Medieval: Kingdom Come: Deliverance

Chapter 145 The Banner of Resistance

"But Sigismund has always had red hair, hasn't he? Why couldn't it be him?"

Although Jessica was also shocked by Peter's identity, as someone who had lived and trained in the palace for six years from age 12 to 18 and had personally witnessed the childhoods of Wenceslaus IV and Sigismund, he raised questions.

"Heh, it's not your fault, Captain Jessica. Peter the Red was born in 1384, the year after Wenceslaus's first wife died. And my little cousin Sigismund was only 17 then, he was... he was..."

""

Jöbst's expression shifted several times, his smile vanishing as he suddenly recalled a secret unknown to many nobles—his younger cousin, Sigismund, had not been married into the Hungarian royal family from 1383 to 1385. The Hungarian king had died, and his cousin, who was slated to inherit the throne, was forced by his mother-in-law to flee back to the Prague palace. It wasn't until 1385, with the help of the Luxembourg family, that he secretly returned to Hungary, disguised himself as a bandit, kidnapped and murdered his mother-in-law, and successfully ascended the throne.

This was originally a secret within their Luxembourg family, known only to core members.

However, if we calculate the timeline like this, it seems that the younger cousin is also a strong suspect. Is Red-haired Peter Sigismund's illegitimate son?! No, absolutely not.

Henry and Jessica looked at Yobst, who had suddenly drifted off into a daze, with a puzzled expression. They exchanged glances and became somewhat worried.

"Hahaha, impossible, Captain Jessica."

Jobus finally composed himself and said, "Sigismund went to the Kingdom of Hungary to become a son-in-law when he was 12 years old. So your guess is wrong."

In his plan, he intended to publicize the secret that Peter was Wenceslaus IV's illegitimate son, making it a banner against Sigismund. This would unite the royalist nobles on one hand, and on the other hand, shield himself from trouble by drawing away Sigismund's greatest hatred, thus facilitating his future schemes. Therefore, the red-haired Peter could only be Wenceslaus IV's illegitimate son!

"That's good, that's good."

Henry and Jessica also breathed a sigh of relief; they really didn't want such a powerful man as Peter to become an enemy of the royalists.

"I have a plan: to gather all the royalist lords of Kutenberg into a banquet hall, let them feast on fine wine and venison—and then reach an agreement with them on the spot. I sincerely invite that red griffin Peter to the gathering in Kutenberg. But it seems that the king's bastard son is in big trouble."

"I received definitive news at yesterday's gathering of nobles," said Jöbst. "The Rosenberg family offered 5 Groschens to buy Troschi Castle and its surrounding villages from von Polgár, and von Polgár agreed."

"

"Sir, what does this mean?" Henry asked, puzzled.

Upon hearing the name Rosenberg, Jessica reacted somewhat nervously and immediately answered for Jobuste, "The Rosenberg family is the overlord of South Bohemia, possessing territory and soldiers a thousand times larger than the Borgo family! This means that after obtaining Trostsky's claim, the chances of the Rosenberg family sending troops are very high!"

"Damn it, we should warn Lord Peter as soon as possible!"

Henry said anxiously.

"Don't rush, Henry, don't rush. Do you think it's easy for nobles to mobilize their armies?" Jobst raised his hand and pressed down, trying to calm Henry down. "Even the wealthy and powerful Rosenberg family needs to summon their vassals to mobilize an army of a few hundred men, and all of this takes time."

"Okay, okay, sir, I was worrying too much."

Henry calmed down somewhat after hearing what Jöbst said and brought up another matter, "Sir, there's another reason we're here. von Polgar has taken my master, Sir Hans Capon of Pickstein, hostage and brought him to Kutenberg. Do you have any news about this?"

"Von Polgao is currently based at Malesov Castle, and if he really detained Hans, he would probably be there too."

Yobst dismissed it, saying, "Don't worry about Capon. I'm sure von Polgar has him locked in a gilded cage, because even though he's a bastard, he still has a bit of aristocratic honor and won't easily harm members of the same class of nobility."

"1

"Lord Peter said the same thing. But I'm still a little worried. I promised Hans that I would definitely rescue him." Henry clenched his fists, wishing he could rush into Malesov and rescue Hans immediately.

"It seems you have great respect for Peter?"

Hearing Henry mention Peter repeatedly, Jöbst became increasingly curious about this "banner of rebellion" that he intended to raise.

"Not just respect, but worship," Henry said. "Sir, is there any way to infiltrate Malesov Castle?"

"To be honest, Hans is safer than you or I. The wisest thing to do now is to wait for them to demand a ransom, rather than recklessly going to rescue him." After a moment's thought, Jobst added, "If you insist on going, you can go to Ruther's Palace in Kutenberg and ask Sir Rutherd, the owner there. Malesov Castle was his castle, but it was taken away. He might have some secret passages or something; you know, nobles love to do that under their castles."

"Kutenberg? I'll go." Henry nodded; he had promised Hans, and he would keep his promise.

"Also, I have a request, Henry."

"Please give your instructions, sir."

"My friend John of Liechtenstein has gone missing in Kutenberg. If you go into Kutenberg, could you please keep an eye out for him?"

"John? I know him. I will."

"Very good, Henry, I admire a hardworking lad like you." After saying that, Yobst turned to Jessica and said, "As for you, Captain Jessica, you must have something on the matter of the drunkard Hynek."

"It's not a thought, it's anger!"

Jessica retorted angrily, "I conducted a survey around the castle. You refused to allow Sukhdor to provide shelter for the drunkard and his men, which led to their perilous situation and capture by the Hungarians!"

"Sanctuary? Sanctuary is for good people in distress, not for criminals like the Hynek alcoholic gang who commit murder and arson. Especially when they don't obey my orders and go against my plans."

When confronted with accusations, Yobst retorted sharply.

"Oh, really? What plan, my Marquis? King Wenceslaus is rotting in the dungeon, and you're sitting here chatting?"

Jessica put her hands on her hips and said sarcastically, "But that's not surprising, is it? After all, not long ago you were conspiring with Sigismund against your own brother, Prokop."

Sir Sokol, whom Jessica served, served the Marquess of Prokop. Although "the lord of a lord is not my lord," their positions were still there.

"It is the Duke."

Jöbst reminded him again, "I think it's futile to try to explain to you the complexities of the internal politics of our Luxembourg family."

As the Duke of Moravia, Jobuste didn't think he needed to condescend to explain so much to a mere knight.

"Let me put it simply: it was out of necessity. You can rest assured that everything I am doing now is for the best interests of this country and King Wenceslaus."

"Ha, it's all about profit again."

Jessica scoffed. "Everyone knows that you're doing things primarily for your own benefit."

"I never expected that a bandit who makes a living by killing merchants would utter such impassioned words."

Yobst's rebuttal was equally sharp.

The guilt brought on by the killing enraged Jessica, who reached for the hilt of his sword.

"Captain, I meant no offense."

Yobst immediately raised his hand. He didn't want a pointless fight, especially since he was no match for the battle-hardened veteran. "I admire your methods. Sometimes reason can prevail over force—but not always."

Seeing Henry's surprised look beside him, Yobst quickly lowered his raised hands and clapped, concealing his momentary panic. At the same time, he signaled to the guards outside the door.

Just as the two were staring at each other, the atmosphere tense, a squad of heavily armored soldiers entered, breaking the silence.

"Your Grace, you have another meeting to chair."

This is the most common excuse.

"Okay," said Yobst. "I'll be off right away. I think Captain Jessica is about to leave too...right?"

This is practically a blatant order to leave.

"As you wish." Jessica, unwilling to linger any longer, turned and left angrily. Henry followed closely behind.

But Yobst stopped Henry, saying, "Henry, you can stay."

Henry glanced at the powerful Marquis, then at Jessica, who had fought alongside him, and finally shook his head, saying, "I'm leaving with Jessica; we have our own things to do."

"Alright, Henry, don't forget what I asked of you." Yöbster only valued talent, and seeing that Henry didn't appreciate it, he didn't insist on keeping him.

"I will, sir, I will go into town to find John."

"Very well, then I won't keep you any longer."

Jobuster warned sternly, "But please remember, I have reached a very unstable truce with Sigismund, which has bought us time to prepare for war. During this time, you had better not use brute force to disrupt my plans, or the consequences will be very serious. Well then, this meeting is over. Goodbye, and good luck."

Goodbye, and best of luck!

Henry and Jessica went downstairs, gathered their men, bid farewell to Lord Pisek, and rode away without looking back.

Once outside the city, Jessica began assigning tasks.

"Catherine, I have a task for you. Go to Kutenberg and find out what's going on in Liechtenstein. If anyone knows what's happening in that damned country, it's him."

"OK."

"Hert, Lord Peter has been kind to us, and we need to inform him of the Rosenberg family's situation as soon as possible so that he can prepare in advance."

"clear!"

"Henry, let's go find the drunkard and his troops. We need help."

"no problem."

The group split into three groups at the crossroads outside Sukhdor.