Losa sat cross-legged on the bed, wiping the half sword in his hand with a piece of white linen cloth.
The Armed Sword gifted by Count Werner had reached the end of its life.
This half sword in his hand was a trophy obtained after killing Abelardo.
Abelardo was dead, and although the ransom was in vain,
his armor and warhorse, according to the rules, now belonged to Losa.
His Arabian warhorse was no worse than Losa's own Nisian warhorse.
Even with the depreciation considered, the entire set of armor could still fetch nearly a hundred Gold Coins at a high price.
Prajna suddenly asked, "As a Champion Knight, what reward is Count Leopold planning to give you?"
Losa laughed and said, "Leopold originally wanted to make me his vassal—a Baron of the Vienna Forest Mountain, and even drew a picture of becoming a Count in the future."
"But I refused. So in the end, it was replaced with a financial support package and a promise to deliver supplies after we established a foothold in the Holy Land."
"This promise is quite broad; it might involve providing us with weapons, shields, armor, and arrows, or possibly food seeds and blacksmiths."
"There is no specific amount, but how much I can actually get at that time likely depends on my performance and whether Count Leopold considers me worth investing in."
"That's quite normal."
Prajna nodded, without offering any further comments.
"Let's get ready for bed."
They turned off the light, and Prajna lay flat on the thin blanket on the floor.
And slept just like usual.
But this time, perhaps due to the increased intimacy, the atmosphere between the two was not as distant as before.
In the darkness, Losa gazed at Prajna's perfect profile lit by the moonlight for a long time without falling asleep, and only hurriedly closed his eyes when her eyelashes fluttered slightly, as if she were about to open her eyes.
...
Early the next morning, Losa visited Count Leopold again, politely declining the luncheon and requesting to take his leave.
From him, Losa received a heavy bag containing a hundred Florin Gold Coins of far superior quality than Suludes, issued by the city-state of Genoa in recent years.
Each Florin Gold Coin weighs 3.5 grams, which is 1 gram lighter than the newly minted Solid Gold Coins of the Eastern Empire.
Suludes coins is just a general term; it can refer to Solid Gold Coins or Nomismata Gold Coins, all issued by the Eastern Empire.
By regulation, all Suludes coins weigh 4.5 grams.
However, coins issued at different times have varying qualities.
The Solid Gold Coins newly issued by Empress Ragaya of the Eastern Empire are pure gold, with a fineness similar to the Florin Gold Coins issued by Genoa.
From this, it can be inferred that this Empress intends to salvage the disreputable currency system of the Eastern Empire, rather than merely indulging for her own pleasure.
Otherwise, if things continued as before, the entire market of the Eastern Empire would be flooded with currencies from commercial city-states like Genoa and Venice.
During this period, the exchange rate between gold and silver was twelve to one, meaning one high-fineness gold coin could be exchanged for twelve silver coins of the same weight.
But since silver coins often weigh just over 1 gram, theoretically speaking, one Golden Florin could be exchanged for about 40 Silver Denars.
However, this kind of exchange is often impossible in practice.
Due to the widespread use of silver tableware, most silver coins are of lower quality than gold coins; for example, a king of Gaul once minted Black Coins with only one-tenth silver content.
The Eastern Empire also had emperors issuing silver-plated coins with less than one-twentieth silver content, and in some secluded areas, people still use bronze coins with no circulation value.
In this era, due to fragmentation, there were numerous feudal lords capable of minting their own money, causing extreme confusion in the currency system.
Generally, during this time, a pig was worth about 1.5 Florin Gold Coins.
One Florin Gold Coin could buy fifty good-quality loaves of bread without any wheat bran and sand mixed in.
A top-notch warhorse, like Losa's Nisian horse, was worth about 60 Florin Gold Coins, six times the value of the steppe warhorses ridden by the Magyars.
And a top-class Imperial Horse exclusively used by royal families was about 500 Florin Gold Coins.
As for an ordinary pack horse, it was worth only five Golden Florins.
The annual rent for an inn in the city was 6 Florin Gold Coins.
The cost of building a castle was approximately 2,000 Florins.
A fine chain armor worn by elite soldiers or lower-ranking knights was worth about 30 Florin Gold Coins; if it were custom-made Knight's Full Armor, it would cost 50 Florins.
A four-wheeled carriage used by the royal family approximately required 240 Florins.
Of course, these are just estimates, and actual prices fluctuate with supply and demand. In later times, factors like plagues and city closures would lead to skyrocketing prices, let alone in the Middle Ages.
A drought, for instance, could send bread prices skyrocketing hundreds of times due to hoarding by Jewish merchants.
Once Jewish merchants made enough profit, the savvy local lords would often find a reason to have them executed and confiscate all their property.
This not only calmed the seething public discontent but also indirectly collected every Copper Coin from the subjects' fingers for the lord's own enjoyment.
So, Losa's entire estate currently consisted of one hundred Golden Florins, eighty Golden Sueldes, nearly five hundred Silver Denars, two silver goblets gifted by Otto, two steppe warhorses, one Nisian warhorse, one Arabian horse, and two pack horses.
And an extra set of fine chain armor and a barrel helmet.
A considerable portion of the silver coins were ransom acquired by Hans after defeating opponents.
This money should be enough to arm ten soldiers clad in leather armor, wielding iron swords and long spears, and to hire a small mercenary group ranging from thirty to fifty people to serve him.
"Indeed, warfare is a money-burning venture, making a mark in Jerusalem is not that easy."
"The battlefield is not like the tournament arena—personal bravery never compares to a well-trained army... at least Hans and I cannot measure up."
Losa counted his small treasury and sighed.
Prajna, who is a close combat, defense-type retainer, could protect herself well on the battlefield, but expecting her to sweep through undefeated was somewhat unrealistic.
Upon returning to the inn, Laine had already settled the room costs, packed all their gear, and was awaiting outside with the horse.
"Sir, here's your mount. Food and fodder are prepared—when do we depart?"
Laine bowed humbly, full of reverence.
Model approached the warhorse, bending over to act as a footstool for Losa to mount.
Since Losa defeated the werewolf knight Abelardo yesterday, both he and Model regarded Losa differently than before.
They practically revered him as a deity.
However, Hans remained unchanged as always.
To him, Losa slaying a werewolf was a given; even the famous Gatekeeper of Hell served the Lord, so an insignificant werewolf was nothing of consequence.
Losa sternly halted Model's actions: "Stand up, Model!"
"If I need servants, I'll pay for them, but right now, I need brave warriors skilled in combat, not lowly servants; never do such a degrading act before me again."
"You too, Laine."
With both looking a bit bewildered, Losa mounted the horse and coldly ordered, "Let's set off immediately!"
Indeed, a loyal servant can exert considerable power on the battlefield, like the Mamluk Cavalry of the Ayyubid Empire.
But Losa could not condone such degrading conduct.
He was still far from fully integrating into this world, but he preferred never to blend in.
...
By afternoon, Losa and his group stopped at a small town.
This was a town devastated by fire, desolate and ruined, and the biting smoke and burnt stench made everyone frown deeply.
Decapitated men lay by the roadside, where dense swarms of flies clung to the mouths and wounds of the deceased, moving in and out.
The sound of horses' hooves stirred up a black storm.
Ravenous stray dogs gnawed at sun-rotted corpses in the ruins, unchanged and unafraid at the presence of people.
Veteran Model stated gruffly, "These bandits left not long ago; embers still smolder in the ruins."
Losa furrowed his brow, "Babenburg's border patrol doesn't bother?"
"They should have; look at a few corpses with marks on their bodies and necks from wearing armor—they must have been soldiers, but their armors were stripped away."
"Can we trace them?"
Losa's tone was calm; such occurrences happened daily—this was the essence of the era. Not only bandits but even noble quarrels often resulted in plundered villages.
Men and women captured as peasant slaves, and the elderly, weak, and sick were all killed to lighten the burden.
From ancient times to the present, common lives have always been worthless.
Model observed intently for a while, then nodded, "No problem; they didn't rush and took captives, baggage, and livestock at a slow pace. We can certainly follow their tracks from these furrows."
Losa looked back and addressed everyone, "It is said that during war, nobles provide weapons and equipment, wealthy people provide money and food, and the poor give their children; after war, nobles achieve merit, rich harvest more wealth, while the poor can only seek their children's graves."
"The best war is no better than the worst peace."
Losa's gaze swept over the corpses—an old man held broken farming tools cut by a blade, and there was an arrow wound through his neck.
But the arrows were definitely retrieved in the end.
Such common lives weren't even worthy of burial with an arrow.
"Yet, warfare will never cease."
"Though I cannot change the era, I swear, if I become a Lord, I will do my utmost to shield the people of my domain, eradicate bandits, and repel enemies."
Laine and Model showed surprised expressions.
Few could utter the term "people" in this era.
Peasant slaves considered people?
"Model, take the lead; we depart at once to capture these bandits and in Heavenly Father's name, send them to Hell."
He had to admit that pursuing bandits was largely for milestone achievement.
But he still hoped to save those kidnapped.
To kill those cruel bandits, blood for blood, tooth for tooth.