Harefield. The same day. Morning

Berthold Fortholder stood on the wall and observed the numerous tents of the southerners. They camped beside his town.

The invaders had robbed and burned the outskirts of the Harefield and pillaged many settlements in the vicinity. Berthold knew that partially it was his fault, because he refused to pay the tribute to the southerners when their army had arrived and demanded it. He thought that they hurried to the capital and would not stop here for more than a couple of days. He was wrong.

Berthold agreed to pay the tribute only when he saw that the southerners began to build siege ladders and several battering rams. He realized what might happen when they would finish their work.

Frankly, the lord didn't fear a siege. Thanks to the full town's granary and the presence of the river, he could feed two thousand inhabitants of his settlement for a very long time.

Berthold was afraid of a storm. He knew that Harefield was very unlikely to repulse so many southerners. But even if the town could manage to do that somehow, Berthold would lose too many men. As a result, the lord would become an easy prey in the eyes of his neighbors. Thus, the decision was obvious. It was better to pay the tribute.

“As I thought, you are on the wall again. Do you know that it is windy here? You can get sick.” Berthold heard the voice of his wife unexpectedly.

He turned his head and saw her, accompanied by a few handmaids. Abbigail was approaching him along the battlement. She was pregnant. It would be their fourth child.

The lord replied. “I'm in a woolen cloak, dear. Don't worry.”

She looked her husband up and down while walking. The woman nodded as if agreeing with his words and finally reached him. The lady looked at the southerners through the embrasure and questioned. “When will they leave, Berthold?”

He also looked at the gigantic camp outside and said. “Soon. It will not take much time, Abbigail.”

“I hope so.”

Then they both watched the southerners for some time, having a small talk. Both spouses were concerned with the situation in the kingdom and what they should do to save their family.

Soon the pair left the wall. The lord's bodyguards and the handmaids of the lady followed them.

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Meanwhile. Nearby the military camp of the southerners

Anno, wearing chain mail over green padded armor, ran through the forest with his father, both knights and their household warriors along the trail. It was a regular morning run that helped them all to stay strong and had good stamina.

The men jumped over logs and rocks which were on the way. Everyone panted heavily. It was hard to maintain quite a fast pace of running. They didn't jog.

Anno was tired. He felt as drops of sweat were running down his forehead. It was a very uncomfortable feeling.

Truth be told, the young nobleman wanted to give up each time when they ran. It was hard to do, even having a young and strong body, but Anno simply clenched his teeth and continued to run.

Soon the group had reached the river. The men began to undress, leaving their armors, weapons and clothes to the servants who waited for them here while they were running. In a while all men, being only in ankle-length linen pants, swam in cold water. Anno could say that it was a fantastic, refreshing feeling.

After some time the warriors left the river. The servants gave them towels. Only Anno's and his father's towels were decorated with intricate embroidery and were adorned with family crests.

Drying themselves off, the men spoke and joked openly. But - due to the difference in their social status - there was as if some kind of an invisible wall between both noblemen and their warriors. No one tried to communicate with them first. Everyone knew their place. The both Brightbraves were noblemen, while the rest were their servants.

The heir of Woodwall glanced at Harefield that stood beside the river, called “Deepriver”. The town was protected by wooden walls and had over a thousand inhabitants. Each wall was 2-3 meters tall and stood on an earth rampart. Plus, there was a dry moat around the settlement.

The town had two gates and a stone tower in the center that served as a citadel. The tower stood on a mound and was surrounded by a palisade. In short, not bad fortifications by the kingdom's standards.

At the moment the gates of Harefield were closed and guarded by the local lord's men-at-arms and the town militia, though the presence of the big army couldn't stop a trade. On the contrary, the southerners stimulated it.

Quite quickly the market was organized beside the river. The southerners came here to buy fresh fish and sold or exchanged their loot. This new market attracted many merchants. No wonder a town's taxman appeared here one day and began to collect fees from coming merchants.

Soon both noblemen had dried themselves off. They put new and dry clothes on – then armor. The lord and his son mounted their horses and headed to the camp with their warriors to continue their training.

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Some time later

Many household warriors practiced on the grass field that was beside the camp. They threw spears in the training dummies (made of hay), grappled and sparred with each other, picked up and held heavy stones above their heads for some time or tried to throw stones as far as possible. Some men practiced their strikes on wooden posts or executed a cavalry charge.

Max didn't know - when he lived on Earth – that knights and men-at-arms trained and practiced so much to stay fit. In movies no one showed this!

The men of the house Brightbrave decided to continue their morning training with wrestling.

Anno's opponent was Little Bear. He was the strongest man among their household troops. He usually fought with a two-handed war hammer. His main task on a battlefield was to break an enemy's fighting formation.

Wrestling with Little Bear was like trying to defeat a granite wall. Anno pushed, tried to grab and throw him... But it all was useless. Little Bear was very strong.

Meanwhile, on the field militiamen tried to maintain a shieldwall formation, walking forward and backward. Their fighting formation looked unsatisfactory.

Frankly, militiamen looked pathetic in comparison with men-at-arms. They weren't professional warriors. Militiamen were bakers, shoemakers, dyers (and so on) who very likely wanted to go back to their families and stop wasting their time in this war.

Only conscripted peasants were more useless combatants. The reason was not only in absence of good weapons, armors and military training. Due to a lack of nutrition and hard work from childhood, peasants were weaker and smaller (in 3-5 centimeters in average) than noblemen and an overwhelming majority of warriors. They simply couldn't grow up properly.

The training lasted around two hours. Then the men of the house Brightbrave went to eat and rest.

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Later

Anno entered a large tent that belonged to archpriest Paul, the senior clergyman of the south, and saw an altar (covered by a white cloth) in the center on which four golden statuettes stood. They represented the deities of the easterners: Warrior, Merchant, Peasant and Mother.

The first one patronized ruling and courage. The second one - trade and deception. The third one – work and obedience. The fourth – healing, children and family.

There was also a large four poster bed, plus a table with a pair of stools (one of which was occupied by the archpriest) behind the altar.

Frankly, the heir of Woodwall didn't want to be here. Anno didn't want to remember how he killed that old madwoman. But the man simply didn't have a choice. He couldn't disobey his father. Lord Elian wasn't only the head of their family but also Anno's direct liege. According to the laws and custom of the kingdom, the young nobleman was totally at his father's mercy.

Anno greeted father Paul politely when the servant of the latter introduced him to his master. The high-ranking clergyman smiled and offered Anno to sit on the free chair.

The archpriest was the third son of a minor southern noble family. He was over forty - an old man in the eyes of the easterners.

The heir of Woodwall sat on the stool that stood opposite to the archpriest. He looked at the unfinished miniature model of a building that occupied the major part of the table and lacked only a portion of the roof. It was meticulous work.

Anno could see a miniature garden in the courtyard with a tiny fountain in the center. There were also benches and bushes that were positioned along the paved paths that ran around the whole yard.

It was no secret that archpriest Paul was fond of architecture (and history) of the fallen empire and liked to construct miniature models of different ancient buildings himself. There were rumors that he had an impressive collection in his home. Many thought that it was a strange but harmless hobby.

Unable to hide his curiosity, Anno questioned. “Excuse me, father Paul. Is this the model of a villa of the Two Suns empire?”

The clergyman nodded. “Yes, you are right, young gentle. I make an exact copy of the so-called "eastern villa". They were frequently built on our peninsula."

The heir of Woodwall knew that in the past rich families owned such villas and lived in them. They had numerous slaves who worked in their fields and cared for their livestock.

No villa survived so far. They all were dismantled for stone and their foundations served as a reminder of the long ago fallen empire. They say that it was the most powerful state that ever existed in the world. They say that the Two Suns empire had conquered many lands and built a lot of beautiful towns, fine roads, strong bridges and engineering wonders on its territory.

For instance, the easterners used these ancient roads and bridges so far. They were an important part of the kingdom's infrastructure. Actually they were the only good roads and bridges that the Eastern kingdom had. Without them there wasn't a civilization for sure.

Centuries ago, when the empire got weak, numerous warlike tribes conquered its huge territory. The ancestors of the easterners were one of such tribes. They seized the peninsula, enslaved the local population and established their own petty kingdoms.

The archpriest willingly told Anno about dwellings in the fallen empire.

Rich people lived in large villas and big houses. The floors and walls were tiled and painted beautifully, depicting plants and various animals, including exotic species, usually.

A rich dwelling always had a garden in a courtyard. A living room contained a small pool in which rainwater gathered through a special hole in the roof. Such water was used for washing and watering plants.

Also, a rich dwelling had a heating system. The archpriest explained that there was a furnace in the basement that generated hot air. This air circulated between floor and ground, heating a floor, and entered into a special system of hollow bricks that were built into the walls. As a result, the whole building was warm.

Poor people lived in apartment blocks. They didn't have a heating system and usually tenants bought water from water carriers. Apartments were usually tiny and few had kitchens. Poor people bought food from street vendors or visited eateries. They ate bread, soup and porridge mostly.

The lecture lasted around an hour when all of a sudden father Paul stopped talking. The clergyman realized that he was carried away.

“So what brought you to me, young gentle?” He asked after a brief pause.

Anno cleared his throat and told the clergyman about the witch who he had killed.

The archpriest listened to the whole story and then assured the young man that no witch can harm a man who believes in Four sincerely. Also, the clergyman said that Anno saved souls of many good easterners (whom that witch might corrupt in the future). Then they both came to the altar and knelt. Both men prayed for some time.

Finally they stood up and the archpriest said out of the blue. “Read “Four, my saviors” every morning for thirty days. It will clean your soul from evil and protect you from any curses. Now go, young gentle.”

Anno left the tent but before doing that he made a generous donation to the church.

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Late evening

Tired Anno lay on his bed. Father snorted on the next bed. Fortunately, snoring didn't irritate the young man... Much.

Anno couldn't have his own tent, because he wasn't considered a grown up man by the society yet. To become an adult, he needed to marry or kill his first enemy on a battlefield.

The young nobleman opened the system's menu. It was not the first time he did that. Anno was concerned about his health.

[Menu]

Name: Anno Brightbrave (Maximilian Fink)

Life essences: 0

Health: 70%

Golden coins: 0

! A host can earn one (1) life essence for each killed sentinel being. A golden coin will be given as a reward for each killed sentinel being.

! Life essences can be used to [heal] the host's wounds and diseases or [restore] the host's health and stamina. The host can use life essences on himself or on [other] alive beings.

Why is my health 70%? Anno thought.

He was young. He felt good. He had all his teeth. Nothing bothered him, though the local medicine could have already damaged his system.

Or is this indicating that I have a genetic disease?

The heir didn't know, though the system could correct that. Anno needed to kill a sentient being. After murdering that old madwoman, Max knew that he was able to do that. But should he?

Soon the man fell asleep.