16: Arrival in the territory

As Arthur slowed down, the speed of the entire group also decreased. Although Karona and the others were puzzled by Arthur's actions, their sense of duty as subordinates kept them from asking, and they simply followed in silence.

Finally, the entire group came to a halt. After standing silently in place for more than a minute, Arthur suddenly said: "Go!"

The entire group then resumed their journey.

The people in the small city had long been aware of the news that Arthur, who would be the master of this city, would arrive today.

Therefore, when Arthur and his party reached the city gate, the total of over ten thousand people in the small city had already been waiting by the gate for a long time.

When those commoners saw the twenty cavalrymen riding Golden Sharp Lions behind Arthur, they were all stunned and dumbfounded.

After all, how could ordinary people not be afraid when twenty massive Demonic Beasts were charging toward them?

"I've long heard how formidable the Counts Fief's ace cavalry, the Mad Lion Cavalry Regiment, is. Seeing it today, it truly lives up to its reputation!"

"Indeed! With such powerful cavalry under Lord Arthur, we will be much safer!"

...

As they watched Arthur and his group getting closer, a sudden shout came from the front of the line at the city gate: "Silence!"

It turned out to be the Magistrate, one of the four leaders, who had spoken.

The four leaders of the group were, first, Poussin, the butler sent to Arthur by the Count. He was the son of the Counts Mansion's butler, Pulin, so his loyalty was guaranteed.

He looked to be only in his thirties, with a serious demeanor, and seemed like a capable butler.

Then there was the Magistrate of the fief, Charles. Arthur had not heard of this person before and only learned of him when reviewing the fief's documents a few days ago. However, Arthur believed that since the Count had sent him, he must be reliable.

This Magistrate also looked to be in his thirties and did not have the pot-bellied image of officials in Arthur's impression. On the contrary, Charles had an upright, square face and looked like an honest and clean official.

The remaining two were the captains of the two knight squads, the two strongest Silver Knights in the small city previously. To the current Arthur, they were nothing special, so there was no need to introduce them.

As Arthur and his twenty-something men gradually approached, the ten thousand-plus people at the city gate all knelt down under the leadership of the four men.

Those with status and the warriors knelt on one knee, while the vast majority of commoners knelt on both knees. Then, the ten thousand-plus people shouted in unison: "Welcome, Lord Arthur!"

The unison shout of over ten thousand people was grand and imposing; even Arthur felt somewhat shaken, and at the same time, his chest felt inexplicably stirred with excitement!

So this was the power of authority!

The people who had knelt down remained silent afterward. Arthur, riding on his horse, slowly scanned the crowd and nodded: "Everyone rise. I have seen your sincerity!"

After everyone stood up, Arthur continued: "Now that you have all become my subjects, as your lord, I will do my utmost to protect your safety and improve your quality of life. However, in return, you must also work diligently to make the fief prosperous!"

"I believe that the Barren Plains and the orcs cannot stop us from heading towards a better life. I will make this fief better and better, so please wait and see!"

"We believe in Lord Arthur!" the crowd responded in unison once again.

Arthur nodded with satisfaction, then dismounted and walked to the front of the group, saying to the four leaders: "You must be Charles, Poussin, ...!"

"Yes, my Lord!"

"I am very satisfied with this welcoming ceremony. It is getting dark, so hurry and arrange for the subjects to enter the city! I will go to the castle first, and then you can come to the castle to report the detailed situation of this place to me!"

"Understood, my Lord!" Poussin and the other three had no objections to Arthur's arrangement.

"Hmm!" After giving his instructions, Arthur got back on his horse and headed towards the castle in the city center.

The castle in the center of the city covered an area of about ten mu and could be called impregnable. Arthur took one look and felt very satisfied.

At the castle entrance, thirty girls dressed in maid outfits were waiting silently.

"Welcome, Lord Arthur!"

Since these thirty maids were wearing maid outfits, it was inconvenient for them to kneel, so they all just bowed in greeting.

"Everyone straighten up!"

After the greeting, a slightly older maid at the front of the group spoke: "Lord Arthur, I am Mitna, the head maid of this castle. You have been traveling at full speed all day and must be quite exhausted. We have already prepared hot water for you; would you like to bathe to relieve your fatigue?"

"That will do, thank you for your hard work!"

"It is my duty."

After dealing with Mitna, Arthur turned his gaze to the twenty elite Mad Lion Cavalry behind him. These massive guys could not stay in the castle. "Chris, your strength as a Gold Knight is currently the strongest in my fief, so for the time being, you shall command the army of my fief!"

Without waiting for Chris to respond, Arthur continued: "Your first task now is to arrange these Golden Sharp Lions. The military camp on the north side of the city should be able to accommodate them. Go!"

"Very well, Lord Arthur!" Chris knew that since Arthur said it this way, he did not want him to refuse, so he accepted directly.

After Chris left with the twenty cavalrymen, only Karona remained by Arthur's side.

After the two walked to the bedroom in the castle that belonged exclusively to Arthur: "Karona, you have also been riding hard all day. Go wash up; you don't need to accompany me anymore!"

"Understood!"

Finally, Arthur was alone!

Then, a bizarre scene occurred. Arthur suddenly said to the air: "Victor!"

"What are your orders, Lord Arthur?" As the response came, a burly and handsome knight appeared behind Arthur.

This person was Victor, the Peak Sky Knight expert whom Arthur had purchased a few months ago.

Now that Arthur had come to the Barren Plains, Victor naturally had to follow to provide protection.

Speaking of Victor, he also brought Arthur a surprise. It was only after purchasing him that Arthur discovered Victor was actually a rare variant attribute Qi user, a Lightning attribute Qi expert.

Qi attributes are generally of the five types: Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. Attributes like Wind, Lightning, and Ice belong to variant attribute Qi.

People who possess these variant attribute Qi are significantly stronger than those who possess the five common attribute Qi.

And coincidentally, Arthur's Qi attribute was also Lightning.

However, due to the rarity of Lightning attribute knights, corresponding Lightning attribute Battle Techniques and Advanced Cultivation methods were relatively hard to find, which led to Arthur only practicing a common Lightning attribute Cultivation method before.

Therefore, when Victor appeared, Arthur was very pleasantly surprised. One must know that the purchased experts possessed memories regarding Cultivation, which meant that Victor could teach Arthur more Advanced Lightning attribute Cultivation methods and Battle Techniques.

It could be said that it was an unexpected surprise!

Now, Arthur had already switched his original Cultivation method to Victor's, and he had also learned the Lightning Flash and Thunder Slash Battle Techniques from Victor!

One for movement and one for attack; it was enough for now.