Drawing Cards in the Middle Ages to Rise in Ranks-Chapter 447 - 229: The Expedition

Furinjira crossed her legs, sitting on the bench in the garden: "To be honest, I’m quite curious how your grandfather... a guy who always talked about pure blood, eventually changed?"

Chelina paused in silence, then shook her head: "I don’t know, maybe because of love."

"Him?"

"I’ve seen portraits of my grandmother when she was young, she was indeed beautiful, probably a gentle person like my mom."

Chelina’s eyes softened a bit. Because the Wolf Race has a long lifespan, she hadn’t met her grandmother, but when her father mentioned her, there was always a kind of beautiful longing in his eyes, which was what she desired.

Furinjira agreed: "Also, if your grandmother wasn’t beautiful, judging by your grandfather’s looks, our family Nina wouldn’t be so pretty."

Chelina chuckled, and said: "Grandfather was actually a very stubborn person. The marriage between the Wolf Race and ordinary people had long existed, but was never recognized by the family."

"If he hadn’t insisted on being with grandmother openly, there wouldn’t have been such a big uproar."

Furinjira was a bit curious: "What happened in the end?"

Chelina sighed lightly: "The Wolf Lord compromised; the Wolf Race Council no longer opposed the marriage between the Wolf Race and ordinary people—at least, on the surface. Perhaps that’s why my father believes he would still compromise."

"That changes my view of him a little."

"No need, that doesn’t change the fact that my grandfather is still a bastard at his age."

Chelina sighed lightly: "Although I don’t want to admit my relationship with him, Furin, I still hope you don’t have any prejudice against him. Although he’s disliked, he’s not a bad person."

...

In the dim barracks, Losa, returning from patrol, sat wearily on a chair. Days of traveling by ship were not easy; even though he didn’t feel physically exhausted, the mental strain was heavy.

He looked at Andreas, whose face was pale but clearly spirited, and said: "Andreas?"

"Sir."

He looked up, somewhat puzzled by Losa’s gaze.

"Do you regret it?"

Andreas immediately understood what Losa wanted to say, lowered his head, and said: "No regrets, being able to serve you better is my honor."

He paused, and then added as if convincing himself: "A long life, a strong physique, free from disease... the cost is nothing more than drinking a bottle of blood from time to time. As Kurs said, this is what many kings dream of."

But not Baldwin IV.

Losa silently added in his heart: "As long as you don’t regret it. In the upcoming period, Transjordan depends on you—the logistics and the defense of the Barony of Tih are paramount."

The Barony of Tih is Losa’s territory bordering Adil’s Egypt. Although there’s a vast desert as a natural barrier, making it difficult for large armies to pass, there’s the precedent of Adil once approaching with a thousand cavalry, and nobody can guarantee he won’t come again.

Eira Port should not be mentioned, as Captain Hog guards it.

"Sir, what if the enemy attacks Jerusalem along the coastline of the Sinai Peninsula?"

"That’s not for you to worry about. Once we leave, Transjordan is too empty; even if other places are attacked by the enemy, we cannot support them. Don’t worry, the frontline fortresses on the Sinai Peninsula are very sturdy, and the enemy will find it hard to break through immediately."

"By the way, sir, there’s another matter..."

Andreas mentioned to Losa that someone had claimed to be a confidant of "Cardinal Sebastian," wanting to lease New Habsburg to build a monastery.

"I’ve already heard about it. After you rejected them, they didn’t give up; at Jerusalem’s court meeting, they proposed donating military funds to buy New Habsburg, only to be harshly disgraced by Urding. Now, this Sebastian is probably quite angry with me."

Losa’s voice had a playful tone.

Seeing the worry on Andreas’s face, he realized that as a native of this world, the reverence for divine authority was deeply ingrained, especially since this era’s clergy were figures that even local lords dared not to provoke lightly.

So he restrained his joking attitude and spoke seriously: "You handled it well, Andreas."

"Don’t worry about him causing me trouble; the Jerusalem Church and the Pope aren’t in cahoots."

Andreas let out a light breath: "Understood, sir."

Losa got up and patted Andreas on the shoulder: "Don’t be so cautious in doing things. With me supporting you, if you encounter such people next time, just have the guards beat them out with sticks."

Andreas smiled awkwardly.

"You’ve worked hard these days."

Losa said very seriously.

Andreas belongs to the Imperial Knights but isn’t a squire. He needs a blank squire template to transfer, but blank templates are scarce; even if Losa had one, he doesn’t plan to let Andreas use it.

"A servant’s duty, not considered hard work."

Andreas bowed respectfully.

"It’s getting late; finish your tasks and rest soon. It’s only your first day after the Initial Embrace, don’t overwork." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Andreas smiled wryly and replied, "Yes."

In reality, Andreas had no room to rest; they were departing the next day. Organizing the logistics crew and planning the march route were tasks Andreas needed to prepare; Losa’s admin personnel were still too few.

Walking out of the tent, Losa patted the shoulders of each night-watch soldier, straightening their armor and dusting off the dirt.

Each soldier who was patted showed amazed expressions, watching Losa’s departing figure: "I heard this is Sir’s unique blessing method. Previously, knights following Sir on night raids against Saladin’s camps were all untouched after being patted."

"Not only that, but it’s also a sign that Sir favors someone. Didn’t you hear him call my name earlier? Perhaps when we return, Sir will promote me to Lord Knight."

Looking at Losa flipping onto his horse and riding away toward Hebron, with the Winged Cavalry surrounding him, the soldiers reluctantly withdrew their gazes.

At this time, the night was already deep.

Far away, Losa stood in front of a mill, looking back at the sprawling army camps outside the city.

Jeanne wondered: "What are you thinking?"

Losa pondered: "They all believe I can lead them to victory. Just not sure if, when they reach the battlefield and find the enemy has terrifying giant dragons and wizards who can cast spells, they’ll still have this confidence."

"You have no confidence?"

"There is a bit of confidence; Saladin shouldn’t be harder to deal with than the Wolf Race’s Expedition Army."

Losa chuckled: "It’s just that among them, many are untested recruits, and I truly don’t know if I should... or can even hope for them."

Recruited soldiers transformed by the system naturally have their combat effectiveness assured.

The merged Monastic Knights have strong combat power as well.

The regular Black Eagle Banner Team, who followed Losa in the Limassol expedition, has a combat strength Losa is aware of. But these recruits who’ve only undergone basic training—especially those conscripted by the various vassals—Losa truly finds it hard to have confidence in them.

Bringing them to the battlefield, Losa always feels it’s not that reliable.

"Whether they can do it still needs to be tested on the battlefield."