"Frankowski,.Leo.-.Conrad.Starguard.3.-.Radiant.Warrior" - читать интересную книгу автора (Frankowski Leo)

to tell them what to do with the damn things! I ranted for a while
about their lack of faith. Then I rejected my first three thoughts
about where these things should be stuffed, deciding that the man
who had lost the fight didn't deserve any special favors from me.

The coffin was really a nicely carved rectangular chest, without
anything overtly morbid about it, so I told them to carry it back to
Three Walls. I'd use it for storing clothes.

We threw away the stone, and much later I found it used as an
outdoor table, with my name still carved on it. I should have
smashed the damn thing.

I was also miffed to discover that most of my workers had bet
against me when I fought Sir Adolf. One of them explained that it
was the sensible thing to do. After all, if I won, they knew that their
futures were secure, but if I lost, they would each need every
penny just to survive! It still left a bad taste in my mouth.

I was able to talk to the Bishop of Wroclaw just before he returned
to his cathedral. He was actually in the saddle when he granted me
an audience.

"Your excellency, I now have a city of over nine hundred souls
without a full-time priest. But I don't want just any priest. I want a
man who is capable of running an entire school system. Is it
possible for me to get such a scholar?"

"That's interesting, my son, for not three days ago I got a letter
from an excellent young scholar looking for just such a position. I
shall write him immediately on my return to Wroclaw. Yes. It will be
nice having an intelligent Italian in the diocese."

He gave me his ring to kiss, and rode off before I could reply. I had
to wait for someone to come all the way from Italy? That could take
a year!

Sir Stefan and his father, the baron, were leaving at the same time.
There was a lot of bad blood between us, starting last winter over a
disagreement about working hours. Since then, a number of other
things had caused friction between us, and the man had become
my avowed enemy. Everything I did seemed to fan his hatred, and
I had just about given up trying to get him off my back. As he left,
he bit his thumb at me in insult.

"It's not over, Conrad!" he shouted.

Christmas at Okoitz was as raucous as it had been the year before.
With my people there as well as Count Lambert's and the workers
from the cloth mill, the church was no longer big enough to hold us