Iron Powder and Spellcasters Chapter 361

   Chapter 361 Another Hunt (Part 1)

  [Empire, Castile, Royal Pavilion, Hunting Ground]

When the   Chihe Department Hunt came to an end, on the other side of the Shady Mountains—the Castile Peninsula, thousands of miles away, another hunt was reaching its climax.

  Compared to the spectacular scene of 30,000 hunters sweeping the wasteland with the sound of a white lion on the Chihe Department, the hunting on this side of the empire seemed a bit petty, with less than 1,000 servants and servants being used.

   However, the reason for this perception is just because of "contrast".

   For the Castilian nobles, even the annual Ascension Mass is less important than the Great Hunt.

   Twenty years ago, on the eve of the imperial civil war, the situation was turbulent, and the lords of all parties holding heavy troops were silent.

   was the first nobleman from the Castile Peninsula to publicly stand under the banner of [Henry Lieyang], and then charged into battle in the subsequent war of succession to the throne, making great achievements.

   In recognition of the loyalty and bravery of the Castilian nobles, after the crown ownership has settled, the royal family holds a grand hunting event in the Castile Peninsula every winter.

   Even the emperor himself would come to the hunting grounds to watch the ceremony, and he had never missed an appointment for 20 years, nor had anyone else do it for him.

   Therefore, every year in the late winter, the nobles of Castile, big and small, are like migratory schools of fish. They put on their most gorgeous hunting clothes and rush to the royal palace from all over the peninsula.

   Even the landless knights and commoners who are not qualified to participate in the hunting still squeeze their heads and want to enter the hunting ground and see the emperor's true face.

  You must know that on the one hand, the Castilians are known for their bravery and sturdiness, and on the other hand, they also have a notorious reputation for being unruly, savage and irritable.

The   Castile peninsula is located far from the center of the empire.

   is in a corner, resulting in a natural lack of reverence for the authority of the emperor.

   Therefore, during the reign of Mad King Richard alone, there were no less than seven rebellions in the Castile Peninsula.

  After making extraordinary contributions in the war of succession to the throne, the Castilian nobles became more arrogant and more difficult to restrain.

  It was all thanks to the emperor's skill that the Castile faction was neither too large nor out of balance.

   In the twenty years since the new emperor ascended the throne, there was not a single rebellion in the Castile peninsula.

   Therefore, the big hunt is not only a good opportunity for the younger generation of Castilian nobles to show their talents and win the favor of the emperor, but also an important occasion for the royal family to maintain the loyalty of the Castilian nobles and show their favor and friendship.

   Especially at this time.

when?

  When the Northern Sea Route was opened.

  Before conquering the northern kingdoms, transport ships from the empire's far west colonies could only dock at the Castile Peninsula, and then transport gold, silver, slaves, tobacco, sugar and other goods to all parts of the empire by land.

   With the growth of trade on Western routes, shipbuilding also flourished on the Castell Peninsula.

  The continuous import of wealth brought unprecedented prosperity to the Castile Peninsula, and the Castel nobles gradually lived a life of luxury and enjoyment.

  They built luxurious palaces one after another, bought the most expensive and most valuable Fryman warhorses, decorated the dining table with exquisite gold and silver utensils from Veneta, and used only the most beautiful twill in the mountains.

   And supporting all these expenses is the western route.

   Now, the northern lion has been subdued by the emperor.

  The northern route fell into the hands of the emperor, and the two oceans were connected.

   Transport ships will no longer have to pay exorbitant transit taxes when passing through the narrow sea, and will no longer be intercepted by Northam pirates.

   Wealth from the Far West colonies is also no longer required to be transported by terribly depleted land, but can be reached by boat directly to the east coast—closer to the heart of the empire.

  The rise of trade routes can bring prosperity, and the disappearance of trade routes will also lead to decline.

   Some far-sighted Castilian nobles were already disturbed, and they could not help but think that although the emperor gave the Castilians various honors, he rarely accepted the Castilians into the center of power.

  The Castilian nobles participated in this winter hunt in a gloomy mood, and at this moment they needed to see the emperor's goodwill statement even more urgently.

   Some people just don't believe in this evil.

  In a tent in the hunting ground camp, Prince Monta [Richard] was trying to persuade another blond man.

  The blond man ignored the prince and wore protective gear without saying a word.

The person who can treat the prince like this, and the person who can treat the prince like this, is probably the only one in the empire—the Earl of Harlan, the Knight of the Golden Fleece, the youngest general in the empire, and the prince's childhood playmate—Sig of Harlan ford.

  Prince Richard's persuasion failed, and he looked at another chestnut-haired man angrily and anxiously: "You are his adjutant! Why don't you speak? Fanan!"

   "Because it's useless." The chestnut-haired man replied calmly, "Your Highness."

   There is probably no one in the world who knows Siegfried better than Farnan, not even Siegfried himself.

   Therefore, Fanan did not discourage him from beginning to end, but silently helped Siegfrid wear the greaves.

   Siegfried is tall and straight, handsome in appearance, and even more heroic when he wears a slim-fitting hunting suit. In contrast, Farnan's appearance is not outstanding, but he is capable and calm, which makes people feel at ease.

  Prince Richard's tone became stern: "What is useless? Isn't he the one who listens to you the most?"

   "Fannan is right, Your Highness." Siegfried finally said, "Please don't embarrass him."

Seeing Siegfried speak, Prince Richard put away his anger and persuaded as peacefully as possible: "It's just a show, how can you beat those Castiles? You don't need to prove anything anymore. Failure is meaningless, failure will only bring shame, do you want to fight this kind of battle?"

   Siegfried stretched out his arms so that Farnan would wrap his wrists, palms, and knuckles with strips of cloth.

   "As you said, Your Highness." Siegfried gritted his teeth slightly: "It's just a show."

  [The time is set back a quarter of an hour ago]

   "Count Harlan?" Duke Tarlac, who carried the animal ear, walked past Siegfried triumphantly, and asked casually, "Aren't you going to play?"

  The Castilian princes have always looked down on the "new nobles", not to mention that Siegfried was born in a humble background, just the son of a poor knight.

   Siegfried ignored Duke Tarlac as if he had never heard of it. He was holding a wine glass, but his eyes drifted to the viewing platform where the royal family was located.

Duke Tarlac was about to have a seizure, when the chestnut-haired adjutant beside Siegfried took a step forward and answered without humility: "Your Excellency, the winter hunting is a stage for Castile athletes to show their style, how could the Earl and Cass Tyr princes are fighting for the protagonist?"

  Siegfried was a hot red man around the emperor, and Duke Tarlac didn't want to have a real conflict, so he poured his anger on the chestnut-haired adjutant.

   Duke Tarlac squinted at the chestnut-haired adjutant and asked, "Are you Fanan? The 'Shadow of Earl Harlan' in their mouths?"

   "Or to put it another way..." Duke Tarlac changed his words, and his tone became sarcastic: "Count Harlan's male favorite?"

  Fanan didn't have time to speak, Siegfried turned around and glanced at Duke Tarlac.

  If Siegfried's face is like a marble statue carefully carved by a famous teacher, then the three deep lines between his eyebrows at this moment are the scars left by the craftsman's mistake.

  The newly promoted Earl of Harlan said coldly: "Your Majesty does not allow me to play."

   "Really?" Duke Tarlac saw that the golden retriever was provoked, he smiled and left as a winner: "What a pity."

   Siegfried pursed his lips tightly, his left hand on the hilt of the sword unconsciously.

  Suddenly, another hand was placed on Siegfried's wristband - it was Farnan, he looked at Siegfried and shook his head.

   This should have ended here, but…

   "It's no wonder." Duke Tarlac, who had already gone far, said aloud to himself: "Castile's hunting is too savage, how could His Majesty let his male pet take risks?"

  [time goes back to the present]

  [hunting ground, viewing platform]

  Castell Royal Winter Hunting has four activities: falconry, falcon hunting, dog hunting and encircling hunting. Among them, dog hunting and falcon hunting are horse-riding pursuit, while falconry hunting is foot hunting.

  After the other hunting activities are over, it is the turn of the main event of winter hunting - hunting.

  The hunting game of the imperial nobles is similar to the hunting of the Hurds. First, the servants and servants gather the wild beasts scattered all over the forest together, and then use wooden fences and curtains to encircle the hunting ground.

   Compared with the hunting grounds in the Chihe part, which are nearly ten kilometers in length and width, the hunting grounds for winter hunting in Castile are less than 100 meters in diameter.

  Because there is no overlooking spot like Qingqiu, craftsmen will build temporary viewing platforms around the hunting grounds.

  The higher the viewing platform, the more distinguished the audience on it.

  The members of the royal family and the princes and nobles have independent viewing platforms. The middle and small nobles who are not qualified to sit are either standing or riding horses. The status of each person is clear at a glance.

  The largest grandstand belongs to the female family members of each family, which is a special treat for ladies.

   At this moment, on the highest viewing platform, a young girl was complaining in a low voice: "It's so boring, Dad, do they have to torture those poor wild boars?"

   "Pay attention to your speech." The speaker's voice is soft and beautiful, it should be a lady: "Elizabeth."

  The girl curled her lips: "Dad didn't say anything."

The attitude of the    girl made the lady who disciplined her even more dissatisfied: "Where did you learn this behavior? Your father spoiled you so much that you were about to become a wild girl."

   The girl blinked, put on a helpless cub-like expression, and looked at the man on the throne: "Dad..."

   The man on the throne showed a smile: "It was you who angered your mother, don't ask me to help you."

"dad!"

   "You're always like this, always like this." The lady with a soft voice was angry, but also a little sad: "I always think about using your father..."

   "Okay." The man on the throne looked at the lady on the right.

   The soft and mature female voice came to an abrupt end.

   The girl secretly raised her eyebrows as if celebrating her victory.

   This unusual conversation took place among the most distinguished families of the Empire.

   The girl who acted like a spoiled child to her father was the eldest daughter of the emperor and the most beloved daughter, Princess Elizabeth. The lady who taught Princess Elizabeth a lesson was Queen Diana.

   The man sitting between the princess and the queen needless to say, his entire title needs to be written in six hundred and forty-six characters.

   So, usually, he will use a simpler title:

   Inherited by Lord Hon, the sole legitimate monarch of the Empire, Tannaria, Castile, and Northum with their territories and lands, Protector of the Catholic Church, Supreme and Honorable Emperor, Henry III.

   The emperor at this moment looks strange in the eyes of people who are not familiar with the emperor, because he has lost his majesty and divinity.

   And the valet who actually walked at the court would not be surprised, because only by the side of Princess Elizabeth can the emperor become a mortal.

   So you see, when everyone else was sitting quietly and didn't dare to let go of their breaths, Princess Elizabeth could move her seat to the emperor's throne and lie on the emperor's lap to complain about the boredom of hunting.

   A new round of performances has just ended, and young Castilian nobles on horses are rounding the hunting grounds, receiving cheers and blowing kisses.

The    emperor nodded, and the royal flag on the viewing platform waved three times in appreciation of the gladiators.

After    received approval, the young noble dismounted next to the corpse of the prey. He pulled out his dagger, cut off the ears and tail of the prey, walked under the viewing platform, and bowed to the emperor.

  Princess Elizabeth whispered: "What is there to see in the fight between a group of men and a group of wild boars..."

   "On the contrary, Her Royal Highness." Duke Lothair smiled and walked up to the viewing platform: "The most interesting part of the hunting in Castile is the gladiatorial fight between humans and beasts."

  Why does the Duke of Tarlac say that the hunting of Castile is "barbaric"?

   The reason is very simple, the highlight of winter hunting in Castile is never "hunting", but a one-on-one fight between humans and beasts.

  When the fire of civilization was only a little bit, fighting beasts was a skill that human beings had to master. In the frescoes of ancient civilizations, a large number of people and beasts can be seen fighting scenes.

  With the development of civilization, human beings gradually got rid of the stage of drinking blood and living in caves. Although fighting beasts is no longer necessary for survival, humans have retained it as a way to demonstrate prowess.

   So in the early history of various civilizations, there are also common records of ritual fights between humans and beasts.

   Go back a thousand years, gladiator and beast fighting was a **** entertainment for the citizens of the ancient empire.

   Going back three hundred years, hunting beasts was one of the duties of the feudal nobles, and even native lions were killed to extinction.

   But to this day, in the continent where the empire is located, the only place where "fighting beasts" is still regarded as an entertainment activity and a way to prove bravery is the Castile Peninsula.

The disappearance of the custom of    beast-fighting was partly due to the decreasing number of beasts, and partly due to the protracted criticism of the Catholic Church.

There is no doubt that   playing beasts for fun is disregarding the safety of human life. Catholic theologians have always hated and criticized it fiercely.

  In the end, only the remote and ignorant Castile Peninsula still retains this "barbaric" and "quaint" custom.

  According to the tradition of winter hunting in Castile, weak prey - such as deer, deer, fox, rabbit, birds, etc. - will be killed in the previous days of dog hunting, falcon hunting, and falconry hunting.

   And wild animals—such as wolves, wild boars, bears—are carefully reserved for use on the last day of the hunt.

  The last day of the hunt is held in the hunting grounds, all the nobles will come, and even the emperor will be there in person.

  The beasts will be put into the hunting ring in turn, one is stronger and more ferocious than the other.

  The Castilian nobles who participated in the last day of the hunt will also take turns entering the hunting ring to fight one-on-one with the beasts.

   Fighting beasts is an extremely dangerous challenge. Injuries and deaths are not uncommon, but the Castilian nobles never tire of it.

   Savage? That's savage!

   This is the deepest thought of the Castilians, and the more the Catholic Church denounces the barbarity of "beast fighting", the more the Castilians regard it as a unique symbol.

  [hunting ground, viewing platform]

Seeing that the emperor was in a good mood, Duke Lotaire told the princess a story: "Your Highness, you must know that twenty years ago in the limestone arena, Your Majesty played in person and killed a giant wolf, a bull and a head in a row. Brown bear."

   "Ah? Why don't I know?" Elizabeth suddenly became excited, she took her father's arm: "Dad, really?"

  The Emperor smiled and shook his head.

"Of course it's true." Duke Lothair also said with a smile, "and under the watchful eyes of tens of thousands of Castilians. The shocked expressions and deafening cheers of the Castilians at that time— I still remember it clearly."

   Elizabeth begged the Duke of Lothair: "Tell me more carefully, please!"

   Duke Lothair and the emperor looked at each other and smiled.

  Twenty years have passed, and the young prince is now the supreme emperor. The Duke of Lothair is also old - but still handsome and handsome.

   "Let Your Majesty tell you." Duke Lotaire smiled and said, "Your Highness the Princess."

   Elizabeth looked at her father, just about to use her sly and coquettish housekeeping skills when a rhythmic trumpet sounded in the hunting ground—a new knight entered.

   Princess Elizabeth saw her father frown slightly.

   Duke Lothair also immediately noticed the change in the emperor's mood. He looked at the knight in the middle of the hunting ground and frowned, "Count Harlan?"

   Meanwhile, in the middle of the hunting ground.

   Siegfried held the reins in his left hand and his lance in his right, and controlled the warhorse with his knees, keeping his eyes fixed on the direction of the animal pen.

   Another horn sounded—it was the turn of the beast to enter.

   The gates of the animal pen were raised, and a huge wild boar charged towards Siegfried.

   [The story that the nobleman and the wild boar have to tell]

[On June 26, 1515, at a royal celebration held at the Château de Chambord, a famous hunting resort in the Loire Valley, King François I had a wild boar, which was caught alive nearby, prepared for him to personally At the end of the stage, perform a good show of wrestling with wild boars with bare hands for the lady and other audience present. The thought of his made his mother and queen horrified, and they fell to their knees and begged. The king could not resist, so he had no choice but to give up this plan, and let people put up wooden dummies, so that everyone could enjoy the wild boar attacking the dummy for fun.

   Unexpectedly, the wild boar jumped amazingly. After overturning the dummy, it jumped over the fence, rushed to the audience, and rushed to the king, queen and his mother. This seems to be in Francois's arms. Five or six attendants tried to rush over, but they were all stopped by the king. In front of everyone, he drew out his sword, and at the right moment, he pierced the wild boar that was charging towards him. (quoted from @HolyRomanEmperor)]

   [The case of François I is a successful sample, and there are also cases of overturning]

   [As for the king himself to fight with the wild beasts, there is the emperor of Rome in the distance, and the king of Spain Charles V/Carlos I in the near]

   [Carlos I grew up in the lowlands, and to the Spaniards he was the "king of foreigners". So, Carlos I personally fought a bull at the celebration, which won the hearts of many Spaniards]

   [Thank you for reading and voting! ]

   (end of this chapter)

Chapter end