Ulf Schiewe is a renowned German author celebrated for his meticulously researched historical novels. While he is best known for his "Normans" saga and crusader epics, his "Sonstiges" (Miscellaneous) collection often includes shorter works, novellas, or standalone historical thrillers that explore different eras.

Elias looked at the mule. To a bandit, those chests looked like they held gold or silver. In reality, they held ink and paper—the kind of truth that acted like slow-acting poison. If the ledgers were destroyed, the Duke's claim to the northern lands would vanish.

By the time the sun climbed over the Rhine the following morning, the "Four Books" were safe inside the cathedral walls, their secrets intact, and the history of the Rhine had been rewritten by the stroke of a pen rather than the edge of a blade. 📚 About Ulf Schiewe's Work

The parchment felt heavy in Elias’s hands, the wax seal of the Duke still cold against his thumb. He stood on the edge of the Rhine, the gray water churning with the spring melt. In the distance, the spires of Cologne rose like jagged teeth against a bruised sky.

Elias was no knight, but he carried a burden heavier than a broadsword. He was a master of the "Sonstiges"—the miscellanea of war. He managed the grain, the maps, and the secrets. Behind him, four heavy chests were strapped to a pack mule. These were the "Four Books" of the Duchy’s ledger, containing names that could topple kings or burn cities to the ground.

"We cannot wait for the boat," Elias whispered. He grabbed the mule’s bridle.