The Shrimp and Crab Troops

Early the next morning, under the repeated urging of the knight's squire, the levied soldiers, including Norn, began to gather reluctantly. A group of about thirty men barely formed a square, with all sorts of heights, builds, and ages represented.

The youngest were like Norn, while the oldest had heads full of silver hair. People occasionally whispered to each other, nervously discussing the upcoming battle—or brawl, for that matter.

Their equipment was a hodgepodge.

The best-equipped was a wealthy farmer, a fat man clad in a sleeveless, form-fitting mail shirt and a pointed helmet. Besides a spear and shield, he had a sheathed dagger hanging from his waist.

Noticing Norn sizing him up, the fat farmer gave a disdainful glance.

The rest of the group's gear was even more imaginative. Some wielded long weapons like pitchforks and flails, while others had short spears and sickles.

A few were dressed in just a linen shirt, a minority had leather armor, and one guy had strapped a few wooden planks to his chest with hemp rope. Their defenses were, to put it mildly, better than nothing.

"Congratulations, Captain Jinn!" Norn teased with abandon. Just moments ago, Jinn had been singled out by Sir Andrew, the knight, for his "luxurious" set of iron helmet, leather armor, shield, and spear, and was appointed captain of the second ten-man squad. Naturally, the captain of the first squad was a wealthy farmer.

"Stop laughing," Jinn said, rather helplessly.

"Silence!" the squire shouted. The noisy crowd immediately quieted down.

Sir Andrew, clad in full mail armor that gleamed silver, walked up to the group and loudly spouted words like "honor" and "courage," trying to boost morale. But the numb expressions on the men's faces clearly showed their indifference. Finally, unable to stand it, Sir Andrew shouted,

"All spoils of war are yours to keep this time!"

Now the crowd finally perked up, with many raising their heads and a glimmer of motivation in their eyes. The fat man even loudly praised Sir Andrew's generosity. But Norn, on the other hand, furrowed his brow.

"Let's move out!"

Sir Andrew mounted his riding horse and, along with another knight and two older squires, rode at the head of the column. Behind them were the disorderly levied troops, now in high spirits, with many discussing how to divvy up the spoils. Bringing up the rear were two knightly squires, making sure no one fell behind.

A small procession slowly made its way out of the village, following a small river.

Jinn, chosen as a captain, was extremely anxious. After noticing that no one cared about him being the new captain, he stealthily tugged at Norn's clothes.

"Enno, what am I supposed to do later?"

Norn, whose train of thought had been interrupted, took a while to react. Seeing the nervous Jinn, he said nonchalantly, "Before the battle starts, follow the squire's orders. Once it begins, just stick close to me."

Seeing Norn's relaxed demeanor, Jinn finally calmed down and continued with the group.

But Norn felt the situation was a bit out of his expectations. Looking at the levy troops eager for spoils, he sensed a hidden danger. Their side had more knights and a higher chance of winning, yet Sir Andrew was being so generous.

"Either this knight's had a change of heart," Norn muttered to himself, "or he knows this is going to be tough."

"Seems like this Jacob Knight is more of a handful than I thought."

The group marched for about half an hour and arrived at a clearing, where Sir Andrew immediately ordered a rest. The levied troops, relieved, scattered like birds and beasts, each finding a shady spot to rest.

Jinn took out a waterskin, intending to give it to Norn, but saw Norn pull out a hemp rope about a meter long from his bundle and pick up a few fist-sized stones from the ground.

"Enno, where did you get the rope?" Jinn asked curiously, watching Norn's busy hands.

"Borrowed it from the knight's armory," Norn said nonchalantly, ignoring Jinn's incredulous expression.

At that moment, a commotion arose in the distance. A group of about 50 men emerged from the forest on the opposite side.

At the head was a knight riding a tall, majestic horse. His full-face helmet and heavy mail armor shone brightly in the sunlight, and the square banner on his lance fluttered in the wind. Four squires followed on horseback, also carrying banners.

One of the squires was particularly well-equipped, with the same full mail armor and bucket helmet as Sir Andrew. Besides the swallow-tailed banner he held, his gear was identical to Sir Andrew's.

Norn stared at the square banner and, with a rather stern expression, warned Jinn, "Stick close to me during the fight and don't run around!"

Seeing Norn's serious demeanor, Jinn was puzzled and asked, "Enno, what's going on?"

"Nothing, the situation's just a bit worse than I expected, but still within my anticipation," Norn counted the cavalry on the opposite side, six in total including the knight, matching their side. He also glanced at the levy troops on the other side; their equipment seemed a bit better, but that wasn't important.

"Form up!"

At the squire's urging, the scattered men began to gather. Looking at the well-armored knights across the way, the high spirits from the start of the journey had vanished, replaced by deep anxiety.

Some even wanted to desert. But the squire at the rear of the column placed his hand on the hilt of his sword and scanned the levy troops menacingly.

A few who feared being made an example of reluctantly returned to the ranks.

Sir Andrew and his father-in-law rode forward, and Knight Jacob also spurred his horse to meet them. The two groups met in the middle of the clearing and loudly discussed something.

Though they couldn't hear, Norn watched their occasional gestures and Jacob Knight's provocative circling Sir Andrew and anticipated the outcome of the negotiation.

Sure enough, Sir Andrew returned with an angry expression and shouted, "Rise! My soldiers!"

"Pray! May the Lord grant us victory today."

Now, everyone took out their wooden or copper crosses and prayed silently, hoping the Lord would bless them with victory, or at least a safe return.

"Advance!" The squire in charge of the levy troops unsheathed his longsword with a "clang" and swung it forward, issuing the command.

Under the cold gaze of the knights behind them, though reluctant, the levy troops shuffled their feet, formed a rather irregular square, and slowly marched forward.

The same was true on the opposite side.

This battle, destined to be forgotten by history, was about to begin.