142: Adultery with foreigners

At dawn, the Ironthorn Territory was bathed in faint light. The clamor of noise shattered the night's tranquility, awakening this vibrant land.

Five days had passed since Lister returned to his territory. The entire territory, like a precise, large-scale machine, continued to operate smoothly.

"Hah~"

Lister blew on the hot milk in his cup, took a sip, and then slowly withdrew his gaze from the bustling, smoke-filled Ironthorn Town below the castle.

As he willed it, the ancient white book appeared before his eyes, and three divination messages materialized.

[Divination 1: Recently, thanks to Earl Elsie de Frander's vigorous promotion, ironthorn whiskey has become known to everyone in Aetheria. People come in an endless stream every day hoping to buy it. In less than a day, the ironthorn whiskey you brought previously was completely sold out. The collaboration liaison dispatched by Earl Elsie de Frander will arrive in your territory the day after tomorrow.]

[Divination 2: Red's contracted lion, Raymond, will break through in his cultivation this morning, reaching strength equivalent to a Bronze Tier 3 Knight.]

[Divination 3: Although your defensive measures for the territory are excellent, the reputation of Ironthorn Territory's development has still spread to many surrounding territories. The Baron of Black Bear Territory, Daniel, who harbors resentment towards you, will secretly meet with five Wild Dog Orcs who have infiltrated the Pedan Kingdom near the border of his territory close to the Hengduan Mountains late tonight. He intends to offer them benefits to launch a surprise attack on your territory.]

Lister's eyes quickly scanned the three divination messages, and his gaze sharpened slightly.

Wild Dog Orcs?

A surprise attack?

Regarding this Daniel who had been quiet for a while, Lister had kept an eye on him, but his focus hadn't been on Daniel.

Now that Daniel had resurfaced, Lister wasn't surprised. Instead, he felt that Daniel was courting death.

This sentiment stemmed from his current overall power. Previously, he wouldn't have dared to be so dismissive, but now he could say without reservation that Daniel was like a clown to him.

However, even though Daniel's overall strength posed little threat to him, having a bothersome fly buzzing around one's ear was never a good thing.

And this divination message provided him with the perfect opportunity to resolve this nuisance once and for all.

Combined with the previous information about the five Black Dog Orcs, Lister was now certain that the letter had been intended for Daniel.

He just hadn't imagined Daniel would be so bold as to secretly collude with the Orc race.

Secretly conspiring with a foreign race is a capital offense under Pedan Kingdom law. Furthermore, anyone discovering it on the spot, including but not limited to a lord, can directly administer punishment.

Therefore, as long as Lister catches Daniel and the Black Dog Orcs Red-handed during their meeting, given his strength, he can pronounce their death sentence.

Being able to eliminate the only major trouble in the surrounding territories before leaving would be an excellent thing for him and Ironthorn Territory.

Withdrawing the ancient book, Lister drained the milk in his cup and headed towards the first-floor hall.

As the required quantity of bath products and other goods for sale were now prepared, Isabelle was set to depart and return to Telris today.

Just as Lister reached the first-floor hall, he saw Isabelle, already changed into her traveling clothes, standing quietly while holding Baize. One's gaze was naturally drawn to her.

Standing beside her was Christina, looking like a little princess.

"Lister, everything is ready. I'm about to set off," Isabelle said, smoothing a strand of hair from her forehead and smiling as she saw Lister descending the stairs.

Beside her, Christina called out "Brother!" in a clear, sweet voice.

After several days of interaction, Lister and Isabelle discovered they shared similar interests and had become good friends.

The little ones, including Baize, had also taken a liking to her and often sought her embrace.

Unlike Lister, Isabelle's perception of Ironthorn Territory had been refreshed time and again over these past few days.

By now, besides her respect for Lister's status, she also held a genuine, heartfelt admiration for him as a man.

If the matter of selling the bath products weren't so important, she would definitely have stayed in Ironthorn Territory a few more days, until Lister's own departure.

Hearing Isabelle's words, Lister nodded and said, "Good. This time, I will arrange for Spartacus and five Full Knights to escort your caravan back."

"For future coordination work, I will assign others. If there are no issues, merchant caravans transporting goods can run continuously from now on."

"Mm, I'll inform Uncle Kim when I return," Isabelle replied with a serious nod.

As they spoke, Malo approached and said respectfully, "Lord, all items have been loaded onto the carts and carefully re-checked. There are no problems. We are ready to depart."

"Mm, I understand," Lister nodded, then looked at Isabelle. "The Magic Cloud Eagles have now fully matured. I will assign one to serve as a fixed communication link with the Cole Family. If any issues arise in the future, promptly notify me via the Magic Cloud Eagle."

"Alright, I understand," Isabelle nodded. "Then I'll be off. I wish you smooth sailing in all matters after you head to the Western Frontier Territory."

"Christina, come visit me sometime in the future, okay?"

"Mhm, mhm! Goodbye, Sister Isabelle!" Christina said obediently.

Lister simply smiled, saying nothing more, and watched as Isabelle boarded her carriage.

Spartacus, leading the caravan, addressed Lister respectfully, "Lord Lister, after escorting the merchant convoy, I will hurry to the Western Frontier Territory to rendezvous with you as soon as possible."

"Mm, proceed with caution on the journey," Lister instructed.

"As you command."

With that, Spartacus mounted his horse, gave a wave of his hand, and the caravan of over a dozen wagons set off grandly.

This time, Lister had ordered Malo and the other artisans to produce a large quantity of bath and daily necessities at full capacity, enough to be sold in Telris for a period.

However, he estimated this wouldn't last very long, as Telris was a medium-to-large city with a substantial population.

Thus, he had already begun considering whether to establish a production factory in Telris as well, which would avoid the hassle of long-distance transport back and forth.

But Telris was ultimately not his territory. Establishing a factory there would not be easy, facing considerable pressure from various factions, requiring careful planning.

As the caravan's silhouette gradually faded into the distance, Lister withdrew his gaze and headed towards the training grounds.

Christina, carrying Baize and the other little ones, followed closely behind him.

Although Baize and the others were already accustomed to it, Christina particularly enjoyed watching Lister train.

Every training session, she would act as the most attentive audience, offering Lister sincere praise.

This also allowed Lister to genuinely feel a sense of familial affection from her. The impatience that sometimes arose during his cultivation gradually ceased to appear.

Passing by the training grounds, Red was already leading the knights in their drills. For them now, going a day without training felt physically uncomfortable.

Moreover, after these past few days of continuous training, the three Apprentice Knights who hadn't yet advanced had all successfully broken through to become Full Knights.

Thus, all the newly selected Apprentice Knights in Ironthorn Territory had successfully advanced to Full Knights.

Previously, Lister had never imagined such a high success rate, which gave him quite a pleasant surprise.

*Swish, swish, swish!*

In the open area behind the castle, accompanied by sharp whistling sounds, the spear in Lister's hands, coordinated with his agile footwork, continuously executed the most basic forms, moving like a swimming dragon.

His progress in Spearmanship cultivation during this period had become increasingly Proficient and rapid compared to before.

Currently, his Spearmanship was separated from the Mastery realm by only a thin membrane. But this membrane, though seemingly thin, felt like an insurmountable chasm. No matter how he thrust, he couldn't pierce through it.

He felt he had now entered a bottleneck period. To achieve Mastery in Spearmanship, he needed a catalyst, a significant stimulus.

"Perhaps... I need a thoroughly satisfying battle—"

Lister murmured softly in his mind. The movement of his spear suddenly trembled, and a terrifying "Storm Dragon" instantly coalesced, shooting violently into the distance.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

Accompanied by the violent explosion of air, the space where the "Storm Dragon" passed seemed to warp slightly.

The terrifying aura emanating from the storm energy caused Red and the others at the outer training grounds to startle momentarily, but then great joy followed.

Because the feeling this power gave them was several times stronger than the might Lister's Storm Spear Technique had previously displayed.

"Hah~"

Lister in the clearing took a deep breath, planting his spear on the ground. A rich expression of delight quietly appeared on his face.

Storm Spear Technique - Mastery!

He hadn't expected his diligently cultivated Spearmanship skill to remain unbroken through, while the skill Storm Spear Technique had advanced first.

Though this was unexpected, it still gave him considerable joy.

Compared to the previous Storm Spear Technique, he, as the user, could clearly perceive that the current version was several times, even ten times, more powerful.

If the previous "Storm Dragon" was a young, juvenile dragon, now it was a juvenile dragon baring its fierce fangs. Its power was incomparable to before.

The advancement of the Storm Spear Technique also added to his confidence for the upcoming journey to the Western Frontier Territory.

"Brother, that's amazing!" Christina clapped her hands, her face excited.

Smiling, Lister looked at Christina and asked, "Christina, would you like to become as powerful as your brother?"

"As powerful as brother?"

Christina was taken aback, then said with some self-doubt, "Christina really wants to! Then I could help brother too. But... can I?"

"Of course you can," Lister patted her head, then took out the Wizard Scroll stored in his spatial ring. "As long as you learn the Wizardry on this scroll, you can become as powerful as your brother."

"Really?!" Christina exclaimed with delight.

As an ordinary human girl from a small tribe in the Western Frontier, she had never even heard of Wizardry.

Furthermore, from Lister's understanding, the strongest Transcendent in Christina's tribe likely only possessed strength equivalent to a Bronze Rank Intermediate Knight.

Such strength, in the mixed and chaotic Western Frontier with its numerous tribes, made one nothing more than a lamb waiting for slaughter, with no real choice over life or death.

And situations of tribes being wiped out occurred in the Western Frontier almost every short while. Even those being wiped out might not understand why they were being eliminated.

Therefore, Christina surviving was already no small miracle.

Regarding her talent, Lister had long considered it. Currently, Wizardry was the best supernatural art for her to learn.

Even if he currently possessed a Mage scroll, he would still have Christina learn Wizardry.

Because, according to his analysis, Wizardry was very suitable for the Natural Element Affinity ability, or rather, it was highly compatible with Wizard Contract Art.

Moreover, this type of contract was not exclusive. One could form contracts with natural creatures limitlessly, as long as one's Spiritual Power was sufficiently strong and a mutual agreement could be reached with the creature. The contract wouldn't face any restrictions.

Previously, Lister could contract Baize because Baize trusted him, having been raised by him, their relationship already like family.

But this method required a significant amount of time and wasn't easily achievable, as most magical beasts possessed somewhat bloodthirsty temperaments.

Establishing a good relationship with them was very difficult, even for beast tamers.

However, the Natural Element Affinity ability could bypass this issue, because possessors of this ability could easily gain the trust and affection of natural creatures.

It also included the ability to soothe minds. Therefore, under such circumstances, Christina could easily establish Wizard Contracts with natural creatures.

This was also why Baize and the other little ones had been so affectionate towards her recently.

They would stick close to Christina almost every day, unable to be driven away.

So, as long as Christina didn't encounter major problems in the future, she would, like a "Nature Goddess," be able to contract all natural things for her use.

When Lister first realized this point, he couldn't help but feel a shock of awe and intense envy.

It was just a pity that Lister currently didn't have that many worthy creatures around to contract. Otherwise, he would have piled them all onto Christina.

Fortunately, Li Huo, who possessed the Flaming Bull Bloodline, hadn't been contracted by Lister yet, so it was perfect for Christina to try with.

Taking the scroll Lister handed her, Christina carefully opened it and began to look.

But after only a few seconds, she turned to look at Lister. Her large, watery eyes were already brimming with tears, her face full of self-reproach. "I'm sorry, brother. I... I can't read the words on here."

Lister was startled, realizing his oversight. Christina came from a small Western Frontier tribe where literacy was low, let alone familiarity with the Pedan Kingdom's official script.

Immediately, he gently wiped the tears from the corner of Christina's eyes and comforted her with a smile. "It's alright. Brother will teach you."