Once More to Loren City

Three months ago, the steward of the Habs Merchant Guild had told Thor that an auction would be held in Loren City three months later, with precious Life Potions up for sale. Thor had been extremely interested. After all, auctions were the sort of place where opportunities to pick up bargains were bound to appear.

This was even more so for Thor, who possessed Daily Intelligence.

Now that Daily Intelligence had updated once more, it had indeed proven that point.

Both the boy named "Allen" and the Stone of Thunder made his heart pound.

Thus, over the next two days, Thor actively began preparing for the auction.

Two days later.

He personally set out with Ryan, Neil Morton, five Formal Knights, and thirty Apprentice Knights.

After assigning men to the mines and the merchant guild, he had not had many Apprentice Knights left. However, with his substantial expenditures, another ten members of the Reserve Knight Corps had condensed Life Seeds and advanced to Apprentice Knights over the past few months. His number of Apprentice Knights had risen from just over a hundred to more than one hundred and twenty, so mobilizing another thirty was naturally no problem.

Aside from personnel, Thor also brought some supplies with him to Loren City.

For example, Black Iron Armor and Silver Armor.

After several months, he still had quite a few gold coins left.

But whether they would be enough to purchase the Stone of Thunder, the boy named "Allen," and a large quantity of daily supplies was difficult to say.

He had to make thorough preparations as well.

As for Neil Morton, he had naturally requested to accompany them himself.

Thor naturally would not refuse to have such a powerful bodyguard at his side.

After several months, if Thor had been unable to confirm it before, he could now be certain that the man was a Sky Knight.

In the entire Northern Province, nothing was safer than having a Sky Knight nearby.

Even if they immediately encountered a large-scale Orc invasion, their safety would be assured.

This was a Sky Knight, a true existence standing above the kingdom. There were only five Sky Knights in the Tulip Kingdom known publicly. Even counting those hidden from view, there could not be more than ten. Every one of them was incomparably important and formed the kingdom's strongest foundation.

Having this man with them was more reassuring than anything else.

Of course, they encountered no danger on the road from Eagle Ridge to Loren City.

To ensure that the auction could proceed normally, Loren City had already dispatched a large number of knights to clear out the surrounding area.

Even if some rats lurking in the darkness had not been completely exterminated, they had no choice but to keep their heads down.

Thor and his group carried no heavy loads, and even the supplies did not hinder their movement. In just four days, they arrived at Loren City.

Looking at the city ahead of them.

Neil Morton could not help shaking his head.

"Your lords really are incompetent. The most important city in an entire province has been built into this state."

He spoke with a sigh.

His experience at Eagle Ridge had made him think the entire Tulip Kingdom was much the same. Now, it seemed he had been overthinking it.

Only Eagle Ridge was like that.

Other places were not.

Thor smiled but did not respond to Neil Morton's words.

Joking aside, Neil Morton could comment on Marquis Lehman, but Thor did not have that right.

He urged his horse onward.

The group slowly headed toward the city.

Compared to the times he had arrived before, Loren City was undoubtedly far livelier now.

Crowds gathered everywhere outside the city gates.

There were merchants of all kinds, Pioneer Lords like him leading large retinues, and nobles wearing medals.

Not far away, Thor spotted a grand knightly procession numbering several hundred men. The banner flying high overhead told him who they were.

"Dorton."

Thor murmured the name, somewhat puzzled. He seemed unable to recall the title of that family.

But he only wondered about it briefly before putting the matter aside.

The Northern Province was a savage land, but that also meant it was a land of limitless opportunity.

It contained not only magical beasts, Orcs, and resources.

It also held ruins left behind by ancient civilizations.

Unlike the other provinces, where nearly all ruins had already been excavated, the Northern Province had barely been explored.

Anyone could rise to prominence here.

In fact, of the fifty-six barons granted titles by the kingdom, more than half had not come from the original nobility but had risen from among Wandering Knights.

This "Dorton" was likely the same, and there was nothing particularly surprising about it.

"So many people!"

Ryan spoke softly, his eyes full of curiosity as he looked around.

"Hahaha, Ryan, Canaan City in the Empire has far more people than this. There are even beautiful elves there!"

Neil Morton said with a chuckle.

"Teacher!"

Ryan looked at his teacher helplessly.

"Hahaha, I was only saying!"

Neil Morton seemed a little embarrassed and quickly added.

"Let's go. The lodging has already been arranged. We'll settle in first. The auction starts tomorrow afternoon."

Thor smiled and did not pay it much mind.

He spoke to the group.

Then, he led them toward the noble passage.

In this world, social ranks were extremely strict.

Commoners and nobles naturally did not use the same road.

Nobles had their own designated route. It was not only wider, but also required no inspection.

Thor led his men, following Dorton's group slowly into Loren City.

After they entered, dense crowds still filled the area outside the city.

Of course, that no longer had anything to do with Thor.

After entering the city, Thor could feel Loren City's current prosperity even more clearly. Compared to his previous visits, its population had clearly increased by more than tenfold, and the streets were packed with people.

The numb expressions on the faces of the crowd seemed to carry a little more happiness now. Along the roads, many freemen had set out goods for sale.

Knights strode through Loren City.

There were far more of them than before.

Thor even saw several nobles wearing medals, some of whom bore the Northern Province's distinctive mark.

That meant they were likely not merely nobles, but nobles granted titles in the Northern Province.

The significance of those two things was entirely different.

A Noble Medal only indicated that one came from a noble family. That noble status was not permanent; after leaving the family, one would be stripped of noble status after three years. Only by obtaining a title could that noble identity continue.

For example, if Thor failed to obtain the title of baron within three years, the name Dressrosa would be stripped from him, and he would no longer be a noble. Only if he obtained a title someday could he once again be granted the name "Dressrosa."