CHAPTER 1184: CHAPTER 745: THE OLD KNIGHT’S ABILITIES IN THE AUTUMN OF 1489 AD

The desolate village of the Moors was eerily silent, all the houses were broken open, and dark red bloodstains were visible everywhere, hinting at the slaughter that had taken place.

The well in the middle of the village was pitch black. Old Knight Lorenzo stood on his horse, unable to see clearly for a moment. He deftly jumped off the horse and approached the wellhead for a look. A stench of rotting corpses wafted up from the bottom of the well, invading his nostrils.

"Damn it! Those reckless murderers! Even such a deep mountain well is filled with corpses..."

Old Knight Lorenzo frowned, glanced briefly at the heap of naked, swollen corpses in the deep well, and sighed helplessly.

"This water is full of corpse poison, don’t touch it!"

Saying this, the old knight thought for a moment and then called an experienced chamberlain to give instructions.

"Blessed by the Lord! Carlo, follow the abandoned canals of the Moors, go upstream and have a look. There should be a spring or stream there. Be careful, check if there are any bodies near the water source!"

"Okay! Esteemed Knight Lorenzo, at your command!"

Chamberlain Carlo nodded, blew a whistle with his hand, and nimbly leapt onto his warhorse. The chain armor on his body remained intact, with a blood-stained longsword at his waist, and off he went.

"Vaffanculo! We’ve journeyed so far, finally resting a bit, and we can’t even replenish our water!..."

Young Knight Giovanni, still seething with anger, cursed bitterly.

"Which wandering Holy War Army was it? Killing even unarmed women, not an ounce of chivalry!"

Hearing the outdated term "chivalry," Old Knight Lorenzo raised an eyebrow, looked at Giovanni with surprise for a moment, not knowing what to say. In the Republic of Venice, it was rare to hear nobility spouting such ridiculous words.

However, Old Knight Lorenzo soon remembered that in his youth, Giovanni had received traditional knightly education in the Netherlands and even served as the knight’s attendant to the then regent of the Netherlands, the "Model of Chivalry" Maximilian I. The origins of this "chivalry" were, of course, quite obvious.

"Ah, the Model of Chivalry, Maximilian I, was elected Holy Roman Emperor three years ago. Old Silvester’s planning for his son early on, making this investment, certainly wasn’t in vain!..."

With this in mind, Old Knight Lorenzo’s gaze toward Giovanni became more fervent.

Giovanni was somewhat naïve, and overly devout, with little experience in worldly affairs, but he had a high starting point and a well-paved path! The experience of being a chamberlain to the Holy Roman Emperor was something many commoner knights couldn’t dream of achieving, not to mention his family’s status and the legacy of a vast estate he was to inherit...

Old Knight Lorenzo stroked his goatee, pondered for a moment, and decided to showcase his abilities. He pointed confidently at the wellhead, smiling as he spoke.

"Actually, Giovanni, it’s not that hard to find out which troop massacred this village!"

"Hmm? Lorenzo, how so?"

"Look, the bodies in these wells have all been stripped of clothing. Only the impoverished Castilian Knights, the impoverished English Knights, the impoverished Germanic Knights, the impoverished Swiss mercenaries, and the impoverished Holy War militia would be poor enough to steal even clothes..."

"Uh... You’ve named so many, how do you know which one it is?"

"No rush! Swiss mercenaries and the Holy War militia don’t have horses. It’s difficult for them to travel this far to plunder here. Moreover, the impoverished Castilian Knights are all held by King Fernando, besieging the Baza fortress. At this time, the only ones truly capable of such recklessness are the impoverished English and Germanic Knights."

"Hmm... Lorenzo, you seem to make sense."

Young Knight Giovanni thought for a while, then nodded in agreement. He then curiously asked.

"So is it the English knights participating in the Holy War, or the Germanic knights?"

"Haha! Witnessed by the Almighty!"

Old Knight Lorenzo chuckled confidently, reaching out to break off a stray arrow shot into a nearby house. He laid the broken arrow in his hand and confidently explained.

"Look at this three-feathered heavy arrow, the cedar wood material, and the fine string wound around the shaft; this is definitely from the English Holy War troops! Only their knights would carry greatbows for foot combat. And if it were Germanic knights, they would generally use armor-piercing crossbows!"

And with that, Old Knight Lorenzo brought the broken arrow to his nose, sniffed it briefly, and asserted.

"This is Castilian purple cedar, purchased by us Venetians in bulk at low prices, slightly processed and then sold at a premium to English merchants as material for bows and arrows! It might even be that this batch of wood for the bows and arrows was shipped from your Tetran family’s coastal warehouse!..."

"Ah! The English? My family’s lumber business!"

Upon hearing this insightful analysis, the young Giovanni, though not fully understanding, was deeply impressed. He looked admiringly at Old Knight Lorenzo and, after a slight hesitation, still asked.

"Is selling timber like this... profitable?"

"Well, it’s average! For this Southern Holy War, the Kingdom of Castile assembled sixty thousand troops and fought for so many years... For military supplies, they’ve long owed a huge debt to the Republic. The war continues, and they must repay with whatever they have, with no bargaining power. The timber business mainly relies on stable volume, but we profit a modest two to three times..."

"Ah? Only two to three times the profit?..."

"Haha! Two to three times is quite substantial. Only we Venetians, with control over fleets, resources, and markets, can earn such wealth. In the Catholic World, the only real threats to us are the trade groups from the Republic of Genoa and the rising Portuguese merchants..."

"Oh!..."

Hearing this, young Knight Giovanni blinked, slightly disappointed. Clearly, he didn’t understand what stable volume meant for large trading groups.

In his limited worldview, the most sought-after goods in the Republic market were the ivory, spices, and gemstones brought back by the Portuguese from voyages to the Southern Continent. These precious goods, once resold, commanded tens, even hundreds, of times the profit! Along with these goods came tales of adventure from the mysterious Southern Continent! For a young knight, the dual allure of adventure and wealth was simply irresistible.

"Witnessed by the Almighty! Once I inherit the family’s fleet... I must set sail myself, go to the mysterious and wild continent, spread the Lord’s glory, and return with treasures beyond price!"

Young Knight Giovanni secretly vowed, his eyes revealing a never-before-seen sparkle. After over a year of battles, he was genuinely losing his reverence for the noble Holy War, and a longing for maritime adventures was gradually rising in his heart.

"Blessed by the Lord! What the Portuguese can do, we Venetians can certainly achieve too!"

Seeing the aspiration in Giovanni’s eyes, Old Knight Lorenzo’s lips curled up, clearly guessing what the other was thinking.

"Almighty! Daydreaming so much, he’s still too young!"

Old Knight Lorenzo chuckled, shaking his head, then from his saddlebag, he took out a sharp dagger blade and a few armor-piercing spikes. With a smile on his lips, he walked towards the Moor noble captive, who had been tied by the riders, looking defiant.