Identity

Chapter 46: Identity

When Raven woke up from being unconscious, he was lying in a comfortable bed. But unlike the one he used to sleep in, this one appeared a bit more luxurious and larger.

Raven slowly glanced around and noticed the room was decorated with luxurious curtains, mats, costly lamps, and a chandelier attached to the ceiling.

"Am I in a Noble mansion house?" He couldn't help but ask.

"You are not. Anyway, how did you end up in that situation?" A familiar voice came from the left side, causing his face to stiffen.

He slowly turned towards his left and noticed Elizabeth was sitting on the table chair and was looking in his direction curiously.

Noticing his silence, Elizabeth let out a deep sigh and added.

"I also noticed that your aunt and sister disappeared without a trace. But what surprised me was that even Baron Alexander kept quiet about this matter. He didn't even issue any search warrant and seems to have already known about your family origin." She pondered for a moment and soon shook her head.

"Well, I don't want to pry into your personal matters. But it would be best if you realized that you can't do everything alone, Raven. Although I don't know what happened within your family, there seem to be assassins after your head. So, what are you going to do now?"

'She indeed did a research. But I understand why she couldn't find any information about us.'

Raven remained silent for a while and soon spoke.

"I need a completely new identity, Teacher. To save my aunt and sister, I must hide my identity and slowly strengthen myself without my family finding out."

'It seems he never intended to reveal his true identity. Hmm, hiding his identity and slowly accumulating strength using a fake one? This kid has such strong determination at such a young age.' But she knew that simply getting stronger wouldn't solve anything in Raven's situation.

"So, your final goal is to obtain a Noble title?" She asked.

"Somewhat similar, Teacher," Raven responded vaguely, causing Elizabeth to furrow her brows.

"Your request is much more complicated than I thought. But it's not impossible." She deliberated for a moment and soon added.

"As long as you become a soldier of a noble lord, it's not an impossible goal. If you go by normal means, you must work as a normal soldier for over a decade or two to gain that noble's recognition and the 'Knight' title. After that, you need a great reputation, battle achievements, and lots of money to advance in the hierarchy. Even with all this, the best you can get is the non-hereditary noble title with a 0% chance of passing your title to your descendants. Worst of all, you only receive some medals in the name of honor and achievement and won't even receive any territory to manage." Her words made Raven to face the reality.

"And there are already more than hundreds of non-hereditary nobles in the Empire itself. Even if you achieve such a title, I don't think you will get any true support from the real nobles."

"Is there no other way, Teacher?" Raven asked, recalling her mentioning this as the only normal way.

"There are two, actually. First is to enter politics and compete for the Empire's Parliament Membership. Every fifty years, a parliament election will be held to elect a new prime minister. Although he is nothing more than a puppet observer of the Mage Council, his position in the Empire is second only to the Emperor. Although becoming a prime Minister is impossible, you can try becoming one of the seventy Parliament Members. As long as you become one, you can indeed get the status of equal to a noble for the next fifty years. And there are around 22 years left for the next election. If you utilize this chance and increase your popularity among the masses, you can indeed achieve your goal."

"22 Years? I can't wait that long." Raven instantly shook his head. His priority was to save his aunt before she was transported to the Empire's Iron Prison.

"Hmm, there is indeed another way to rise in your rank shortly and even attract the attention of the Emperor himself. Well, that will only be possible if this plan becomes successful." Her words instantly piqued his interest.

"Can you tell me in detail, Teacher?" Raven asked as he tried to sit up and listen.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth nodded and asked a question.

"Have you ever heard of Pioneer Knight?"

Raven's eyes widened.

Of course, he had studied about the Pioneer Knights during his second semester in the Knight Training Academy.

"They are the bold, noble adventures who gathered mercenaries and personal combatants to clear the unexplored regions by exterminating monsters and magical beasts and establishing a new land under their name. Whitbard Family Founder also established this land as a Pioneer Knight with the help of his family and friends and soon became a hereditary noble by swearing his loyalty to the Emperor."

"Correct. But becoming a Pioneer Knight isn't easy. To even get the Empire's recognition to become a Pioneer Knight, you must be born from a noble lineage. That's why hundreds of youngsters from Noble and fallen Noble lineages move towards the border region frequently and dream of establishing a small territory. But none succeeded. Either those youngsters got themselves killed by powerful magical beasts when exploring or gave up on their goals after facing the harsh reality. Rarely did some succeed in establishing small land, but the nearby nobles also swallowed some of their lands, resulting in failures. It always comes with high risk. So, what do you think of this idea?" Elizabeth asked.

[This idea is indeed good, lad. If you stay at the border, you'll also be able to encounter different magical beasts and rank up yourself pretty quickly.] Zera agreed to Elizabeth's suggestion.

"Then, can you please arrange a suitable identity for me, Teacher?" Raven asked.

Elizabeth spoke while talking out a badge with a painting of a cockscomb flower from her space ring.

"If you plan on staying in Baron Alexander's territory, your real identity might be exposed sooner. It would be best for you to leave the city tonight. As for the new identity… I'm not an expert in that field, but I have an acquaintance who works in the Empire Statistic Office."

She then flipped the badge towards the other side and continued.

"Go to Countess Spade's territory and start from there. As for your new identity, enter Giaris City and look for a man named Franco in Red Apple Inn. Once you find him, show him this badge and tell him that I'm the one who sent you there. Although greedy, he is not a person who would stab you in the back."

Raven nodded his head as he managed to sit up steadily and thanked her.

"Thanks for this help, Teacher. I'll definitely return this favor one day!" He said from the bottom of his heart.

"We'll see about that," Elizabeth said as she stood up from the chair, walked closer to him, and gave him the badge.

"Take rest until evening. Once dusk appears, I'll stealthily take you out of the town and leave you on the town's outskirts. From then onwards, you must try your best to keep your identity hidden and act more cautiously. Got it?" Elizabeth asked in a solemn tone. In truth, she was taking a huge gamble while betting everything on Raven.

'But this kid is the smartest of all his classmates. He also seems to have found a pathway for himself. I'm sure he will become a powerful Walker and help me in many ways!' 

While thinking about the future, Elizabeth quietly turned around and walked out of the luxurious bedroom.

Once the door was completely shut down, Raven breathed out a sigh of relief and asked in his mind.

'Zera, can you tell me more about the system's functions?'

His question startled Zera.

[Don't you know already? I have long told you about all the functions, though.] Zera said in a clueless tone.

'I'm talking about that strange feather that allowed me to revive from death. I never knew there was such a trump card.' Raven said in a serious tone.

[Oh? That was one of the one-time-useable skill slots. When the system awakened me, I found that most of the backup functions were destroyed during reincarnation, leaving only a few things like 'One-time useable skills.' To make your life a bit easier, I used the 'Eldrich Analysis' and 'Wisdom Link' skill slots. In the Mirage Woods, I felt slightly uneasy about you going deeper into the woods and used the 'Rebirth' Skill slot as a backup. The remaining four more 'One-Time useable skill slots' are: Erase Existence, Destiny Change, Nightmare Loop, and Meteorite Descend. But don't use them unless it is necessary.] Zera warned him.

Raven remained in the same position for a while and soon closed his eyes.

He could clearly tell that each spell was exceptional on its own.

'But I don't think they will help me save my aunt in any situation, though.' He looked grim.

After a long time, Raven finally spoke.

'Zera, I have a plan. But I think it will be a bit dangerous. Also, is there a way to obtain any bloodline spell that could allow me to shapeshift?'