Footsteps came from behind.
Otto, his older brother, came to his side and smiled, "I knew you'd be here. Whenever you're feeling restless, you always like to come here for some fresh air."
"It sure is a great place, with an open view that refreshes the mind and spirit."
Losa frowned, "Is there something you need from me?"
Otto smiled gently, "Brother, I just feel you're a bit tense."
"You're overthinking it. What do I have to be anxious about?"
Losa said somewhat insincerely.
In his previous life, he hadn't even slaughtered a chicken himself. Now, he was about to travel afar, armed with lances and swords, to fight enemies. How could he not be nervous?
"Losa, the Crusaders are a holy endeavor. The Holy City is surrounded by wolves and is in grave danger. We fight for God; this is our mission."
Otto paused slightly, somewhat wistful, "If not for the Emperor being excommunicated by His Holiness the Pope, surely Great Germania would have mobilized by now."
Losa sighed softly.
"Otto, do you really believe the Crusaders are so sacred? People travel thousands of miles to burn, kill, and loot; can that really be called justice?"
Otto frowned and said without hesitation, "His Holiness the Pope said that killing heretics is not murder. We are saving them from falling into the Devil's embrace."
"Ha."
Losa chuckled, recalling how, during the Fourth Crusade in his previous life, these Western robbers hadn't only turned their spears against their brethren but even took Constantinople by storm, brutally pillaging it.
One must know that the Eastern Empire's Orthodoxy and the Public Teaching are both brothers in Christ.
"You're right, I'm overthinking it."
Losa turned and left, lacking the interest to argue with someone from this era... He feared saying too much would make Otto see him as a blasphemer.
The day of Losa's departure soon arrived.
He brought along two carefully chosen attendants, packed up the full set of equipment, and led his warhorse, Nisian, to the castle gates.
One of the two attendants was a crossbowman named Laine, the other a shield infantryman named Model, both elite soldiers of "Eagle Castle," trained for years with exceptional combat skills.
Their pack horses were needed for carrying equipment and supplies.
Strictly speaking, the two were not "attendants."
As a preparatory noble, a knight's squire is considered a figure of local gentry in the countryside.
Some impoverished knights would use this to amass wealth by taking children from the citizenry as squires in exchange for wealth, while those from the citizenry used this to achieve social mobility.
But Losa had just become a knight, and to truly want two knight's squires, firstly, it would be difficult to find suitable candidates in a short time, and secondly, they were not highly practical.
A knight's squire is meant to follow the knight into battle as light cavalry, requiring a decent warhorse, and needing to carry only more supplies.
Furthermore, in narrow mountainous regions, facing potential bandits, two legitimate knight's squires would obviously not be more effective than two soldiers.
Before leaving.
Count Werner handed over a sealed letter stamped with his private seal, his face serious: "Losa, I once followed His Majesty Baldwin into battle at the Mongisa, charging at the Egyptians under the glory of the Great Cross. We tasted the fruits of victory and struck down heretics many times our number."
"To this day, I often return to that day in my dreams."
"Remember, His Majesty Baldwin is a born ruler, he is worthy of your bravery in his service, and it will surely be worth your while."
"Take my letter, and convey my regards to His Majesty, saying that Werner of Swabia offers the highest respect to the lord he once served."
Losa took the envelope, nodding slightly, "I will, Father."
Baldwin refers to Baldwin IV, King of Jerusalem.
In the world of Losa's previous life, some saw him as a prodigy, others as weak and mediocre—the so-called Battle of Mongisa, they said, was merely a fanciful fabrication by his personal knights.
But in this world, Baldwin IV indeed possesses extraordinary military prowess and personal charm. After all, even Emperor Henry hadn't received such praise from Count Werner.
After bidding farewell to Count Werner, Losa, accompanied by Laine and Model, set off along the mountain path.
They had not gone far when the sound of hooves approached from behind.
Otto, riding his warhorse, caught up from behind and looked down at Losa.
"Is there something you need?"
Losa raised an eyebrow.
Otto was silent for a moment, then tossed a money bag to Losa.
Losa caught it, shook it, and the bag's heavy contents jingled pleasantly.
"Where did you get so much money?"
Otto replied gruffly, "I sneaked out the two silver goblets Father loves most, and the rest is what I've saved up over the years."
Losa chuckled, "Ha, Otto, aren't you afraid that I'll come back alive and compete with you for the inheritance?"
Otto dismounted, came face-to-face with Losa, and patted his shoulder. After hesitating for a moment, he reached out and ruffled Losa's short hair: "If it really comes to that, we'll rely on our abilities."
"Honestly, I really hope you return safely."
Losa paused, smiling, "I will come back."
"But not to fight you for a paltry count's inheritance."
"By then, I will accept your homage with a title more illustrious than that of the Count of Algo."
Otto also laughed heartily and openly: "You definitely will, Losa. I believe you can accomplish great things, and Habsburg will be proud of you."
Losa nodded.
The smile on his face gradually faded as he swung onto his horse, no longer lingering.
"Let's go."
He whispered, not looking at Otto's expression, nor waiting for the two attendants holding the horses behind him, as he rode his mount galloping along the mountain path.
From today on, he was a wandering knight.
However, unlike most wandering knights who were penniless, he possessed a decent set of knight armor, a half sword, an armed sword, a lance, a warhorse, two pack horses, and two fully armed attendants.
Such strength would be welcomed under the command of any lord's banner.
Behind him, Otto drew a cross in the air, murmuring softly: "May the Heavenly Father bless my brother Losa with good fortune, and may he be invincible on the battlefield, with no sharp blade or arrow able to reach him."
...
By dusk.
Losa and his party arrived at a small town at the foot of the mountain to rest. It was still within the bounds of Algo County, and was a direct territory under Count Werner, not granted to anyone else.
In the town, at the Habsburg Family's manor, Losa eagerly entered a closed room, opened the system, and chose to summon his chief attendant "Prajna."
Instantly, the room radiated with golden light.
Dazzling, noble.
Majestic, stern.
It was as if a deity had descended to the world, delivering salvation.
After a long while, the light faded.
A tall woman dressed in a black motorcycle outfit and holding a black triangular shield was staring directly at Losa.
In the system, the woman's information slowly appeared.
Prajna:
Quality: Legendary Level
Level: 1
Intimacy: Indifferent
Power: 18
Agility: 12
Physical Strength: 30
Endurance: 30
Spiritual Power: 15
Talent: Solid Stone (When activated, Prajna is immune to all physical damage for the next three seconds.)
Encourage (When activated, all allies within a three hundred meter radius of Prajna gain an Endurance +10 boost)
Skills: Fierce Battle (Prajna, after drinking deeply of blood and death, gains a fifty percent boost to all attributes for the next minute after continuously killing ten enemies)
Thorns (Requires elite unlocking)
Ghost Gate (Requires elite unlocking)
The black-haired woman was really tall, matching Losa who was over 1.8 meters without a hitch.
She looked at Losa's eyes directly, inquiring with a distant expression: "Are you my Master?"
It seemed that this chief attendant didn't show any sense of respect.
Losa's expression was a bit awkward, as this intimacy system was naturally something he had crafted himself.
In the game, increasing intimacy not only unlocks more voice lines but also grants a percentage increase in combat strength to the attendant, and unlocks Bond Talent shared between the player and the attendant.
But in reality...
This woman named Prajna, holding the triangular ghost face shield, in the background setting, was the Gatekeeper of Hell. Would she really submit to an ordinary novice knight like himself?
Even without a plethora of materials for cultivation, she was far from having the unmatched power described in her background story, as none of her advanced skills were unlocked yet.
But even so, purely from attribute dominance, she could single-handedly knock down him, a well-trained knight.
Losa calmly said, "That's right, madam, it was I who summoned you."
Fortunately, Prajna merely slightly furrowed her beautiful brows, then bowed her head to express loyalty: "Then from today on, I will fight for you, my lord."
Losa quietly breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "Prajna, where do you come from?"
Prajna frowned slightly: "My lord, as the guardian of the Ghost Gate, of course, I come from Ghost Gate."
Is it according to the background story setting...
Losa slightly frowned, "Lady Prajna, you don't seem to think highly of me."
Prajna gazed at Losa, her eyes showing no emotion such as sorrow or joy, simply saying: "My lord, regardless of whether I value you or not, I shall use my shield to block all overt and covert attacks directed at you, because I exist for you, serving you is ordained."
"That's enough."
Losa drew his knight's sword and placed it on her shoulder: "I accept your allegiance, Lady Prajna, and... I will, in the future, prove to you that I am a worthy lord, deserving of your devotion."