novellk Chapter 13 Gis's Spear and Shield
Chapter 13 Gis's Spear and Shield
When his mother pressed him for answers, Gis paused, clenched his fists, and remained silent for a moment before finally telling her the whole story.
After listening, Aunt Silin realized that it was the "robbers" from the neighboring village of Gangde again.
The two villages are adjacent and have been fighting for ownership of the fishing area for more than a decade. Today, they have brazenly come to our doorstep to attack us.
After hearing the whole story, Aunt Slin's heart sank. She went to Giss's side, examined the bruise on the corner of Giss's mouth, and her eyes were full of heartache:
"Why is your lip bruised? Are you hurt anywhere else? Let Mom take a look!"
They're so domineering! They dared to hurt my son! I curse them every morning and night, wishing their boat would capsize and they'd drown!
"I'm fine, Mother."
After a thorough examination, seeing that Giss only had superficial injuries, Aunt Slin breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, Giss's words plunged Slin's heart into despair:
"Today, those guys brought more than twenty people and barged into our village's designated fishing area, tore up everyone's fishing nets, and stole all the catch."
Mother, that's the area of the lake where our family used to fish. They claim that place is theirs, and they'll rob us every time they see us fishing there...
"It's a good thing you didn't go today, otherwise the fish would have been stolen too!"
Upon hearing this, Aunt Slin's hands clenched slightly inside her sleeves, and her voice trembled slightly:
"They're trying to seize the lakeside area, what should we do..."
"Mother, don't worry, the old leader is already trying to find a solution. He told us to come back first..."
Giss's words gave Aunt Slin a temporary sense of relief; she had always trusted the old chief's abilities.
Then Giss revealed what frustrated him most that day:
He was tall and strong, and being at the front made him a target for the enemy. Due to the disparity in numbers, after being disarmed, he had a spear pressed against his neck.
In Gangde Village, some people pointed at him and mocked him:
"What's the use of being tall? Looks good but useless. You dare to stand in the way with a fire poker?"
Already at a disadvantage in terms of weaponry, and with everyone held back by the enemy's iron forks, their morale plummeted.
Two villagers were even beaten, and they could only watch helplessly as the other party looted everything and left.
"On the way back, those people who hid behind me and didn't dare to lift their heads... they actually said I was showing off, that I loved to be in the spotlight, and that I was a disgrace!"
"Their weapons aren't much better than mine! They were all cowering in the back during the standoff, and now they're blaming me!"
Gis gritted his teeth, his eyes reddening.
He punched the mud wall, and the plaster crumbled off.
Aunt Silin listened quietly, without complaining or rushing to comfort her.
She looked up at her son, who was nearly two meters tall, but whose head was bowed like a wronged child.
To think that he was only sixteen years old, and despite being scared, he still stood up to protect the villagers...
"Wait here," Aunt Slin smiled kindly, then turned and went into the inner room.
A moment later, she came out carrying a long, rectangular box.
I took the contents wrapped in gray cloth out and placed them on the table.
"Lift it up and take a look!"
Gis looked bewildered, but as he looked at the shape revealed by the old gray cloth, an idea formed in his mind. He was somewhat incredulous and reached out with trembling hands.
"Mom, what's this?"
"Why don't you lift it up and take a look?"
Aunt Slin didn't tell him what it was, but with a smile on her lips, she spoke again.
Giss lifted the old cloth, and a long sword appeared before him.
"what!"
Giss was overjoyed. With trembling hands, he picked up the longsword and slowly drew the blade.
The sword's surface gleamed like a mirror, with a cold light shining through it. Its blade was sharp and icy, and the sword seemed perfectly suited to him, exuding an overall sense of composure and weight.
"This...this is for me?"
Giss's voice trembled slightly. Before Aunt Slin could explain the origins of his sword in detail, he couldn't wait any longer and began to test it.
The longsword was over a meter long, which seemed a bit small to him, but he had never actually owned one before, or even touched a proper weapon like this many times. At this moment, he felt an extraordinary fondness for it.
The tip of the sword lightly grazed the old gray cloth on the table, and the cloth was silently cut in two as if it had met its nemesis.
Feeling the sharpness of the longsword, Giss was thrilled and hurried to the courtyard, looking for something harder to try again.
Aunt Silin carefully gathered up the pieces of cloth that had been torn in two and followed her son into the courtyard.
Seeing that Giss's eyes were already fixed on the large wooden stick that had been thrown into the corner earlier,
Aunt Slin was shocked. She quickly called out to Giss, then turned and went out. A short while later, she brought Giss a bundle of straw.
"Try this one, but hold back a bit..."
At his mother's prompting, Giss went to the bundle of straw. He didn't care about anything else. He was already very strong. He took a deep breath and swung his longsword several times, cutting the bundle of straw in half!
After examining it, the two found the cross-section to be unusually smooth!
"This...this is so sharp! I love it!!"
……
The next morning, Giss left home before dawn, wanting to get to the militia square as soon as possible.
Today, Duanpo Village needs to gather its forces to go to Gangde Village to seek justice.
After walking for a while, Giss suddenly saw a thin, old horse slowly approaching on the dirt road to the north. Sitting on its back was old Jarl, with his white hair.
"Where did the old chief go? Is he only coming back now?" Giss asked curiously, but he kept walking and the two gradually approached each other.
As they approached, the old horse lowered its head and moved slowly. On its back, old Yar squinted, his face slightly pale and haggard, looking travel-worn.
Old Jarl also noticed Gis. He reined in his horse, sat on it, and looked up slightly at Gis, the strongest young man in the village, and took the initiative to greet him:
"Little Gis, you're up so early! Have you eaten? You can't go hungry today if you haven't eaten enough!"
"Old chief, you've had your meal! Where are you headed?" Gis asked curiously, noticing that the old chief wasn't going to the militia square but instead heading towards the end of the village.
"I still have some things to take care of. You go to the square first, I'll be right back." Old Yar said kindly. As soon as he finished speaking, he gently pulled the reins, and the old horse slowly moved forward.
"Did the old chief travel all night to get back...? Did he go to the lord's stronghold last night?" Giss guessed.
He stood there, turning to watch the old chief's hunched back gradually disappear into the distance. Thinking of how the old chief had worked tirelessly for the village all night, his nose suddenly felt a little sore...
Along the way, he was joined by many early-rising young men, and they walked together toward the square.
Giss changed into his studded leather armor, which had been passed down from his father. The armor was a little small for him, like wearing a half-body vest, clinging tightly to his body.
She was wearing large leather shoes modified by her mother, and her hair was neatly combed. Standing there, nearly two meters tall, she looked like an iron tower.
Most noticeably, he had a long sword hanging at his waist, while his original wooden stick had long since disappeared.
A large number of people had already gathered in the open space where the militia was stationed; all the able-bodied men in the village had come.
Some carried swords and knives at their waists, while most were armed with pitchforks and wooden clubs.
Gis stood in the line, his back ramrod straight. He was a head taller than most of the people and had a strong build, making him even more conspicuous.
His companions glanced at him from time to time, some with doubt, some with envy, and a few huddled together whispering.
"Wow, Geese has a longsword now, that's so cool!"
"Gis is my brother. If any of you dare bully me, he'll beat you up!"
"Hey~ did you see the longsword at Geese's waist? I wonder where it came from..."
"You found it, didn't you? Look how shabby that wooden scabbard is, how good can the sword be? Look how smug he is, he won't even look down at me..."
"It's just for show, a useless piece of junk. In a real fight, it might break at the slightest touch!"
One of the youths, who didn't get along with Geese, squeezed in front of him, glanced at the sword at his waist, and shouted:
"Hey, Geese, did you carve this wooden sword toy yourself?"
Didn't that fire poker get enough attention yesterday?
There were plenty of onlookers around, and a burst of laughter immediately followed.
Giss didn't even lift his eyelids, only slightly lowering his gaze. Seeing the man standing in front of him looking up at him, he coldly uttered a few words:
"Don't block my way."
Giss was incredibly strong; with a slight flick of his arm, he sent the man shoving aside.
The man stumbled and nearly fell to the ground. After regaining his balance, he was so angry that his face turned red. He turned around and looked at Giss's imposing back. The man gritted his teeth and ultimately did not dare to go forward again.
……
Gis stood silently in the line, head held high and chest out, not even glancing sideways.
"As long as you hold your head high and stand tall, you don't have to look at people you don't like." This was the silly method his mother taught him.
Aunt Silin went all out, giving him unprecedented confidence.
With his large hand resting on the longsword at his waist, feeling the simple patterns on the scabbard, he felt a sense of peace he had never known before.
This is the sharpest spear his mother gave him, and also the strongest shield his mother forged for him by her own hands!
After waiting for a long time, more and more people gathered. Gis looked towards the end of the village and asked in confusion:
"Where has the old chief gone? Why hasn't he returned yet?"