Volume 16 Chapter 6 Banquet
The next day, Al finished Kane's work just before noon and brought back 3 large deer to Nora Village.
The area at the foot of the mountains, north of Naresh's new territory, seemed almost untouched by humans, and there were plenty of game to hunt.
Al didn't go this time, but the land he was supposed to receive was likely in a similar situation. The 3 deer he brought back were all impressive specimens, weighing around a hundred kilograms each, and would make a great feast.
However, since it was a New Year's feast, he hoped to find some with nice antlers, but it seemed that the deer in this area were shedding their antlers for the season, which was a bit disappointing.
The deer were treated as a gift from Lord Naresh, and when they were brought to the village square, Al helped with the bleeding and butchering, and preparations for cooking began.
Cooking wasn't that complicated.
It was simply Al's special herb-infused salt grilled meat, along with some cuts of meat and organs, which the villagers mixed with their own vegetables to make a strong garlic-flavored soup, reminiscent of home.
Among the villagers enjoying the feast, some started playing instruments on the spot, happily dancing around the fire to celebrate the New Year.
"Thank you, Al. To bring back 3 such magnificent deer... The seasoning is also said to be delicious by the village ladies!"
"I'll expect a bonus for my reward."
Hearing this, Kane's eyes widened in surprise, and Al laughed heartily.
"I'm just joking. I didn't put much effort into the hunt, and the villagers did the hard work of bleeding and butchering. You don't need to worry about it. Just think of it as a celebration for Naresh's baron title from me."
"Thank you, thank you. It's good to have a skilled hunter as a friend."
While Al and Kane were talking like this, Joanna came over.
"Lord Al, thank you for the feast."
"Ms. Joanna, thank you for your hard work. How is this village?"
When Al asked, Joanna happily gazed at the scene of people enjoying their meal.
"Ah, it's a nice village. But seeing this scene makes me wonder how my hometown, Quenner, is doing. I hope the war ends soon..."
When Al asked her about her hometown, Quenner, Joanna looked up at the sky for a moment before slowly starting to talk.
Quenner was the town ruled by her father, Baron Quenner, where she was born and lived until she joined the knight order.
It was a key town on the main road connecting the capital of the Tempest Kingdom and Count Senet, located about 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) northwest of Count Senety's territory.
According to what she heard from her father, it seemed that when the Tempest Kingdom's knights and the Marquis Prentis knights jointly invaded Count Senet, it was occupied by the Marquis Prentis family.
The people left in the town, like her mother and siblings, are said to be hostages of the Marquis Prentis family.
"Hostages?"
Al couldn't help but voice his surprise, and Joanna shook her head.
"Don't worry. Luckily, I have an aunt who married into a powerful noble family under Marquis Prentis. Even though my family is considered hostages, they are being protected in my aunt's mansion. They can't go out, but it seems they aren't being treated too badly."
Al let out a light sigh of relief at Joanna's explanation.
"It's all quite complicated, isn't it?"
"Yes, here, take this back. Thank you."
Joanna handed a small leather pouch to Al. It was probably the Ring of Pact inside. She glanced around.
Kane, who had been talking to them earlier, had disappeared somewhere, and there was no one else around.
"Did you get to talk?"
"Yeah, she complained about Baroness Tabasa's strict guidance, but her voice sounded happy when she was talking about it. However, afterward, she asked a lot of questions about our situation. Her tone changed to serious then."
Patricia hadn't asked Al about the civil unrest in the Tempest Kingdom. He thought she might not care anymore, but maybe that wasn't the case.
"Did she seem to regret coming to the tower?"
When Al asked, Joanna shook her head firmly.
"Not at all. But she does worry if there's anything she can do for the people of the kingdom."
"Hmm..."
Al scratched his head repeatedly.
"I don't know... But there's not much we can do. For now, I plan to help Kane for a few days, then leave here for a while. But I'll come back, so when I do, I hope you can talk to Patricia like before."
Joanna nodded lightly at Al's request.
Al felt that there wasn't much Patricia could do about the Tempest Kingdom. If she showed herself, she would just be used.
He thought it was best to leave the remaining people, starting with Count Senet's family, to Naresh. But it seemed Patricia wasn't ready to accept that yet.
"Al, Lady Joanna, let's drink."
Kane returned with a bottle of wine and 3 wooden cups. He handed one cup to Al and another to Joanna. Sometimes, they just had to rely on each other.
"Got it. Let's drink!"
Kane poured wine generously into the cups held by the two.
"To the New Year!"
"To the new year!"
"Cheers!"
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