gone far.In the rows of adjacent farmland behind the road along the east side of Visegrad, he saw a pheasant fleeing from two hares.

The boy found this scene very interesting. The animals didn't care which lord's farmland they kicked up dust. Their attention was focused on the chase.

Paul Larkfield had never seen a rabbit eat a chicken, so he couldn't even imagine why they were chasing the poor animal.But then he suddenly thought of something else...

He quickly untied the sack from his back, unknotted the upper end, and took out his grandfather's bow and arrows.That was the only inheritance he inherited from the old man, and it was also his most precious treasure.

He practices with this bow every day, and of course he regularly maintains the old weapon to make sure it doesn't go wrong.Thanks to daily practice, on this spring dawn, he drew his bow in an instant, keeping his eyes on the chasing animal.

He did not carry a quiver, but that did not matter because Paul always kept three arrows in his bag just in case.This time he also took out the three arrows, placed two on the left hand holding the bow and one on the string, while cautiously approaching the pheasant and hare.

The animals were too far away from him and were too busy chasing him to notice the boy.Paul had no intention of hunting on other people's land, and it would be bad if he was seen doing so, but if the pheasant wandered into Istvan Lakfi's farmland, he had the right to kill it.

It was not a large piece of land, but Paul was confident in that narrow strip of land: as long as the animals reached that area, he would be able to catch them all.

The thought crossed his mind that the rabbits would be out of the fields in a few heartbeats, and Paul quickened his quiet pace.How many arrows can he shoot in such a short period of time?
The pheasant changed direction twice more and then entered Istvan Lakfi's farmland, where it continued to flee.

In the blink of an eye, the two rabbits also arrived on the narrow strip of land.

Paul Larkfield paused, raised his grandfather's bow, tightened the string, and fired.

-

In the early morning, the sun casts long shadows on the streets of Visegrad.The roosters in the yard greeted each other, and the horses peered out of the stable openings.

Perhaps even they knew what a strange day it was. There were more hens, ducks, and geese in the yard than usual, and the servants were slaughtering the fowls in preparation for St. George's Day.

The kitchen was also bustling with activity, with the fire burning in the stove and the soup bubbling in the cauldron.Already kneaded bread and various pies were lined up in front of the oven. Some servants were peeling vegetables and fruits and slicing them into bowls, while others were plucking killed poultry. , remove dirt, wash...

"Who didn't sharpen the meat cleaver?"

"Who hid the big spoon?"

"Why are only half of the tables wiped?" someone else complained.

"Would you like to mix the bread crumbs into the pie?"

"Varos, go get a bucket of water, hurry up!" Bograka, the supervisor of the kitchen and servants, urged her husband, and then looked at the women in the kitchen. "Sisters, don't splash all the blood on the kitchen." Pay more attention on the stone floor, it won’t be difficult!”

In the midst of all the noise and bustling preparations, Paul Larkfield walked in unsuspecting, completely unaware of what was going on.

The boy was a little surprised. Not long ago, everyone in this room was snoring to sleep, but now, the heat and lively sounds seemed to be hitting him directly in the face.

He had put his bow in a sack and slung it over his shoulder, while in his right hand he proudly held his prey: two rabbits and a pheasant, tied together with a thin leather strap.

"What is this?" Boglaca walked up to him, "I thought there were only poultry today."

“I made these just for my brothers,” Paul said with a smile. “Let’s take them to the dinner table and surprise them!”

"Okay," the woman took the prey, "but I don't want any more surprises today. Now I have to think about how to deal with these animals..."

The young man didn't listen to this unpleasant sound. He turned around and left the kitchen with a smile.

He thought proudly that his brother Istvan might be a great knight, but he would never be able to cum as fast and accurately as him in his life.

(End of this chapter)