Damnable Charm

When Raven arrived at Shining Gold Town with his private soldiers, he finally understood what Moxigan had meant.

These "relocated" subjects were practically a microcosm of the serfs oppressed and exploited in this era.

Their filthy hair was stuck together by sweat and dust into the shape of bird's nests. Their gaunt faces were as dirty as the bottom of a cooking pot, and their pairs of murky eyes were hidden in sunken sockets, blank and numb.

Their tattered strips of cloth offered no real cover. Their thin bodies, covered in grime, dust, and bloodstains, were exposed to the air one after another. It was impossible to tell men from women or determine their ages; only their height barely distinguished children from adults.

Their bodies were hunched, but they could not conceal the conspicuous brands on their chests: a ring on the outside and a squared-off F within, marking them as serfs belonging to the Fox Family.

To erase that identity, fresh X-shaped wounds had been branded over the old marks.

What left the deepest impression were their hands. Coarse hemp rope passed through their palms, stringing ten or twenty of them together. The rope was covered in dark-brown blood, and flies constantly landed on it and took off again.

Some people's wounds had already festered, becoming horribly foul, with maggots writhing inside.

The centers of some people's palms had rotted away completely, exposing their pale, withered bones.

Others' palms had grown together with the hemp rope, with lumps of excess flesh and deformed blood vessels.

The sound of hooves caught Raven's attention. He turned and saw a knight urge his warhorse over to him.

Through the Eye of Truth, Raven could clearly see the azure light flowing through the knight's body. Its intensity was similar to Donald's back then, making him obviously a Second-tier Azure Wave Knight.

The man looked under thirty. He had silkworm brows, walnut-shaped eyes, and an innate arrogance curling at the corners of his mouth. Although fatigue showed on his face, his full suit of Enchanted Plate Armor was polished until it gleamed, forming a stark contrast with the subjects beside him.

Not only him—even the three non-Transcendent cavalrymen behind him wore full suits of Enchanted Plate Armor, with Enchanted Weapons hanging from their waists.

Enchanted Weapons!

The equipment of these four men alone had to be worth at least 5,000 Gold Coins.

An earl's family really was loaded.

Raven clicked his tongue inwardly.

"Townsend." Though tired, the knight still struck his left fist heavily against his chest and gave a standard military salute. "It's an honor to meet you, Lord Baron!"

"Raven Ota Griffith." Raven returned the salute with a nod and said with a smile, "You've worked hard on the journey. Would you like to rest in Shining Gold Town for a while? That would also give me a chance to play host."

Townsend's eyes flickered a few times, clearly tempted, but he still shook his head. "I have a mission to fulfill, so please allow me to decline your generous offer."

"Please settle the remaining payment. We'll take our leave at once."

"What a pity." Raven sighed in feigned regret. He brushed a hand over his belt, and a box appeared in his hand. He passed it to one of the private soldiers.

After taking the box from the private soldier, Townsend asked, "Lord Baron, aren't you going to count the goods?"

Raven shook his head. "I trust the Fox Family's reputation."

Townsend nodded. He opened the box and counted the contents carefully. Only after confirming that the number of Gold Coins was correct did he raise his brows. "Lord of Eagle Territory, you truly are a noble baron of integrity!"

Although Townsend's words were exquisitely polite, his action had clearly been somewhat discourteous.

Raven smiled. "You are also a knight of prudence."

Raven deliberately emphasized the word "prudence."

Counting the money right in front of someone showed complete distrust. Raven had to display a trace of displeasure.

Otherwise, he would not be a "proper" noble.

On the Middle Continent, only commoners did not care when their dignity was insulted.

But Townsend was a Second-tier Knight from one of the only two earl's families in the entire Nord Province, so he obviously did not care much about Raven's feelings.

After all, the Griffith Family was notoriously poor!

Townsend handed the box to his attendant for safekeeping and said blandly, "Thank you for your understanding. I shall take my leave."

With that, he turned his horse around and galloped away with the three cavalrymen amid a cloud of dust.

That brief meeting had left Townsend quite surprised by Raven's performance, because it was completely inconsistent with the rumors.

More importantly, he had noticed a detail just now—Raven actually had a Spatial Belt!

Judging from the skillful way he used it, he had probably already become Transcendent without making a fuss.

This was extremely important information!

God-Given Potions were not cheap, and Spatial Equipment was even more difficult to obtain. They were not things a small baron's family in a remote town could afford.

Could it be... that the Griffith Family had already sided with the Slate Family?

Townsend's heart was filled with doubts.

He had to report this information to Count Monteril as soon as possible.

Raven, however, was not thinking about Townsend. As soon as the man left, he turned around and ordered, "Have someone bring over the food and water we prepared. Give these serfs something to eat first."

"Understood, my lord." Moxigan turned and left, calling over the recruits he now commanded.

Eric looked somewhat glum. Seeing this, Raven teased him, "What are you thinking about?"

Eric came back to himself and said seriously, "Lord Baron, that Townsend was far too rude to you!"

"It would be one thing if he didn't dismount to salute, but he actually suspected you of refusing to pay!"

Unlike Eric, who was furious, Raven had grown indifferent to such things after two lifetimes.

It was nothing more than treating people according to their status. It could not really be called right or wrong.

If Raven were a Viscount, or possessed Third-tier strength or higher, Townsend would certainly have dismounted and bowed properly.

But who could blame him when he was only a minor baron?

Raven sighed first, then shook his head. "Eric, remember this: if you want to become a proper noble, your first lesson is learning to endure!"

"As long as I remain a baron, I won't be spared such treatment."

Eric clenched his fists. "Being a baron is only the beginning. You'll become a Viscount sooner or later."

Raven looked at his retainer in surprise. It seemed that their time together had caused Eric to change his opinion of him sincerely.

"You have quite a lot of confidence in me." Raven smiled. "How could becoming a Viscount be that easy?"

While the two were talking, the food was brought over.

These relocated subjects ate like starving wolves. Within a few minutes, they had gnawed every piece of Black Bread distributed to them down to nothing, and their lifeless eyes had gained a little spark.

Composing himself, Raven dismounted and stepped onto a hastily erected platform. He coughed a few times, drawing everyone's attention.

If he wanted to become a Viscount, he still had to keep his feet on the ground and start with what was before him.

Clearing his throat, he called out, "This is our first meeting. My name is Raven—Raven Ota Griffith. Starting today, I am your lord."

"I know you have endured many hardships on your journey, but I must congratulate you. You have finally escaped your sea of suffering and arrived in my territory."

"The fact that you endured until now proves that you are tough and persevering. The fact that you did not abandon your children shows that you still retain hope for the future."

At this point, Raven paused briefly.

He saw a subtle mixture of emotions in the serfs' eyes: disgust, disdain, and hostility.

Anyone who had endured what they had would not hold the slightest hope for nobles.

But Raven did not care. As long as they reacted, it meant they could still hear what he was saying.

"Welcome to Eagle Territory."

"There are many work opportunities here. As long as you can move, you can earn payment, food, clothing, and the most precious thing of all—dignity."

"This winter, you can help me repair roads, build houses, and harvest ice. I hope that during this time, you can nourish yourselves until you are plump and healthy, because when spring arrives next year, that will be when I truly need you to work."

He glanced to the side. Volkov hurried up and handed Raven a wooden board with a sheet of Parchment nailed to it.

Raising the board in front of his chest, Raven proclaimed, "This is the decree I am preparing to issue."

"Starting next January, I will distribute the 500 mu of land already cultivated in Eagle Territory, along with 3,000 mu of abandoned and uncultivated farmland."

"Every man, including all of you, will receive two mu of land; every woman will receive one mu; children and the elderly will receive half that amount."

"As your lord, I will take only forty percent of the harvest as land tax. The rest will all belong to you."

The serfs looked at one another. Some showed signs of interest, but most still wore expressions of disdain and suspicion.

The words of nobles were always full of traps. How could anything truly beneficial possibly fall into their hands?

As if he had not noticed any of this, Raven continued, "What does it mean to be a person?"

"To have food in your stomach, clothes on your back, and, preferably, a few Silver Coins and Copper Coins in your pocket."

"In Eagle Territory, as long as you work hard, all of you can become such people and live the wonderful lives you have never imagined."

Raven's gaze swept across the crowd. He raised his right index finger. "One Gold Coin."

"That is the price I paid to buy you. Anyone among you who can give me one Gold Coin will have his freedom returned."

"Your future children will no longer be branded with the mark of a lowly serf at birth!"

"Work hard to earn money, even if it is only for your own children."

Raven soon finished his speech. There was no applause and no cheering, only pairs of puzzled, empty eyes.

Without even looking at them, Raven mounted his Blood-Eyed Warhorse and rode away.

Not long after he left, private soldiers came over and delivered sets of clean, washed secondhand clothes to the serfs. They also told them that each piece of clothing cost 50 Copper Coins.

They stared at the clothes in their hands, then looked toward the direction Raven had left in disbelief.

The fact that the clothes cost money happened to dispel the serfs' doubts.

But it also allowed them to experience the dignity of "being human" for the first time.

He... really did seem somewhat different from the other lords!

Seeing this, Laxus's eyes flashed with surprise. When she looked toward Raven's departing figure, there was also a little more admiration in her gaze.

Eagle Town had no physician, so Raven had asked her to provide these serfs with basic treatment. Her main tasks were preparing herbal remedies and cleaning their wounds to prevent them from festering and becoming infected.

She had not expected to hear Raven's speech immediately after arriving.

How should she describe it?

It had practically been a successful "speech"!

There had been many famous speeches throughout history: the accession speech of Cairns I, the prewar mobilization of Cairns VI, and the speech given by Frederick, the "Mad King" of the Insar Empire, before executing the Orc King.

Like those ancient nobles, Raven's speech had been simple, clear, and straight to the point.

There had been no excessive rallying cries, nor the redundant, flowery language common among nobles nowadays... and no mindless self-praise!

With only a few simple sentences, he had explained his policies clearly and planted a seed called "stability" in the hearts of these frightened, uncertain serfs.

"He truly is an outlier among the nobles of this age." Laxus thought this to herself.

At the same time, another woman was muttering about Raven.

"That damn bastard!" Nancy plopped heavily onto the bed and pounded the soft mattress with her little fist. A sharp-edged crystal slipped from her hand and landed on the floor.

It was called an Imprint Crystal. Although it was only a First-tier magical item, it was extremely expensive, usually costing more than 200 Gold Coins per crystal. It could store up to thirty minutes of images and sound.

Nancy had brought it to seize evidence against Raven.

The serfs transported this time were all half-dead and struggling even to breathe. Anyone could see that they were incapable of doing any work.

Since Raven had dared to treat her so excessively last time, he certainly would not obediently accept those serfs this time either.

Once he clashed with the knight responsible for escorting them, Nancy could record the scene and use it as evidence.

But contrary to Nancy's expectations, Raven had actually remained so calm!

That detestable bastard!

Why had he suddenly become so capable of enduring things?!

"Miss, please don't be angry." Jenny picked up the crystal from the floor and placed it on the vanity. "He's only a little baron. He isn't worth you spending so much effort on."

"If only that were true. Have you ever seen a baron dare to, dare to..." Nancy's face flushed as she spoke.

"Beat your... bottom?" Jenny prompted.

"I haven't forgotten!" Nancy shouted, both embarrassed and furious. "If you mention that word again, I'll, I'll beat your bottom until it's even more swollen than mine!"

Her fair fingers gathered her disheveled hair behind her back. Nancy pouted, puffed out her cheeks, and knitted her brows aggrievedly. "Raven, you plague-ridden stupid pig, sewer rat, slime slug, how come I can never find anything on you?"

Seeing this, Jenny hurried to restore her image in her mistress's eyes and chimed in, "That's right. He's scum, a thug, a lowlife bastard, dried cow dung..."

"Who gave you permission to insult him?" Nancy's voice cut her off.

Jenny froze, standing there helplessly, unsure what mistake she had made.

"Honestly... why did I choose such an idiot like you?" Nancy sighed. "What he said today practically trampled the Fox Family's dignity into the mud."

"If you describe him as such a disgrace, then what does that make the Fox Family?"

Jenny's face changed in surprise. "Huh? I didn't hear that at all. He never even mentioned the Fox Family!"

That was what angered Nancy the most.

She suspected that Raven was doing something bad, but she had no evidence.

That Raven really was a natural-born noble.

The nobles' unique talent for speaking with hidden barbs, their art of making veiled sarcastic remarks without leaving a trace, and their hypocritical, cunning nature were all displayed to perfection in him.

Every sentence he had spoken had clearly been mocking the Fox Family for treating its subjects too harshly, yet he had provided no concrete evidence anywhere, leaving no opening for anyone to seize.

Could they possibly claim that he had treated these serfs too well?!

If they truly made an issue of that, people would only think the Fox Family was being overly sensitive.

Looking across the younger generation of Nord Province, very few possessed such ability.

Nancy's three brothers were all playboys who knew nothing but indulging in pleasure and chasing women all day. Their individual strength might surpass Raven's, but they could not compare with him at all when it came to dealing with people.

The other earl's family, the Slate Family, was not much better. They had many descendants, but only Minsk could be considered accomplished—and he was already thirty-three.

As for Hyde, whom her father had arranged for her to meet this time—his looks were the only thing that did not lose to Raven's.

If he could truly defeat Raven, Hyde would not have fled in disgrace.

Nancy's tender toes pushed aside the soft carpet fibers. She muttered to herself in confusion and frustration, "This man, he really, really is..."

Thinking of Raven on the platform that day, Jenny recalled his handsome face and magnetic voice and blurted out, "He really is... incredibly charming?"

"Right, charm!" Nancy struck her right fist against her left palm and bit her lip. "That damnable charm!"

Raven was like an incubus wearing human skin. Wherever he went, he could make the people around him believe his nonsense.

They might not necessarily approve of or like him, but... at least they could not bring themselves to hate him.

He was always so confident!

The subjects of Eagle Town, the merchant guild in Shining Gold Town, and now the Fox Family's serfs had all confirmed this without exception.

The serfs in particular had originally looked like walking corpses, but after Raven's "rhetoric," it was as if their souls had returned to their bodies. There was even a glimmer of "hope" in their eyes.

The Fox Family had raised them all their lives, yet had never seen them like this.

"Don't just stand there. Help me think of something." The more Nancy thought about it, the angrier she became. She said indignantly, "Last time, you told me to sneak into the workshop, but that wall was a full five meters high—more than three times my height! There was no way to get in."

"Do I support you every day just so you can come up with these useless ideas?"

Jenny felt terribly wronged. The idea of climbing over the wall had clearly been Nancy's own.

Besides, she was only a maid. Maids were not responsible for coming up with schemes in the first place.

Miss Nancy definitely wouldn't listen to any excuses, but I could make her realize that herself.

At that thought, her eyes shifted. "You're a second-tier mage, and there's no one stronger than you anywhere in Eagle Town. Otherwise, why don't you go in and kill him yourself...?"

It was undoubtedly a stupid idea. Jenny had already decided to use this opportunity to make Miss Nancy give her a thorough scolding. That way, she definitely wouldn't ask Jenny for advice again!

But Nancy's eyes suddenly lit up. "That's right! There's also that option!"

"I'm the daughter of the Fox Family. I can pay him a visit in the family's name and move into Eagle Fortress. That way, no matter what secrets he has, he won't be able to hide them from me!"

Jenny was completely stunned.

Was that what I meant?

But since Nancy was happy, then that was what she meant. At any rate, moving straight in was much safer than climbing over the workshop's walls.

She also wouldn't have to act as Nancy's ladder every day while practicing how to climb walls...

"It's happily decided, then!" Nancy shook her head smugly. "Jenny, you do have some brains after all. Once this matter is settled, you'll be heavily rewarded!"

Jenny's expression grew a little strange. There was something she wanted to say, but she didn't dare.

Miss Nancy, you only wanted to seize Raven's weakness in the first place because you were worried about your reputation being damaged.

But if you move into Eagle Fortress...

"Since we're going, we need to make a grand spectacle. We absolutely can't disgrace the Fox Family! Jenny, go make the preparations. I want eight carriages... No, ten carriages!"

"I'm going to crush that bastard's arrogance!"

"I'll make him understand from the bottom of his heart! The dignity of a count's family isn't something a mere baron's family can offend!"

Seeing her young lady so excited, Jenny was even less willing to dampen her enthusiasm. She could only brace herself and reply,

"Yes, Miss Nancy!"