Angus had secretly collected a number of ornate manuscripts from the blue velvet-clad room, and his favorite was a piece of parchment depicting a number of knights fighting under the mighty walls, the vine letters on the pages were too esoteric to the boy's eyes, and he could not discern the different styles of Ireland or Saxon in these patterns. But those knights in armor! It was the image that touched Angus's heart – he longed to be such a figure, far from his humble memories, fighting beneath the walls in the distance. What Angus didn't realise was that manuscripts of his time were rarely so elaborate, and his favorite portraits of knights were brilliant in silver, and the tall walls behind them were covered in gold leaf, creating a wonderful three-dimensional effect when viewed from different angles. Such an ingenious work of art, which is considered a top treasure even in Rome, is now in the private possession of an eight-year-old urchin.

The long poems that he had discarded were like abandoned cellars, and if anyone could open them, they would be ecstatic to discover countless ancient brews. For example, the book of poems that Angus used as a pillow was a transcript from Essex, and it would be many years before people could rediscover the sentence from the empty room and make out the words on the pages eroded by time:

"There was such a multitude there,

The mood is happy, the golden light is shining, and the color is gorgeous.

Ruddy wine pride, bright robes,

The gaze is nothing but precious stones, gold and silver,

It's nothing more than cellar treasures, streamer amber.

It is nothing more than a splendid castle in a vast territory! ”

The boy had not yet realized what he had, no one had taught him to read, let alone a foreign language on paper, all he saw was a drop of water in the vast abyss, and he longed to be a knight like this drop.

So it's not hard to imagine how happy Angus was when he received a gift from his adoptive father in the winter.

It was a beautiful gift, and even though the maker knew that his work would not stand the real test, he still put a lot of effort into it, so the lock ring of the iron armor was more firmly bitten than a dragon's tooth, so fine that it could not fit into a cat's whisker, and the process used for such a large amount of armor was enough to make a real samurai sigh.

Angus remembered his own ecstasy, and he even forgot the harsh words his father had spoken when he took it out, which was what he really wanted, and he loved the formidable lord for it, and even the cunning and cruelty of Uisdin was sometimes regarded by Angus as a valuable quality, a true nobleman.

The lord's education was successful, and Angus was hungry for martial arts, and most children of this age would shed tears because of such intense training, but Angus was as energetic as a young beast, and he regarded everything that sharpened his minions as part of his great destiny, and all difficulties were only another test of his genius. It was a dangerous idea, but no one told him at this time, that most of the education of the nobility came from the clergy, but Angus was reluctant to come into contact with such people, and he studied and imitated Ouistin, who told him all the cruel rules of the world, made him watch the treatment of the old Count of Morais after he was captured, and then reminded him how to get used to the wounds as if he were accustomed to pain when he showed an unbearable expression.

"Weakness cannot be shown, especially in front of the enemy, when you stare at the captive, the captive is also watching you, so if your weakness is smelled, they will take advantage of that. One day they will regain their freedom, and then your intolerance will be a source of revolt from your enemies—there is no rule without fear. ”

"Why can't we kill all those who resist?" Angus asked angrily.

"Because that's telling everybody that you're afraid. A lord who does not dare to breathe air with any of the resisters is the greatest coward, so we exercise the right of conquest against the losers, but we will not exterminate them. ”

This dialogue is accompanied by a tragic image that torments Angus's dreams, as if he realizes the truth of the dream: the knight on the page becomes blurred, and the silver powder on the surface of the knight's armor on the pattern peels off to reveal a black cloud of black iron and blood.

The lord's heir had twenty servants, and Angus had a squire of his age, and it didn't take long for the boy to fear and hate him, not only because he came from a family hostile to Uisdin, but also because Angus would constantly hit him and admire his screams when he practiced martial arts.

The hostage-like boy was named Gillick, and before coming to the court of Uistin, he had studied Latin grammar, so he liked to call himself Gregory, and whenever this happened, Angus would laugh at him and then teach him a wooden stick on the training ground.

"I hate you!" One day, Gillick finally couldn't hold back and shouted at the young tyrant Angus, and when he realized what he had just shouted, he was immediately frightened.

Angus was silent, he remembered the scene in his dream: hatred, has this darkness come?

Just when Gillick thought he was going to have a good fight, Angus dropped the stick and held out a hand to him.

So the brave Gillick struck him in the arm with his own wooden club.

Angus didn't tell anyone about it, he threatened all the guards present not to say anything, and that night, Angus shed tears for the first time in a long time: I am not a father after all. He thought sadly, "My heart is weak, like a sheep, even if it is clothed in a silver wolf skin, there is only milky bile.

The next day, however, Gillick suddenly said to him, "I'll teach you how to read." ”

So the boy forgot the lord's teachings and made his first friend.

Angus soon found his jealousy unnecessary, for Gillick knew little writing, and the Latin education he boasted of on a daily basis immediately appeared in front of Angus's books. Gillick could only keep muttering, these are the language of barbarians, there is no meaning, but Angus obviously does not know the difference between Latin and Saxon, he is just very happy to find a reason to laugh at the other party - Gelik's usual rambling declension conjugation has become a joke, this guy can't even read a word in the book.

“Vacca-stulta！” At this point, Gillick cursed in that inexplicable language, which made Angus even happier.