Temple Sword

Chapter 28 David
1303, first day of St. John's month (June)
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Zortmund stared at Antal with a disgusted expression from behind his usual cluttered wooden desk.He sat cross-legged on a wooden chair, resting his right leg on the armrest, fiddling with his dagger.

"Are you looking for me, my lord?" Antar came in from outside the room and asked.

"Yes, squire," yawned Zortmund, who never called the boy's name.

"How can I help you, my lord?"

"I have a new assignment for you today," he said, and lowered his thighs from the arms of his chair.He stood up, walked over to Antal, and squeezed the boy's shoulders, arms, and thighs.

"Well, you look firmer," he admitted.

"I'm trying, my lord." Antal nodded, feeling uncomfortable with Zoutermon's hand. "What is the task for today?"

"It's still the same as before, give her this money bag." He handed the money bag to the boy, "You tell her that I have already given all the money for next month, don't ask her any questions, or I will Kicked you in the stomach and knocked out some teeth."

"I don't ask anything, my lord." Antal said obediently.

"Also," Zoutermont turned and rummaged on his desk, "you go to Mr. Olivier's again today, but this time you don't need to pay him, give him this...fuck ...where did I put it?"

"Need my help, my lord?" Antal asked, but in reply Zoutermund simply kicked back, and the boy almost missed it.He wanted to draw his sword and pierce the dung beetle here.

"Here, I found it." The knight picked up a crumpled letter, quickly rolled it up, put it in a hard leather sheath, and handed it to Antal. "Give it directly to Mr. Olivier, no peeking!"

Antal couldn't help asking in surprise: "A letter, my lord?"

"Yes, a letter." Zoutermont made a face. "I asked other people to write it for me. It has nothing to do with you. Are you implying that I can't write anymore?"

"I have not, my lord."

"If I find out you told someone else, I'll throw you in the river, you little mouse!"

"I won't tell anyone." Antal lied, and he had shared the secret of this man with Peter and Levant long ago. "Can I go now?"

The way Zotmun looked at him never changed, as if looking at a piece of dead meat, Antar wondered if the man's eyes had been cursed.

"Let's go." He waved his hands casually, "Remember what I told you!"
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Olivier sat in his old place, a gloomy and notorious tavern, in a red and green velvet robe and wood and leather jewellery.He has short black hair, black eyes and black teeth. He drinks wine and eats roast chicken, and his bald face is shiny with oil.

"Oh, look who's coming!" The boy waved cheerfully to Antal as he entered the tavern, "It's always a pleasure to see you, little page!"

Antal just nodded, and then handed Zoutermon's letter to him.The boy didn't peek at the contents of the letter. He didn't have much interest in Zoutemont's affairs, which were all dirty things in the end anyway.But when Olivier saw the sheath, the smile on his face immediately disappeared, and the chicken leg fell from his hand into the bowl.

"Tell me, my young friend, what is this thing?" He pointed to the sheath in disgust. "It doesn't look like a purse, or anything that could be turned into money."

"My master asked me to give this to you today, and he said that there is no need to give you money this time."

Olivier stared at him motionlessly, his face full of disbelief.

"Your master is a piece of shit! Do you know how much he owes me?" he growled hysterically. "I let him live because I didn't want the Templars to keep me! But you You know, death is not the only way to punish a person. If I ask you to give me money and you don't obediently give it, then you and your master will be in big trouble. I know many extremely painful punishments. Makes one immediately regret their offense, but the Templars don't seem to care about that..."

This should not be Olivier's temporary idea, he must have considered this option, because he calmed down quickly.He opened the lid of the leather sheath and took out the letter.

"You don't look like a coward," he said as he unfolded the letter. "I know Zoutemund very well, and I'm sure he doesn't treat you any better than he treats anyone else. Like a sheep. Why don't you tell your abbot what kind of a fellow this so-called knight is?"

Antal hesitated for a while, and finally decided to tell the truth, facing such a scoundrel in this kind of place, he really has nothing to be ashamed of.

"Because then I can go to town every day," the boy admitted. "I spend most of the afternoon doing what I like, and a respectable and honest master will be stricter."

Olivier looked at him with a smile, "A decent and upright master? Who among you is like this?" He showed his rotten black teeth, "Thanks to you still claiming to be God's holy army, you can't even control yourself. Heretics can drive you out of the Holy Land."

Antal was both ashamed and angry at the lender's words. "If I were a knight," he looked sharply at Olivier, "I would demand your apology with my sword."

"Yes, yes, I know." Olivier replied lightly, "If possible, please go outside and wait first. I need someone to read this letter to me."

Antal turned around and walked out of the tavern without even thinking about helping him.He was waiting for that annoying figure outside, and after a while, Olivier appeared in front of him, his face seemed to relax.

"Tell me, my dear boy, how old are you?" he asked. "Fourteen, maybe fifteen?"

"Sixteen," said Antal, "how old are you, a hundred?"

"Someone will cut your tongue out in the future, that's for sure," Olivier said with a smile, "but I don't mind, I like honest people."

Antal didn't understand what tricks Olivier was playing, and he frowned at the man who kept looking at him.

"We'll know the result soon, soon," Olivier scratched his chin, "maybe your master isn't as stupid as I thought, but he's a bigger bastard."

"Can you tell me what's going on, sir?" Antal asked.

"You will know tonight," Olivier jokingly tapped his head, "you'd better come here after dark, when they strike the tenth bell, otherwise everyone in the monastery will To suffer!"

Antal was a little puzzled, "I'm afraid you misunderstood something, sir." He stammered.

"This is what your master said in the letter, and you do as he said." Olivier said, "Here is some money, most of which is for Zoutermont, and you can use the rest to enjoy a good dinner. Rest in the most comfortable inn, and wait for me at night here, where you stand. Remember, after dark, when the tenth bell strikes. Until then, God be with you."
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With the money, he went straight to Agnes' father's inn, chose the most comfortable room to stay in, and then drank a large glass of ale and enjoyed a freshly baked dinner.After he went upstairs, she followed him surreptitiously, and the two spent a short time together.

"Promise me that you won't do anything stupid!" Agnes begged, Antar just nodded silently, he didn't know what was going to happen at night, so what could he promise?

In the evening, Antal came to the door of the previous tavern after the tenth bell, and Olivier was waiting for him there.

"Little attendant, my dear friend!" Olivier opened his arms as soon as he saw Antal, "Look, this is what a trustworthy person looks like!"

"I still don't know why I'm here."

"For no other reason, you will be my David," he pushed the boy into the dark room, "you will beat Goliath so hard that he will never forget it!"

The tavern was so dark that you couldn't see your fingers. Only the candle in the man's hand guided the way between the tables and chairs. The spacious yard behind the building was full of trees for some reason. It seemed that someone planned to build a small forest here.After they passed through the palm-sized forest, they saw a ray of light in the distance, which flowed from a barn. When they approached the light source, Antal heard a muffled sound coming from inside.

"You can't go in with weapons," Olivier stopped at the door, "unfasten your belt, and I will keep your sword and dagger."

Antal is only now realizing what's going on.Zoutermon obviously lost a lot of money with Olivier, so much so that he used himself as a bargaining chip to pay off the debt!Instead of giving Olivier money, he sends the boy off to fight underground.Antal asked himself why he didn't peek at the knight's letter. If he was as disobedient as usual this time, he wouldn't be in this embarrassing situation.

"What on earth do you want me to do?" he asked, clutching his belt tightly, not letting anyone undo it. "Whatever my damned master did to you, I have nothing to do with it."

"You are wrong, this has a lot to do with you," Olivier smiled slyly, "your master handed you over to me tonight, so you have to follow my orders. I order you to go in with your bare hands, Defeat Goliath and earn me some money! After that, you can get your stuff back and get out of here."

Antar's hand slowly slid to the hilt of his sword, "I've never fought," he lied, "how can you expect me to beat anyone?"

"Zoutermont said in the letter that you performed very well in training, as if you had several years more experience than others."

"I'm good with the sword, sir, but I don't know much about punching."

Olivier lost his patience, his friendly snake smile receded from his face and was replaced by a ferocious scowl.

"Are you against me, you shit?" He clenched his fists, "I want to teach you how to respect adults!"

Antal drew his sword in the blink of an eye and pointed it straight at Olivier's throat, "Before you teach me," he growled, "I'll teach you how to respect the Templars first!"

"You dare not kill me." The man raised his eyebrows.

"If you won't let me go, I'll kill you."

"I'm a Christian!" Olivier looked at him contemptuously.

"You are a wicked man," Antar replied, "the order of the Knights is very clear. When a soldier of Christ exorcises an evildoer, it is not murder, but the destruction of evil. He is the lawful executor of Christ's judgment."

Olivier blinked his black eyes. If the blade hadn't been on his chin, he would have swallowed his saliva.

"Okay," he raised his hand, "you don't need to kill me, let's go!"

Antar took two steps back, turned around and ran.But just as he turned around, a thick, big hand stuck out from the darkness and grabbed his throat.Before he could react, more hands reached out and grabbed him, took away his weapon, and untied his belt. The boy couldn't fight back at all, and Olivier's four men directly held him in place, handing over to their masters.

"Look, little servant, I'll tell you what will happen." Olivier pulled Antal's dagger from the scabbard, "I made it very clear, obey my orders."

"Go eat shit, you bastard!" Antal cursed, he was held down tightly, unable to move. "God is watching you, Olivier, and he will have no mercy on you!"

Olivier put the dagger to Antal's throat, the weapon the boy had received as a gift from William many years ago.

"It's a pity, I won't show any mercy to you." He looked at Antar's face and smiled sinisterly, "Look, the situation has been reversed, be obedient, or I will cut your throat directly, Then bury you in this wood, and no one will find you. Your master is the only one who knows you are here, and I don't think he will come to collect your body."

He sighed, and looked at the boy with feigned pain, "Let's face it, if you just go into the barn, I'll wipe out Zoutermont's debt and we'll be happy, don't you? Damn, say Order something!"

"Yes, that's right," Antar said choked up, "but after that you have to give me back everything, and then we'll never see each other again."

"As you wish." Olivier bowed mockingly, "Okay, let him go!"

Antal was trembling all over, but he knew that he had no choice but to obey Olivier.As soon as he walked into the barn, his guts came right out of his body.What frightened him was not the more than 50 people in a circle, but the half-naked mountain of flesh standing in the middle of the circle.

This must be the Goliath that Olivier had spoken of earlier, the boy was sure of that, a huge man at least two heads taller than himself, completely bald, terribly muscular, and covered with scars.

"This is crazy," he said to himself, "I'm screwed."

"The savior is coming!" Olivier walked into the middle of the circle and shouted, "Before, you were all afraid of Goliath, but starting today, this will change forever!"

The big man known as Goliath looked at Antal and then laughed, and several people in the crowd laughed with him.Antal thought that if he was also a spectator, he might laugh too. His idiot master had never seen him train, and other knights must have told him about his abilities.

Although Antal is nimble and elegant as a swordsman, he is not good at defending with a shield, let alone using his fists. Even holding a shield, he can't last long. He can't believe how he can block this mountain of meat fist.

"Now is the time to laugh, you wicked souls!" Olivier raised his hands in the air like an enchanted missionary, "but in less than an hour you'll be calling the name of this man from To the holy order of knights, to punish the evil monster of ancient heresy! He is a soldier of Christ, he is not afraid to kill, because he has the right given to him by God! With respect and humility, greet the champion knight in black robes, David!"

The crowd did not cheer the name that Olivier temporarily gave to the boy, only a few scattered people shouted a few words of encouragement.Antar knew he had no choice but to fight, even with his bare hands.

Goliath was already walking towards him, his huge fists pounced like bear claws.Antal decided to use his footsteps to avoid the attack, which was the best tactic he could think of, and he wanted to wear down his opponent first.

He made a mistake, instead of dodging to the side first, he took a step forward and got close to the giant all at once. Just as he was about to dodge the first blow, it was too late, and Goliath's fist hit him hard. On his ears, the boy was knocked straight to the ground, ears buzzing.

He tried his best to protect his belly with his raised legs and his face with his hands, resisting countless punches and kicks, praying that someone would stop this unsuspecting death fight.His eyes caught on to Olivier, who had only fear on his face, and he finally understood why the boy didn't want to fight.

Antal lost consciousness around the No. 30 punch, his saliva flowed into the dust and he no longer felt anything, but the punches kept coming.

Nor did he feel anything as his battered half-dead body was thrown into the street, and Olivier fled with his tail between his legs, his body full of those who believed his lies and bet on the terrible holy knight David. The fool's gold.

(End of this chapter)