Chapter 283: Strangers in City Titan
"My name is Egbert, and this knight is called Gutta," said Egbert.
Then Gutta added his own words, "Is there a problem?"
The merchant sighed and walked without reply to the massive gate, which was guarded by many men clad in heavy metal.
The massive gate was made of thick pieces of wood held together by large iron nails. The men guarding the gate wore armor made of overlapping iron plates.
On the walls stood men with strange long weapons instead of bows. Egbert, of course, was surprised by this, as he, being someone who had never heard of the Iron Kingdom’s weapons, did not understand how a metal tube could replace a wooden bow and feathered arrows in combat.
Gutta had certainly heard of them from his friends in the North and how these weapons had made Ragnar and his followers the masters of England.
Egbert and Gutta walked their horses forward until they reached the massive gate. They arrived at the gate, and the guards began questioning them about the reason for their visit.
The guards asked for their names, their previous locations, and their exact purpose for entering the settlement of the Iron King.
The guards listened to this explanation, checked their belongings for hidden threats, and then opened the doors.
They were allowed inside, amazed by the cleanliness and organization of the city, its trees, and of course, its mills, furnaces, and carriages.
Despite having visited many large settlements in his life, Egbert had never seen a place structured with such high levels of order. The streets were covered with flat stones, which meant that the dirt did not turn into thick mud when the rain fell from the sky. The city workers regularly swept the stone roads to remove animal waste.
Along the sides of the stone roads, workers had planted tall trees.
And so, as they continued walking their horses down the main street, they noticed the numerous mills located near the fast-moving river.
The flowing water from the river pushed the wooden blades of the wheels, causing them to turn in a continuous circle.
This turning motion was connected to heavy round stones inside the buildings, which crushed harvested wheat into fine flour without requiring human or animal labor.
In his mind, Egbert quickly calculated the economic value of these structures.
With all these things happening around them, they also saw the large furnaces located in the designated industrial areas of the city.
Furthermore, the streets were filled with carriages transporting these heavy goods from the furnaces to the storage buildings.
The carriages were large wooden boxes mounted on four round wooden wheels, and they were pulled by strong horses guided by drivers holding leather ropes.
After walking past the mills and the furnaces, Egbert and Gutta asked a local city guard for directions to the best metalworker in the settlement. The guard pointed his iron hand toward a specific stone building located at the end of the street.
Thus, they reached the best blacksmith in the city, Rorik, who was now speaking with Louis the Stammerer.
While Egbert and Gutta tied their horses to a post outside the shop, they looked through the open doorway and saw that Rorik was not alone.
"Ah, old man, you need to pour more!" Louis said, pointing his hand toward the hot liquid inside the iron container.
Rorik nodded his head and grabbed the long metal handles of the container.
Egbert and Gutta stood at the doorway, watching the two men work together.
While Rorik hit a glowing piece of iron on a large iron block, he noticed Egbert and Gutta standing near the door. Rorik did not like interruptions when he was working with hot metal. He stopped swinging his heavy iron hammer and looked at the two strangers.
"Get out of my workspace!" Rorik shouted loudly.
Egbert stepped forward onto the floor and reached his right hand into the leather pouch tied to his belt. He pulled out the small piece of strong metal.
"I am Egbert, and this knight is Gutta. We did not come here to waste your time, we brought a material that is stronger than any iron you possess." Egbert stated clearly, holding the piece of metal forward.
Rorik looked at the small piece of metal and laughed a loud sound from his throat.
Rorik prepared to yell at them again, but Louis the Stammerer suddenly stepped forward.
"Wait, let me see that." Louis said, stammering slightly as he spoke the words.
Louis rubbed his fingers over the hard surface and examined the edges. He immediately recognized that this was not common iron.
This metal had been heated and cooled in a specific way that trapped carbon inside the structure, making it incredibly hard.
He asked Egbert how he knew the metal was strong, where he purchased it, and what kind of weapon he wanted to forge.
Egbert explained that he wanted a sword with a specifically curved blade and a heavy iron ring on the handle. He told Louis that a curved blade would slice through cloth and leather armor much faster than a straight blade, and the heavy iron ring would prevent the weapon from slipping out of his hand when his hands were covered in sweat during a long battle.
"You possess a very sharp mind, Egbert. These are completely new ideas for hand weapons..." Louis declared, smiling broadly at the young man.
"Prince Louis, we do not have time to forge custom swords for wandering travelers. We must finish the iron plates for the king’s guards before the sun sets." Rorik complained.
"Rorik will not make your sword today, you should talk to Ragnar." Louis announced, returning the piece of metal to Egbert’s hand.
Gutta attempted to refuse the offer. He knew that kings did not like speaking to commoners, and he did not want to risk his life or Egbert’s life.
"We do not wish to bother the king..." Gutta said, hoping Louis would simply order Rorik to complete the work.