Ang did not have to wait long.
In less than three days, over a hundred nobles arrived in Amnath City one after another. Most were barons and viscounts, and nearly all came from within Preston's military faction.
Ang was quite pleased by this—most of these nobles occupied the bottom ranks of the power structure. Eager to change their fates through opportunity, they were easier to work with than the deeply entrenched old nobility.
Over the next few days, Ang gradually learned their backgrounds and circumstances.
Although they bore the title of "noble," many barons did not actually possess true fiefs.
When they had been granted their titles, they had only been symbolically assigned plots of land on remote, barren, or even not yet fully developed planes. The resources were scarce, transportation was inconvenient, and there was simply no way to develop them.
"The place I was granted does not even have a complete road," one baron said with a bitter smile. "It is difficult even to build a manor. They call it a territory, but I myself have barely visited it a few times."
The reason these people had gathered under Preston was precisely because they hoped to use the protection of the Empire's third heir to gain better opportunities for advancement.
Now that Ang had taken the Milaginbi Mountains, he naturally intended to cede a portion of the land to Preston in gratitude for his support.
Preston had no need for land himself, but his subordinates did. So Ang told Preston to send any nobles who wished to buy land to him.
By comparison, the structure of Ang's army was an almost entirely different system.
Most of his officers were commoners with no noble status, yet they had fought their way up through real battles. Even Bruno, whom he