Chapter 4 - New life, new family

After both father and uncle helped the boy return to his room, the two of them sat on the bed waiting for the boy to calm down. It didn't take long for Konrad to regain his strength after the colossal effort he put into his little show, and while it was a success for the boy, it definitely tested the hearts of his father and uncle.

Seeing that the boy looked better already, Matthew decided to be the one to inform his son of his departure and new life.

"Son, I don't know how much you have heard, but from tomorrow onwards, you will have to live with your grandpa. I hope you can forgive us for not being able to help you, but you have to remember that we love you, no matter where you are, we will always be with you."

Tears began to fall down the boy's face as he quietly listen to his father's words. Despite what he wanted to say, Konrad didn't find the courage to tell his father something that plagued the boy since the day he had caught this sickness. Instead, the boy meekly nodded in response, holding his father's hand as he failed to contain his tears.

"I understand lord father. You don't have to be sorry for me, my lord. I can guarantee you that I will be fine, especially if uncle and Lord Von Braun take care of me."

"Bloody divines! What is the name of Nakash (Goddess of Justice and Harmony), have you done to my nephew, brother? Why does he sound like a bloody servant?"

For a second Konrad thought that his uncle would strangle his father to death before he saw the regret in his father's eyes as well as the hurtful look on his face. When the younger brother saw his older brother's expression, he let go of his brother, before throwing himself into the chair.

"Many times over the years, I failed as a father and because of that, my own son had started to see himself as nothing more than a servant, at least when he's my presence. I failed him, the same way I failed my wife's promise to never let her baby boy leave our roof."

Nikolaus let out a sigh before getting up from his chair. "That's already in the past, brother. Now, that my nephew is going to spend more time with his handsome uncle, he would learn how to be a proper lord and not like this. Heck, I'll even ask Dolgrum to put some sense into the boy if that's what it takes to make a man out of him. A day with a dwarf is a lifetime as a man. "

"Let's let the boy rest, Niko. You two have a long way ahead tomorrow."

After a teary farewell between a mother and her son, where Lady Lyudmila cried her heart out, cursing the poor uncle for taking her baby away from her, Konrad, Nikolaus, and twenty soldiers that serve House Von Braun left the Falwell estate in good spirits.

"Make yourself comfortable, nephew. We have a long journey northwards and you might as well make the best of it while you still can, and if your body starts hurting due to the journey, please let me know, we can always rest for a few hours then continue our journey."

"Don't worry uncle, I'll be fine, I've been worse than I will be when the cart takes a few bumps here and there along the way."

"If you say so, young lord, but until you are completely cured of whatever dark curse, your mother's words are law. Even more so when my life depends on it, so please nephew do let me know, I'd rather keep my balls and head on my body for a few more decades."

Four weeks later, as the cart jolted through the latest in a long series of potholes, Konrad finally understood why his uncle told him to make himself comfortable in a sarcastic tone. Within a few hours of the journey beginning, the boy had learned an important lesson when traveling inside of a cart, there is no comfortable place to rest for so many days in a row. Maybe just maybe, he should have declined the offer and just hide in his room back home…

Fortunately for Konrad, his mother "was kind " enough to ask his uncle for a passager cart rather than having the poor boy ride into a supply wagon, like the other carts in the caravan. One could only imagine how uncomfortable the journey must have been for those poor souls who were unfortunate enough to ride in the back of such wagons.

The roads they had been following for the last month were little more than a series of trails winding a roundabout path through the northern reaches of the border forest that separate House Falwell from House Maisel. The trails were not made for ease of travel, but decades of constant travel made these dirt roads into a true nightmare for the merchants, men-at-arms, or nobles who wanted to travel in the spring or in the autumn. Another half a day of gruesome traveling brought the caravan just outside the stonewalls of the Helfrost.

In the begging, the fortress wasn't exactly a fortress. When the first Lord took the name of Von Braun, he and his people had no need for such huge walls to protect the fifty or so people that choose to follow Lord Von Braun into the wilderness. Unfortunately, years after the town was built the first barbarian attack happened, forcing the residents of Helfrost to run away onto the hill where they stood their ground for three days and nights until the Duke's army came to their rescue. Thanks to their position, the residents manage to fight and win thus prompting the Lord to build a new town in a better position from where they could easily kill the invaders.

As soon as they passed through the gate, most likely because the boy's uncle was part of the caravan, otherwise, they would have needed to wait like everyone else for an inspection, Konrad saw the peasants training together with a man clad in armor. When Nikolaus saw the excitement on his nephew's face, he decided to share some light about the knight.

"That, my dear nephew, is Sir Yuri Mangrove, a man that is proud to be known as a wandering knight. I don't know how my father managed to make such a veteran like him stay in our lands, but the man had taken it upon himself to train the peasants whenever they are free, thus keeping the safety of our lands to a rather high standard since most people are fed and have a place to work."

The boy was impressed by his grandfather's achievement, but nevertheless, Konrad would still love to meet the man before he either look up at his grandfather or not.

It didn't take them long before Konrad and his uncle arrived in front of a house, slightly better looking than the rest, but still not too extravagate as most nobles own. In front of the house stood an old man flanked by two soldiers waiting patiently for the boy and the uncle to walk in front of them.

While he got better over the years, Konrad wasn't exactly free of pain and sometimes he would still need the help of another person to move, and thankfully for him, his uncle was kind enough to help the boy. Standing in front of the old man, Konrad couldn't believe how good his grandfather looked. If what his father and uncle said was true then the old man should have been in his seventies and yet the man didn't look a day older than fifty.

The old man looked at his grandson for a good minute before he walked forward, stopping just a meter in front of the boy before in the most gentle and warm voice his son ever heard greeted his grandson.

"It's good to see you, my child. I hope, my drunken son didn't cause you any problems."

Hearing his grandfather's words, the boy panicked, not expecting this kind of warm welcome from the old man, but after taking a few deep breaths the boy managed to put together a proper sentence.

"No, my lord. My uncle was actually quite the company, I could say. He taught me a lot of things about warfare, tactics, and history."

"Boy, I hope this would be the first time you lie to me. I know my son better than anyone does and if you say this, that mean that he brags about his escapades in his travels. By the divines, I hope he didn't make your ears bleed from all the nonsense he experienced. What's done is done, come inside your new home, Konrad." Not giving his son even a second to argue, the old man turned towards him and gave him a death stare. "As for you, Nikolaus, my good friend Yuri needs a new punching bag, so that's your job for corrupting the mind of my grandson with your love affairs."

Leading the boy inside, Karl Von Braun took one last look at his son before closing the door behind him.

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