Departure

Early December mornings were somewhat cold. Bennett Castle was especially busy today. After getting up, the servants hurried to clean the carriage. The two draft horses were fed soybeans, and sky-blue ornamental tassels were hung from their bodies. The squires, meanwhile, repaired the weapons, cleaned their leather armor and boots, and carefully groomed Knight Bennett's warhorse before replacing its saddle with a magnificent one.

By the time Abel and the servants carried his trunk out of his room, a procession was already waiting before the castle: a Noble Honor Guard of six spearmen and a carriage that, while not luxurious, was exceptionally clean.

The spearmen wore matching sky-blue Cloth Armor, calf-high leather boots, and sky-blue cloth caps. They carried three-meter spears. Of all their equipment, only the spears were genuine military gear; everything else had been made by the castle's tailor. The cloth armor could at most make it easier to pull arrows from a squire's body after he had been shot. It could not stop arrows, much less could those cloth caps meant for keeping warm. Two flags hung beneath the spearheads of the two spearmen standing at the front, bearing the Bennett Family's Thorn Shield emblem.

The carriage had no excessive decorations. Only its window curtains and door curtains had been changed to sky blue. Sky blue was the primary color of the Thorn Shield crest, so on formal occasions, everyone at the castle used sky blue as their main color.

Just as Abel was loading his trunk onto the carriage, his father, Knight Bennett, rode out of the castle on his warhorse. His mother, Nara, followed behind him, her eyes filled with tears, while his elder brother supported her at her side.

Knight Bennett looked exceedingly solemn. Every plate of his shining silver-white armor reflected cold glints beneath the sunlight. He wore no helmet; his helmet, shield, and greatsword hung from one side of his saddle. His hair was simply tied into a ponytail, swaying constantly in the frigid wind.

The shield hanging on the outside of the saddle was entirely covered by the sky-blue Thorn Shield emblem, complementing the sky-blue scabbard of the greatsword.

His mother said nothing, as though she had already spoken all she had to say the night before. She only looked at Abel as if he were the most precious treasure in the world.

His elder brother Zack had known that Abel would leave the castle one day. It was tradition, and no one could go against it. Thus, he had always cared for and cherished his only younger brother. But he had never expected that day to come so soon. Zack walked up to Abel and pulled him into a fierce embrace, gripping him so tightly that even Abel, who was at the same level as him, felt the pressure.

"Remember to come back when you have the time. This is your home." His usually talkative elder brother did not say much now, but that one heartfelt sentence nearly shattered Abel's calm composure.

The winter morning sunlight offered no warmth, and the wind was rather strong. The flags bearing the family's Thorn Shield emblem snapped loudly in the breeze. Abel did not sit in the carriage. Instead, he rode the draft horse, now nearly three years old, in the middle of the procession. The Iron-inlaid Leather Armor his father had given him was too large, so he wore a cowhide breastplate lined with wool instead. A Light Longsword hung across his back. The sword was actually too light for him now; compared to his current status as a Level Four, this gift from his father was not very practical.

Abel looked back at his mother Nara, still watching the departing carriage outside the castle, with Zack supporting her. He quickly turned forward again. He was afraid that if he looked back once more, he would not be able to stop his tears from falling.

There were not many people in the procession. Since some squires and guards had to remain behind, they only brought six spearmen and one coachman. Including Knight Bennett and Abel, there were nine people in total. Norman, the squire who had accompanied Abel to Libo Town last time, remained behind to protect the castle as the second-strongest person in the territory after Knight Bennett left.

It should be explained that as the lowest rank of nobility, a knight could not simply accept anyone as a squire. Loyalty, reliability, great martial strength, and a respectable background were all important requirements.

Like Norman in the Bennett Family, he had followed the knight from the battlefield and fought bravely at his side. Once his loyalty had been acknowledged by the knight, Knight Bennett had found Warrior Secret Arts within the family inheritance and taught them to him, allowing him to become a formal warrior. His status had then been elevated from that of an ordinary guard to that of a Knight's Squire, a position above that of common civilians.

Many wandering knights sought the chance to become the Knight's Squire of a Feudal Knight, which showed just how prestigious the position was. Once a squire had offered his loyalty, the knight was responsible for all of the squire's expenses, including weapons, armor, and arrangements for the squire's family. Therefore, both the squire and the knight had to be extremely cautious when accepting such a relationship. In the next battle, that squire might save your life—or ruin it.

The procession traveled for a full six hours. Apart from a half-hour rest at noon, they continued onward the entire time. No one foolish enough to cause trouble came near a noble procession led by a knight. Even the wild beasts sensed Knight Bennett's presence, like a dormant volcano capable of erupting with devastating force at any moment, and kept clear of the procession.

This was the farthest Abel had ever traveled from home, whether during the eleven years in his memories or the nearly two years since he had come to this world. It was winter, and the scenery along the road was not particularly appealing. Only a few evergreen plants dotted the bleak gray land.

Fortunately, it had not snowed. Though people and horses raised some dust on these dirt roads, that was far better than the mud after rain or snow. Abel had heard that roads in prosperous regions were paved with large slabs of stone, which reminded him of the cement roads on Earth.

Abel thought that if he could make cement, these roads could become as hard as those stone-paved roads. He patted his head and reminded himself not to think about inventions again. Without strength, such things would harm both himself and his family, just like the castle water supply system that Knight Bennett had shelved.

As someone who had received a modern education, Abel clearly felt that his mind was more active than that of the youth in his memories, even more active than when he had been on Earth. This was also why he had mastered knightly techniques so rapidly. It was not only knightly techniques; he could easily learn noble etiquette and cultural knowledge after going over them once, remembering them firmly afterward. Sometimes, he could not help wondering whether this was some physical benefit brought by his transmigration.

The dirt road ahead became a gravel road, and the surface grew much smoother. Knight Bennett turned around, pointed at the road before them, and said to Abel, "This is Knight Marshall's style. He cares especially about appearances and demands that everything be the best. If this were not a plain with no mountains to quarry huge stones from, he would have turned this road into a stone road."

Looking at his father Knight Bennett's polished, gleaming armor, the sky-blue decorations custom-made for the horse especially for today, and the brand-new equipment on the spearmen, Abel wanted to say, Father, if you had the money, you would care about appearances even more than Knight Marshall.