“What? Brother Ivan, you’ve become Baron Marichadon and now own an estate.”
“What? The sorcerer who caught the Silver Blade Ship Slayer with his bare hands is you, and you’ve also become the hero of Flying Fish Port.”
After returning home, Ivan shared the news with his younger siblings, Peggy and Sean’s reactions were different but both were shocked, their mouths gaping wide open.
Ivan glared at his brother, “Sean, don’t keep bringing up that ‘ship slayer’ thing.”
“As you command, my lord Baron.”
Sean mocked a salute with exaggeration.
Faced with this sudden news, both felt like they had been hit by a pie from the sky, dizzily circling the baron’s metal scroll again and again, neither daring to touch it, for fear that it might suffer the slightest damage.
Peggy snapped out of it, “I need to send a message to Dad, Paul, and Beaman to tell them this wonderful news.”
Ivan stopped her, “I have just been to the Mercenary Group’s headquarters and I have already asked Uncle Mickey to spread the word for us.”
Peggy looked at the baron’s metal scroll again and asked, “Perhaps we could send a message to Grandfather, to tell him our family has also become barons?”
“Let father handle Grandfather’s affairs.”
“Then what do I need to do?”
“Get ready for dinner.”
“As you command, I will definitely prepare a sumptuous noble’s dinner for the lord Baron.”
Seeing Peggy’s excitement, Ivan realized that to his family members, this title meant even more than he had imagined. As for Earl Hobson, Ivan bore no resentment for having been sent to the island but instead owed him a significant debt of gratitude.
Otherwise, he might have caused a great rift between himself and his family.
The next morning, Aunt Kasey heard a knock at the door and approached to find a man standing outside, who looked like a housekeeper from a noble’s household.
“Whom are you looking for?”
“Miss, I am looking for Baron Marichadon. May I ask if he is home?”
Could Ivan really have become a noble? Aunt Kasey, who had heard the siblings mention it yesterday and had watched Ivan grow up since he was small, found it somewhat unbelievable and was in a state of half belief, half doubt.
“He is, he’s here, I’ll go call him out now.”
“Wait, miss, would you first announce my visit, and say that it is the housekeeper from Baron Karl’s household who has come to pay his respects, and lead me in only after gaining the lord Baron’s permission, if you would,” David hurriedly called to the lady, not with any ridicule but rather in a half-requesting manner of correction.
Aunt Kasey quickly agreed, “Alright, please wait here.”
Ivan hadn’t expected visitors so soon. The first to arrive was the housekeeper from Baron Karl’s household, who brought a box as a gift.
“Lord Baron, Baron Karl sends his greetings and always welcomes you to visit his estate.”
“I shall certainly visit when time permits.”
In a short while, Ivan saw the old housekeeper out with a friendly demeanor.
Baron Karl really went all out this time, sending a gift of 150 Gold Coins, exactly ten times the original testing fee and equivalent to a portion of a small estate’s annual income. Given the reparatory gesture, Ivan certainly couldn’t afford to receive him with a cold face.
In the time that followed, a succession of visitors came to pay their respects and bring congratulatory gifts, though naturally none as substantial as those from Baron Karl.
“Mr. Ivan, long time no see. I never expected you to become a brave hero, the distinguished Baron Marichadon.”
“Mrs. Harayer, welcome to my home.”
Even Ivan’s language teacher, Mrs. Harayer, came in person, her smile more radiant than before, her voice as gentle and melodious as ever, her praise flowing one after another, befitting a person of great learning.
Mrs. Harayer brought a valuable ancient book as a congratulatory gift.
At parting, the lady held his hand tightly, showing extra warmth and reluctance to leave.
“Baron, if you wish to continue learning Fernundo language or any other, simply send word, and I will come to teach you when you have the time.”
“Thank you for your trouble.”
As soon as the carriage left, the smile on Ivan’s face immediately faded.
This lady gave him the impression that as long as a hint and some gold coins were given, Mrs. Harayer wouldn’t mind becoming his mistress.
Or perhaps it was just an attitude and a tactic, hoping he wouldn’t mind the previous request for a qualification test.
Mrs. Harayer had warned him to leave soon, sadly a bit too late, yet she meant well, and he decided not to hold it against her any longer.
Peggy couldn’t help but remind him, “Brother Ivan, I feel that this lady is not good.”
“You are right.”
“Brother Ivan, is it exhausting to deal with these people?”
Ivan said, “Most people affiliated with nobility are very shrewd, and dealing with shrewd people is of course not easy.”
Were it not for the fear of tarnishing the Marichadon family’s reputation, he would have seriously considered closing his doors to visitors, for speaking with these people always involved a lot of nonsense, and one had to be constantly cautious about their choice of words—it was far too exhausting.
At noon, Leider and Paul hurried back home. Although they didn’t make a spectacle, the smiles on their faces never faded. This was the long-held aspiration of two generations of the Marichadon family, finally taking the most important step forward.
The next day at noon, Beaman also returned home to witness this momentous occasion.
A new day began for the Marichadon family of six and the group from the Giant Shield Mercenary Group, all mounted on horses and galloping toward their territory in Mulberry Valley.
“Is it alright to ignore the mission?”
Ivan noticed that both vice-captains of the Giant Shield Mercenary Group were present, including Dayne, the Junior Knight.
Dayne explained, “The captain entrusted the mission to me, and I passed it on to another mercenary group. I’ve brought the brothers back to cheer for the Baron and prevent any shortsighted people from causing trouble.”
Receiving a territory is usually not a peaceful affair, as the locals are mostly reluctant, for having a lord means paying taxes, and some bad lords might have even more excessive demands. Naturally, locals would resist.
To come and cheer for their captain’s family, the Giant Shield Mercenary Group came in full force with 26 members, except for Old Mickey who stayed behind to guard their quarters; none were missing.
Ivan said, “Good, we rely on you all.”
Many expressed their courtesy verbally, for now none of the mercenaries saw him as merely a child of the captain’s family, especially since he was someone who could capture a Silver Bone Ray alive.
Located on the edge of the Black Fog Forest, both Mulberry Valley and Black Pine Forest were in the same direction, following the same road from Flying Fish Port until the last stretch, where another trade route led to each destination.
Compared to the two, Mulberry Valley was closer to Flying Fish Port.
An hour and a half after noon, the group arrived at Mulberry Valley in a grand procession.
What a strategically defensible place!
Three mountain ridges interlocked to form a triangular area, and this triangle in the middle was Mulberry Valley.
From inside Mulberry Valley, there was a mountain ridge at the back, a slanted ridge to the right and in front, and to the left was the renowned Black Fog Forest. None of the mountain ridges were particularly high, and there was a road between the ridge in front and to the left that led into Mulberry Valley.
Apart from the Black Fog Forest on the left, the other two ridges were likely where the mulberry forests stood. As they looked out, it was hard to see the lush green of the trees at this time.
Their arrival disrupted the tranquility of Mulberry Valley. Once people noticed the commotion, they informed others, and soon a large group of able-bodied men wielding various weapons surrounded them, nearly a hundred people, while even more watched from afar.
The vice-captain Glowe stepped forward and shouted, “This is Baron Marichadon, the new lord of Mulberry Valley.”
“Nobles have left, Mulberry Valley does not need a lord.”
“That’s right, we don’t need a lord.”
It was clear the locals had received the notice from the Flying Fish Port administration; otherwise, they wouldn’t have gathered so quickly in large numbers, almost everyone, trying to expel the newly appointed lord.