PS2. Why did the recommendations decrease a lot after sending a chapter recommendation to a friend? Whining.
And then, she couldn't look away anymore.
The duke's daughter was smiling as she approached from behind. Her exquisitely perfect face shone with sea-blue eyes, her skin as delicate and pale as milk, and her bright golden hair naturally fell over her shoulders, tied with ribbons of various colors.
Her white dress was exquisite, adorned with golden and white fabric, decorated with stripes of sea-blue and light purple, and rings and necklaces of pearl, jade, amber, diamond, and agate hung from her hands and body, shining like stars under the sunlight.
A dazzling sapphire pendant hung in front of the female knight. Ryan could sense the tightness of the needlework and fabric at the chest of the dress, a testament to the high skill of Winfort's court tailors; their work was of such quality that the dress risked bursting at the seams.
"Sulia!" Duke François called his daughter's name with a tone full of indulgence.
"Father! Lord Ryan, good afternoon." The elegantly dressed female knight lifted her dress and stepped into the pavilion.
"Lord Ryan, your comment about the dwarf miner was quite peculiar," the duke's daughter chuckled behind her hand, "That was clearly the scent of iron ore."
"What's the difference? Aren't they both children of the mountains?" Ryan shrugged, his humorous gesture making the duke and his daughter laugh.
"By the way, where is Ulric?" Remembering the father was here, Ryan quickly shifted his gaze, changing the subject.
"That boy was stimulated by you. You completed the Grail trial at 24, and he hasn't even started on the path of the Grail," the duke smiled, "Feeling not so wonderful about always considering you a rival, he went out on his own for training a few days after returning."
"Where to? There's no war in the kingdom right now," Ryan found it strange.
"It's about to start. In the northern Ardennes Forest, beastmen have begun to appear frequently at the forest's edge. Many ranger knights and kingdom knights have gone to station at the edge of the forest, preparing to eliminate some scattered beastmen to reduce the pressure of the summer beast tide," the duke continued as he watched his daughter sit down, "This year's scouts report frequent activities of beastmen. By summer, the scale of the beast tide could be large. Do you plan to participate in the summer's knightly war?"
"We'll see, but I plan to participate. I've just arrived here, and I should show some performance," Ryan said thoughtfully.
"Then, if you go, join Connolly. Connolly isn't much for military matters, having you there would give me some peace of mind," Duke Winfort habitually arranged this matter, "Let's leave it at that for now. We'll discuss it further once the king's conscription order is issued."
"Alright." Ryan knew this was just a verbal agreement, with details to be discussed later. The duke also needed to give him a token, or he couldn't command a marquis.
After a pleasant discussion, Ryan brought up the matter of eradicating the bandit threat: "Regarding clearing out the bandits, the sooner, the better. Let's start action as soon as possible."
"Yes, thank you for your help. As for the loot found in the bandits' stronghold, you may distribute it freely. We will also give you an additional reward. Do you need any help?" The duke himself was also troubled by the bandits, unable to personally act on many matters.
"I don't need too many people, my duke. I just need some knights willing to fight on foot to prevent the enemy from escaping," Ryan confidently, and somewhat arrogantly, stated, "Also... I don't want money for my reward, my duke. I've heard about the pureblood Elven warhorses in your stables. Could I buy one?"
...
So, a day later, Ryan, donning his new psyker engineered power armor and riding a pureblood Elven warhorse, led more than fifty knights along the rugged mountain paths of the Scriptural Mountains.
Unexpectedly, the female knight also fully armed herself and joined the expedition, bringing along many ranger knights, especially young, unmarried ones, eager for a chance to be close to the duke's daughter.
Who wouldn't want to win the favor of Lady Sulia, potentially saving decades of struggle?
Bull Knight Baptiste and Stag Knight Gaston also joined, with Baptiste pulling out a map: "Lord Ryan, we've been marching for over ten hours now. The bandit stronghold is just beyond that mountain peak on the cliff."
"Understood," Ryan said, caressing his new mount named Grape.
After wearing the shining power armor, Pinecone could hardly bear his weight, necessitating a change in mount. The quality pureblood warhorses of Brittany perfectly met his needs. These horses not only excelled in stamina, burst speed, and bearing capacity but also had immense strength and a calm will.
Their downside was the high maintenance requirement, including unrestricted grazing and high-quality feed, spacious and comfortable stables, and vast grasslands for leisurely walks.
If Ryan hadn't acquired his own territory and was still wandering, he wouldn't dare purchase such a horse, which cost him a whopping one thousand gold crowns, even at Duke Winfort's friendly price.
"Lord Ryan? Do you have any plans?" a young ranger knight in full plate armor, with a helmet adorned with tri-colored feathers swaying in the morning breeze, asked. He admired yet envied Ryan, incessantly questioning.
Ryan remembered his name as Claude, a collateral relative of an earl, not yet twenty, who had challenged him to a knightly duel upon their first meeting, much to his annoyance.
Since arriving in Brittany, he had been pestered by these ranger knights, all eager to leverage his fame, especially since he was the chosen champion of the Lady of the Lake.
"I have no specific plans for eradicating these bandits, as none are needed," Ryan eventually explained.
"Lord Ryan, it's not that I'm targeting you, but there are some things I'd like to clarify with you. Look here," Claude eagerly took the map from Bull Knight Baptiste, pointing at a red dot, "Lord Ryan, you see, this bandit stronghold is surrounded by mountains or cliffs on three sides, with only one path leading to the base of the stronghold. However, this path is a slope filled with loose stones. I've participated in a siege here, and we suffered heavy casualties on this uphill battle."
After finishing his speech, the ranger knight appeared quite pleased with himself, believing he had made a significant contribution that would surely impress Ryan and Sulia.
Unexpectedly, Ryan remained calm.
He knew Claude was right, but hadn't Ryan conducted his own investigation?
The reason this bandit stronghold was easy to defend but hard to attack lay precisely here. The 30-degree slope leading to the stronghold's gate had cost the knights dearly, never successfully breached.
"Heh~ Mr. Claude, and everyone, I only have one thing to say about this," Ryan suddenly smiled.
"Don't underestimate the champion of the Lady."
...
The bandits on the mountain soon received signals of knights' appearance.
The bandit leader, a burly man in his forties who lost an eye in the war against the knight lords, had been leading desperate serfs in raids and attacks on merchant caravans, successfully retreating to the mountains before knights could assemble. Despite several attempts, Winfort's knights had never successfully purged them.
His success wasn't accidental; he had the support of vampire forces behind him.
After Duke François led the knights to repel necromancer Heinrich Kemmler's undead army, preventing their union with the Blood Duke of Connaught, the vampires, unwilling to accept defeat, secretly infiltrated Winfort, some genuinely seeking peace, while others harbored ambitions to destroy the duchy.
The bandit leader, supported by vampire nobility, obeyed the vampires, considering it an honor to serve the blood nobility.
"Boss, the enemy's here! The knights are coming again!" a bandit reported, "Our lookouts spotted those knights coming again."
"What are you waiting for?! Get ready for battle! Arrows! Rolling stones! Wood!" the bandit leader kicked the messenger, "Go!"
"Yes!" The bandits immediately sprang into action, armed with various weapons, even starting fires to heat cauldrons of manure, planning to pour it on knights attacking the castle.
The stronghold, about six to seven meters high, built from thick stones and wood, was the bandits' home, sheltering nearly fifty men. With vampire support, they were well-equipped, even possessing several hard bows and hand crossbows.
The heavy gates were forcefully shut, reinforced in many places. Many knights had reached these gates before, only to be stymied.
Arrows and bolts were carried up to the towers in bundles.
When Ryan and his men arrived at the base of the stronghold, the bandits were fully prepared.
"Boss, it's the Grail Knight!" A bandit, recognizing the leader's attire, reported in fear.
"What are you afraid of?! You cowards!" the bandit leader barked, "The Grail Knight is just a man. Shoot him with arrows!"
The leader's roar somewhat quelled the bandits' fear, unaware it was their first encounter with a Grail Knight.
The Grail Knight alone approached the entrance of the slope leading to the stronghold, stopping two hundred steps from the gate, beyond the range of bows and crossbows, with over fifty knights behind him.
Wearing a splendid full suit of armor, the armor's silver-grey surface bore his family's crest, along with inscriptions of unclear texts.
The Grail Knight, helmetless, revealed his sharp features, blue eyes, and black hair parted in the middle. He lifted his warhammer, planting it on the ground, issuing a final warning to the bandits.
"The champion of the Lady, Baron Jean, Grail Knight Ryan Macado, warns those within the stronghold, you have one minute to open the gates and surrender," he declared righteously.
The bandits on the stronghold burst into laughter, finding the knight's warning ludicrous, hurling feces, debris, and even the heads of dead soldiers at the knights.
Seeing several knightly heads, still showing fear of death, many ranger knights blushed with rage, but Ryan held them back, "Wait here!"
"Lord Ryan? Are you going to negotiate alone? They can't be trusted! These despicable cowards deserve nothing but our swords' thirst for their blood!" a ranger knight shouted.
Ryan's response was calm, "Who said I'm negotiating? If they really wanted to negotiate, that would be troubling."
"My meaning is, prepare for battle and wait here."
"When the gate breaks, you know what to do."
As Ryan, alone, with his warhammer, advanced towards the stronghold, the Brittany knights witnessed a jaw-dropping performance.
The bandits fired arrows frantically, with thirty to forty using javelins, a dense weapon against knight charges.
The remaining bandits attacked Ryan with hard bows, their sharp arrows flying straight at him.
Falling rocks and rolling logs were also thrown, attempting to deter Ryan.
But it was futile.
All attacks were ineffective.
The incoming javelins were blocked by Ryan's psyker shield, falling harmlessly.
The rocks and logs were shattered by Ryan's hammer, causing no harm.
Even the arrows couldn't slow him, their laughable attempts not even reaching his armor.
Only his heavy footsteps remained.
Step by step, the Grail Knight ascended the slope, his approach like a tightening noose, leaving the bandits breathless.
He neared the gate.
Desperate, the bandits poured boiling manure from the gatehouse, its stench overwhelming. This was their last resort, as knights dreaded being covered in filth, risking infection and dishonor.
Still, it was useless. With a gesture, Ryan's pale blue energy shield blocked and even evaporated the scalding manure from afar.
The bandit leader shouted, "To the gate, to the gate, hold it! Hold it!"
"Ah!" Many bandits, using planks, tables, and other objects, braced against the thick wooden door.
"Boom!" The heavy door shook, throwing the bracing bandits back, scattering them.
The stronghold trembled, the hill quaked, echoes ringing the bandits' death knell.
"Hold!!!" The bandit leader rushed to the door, bracing it with his body, joined by others.
"Boom!" A second thunderous impact, the twenty-odd bandits at the door were thrown back again, scattered and injured. The leader swallowed hard, enduring his pain, barely lifting his head.
The door's wooden beams were severely deformed.
Outside, Ryan emotionlessly raised his warhammer again.
"Boom!!!" The gate burst open, collapsing, revealing a silver-grey figure to the bandits, backlighted by the afternoon sun, like an ancient deity returning to the mortal world: "Good afternoon, gentlemen bandits?"
"We surrender! We surrender!!!"
...
In the primary material universe, the world of Armageddon.
A brutal battle raged on this planet's surface, with demons from the warp roaring, screaming, rushing towards humanity's positions like a tide of blood.
Half the planet was a bloodbath, transformed into a demon world. Above, the armies of Khorne and Tzeentch clashed, also attacking human positions frenziedly.
In a valley, amidst explosions and psyker fire lighting up Armageddon's sky, the Dark Angels battled fallen Chaos Space Marines, the Devourers. Dark Angels Grand Master Azrael wielded his plasma cannon, shooting ceaselessly, the Dark Angels fighting with a fervor and relief unseen for millennia.
Their Primarch had returned! Their Emperor had forgiven the Dark Angels' sins, allowing the Unforgiven to shed their millennia-old burden and fight unencumbered against formidable foes.
Of course, the Emperor's forgiveness didn't mean abandoning the hunt for the Fallen. Azrael swore in the name of the Primarch, all Fallen would pay for their sins.
The fallen Chaos Space Marines faced immense pressure, not only from the Dark Angels but also from the Emperor's Custodes and the arriving Imperial Fists, doomed to defeat under a three-front assault.
On the main battlefield, atop piles of Imperial Fists' corpses, a battle neared its end.
The Lord of Mankind, with his long black hair flowing, wielded a flaming greatsword, his icy gaze unyielding. The Emperor, unharmed, his golden armor sparking in places, and Dark Angels Primarch Lionel El'Jonson, bearing minor wounds, faced a blood-soaked fallen Primarch.
"Lion! The final blow!"
"Ah!!!"
The Human Siege Hammer, Ryan (confirmed), will gradually align his combat power with other gene-forged Primarchs.
___________________
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