Ch. 129 Artoria, You Must Understand the Hearts of Men

Mia and Wilden were trying to gather the remains on the battlefield.

The two moved the bodies of the Anglo-Saxons to an open space, piling them together after stripping them of their armor and weapons.

Then they lit a fire.

Mia then took down the bodies of the family from the trees and the crosses, using readily available dry wood to build a pyre and cremate them.

Two fires, one large and one small, rose in front of and behind the house.

Artoria and Kay sat by the stables.

The white Knight-Princess’s dress was still stained with blood. She leaned her head against the wall, hugging her legs, and watched Mia, who was organizing the spoils of war not far away.

Kay leaned against a haystack, staring blankly at the two columns of fire.

“Compared to me, Miss Mia is truly mature…” the girl whispered softly.

It seemed that not long ago, she had taken the initiative to issue a challenge, wanting to see who would be the first to stand on their own.

But looking at it now, this challenge was lost before it even began.

That girl, who looked so much like herself, seemed to have a heart far more mature than her own.

“It’s not important to compete over such things, is it?” Kay said.

Although he was also somewhat unwilling, he truly lacked Mia’s ability to take charge of the situation.

He had even made such a fool of himself after the battle ended.

Perhaps seeking an outlet for his own frustration, he explained, “Being able to grow oneself is what’s best, right?”

“That’s true.”

Artoria nodded gently.

Kay took a breath and then sighed.

“Hey, you there,” he shouted toward Isdis, who had been rescued nearby.

“Mm, huh?”

Isdis’s mouth was stuffed with food found from the Anglo-Saxons.

With oil stains on the corners of his mouth, he turned his head while chewing.

He had a shrewd appearance, with small, round eyes that glinted like a rat’s.

He did not look like a likeable person.

“You can actually eat…” Kay’s mouth twitched.

Isdis swallowed the chunk of meat with difficulty: “I’m still alive! Because I’m still alive, why wouldn’t I be able to eat!”

Perhaps it was some way of venting stress.

He must have suffered quite a bit while being imprisoned by the Anglo-Saxons.

Kay looked at the man helplessly.

He himself couldn’t eat anything at all.

“Where are you from?” Kay asked.

“The north,” Isdis gnawed on the meat in his hand. “Anglesey. I’m a merchant. I originally wanted to take my goods to Fairleg to sell.”

“A merchant? Doesn’t a merchant have guards?”

“I did,” Isdis nodded. “I hired three men, and then they saw the Anglo-Saxons and ran faster than anyone.”

“…”

What an unlucky fellow.

The carriage by the stables that had been rummaged through was likely his property.

“If it weren’t for you all, I would surely be dead too,” Isdis said while continuing to eat greedily.

“God will let those demons… *munch munch*… be punished!”

After a few minutes, Isdis was finally full.

He let out a burp and wiped his mouth with his sleeve.

His emotions seemed to have stabilized significantly.

He downed a cup of beer and then let out a loud burp.

After casually wiping his mouth with a cloth, he turned back: “You saved me.”

“Yes,” Kay nodded.

“However, I don’t have much money right now, but I still have some modest property on Anglesey. I hope to repay your kindness.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean,” Isdis rubbed his bloated belly, “Um… you are travelers, right? Knights-errant? That lady just told me.”

“I suppose so,” Kay nodded. “We came out to travel together, but it hasn’t been long.”

“Not long, huh.” Isdis smacked his lips.

Although inexperienced young people were one of the favorite targets for merchants like them.

But they were knights-errant, after all. Judging by their attire and strength, their origins were certainly unusual.

In crowded gathering areas or towns, there would probably be many unscrupulous merchants thinking of scamming them.

But Isdis had no such thoughts toward his benefactors.

“I really didn’t expect the Anglo-Saxons to come so deep into Wales, but looking at you, you do have the ability to protect yourselves.”

He sighed as he spoke.

“Mr. Isdis.”

Artoria suddenly spoke up: “How do you feel when you see a corpse?”

“Huh? No feeling…”

He froze for a moment, and seeing Artoria’s still-childish face, he couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Benefactors, you haven’t seen such scenes before, have you?”

Artoria paused, then nodded.

Kay stubbornly did not respond.

Isdis had guessed correctly. Whether it was Artoria or Kay, the places they lived were like paradises far from the clamor of the outside world; mountainous Wales was not lacking in such places.

Kay was five years older than Artoria. Before Artoria came to Sir Ector’s castle, he was also at an ignorant age.

After Artoria became proficient with the sword, she became Kay’s squire on the surface, so their life paths were basically identical.

As folk activities, they had participated in hunting or annual knightly tournaments many times.

Today was their first time on a real battlefield.

However, compared to their peers, their performance was already excellent.

Isdis shook his head: “What we merchants are most sensitive to is nothing but money, but human life is not a valuable thing, benefactors.”

“They’re just dead people; there are many ways to die in this world. Dead people frozen hard in the snow, emaciated dead people lying on the road, dead people thrown into pits in piles—slightly older people have seen it all.”

“Then what about a situation like today’s?” Artoria asked.

“Today…” Isdis frowned. “Any place the Anglo-Saxons have raided looks about the same.”

“But this is just a farmstead. If it were a village, there would be towers made of piled heads, forests of human bodies impaled on stakes, and banners where living people are hung high with their ribs pulled back like a bird’s. All the men are killed, and the women and children are taken as slaves.”

Even just hearing this, Artoria and Kay felt a wave of nausea.