Chapter 37: Yiman

Black Stone Manor.

"Olivia cannot get off the carriage; as one gifted with Divine Grace, her carriage door has been welded shut..."

With a faint smile, Aaron woke up.

He had watched Olivia all the way from her wavering to her continued determination, and she even intended to assist Lin in developing and expanding the 'Light of Redemption'.

Furthermore, after returning to 'Headquarters', she held a thanksgiving Ritual for him, incidentally sacrificing a bit of the Spirituality of the 'Pupa' and a Secret Transmission.

"'Pupa' is life and change... at the same time, it also possesses the characteristic of immutability."

Aaron looked at his own skin; with a slight shift of his thoughts, he felt every fine hair on his skin become incomparably sensitive, even able to capture the subtle movement of gases in the air, using this to judge the movement of various objects within a certain range.

"Besides this, using the characteristics of the 'Pupa', I should also be able to harden my skin within a certain range... and gain defensive power."

"Of course, at low stages, it still cannot defend against close-range musket fire... but Olivia didn't die after being hit so many times at close range, only suffering heavy injuries, which is enough to prove the point; the defensive power is not bad!"

He looked at his palms and discovered that between his fingers, there were, shockingly, translucent—threads?

"I am... Spider-Man!"

Aaron let out a low growl, and with a lift of his hand, a thread shot out, sticking to the clothes on the coat rack, and he gave it a hard tug.

Snap!

The thread broke...

Broke...

Broke...

"After all, in the parlance of the dream world, I am still just a mortal who has only just begun to awaken my Spirituality; there is still a long way to go if I want to cut monsters with threads like Olivia..."

A wry smile appeared at the corner of Aaron's mouth: "And... the Spirituality of the 'Pupa' is also constantly dissipating. I even suspect that even if I use a Ritual to advance in reality and fix the path, I will still be knocked back down..."

"This world is truly stifling..."

After his sigh, it did not take long for him to return to calm; he summoned the maid Daili to come in and serve him while he dressed, then asked about the day's schedule during breakfast.

Basically, as a noble of this era, daily life was very leisurely; being idle all day and lingering at hunts and banquets was the norm.

Occasionally, as a lord, one would inspect the territory or play the role of a high judge to handle disputes among the commoners as a pastime.

Compared to other lords, Aaron should be considered a relatively diligent one.

At this time, the fat scholar Albert, wearing a grey scholar's robe, said: "Baron, you have a visitor today; it is Knight Yiman of the Emerald Territory..."

He was Aaron's neighbor, originally loyal to the Davis Family, but later surrendered very early in the 'Black Crow War', managing to retain his fief.

Of course, the fief was retained, but this time, in Theodore's grand distribution of titles, there was no share for him.

"Is it the season for visiting friends?"

Aaron muttered.

"In fact, it should have started long ago, but because of the various sequelae brought by the war, especially the various small disturbances in the Upper Green Forest, it has been delayed until now..."

Albert replied softly.

"A bunch of dregs; the war is already lost, what more do they want?"

Aaron sneered; these opponents included those remnants of the Davis Family's collateral branches, as well as the dispossessed nobles.

They were unwilling to accept the failure of the war and hid in the deep mountains and old forests, becoming actual bandits.

Of course, this was a matter of public security.

Aside from those few direct territories, the Sotos Family left the rest to the lords of each district to be responsible for.

"What is Knight Yiman's reputation like?"

Aaron thought for a moment and asked.

These surrenderers and rebels originally had good relations and close blood ties; they might even be the same family.

It was hard to guarantee there wouldn't be cases of shielding.

And in their eyes, what kind of attitude they would have toward Aaron—the bloodline of the Sotos Family, the culprit who caused the war's failure, and the occupier who seized their territory—was completely obvious.

"Knight Yiman is a benevolent lord, possesses great martial strength, and is also skilled at teaching students; his Disciple Mika achieved good results in the last martial arts tournament."

Scholar Albert said: "And... he is actively releasing goodwill toward our side."

"So, you think he is a firm defector?"

Aaron's expression was playful.

"Yes, after all, anyone with insight can see that the current Green Forest is already under the Sotos Family; as long as one understands how to choose interests, no one will go against this general trend... In other words, those who go against this general trend will only be crushed without mercy."

Albert said.

"Then, I look forward to today's meeting."

Aaron closed his eyes and could feel Albert's steady breathing and heartbeat; it could be seen that he was likely saying these things sincerely.

'Is this also an ability of the 'Pupa'? I retract my previous judgment. Olivia is a woman even stupider than Lin; possessing this kind of ability, she was still tricked by a group of ordinary people? Does she trust others too much? Or after the Ritual, has her Spirituality already decayed to the point where she cannot sense these things?'

At this time, not far from Black Stone Manor, a carriage convoy was slowly moving forward; the leading Ranger carried a flag depicting a double-horned axe, only the original azure background had been changed to dark green, representing some kind of change.

In the convoy, a carriage curtain was suddenly pulled open, revealing the face of a beautiful young girl: "How much longer until we arrive?"

"Respected Miss Monika, please be patient for a moment; before the sun reaches its zenith, we will certainly arrive."

A Knight rode his horse forward and answered the other's question softly; watching the curtain fall and that pretty face disappear, his expression remained unchanged, but he secretly tightened his reins.

"Ahead is the Black Stone Territory; stop and rest, and send someone to report our arrival. This is politeness!"

Knight Yiman was a middle-aged man in his forties; his short-cropped hair was half-grey, but his spirit was quite good. At this moment, he waved his hand and ordered the convoy to stop.

The group stopped to rest, some feeding the horses, some drinking water.

The young Knight from before walked toward the river to fetch water, looked around, and turned into a bush.

In the shadows, another man dressed as a farmer, but with very delicate and smooth skin, was waiting for him.

"Insight Into Everything!"

The Knight spoke first.

"Insight Into Everything! Mika... it is a pleasure to see you; we have always seen your loyalty to the Davis Family."

The man spoke with a laugh, his tone still retaining an aristocratic Arrogance.

"How is the plan proceeding?"

"It is not going well. Although Knight Yiman expressed sympathy for the Davis Family's plight, he does not seem to want to stir up another war... He has already decided to lean completely toward the Sotos Family, and this trip to Black Stone Territory also carries the intention of arranging a marriage for Miss Monika..."

A trace of pain appeared in Mika's eyes.

"That damned old dog," the man cursed, "and the equally damned Aaron Sotos!"

He thought of how he had previously tried to incite the people of Black Stone Territory to rebel and overthrow the rule of the 'outsider', but what he had reaped was a shameful failure.

Last winter was supposed to be the best opportunity, but that Aaron directly loaned out grain, and those ignorant commoners just followed him; they simply threw their loyalty into the mud!

Then, this year, because of the bountiful harvest and the lowered taxes, those commoners wanted to change even less; they are indeed a bunch of mudbloods who deserve to rot in the mud for generation after generation!