After rescuing Lady Rixi, the Court Wizard continued interrogating the naga spy Navia and forced the formula for the Witch's Transformation Elixir out of her as well.
Bai Pu and the other Awakened had no chance to show themselves at all.
Eager to prove himself, Galileus personally handled both rescuing his wife and punishing the spy, without entrusting either matter to anyone else.
Bai Pu received two pieces of good news.
First, his crime of killing his former boss Karamango had become "eliminating the naga spy Karamango." Not only was he innocent, he had rendered merit.
Of course, the credit for capturing the true naga spy—the Rotten Scale Naga Navia—became Corps Commander Galileus's wise command and decisive judgment, sparing the Imperial Legions from a potentially devastating loss.
Naturally, Galileus also rewarded Bai Pu.
Besides increases in Favorability and reputation, Galileus gave Bai Pu two choices.
The first was to become a "commander of a thousand," a low-ranking Imperial officer. From then on, he would enter the ranks of the minor nobility, with a status comparable to Karamango and Elizabeth.
The second was that Galileus would recommend Bai Pu to the imperial capital headquarters of the Crimson Blood Arena, allowing him to take over everything Karamango had owned—including the Crimson Blood Arena branch in Old Iron Smelting City, as well as the exploration team Karamango had sent to the New Continent.
No matter which option Bai Pu chose, he would directly rise into the minor nobility and obtain an item crucial to the Ascension Main Quest—a Privateering License issued by the Empire! Bai Pu chose the second option.
The first option, becoming a commander of a thousand, would make him safer, but he would not be free to act. He would have to report everything to Galileus and obtain military orders