Split Up

Ansen had learned of a "treasure" from that broken-legged pirate.

The information was said to have come from a manuscript copyist in Erudition City—people who dealt with ancient books every day did occasionally make astonishing discoveries.

This time, that copyist had uncovered a great secret.

The secret concerned an ancient Griffin Knights garrison that had never been found, or rather, an ancient ruin.

Those pirates had repeatedly traveled to Erudition City and sailed through the continent's rivers in order to determine the location of that garrison.

The Old Pendor Kingdom had once ruled the entire continent—and even now, the continent was still called Pendor.

The Griffin Knights had once been the royal knight order of the Old Pendor Kingdom, as well as the strongest knight order on the continent, without question.

But it was said that one hundred and fifty years ago, through a conspiracy between the Gato Raiders and Duke Alfred of Lionheart, every Griffin Knight had died at Long River Town.

After the Griffin Knights were destroyed, the Duke of Lionheart usurped the throne and proclaimed himself king. He wiped out all forces loyal to the Pendor royal family, founded the Lionheart Kingdom, and made the Lion Knight Order that supported him into the royal knight order.

The Griffin Knights were thereafter declared an illegal armed force by the Lionheart Kingdom, and the black Griffin crest on a golden field, with all its countless legends, was never again seen on the continent.

Their mysterious garrison was likewise buried by time, unknown to all.

How many treasures might such a legendary force as the Griffin Knights have left in its secret base?

Just thinking about it was enticing.

After a long period of effort, the pirates had confirmed the garrison's approximate location—somewhere near the source of a river close to Long River Town.

But there were countless rivers around Long River Town, and they still had not found it. That was why they had gone to Erudition City once more, hoping to see whether the copyist had overlooked any useful information.

Li Ang understood the pirates' desire to find treasure or obtain a hidden base, but he sneered at such behavior. Spending enormous manpower and resources to search thousands of miles for a legendary "mysterious garrison"—were they pirates or explorers?

They were simply neglecting their proper work...

He merely made a mental note of it, intending to consider it when an appropriate opportunity arose.

For now, the most important matter was registering as a Pioneer Lord in Lion City.

Having gained quite a bit of loot, the group now looked completely renewed, with morale and spirits far better than before.

But Li Ang had to set out alone in advance—he had to reach Lion City before Duke Alma and complete his registration at the Noble Council.

That had been Ansen's suggestion.

As the son of a noble family, even though he was not from the Lionheart Kingdom, Ansen still understood the ways of nobles better than Li Ang or Kloze did.

Li Ang could still be considered no more than a commoner. The knight order his father had belonged to had already been destroyed, and might even have long since been declared an illegal knight order—otherwise, his father would not have remained silent about it all his life.

If he reached Lion City after Duke Alma or that bastard son, then the Pioneer Baron Certificate in his possession could very likely be declared invalid after just a few casual remarks from Grand Duke Alma. King Ulrich presumably wanted that as well; after all, there were already too many nobles, while there was never enough land to go around.

But such matters could not usually be settled by a duke's letter or order alone. He would also have to speak with the king in person and have the king issue the command. After all, certificates issued by the Noble Council represented the king's authority.

Moreover, under normal circumstances, this sort of displaced resentment would not lead to any targeted disaster—at least, no one would be sent to ambush and kill him. There had not been any deep offense; he had merely failed to fulfill an illegitimate son's wish. It did not count as hatred.

So, if he registered as a Pioneer Lord with the Noble Council before Duke Alma's convoy returned to Lion City, there probably would not be any problem.

The people who truly wanted him dead were likely from the Crimson Brotherhood. Thus, the farther he got from a chaotic place like the west coast, the safer he would be.

Li Ang felt that Ansen's reasoning made sense, so he set off alone on Alice and rode through the night at full speed.

They agreed to regroup near Long River Town so they could purchase supplies there.

Li Ang was not at all worried that his men would abandon him and run away—he could see them on the party panel.

This half-baked system, which could not display characters' base attributes, had not skimped on the party panel's functions.

Alice truly was a fine horse. By noon on the third day, Li Ang had crossed a thousand miles and arrived outside Lion City.

Lion City was the capital of the Lionheart Kingdom.

But its former name had been Kavala—the name of the founder of the Old Pendor Kingdom.

It had once been the capital of the Old Pendor Kingdom.

Its walls stood fifteen meters high—this was practically a mighty city that could not be conquered from outside.

And that was indeed true. The city had changed hands three times, and every time, it had been breached from within...

Though the Lionheart Kingdom had stood for one hundred and fifty years, the huge outline of Griffin reliefs could still vaguely be seen on the walls of this mighty city from afar—they had merely been deliberately chiseled flat, then repainted with snarling lions.

Still, the public order here was far better than in Mistveil City...

At least there were no furtive little gangs to be seen on the streets.

The guards at the city gate did not stop Li Ang, nor did they even ask him to halt for inspection. Perhaps they felt that anyone who could ride Alice, a golden-maned horse, into the city had to be a noble, and there was no need to invite trouble.

That was also the main reason Li Ang had always wanted this horse. It was not because Alice possessed exceptional speed or endurance, but because she looked impressive.

Li Ang galloped all the way through the broad streets.

His destination was naturally the Lion City Noble Council, the official institution overseeing all noble estates throughout Lion Territory.

The Noble Council was actually rather difficult to find, which was quite contrary to tradition. It was said that more than a hundred years ago, the Pendor Noble Council had been the tallest building in the city center, its lofty dome visible from anywhere in the city.

But after the first Lion King, Duke Alfred of Lionheart, usurped the throne and proclaimed himself king, that tallest freestanding building in all Lion Territory became the private property of his family—and it was now King Ulrich's private property as well.

As for the new Noble Council, it stood on a side street beside King's Avenue—hidden deep within an alley, it was practically no different from the residences of minor nobles.

Perhaps that was because the old Pendor Noble Council had contained a great many documents that could not be allowed to become known;

Or perhaps it was to make officials more approachable and reduce corruption;

But Li Ang felt that the Lion King simply did not want any taller buildings within his realm, lest anyone stand "above them."

After all, the usurper had become the Lion King because he had been "unwilling to remain beneath others."

Li Ang looked at the magnificent building in the city center, towering over thirty meters high, shook his head, and asked his way along King's Avenue until he finally found the Noble Council's entrance.

Above the main gate was carved a stern-faced Goddess in flowing robes, holding a spear in one hand and a code of law in the other, with an owl perched upon her shoulder.

She was the chief Goddess of the ancient Pendor people, and also the Official Faith of the present Lionheart Kingdom—the God of Order and Zeal, Eunomia.

The statue was exquisitely made, but somewhat discordant. Eunomia should originally have worn a pendant symbolizing the order of the sun, moon, and seasons upon her chest, yet this statue had replaced it with a lion's head.

They had even altered the image of the chief Goddess... Whoever did the flattering had clearly reached an extraordinary level.

Still, Li Ang wondered whether the God of Order, now deprived of the order of sun, moon, and seasons, would still be willing to bless the Lionheart Kingdom that claimed to inherit the legitimate line of Old Pendor.