Black Castle was a military fortress with thick walls and small, sparse windows, leaving the interior dim.
Along the long corridor, lighting braziers made of refined iron were placed at regular intervals, holding burning tallow candles.
The elderly butler, whose attire and gait were equally meticulous, walked in front, followed by Victor.
Their shadows swayed and danced under the illumination of the candlelight, adding a touch of eeriness to the dim corridor.
"Thump, thump, thump." The rhythmic footsteps grew closer from afar.
Victor's pupils quietly dilated to gather more light, seeing a squad of robustly built guards walking toward him from the gloom.
They averaged over 180 centimeters in height, clad entirely in heavy chainmail, holding a fine steel halberd in one hand, with a short sword hanging at their waist and an iron oak round shield wrapped in metal on their backs.
These fully armed soldiers walked in neat ranks, passing by the elderly butler without looking aside; they should be a squad of castle guards who had just changed shifts.
Victor visually estimated that the armor worn by the castle guards weighed about 30 kilograms.
Combined with the metal halberd held in one hand, a round shield, and some other equipment such as a helmet, the total load was estimated to be over 50 kilograms.
However, seeing the relaxed and at ease appearance of these soldiers, he knew this bit of weight meant nothing to them.
Humans in the different world were generally strong and powerful; Victor had once seen a farmer carry a 200-kilogram long stone to build the outer wall of the town behind Black Castle.
Even Victor himself possessed more strength than Zhang Shuang before his transmigration.
You must know, the Little Baron could only be considered a frail noble in this world.
If ordinary people were already like this, just how powerful would knights standing at the peak of human strength be?
Victor possessed agility far exceeding ordinary people, but lacked strength.
Fortunately, the x-3 chip recorded many training methods to increase strength and stamina, especially those from Huaguo martial artists, which supposedly had incredible effects.
All of these filled Victor with great anticipation.
"Lord Victor, we have arrived."
The elderly butler stopped, turned around, bowed slightly to Victor, and said politely, "Please allow me to report to the Governor first."
"Please go ahead."
Victor smiled and nodded to the elderly butler.
"Governor, Baron Wimbledon requests an audience."
The elderly butler knocked on the oak door in front of him and spoke in a raised voice.
The heavy oak door was opened from the inside.
A young man dressed as a clerk stood inside, glanced at Victor, and nodded with a smile, "The Governor invites the Baron in."
Victor followed the clerk into the room, and the light in front of him instantly brightened.
The spacious room was luxuriously decorated; the floor was made of smooth ironwood, several famous paintings hung on the walls, and two crystal chandeliers were suspended from the ceiling.
The dozen or so Water Lizard oil candles in the chandeliers illuminated the entire room as brightly as day.
Entering the anteroom, Victor saw Count York sitting at the desk eating pastries.
Count York gave Victor the feeling of being "round"—a round face, round eyes, round hands, a round waist, and a round bottom…
If there was any further impression, it was "white"…
The white and round Count York, dressed in gorgeous count's attire, was squeezed into an widened golden silk armchair, carrying an inexplicable sense of comedic relief.
The Count, who had a strong sense of comedic relief, spoke words that carried no comedic relief at all.
Count York took the silk handkerchief handed over by a pretty maid nearby, wiped the remaining berries from the corner of his mouth, and said without raising his eyes, "Baron Wimbledon, as the Governor of the Centaur Hills, I demand that you assume office in your territory immediately!"
"This…"
Victor put on a bitter face and said to the Count, "Governor, I injured my head during the last bandit attack, and it still hurts to this day.
I can't remember many things either; I'm afraid I still need to recuperate in Black Castle for a period of time before I can fulfill my duties."
Count York wore an expression that showed he had long known Victor would say this, gulped down a mouthful of honey-sweetened milk, and shouted sternly at Victor:
"Baron! It has been more than a month overdue since you submitted your inauguration documents.
Failing to head to your territory until now is dereliction of duty, a severe dereliction of duty!
I don't care what reasons you have; go to your territory and assume office immediately, and you must plant crops in your territory before this Water Season ends.
Otherwise, I will impeach you to the Kingdom Senate!"
"Max, send people to escort the Baron to his territory early tomorrow morning.
That is all!"
Count York patted the table and instructed the clerk at the side impatiently.
"My lord, you cannot do this.
There are still ferocious bandits roaming in my territory, and my family guards haven't arrived yet.
If I go to the territory, they will definitely kill me in retaliation."
Victor put on a look of anxiety and panic, but it failed to arouse anyone's sympathy.
Count York said gloatingly, "Lord Baron, as a fief noble, protecting the territory against evil is our sacred duty.
How can you shrink back out of fear of danger?
You should recruit an army to wipe out those detestable bandits.
Hurry up and go; don't delay the sowing of the Water Season.
I will wait in Black Castle for you to send back news of victory."
"What the lord says is right, but the gold sol I carried has been looted by bandits, and now I am penniless.
How can I hire a mercenary group and recruit territory residents?
Please, Count, lend me some gold sol first so that I can recruit mercenaries, wipe out the bandits, and then arrange for farmers to sow.
I will surely not let Iris Castle reprimand the Governor for dereliction of duty," Victor said.
"Dream on! I won't lend you a single copper sol!"
Upon hearing that Victor wanted to borrow money, Count York flew into a rage, slapping the table with his small round hands until it made a thumping sound.
"Since the Count is unwilling to assist me, I can only wait for our Wimbledon Family guards to arrive before going to exterminate the bandits.
If the lord wishes to impeach me, please feel free to do so.
By then, I will naturally state my case to the Council of Elders."
Victor spread his hands and said helplessly.
At this moment, an attendant walked up to York, bowed, and said, "Master, the Madam has arrived!"
Count York struggled to stand up from the chair, failing several times despite his efforts.
He shouted angrily, "Help me up quickly, you useless swine!"
Several attendants hurriedly stepped forward and pulled Count York out of the chair in a flurry.
Seeing his entire body of fat rolling, Victor was somewhat worried that the clothes on his body would be burst open.
"Oh, my dear, you are still so frugal.
I told you long ago to replace this chair.
Why do you still keep it."
A soft and charming voice came from the doorway.
Two women walked through the door.
The leading lady wore a red spider-silk belted long dress, with her golden hair coiled into a noblewoman's bun.
She had a tall and slender figure, azure eyes, fair and flawless skin, and an alluring curve.
Her flowing glances revealed infinite charm; she should be the Count York's wife.
The other woman wore an exquisite women's leather armor with a graceful figure.
Her slender legs, wrapped in tight breeches, appeared robust and powerful.
She had a sheathed long sword hanging at her waist, a high nose bridge, sharp eyes, and a bright face radiating a vibrant heroic spirit.
She lagged half a step behind the Countess; she should be a female guard of the York Family.
"Sylvia, why are you here."
A smile with obvious ingratiating meaning piled up on Count York's fat face.
Sylvia ignored York's ingratiation.
Seeing the handsome Victor, her eyes lit up, and she smiled softly, "You have a guest here.
Who is this handsome young man?"
"Respected Madam, even the asters of the Fire Moon pale in comparison to your beauty.
I am Victor of the Wimbledon Family; it is my honor to meet you."
Victor stepped forward and performed an aristocratic bow to the Countess.
"So you are Baron Wimbledon; I didn't expect you to be so young."
Sylvia looked at Victor with a smile and asked with concern, "I heard that you encountered a bandit attack and got injured.
How are you now?"
"Well, my dear, I am just discussing the matter of assuming office in the Wimbledon territory with Baron Wimbledon."
Count York coughed, interrupting his wife's enthusiastic greetings toward Victor.
"Oh, what is going on here?"
The Countess turned her pretty face and asked the clerk beside Count York.
The clerk did not dare to delay and reported the contents of the conversation between Count York and Victor in detail.
"Envise, Sophia is a close friend of mine for many years.
Is there any way you can help poor Victor?"
The Countess began to make a request to her husband.
"My dear, it's not that I am being unsympathetic.
As the Governor here, I cannot openly challenge the Lord's Laws either.
Furthermore, the Administration Office requires all lords of the Centaur Hills to complete the sowing work before the end of this Water Season… I truly have no way around it."
Count York smiled bitterly and shook his head.
"Then send knights to clear out the bandits in the Wimbledon territory."
Sylvia said coldly, seeming very dissatisfied with her husband's evasion.
"Those bandits are all in hiding.
I've sent people to encircle and suppress them several times, but failed to catch their traces.
Right now, the Gnolls and goblins of various territories are frequently harassing the farmers, and it is said that someone has discovered the traces of an Ogre…
Our knights are simply too busy to cope; how could they have time to catch a few scurrying bandits?"
Count York took out a silk handkerchief to wipe the cold sweat off his head and explained helplessly.
"My lord, there is still another way."
The attendant clerk suggested to the Count from the side, "Lord Wimbledon's main perplexity is that bandits are roaming his territory, and the Baron's guards have not finished recruiting yet.
Going to assume office now indeed carries a great risk.
Therefore, I suggest exchanging a territory for the lord."
"According to kingdom law, the ownership of a pioneer territory can be freely exchanged once.
If the Baron exchanges his territory with another barony, he won't have to face bandits without guards.
Moreover, the exchange documents need to be sent to the Senate for record-keeping; this period of time naturally cannot be counted as overdue for the Baron, and Lord Wimbledon can also use this time to recruit guards and territory residents.
The Governor will not be held accountable by the Lord Chancellor either."
"Good idea! Then who would exchange territory with the Baron?"
Count York patted the table and turned to ask.
"My lord, your younger brother, Viscount Fred York, has pioneered a viscounty in the southwest of the hills.
He has already built a castle and just obtained the hereditary document approved by the Senate.
You can ask him if he is willing?"
The clerk offered his advice.
"Victor, what do you think of this proposal?"
Count York patted his belly with satisfaction, looking at Victor with eyes like a greedy fat badger staring at a poor quail.
"However, the gold sol I brought was looted by bandits, and now I have no funds to recruit guards and territory residents."
Victor frowned and said, feeling inferior to the York Family's brilliant performance.
"I'll lend it to you, twenty thousand, no, ten thousand gold sol.
Just sign this."
Count York said through gritted teeth.
He took out a document from the drawer and motioned for the clerk to hand it to Victor.
"This amount of money is still somewhat not enough… I have a ring from House Wimbledon here, um, an heirloom given to me by my father.
I am willing to transfer it to the Count at a low price of seventy thousand gold sol."
Victor took off a yellow glaze crystal ring from his index finger and placed it on the exchange document.
"Quick, bring it here for me to see!"
Count York shouted impatiently to the attendant holding the document and the ring.
When he saw Sylvia staring at him coldly, he sheepishly handed the newly acquired ring to his wife.
"Isn't this ring the style that has only become popular in the royal capital in recent months?
It is said to be a new style designed by the jewelry design master Benjamin imitating ancient styles.
I happen to have a few identical rings set with blue diamonds here, each valued at three thousand gold sol."
Holding the ring in her jade-white delicate hand, Sylvia looked at Victor with a smile.
"The Countess has brilliant insight.
Master Benjamin indeed drew inspiration from my ancestral ring to design the new ancient-style imitation ring."
Victor smiled slightly.
The beauty and elegance of the Moon Elf Bloodline made his smile full of charming allure.
The female guard was slightly stunned, two red clouds flew across her cheeks, and she lowered her head quietly.
Seeing Victor talking nonsense with a straight face, a trace of appreciation flickered in Sylvia's bright eyes.
"Fifty thousand gold sol, Baron Wimbledon.
Tonight, I will host a dinner for you at Rose Manor to celebrate your recovery.
I will send someone to pick you up; please do me the honor of attending."
Sylvia glanced sideways at Victor with her watery eyes and extended an invitation to him.
"As you wish, beautiful Madam."
Victor bowed gracefully to Sylvia in greeting.