Crimson Gryphon

Hearing Fiana's childish voice, Reiner could not help but smile. Although the primary consciousness of this body was still Li Dian from China, his heart had nevertheless been influenced by Reiner himself to some extent.

Thus, he felt an inexplicable sense of belonging toward these relatives. That very day, Reiner's uncle, Sir Cord Moreland, obtained Reiner's consent and held a banquet in Reiner's name.

He invited his ten knights, six Squire Knights serving in the castle, as well as several squires and minor nobles.

The banquet fare was not lavish, and it was not much different from what Reiner remembered: some bird meat, cured meat, eggs, cabbage, boiled apples, and the like.

Paired with malt ale floating with sediment and giving off a strange smell, it was enough to make up a noble's dinner under the somewhat dim lights.

Mm, it was very salty—salty enough to choke on. Reiner looked helplessly at the food on the table. Resources were scarce in this era, but a banquet could not be like that. If there was too little salt, those bumpkin nobles would think they were being slighted.

Reiner had long been mentally prepared for all this. After all, he had encountered plenty of medieval literature and games, and knew that the Middle Ages had been an era of low productivity and scarce resources.

Since he was not demanding about food, he adapted perfectly well to everything.

"Let us raise our cups to celebrate my dear nephew's return from his travels and his awakening from unconsciousness. This is the Holy Father's blessing! May my nephew grow ever stronger and become a man capable of bearing a Baron's burdens!"

Reiner smiled, raised his cup, and stood from his chair. Everyone else present did the same.

Sir Cord watched his nephew with a smile. With ethics and morality engraved in his heart, he knew very well what his responsibilities and position were.

After draining his cup, Reiner smiled at the speaker. "Thank you for your blessing, my dearest uncle. Your words remind me of Father's earnest teachings. When I had just awakened, he spoke to me of your past as he always had. I believe Lumbard and I will be just like you two!"

As he spoke, he glanced at Lumbard beside him. Lumbard had been one of the knights who had accompanied Reiner's parents to the rooftop that day. Coupled with the memories from before, Reiner had a vivid impression of him.

That night, taking advantage of the banquet, the knights swore fealty to Reiner, the new Baron of the Moreland Family, transferring their loyalty from Reiner's father, whom he had never met, to him.

"Since you have sworn loyalty to me, I shall likewise protect your lawful rights. You shall possess the greatest authority over your fiefs until the day you cease to be my knights or die.

The banquet ended like that. Every family in the territory connected to the Moreland Family was astonished by the new Baron's return, as well as his learning, humility, and gentle manner.

Having played countless intrigue games, Reiner naturally knew how important bearing was to a ruler, so he deliberately cultivated these perfect traits.

Though Reiner was only a Baron now, so what? With the Lord System's help and knowledge a thousand years ahead of the times, he refused to believe he could not accomplish great things. If that were truly the case, he might as well die.

Over the next few days, Reiner sorted through the former owner's memories and gained a general understanding of the environment he was in.

The Moreland Family's territory lay on the northern frontier of the Redka Empire. Several dozen kilometers farther north lay the edge of the empire's lands. It was extremely cold there, and only the Krad Barbarians lived there, surviving by hunting prey in the Frigid Forest and plains.

The northern border, however, was different. A distance of less than a hundred kilometers was like the divide of an entire latitude, creating two utterly distinct environments.

Though the Moreland Family's lands were also quite cold, they still had four distinct seasons. The soil was not especially fertile, but it was still rare good farmland.

As a unified empire, the Redka Empire was quite powerful. Every year, it organized eastern campaigns to sweep through the region, preventing those vicious nomadic tribes from advancing west to plunder. Meanwhile, the empire's suppression kept the continent's dozen or so kingdoms and many duchies and counties from going to war. For twenty years, the continent had enjoyed a long period of peace.

The Moreland Family's territory was practically flat as far as the eye could see, and even the hills in neighboring lands were pitifully few. It had to be said that this was an excellent place for cavalry warfare.

The forest southwest of the territory, however, was rather an eyesore. In theory, the entire forest spanning more than ten kilometers belonged to the Moreland Family, but it was too dense to establish effective rule there.

Even Baron Corde had allowed the several thousand residents of the territory to cut timber and hunt there every year, yet he had still been unable to effectively turn the forest into cultivable farmland.

The northern snowfields, meanwhile, were blanketed by snow for five or six months every year. Their brief growing season made it impossible to grow crops, leaving the Krad Barbarians desperately poor and forcing them to invade the empire's northern frontier for food and supplies to survive the winter.

After the banquet, Reiner lay on the soft bed in his bedroom and excitedly opened the system shop, preparing to consider his future path.

He opened the shop interface. It had everything imaginable, leaving Reiner dazzled.

Milan Full Plate Armor Blueprints, including hydraulic plate armor stamping technology. Value: Merit Points

Hybrid High-Yield Rice Merit Points

...

Everything made Reiner's eyes turn red with desire. Each item was a game-changing weapon in this era, but seeing the exorbitant prices, Reiner knew they were beyond his reach.

There were three ways to obtain Merit Points. One was through exchanging gold coins: one gold coin could be exchanged for one Merit Point. The second was war: every person killed by troops under his command earned one Merit Point. In addition, every victorious battle received a certain rating, and an average rating could also earn Merit Points.

Unable to find a solution, Reiner was helpless. Though the system was powerful, it was not omnipotent.

The next morning, sunlight streamed through the castle windows and fell across Reiner's eyelids. He groggily opened his eyes. After lying there for a while, he rose from his bed, which was layered with several sheets of linen wrapped around wool. Just then, Sir Lanny, the castle's old steward, appeared in Reiner's room.

"Honorable Lord Reiner, five fully armed men outside the castle claim to be Crimson Gryphon Knights and wish to see you. They say they have come to offer you their lives and their loyalty!"

The moment Reiner heard this, he knew that the manifested Crimson Gryphon Knights had come to serve under him.

He immediately dressed and hurried out of the castle. Among the troop types available for exchange through the system, Crimson Gryphon Knights were among the very best. It took twenty Merit Points to exchange for a single one, and no Heavy Cavalry could compare to them in overall attributes.

After all, according to the troop description, the Crimson Gryphon Knights were stationed on the Bloody Plains to suppress the Uruk-hai and Orc Wolf Riders. They fused Gryphon Blood into their bodies, gaining more than twice the strength of ordinary human soldiers. With their own strength, they had suppressed the entire orc race for fifty years. Their combat power was self-evident.

The moment he stepped out of the castle, five crimson figures mounted on tall armored Warhorses appeared before Reiner.

They wore Plate-Chain Composite Armor painted red. Golden gryphon emblems decorated their arm guards, breastplates, and shields, while the five-meter-long couched lances in their right hands made them look exceptionally imposing.

"Honorable Lord Reiner, do you remember us? Your bearing left an unforgettable impression upon us. Thus, we have come all the way from the distant northern lands to offer you our loyalty!"

One knight removed his helmet, revealing long reddish-brown hair, and spoke in a sincere tone.

Reiner listened and nodded. Sure enough, this excuse was quite reasonable. It even took into account this body's past travels, so they would not appear out of nowhere and arouse suspicion.