The Steward's Assessment of the Family
On the mountain road outside Carnford, a transport caravan consisting of ten carriages and twenty guards slowly came to a stop.
Leading the procession was a relatively elaborately decorated four-wheeled carriage.
Beside the carriage, a young knight on horseback reined in his horse and said to the person inside the carriage window, "Lord Edgar, it seems... Young Master Karl's territory is indeed quite different from the rumors."
The curtain of the car window was lifted by a well-maintained hand wearing a leather glove, revealing a slightly stern, scrutinizing middle-aged face.
He was Edgar, one of Duke Schmidt's stewards.
He was ordered by the Duke to personally escort this batch of supplies to the Northern Territory.
Edgar did not answer the knight immediately, but instead sharply scanned his surroundings.
They traveled north from Fran City along the route chosen by the pioneering Lord, and indeed passed through more than one so-called "pioneer territory".
Without exception, those places left him with the following impressions: dilapidated, desolate, with pitifully rudimentary fortifications, and the so-called "soldiers" were more like farmers just there to make up the numbers, listless and poorly equipped.
Those camps looked dilapidated, as if a strong wind could collapse them. They couldn't withstand an attack from a group of Kobold or goblins, let alone the Sauron.
However, the territory belonging to the seventh young master Karl presented a completely different scene.
First, they were stopped at the entrance to the mountain path, quite a distance from the castle, by two militiamen with red Cloth Strip tied to their arms and carrying spears.
Although the sentry was simply dressed, his eyes were alert, he answered questions about passwords and purpose clearly, and he was meticulous when inspecting vehicles, showing no signs of being perfunctory.
Although the road leading to the castle was still a dirt road, it had clearly been leveled and widened, and simple drainage ditches had even been dug along the roadside.
Looking out, at the foot of the mountain are vast fields of thriving, lush green farmland, with neat rows of crops that have clearly been carefully tended.
Further away, near the river, a new residential area is under construction, orderly and full of vitality.
The castle standing on the mountainside, though still showing signs of repair, retains its overall structure, with flags flying and patrolling soldiers visible on the crenellations.
The entire territory exuded an air of busyness, order, and even a hint of unwavering resilience.
Edgar lowered the curtain, a slight softening appearing on his habitually rigid expression. He gave a soft hum in response to the knight's words, his tone carrying a hint of disbelief and reassessment. "Hmph... indeed, unexpected."
In fact, when he received the order from the Grand Steward at the Franklin Manor to personally escort supplies to the Northern Territory for "that good-for-nothing seventh young master," he was extremely disapproving.
His impression of this seventh young master Karl von Schmidt, was still based on what he had seen a few years ago.
A quiet, untalented boy who stands out among his many outstanding brothers, even appearing somewhat mediocre and timid.
He was the most useless of all the Duke's sons.
The Duke's eldest son, Friedrich, is a renowned Fourth-Order Knight in the kingdom. At a young age, he was entrusted with important responsibilities, assisting Earl Eisenberg, who was stationed at Black Rock Pass, a key passage for the Sauron to enter the pass. He held real power and had a promising future.
The second son, Kaspar, was a prominent figure in the Royal Capital's social circles. He was proficient in writing, poetry, and music, and was hailed as a genius. He lived in the Royal Capital for a long time, was highly regarded by the King, and was appointed as the king's court writer, gaining widespread fame.
The third son, Konrad, displayed amazing magical talent from a young age. He entered the Royal Capital Academy of Magic in the capital during his youth, and after graduating, he traveled around and is now a well-known mage.
The other young masters, even if not as dazzling, have all made achievements in their respective fields.
Only this seventh young master, Karl, was neither good at literature nor martial arts, and was completely immune to magic. He was practically invisible to the family and was eventually sent to the Northern Territory to "explore" the land, which everyone considered tantamount to exile and death.
After all... his mother, Eileen, was just a beautiful but unattractive noblewoman back then.
Edgar thought to himself that he had personally found the Duke and arranged that "chance encounter" with Lady Eileen back then.
He had thought his son would be lost forever in the snowstorms of the Northern Territory, but unexpectedly...
"It seems the Duke's bloodline has finally come into play," Edgar muttered to himself, as if trying to convince himself. "Even his most unremarkable son seems to have been forced to show some potential and ruthlessness in a place like the Northern Territory."
The sight before him left him no choice but to believe it; this Seventh Young Master seemed to have truly made a name for himself in this ruin that was considered a dead end.
This made his escort mission seem less tedious.