The Camp

As the sun dipped lower in the sky, a medium-sized camp began to buzz with activity. Numerous small traders lined the perimeter of the camp, hawking all manner of trinkets.

"Sir, take a look! This is the legendary skin that the Holy Son Himself removed. Carry it, and you'll be blessed by the Holy Son, free from the plague of illness!" A portly merchant clutched the arm of a mercenary, loudly peddling his wares.

"Is that for real?" The mercenary, reeking of alcohol, seemed somewhat swayed.

"Of course it is! I swear by my grandmother's grave!" The fat merchant thumped his chest earnestly, his round face beaming with sincerity.

The mercenary, freshly paid, waved his hand and, clutching the so-called holy relic, sauntered over to a nearby wagon.

"Strong warrior, fancy a thrilling night? I promise you won't be disappointed!" From the wagon, a lady in a white dress slowly bent towards the mercenary, revealing a tantalizing expanse of creamy skin, her eyes dancing with seduction.

The other ladies in the wagon, seeing the mercenary, grinned lasciviously and swayed their bodies, flaunting their impressive figures. The mercenary boldly ogled them, his eager gaze seemingly trying to pierce through their tattered garments.

After a moment of inspection, with a coquettish cry, the mercenary pulled one of the ladies into his arms and strode towards a nearby tent.

The ladies who weren't chosen looked disappointed, one of them muttering a curse under her breath, but she quickly pasted on a sultry smile and loudly called out to other customers.

Norn sat on a patch of grass, watching this scene that felt more like a marketplace than a military camp and couldn't help but sigh deeply.

"Who the hell are they fighting?"

In Norn's mind, a strong army should have bright armor and high morale, with junior officers eager to show their mettle and senior officers masterminding strategies.

But now, Norn watched as both his not-so-straightforward Captain Wolf and the well-dressed nobles all filed into the adjacent camp to engage in deep conversations with the ragged, impoverished women.

A third of the mercenaries were drinking, another third were across the way, and only a third remained in the camp—not that they didn't want to go, but poverty held them back.

"Sigh!"

Despite having been in this era for nearly six years, Norn still felt a deep sense of helplessness about the most common armies of this time, especially since he had been forced to become one of them.

"Hey! You heard?" Two mercenaries, arm in arm, passed by Norn. One of them said in a tone that every man would understand, "Gillna's got a new girl. The look, the skin... tsk tsk tsk..."

"I'd say even a princess wouldn't compare to her!"

"Gillna," "princess," "new girl"—these words immediately caught Norn's attention.

"Anna lives with Gillna, doesn't she?"

"No way!" Norn was taken aback, and then a surge of anger rose within him, his eyes radiating an endless chill. He touched the dagger on his foot and immediately got up and ran towards the adjacent camp.

"Anna! Please be okay!"

Some unpleasant guesses flooded Norn's mind, and for a moment, the furious Norn was eager to find Gillna, who was taking care of Anna, as only she would know Anna's whereabouts.

Ignoring the vendors and women's solicitations, Norn relied on his memory and, after several twists and turns, finally arrived in front of a blue tent—it was Gillna's.

But the entwined figures on the tent and the growling sounds coming from inside clearly indicated that Gillna was working.

Norn had just taken a step when a rough hand grabbed him.

"Kid! Wait your turn!"

Norn turned around to see five or six men lined up in front of Gillna's tent, glaring at him for cutting in line.

"I have urgent business with Gillna!"

"Everyone here has urgent business with Gillna!" The burly man at the front looked displeased, and the others behind him nodded in agreement.

"I'm not..." Before Norn could finish, the man impatiently cut him off, "No matter what your reason, you have to wait in line!"

"If you can wait in that long line over there, why can't you, young man?"

Norn was taken aback and quickly turned his head to see at least thirty or so burly men anxiously waiting in front of a white tent.

And next to that white tent, a small figure flickered uncertainly on the tent fabric.

Anger erupted in his heart like a volcano, Norn's eyes turned blood red, and his right hand slowly reached for the dagger hilt.

"You all have to..."

"Norn?"

A somewhat puzzled call, like a bucket of cold water, doused Norn's rage.

Mechanically turning his head, Norn saw Anna, dressed neatly, looking at him with confusion.

"Norn, is that you? What are you doing here at this hour?" Anna's eyes gradually sharpened, initially disbelieving.

"I heard there was a new girl at Gillna's..."

Before Norn could finish his hesitant sentence, Anna's eyes immediately radiated an endless chill.

"Humph!" Anna tossed her head and turned to leave.

"So I was worried about you!" Norn quickly stepped forward, grabbed Anna's hand, and finished what he hadn't said.

At that moment, several burly men in line noticed Anna's demeanor, and their eyes lit up.

"Was the price not agreed upon?" A bald, drunken man with a lecherous grin blocked Anna's way, "Little girl, name your price, I'm not short of money here!"

"Get lost!" Anna, her face cold, glared at the bald man.

"Quite the character!" The bald man, with a lecherous grin, reached out to grope her.

Norn pulled Anna behind him, shielding her with his not-so-tall frame.

The man was taken aback, but in his drunken state, he quickly became furious.

"Where do you think you're from, kid!" The man reached out to grab Norn and teach him a lesson.

"Baldy!!!"

A somewhat shrill roar came from behind Norn, and a graceful figure stepped out from behind him—it was none other than Gillna, who had just finished her work.

"Drunk on horse urine, daring to cause trouble in my place!"

Gillna, still somewhat disheveled, stood in front of Norn and Anna.

"Do you believe me if I say a word, and no one here will do business with you!"

Seeing Gillna, the bald man's momentum faltered, but he still tried to bluster, "Who do you think you are..."

The previously aggressive bald man suddenly fell silent because he saw a burly figure emerging from the tent.

"What did you say?" The massive figure almost completely enveloped the bald man in shadow.

Norn took a closer look and saw it was none other than his mercenary band's captain, Wolf.

The bald man could only sheepishly say, "Captain Wolf, it's a misunderstanding, just a misunderstanding, no one's causing trouble, just negotiating a price."

Wolf, bare-chested with a jacket casually draped over his shoulder, glanced at the bald man with a wolf-like disdain.

"Get out."

The seemingly casual words hit the bald man like a mountain. He nodded frantically and almost crawled away.

Wolf turned his head and looked at Norn, first belched, then mumbled, "Take good care of her." With that, he pulled Gillna back into the tent.

Norn watched Wolf's retreating and nodded thoughtfully.