Recaps

After a morning run, Victor joined Count Edmund for breakfast at Marquis Guilford's estate and learned about the Kingdom Navy's bases and Beckman City's trade and fishing economy. He enjoyed the estate's thousand-layer cream cake and took an extra slice for Brando.

• Victor met Count Edmund after his run, and Edmund explained why he had stayed at Marquis Guilford's estate instead of returning home.
• Edmund told Victor that the Kingdom Navy was divided among Beckman City, Lip, and Suche, and described Marquis Guilford's role in developing Beckman City's trade and fishing industries.
• Victor and Edmund shared breakfast, where Edmund recommended fruit drinks, beef pies, and thousand-layer cream cake.
• Victor enjoyed the cake and asked for an extra slice to take back for his godson Brando.

Duke Alex planned to hurry the Northern Frontier nobles toward Golden Tree City to meet the King on time, but Marquis Guilford persuaded them to stop for lunch and arranged a faster route. After collecting their people and cargo at the docks, the group prepared to travel by escort and canal ship.

• Alex urged the nobles to depart without lunch because they risked missing the King's deadline.
• Victor shared pastries with Brando, while James found that Victor had no food left for him.
• Marquis Guilford persuaded Alex to eat lunch and promised to arrange a timely journey to Golden Tree City.
• After lunch, Marquis Guilford led the nobles to the docks, where their cargo and personnel were ready.
• Marquis Guilford arranged an escort along Ruiz Avenue and ships on the Royal Capital Grand Canal for the journey to Golden Tree City.

Alex and the Vela Nobles’ delegation began its journey to the Royal Capital under a kingdom cavalry escort, joined by Marquis Gelorge. As they traveled along Ruiz Avenue toward the Grand Canal, Victor learned about the road’s history and discovered that the king’s written order let them pass its checkpoints without delay.

• Marquis Guilford arranged for Viscount Lugan and more than three hundred cavalrymen to escort Alex and the delegation to the Royal Capital.
• Marquis Gelorge arrived and joined the party, saying he wanted to return to the capital and accompany the Vela nobles to their audience with the king.
• The delegation departed Beckman City and traveled by carriage along Ruiz Avenue toward a ferry landing on the Grand Canal.
• Victor examined the road as Count Edmund explained its construction, its strategic importance, and the centuries it had taken to complete.
• Edmund explained that the convoy passed Ruiz Avenue’s checkpoints because Alex carried the king’s written order.

The delegation finished its journey along Ruiz Avenue and boarded ships at the Grand Canal ferry crossing, where Victor and Edmund agreed to start a carriage business near Beckman City. As the fleet headed toward the kingdom's interior, Victor became eager to see Golden Tree City.

• Marquis Gelorge borrowed two luxurious passenger ships from the royal Golden Tree Trading Company to carry the delegation and its cargo.
• The delegation loaded its people and supplies aboard the ships, while Viscount Lugan's Cavalry split between guarding the fleet and riding along the canal bank.
• Victor proposed selling improved Vela carriages in the kingdom's heartland, and Edmund agreed that they would be popular there.
• Victor and Edmund agreed to establish a trading company and carriage workshop near Beckman City, with Two Rivers Territory supplying parts and workers and Edmund arranging transport and sales.
• Victor reflected on the kingdom's prosperous trade routes and looked forward to visiting Golden Tree City.

Victor warned Count Edmund that the kingdom’s large serf populations and harsh conditions could make coordinated uprisings dangerous, especially because educated slaves could spread plans between territories. Edmund remained unconcerned because his family’s coastal fief had many Freemen and a strong military tradition.

• Victor questioned the high serf-to-Freeman ratio in the kingdom’s heartland, and Edmund explained that peaceful conditions and nobles’ reliance on serf labor had produced it.
• Victor warned Edmund that cooperating work crews could allow serfs from several territories to organize simultaneous uprisings, while Edmund dismissed the possibility.
• Victor pointed out that Freemen could own slaves and that educated slaves might have the knowledge and foresight to lead a revolt.
• Edmund said his family’s Eastern Coastal Province fief had a lower slave proportion and many Freemen serving in the navy, giving it a strong pool of trained and willing soldiers.
• Victor concluded that Edmund’s family had little reason to fear a local uprising.

Victor and Edmund traveled down the Grand Canal, where Victor trained Brando and earned the respect of Viscount Lugan through a sparring match and martial arts instruction. Lugan told Victor that most Royal Legions had grown weak, while border forces and the elite cavalry under his command remained better prepared.

• Victor and Edmund watched exhausted laborers get driven to tow another ship, and Edmund began to find Victor’s criticisms more reasonable.
• Victor took Brando around the canal to enjoy the scenery and sample local foods, then began training with him aboard the ship.
• Viscount Lugan challenged Victor to a barehanded spar, and Victor held back before calling their match a draw.
• Lugan sought Victor’s guidance in martial arts and answered his questions, including questions about the Kingdom Army’s deployments.
• Victor learned from Lugan that most Royal Legions had weakened through neglect and corruption, while Lugan’s cavalry was an elite unit maintained and trained at extra expense.

Victor learned from Viscount Lugan that corruption and short staffing had weakened the Kingdom Army's interior legions, then heard how Lugan's soldiers helped suppress a massive slave uprising through mass executions. The conversation ended when James called Victor to see the last lock before the capital.

• Victor learned that ending garrison rotations had let local officers and nobles inflate troop rolls and skim military pay.
• Lugan explained that his cavalry regiment claimed pay for nonexistent soldiers, while he used estate laborers to fool inspectors and fully paid the cavalrymen under his command.
• Lugan recounted how a slave revolt on Viscount Parivis's estate spread to neighboring estates and grew to two hundred thousand rebels before troops suppressed it.
• Lugan told Victor that the nobles and legion commander had the more than one hundred thousand surviving captives executed on a river sandbar.
• James called Victor to see the final lock before the capital, and Victor and Lugan left the room.

Victor, Viscount Lugan, and their companions waited as a canal sluice gate raised the water level for their ship. When the gate opened, Victor saw Golden Tree City, the royal capital of the Raine Kingdom, on the horizon.

• Victor, Viscount Lugan, and James went onto the deck, where Brando excitedly pointed out the huge iron gate.
• The passenger ship and the vessels behind it stopped in a queue as the floodgate began releasing a torrent of water.
• Brando played in the spray, and Victor persuaded Jarvis to let him stay on deck under his watch.
• Victor led Brando to hold the mast as the ship rocked violently beneath the waterfall and the canal rose for more than two hours.
• The sluice gate opened, and Victor saw Golden Tree City on the horizon.

The Vela delegation arrived at Golden Tree City, where Victor learned about the Golden Court Trees and the bright gold alloy used by the kingdom’s elite troops. A Royal Guard unit surrounded the pier and approached the delegation, and Marquis Gelorge went forward to meet them, assuring Victor and Alex that there was no danger.

• Count Edmund announced that the ship was nearing Golden Tree City, and the Vela nobles packed their belongings for disembarkation.
• Viscount Lugan said goodbye to Alex and Victor before leading his troops away from the capital.
• Victor observed the North Pier’s vast artificial lake and learned from Marquis Gelorge that the surrounding Golden Court Trees gave the royal house and city their names.
• Marquis Gelorge explained that the trees’ leaves produced bright gold, a controlled alloy used to equip the kingdom’s elite troops.
• A Royal Guard unit arrived, sealed off the pier, and marched toward the Vela delegation.
• Marquis Gelorge reassured Victor and Alex, then went forward alone to meet the soldiers.

Carol I welcomed Alex, Victor, and the Vela nobles as they arrived in Golden Tree City, praising their potential and urging them to stabilize the Vela Region and support the kingdom. Alex and the nobles pledged their efforts to the king.

• Marquis Gelorge learned that Carol I had come to welcome the Vela delegation, and the Imperial Guard lined both sides of the road.
• Alex ordered the Vela nobles to kneel as Carol I's golden carriage arrived.
• Carol I greeted the nobles and recognized Alex as the new Duke of Central Vira Province.
• Carol I offered condolences for Duke Colt's death and asked Alex to help stabilize the Vela Region.
• Carol I praised Victor and the other Vela nobles, and Alex pledged that they would give their all.

King Carol I hosted Victor and the Vela Nobles at Wind Whisper Manor, where Marquis Gelorge revealed that the vast estate was the royal family's largest hunting ground. The delegation had two days to rest before their formal audience with the king.

• King Carol I welcomed Victor and the Vela Nobles at the docks and brought them to Wind Whisper Manor outside the Capital City.
• Marquis Gelorge showed the delegation the manor and led them up a hill to view its grounds, while Victor sent Jarvis to take the tired Brando to their room.
• Victor and Alex saw the manor's lake, stream, forests, fences, and roaming animals, and realized the estate covered an enormous area.
• Marquis Gelorge explained that Windwhisper Hunting Grounds spanned more than one thousand square kilometers and warned the guests not to explore deep inside without guards and weapons.
• Marquis Gelorge gave the Vela Nobles his address, offered to arrange hunting or visits to the Royal Capital, and departed after reminding them they had two days before their audience with King Carol I.

The Vela Nobles settled into the royal manor and attended a lesson on the kingdom’s noble houses to prepare for their audience with the king. Dr. Corsa’s heraldry lesson ended with Alex affirming that the Iron Birch Family would remain a border house and defend the kingdom.

• Marquis Gelorge left for home, and Alex urged the Vela Nobles to rest before meeting the king.
• Leonardo assigned the nobles their rooms and arranged guides and carriages for those who wanted to explore the capital.
• Leonardo announced that scholars from the Kingdom Noble Heraldry Institute would teach the nobles about the kingdom’s houses the next morning.
• Dr. Corsa explained the White Laurel Family’s coat of arms, history, wealth, and role in guarding the northern border.
• Dr. Corsa asked whether Alex would move his lands inland, and Alex vowed that the Iron Birch Family would remain on the border and defend the kingdom.

Dr. Corsa taught the Vela Nobles about Raine Kingdom heraldry and persuaded them to buy an expensive multivolume set of Kingdom Heraldry. After the lesson and a lunch where the nobles tried unsuccessfully to outdrink him, Dr. Corsa departed, promising to send them revised family entries for review.

• Dr. Corsa finished his lesson and offered the Vela Nobles deluxe copies of Kingdom Heraldry for five gold coins per volume.
• Count Isaac and the other Vela Nobles bought the first volume, then learned they needed additional volumes to cover the rest of the kingdom’s noble families.
• Dr. Corsa offered discounts and manuscript reviews for buyers of the complete set, and the Vela Nobles ordered the remaining books despite the steep cost.
• Dr. Corsa collected payment for books he had not brought with him, while Victor recognized that the nobles were reluctant to challenge a member of a marquis family.
• At lunch, Dr. Corsa accepted the Vela Nobles’ toasts until they collapsed, then Alex, Victor, and Edmund escorted him out.
• Dr. Corsa promised to send the nobles revised entries about their families and said every noble would receive a compact edition of Kingdom Heraldry.

Victor took Brando on a tour of the Royal Capital, where they sampled expensive pastries and admired the city’s golden decorations. The guide explained that the delicate leaf ornaments worn by people throughout the city were natural Golden Court Tree leaves.

• Victor and Alex decided not to tell the other Vela nobles what Dr. Corsa had said.
• James went hunting with several Vela nobles while Victor took Brando to tour the Royal Capital.
• Victor stopped at a pastry shop after Brando spotted it, and he bought the shop’s pastries for them.
• Victor led Brando along the streets while Jarvis carried their bags of pastries.
• Victor asked the guide about the leaf-shaped ornaments worn by people in the city, and the guide showed him a natural Golden Court Tree leaf.

Victor toured the Royal Capital, learned why the Royal Domain’s residents were loyal to the royal family, and returned to Wind Whisper Manor. There, James’s enormous moose hunt drew the nobles’ attention, and the manor’s chefs served a meal that left everyone impressed.

• Victor learned that Royal Domain residents could keep Golden Court Tree Leaves as charms and received generous benefits in exchange for loyalty and military service, while many residents remained enslaved.
• Victor returned to Wind Whisper Manor with a sleeping Brando and followed James to see the giant moose he had hunted.
• Several nobles competed to buy the moose, but James refused to sell it after Viscount Isaac offered three hundred Raine gold coins.
• Alex congratulated James, and the nobles gathered to taste roasted moose tenderloin seasoned with spices from the White Laurel Fief.
• The nobles praised the tender, flavorful meat, and Steward Leonardo announced more moose dishes for the meal.

After a feast at the royal manor, Alex rewarded Steward Leonardo and discussed with Victor the dangers facing the Vela Nobles. The chapter ended with Alex recognizing that nobles settling in the kingdom’s heartland could divide their ranks and damage the Vela Three Provinces’ recovery.

• Alex gave Steward Leonardo a decorative golden dagger in thanks for his efforts.
• Leonardo arranged for the drunken Vela Nobles to be taken to their rooms and had fruit drinks prepared for Alex and Victor.
• Victor praised Alex for acting more thoughtfully as a duke, and Alex said he wanted to set an example for the Vela Nobles.
• Victor warned Alex that Vela Nobles buying land in Beckman City could split their group and hinder the Vela Three Provinces’ recovery.
• Alex agreed that he needed to prevent the nobles from abandoning Vela after the civil war.

Victor and the Vela nobles traveled to Golden Tree City to pay their respects to the king, entering the vast Blazing Sun Palace under royal escort. As Helaxus led them toward the audience, Victor carried the tired Brando onward through the palace.

• Victor insisted that Brando keep wearing his uncomfortable riding boots for the formal visit, and Jarvis helped him practice walking in them.
• Alex led the Vela nobles toward the Royal Capital, where Commander Hipo and the First Legion of the Royal Guard escorted their convoy through the city.
• Alex gave Hipo a golden dagger, then revealed to Victor that the inexpensive daggers had been specially made and handed him two more.
• Helaxus and the Palace Guard took over the escort at the palace gates, and Marquis Gelorge described Blazing Sun Palace and its history as they walked.
• Victor admired the palace's expansive plaza and ornate buildings, then picked up the breathless Brando as the group hurried toward the king.

King Carol I welcomed Alex and the Vela Nobles to the Raine Kingdom and introduced them to its great nobles. The reception ended with the king presenting Duke Weeks of Wos Province, whose past dealings with Vela had nearly triggered the Northern Frontier Allied Army's early uprising.

• Alex and the Vela Nobles arrived in a square and knelt before King Carol I, who welcomed them and praised their future role in the kingdom.
• The assembled nobles and Palace Guard cheered for the Vela group, while Victor noticed hostile stares but could not identify their source.
• Carol I introduced Duke Henry, and Alex exchanged greetings with the northern border commander.
• Carol I introduced the kingdom's great nobles, and Alex and the Vela Nobles used their knowledge of heraldry to converse with them.
• Carol I introduced Duke Weeks of Wos Province, whom Alex and Victor knew had once sent Baron Rossi to contact the Silver Maple Ducal House.

Victor, Alex, and the Vela Nobles attended a welcoming ceremony where Carol I offered them Royal Capital residences and asked them to send relatives to study in the Kingdom. After Brando’s lack of suitable relatives prompted objections, Carol I exempted the Great Oak Family and ordered a noble academy built in Vela before the Vela Nobles began planning trade with the Kingdom.

• Duke Wiske warmly apologized to Alex, but Victor remained suspicious of him and could not identify the hostile presence at the banquet.
• Carol I offered the Vela Nobles fine residences in the Royal Capital and asked them to send descendants or relatives to study there.
• Victor and Alex worried that the residences might draw Vela nobles away from their territories, while Victor struggled to choose between his inseparable younger twin siblings and Brando had no suitable relative to send.
• After a Kingdom noble proposed keeping Brando in the Royal Capital, Carol I rejected the idea, exempted the Great Oak Family from sending a hostage, and ordered a noble academy established in Duke Iron Birch’s territory.
• Alex, Victor, and Marquis Lloyd led groups visiting Kingdom nobles, while Victor continued searching for the source of the hostile gaze.
• The Vela Nobles identified trade in Northlands Wasteland specialties as a possible joint venture, and Victor supported the plan.

Veronica gave birth to a healthy son in Wood Fort Town while Victor was away, and named him Charlie. Baron Wembley, Lady Ellie, and Victor's younger siblings welcomed the newborn.

• Veronica gave birth to a healthy boy, and the physicians brought him to her bedside.
• Veronica named her son Charlie, the name she and Victor had chosen earlier.
• The medical staff cleaned and wrapped Little Charlie while Veronica fell asleep.
• Baron Wembley and Lady Ellie met their grandson, and Lady Ellie took him into her arms.
• Victor's younger siblings gathered around to see their new nephew.

Victor hurried from Golden Tree City to the Two Rivers Territory after sensing that Veronica had given birth, and finally reunited with his wife and newborn son. He learned that Charlie had been born safely on August 18, and returned home on September 8.

• Victor felt homesick while talking with Marquis Bairami and immediately decided to return to Vela for Veronica’s expected birth.
• Victor arranged to leave Golden Tree City with James and Brando, and Alex secured Count Edmund’s help with the journey.
• Victor and his party traveled by ship to Beckman City, then took a fast Kingdom Navy vessel to the Vela West Coast and continued by horse and riverboat.
• Victor reached Sunset City on August 31, where Baron Magnus told him that Veronica had safely given birth to Charlie on August 18.
• Magnus reassured Brando that Victor would continue to teach him and encouraged him to study while Victor cared for his newborn son.
• Viscount Sonanda took Victor to the Two Rivers Territory, where Victor reunited with Veronica and Charlie on September 8.

Victor hurried back to the Two Rivers Territory after hearing that his heir had been born. He reunited with Veronica at the Lord's Mansion and met their infant son, Little Charlie.

• A merchant complained about a cavalry troop racing through the territory until his guard captain recognized Marquis Victor Golden Sunflower among the riders.
• The guard captain told the merchant that Victor had likely returned because the territory had welcomed the birth of his heir, and the merchant hurried away after realizing he had cursed at the Marquis.
• Victor reached the Lord's Mansion before sunset and went straight inside without greeting the steward.
• Victor embraced Veronica, then went with her to see Little Charlie in the maid's arms and called him adorable.

Victor reunited with Baron Rossi, who brought gifts and a letter from Duke Alex, including an estate for Little Charlie. Rossi asked whether he should reclaim his family territory in the kingdom's heartland or remain in Vela Region, and Victor advised him to stay in Vela, signaling that he did not want to reconcile with Duke Wiske.

• Victor met Baron Rossi at the Lord's Mansion, where Rossi delivered Duke Alex's letter and gifts from the kingdom's heartland.
• Victor read that Alex had secured agreements to support Vela Region's recovery and that several nobles planned to remain in Vela for two or three years before moving away.
• Victor learned that Alex had given Little Charlie an estate of over a hundred square kilometers in Central Vela Province as a birth gift.
• Baron Rossi told Victor that Duke Wiske had offered to return his family's territory and asked whether he should return to the kingdom's heartland or remain in Vela Region.
• Victor advised Rossi to stay in Vela, warning that Duke Wiske could take the territory from him again, and Rossi accepted the advice.

Victor asked Baron Rossi whether Duke Wiske might become an enemy, then sent him home with supplies to rebuild his lands. He returned to Veronica with Golden Court Tree Leaves and reassured her that he would stay in his territory and spend time with her and Charlie.

• Victor asked Baron Rossi what he thought of Duke Wiske, and Baron Rossi warned that the duke was tyrannical and unlikely to let go of old grudges.
• Victor gave Baron Rossi iron ingots, farming tools, and horses to support the rebuilding of his territory.
• Baron Rossi thanked Victor and pledged his family's loyalty to the Northern Frontier nobles and to Duke Alex and Marquis Victor.
• Victor took two Golden Court Tree Leaves to Veronica, who admired their beauty.
• Victor told Veronica that Vela's provinces would focus on recovery and rebuilding and that he planned to remain in his territory with her and Charlie.

Red Soil Town Station staff managed a crowded train arrival and departure while Bruno covered for Stationmaster Bask, who had gone to Woodfort City for a meeting. After the train left, the exhausted workers discussed the town’s growing traffic and a planned railway line that might expand their station.

• Railway workers controlled the crowded platform as passengers left the arriving steam train before the waiting crowd boarded.
• Bruno checked with driver Kapita about fuel and learned that Kapita had enough to reach Woodfort City.
• Kapita departed east with the day’s last passenger train, and Bruno relaxed after it left safely.
• The exhausted workers discussed how Red Soil Town had become a transfer point and might gain a larger station when a new railway line was built.