Chapter 12 Shamelessness is also a virtue
Li Ang was silent for a while, then suddenly asked, "If I'm not mistaken... Grand Duke Alma is plotting against your territory?"
Oden's eyes widened in surprise. "What a smart boy! That's right, he is competing with me for the control of Changhe Town, and my territory is often harassed by him and the bandits. But I am in the House of Nobles and cannot escape... It's a pity that I only have one daughter, otherwise I really want you to become my son-in-law!"
Leon looked at Oden's big nose and small eyes, then at his Mediterranean hairstyle, and felt full of sympathy for Sir Lehman - a daughter born from such a face...
Fortunately, he only has one daughter.
"I choose to be a pioneer lord. But I am willing to form an alliance with you, Lord Earl. If you are willing..."
Without further hesitation, Li Ang made his choice.
Oden nodded. "Then I hope you can kill the gang of bandits entrenched in Fletcher Village when you pass by there..."
Bandit?
I guess it must be the Duke of Alma's men...
The village of Fletcher was named after Oden's surname, and it was obviously Oden's core territory.
It seems that Count Odden was at a disadvantage in his private confrontation with the Duke of Alma.
This may have something to do with his lack of a direct heir. A newly-promoted nobleman with no roots and no son will naturally be targeted by others as he gets older.
"Since there are bandits destroying the village, then of course I have no choice but to do it... But why don't you let Sir Lehman..."
"Lehman is the vice-captain of the Lion Knights. Before he becomes the grand commander, he cannot have direct conflicts with other high-ranking nobles." Oden shook his head, looking somewhat helpless.
Li Ang understood.
The Order of the Lion is a national order of knights, and the Grand Master needs to be elected by all high-ranking nobles, so Sir Lehman needs to maintain a relatively good relationship with Grand Duke Alma.
Moreover, one hundred and fifty years ago, it was the Houghton family of the Duke of Alma who helped the "thief" Alfred to gain the service of the Lion Knights. The Grand Duke of Alma had a high say in the Lion Knights.
After a few seconds of silence, Li Ang suddenly grinned: "There shouldn't be many people who are willing to offend a powerful duke..."
Oden seemed to smell something bad and stared at Li Ang with sharp eyes.
But Li Ang showed a fox-like smile: "Maybe, I am the best candidate? Or even the only reliable candidate? In this case, can you sponsor... Oh no, lend me some military supplies so that I don't encounter any difficulties when dealing with those bandits..."
Oden's tone was no longer gentle: "Are you planning to blackmail me?!"
"No, no, no... a loan, just a loan..."
Oden rolled his eyes: "Boy, has anyone ever told you that you are a bit shameless?"
"Thank you for your compliment..." Leon saluted as a knight.
Oden was furious: "Is shamelessness a virtue in your mind?!"
The two began to look at each other.
One had glaring eyes, the other had a smile on his face.
"One thousand dinars is enough! Remember to pay it back!"
Oden finally uttered something with a glare on his face.
"I will definitely return it, I will definitely return it..." Li Ang smiled and had a very good attitude.
Oden clenched his fists, his face twitched, and finally opened the certificate on the table, wrote "Long River Forest" with a pen, and then stamped it with the steel stamp of the House of Nobles.
"If you are in danger, you can go to Brave Shield Castle or the villages and towns under my jurisdiction for help. But in the same way, if my territory is in danger, or if it is inconvenient for my people to show up, I hope you can provide help. You will gain the friendship of the Fletcher family... but remember to pay me back!"
"Okay, it's a deal!"
In fact, the direction that Li Ang originally planned to explore was the Changhe Forest...
The meeting place he and Klose and others agreed to meet was in Changhe Town.
The Long River Forest is indeed very dangerous. Many forces such as the Jatu nomads, the Misty Mountain Barbarians, the Noldor elves, etc. will appear nearby.
But also because it is so dangerous, dark characters like killers or pagans rarely appear there.
What Leon was worried about was the dagger from behind, he was not actually afraid of the battlefield under the sun.
It was already evening when we left the House of Nobles, and the fiery clouds in the sky were swallowing up the few remaining lights.
Li Ang had two more things on him.
A small pioneer lord emblem, and a huge money bag.
The one who saw him out was still the smiling young servant, and the one thousand dinars was also handed to him by the servant.
Perhaps they didn't expect that Leon came to the House of Nobles and not only did he not "show his appreciation", but instead took money away from the House of Nobles. The servants showed unusual enthusiasm and even offered to help Leon carry the money bag onto the horse's back.
But Li Ang rejected his kindness.
Gold...
A big bag of gold!
Li Ang really enjoyed the heavy feeling of holding the gold in his arms... He felt that it was basically the same as holding a fairy with a devilish figure.
But in fact, the small badge he casually put into his arms was far more valuable than this bag of gold coins.
It was a silver emblem in the shape of a lion, representing that Leon had the status of a reserve baron, roughly equivalent to that of a knight. From then on, he could cut off the swallowtail of his flag and become a member of the ruling class.
Of course, this requires review and investigation. If the territory is not successfully established, the knighthood will be revoked.
Many years ago, you could just build a wooden castle at the border to fool people, but that doesn’t work anymore.
These days, the standards for review have become very complicated.
The occupied land must be outside the national borders, the territory must have a permanent population, and there must be an army and buildings sufficient to protect the residents.
There must also be a flat road leading to the territory, and it must be ensured that there are not too many bandits around.
After all, the envoys responsible for on-site inspections must also ensure safety along the way...
Li Ang asked... The one thousand dinars he borrowed were actually only enough to purchase supplies and building materials.
The spoils obtained in the pirate camp before were basically what the pirates did not have time to sell or kept for their own use. Only the dozen or so extra sets of Mettenheim infantry armor were relatively valuable.
But the pirates had been trying to sell those large equipment for more than a month and were unable to do so... Once they fell into Leon's hands, it naturally wasn't so easy to cash them in.
Besides, he also had to consider the feelings of the Mettenheim people under his command, so he could only let Klose and the others lead the way and move slowly.
Seeing that it was getting dark and calculating the speed of Klose and the others, Leon decided to find a hotel to stay for the night. After traveling for several days, he was exhausted.
"Adventurer" inn - or tavern.
These days, inns and taverns are integrated into one.
This seems to be a sign that most cities in Pand have, but it is definitely not a chain hotel...
After all, the concept of chain stores has only just emerged in the more commercially developed Barkley continent, and this concept basically does not exist in Pand.
When he first "landed" on this continent, Leon had thought about opening a chain of hotels, but later he gave up the idea because it was inconvenient , and because of the terrible security situation in Fog City.
Because these days, hotels are places where thieves and "vibrant social gangs" often hang out.
And Red Brotherhood assassins and slavers can be found in almost every tavern - this is where they solicit business.
Therefore, Leon deliberately chose this hotel located next to the King's Avenue, thinking it was relatively safe.
Li Ang was also very cautious when entering the hotel.
Not only because he might run into a killer who wanted to kill him, but also because he had too much money on him...
But, but…
No matter if you are deliberately careful or completely unprepared, accidents will always happen if you are unlucky enough...
