Chapter 516

Chapter 139: Bucktown

In early September, as night fell in Bucktown.

Under the stars and the moon, lights stretched endlessly.

The townsfolk originally made their living by hunting deer meat, tanning and processing deer hides to sell to merchants outside the town. Because of the town’s proximity to Woodward Forest, obtaining resources became easier, and few people were willing to settle down and farm.

Naturally, such a town was not considered prosperous. In the past, the only people who would come here were traders selling deer hides, with the occasional herbalist thrown in. Throughout the year, the number of transient residents could be counted on one hand, so that the single old earthen building in the town, which served as an inn, was barely enough for the few travelers.

The town’s facilities were also rudimentary; there were no street lamps, and even decent roads were limited to those leading to the church and the central square. On ordinary days, the residents mostly walked these paths, leading lives that were quite monotonous, consisting mainly of hunting, praying, eating, and sleeping.

Therefore, some boys in the town, after completing their coming-of-age ceremonies, were eager to venture out. Outside lay a broader world, better-paying jobs, and girls with smoother skin, free from the scent of deer.

This had been the situation in the town before, but things were different this year.

To be precise, since two months ago, due to flooding in the south, the nobles of the capital, Nalanjiade, implemented disaster relief policies. The tax soldiers of the republic began to stabilize the prices of grain and meat, purchasing them at a premium from nearby villages and distributing them to the starving people in the disaster areas. For the deer town, which had never owned any farmland, this was great news.

As a result, many townspeople who had been away for years returned. To make the deer meat sell well, the men hunted day and night, while the women spontaneously organized themselves to build several drying and processing sites within the town. They turned the hunted meat into dried meat, which was easier to preserve, and sold it to the tax soldiers who came to collect the meat.

A month later, due to the excellent quality and quantity of the meat produced in Bucktown, the capital awarded the town with a disaster relief medal and designated it as a disaster relief zone. Some of the refugees fleeing from the south were settled here, setting up camp in the wilderness near the mountains outside the town. Food was supplied exclusively by Bucktown, and the prices were nearly tripled compared to previous years.

Later, the capital organized an entertainment troupe to comfort the people. After much discussion, they decided to send one of the troupes to the food-abundant Bucktown and launched extensive publicity, calling on people from nearby villages to come and watch.

This suddenly transformed what was almost an overcrowded town into an even more bustling place.

Soldiers of the republic, personnel from the Holy Church, noblemen from all directions, towering knights clad in golden armor, and merchants looking to make a quick profit—all filled the small town. The once quiet roads were now muddy and crowded, with stalls lining the streets everywhere.

This was the first time Bucktown had welcomed so many outsiders, leaving the mayor and townsfolk scrambling. Even children as young as toddlers had errands to run to earn money. The available accommodations were quickly exhausted.

Some of the dignitaries stayed in the church, while townsfolk with spare rooms rented them out at exorbitant rates of three nights for one emerald silver coin. Many of those who came to watch the performances set up tents outside the town, connected to the soldiers’ camp. Torches illuminated the night sky, creating a sea of red.

This evening was said to be the last night of the performance, where the skilled wandering performers would showcase their best tricks.

The stage was set up in the central square of the town. Before nightfall, the area was already packed with people, a dark mass stretching endlessly. Considering security issues, Saint George Bank had funded the installation of rows of lampposts and repaired the roads, making them less hazardous.

After nightfall, the square became as lively as some of the more established cities. Hawkers shouted, passersby laughed and talked, and carriages occasionally passed through the bustling crowd, creating a festive atmosphere.

“Brother Lane, Brother Lane, look over there!”

In the crowd, a little boy jumped and called out excitedly, pointing at a makeshift shack nearby where a man was roasting unknown game meat. The smell wafted over with the smoke, making the boy drool and tug at the shirt of a tall, thin youth beside him: “What is that? I haven’t eaten it before, I want to try that!”

“That… that is devil meat, kids can’t eat it. Only adults can eat it.”

Upon hearing this, the boy widened his eyes and fell silent.

Of course, “devil meat” was just a made-up term. Lane knew that what was being roasted was black-furred wild boar meat. Due to its rarity and delicious flavor, it was much more expensive than regular deer meat—something the boy had insisted on trying. Lane, however, had no copper coins on him and couldn’t afford it.

He pulled the boy closer: “Listen to me, don’t shout or run around, or I’ll take you home!”

With this threat and the scare he had given the boy earlier, the little one indeed became obedient, nodding slightly. His eyes darted back to the stall, then showed fear.

“Brother Lane, are there really devils…”

“Of course there are.”

Lane blinked, looking down at the boy seriously: “I’m not lying. I’ve seen devils. They look like humans, but they’re very scary, dark-skinned, with crooked noses and eyes, mouths full of blood, and they could swallow you whole!”

This boy was from Bucktown, and Bucktown was not close to his village. Many had only heard about the disaster a year ago and had not witnessed it firsthand, leading to

Leiyan boasted about it.

“Once, I was targeted by devils. They ran very fast, but I wasn’t afraid. I led them in circles, pelted them with stones, and beat them with sticks, killing one of them. More came after me, and I couldn’t run anymore. I decided to fight them. Guess what happened?”

As Leiyan spoke, he waved his arms around, and seeing the little boy listening intently, he couldn’t help but show a smug smile. “A Papal Knight came to save me. She froze all those demons in a few swipes. The power of ice made snow fall from the sky, and I was so cold that I shivered!”

“Brother Leiyan, have you really seen the Papal Knight!” The little boy clenched his fists excitedly, gazing at Leiyan with admiration, his eyes almost sparkling. This was exactly what Leiyan wanted; he became even more pleased with himself. “What’s the big deal about seeing her? I know her! She’s just a little girl from our village, very pretty, who used to follow me around. After she awakened her powers, she became a Papal Knight. She came back not long ago, and I met her!”

“Really or not…”

“Really! I even talked to her. I… I even took care of her grandmother!”

“Bullshit!”

While Leiyan was getting carried away, an unpleasant voice interrupted him from another direction. Leiyan immediately turned his head to see several young men, roughly his age, squeeze out from the crowd and approach him. One of them laughed, “Leiyan, stop scaring kids. With your level, how could you know a Papal Knight?”

The young man with freckles seemed to know Leiyan and held two skewers of roasted deer meat. He offered one to Leiyan and the other to the little boy. “Don’t talk about the Papal Knight. We have so many Church Knights in our town now. Which one do you know? You’re always boasting…”

“I’m not lying!”

Leiyan reached out to take the skewer, angrily taking a bite, glaring at the freckled youth as he mumbled, “None of you are from my village. If you were, you’d know right away if I was lying!”

These young men were originally from Deer Antler Town. Leiyan was usually idle and liked to wander around. Although Deer Antler Town was far, he had been there many times. A few years ago, he had a conflict here, fought someone, and neither won. Since then, they had become friends—those standing before him.

Of course, those who became his friends were also idle people like him.

Hearing about the performance in Deer Antler Town, Leiyan, who enjoyed joining in on the fun, had to come over to watch. He secretly took two silver coins from home and arrived last night. His mother couldn’t stop him. After arriving here, he naturally looked for his friends and slept at their homes. Today, they all came out to watch the show together.

Regarding the incident from a year ago and his Papal Knight sister Xi Er, Leiyan had previously told these people to boast. Unexpectedly, no one believed him, and they mocked him for a long time. Later, Leiyan stopped talking about it. But today, unable to resist, he told these words to a little boy from Deer Antler Town, the young man who gave him the roasted meat, and his brother.

Seeing the boy’s adoration, Leiyan was satisfied. But before he could bask in it, they ruined it again, which made Leiyan feel extremely embarrassed. Chewing on the deer meat, he couldn’t help speaking louder.

“She’s in Silijia right now. She came back not long ago. Those Church Knights, when they see her, will kneel down! We played together so well! Who knows when she might come back. I went to her house, and her grandmother always asked me to help fetch water! Hmph, if you don’t believe me, go to our village and see for yourselves. I bet your legs will buckle!”

“Oh oh oh, why are you blushing?”

“Look at how flustered you are! Leiyan, I remember you said the Papal Knight was a woman? Could she be your dream girl?”

“He just likes hearing heroic stories!”

“Hahaha—”

The group burst into laughter. While there might not be much malice in their laughter, it did humiliate Leiyan. Standing by the roadside, he argued loudly with them, attracting many glances. However, the young men didn’t care and continued laughing as they walked toward the square.

“Leiyan, tell us, is the Papal Knight beautiful…”

“It’s not about whether she’s beautiful…”

“Hey hey, look at that girl over there… must be a noble lady from somewhere, her skin is so smooth…”

“What a chest…”

“Leiyan, is your Papal Knight as pretty as that lady…”

“There’s no comparison, you’ll be speechless when you see her…”

“Is her chest bigger than that lady’s?”

“Uh, this…”

“Hahaha! I love hearing you boast…”

Several young men swaggered through the crowd. One of them punched Leiyan and then grabbed his shoulder, continuing to laugh as they walked away.

Ahead on the road, three or four Republic soldiers, flushed from drinking, staggered through the crowd, shouting loudly. Their drunken demeanor kept many people at bay. The crowd automatically made way for them. However, Leiyan and his group, who were having fun, didn’t notice the situation ahead and didn’t make room. Seeing them approach, one of the soldiers smiled and said something, then stood still.

On the other side, the young man hugging Leiyan said a few more words. Seeing Leiyan raise his hand to hit him, he quickly let go and laughed, running forward. After a few steps, he collided with a soldier.

“Hey…”

The soldier laughed, grabbing the young man’s hair and pulling him close, nearly lifting him up. “Did you drink too much? Can’t you see where you’re walking?”

The smell of alcohol filled the air. The young man screamed in pain, and Leiyan and his group changed expressions.