Knights and Magic Wand
Chapter 219 - 219 117 Avalon Castle

219: Chapter 117 Avalon Castle 219: Chapter 117 Avalon Castle On the dirt slope outside Longka Village, two militiamen clutched their spears, squatted on the ground, and rattled their sticks loudly, absorbed in betting small change, with the winner occasionally bursting into loud laughter.

Beside them, at the top of the wooden lookout tower, an archer leaned against the railing, rubbing his palms together.

He took idle sips of ale while casting bored glances into the distance.

Winter was nearing its end, temperatures were warming, and he didn’t always have to climb up here wrapped in a thick cloak to face the cold wind.

Being on watch had become much more bearable than before.

As he monotonously guarded over the area, suddenly, the archer couldn’t resist setting down his beer mug, standing up, and squinting into the horizon.

It wasn’t from the ominous direction of the Nightmare Forest to the south, but rather from the hilly woodlands to the west.

A large swarm of moving figures was rushing towards the position of Longka.

“Damn the gods!” The archer was startled, grabbed his Battle Bow, and stuck his head out from the lookout tower to shout to the militiamen below, “Stop playing around!

There’s a group of dozens, maybe hundreds, coming from the west, could be bandits!

Quick, go back and alert the villagers!”

The militiamen under the tower were taken aback, instantly dropping their stick cards and rushing down the hill.

The archer, too, scrambled down the ladder in a panic, with no intention of holding his position.

No matter if they were bandits or not, he alone, armed with only a bow, wouldn’t be able to scare off so many people.

The three of them rushed back to Longka as fast as they could, warning every patrolman archer and militiaman they saw along the way.

Quickly, the village official and the village elders arranged for someone to sound the horn, mobilizing all the men to assemble.

One villager mounted his riding horse and sped off in the direction of Selva to notify the Lord.

Meanwhile, inside Longka Village, every able-bodied man took spears, short swords, and various other weapons from their homes.

Some had simple Armor, while others carried crudely made shields from broken planks, all joining forces to prepare to defend their homes and property.

The women grabbed pitchforks, rakes, and sickles, ushering their children into their homes and locking the doors and windows tightly.

The village official, wearing an iron helmet and Chain Armor, mounted a packhorse, leading a small squad of archers and over seventy villagers of all ages, armed with weapons, to arrange in formation and rush to the high ground on the west dirt slope.

A dense array of spears and steel pitchforks looked quite intimidating.

Especially the ten skilled archers at the front, wrapped in cotton armor and swords at their sides, had already drawn their arrows and notched them softly, ready to pull their bowstrings and shoot at any unwelcome visitors who came within range.

But the tense atmosphere gradually relaxed as the crowd drew closer.

The sharp-eyed archers at the front could already see that, although the approaching crowd had able-bodied people carrying crude weapons, they were in a rush, without formation, and each seemed to be dragging their family along, with a large number of women and children.

They didn’t look like bandits but rather a group of famine refugees.

Despite sensing that the newcomers were less of a threat than expected, the village official didn’t let his guard down.

After all, it’s often a fine line that separates refugees from becoming bandits.

Fortunately, Longka had been practicing day and night defenses against monsters from the forest, and the Lord had also trained the villagers in how to repel attacks.

Now facing the unarmed refugees, a few volleys of archer shots to disperse the crowd, and the tight formation of the militia would easily shatter the opposition.

However, the encounter between the two groups never actually took place.

Seeing the archers on the hill with arrows at the ready, and the three lines of menacingly arrayed militiamen, the refugee group, carrying their families, stopped far away in terror.

Faint cries and sobs from women and children drifted over from a distance.

A middle-aged man leading the group approached with empty hands, waving his arms to signal no threat, while hastily running up the slope.

“Mr.

Jon Sr.!

Jon!

It’s me, Boli from Aiken!

We mean no harm; we’re just desperately seeking help!” the middle-aged man called out sorrowfully to the village official of Longka Village on the slope.

The village official named Jon looked closely and recognized him.

That was a villager from “Aiken Village” to the west, who often passed through Longka on their way to Platon’s market to trade truffles, spices, and game delicacies.

He was somewhat an acquaintance.

Besides, Aiken and Longka were close neighbors, trading leather goods and spices over the years, with many intermarriages too, not at all strangers.

The village official Jon dismounted and asked the panting Boli who had run up, “What happened?

Why are all of you running to Longka?

Did your village suffer a disaster?”

“It’s terrible, please show compassion and help us, Jon.

Monsters from the forest attacked the village, we were powerless to resist, everyone scattered, and we barely managed to escape.

Now we can’t return to the village, and we urgently need food to survive!” Boli pleaded with a mournful face.

Jon’s expression turned grave, “Monsters?

Are you talking about those half-dead beasts?

But you belong to Lord Gunnar’s subjects to the west now, why didn’t you seek help from Wolfenhol City?”

Boli replied helplessly, “We wanted to, but a few lads went to send a message to Wolfenhol, and after four days, we’ve heard nothing.

We had no choice but to flee to a village to the north, but they said they had no surplus grain or outright refused to help us.

Our villagers fled without belongings, unable to trade for food, and some already can’t hold on any longer.

I had to lead everyone here, hoping to find a way to survive.”