Heading to the Fief

The next day.

Aaron strolled through the castle corridors.

The previous night's events had shaken him a little.

The appearance of that Black Sun, especially its ability to broadcast its delirious whispers to the entire world, made him even more wary.

Although the whispers had faded on their own after less than a few minutes, they would clearly bring even more changes to that world.

He needed to think it over carefully.

"Lord Aaron!"

A voice came from behind him. It was Ferry Gato, the court viscount.

"My lord."

Aaron stopped and smiled.

"Lord Aaron truly is a young man of great promise... You took the castle single-handedly, with only a few dozen men. Such a magnificent feat puts you on par with the heroes of legend."

Ferry's face was wreathed in smiles. "If I had known beforehand, I would have put in a good word for you before the king and secured you a title. I'm sure a barony, or even a viscounty, would have been within reach."

"The size of a title doesn't matter. What counts is the land and power behind it."

Aaron shrugged. "If there's nothing else, I'll be going."

He couldn't be bothered to take part in his own family's infighting, much less become the king's weapon.

Watching Aaron walk away, Ferry wore an amused expression and muttered to himself, "You won't even speak with me. Lord Aaron Sothoth really is a clever man. A pity you think that way, while your elder brother is quite the fool..."

As the king's envoy, he naturally had a few secret assignments of his own.

If a few words could sow discord within the Sothoth Family—even split it apart—that would be ideal.

A united Green Forest was not in the interests of the Kagash Kingdom!

Once the wedding was over, they took advantage of the guests' presence to hold Aaron's investiture ceremony.

It was held beneath the great banyan tree, where Theodore presented Aaron with soil and a sapling to represent his lands, then tapped his shoulder with the side of a sword.

"I swear to repay my lord's trust with loyalty!"

"I swear to defend my lands with my sword!"

"I swear to uphold my honor, today and every day!"

Dressed in a brand-new knight's uniform, Aaron swore his oaths solemnly. When he rose, he was a true knight.

As expected, the fief granted to him was Blackstone Manor, the land previously held by Wild Bear Saliba. It included a manor, a village, and a large stretch of nearby forest.

Once everything was settled, Aaron led his men straight to Upper Green Forest.

It was worth mentioning that the maid Tia wanted to stay at the castle. Aaron granted her wish and gave her a sum of money.

Blackstone Manor.

The manor was large, with its own mill, brewery, granary... It was clear Saliba had carefully arranged everything here.

Now, it all belonged to Aaron.

"My lord, we surveyed the nearby village. It has about five hundred people, and there are roughly a thousand rams of cultivated land in the fief."

Behind him, Eight-Fingers spoke with the utmost deference.

A ram was a unit of land area in the Green Forest, roughly equivalent to five mu.

"The amount of farmland is still too small. And with a lord to support, the people are bound to be poor..."

Aaron thought to himself, then said casually, "We should undo the effects of the war as soon as possible. Reclaim the abandoned fields and replant whatever we can... I don't want anyone starving to death in my fief this winter. We can lend some food from my private stores to any farmers who are going hungry. They can pay it back after next year's harvest."

"You are truly kind!" Eight-Fingers said with a sigh.

After all, in this era, people starving to death in winter was the norm!

"It is my first year as a lord, after all." Aaron shook his head. "And what did Sanchez and the others say? If they're willing to come, I'll accept them as freeholders and grant each of them one ram of land. Squad leaders will get double."

His previous squad had worked together fairly well. They would be useful manpower, and Aaron didn't want to let the opportunity pass.

"I've spoken to them one by one. Baker refused, but Green and Sanchez seemed willing to come. There are also a dozen or so other households..."

Eight-Fingers bowed as he spoke.

As it happened, he was the first freeholder in the fief.

"Good. With those people, my manor should be able to run smoothly... The last thing I need is a clerk, or perhaps a scholar!"

Aaron nodded. He had already made arrangements for that.

The castle's scholar should be able to recommend someone. As long as they could read and knew basic arithmetic and writing, that would be enough. He couldn't afford to be too demanding.

Once these odds and ends were taken care of, he could finally devote all his attention to exploring the dream world.

A knight naturally couldn't live in a castle while staying at his manor.

A building that combined living quarters, defenses, and a fortress was beyond a knight's means to build.

Saliba had only managed to get the people of his fief to put up a wooden villa for him.

Now, of course, it belonged to Aaron.

When he arrived at the villa, he wasn't short on maids. The local farmers were eager to send their girls to the lord's household. Even if they got nothing out of it, at least one less mouth would need feeding.

"Oh, right. There's one more little problem."

Outside the villa, a woman of about thirty waited nervously, two children in her arms.

She was Knight Saliba's wife and children. Now, she was a widow.

"Lady Rita..."

Aaron stepped forward and asked calmly, "You haven't left yet?"

"I... have nowhere else to go."

Lady Rita gave a bitter smile. She probably hadn't been Saliba's first wife, but she was still young and beautiful. "I was thinking... Perhaps you need a housekeeper, honorable knight?"

Aaron thought back. The lady was probably the daughter of another knight.

She couldn't go back now... Most likely, her father or brothers had also fought against the Sothoth Family and died on the battlefield, and their lands had been stripped from them as well.

But a helpless woman pleading desperately—and making a special effort to dress up—made her meaning quite clear.

Aaron shook his head. "I've already chosen someone to be my housekeeper. If you have nowhere to go, Lady Rita, you can become a freeholder in my fief. I'll grant you ten rams of land. You can hire farmers to work it, which should be enough to raise your children to adulthood..."

Rita tried to say something more. This was clearly not what she wanted, but Aaron waved her away, unwilling to get entangled with her.

He had killed her husband, and his family had destroyed hers. Even if she meant him no harm, he absolutely couldn't trust her!

Before, perhaps he might have kept her around and toyed with her, watching her look of despair when her scheme was exposed.

But now?

He would devote himself wholeheartedly to pursuing the supernatural and immortality!