Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1185 1167. Plunderer Dwarf
In fact, the rendezvous point set up by the Duke of Seward outside the Pontar Valley was quite easy to spot.

Under the dark night sky, only a few roars of wild beasts or monsters could be heard from the Pontar River and the mountains on both sides. This showed that the influence of the thing that caused the changes and the "white fog" had not really spread here.

At least for now.

Amid the sound of the rushing river, on the south bank of the Pontar River, there is a gentle slope adjacent to the foot of the Mahakam Mountains.

The noisy voices of people, the sound of livestock burying their mouths in the trough, and the crackling of burning firewood. It was lively and noisy.

The inland barge attracted the attention of a guard when it docked at a temporary ferry near the camp.

"You're late. This is tardiness! I was scolded for a whole hour!"

The guard held a torch and directed the barge to the shore.

The captain of the ship also yelled at him a few times, and in the words of "greeting" their families, they explained what happened at the previously attacked ferry.

This is equivalent to explaining where the time they were late went.

The emergence of the term "Squirrel Party" undoubtedly attracted a lot of abuse.

But no one was surprised. This only proved that these non-human guerrillas had indeed done a lot in this area.

The negotiations between the captain and the ferry manager were their business. As for the mercenaries and soldiers on the ship, once they arrived at this place, they no longer had any relationship with the captain.

So a group of people took their luggage and horses from the center of the deck, and of course some of them took advantage of the situation and tried to take advantage of the situation.

But at least some of these people were combat professionals and they were all decisive. Even though there was chaos, they all got off the boat in just half an hour.

"But they don't seem to know you're coming, my lord."

Lincoln spoke behind Lan as the crowd was moving things and leading horses under the boat.

The young clerk, like his master, was in no hurry to go under the boat.

He was leaning on the side of the barge, looking down.

There was no welcoming ceremony, and no one even came to ask questions.

Although Duke Heward's stance on witchers and non-human races is well known to everyone, it is still necessary to follow the proper etiquette when receiving a duke recognized by law.

For the nobility, especially the old-school nobility, being impolite is shameless.

"Do you need me to pass the message?"

Lincoln turned to ask the person beside him.

"No need." Lan shook his head. "Foltest didn't tell him I was invited. That's interesting. This should also make it easier for me to act."

Lincoln knew his master, so he did not refute, but just continued speaking.

"Then I will put our flags away, and we will make ourselves less conspicuous."

Lann determined the direction of action, while Lincoln made preparations based on this. This was already a familiar mode of cooperation between them.

Finally, when the crowd was no longer so crowded, Lan En and the others also got off the barge.

Most of the mercenaries who got off the boat earlier lit torches to illuminate the uneven ground.

The torches formed a long dragon, extending all the way to the camp not far away.
-
"so"

The speaker was the oldest of the raiders, a man named Bukhte, whose arms were as strong as tree roots and whose exposed skin was covered in large tattoos.

"My dear friends, is this the last group of people invited by Prince Seaward? Well, although it is a bit of an exaggeration to have so many people just to clear out some monsters in the valley, we ordinary people have no right to criticize the princes and nobles."

"Come on, lady, come closer and warm yourself by the fire. We all eat with knives, so there's nothing to be embarrassed about, right?"

There were many bonfires in the camp to keep out the cold mountain air on spring nights.

Of course, this is the treatment for rough men. Knights and nobles have spacious and comfortable tents.

Lan En was originally sitting next to Buchter, and then he saw him familiarly calling Sachia and several other mercenaries to the bonfire.

Of course, this man with a strong appearance is actually a delicate person.

"You just met with the prince." Buchter brushed his mohawk-like hair to one side. "What did he tell you?"

"He didn't say anything, and he didn't see us." Sakia sat down by the fire. "He was busy roasting a chicken in the tent. The one who talked to us was a follower knight. His name was something."

"Thales," added Yarpen Zigrin, a short, fat, bearded dwarf with the same hairstyle as Buchter.

"A scar on his face, a scarlet cape, and a white rose emblem on his left shoulder, right?"

The dwarf smiled unhappily, and his thick, dusty neck turned red in the firelight.

"Luckily there are no inhumans among you, or the knight would have taught you how vicious words can be. Fortunately, that didn't work on me. I've seen the world, so even though I wanted to kick him in the shin bone, I held back."

Buchholz nodded.

"Hearing what you said, it seems that this Knight Thales has no other skills. He can only shout and yell, and then use the doctrine of eternal fire to attack others." After saying that, Buchte patted Lan En's arm beside him.

"All right, Nischuka. Go and cover the firewood with the canvas. I think it's going to rain a little in the mountains tonight."

Lann tilted his head. "I'm not the Nischuka you're talking about, man."

Buchter was visibly stunned.

"Yes, I am Nischuka."

A tall figure, also wearing a hooded cloak, came over with a piece of canvas and covered the pile of wood with it.

As the boss of the small organization of predators, Buchter rubbed his forehead.

"Why on earth did you insist on buying this crappy cloak? Sorry, I got the wrong person, my friend."

Lan En nodded graciously: "It's okay. But you also know that not everyone is like you, looking tall and fierce. I have to give myself a little more deterrence."

As he spoke, Lan En raised his hand in front of the fire, and made a tiny gap between two fingers to indicate the "point" in his words.

Buchte nodded with a bit of complacency this time.

After finishing his work, Nischuka also sat down by the fire: "This cloak can make the enemy unable to distinguish the attack position when fighting, which is a great advantage. Otherwise, why would I buy it?"

"Besides, I always feel that this is too big a scene. Everyone is attracted by Seaward's bounty. This doesn't seem like an expedition, but more like a suicide mission. I don't want to fight in a crowd of people."

"Calm down," Buchter tried to comfort his companion, "It just looks like there are too many of us. We've hunted dragons many times before, and it's always like this, isn't it?"

"There were crowds of people watching, like a market or a mobile brothel. But once the fighting started, who would be left? Only us, the real fighters."

Speaking of "dragon hunting", Sakia frowned, not knowing whether it was an illusion, and her eyes brightened for a moment in the firelight.

Only Lan noticed.

"Yes, there is nothing to worry about now, except for one thing." Yarpen Zigrin picked up a narrow-necked wine bottle wrapped in wicker and took a sip.

As he spoke, both the raider team and the dwarf team led by Yarpen Zigrin fell silent.

Obviously, what he is about to say is also of concern to most people.

"What exactly are we fighting? Does anyone know? Even a little bit?"

"I'd like to make it clear in advance that my brothers and I are never afraid of fighting. After all, many monsters have died at the hands of our group, including real dragons."

"Predators, you are well aware of this. After all, we had some business frictions before. It was for the hunting rights of a dragon."

Buchte took the bottle from Yarpen and took a sip as well.

"Yes, we testify that it is true."

"But being brave in battle doesn't mean being brainless." Yarpen wiped his side-parted Mohawk hair to make it look more shinier.

"We need to have a countermeasure for each enemy. If it's a monster, then we can catch it easily. But if it's the Scoia'tael as the rumors say, "

"Intelligent creatures are different from monsters, everyone. They can deceive, disguise, ambush, lure, and surprise attack us. How can we deal with monsters with no brains and only stupid muscles? They can do anything to us!"

"It's not just that." Another member of the raider team, the youngest one, looked straight at Yarpan. "The danger is far more than that."

Yarpen Zigrin was silent.

The whole atmosphere around the fire fell silent.

Only the dwarf standing right next to him, a dwarf with a fat face and a short cockscomb hairstyle, spoke.

"What do you mean, huh?"

"What I mean is that a lot of people have been recruited here, including non-human races, such as you." The youngest plunderer said without any concealment.

"How can we be sure that if we are dealing with Scoia'tael, no one in this camp will be inspired by them? Or at best, you are trustworthy, but what if you are too soft when it comes to chopping down your fellow men with your axes?"

"I really am"

The dwarf was furious and wanted to argue, but Yarpan stopped him with his hand.

"That's enough, Zoltan! There's no point in arguing. How many times have I told you that? If you come here with me to learn how to make money, you must first learn how I deal with people! If you do something stupid again, I won't give you face!"

After suppressing the dwarf beside him, Yarpan, as the leader, looked seriously at the plunderers and others.

"I solemnly declare that we are not of the same ilk as the Scoia'tael."

"I've accepted Seaward's employment, and I'll do the work for him as long as he pays me according to the rules. I won't refuse, and I won't say anything."

There was a moment of silence. Not only the humans were silent, but even the dwarves around Yarpan opened their mouths hesitantly, but in the end, they said nothing and could only look down at the fire dejectedly.

"Let's put it this way." Buchter took off his studded throat guard and scratched his bull-like neck. "Maybe Prince Heward is here for the monster?"

(End of this chapter)