Ⅱ
Arthur could not help smiling when he heard the Count of South Los's promise.
It was not a mocking smile.
It was the sort that came from an unexpected windfall.
Without thinking, Arthur glanced at the XP notifications that had appeared that morning-
[The publicity from local newspapers in South Los Territory, West Berlin Fief, and Einhaas Fief has begun to create a chain reaction. More commoners, wealthy merchants, and nobles who had never heard your name now know of you, and quite a few have begun to acknowledge you; XP +2000] [As the Red Knights and the others departed, they spread word of your influence among the River Pirates. More River Pirates have begun to fear you; XP +2000] [With a small parish now in their possession, the Inner River Church's fervor toward you has reached its peak. They regard you as a miracle; XP +10000] [Your influence continues to spread within West Berlin Fief. The residents of West Berlin remain grateful to you; XP +5000] [Through the efforts of certain interested parties, your name is gradually becoming synonymous with calamity; XP +2000] [More people in South County have heard your name: XP +1000]
The XP income was still considerable.
But it was still some way short of the ultimate threshold of the seventeenth rank.
Moreover, in just one day, the West Berlin residents' gratitude toward him had changed from "growing by the day" to "remaining grateful."
The XP he received had plunged from 8,000 to 5,000.
Arthur could only marvel at how readily people forgot a kindness.
By contrast, the XP generated by fear and faith increasingly drew his attention. Given the behavior of those River Pirates and the Inner River Church, Arthur intended to explore those sources in greater depth.
Of course, that