Seal

When Locke returned to the inn again, he was carrying a bunch of gift boxes in his arms. Bart and Sverre were also helping him carry a few items.

Both of them had seen how close Melson was to Locke. Although they didn't know how Locke knew such an important figure like Melson, it didn't stop them from worshipping him.

"I think I should call you brother," said Bart. He was a few months older than Locke.

Melson was very generous. The necklaces he gave Locke were of higher quality than the ones in Kristin's spatial ring. Each necklace was estimated to be worth at least 50 gold derahls. It was amazing that the fatty could give away ten of them in one go without batting an eyelid.

He gave two to Bart and Sverre, four to Glace, Suzanne, and the other girls. Of course, he didn't forget to give one to Angelina, and the remaining three were for his mother and sister.

Locke Senior and Tia had been strolling around Felor with their daughter these days. Locke had given them a lot of silver derahls. Locke Senior wasn't a spendthrift person, and Tia was used to being thrifty. The two of them still had a lot of silver derahls in their pockets.

On the other hand, they bought a lot of affordable and delicious trinkets for the soldiers and servants in the hotel to eat, which made them popular.

Locke Senior and Tia were now synonymous with good people in the eyes of this group of people.

Tia wanted to reprimand Locke for not being thrifty when she saw the precious jewellery necklaces that her son bought, but she swallowed her words the moment she saw the beautiful jade.

Women loved to be beautiful, even when they were old. It was their nature.

Tia had never seen such a precious and gorgeous necklace before. Before this, the most precious jewellery she had was the silver ring that Locke bought for her when he first came to the city.

When Locke Senior married her, he only gave her two goats and a copper ring as a betrothal gift.

Tia still wore the copper ring on her finger. The originally yellow copper ring had long since turned red, and the intricate patterns on it had also been worn away. However, Tia would always wear the copper ring. It was a testament to the old couple's love for each other.

Locke Senior was smoking a new pipe that Locke had bought for him. As a father, he was proud of his son's success.

"Let me put it on for you!" Locke Senior put down his pipe and ran over to put the necklace on Tia. "I think this jade necklace suits you." He then took out a green necklace.

Tia raised her head and squinted her eyes. She sat quietly on the chair and waited for Locke Senior to get busy.

Locke Senior wanted to put the necklace on for his sister, but unfortunately, Lia had already done it herself.

Leah chose an aqua blue gemstone necklace. Set off by her fair skin, the gemstone beauty looked even more beautiful.

"How is it?" asked Lia nervously. It was the first time she had worn such expensive jewellery.

Locke stuttered of of of of her.

There was also a golden necklace in the gift box. "Give the other one to Lia as well," said Tia. In Locke's family, Tia was the head of the household.

The enfeoffment ceremony would begin three days later. Locke Senior had already put on his formal attire early in the morning. It was a casual attire specially made for knights. There was a crossguard scabbard on the right side of the attire, and his boots were made of black leather. Not only were they durable, but they also didn't look out of place.

He wore a hat with slanted bangs. Overall, he looked more like a noble knight than a soldier.

Glace had helped him choose this outfit. As soon as Locke Senior showed up, everyone in the hotel was surprised.

"You look really handsome. Where did you buy it?" asked Bart curiously.

There were already attendants from the palace waiting outside the hotel. They were also the ones who delivered the news that Locke Senior was conferred as a noble knight.

Following the attendants, Locke Junior carefully walked into the palace with a group of people who looked like non-commissioned officers from the army.

They were all commoners who were about to be conferred their titles. Due to their outstanding contributions on the battlefield, they would be promoted to nobles during this ceremony.

Through chatting with them, Locke found out that most of them were promoted to noble knights. Only a few of them were conferred the title of lord, and all of them had made decisive contributions in a certain battle.

Locke Junior knew his place. If he hadn't saved Angelina by chance, he wouldn't have gotten the chance to be conferred a noble title. So, he tried his best to befriend his peers who were about to become noble knights.

There were about twenty to thirty officers present. As newly promoted nobles, they had a weak foundation and needed to make friends and build relationships. Moreover, because they were all from the same military camp, they were all very forthright. The group of people chatted merrily.

"Silence!" Perhaps the voices were getting louder and louder, but the head of the palace attendants who was walking at the front said in a low voice.

In an instant, the voices disappeared. Everyone lowered their heads like quails, including Locke Junior. They hadn't been conferred a knight yet, so they still had to lower their heads.

Among them, the head of the palace attendants' high-rank Knecht strength also played a big role. This made the group of quasi-noble knights tremble with fear. The palace was really full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons.

Officers like Locke, who had made a name for themselves in the army, would only submit to those who were stronger than them.

"Our palace is much more spectacular than Shalor's," whispered a bearded sergeant in the team.

"How can you tell?" asked someone next to him in a low voice.

"I was the one who led the attack on the side gate of Shalor's palace. Although their palace walls are magnificent, they're not as tall as ours," said the officer.

When Locke was in Audis, he didn't participate in the siege of the palace because he belonged to the local noble's private army. As soon as this person started to introduce them, Locke pricked up his ears to listen to the news.

The head of the palace attendants ignored the whispers of the group behind them. As long as they weren't too loud, they wouldn't care. After all, they were just servants, not nobles.

The main hall of Faustian's palace was a little more spectacular than Shalor's, but there were fewer palaces and it wasn't as gorgeous as Shalor's. This was what Locke had just heard.

After walking for half an hour, the group waited outside the main hall.

It hadn't been long since dawn, and there were only teams of patrolling guards outside the palace. The maids and attendants in the palace were rarely seen in this area.

As time passed, the outside of the main hall gradually became more crowded. One by one, the nobles walked into the hall with their heads held high.

Locke, who had been standing like a wooden stake for half the morning, glanced around with his hidden gaze. He didn't recognize anyone.

About a hundred and forty nobles entered the main hall. Locke estimated.

The wait was long and unbearable. Fortunately, they were all officers. Locke also found that almost all of them were at least low-rank Knechts, so the tiredness was nothing to them. They wouldn't even frown if they had to stand for a whole day.

In the main hall, the current Faustian king sat on the throne with the help of his attendants. Kent and Kenzir, who had just returned from the frontline, sat on both sides.

Three of the four margraves of the kingdom stood at the forefront of the nobles. Only the newly appointed margrave, Woode, was still in charge of Shalor.

There were hundreds of Faustian nobles standing below, all of whom had gained something from today's conferring ceremony.

Cardoj was also among them, but his position was relatively remote, in the southwest corner of the main hall.

If one looked closely, they would find that the positions of these nobles were also very knowledgeable. If they were to draw a line, it would feel particularly distinct.

In front of Cardoj was Marquis De Sandro. The other nobles were similar in that they also had their own backers.

There were also many nobles standing on both sides of the main hall. They were loyal followers of Kent and Kenzir respectively. Most of the nobles who supported Kent were in the business and economic fields, while those who supported Kenzir were mostly nobles in the military, most of whom were young.

"So, today, we will discuss the distribution of the meritorious service after the war!" The Faustian king didn't look old at all. His enunciation was clear and his voice was deafening.

Although it was a discussion, in fact, everything that needed to be discussed had already been discussed. Whether it was the council of nobles or the council of elders, they had all gotten their own share of the spoils of war. Of course, there were also some dirty things that needed to be adjusted slowly by the parties involved.

Every noble stepped forward to listen to the king's orders. They were either promoted by one rank, given a large territory, or rich treasures. Shalor's vast land and resources had fattened countless Faustian nobles.

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