The Knight's Journey to the Empire

On December 1876, in the Knight Continent calendar, after bidding farewell to his feudal lord, Marquis Saladin, Soran and his party officially embarked on their journey back south.

In the north of the Kingdom of Midburg, although the Anatolian Mountains running across the east and west block the invasion of cold currents from the extreme ice field, the winter is still extremely cold.

White snow had begun to fall from the sky, and the ground was covered with a thick layer of snow, as high as ankles.

But it hasn't reached the point where the snow blocks the roads.

The north wind was howling, as cold as a knife, blowing on people's faces, just like being slapped wildly, making people's blood boil and feel extremely sour and refreshing.

Soran and his three companions were wearing fur clothes and wrapped tightly. They did not even bother to appreciate the beautiful snow scenery along the way, but rode their horses at full speed towards the south.

They need to get to Connacht before the New Year.

The group came here as if they were on an adventure, stopping and starting many times. It took them more than twenty days, but it only took them fourteen days to come back.

On December 4876, 12 in the Knight Continent calendar, Soran and his party returned to Connacht in Ulster County before the New Year.

The last time I left was on January 1th. Now if I count, it’s almost been a year.

A year is neither fast nor slow!

There is still no change in Connacht City, but I have changed a lot!

What has changed is not just age, but also temperament, identity, strength, and status!

Connacht, I'm back!

Soran's heart was screaming!

……

The residence of Sir Lipton's family was decorated with lights and bustling with people.

The servants were happy not only because the New Year was approaching, but also because the second young master, Soren Lipton, who had been away for a year to gain experience, returned before the New Year.

The servants may be aware of the master's preference for the family master and the family's disputes between legitimate and illegitimate children, but they cannot show too much inclination.

Because no matter what the final result is, after all, both parties are still the masters, and one cannot afford to offend anyone.

So it is better to welcome it happily. No one wants to be the first to stand out.

The masters and servants of the entire knight's mansion were very happy and were busy arranging the New Year decorations for the mansion.

But there are two exceptions, namely Soran's father and eldest brother.

One of them was confused, and the other was disgusted.

Soren's stepmother, Mrs. Jenny Totova, is worthy of the title of a loving mother.

Seeing that Soran could return safely before the New Year, she was definitely the happiest person in the entire mansion, no doubt about it.

As soon as Soran came back and walked in, she came over to ask about his well-being and showed great concern.

But when she asked about Solon's experience and learned that Solon was robbed by evil robbers, she burst into tears and dared not listen any further.

People are all made of flesh and blood. Although Sauron had many gaps with this strange home, he couldn't help but feel moved when he saw his stepmother expressing her true feelings without any affectation.

Perhaps it was the warmth of maternal love or the coziness of home that made Sauron's sense of belonging to this family much stronger.

In fact, Soren is lonely in his heart. He has never seen his biological mother and only felt some maternal love from his stepmother, Jenny Totova.

As for my father, he always has a cold face towards me. How can there be love in him?

What's more, there has always been exclusion from the biological elder brother.

If your heart has no place to rest, it will be wandering everywhere.

Soran also wants to have a home, a safe haven, and longs to be loved.

This has nothing to do with the soul or maturity; it is a necessary need for a person living in a group society.

One of the reasons why he worked so hard to improve his strength and become stronger was because he lacked a sense of security.

In other words, there is inner emptiness and emotional absence.

……

After the routine reunion dinner in the evening, it is time for after-meal chatting.

Outside the living room, snow was flying and the cold wind was howling.

But the living room of the mansion was very warm.

Because there is a fireplace, the blazing fire inside is emitting boiling heat.

The family gathered around the fireplace, warming themselves by the fire, drinking soothing hot fruit wine, and listening to Soran talk about his travels.

Sitting or standing around and watching were the mansion's housekeeper, steward and some servants.

Although Sir Jose was a nobleman who attached great importance to tradition, he was particular about hierarchy and caste.

But at times, he was quite open-minded.

For example, now, servants are allowed to sit in on the sidelines.

Although he didn't know whether the news Soran would bring next was good or bad.

Soren's eldest brother Carlo Lipton also stayed for this conversation. Although he still hated his younger brother, he was also very curious about his travel experiences.

Because he has never traveled, let alone studied in college.

He has always been with his father, and Sir Jose taught him all kinds of knowledge and skills to manage or develop the territory.

Perhaps the farthest place he had ever been was to collect taxes in the rural areas under the jurisdiction of the city of Connacht.

In fact, Carlo sometimes envies Sauron.

After all, young people's hearts are always full of yearning for the colorful world outside.

Although they also know that the outside world is full of dangers.

But Carlo also understood his responsibility. He needed to take over the burden from Sir Jose and develop the family to a higher position.

In fact, Carlo is also a passionate young man.

It's just that his philosophy is different from that of Sauron.

……

"Now, let me introduce my new identity to everyone: I am the hereditary lord of the White Bear Territory in the eastern part of the Kingdom of Midburg—Baron Soren Lipton!"

At the beginning of the chat, Soran introduced his new identity to everyone and showed his certificate of ennoblement and noble emblem.

This undoubtedly caused a storm in the hearts of everyone present.

A maid who was holding wine utensils nearby couldn't even hold the glass steadily and almost dropped it.

Looking at their stunned and shocked expressions, Soran felt a surge of satisfaction in his heart, and his face was filled with a smile that was more difficult to suppress than AK's.

Soren admitted that what I did was a bit of showing off, ostentation and bragging, but so what?

You used to ignore me, but now I'm out of your reach.

What is this "marvelous robes marching at night"? How is that possible? It doesn't exist!

Young people should be outspoken!

How can you be called a young person if you are not ostentatious?

Of course, he didn't do anything too excessive. He was just thinking about it and fantasizing about it for a while.

After all, I still have to ask for help from others, so I can't go too far.

But you still have to pretend to be cool.

No matter what, he is now the most distinguished nobleman in the whole venue.

Everyone present was shocked for a long time before they slowly reacted, although they were still full of disbelief in their hearts.

But looking at the seal representing the identity of Marquis Saladin, the certificate of enthronement of the seal territory issued by the House of Nobles of Saladin City, and the exquisite noble coat of arms, he could only accept the reality silently.

Now, even though they were full of questions, they could only wait patiently for Sauron's answers.

The famous scene where the imaginary Carlo suddenly jumps out and says with great confidence, "This is definitely a fake, this is absolutely impossible" did not appear.

Soran's wish to stage a show of pretending to be awesome and then getting slapped in the face was not fulfilled.

This made him a little disappointed.

In fact, Carlo Lipton was also shocked, but he quickly regained his composure.

He was now sitting there quietly, his eyes switching back and forth between Sauron and the certificate of ennoblement from time to time, his eyeballs moving, and no one knew what he was thinking about.

At this time, Sauron did not keep them in suspense any longer, but slowly and thoroughly told them his experiences one by one.

His tone was calm and the plot didn't have any ups and downs.

Obviously, the level of this is far inferior to the one I told His Royal Highness the Prince.