Yiman

Blackstone Manor.

"Olivia can't get out of the carriage. As someone blessed by the gods, her carriage doors have been welded shut..."

With a faint smile, Aaron woke up.

He had watched Olivia go from wavering to standing firm again. She even planned to help Lin build up the 'Light of Redemption.'

And after returning to 'headquarters,' she had held a ceremony of thanks for him, offering up a little of the 'Chrysalis's' spirituality and Secret Lore.

"'Chrysalis' represents life and change... but it also has the trait of remaining unchanged."

Aaron gazed at his skin. With the slightest shift in his thoughts, every hair on his body became incredibly sensitive. He could even sense the faint movement of gases in the air and use it to judge the movements of objects within a certain range.

"Besides, by using the traits of 'Chrysalis,' I should be able to harden my skin within a certain range... and gain some defensive power."

"Of course, it still can't withstand a close-range musket shot at a low stage... But Olivia took so many hits at close range and didn't die, only suffering serious injuries. That alone proves the point. Her defense is still pretty good!"

He looked at his palm and noticed thin, translucent threads stretched between his fingers. Were they... silk?

"I'm... Spider-Man!"

Aaron let out a low growl and flicked his hand. A strand shot out, stuck to the clothes on the rack, and he yanked hard.

Snap!

The strand broke...

Broke...

Broke...

"After all, by the standards of the dream world, I'm still just an ordinary person who's only beginning to awaken my spirituality. I still have a long way to go before I can cut monsters apart with threads like Olivia..."

A wry smile appeared on Aaron's lips. "And... the spirituality of 'Chrysalis' is constantly fading. I even suspect that, even if I advanced through a ritual in the real world and fixed my path, I'd still be knocked back down..."

"This world is suffocating..."

Not long after he sighed, he regained his composure. He summoned the maid Daili to help him dress, then asked about the day's schedule over breakfast.

Generally speaking, nobles of this era had very leisurely lives. Spending their days with nothing to do, indulging in hunting and banquets, was the norm.

Occasionally, they might tour their territory as its lord or play the role of a high judge, settling disputes among their people for entertainment.

Compared with other lords, Aaron was probably one of the more diligent ones.

At that moment, the fat scholar Albert, wearing a gray scholar's robe, said, "Baron, you have a visitor today. He's Knight Yiman of the Emerald Territory..."

He was Aaron's neighbor. He had originally served the Davis Family, but surrendered early during the 'Black Crow War,' allowing him to keep his fief.

Of course, he had kept his fief, but he hadn't received a share of Theodore's recent spree of noble titles.

"Has the season for visiting friends finally arrived?"

Aaron murmured.

"Actually, it should have started long ago, but various aftereffects of the war—especially the unrest in Upper Green Forest—kept delaying it until now..." Albert replied softly.

"A bunch of scum. They lost the war, so what more do they want?"

Aaron sneered. The opposition included surviving branches of the Davis Family and nobles who had lost their lands.

Unwilling to accept their defeat, they had fled into the deep mountains and forests, effectively becoming bandits.

Of course, that was a matter of law and order.

The Sothoth Family had left everything except a few directly controlled territories to the lords of each district.

"What's Knight Yiman's reputation like?"

Aaron thought for a moment, then asked.

These surrenderers and rebels had once been on good terms, with close blood ties. Some might even be from the same family.

It was hard to rule out the possibility that they would shelter one another.

And it went without saying what they thought of Aaron: a scion of the Sothoth Family, the culprit behind their defeat, and the occupier who had seized their lands.

"Knight Yiman is a benevolent lord with formidable strength, and he's also good at teaching students. His disciple Mika did quite well in the last martial arts tournament," Scholar Albert said. "And... he's been actively showing our side goodwill."

"So you think he's a steadfast ally?"

Aaron's expression was playful.

"Yes. Anyone with insight can see that Green Forest now belongs to the Sothoth Family. Anyone capable of making a sensible choice based on their interests wouldn't go against the tide... Put another way, those who do will be crushed without mercy."

Albert replied.

"Then I'm looking forward to meeting him today."

Aaron closed his eyes. He could sense Albert's steady breathing and heartbeat. It seemed Albert truly believed what he was saying.

'Is this another ability of the Chrysalis? I take back what I said earlier. Olivia was even more foolish than Lin. With an ability like this, how could she still be tricked by a group of ordinary people? Did she trust others too much? Or had her spirituality already dwindled so much after the ritual that she couldn't sense these things?'

At that moment, not far from Blackstone Manor, a convoy was making its way along at a leisurely pace. A mounted scout at the front carried a flag bearing a double-headed axe. Its original azure background had been changed to dark green, signaling some kind of change.

In one of the carriages, a beautiful young woman suddenly pulled back the curtain. "How much longer until we arrive?"

"Please be patient for a little while, esteemed Miss Monica. We'll certainly arrive before the sun reaches its zenith," a knight riding up beside the carriage replied softly.

He watched the curtain fall, hiding her pretty face. His expression did not change, but he secretly tightened his grip on the reins.

"Blackstone Territory is just ahead. Stop and rest, and send someone to announce our arrival. It's only polite!"

Knight Yiman was a middle-aged man in his forties. Half of his close-cropped hair had turned gray, but he was still in good spirits. He waved his hand and ordered the convoy to stop.

The group stopped to rest. Some fed their horses while others drank water.

The young knight from earlier went to the river to fetch water. He glanced around, then turned and entered a thicket.

In the shadows, another man was waiting for him. He was dressed like a farmer, but his skin was smooth and delicate.

"See through everything!" the knight said first.

"See through everything! Mika... It's good to see you. We've always kept an eye on your loyalty to the Davis Family."

The man spoke with a laugh, though his tone still carried a noble's arrogance.

"How's the plan going?"

"Not well. Knight Yiman sympathizes with what happened to the Davis Family, but he doesn't seem interested in starting another war... He's already decided to fully side with the Sothoth Family. He's also going to Blackstone Territory this time to arrange a marriage alliance for Miss Monica..."

A trace of pain surfaced in Mika's eyes.

"That damned old dog." The man cursed. "And that damned Aaron Sothoth, too!"

He thought of how he had tried to incite the people of Blackstone Territory to revolt and overthrow the rule of the 'outsiders,' only to suffer a shameful failure.

Last winter had been the perfect opportunity, but Aaron had simply loaned out grain, and those ignorant commoners had followed him. They had practically thrown their loyalty into the mud!

Then this year, with a good harvest and lower taxes, those commoners were even less willing to change anything. They really were a bunch of dirtborn wretches, born to rot in the mud for all eternity!