Chapter 7: The First Guardian Knight!

"Gervas, leave! This is not a place for you to stay. Moreover, I do not wish for anyone else to know of anything here; otherwise, Viscount Pat will be angry. Do you understand?"

Bolo's tone cooled, yet Gervas seemed not to hear it.

"Ah, I understand. You are preparing to execute Knight Commander Lei Meng, are you not?" Gervas exclaimed in shock.

Seeing Bolo's face turn iron-green with signs of rage, Gervas continued, "Such a titled knight would be a pity to lose. Baron Bolo, why not sell him to me!"

Bolo was stunned, and Gervas's voice came again!

"Five gold coins! How about that?"

"Gervas, this is not a place for jokes..."

"Eight gold coins? You can share some with these guards; they absolutely will not speak out!"

Bolo's eyes flickered for a moment, yet he suppressed his greed. "Gervas, this is the order of my lord..."

"Lord Bolo, come here a moment; I have something I wish to tell you!"

Amidst Bolo's confusion, Gervas led him aside, away from the others, and whispered, "Lord Bolo, I heard you lost a great deal in Black Rock City, and then your family's accounts have some problems..."

Before the words were finished, Gervas felt a sudden chill appear on his spine.

"Who told you?"

Gervas forced down his discomfort and soothed, "Do not be nervous, Lord Bolo. Before my permission, this matter will absolutely not cause any problems. I swear by the God of Glory!"

Only after Gervas swore by the God of Glory did Bolo restrain his pressure somewhat. Gervas continued to add, "Shall we make a deal? Fifteen gold coins. You secretly sell Knight Commander Lei Meng to me, and I guarantee he will never return!"

"I am now preparing to proceed to Storm Domain to assume my fief. You know the dangers there! Lord Bolo, these gold coins, if you take them back, can fill some holes."

"Otherwise, even if I do not leak the secret, if you continue as you are, sooner or later problems will arise!"

"Storm Domain is your fief?"

"That is correct. I received the investiture only yesterday!" Gervas immediately displayed his scroll of investiture.

Bolo glanced at it only once, then fell silent, his eyes flickering uncertainly. After fully ten-plus seconds, "Give me the gold coins first!"

Gervas did not worry that the other party had any ill intentions.

Killing a commoner, a noble would at most pay some money; but killing a noble, one must be sent to the gallows.

Fifteen gold coins were handed into the other's hand, and the deal was directly concluded.

Bolo called all the other guards out of the forest before handing Lei Meng over to Gervas.

"He is yours now. I do not wish to see him appear in Viscount Pat's domain for the rest of my life!"

"I swear by the God of Glory that I will not let him appear in Viscount Pat's domain again!"

Bolo then nodded with relief, looking deeply at Lei Meng. "He has a daughter. Wait one hour outside the fief; I will have someone bring her!"

"Then many thanks, Baron Bolo!"

Gervas was even happier.

A man like Lei Meng, who dares to love and hate, shows he is very responsible.

And having a young daughter means Gervas can control him even better.

"Young Master Gervas, this is?"

Gervas returned to the campsite with Lei Meng, and Old John and the others were stunned.

How could it be that in only half an hour, their young master had kidnapped someone, and such a burly, tall one at that?

"I will explain later. Everyone, eat quickly. Tonight we need to move farther away and camp again!"

Over an hour later, a mounted soldier hurriedly brought a girl.

The girl was similarly bound hand and foot.

And with the girl's arrival, Lei Meng, who had not yet been untied, clearly grew agitated, constantly writhing and struggling to rush forward.

"Do not rush. After we move far away, I will release you!"

Having finished speaking, Gervas loaded both the girl and Lei Meng onto the carriage, and Gervas's party continued their journey under the night.

They marched until midnight, having already arrived within the domain of the next noble, before setting up camp again.

Dismissing the others, Gervas personally untied both of them.

"Father!"

"Lilia!"

The two, deeply attached as father and daughter, immediately embraced.

Gervas simply sat quietly aside.

After a moment, Lei Meng calmed his daughter and looked at Gervas with complex eyes.

Gervas smiled and met his gaze.

With a thud, Lei Meng knelt on the ground. "Thank you! Lord Gervas!"

Gervas's heart bloomed with joy, yet he maintained calm on his face. He hurried forward to help Lei Meng up. "A man's knees hold gold; the knees of an upright knight are even more precious!"

A strange look flashed in Lei Meng's eyes. "My own life and death, I no longer care about, but I thank you for saving Lilia!"

Gervas understood. "Knight Lei Meng, now that Lilia is by your side, you should even more live well and take good care of her growth!"

Lei Meng looked down at Lilia, his eyes full of tenderness, and slowly nodded.

And he was not foolish; he clearly understood what Gervas saved him for. Not pretending to be stupid any longer, he raised his head to look at Gervas. "Lord Gervas, I just heard you are preparing to proceed to Storm Domain? I wish to pledge loyalty to you!"

"Good! Knight Lei Meng, then let me formally invest you now!"

Lei Meng knelt again, but this time on one knee, bowing his head to Gervas.

Gervas drew the long sword at his waist and lightly tapped Lei Meng on both sides. "I, Gervas Gale, Baron and Lord of Storm Domain, formally accept you, Lei Meng, as my Guardian Knight. Lei Meng, are you willing?"

"I am willing, my liege. I, Lei Meng, here swear by the God of Glory: from now on, I will be loyal to you, charge and fight for you, without change for this life!"

"Rise, Knight Lei Meng. Now I formally appoint you as Knight Commander. The training of the five knight squires henceforth is entrusted to you; you shall command them!"

From this moment on, Gervas finally had his first Guardian Knight, and moreover, a Bronze Knight possessing battle qi.

……

Although Gale Hold and Saint Bit City originally belonged to the Southern Region, because this world's territory is vast, Gervas and his party still traveled for nearly ten days before reaching the border.

Along the way, the road remained relatively peaceful; perhaps because the surroundings were not his domain, the intelligence provided by the System contained no major events.

Of course, even so, it allowed Gervas to collect over a dozen gold coins, several valuable medicinal herbs, and a few wild beasts.

At dawn, Gervas woke slowly; here, the distance to Storm Hold was less than twenty li.

【Ding! Daily intelligence has refreshed...】

【Intelligence One: The unicorn that has circled Storm Hold for several days will land to forage by a small stream three li north of Storm Hold today; this will be its closest approach to Storm Hold, after which it will very likely return to the Death Mountains, where human presence is rare!】