Temple Sword

Chapter 43
1304 Summer
Principality of Slavonia, east of Chazma
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Good luck smiled on William Bartow's team again in the ensuing hours.At the end of spring, when the first rays of summer sun began to shine, they fought seven more successful encounters.Five of them were as quick and smooth as the first, but on one occasion they met stubborn resistance and lost three good fighters.On the sixth raid, just as they charged, the bandits who had spotted them beforehand dropped their weapons and fled.

During these fights, both Adam and Antal were out of control like crazy.They've never said anything publicly, but it's been noticed that these two are competing with each other, trying to outdo each other in everything.They rode at the front every time, serving as the first living wall, never willing to wait behind.It was as if there were only two of them in the whole team, and they didn't want to give each other the chance to kill the enemy.

Perhaps without realizing it themselves, they have become true comrades in arms during this time, they have become ruthless fighters, drinking the same wine and laughing at the same jokes after victory.

Spring departed, and Summer found them in a forest clearing near Chazma.Mihai, the son of Mihai, entered the camp in a carriage. Adam and Antal were polishing their swords. The driver of the carriage was a young farmer, and there were four young men on the carriage.

"What is this?" William asked Mikhail who had jumped off the carriage, and the others in the carriage began to move down the sacks, wooden boxes and barrels.

"Chazma City is very grateful to us for protecting their market from robbers," Mihai said happily. "This is their gift to thank the Templars sent by God to help them!" Haha laughed, carried a sack on his shoulders, and placed it a few steps away.

"What should we do with these supplies?"

"Don't worry, Lord Barto," Andronica jumped into the carriage with a new scar on his face, "After so many battles, we deserve to celebrate!"

"Well said, boy! I'm going to make a big meal tonight for everyone to enjoy licking their fingers until next summer's meal!" Mihai agreed approvingly, and he ordered some of the attendants Two fires were lit, a small round fire and a large fire five feet long, and some men set all the tables in the camp side by side.

"Adam, my boy, come here when you have your hands clean!" he shouted to his squires, "Come here, Antal! Let us see if you are in battle with you in other ways Just as great!"

"What should we do, Brother Mihai?" Antal asked, standing up.

"Here are eight shanks of lamb," he began, filling the table with raw meat, followed by vegetables, bread and various spices. "Take your knife and peel these skins first."

They began to carry out the instructions of the chef knight. Mihai took out a large pot from nowhere, put it on a small fire, poured water into it, and then went to a table and cut ten handfuls of green beans, and then is three big slices of bacon and put the prepared ingredients in boiling water.

"When will it be ready?" Andronika walked around beside him, stroking her belly.

"If you can come to help, it will be faster!" The cook knight patted him on the back, and before the blond knight could speak, he pushed him to another table and stuffed a knife into his hand.

"Here are 150 cloves of garlic, peel them and cut them in half!"

"But I..." Andronika looked at the garlic on the table and frowned.

"This is an important task, Andronica, don't mess it up with me!"

No one in the camp had ever seen Michael's son Mihai so enthusiastic, not even William.Although he had known Knight Cook for a long time, and had seen him cook many times, perhaps he had never had the opportunity to prepare such a feast with good ingredients.

"We're ready." After a while, Adam announced that he didn't like this kind of work very much. "When can we eat?"

"Hey, we've just started!" Mihai frowned, stirring the soup with salt and saffron spices, "Show me... well done! Andronica, where are you?"

"Wait a minute...wait a minute! I only got ten of them."

"Go and help him," Mihai smacked his lips and explained while giving the order. "We crushed this half of the garlic, and then rubbed it on the leg of lamb, and fixed it thoroughly, so that it will taste heavenly when it is roasted! By the way," he raised his head, pinching the back of the servants' necks, "Put the shelf over that big fire, damn it, I almost forgot..."

Adam was in no mood to care about the food, he kept smelling his hands and kept saying he would never get rid of the ubiquitous garlic smell, his owner looked like he was going to give him another slap Paused, but held back.

The setting sun dyed the evening forest orange red, and eight large lamb legs were already roasting on the grill, exuding an increasingly enticing aroma.As a punishment, Mihai made Adam stand in the fragrant smoke, and poured saffron soup on the barbecue from time to time.

Mihai drained the water from the peas and bacon, placed the food on a large wooden tray, which he said would serve as a cushion for the roasted leg of lamb, and poured fresh water into the cauldron again.

"I've always wanted to be a court cook," Antar said, listening to Mihai as he peeled vegetables. "Of course my father didn't like the idea, he sent me to fight in the Holy Land when I was just a boy. I hadn't even touched a sword before that. If it wasn't for William, I wouldn't have lived to today."

"If it wasn't for Mihai, I might have starved to death." William, who was watching them cook, added, "What kind of food are you cooking?"

"You mean except for the leg of lamb?" Mihai smiled at him, "I think the caban soup with ale is good for the stomachs of the warriors, it seems that your talented servant has already peeled the vegetables , give it to me, boy." He snatched part of the pile of leaves, "We're going to put these things in the water, and the good folks at Chazma gave us the capon ready, thank God, We can put them straight in the water now...Adam! Stop pouring the soup and bring me a cask of ale!"

Adam sighed, put down his work and carried a wooden barrel over.Mihai took over the barrel and poured all the beer into the cauldron.

"Wasting precious ale on this?" he couldn't take it any longer, and yelled at his master angrily, "you made me do woman's work for hours, and I was covered with stains that would never wash off. I can live with the garlic and smoke. But I can't stand you pouring a whole barrel of ale into your bloody soup, what the hell are you?"

Everyone laughed, except Michael's son Michael.Turning bloodshot eyes to his squire who should have been a knight a year ago, he grabbed the boy by the robes and shouted into his face.

"I've had enough of you today. Is it woman's work to make you do this? Okay, if you want a man's life, I'll give it to you now, go and clean up those horses, all horses! You won't smell of garlic after this, you are not allowed to work with gloves, understand? Otherwise I will draw a blood mark on your back!"

Adam broke free from the greasy hand of the cook knight, and rushed like a bull to the tied horses in the camp, and began to clean up the animals and curse to himself.

A figure appeared beside him, Antal shrugged to the surprised attendant, and started to do the dirty work.

"I'm sorry I slapped your girl's ass in that inn in Buda," Adam said after a while, "I didn't know it at the time, and I apologize for not having a fair fight, I probably drank too much that day gone."

"I've hated you for a long time," Antal said, "but you remind me of an old friend."

"Is that person also an attendant who is hated by his master?"

"Almost," Antal naturally showed a shallow smile, "he is a Templar in black robes, he can't stand the order of the Knights, and the Knights can't stand him. Tell me, when you are finally What are you going to do when you become a knight?"

"Hedge knights," snapped Adam, "I swear ten years to fame. After that, I will create a free company of elite soldiers, and serve under the banner of the employer who pays the most gold."

"You don't value chivalry very much, do you?" Antal laughed softly, while Adam continued to answer in a serious tone.

"Is there any knight alive who is upright and honest?"
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Mihai's feast lasted until the wee hours of the morning, and there was not a drop of soup, a piece of meat, or a sip of wine left in the camp.The knights, who can only live abstinent life, stuffed their stomachs with food until they couldn't eat any more or fell asleep from exhaustion.Michal is delighted, he feels like a court chef tonight, and he thinks if this is their last night together, it will be perfect for everyone.

Early in the morning, a messenger arrives at the camp, it is Umberto himself.He called William aside, and whispered in his ear for a while with a deathly pale face.Every time the singer said a word, the blood on William's face would disappear a little.Finally, standing before his men, he summarized as succinctly as possible what he had heard from the Italians.

"Five days ago, on the seventh day of the month of St. Jacob, Pope Benedict XI cursed Siala Colonna, Guillaume de Nogaret, Keeper of the Seal of France, and Everyone involved in the death of Pope Boniface VIII, His Holiness..." Speaking of this, William choked up for a moment. "The Holy One passed away that day, of course, it was an 'unexpected' bizarre death..."

Upon hearing this news, angry discussions erupted in the camp.No one would be foolish enough not to wonder what was really behind the pope's "accidental" death, but it's not all bad news.

"Just a few days ago, King Wenceslas II of the Czechs arrived in Buda with his army," continued William, "and took the sword, robe and diadem of St. Simia! And if that was not enough, I will tell you that he also took Laszlo, the rector of Buda, son of Werner, as a hostage. After the accursed damned King Przemysl left us Before the country, he handed over the reign to his wild dog, Ivan Kossej!"

Hearing Corsergi's name, all the knights and attendants couldn't hold back their anger any longer and started shouting. William felt that there was no need to continue talking, so he just murmured softly.

"We can go home."

【footnote】

① Siala Colonna led an army to attack Pope Boniface VIII in Anagni on September 1303, 9

(End of this chapter)