So Many Nobles

A group of more than a dozen people walked through the wind and snow, soon arriving before the tower. It was a manor.

Lights flickered in the windows. Clearly, someone had already spotted them, but it was too cold outside, and no one was willing to come out.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Brandt slammed his fist against the heavy wooden door. It was impossible to tell how long it had been since the door was last opened. Under the force of the blows, ice chips scattered across the ground.

"No need to call out. Let's go straight in."

As Brandt broke through the door, they encountered no attack.

They entered the courtyard of this somewhat Gothic manor fortress. When they reached the inner gate, however, even the strength of a Bronze Knight proved useless.

"What an ingenious design. With just a few latches, it can lock a gate weighing thousands of pounds shut."

As soon as Ryan finished speaking, he heard a voice from behind the door.

"We have no food left. Go away."

"We're not here to ask for food. We've come to bring you warmth and food."

To their surprise, the people inside went pale upon hearing Brandt's words.

"Are you Cultists?"

"What Cultists?" Brandt asked in confusion.

"We're not Cultists. Open the door. There are only a few of us. What are you afraid of?"

Ryan stepped forward and spoke in a grave voice. "I am Viscount Whitman. Open the door!"

Just a few breaths later, the door opened.

The person who opened it changed expression drastically when he saw Ryan. "You're not Viscount Whitman."

More people immediately gathered around. They all held weapons, though they were clearly unfamiliar with them and could barely keep a grip on them.

"Though I am not Viscount Whitman, I am still a noble."

Ryan raised a hand to his visor. The next moment, he removed the diamond-shaped mithril faceplate, revealing a face that was plainly not that of a commoner.

"You..."

The young man who had spoken hesitated, but he still said, "I'll take you to see the Barons."

After passing through several tightly shut doors, Ryan noticed that the surroundings had grown much brighter. There were even soldiers standing guard, though they looked utterly listless.

In the end, Ryan met the... many nobles here in a dining hall.

Yes, there was not one noble here, but eight. They were dressed impeccably, their hair groomed without a strand out of place, yet the mush in the exquisite silver plates before them did not quite suit their status.

"Mashed potatoes?" Ryan was somewhat surprised. He had actually seen potatoes. In an instant, his whole body seemed to warm up.

These should be able to withstand the cold well, right?

Sensing Ryan's eager gaze, they thought he had come to steal their food. One after another, they quickened their movements.

Only after emptying their plates did these noble Barons finally look at Ryan.

"Who are you? I never knew there was a noble like you in any of the surrounding manors."

"I am Ryan, Baron of Frozen Earth Territory."

"It seems you haven't been living very well, gentlemen?"

Ryan looked at the Barons. Clearly, under the eternal winter, they could only huddle together for warmth.

"Hmph. As if you could be living any better. In this damned weather, can you even light a fireplace?"

A fireplace? That was a good suggestion. How had he forgotten that?

"Perhaps I really can."

Ryan looked at the nobles and asked directly, "How many people do you have here?"

"What do you mean?" one Baron asked.

"I can take you away from this deadly weather. But let me make this clear first: once you leave this place, you will lose all your noble status. From then on, you will only be commoners."

Yet it was as though this group had not heard the latter half of his words. Their eyes widened as they crowded around Ryan.

"Can you really take us to the city of magical furnaces in the South?"

"Hurry and take me away! I'll give you Gold Coins—ten thousand Gold Coins!"

"I have gemstones here. I'll give them all to you, as long as you take me South."

"Stop!"

Ryan cut off their chattering.

"One at a time. Tell me what price you're willing to pay. But first, shouldn't you introduce yourselves?"

After Ryan spoke, the nobles before him seemed to recover their composure.

"I am Baron Azur."

"Azur? What is Viscountess Whitman to you?" Ryan asked.

"Shara? You've seen Shara? How is she now? Is she doing well?"

"She's doing quite well. She has a courtyard where she can grow flowers and plants, and she doesn't have to endure the biting wind."

"Good. That's good."

Baron Azur relaxed and trusted Ryan a little more.

After hearing the introductions of all the Barons, Ryan continued, "The place I intend to take you is not the South, but another world. It is my territory."

"Once you get there, all your identities will be meaningless. No one will acknowledge you as nobles, even if you truly look like nobles."

"At most, they will regard you as Wandering Nobles. But Wandering Nobles are not much better off than commoners, so understand this: if you wish to survive, you will no longer be nobles."

"Everyone here will become my subjects, including the soldiers who originally belonged to you."

After hearing Ryan's words, the nobles remained unable to react for a long time.

In the end, Baron Azur was the first to come to his senses.

"What you said... is true?"

"I have no reason to lie to you. And your daughter is in my territory too. You'll be able to see her."

"Fine. I agree. Once I go to your territory, I will live as a commoner. But you cannot strip me of my family name."

"Fine."

Ryan nodded, but there was no way he would simply trust them.

"Then swear it in the name of the Lord of Dawn."

Ryan did not know whether the Lord of Dawn's authority reached this place, but in the world where the Empire stood, wherever the Lord of Dawn's radiance shone, the price of breaking an oath was far more terrifying than death.

Hearing Ryan's words, one of the Barons could not help objecting.

"You cannot strip us of our right to be nobles. I demand that you preserve our status as Wandering Nobles."

"My territory has no need for Wandering Nobles."

Wandering Nobles could potentially win people over. What if commoners believed they could rise again and followed them away? That was something Ryan did not want to see.

"We are all Mage Apprentices. How could we become commoners like those Mud Legs?"

"We were born noble."

Ryan looked at them helplessly. "Fine. Let us each take a step back. I will not allow you to live in my territory as nobles, so you must swear."

"But if you can pay a sufficient price, I can grant you a patch of wasteland in my territory and permit you to build your own manors and cultivate farmland there. However, your manors and harvests must be taxed."

"This is my bottom line. I can make you wealthy. As for your unwillingness to abandon your noble status, have you considered that in another world, who would even know about your noble status?"

"Other than me knowing where you came from, no one will care where you are from. If you claim to be nobles, no one will believe you."

"Moreover, making you manor owners means you will have the right to recruit servants, guards, and slaves. In the future, through the efforts of your own families, you will have more opportunities than commoners to obtain Noble Titles."

Upon hearing Ryan's words, the eight Barons all fell silent. But after Baron Azur took the lead in swearing the oath, they all accepted Ryan's proposal.