“Judging from that reaction, it seems you have realized what this is. It is our family’s Mana Cultivation Method. I am very glad that I can pass this down to you.”
Jason was grateful enough that Lawrence had risen from his sickbed, but he was greatly delighted to hear that Lawrence was working harder than anyone else in his swordsmanship training.
So although the timing was still a little early, he thought that if he was going to give it to him anyway, it would be better to give it even a day sooner.
“Thank you.”
“It is all right. There is no need for thanks……. By the way, I understand that your basic mana training is not finished yet, so learn this while also diligently working on your basic training. No matter what it is, the foundation must be solid.”
“Yes, Father.”
Lawrence lowered his head and respectfully received the Mana Cultivation Method with both hands.
This was not merely the act of giving and receiving a single book.
It meant that Jason had acknowledged Lawrence, in this moment, as the next head of the Romanov family.
There had only been one thing Jason had wished of his son, who had lain sick in bed for so long.
For him to live without dying.
For a noble, the succession of the family was something considered more important than anything else.
But Jason had no interest in such things at all.
If Jason had considered succession important, there had been any number of other methods.
Jason was still young, and even if his lawful wife could not give birth to a son, he could have taken a second wife.
But Jason loved his wife and his son, and he did not want to force the creation of an heir for the count’s house.
In truth, he had not even attempted it.
The bleak future of the territory had also influenced that to some extent.
But then his son had survived, just as he had wished.
He was grateful enough that Lawrence had survived, but not only had he recovered his health quickly, he had even been chosen by a spirit and was showing extraordinary qualities as a knight.
Therefore, there was no longer any reason to hesitate.
Jason immediately began preparing for him to inherit the family.
The first step was passing down the family’s Mana Cultivation Method.
Realizing his father’s intention, Lawrence felt a sense of responsibility and accepted it respectfully.
“Thank you for trusting me, Father. I will do my best so I will not bring shame to the family.”
Lawrence bowed his head deeply.
Seeing his son like that made Jason proud, and a pleased smile formed on his face.
“Then you may leave now. I have much work to do as well.”
“Yes, Father.”
Lawrence bowed lightly and left the office.
He returned straight to his room and immediately opened the Mana Cultivation Method.
“Mm~ So this is what it was.”
The Mana Cultivation Method his father had handed him was a book containing the concentrated wisdom and experience of the Romanov ancestors.
It contained methods and postures for developing the basic breathing method further to accumulate and circulate mana more efficiently.
It explained the knack of explosively releasing mana’s power in a single instant.
It recorded the ancestors’ research and enlightenment, such as how to focus mana on a specific body part or materialize it to block external impact.
This was not simply about the Mana Cultivation Method. It was also the history of the Romanov family.
Having learned the true nature of the cultivation method and been impressed by it, Lawrence focused on the book as if he would not miss a single character.
Time passed quickly.
Now, almost no trace of Lawrence’s sickly appearance could be found.
He still looked somewhat thin, but the lean muscles that had settled throughout his body made him look solid and nimble.
“Hey, Lawrence. Welcome.”
“What? You’re all already here?”
“Of course we are. Ah, after we switch shifts today, let’s have a drink. Stop always saying next time.”
When he arrived at the Barrier Wall for work, the soldiers greeted him warmly.
It had already been three months since Lawrence began working with them.
The soldiers now treated him not as a mere mercenary, but as a comrade.
That was only natural, because Lawrence fought monsters harder than any soldier.
He took the lead in everything and never retreated, even in dangerous moments.
And the greatest reason he was welcomed like this was, of course, his skill.
Thanks to the battles against goblins that took place every day, Lawrence leveled up rapidly.
To the point where checking the Status Window that changed day by day had become a habit.
“Hahaha, I have something to do today, so I think it will be difficult. I’m sorry, but let’s drink next time.”
“How are you so busy every single day?”
“I’ll set up a time soon. Let’s all have a drink together then.”
“Oh~ Lawrence. What’s gotten into you? Then you promised.”
“Don’t worry. When I say something, I keep it even with a knife at my throat.”
“Kya~ You’re surprisingly cool, you know. Lawrence, I’ll introduce you to my younger sister, so meet her once.”
“Ahem, how dare you try to set him up with such an ugly girl? Lawrence, pretend you didn’t hear that. That bastard’s sister is completely ugly. Instead, I’ll introduce you to my daughter.”
“You bastard, why are you ruining things? Besides, your daughter is only twelve years old.”
“What’s wrong with twelve? It feels a little early, but she’s old enough to get married.”
In truth, the commoners here married between the ages of fourteen and sixteen.
So to Lawrence, who had lived a modern life, it was a shocking thing to hear, but according to the common sense of this era, it was not that strange.
“You bastard, you’re saying you want to go at it, aren’t you?”
The soldier who had said he would introduce his younger sister grabbed the collar of the soldier who was the father of the twelve-year-old daughter.
“How dare you push your old, ugly sister at him? You have no conscience.”
“What’s wrong with my sister? You’re the one with no conscience, trying to sell off your young daughter. You bastard.”
“What? Sell off? Do you want to die?”
“Fine, good. Let’s settle this today.”
The two soldiers bickered and fought over Lawrence.
“Ah, why are you both doing this again? I told you, I’m not thinking of seeing anyone yet. So please stop fighting.”
Flustered by the unexpected situation, Lawrence hurriedly stepped between the two soldiers and stopped them.
“Lawrence, say it clearly here. My sister or that bastard’s daughter?”
“That’s right, Lawrence. Is it my pretty daughter or that shameless bastard’s sister?”
The two pressed Lawrence for an answer as if they had to receive a firm decision.
“Uh, um, why are you doing this……. I told you, I’m not thinking of meeting a woman yet.”
At Lawrence’s helpless reaction, the soldiers watching burst into laughter.
“Haha, what did I tell you? I’ve never seen such an innocent mercenary before.”
“Exactly. As a rule, mercenaries mean alcohol and women, don’t they? It’s a life where you throw your life away anyway. Come to think of it, Lawrence is strange, since he doesn’t even drink.”
“By the way, Lawrence, you still have to choose someone. For now, I vote for Mr. Deniro’s daughter. The younger a woman is, the better.”
“What are you talking about? I vote for Ackerman’s sister. It’s much better for her to know a certain amount than to know nothing at all. You should at least be able to have a decent conversation.”
When Lawrence hesitated and failed to answer, the soldiers now split into sides and pressured him to choose.
“Lawrence, hurry up and choose.”
“Right, Lawrence. Take this chance to retire from being a mercenary and put down roots here. This place is fairly livable too.”
“That’s a good method. Everyone agrees, right?”
“It would be good if Lawrence came to our village.”
It had begun as a joke, but before he knew it, Lawrence was becoming not merely a comrade, but a resident of this place.
Feeling the sincerity contained in those words, a warm wind washed over Lawrence’s heart.
At the same time, his shoulders grew heavy.
Lawrence solemnly accepted that it was his duty to do his best so these people could enjoy better lives and happiness.
“Now, everyone, stop that and switch shifts.”
At the senior soldier’s instruction, the soldiers rose from their seats while dusting off their backsides with smiling faces.
Lawrence also quickly returned to his position and began guard duty.
Before his eyes stretched a scene that had become quite familiar recently.
The sun, having lost its strength, made a lonely exit, dyeing the sky in burning orange and red, and darkness slowly surged in.
The temperature was now fairly chilly.
The moon, half hidden by clouds, poked out its head.
Today, a darker shadow than usual settled over the Barrier Wall.
Several soldiers lit the minimum number of torches and pushed back the darkness.
‘I have a bad feeling about this.’
Lawrence’s eyes, looking straight ahead, sank low.
The place his gaze rested on was the grass covering the field.
It had grown so high that it could not even be compared to when he had first come here.
The rain that had poured down for several days had made the grass even more luxuriant.
It was so serious that the ground could no longer be seen at all because of the grass.
‘At that height, it doesn’t seem like it would be easy to notice goblins approaching. Will this be all right?’
On an already dark night, the tall grass looked more than enough for goblins to hide themselves.
“Brother Peter. Haven’t the grasses grown too high? This looks dangerous…….”
“There’s already been a lot of talk about that lately. Originally, they should have cut them down long ago.”
“Then why……?”
“It’s all because of those knight bastards. Those bastards have no interest in things like this. To remove all this grass, an escort from the knights is essential, but since they won’t step forward, there’s nothing anyone can do. And if someone steps forward without permission and something happens, or they end up being punished, that would be a problem too, so it seems difficult for anyone to act carelessly.”
As Lawrence listened to the soldier’s complaints, his face gradually hardened.
How could the knights ignore the territory’s defense and the soldiers this much?
No matter how negligent they were, this was far too absurd.
That meant someone had to be intentionally blocking it.
And he could quickly infer who might have that kind of power.
The commander of the knight order, Juan.
Judging from how thoroughly he had seized control of the knight order and acted, it had to be said that he had a hidden intention.
If it had simply been to squeeze out more money, then this had gone too far to make sense.
Because of that, Lawrence had already guessed Juan’s hidden intention to some extent through this.
Since Juan had seized control of the knight order, which could be called the entirety of the count’s house’s military power, it was not difficult to know what course he would take afterward.
His goal had to be becoming the new master of the count’s house.
The Kingdom of Lumiere likely did not even know that the Arendel Territory existed, and even if the master of a territory like this changed, it would certainly not care at all.
No, to be precise, even if it knew there had been a change, it would have no room to care.
In the Kingdom of Lumiere, the previous king had died suddenly without naming a successor, so all kinds of intrigue were unfolding over the royal authority.
The three princes left behind were fiercely fighting one another to become king, and some nobles were expanding their influence by taking advantage of the weakened royal authority.
Even if one of the princes seized the throne, it had to be considered impossible for him to possess the same power as his predecessor.
‘Juan…… Just wait. That behavior of yours does not have much time left now.’
In Lawrence’s two eyes, the fierce gleam of a beast facing its prey shone.
Soon after, he summoned the Status Window.
Name: Lawrence Romanov
Class: None
Level: 17
HP: 700
MP: 750
Strength: 30
Stamina: 28
Agility: 31
Sense: 27
Skills: Mana Affinity.
```
Friend of Spirits.
```
In the short time that had passed, Lawrence had reached Level 17.
Arcadia was a game designed so that raising levels was even called atrociously difficult.
Until the first 10 levels, levels rose well, like in other games, but once one passed Level 10, even gaining more experience than the amount acquired while reaching Level 10 was not enough to advance to the next level.
And yet Lawrence had reached Level 17 in reality, not in the game, which showed just how diligently he had devoted himself to hunting.
“When the lord was in command, things like this never happened. Whew, if only the lord had not been injured back then…….”
Regret formed on Peter’s face.
As if things had been good back then, and as he showed concern and longing for his father, Lawrence’s chest somehow filled with pride.
At that moment, a goblin’s hideous scream sounded from somewhere.
“Kyaaaaaak.”
Unbelievably, the place where the goblin’s roar burst out was none other than directly beneath their feet.
At the chill that suddenly surged up, his heart began to tingle.
“Damn it.”
“Everyone, be careful. It’s goblins.”
The soldiers tried to straighten their formation, but even the experienced soldiers had no choice but to panic at the unexpected situation.
In the end, what they had feared had happened.
Just as Lawrence had discussed with the soldier earlier, the goblins had hidden their bodies in the tall grass and rushed all the way to directly beneath the Barrier Wall.
And of all places, they had chosen a low section of the Barrier Wall, while hundreds of goblins were swarming toward it.