At noon, peals of bells drifted over Far-Sail Port in the early spring.
The laborers, who had originally been moving at an unhurried pace, suddenly became rough and anxious. Before long, though, they got what they had been waiting for.
"Today is the great day of Lord Lurun Putka's investiture! His Lordship is giving every worker a lunch—white bread, roast meat, and ale!"
A large crowd appeared, pushing carts out.
The workers immediately burst into cheers.
Amid a clamor of footsteps, people of every sort surged toward the carts. They collected their portions one by one, every face beaming with delight.
A merchant-looking man strolled along the docks. At this time, quite a few merchants and captains were gathered around, discussing matters among themselves.
"Lord Fafier, Knight Nick, and now Lord Lurun as well. Viscount Teta Xiao is truly generous. He is willing to grant titles not only to Knights, but even to Lords. That is a huge stretch of territory," a young man said enviously.
"Not just that. I heard that Admiral Shakat is next in line to be granted a Lordship," another middle-aged merchant said.
"Why? Other nobles can scarcely bear to grant titles even to their own sons. Why has he bestowed several titles in one breath?" The young man did not seem to come from an ordinary family either.
"You do not understand. They are reluctant to grant titles because this is not an age of founding something new. They say Viscount Teta Xiao started from nothing and had few vassals. How could that do? A noble needs several utterly loyal vassal Lineages in order to endure for long," the middle-aged merchant said dismissively.
Hearing this, an old man nearby immediately cut in. "Exactly. Whenever a noble Lineage is being founded, it always invests several vassal