Chapter 401 - 134: Advancement! Lynch is Tier Three

Chapter 401: Chapter 134: Advancement! Lynch is Tier Three

"I was also made a Baron," Amadis said calmly, as if discussing some trivial matter. "My fief is a bit better than the battle group leader’s. My family pulled some strings."

Lynch nodded. Just as he was about to speak, Amadis put down her teacup and fixed him with an intense gaze. "Lynch, what do you suppose the Noble Committee is here for this time?"

"To ennoble me?" Lynch raised an eyebrow.

"More than that." A hint of a smile flashed in Amadis’s eyes. "You’ve been made a Baron. And... Lakefront Town, along with the entire fifty-li area surrounding Mirror Lake, has all been granted to you as your hereditary fief."

"What?!" Lynch was stunned. "Since when are things this good?"

Leonard, standing by, was so envious his eyes turned red. "Brother Lynch, this... this treatment is too good, isn’t it? My land is so poor even the rabbits won’t shit there, and you get a prime fief right off the bat! Though, I guess you’re the one who built it up."

"This is the result of our mentor and the dean pulling strings behind the scenes," Amadis explained. "Otherwise, why do you think our battle group leader was only assigned barren land, while you got a plum prize like Lakefront Town?"

She lowered her voice. "The dean personally wrote to Your Majesty, emphasizing how you tied down a large number of enemy forces at Red Ridge Mountain, eliminated Blood-Hand Johnny, and assisted in retaking Grey Stone Pass. Your contributions were outstanding. Add our mentor to the mix... and that’s why Your Majesty designated Lakefront Town as your fief."

Realization dawned on Lynch, and a warm feeling spread through his chest.

Although he had always managed Lakefront Town as his own territory, it was nominally still a defense zone of the North Wind Legion.

Now that the enfeoffment was official, it was all legitimate. In the future, not even Legion Commander Jais could mobilize his forces at will.

"So that’s how it is..." Lynch stood, straightening his robes as a sharp glint flashed in his eyes. "In that case, it seems I’ll have to give these emissaries from the Noble Committee a ’proper’ reception."

Hearing this, the Frost Master and Chief Magic Consultant, Edmund Frost, who had been silent the entire time, felt his heart skip a beat. He said irritably, "Hold on. You brat, you’d better rein it in this time. As annoying as they are, they ultimately represent the dignity of the Crown."

"Chief," Lynch said with a grin. "I was wondering why you came along. So, you’re here to keep an eye on me, afraid I’ll cause trouble? Don’t worry. They’re here to deliver my edict of enfeoffment, not to look for a fight. I’ll at least show them some respect."

With that, he left the side hall and went to the main reception hall to meet the people from the Noble Committee.

In the reception hall, the group of nobles from the Imperial Capital were sitting stiffly in the seats of honor, each one exuding arrogance.

The leader was a middle-aged man of about fifty. His face was powdered stark white, his lips were painted with bright rouge, and he wore a purple velvet robe embroidered with gold thread. With seven or eight Gemstone rings on his fingers, he looked just like a peacock in full display.

The others had a similar air about them, sipping tea with their pinkies extended, looking at Lynch as if they were sizing up some country bumpkin.

Although Lynch inwardly looked down on their behavior, with Aus mediating and coordinating, he managed to restrain his temper. He at least kept up appearances, exchanging a few polite pleasantries.

However, the leader, a noble named Fernando who called himself a Viscount, picked up the shimmering golden edict but then proceeded to beat around the bush with Lynch, delaying the official reading.

He narrowed his eyes, casting a sickeningly greasy gaze at Lynch while tapping his fingers on the scroll. TAP. TAP.

Lynch frowned slightly, unsure of the man’s intentions. Just then, Leonard, who had come along to witness the ceremony, quietly pulled him back and whispered in his ear, "Brother Lynch, first, you have to kneel to him. Second... you need to prepare a ’thank-you gift’."

"Oh?" Lynch asked in a low, expressionless voice, turning his head slightly. "I presume you already knelt? And how much of a ’thank-you gift’ did you prepare?"

A pained look spread across Leonard’s honest face. He lowered his voice and said, "Twenty thousand Gold Coins... Miss Hayes had to lend them to me. That’s ten years of tax revenue from my barren fief..."

Lynch didn’t say anything. He turned to Amadis and asked in a low voice, "Amadis, did you kneel? How much did you give?"

Amadis, holding her teacup, spoke in a low voice without even looking up. "I knelt on one knee facing the direction of the Imperial Capital. A gift? I didn’t give one... After all, my grandfather is the Duke of Sea Tide. They wouldn’t dare take my money."

"Heh."

Lynch laughed, a smirk playing on his lips.

’So, these guys treat people differently depending on who they are?’

’Extort a fortune from Leonard, who has no backing, but act all respectful to a duke’s granddaughter?’

However, Lynch had no intention of causing a scene on the spot.

He straightened his robes and, under everyone’s gaze, knelt on one knee facing the direction of the Imperial Capital. He then performed a noble Knight’s salute to the empty air and recited loudly with a pious expression, "I, Lynch Blackwood, thank Your Majesty! Long live Your Majesty! Long live the Empire! I vow to defend the border to the death, to share Your Majesty’s burdens, and to serve the Empire with utmost loyalty!"

His speech was impassioned and flawless.

After finishing his recitation, Lynch remained kneeling on one knee, holding his hands out flat before him as if ready to receive the edict of enfeoffment.

At the same time, a stack of notes equivalent to about twenty thousand Gold Coins appeared in his outstretched hands.

’It pained me to part with the money, but to secure legitimate control of Lakefront Town, it was a worthy expense.’

However, Viscount Fernando did not immediately reach for the stack of notes.

He squinted his eyes, which were nearly lost in his powdered face, and scanned Lynch up and down. Seeing that Lynch was kneeling toward the Imperial Capital and not toward him, his heavily painted face sank with displeasure.

"Lynch Blackwood, is it?" Viscount Fernando snorted, speaking in a theatrical, drawn-out tone. "I, your humble Viscount, have endured a long and tiring journey for the sake of this edict. You ought to reward me properly. I hear you have a mermaid here? Tsk tsk, what a rarity. I have yet to see one with my own eyes..."

He paused, then cast that greasy gaze at Lynch again, speaking down to him as if bestowing a great favor. "Have her come to my room tonight. Let us distinguished guests from the Imperial Capital... have a good look."

The moment the words were spoken, the air in the reception hall instantly froze.

Aus’s heart dropped. ’This is bad,’ he thought.

The Legion’s Chief Magic Consultant, Edmund Frost, also scowled, his fingers tightening slightly around his Magic Staff.

Lynch’s expression grew even colder.

He withdrew the stack of notes, then slowly stood up. He stared directly at Viscount Fernando’s powdered face, his voice terrifyingly calm. "Why don’t you... say that again?"

Viscount Fernando’s expression froze. He instinctively took half a step back, his brows knitting together as if he couldn’t comprehend Lynch’s reaction.

The other nobles’ faces also changed drastically. They stared at Lynch with utter disdain, as if looking at some uncivilized savage who didn’t understand the rules.

"You... What do you think you’re doing?!" Fernando shrieked, trying to sound fierce despite his fear. "I am a special envoy of the Crown! To disrespect me is to defy the entire Empire!"

"Hmph!"

Lynch snorted coldly. The oppressive aura emanating from him intensified, becoming so heavy that the nobles could barely breathe.

Seeing that things were going badly, Fernando abruptly stood up and flicked his sleeves. "Hmph! I am not feeling well today. We will speak of the enfeoffment another day!"

With that, he turned to storm out.

The others hurried to follow, each holding their head high and puffing out their chest, trying to salvage some shred of dignity as if they were the ones who had been gravely wronged.

"Ah, My Lords, My Lords, please wait!" Seeing this, Aus quickly chased after them, his face plastered with a smile as he tried to smooth things over. "Let’s talk this through, we can talk this through... Our Lord Lynch is young and impetuous, please don’t hold it against him..."

But the group of nobles completely ignored Aus, instead quickening their pace. They were just about to walk out the door of the reception hall.

"Stop."

Suddenly, Lynch’s voice rang out, quiet and ice-cold. It wasn’t loud, but it was like a chill from the deepest abyss, causing the temperature in the entire reception hall to plummet.

"Who said you could leave?"

The nobles’ steps froze in place. They all went rigid, their faces stiff.

Edmund Frost, in particular, winced and slapped a hand to his forehead, sighing inwardly in lament.

’He knew it would come to this.’

’That damn kid... he and that rotten temper of his are just as bad as ever!’

...