I awoke to a mixture of pain coming from my palm and some strange sound coming from outside the tent. Unsure of how much time I slept for, I turned towards the cloth that served as the entrance to the tent. Some sunlight was seeping through a few small gaps, and it was slightly reddish.

Probably it's late noon, close to sunset, or something like that. I analyzed trying to distract myself from the now pulsating pain. And then the sound was heard again, it was the same one that had waked me up.

*Clang* *Clang*

At first, I had not identified it correctly, but that was definitively the sound of something hitting on metal.

Worried that something had again happened, I quickly confirmed that a good chunk of my mana, just one point short of 30 had recuperated. And then careful to not make a single sound, crawled to the entrance. Immediately peeking through one of the gaps as soon as I was near enough.

And then I saw him, a fully armored knight...

No, that's not it, it was a KNIGHT!

_______

Since my arrival on Lieade, I have seen a few hundred different people. Their professions, skills, and everything varied a lot. But amongst them, most of the people that I had interacted with were fighters, soldiers, or something related to combat. Hell, I can even throw bandits, killers, and kidnappers into the mix, as we had indeed 'interacted' closely and they were related to the same combat area as well.

Each of these combat-related people used weapons, and the variety wasn't small either. I saw spears, swords, daggers, axes, and even a couple of bows. Objectively speaking I even 'saw' a crossbow, probably closer than I wanted to, but yes.

But the armor department was one severely lacking variety. Everyday clothes, leather clothes, and chainmail. A couple of reinforced leather clothes like the ones Gris used, but... Where were the plate armors? The brigandines? Hauberks? And all the others things that one always imagines in such a sword and magic stage?

But now!

_______

I gasped at what I saw and lost track of time while examining and noting all the details of the knight's equipment and stats.

NAME & TYPE LEVEL (Hiding anything below average) Black Stag Order, Knight (Title) - Strength 19 Body (Constitution) 14 Close-Quarters (Martial) 20 Slashing (Martial) 15 Crushing (Martial) 16 Force (Martial) 21 Shield (Martial) 18 Block (Martial) 19 Weapons Knowledge (Perk) -

Plate covered most of his body, formed by several armor pieces fastened with leather belts to a dark crimson padded vest. From below his padded vest, chainmail rings emerged, making me wonder just how much weight was the guy carrying on himself. The sound that had awakened and then alarmed me came not from his armor, but the metal shield on a strap affixed to his left arm. One that with every step he made hit his leg and breastplate.

The sound aside, his shield attracted my attention because of the crest or emblem that was painted on it. A white sword, akin to the one from the Kingdom's coat of arms flanked by a pair of black antlers on each side. All of it, on a deep-red background.

The knight's head was covered by an open helmet, one that I would probably call a bascinet, allowing his face to be seen.

And what a face! If someone told me that the guy was an actor in Hollywood, where he took all the antagonist roles, I would surely agree. Unshaven, with beady eyes half-hidden by thick eyebrows. Completed by a crooked nose, meaty cheeks, and enough scars to scare anyone in broad daylight. Of these scars, the one that looked the most impressive (if such a world can be used) was the one that crossed his face almost horizontally, from cheek to cheek just a bit below over his mouth, almost like a mustache.

From the time I spent recording my thoughts of the moment, it's clear that I did spend a lot of time observing him.

***

With my observations finished, now it was time for the logical questions. Who was he, and why he was here? Not to forget if he was a friend or a foe.

Trying to not attract attention, I slightly peeked outside the tent, and looked around, trying to find any of the caravan members. And thankfully, just a few meters to the side, I saw Azar's chubby figure.

If that guy was here and he was not reacting to the knight, then it meant it was safe to come out.

So after a few deep breaths, mainly to look less awestruck about the knight's armor, I stood up and pulled the cloth aside.

***

"You're up? Good! I was hesitant to go kick you awake" Azar immediately approached as soon as he saw me.

"What happened?" I asked while discreetly inclining my head towards the direction of the knight, who after sparing me a single glance had returned to what he was doing. Well, if I consider walking in circles as doing something.

"The Count called for reinforcements, and they arrived an hour ago" Azar simply explained, before adding that everyone had wakened up from the sleeping drug and were feeling fine as well.

The fact that the Count had called, or at least was planning to call reinforcements (and had the means to do so!) but forgot to share it was irritating. But on second thought, who was I? Just a random guy, so why would he need to go out of his way for me?

But in any case, more guards, and like this one was a good thing. It meant that we would reach Mevuroz safely, at least if the Count did not leave now that he had an escort. As for the matter of everyone waking up, even though I knew they would, it was nice to hear that no one had suffered anything except for oversleeping.

"So what's the plan now? And exactly why were you going to wake me up?" Seeing that Azar was not going to speak without being asked, I took the initiative to do so. While trying to hide the surprise at such, after all, Azar never had needed prodding to speak!

"Reuben and the Count discussed a plan of action, and they were planning to share it with everyone" As he answered, Azar motioned towards the north.

Then noticing my unspoken question added "The wagon you used previously? It did not suffer much damage, and so the Count has resumed using it as his quarters after a few repairs"

As we began walking towards the wagon, I wondered, did the repairs include cleaning the poor bastards below it?

***

As the Count's wagon entered my field of view, I noticed several figures nearby and supposed that the improvised meeting had already started. But as we approached more, I found out that it wasn't so, but just of soldiers and knights. A lot of them to be sincere.

"Azar, tell me, just how many reinforcements did the Count call for? A small army?"

"Well, I think there are over 40? But..." Azar began replying before pausing. Surprised, I looked at him, only to notice that his face had darkened.

"What happened? It's almost as if you saw a monster!" I tried to lighten up the mood a little, growing more alarmed because of the situation. Just what the hell is going on?!

"Haaa, sorry. It is not related to you, and it's nothing bad. Just..." Azar paused again before shaking his head and then quickly explaining the reasons behind his strange conduct while we both stood there, a few hundred meters away from the wagon.

Every upper-class noble, like Count Rien, had a territory under his direct rule. And the soldiers of that territory responded to him. In the case of the Count, his territory was called Zeln, and it even had a Knight order on it. Although the Count had not shared the reasons for his incognito journey, he did mention it was so only until Megvuroz. From there, he would be picked and escorted by the Knights of the order back to his region.

But as the incident happened, he sent a distress signal via some kind of magic tool (will need to confirm it, but I think it's called 'Alarm Beacon') and they rushed out to meet him.

Until here, everything looked fine and normal, so why was Azar so distressed? He had told me something about that he was from some kind of noble family, but left it to study magic. But he never specified what family it was, or from where did it hail.

Still, I was sure he wasn't from Zeln, or he would know the Count, at least from sight.

"Haa, sorry, I got sidetracked. You see, when an emergency happens, the knights tend to gather extra soldiers on the go" Azar sighed and at last reached the reason for his downcast mood.

His father was Baron Totraz of Tessaway Fort. A fort near Megvuroz. And because of that, it was the Baron's retainers the ones to join the knights.

Being a good (ass licking) noble, Baron Totraz could not withstand not sending someone from his family. In this case, his niece Ariane. Who was, at best, full of hate towards Azar.

"Oh" I could barely imagine how could a meeting like that go, especially without knowing the full story. Still, that bare minimum and Azar's mood was enough to understand that it could not have gone well.

"Yeah, it was awful" Azar shrugged before suddenly laughing and adding "But you should have seen her face after Reuben and Gris thanked my father, through her, for such a son"

"Hahaha, seriously?" Well, I knew that Reuben was a sly fox, but Gris? That's a quality I did not suspect in her.

"Mmm, well, now let's go or we will late" Azar began moving after pointing at the declining sun.

***

The soldiers from Tessaway Fort wore brown sleeveless coats over their chainmail, adorned with an emblem that represented a mountain pass with some kind of white-colored building in the middle. And we were intercepted by a squad of four about two hundred meters from the wagon. Two of them had shields and spears, while the other pair carried something that resembled poleaxes or bardiches. The difference to the ones that I knew about was that the ax blade had several spikes extending from it. As I discovered later, they are called 'Tessaway Long-Axes' and are like another symbol for the fortress.

I expected them to confirm our identities or something, but in turn, they just nodded to Azar before surrounding and accompanying us to the wagon.

As we walked, I counted a total of twenty soldiers, considering that some must be staying in the camp or guarding any means of transport they used to get here. Then that number will increase to 30 or even 40.

I also noticed three knights, geared into the same type of plate armor over the deep crimson vests. The only differences in equipment would be that their helmets were visored and that two of them carried no shields, in turn having an enormous sword strapped on their back and a shorter one on their belt.

"Their order is named after the great hero, Lockhart the Great Sword, and some of the knights train in the use of that weapon" Probably noticing my interested glance, Azar exclaimed in a low voice.

"Master Azar, is that thing even usable?" One of the guards heard the explanation and inclined his head to ask in a similar whisper.

"Well, I haven't seen it in combat, but I heard that their grandmaster won seven tournaments in a row using one before assuming his position" Azar wasn't even surprised by the sudden question, answering right away.

"So it's Master Azar?" I whispered while slightly elbowing the mage.

"Well, mages are usually referred by their title, mastery, or position. Not that you need to do so with me" Azar shrugged while answering.

As we approached the door leading into the wagon, the heads of the knights standing just a few meters away turned to us, but they did not ask or react in any other way. Thus, I decided to take the initiative and gently knocked at the door.

"Who dares to disturb the Count?!" A shrill shriek was my answer, and while I was trying to understand what the hell and who was the owner of that voice, Azar pushed me aside and pulled the doorknob.

He did introduce himself and me while doing so, but from the last part of his words, it was clear who had shouted - "We are here on the Count's express orders, dearest cousin!"

***

Shock. Jaw-dropping shock. Such is the only way to describe what I felt like when the door to the wagon opened. As well as during all the time I remained inside.

It was hardly six meters in length and about half that in width, so how the demons, gods, or whatever else the insides could be so spacious as to accommodate four, 4! rooms? Well, the answer was damn simple - magic. Still, it was my first time seeing such an application of it.

I had looked into the other two wagons before, so I knew that they were, well, simple. But this one, as soon as the door opened, you would see a reception room. At least twice the size of the wagon's dimensions. With several chairs, tables, and even ornaments. All of it, illuminated by a comfortable greenish light coming from the walls themselves.

"How you dare to enter uninvited? And even bring some commoner?! For the Ten, your manners have fallen so low after you left the Fortress!" The same shrill voice immediately began half-yelling as we barged inside.

Azar ignored the owner of the voice, and continued through the room, opening the door in the back and motioning for me to follow. Which I did almost right away, after taking a few moments to examine his cousin, and to make a small bow attempt.

"Lady Ariane, I am called Lindar. The Count sent your cousin to pick me up" Hell, I even introduced myself in the best manner that I could think.

Sepyre had provided me a few books on manners, and I recalled that only the current Baron would be a baron. As for his family members, they had to be considered untitled nobles. Thus, calling her 'Lady' was the correct way of address.

In response, I got a very brief glare before she silently turned her head away, making a show of not even noticing me.

As I continued my way, I did not pay further attention to her either. Still, I was indeed surprised both by her stats and her appearance.

For the former, she was, hmm, average. And even that was to stretch the meaning of the world. Except for speech, education, and state, she hardly even reached the 8' for other stats.

NAME & TYPE LEVEL (Hiding anything below average) Kingdom of Neverc, Noble (Title-Noble) - Speech (Social) 16 Education (Social) 18 State (Economics) 13 Courtier Knowledge (Perk) -

The perk - [Courtier Knowledge]... It is my first time seeing it, and I have no previous knowledge of it. So I can not say what it serves for. Still, perks are (usually) obtained from stats and skills, so I will consider that it's related to her skillset and birth.

But the important thing was her looks! Slender, about 160 cm tall, long blonde hair arranged into an elaborately looking braided ponytail, pale skin. Azar, are you sure that either you or she isn't adopted?

She was dressed in what I could call a noble 'adventuring' suit consisting of short leather pants, a richly decorated white tunic, and a light leather jacket over it. The light-brown leather was embroidered with golden leaf-shaped details.

She had turned away from me, so I could not see anything except her profile, but from what I saw, she was definitively a beauty. A young one as well, as I could hardly give her anything above 20 years of age. My small examination also made me find out that make-up existed even here, as that red lips were definitively not natural.

***

The room after the reception was a dining one. Illuminated with golden-colored hues and a big, covered with a white cloth table surrounded by chairs.

There was a knight here, but different from the ones outside, he did not wear a helmet and was armed only with a spear. He stood near the door at the back, probably guarding the count.

He looked pretty young, and his plate armor was slightly lighter - with the pauldrons being replaced by simple shoulder guards, and his chest plate being less massive. No scars or facial hair covered his open face, but his stats were just a couple of points lower in comparison to the first knight I saw.

NAME & TYPE LEVEL (Hiding anything below average) Black Stag Order, Knight (Title-Noble) - Kingdom of Neverc, Baronet (Title-Noble) - Strength 18 Education (Social) 15 Close-Quarters (Martial) 15 Middle-Quarters (Martial) 17 Slashing (Martial) 14 Piercing (Martial) 18 Quick (Martial) 18 Force (Martial) 14 Parry (Martial) 17 Weapons Knowledge (Perk) -

And he is a noble as well? Being a Knight is a tradition of his family? Whatever.

"Master Azar" He nodded as we approached, and then looked at me before slightly inclining his head and asking "And you are, Lindar?"

"Yes, Sir..?" I slightly bowed while confirming my identity after Azar nodded at me.

"Ah, excuse me my manners. Vass, Knight of the 'Black Stag' Order" He lightly smiled while apologizing. Making me remember Sidharth and wonder, are all Baronets so polite?

"The Count sent me to get him" Azar spoke up after our small exchange, and Vass nodded before taking a step to the side and knocking on the door.

"Yes?" I heard the Count's voice from behind it and supposed that now we will, at last, reach him.

"Master Azar and Lindar" Vass replied immediately while snapping to attention, even though the door was still closed.

"Allow them to come in" After a small pause, the Count's voice sounded again.

***

The third room of this 'wagon', better called a palace on wheels, was an office. One that was practically identical to the ones I saw in historical movies. An imposing and heavy wooden desk, flanked by a throne-like chair on one side, and two normal ones on the other one. Several bookshelves were built into the walls, as well a few weapons hung on them. And a pelt as tapestry below the desk.

The contents of the desk also looked like the ones from a historical drama, with scrolls, books, a couple of inkwells, and quills strewn all over it.

The only factors that were different were the low, bluish light coming from the walls and the fact that we were inside a wagon, not a castle.

"Azar, I am apologetic to have made you go get him and now request you to retire, but..." The Count lightly smiled and glanced towards the door.

"Yes, your Excellency" Surprisingly Azar bowed respectfully and almost immediately left the room. Count Rien, what the hell did you do to him? I recall an absolute lack of manners in the man before!

"And you, come on, sit" The Count pointed me towards one of the chairs.

As I slowly sat down, I could only think about the reasons for this sudden audience. The meeting and discussion of plans were not going to take place here, so, why the hell did the Count make me come?

"Young man, I requested your presence here to confer on my concerns about the raid, as well the reward for your actions" As always, the Count perfectly read what I was about to ask, and so I simply nodded, intending to concentrate on listening.

The part about 'confer', or discuss was probably just because of his manners, as I doubted that I could debate something with a Count. Especially now that he was showing off his position. But rewards? That seemed pretty interesting.

***

As I had supposed, the Count did not ask me anything but simply stated what he wanted from me. In short, I was to forget about the incident, and not expose my participation in it even if asked. The ones that took part would know, but that was his issue to take care of. Well, I don't truly care about that. Even more, I truly like the sound of not being involved at all!

And I wasn't mistaken about the reward part to be interesting.

Count Rien, with a slightly ashamed (faked as hell) expression, told me that as I did not participate in an incident that never happened, I could not aspire to be openly commended for my actions. But feeling that it would be simply unjust to only thank me (you don't say!), he offered me three rewards. From which the last one was optional, and up to me to decide.

One was to grant me papers as a resident of his territory, so I could freely travel the country. The second one was money, not a big sum (by his words), but enough for me to not worry for a few months (again by his words). The reason why I had to say that it was his definition, was because the amount appeared extremely staggering to me - 5 Primordial Drakosh. Note: I did not know what the hell they were, but he added that they would be equivalent to 50 gold coins.

And the third reward was a recommendation letter to a Baron (to conceal the fact that I even knew the count) that would allow me to join a guild or one of the Kingdom's ministries. The reason for it being optional was because it would mean that I would be considered someone from the Zeln region nobles people, thus not only limiting my options (as if I had any right now) but also forcing me to work in the region (Basically? For the Count).

About an hour later, having promised to think about the letter before we reached Megvuroz, I left the room with a few other instructions. Which were basically to continue acting as normal, and not talking to anyone about the incident.

At least the Count plans to travel with us, so safety is assured. Thinking like that, I quickly made my way out of the enchanted wagon. Lady Ariane was still making a show of not noticing me when I passed through, but I did bow and gave her a formal farewell.