Chapter 24: The First Cavalryman in the Legendary Mercenaries of Antara

 It was only at dark that the mercenaries walked to Luxor City.

 The stone-piled walls of Luxor City had two date palms standing at the city gates. Traders moved in and out of the gates.

 After entering the city, the mercenaries stopped at the base of one of the walls where they would bivouac for the night.

 Rada buys a batch of large cakes with the few dinars he has and distributes them to the crowd. He also buys four donkeys to carry heavy loads.

 The sky grows dark.

 Ramto ran quickly to Wakhan and exclaimed, "I've got a treasure for you. Come with me quickly."

 The four Radha's hurriedly followed the two, and the six arrived at the tavern.

 Inside the tavern, behind the counter, the tavern owner was cooking food. Above the counter were ingredients hanging from silk ropes. Tavern maids stood by the wall with jugs of wine. Multiple blankets were spread out on the stone floor, and townspeople in twos and threes sat on the blankets, drinking, as bean-sized candles flickered on the adobe walls.

 "That's her," Ramtor pointed a finger at the woman sitting on the blanket.

 As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Radha slapped Ramtor on the head, "Are you doing this to your sister-in-law?!"

 "Don't, let me finish," Ram Top stared at the other slaps in a huff, "She's a healer, if you don't believe me ask."

 Vahan walked towards the woman, the remaining five following close behind.

 "Hmm? I don't think I recognize you. Peace be with you, stranger," the woman said.

 "My name is Vahan, ma'am, tell me about yourself."

 "You must know that while you warriors have fun fighting, we women suffer a lot ... The village I live in is north of here, just across the bay. It was a lawless place, not ruled by a powerful king, and all the lords could think about was how to plunder their neighbors. My mother was skilled in using herbs to treat illnesses and heal wounds. My childhood was both happy and peaceful until one day a month before I was married."

 "On that day, my life changed. A gang of bandits from a nearby village attacked us. We had never harmed them or thought they could be our enemies. Yet they wanted our cattle. They killed my mother, and the man I married, and burned our village. I lost everything. Those who survived fled into the deep forests."

 "I hope that my loved ones will return home soon, but I will not go back. I can't go back to ... I can't stay in a hellhole where I have to wag my tail at people with human faces. I will hone myself in the military. I'll learn how to save lives, as well as how to hurt people. Even if I do have to get married and settle down someday, I'd rather live in a country with a king ruling the country, even if it's a tyrant, than start a family in the middle of a chaotic world of attacking and killing each other."

 "I'm deeply sorry for your loss," Vahan said.

 "Anyway, if you know of any warbands that are looking for someone who can treat wounds, I'd greatly appreciate it. I'm looking for work right now, so if you have something that would suit me, I'd like to talk to you."

 "My unit needs someone like you."

 "There are some local townspeople who take care of me and keep me fed and clothed. Before I leave I would like to give them something in return, could you advance me 387 dinars?"

 "Okay ... Here's 387 dinars for you," Vahan said, pulling the dinars from the inside of his shirt and handing them to the lean woman, "What's your name."

 "Marena, they nicknamed me 'White Willow Bark'," Marena said.

 A few of the Rumtorians giggled at the nickname.

 "I'm going to get my gear and then I'll meet you guys outside," Marena said and ran outside the tavern.

 "She can't be a liar," Borg said and was about to follow, but was stopped by Vahan.

 "Whoa, whoa ..." Radha let out a strange shriek from the corner of the tavern.

 The five looked toward the fat man who was out of tune.

 "How about that, I'm still so lucky that I can win a bet at chess. See, 500 dinars yo," Lada said showing the loot in his hand to the few.

 "Come on, a whole bunch of people are waiting outside," said Vahan.

 "Don't you want some wine, we don't come to the tavern often. My treat!" Radha said.

 "Save it, there are dozens of other mouths to feed." With that, several people headed out of the tavern.

 In the open space next to the tavern counter, the bard played the oud in his hands and hummed.

 "Once my love has gone a thousand miles away

 Emptily looking at the long road to the end of the world

 The winds of the fangirls tell me"

 ...

 "Thieves have robbed me of my body and soul.

 I'm sick in my rags.

 Miserable and bitter, my head wants to split."

 Rada turned back after walking out of the tavern, "How many dinars do you have for this oud? I'll take it."

"Not for sale!" The bard said.

 Radha pressed her face to it and whispered to the bard, "See those vermin just now, if you don't sell, I'll let them rob you on the way out the door, and you won't be able to land a single dinar then."

 "Here's 300 dinars, enough to spend that for a while," said Lada, throwing out 300 dinars, grabbing the oudchen and striding toward the door.

 At the root of the city wall at night.

 Radha fiddled with the strings of the oud, but couldn't play it well, and the sound of the instrument disturbed the crowd with extra annoyance.

 Under the persuasion of the crowd, Lada finally gave up. Carrying this 300 dinars bought scrap, how can not be happy. Finally inquiring around finally found one that could play.

 This slightly older soldier, holding the oud with his left hand, sat squatting on the ground, the only two fingers of his right hand pinched small segments of dead twigs, plucked the strings, and played the sound of the oud, with an orderly rhythm and a mellow tone.

 "Hehehe, 300 dinars wasn't spent in vain, this oud zither is for you."

 The mercenaries fell asleep in the dark night, listening to the sound of the zither.

 Early the next morning.

 'White Willow Bark' Marena was dressed in gray-green linen, holding a simple lance in her hands, the head of which was rusted and bug eyes crawled all over the barrel. She met up with the mercenaries at the city gates.

 "The little girl's not really a liar," Borg whispered from the sidelines.

 "You'll have a hard time taking care of the wounded soldiers in the ranks from now on. Miscellany and Zana also know some medical skills, so you can ask each other for advice," Vahan said to 'White Willow Bark' Marena.

 "It's what I should do, my lord."

 The mercenaries headed southwest out of Luxor City.

 Four burros followed the group, only one of them had a young soldier sitting on it. This crippled fellow was even the first to have a mount, and Radha was unhappy about it, and nagging beside Vahan for half a day didn't get him a mount in exchange. In the end, he had to resentfully follow the group, leading three donkeys, and the other three donkeys were loaded with baggage, which was interspersed with the armor of Vahan's six men.

 The mercenaries who had been rescued from the arena had not been able to take advantage of their weapons, and most of the weapons in their hands had been looted from Hubia's blacksmith stores, short swords, pitchforks, long handled wooden hammers, hoes, samarium scythes, and pocket hand axes ... The mercenaries were also dressed in rags and soaked with stains, and the party was miserable. The passing caravans saw this line of people and avoided them early, thinking that they were stray bandits from the neighborhood.

 Ram Tuo inquired at the tavern and found out that there was a hideout located in the barren mountains to the south of Hubia City.

 Several hours later, on the narrow corridor located between two barren mountains.

 The two groups of grubs met unexpectedly.

 The twenty-odd people of the vermin rushed over impatiently after seeing the fifty-odd farmers from afar.

 "Kill," without waiting for Vahan to shout out, Ram Tuo had already swung his Mamluk Giant Axe and rushed out, the javelin in his hand piercing through the bandits that ran apart. Mamluk giant axe is Ram Tuo on the way out to ask Nadim to come, thick axe body, like a half-moon axe shape, flashing cold aura.

 The crippled soldier rode a donkey, set up his broad-leafed lance, and charged toward the bandits. He became the first cavalryman in the Legendary Mercenaries of Antara.

 Lada led the three burros and blew his horn, and the chaotic sound of the horn traveled between the two barren mountains. The mercenaries swarmed up.

 The vermin scattered and fled after hearing the horn, but it was too late.