Chapter 10: Baron Bryan

“No, it might also be the one with the best reputation,” said Verin, who was privy to the underlying tricks, shaking his head as he spoke to Baird.

“My lord, why is that?” Baird asked, wiping the blood from his knight’s longsword before sheathing it.

“There’s more to this than meets the eye. It would take too long to explain everything now. When the enemy comes, we fight; when the flood rises, we build embankments. Whatever hardships we face, we’ll cut through them with the swords in our hands.”

Seeing that Verin was reluctant to elaborate, Baird ceased his questioning, returned to the caravan, and began reorganizing the group for departure.

Verin gazed at the bandit corpses strewn across the wilderness, his eyes deep with thought.

In the days that followed, they did not encounter any more bandits. Perhaps these jackals had learned of the caravan’s strength and chose not to risk unnecessary losses.

After traversing the wilds, they finally reached their second destination—the Baron of Bryan’s domain, Ridgecrest.

Before Verin had even entered Ridgecrest, Baron Bryan had already heard of their approach. Having been developing his lands for only six years, Bryan was in the midst of expanding his enterprise and was highly sensitive to any activity in the surrounding area. After all, a group of over two hundred was conspicuous along the border of the Greyglow Wilderness.

Verin, at the vanguard, saw dust rising in the distance. Channeling his battle aura to his eyes, he spotted a large force approaching and immediately ordered Baird and the others to prepare for combat.

“Is that you, cousin Verin, ahead?” boomed a rough voice, putting Verin at ease. He urged his horse forward to meet the newcomer.

The man wore loose garments, a knight’s longsword at his waist, and was accompanied by several knights and more than thirty squires.

“Cousin, it’s been too long. I’ve missed you. How have you been?” Verin rode up, noting that Bryan looked just as he had six years ago when they parted at Windsor Castle.

“Welcome, Verin!” Bryan dismounted, arms wide open, and embraced him with great enthusiasm.

“Cousin, I’ll have to trouble you for a few days. I hope you won’t mind.”

“Nonsense! In fact, Alik is a guest in my castle at the moment. We’ll have time to catch up properly.”

Hearing that the third person he meant to visit was already at Bryan’s castle, Verin was overjoyed. “Orlando, fetch the second wooden chest from the second carriage.”

Orlando, holding Verin’s horse, went to the second carriage and carried over a heavy chest.

Verin stepped forward, opened it, and revealed a set of exceptional-grade full knight’s armor.

Baron Bryan’s eyes nearly popped at the sight of the gleaming armor.

“Cousin, how do you like this gift?”

“Well, I can hardly refuse such a present,” Bryan said, stepping forward to caress the armor as if comforting a beloved woman.

Hearing his contradictory words, Verin realized Bryan was just as he remembered—little had changed.

Perhaps aware of the others present, Baron Bryan coughed to mask his excitement, then ordered the chest to be taken away. “Verin, come, I’ll take you to my castle. Tonight, I’ll hold a feast in your honor.”

“Ha! I look forward to it, cousin Bryan.”

Bryan led the way, guiding Verin and his party toward his castle.

After traveling several kilometers, they arrived at a small but practical fortress. The castle walls bristled with spikes to deter any creatures from climbing. The walls were armed with an astonishing number of bows and ballistae. Not far off, on an open field, over a thousand able-bodied men were drilling under the supervision of several knights.

From their attire, Verin guessed these were Ridgecrest’s commoners.

Catching Verin’s gaze, Bryan laughed and explained, “Verin, the borderlands are never peaceful. All this is in preparation for monster attacks.”

“Cousin, your achievements in the past six years are impressive.”

“Of course! Who do you think I am? I’m Bryan, destined to be the sixth earl of the Ekkes family!” Bryan boasted loudly, clearly pleased by Verin’s praise.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, Bryan asked without reservation, “Verin, didn’t you say as a child you wanted to stay in Eagle’s Hold? What made you become a frontier knight?”

“It’s a long story, not worth telling. Let’s just say I suddenly saw the light.”

“That’s the spirit! As men of the Ekkes family, we should become frontier knights and build our own domains—that’s how we honor our ancestors—”

“All right, cousin, let’s save this for later. Show me around your castle first; I’m eager to see your fortress,” Verin interrupted, anxious to steer the conversation away before Bryan could go on for hours.

Inside the main hall, a refined man sat quietly in a chair, sipping tea.

“Verin, this is Alik. He’s… erm…” Bryan scratched his head, momentarily at a loss as to how Verin should address him.

Prepared, Verin shot Bryan a look, then embraced the stranger warmly: “Cousin Alik, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“And I am glad to meet you, my brother,” Alik replied, momentarily stunned by the embrace before responding in kind.

Bryan, standing aside, smiled awkwardly. He could never keep the family relationships straight and often confused his own kin.

“My lord, the preparations for the banquet are complete. Please move to the drawing room,” announced a white-bearded butler, bowing respectfully to Bryan.

“Verin, Alik, dinner is ready. Let’s eat and talk. Verin, you can tell us all about what’s happened in the family over the past thirty years,” Bryan said, ushering them to his drawing room.

During the banquet, Verin and Alik conversed happily, covering every topic under the sun: politics of the kingdom, geography, neighboring countries—nothing was off-limits.

Seeing the two getting along so well, Bryan was delighted. His cousin and his brother were so close; it warmed his heart.

But what he didn’t know was that, while Verin and Alik spoke freely, both remained on guard, each putting on a perfect show.

As the evening wore on, the banquet ended. Tired, Verin retired to the room Bryan had prepared for him.

Lying on the bed, Verin closed his eyes and recalled the conversations at dinner, piecing together the information he had obtained from Baron Olcott. He pondered whether the Greyglow Wilderness would be the best starting point.

He had only one requirement: ensure safety first, and consider everything else afterward.

Both Bryan and Alik had recommended he head northwest into the Greyglow Wilderness, which was in direct opposition to Baron Olcott’s advice.

But according to the intelligence gained from his destiny guidance, Olcott’s recommended direction was not viable, leaving only the northwest as an option.

In the end, it seemed he had no real choice.

If he were to ignore the risks, the southwest of the Greyglow Wilderness would be an appealing option.

“No matter. Safety first. I’ll choose the northwest. With the guidance of fate, once I’m strong enough, the whole Greyglow Wilderness will be mine. By then, what choices will I need?”

With that decision made, Verin drifted off to sleep.