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Chapter 527.1: Faint Sensation (1)

It had been many months since Roel Ascart last stepped onto the soil of the Ascart Fiefdom. The nearby mountains were cloaked in a layer of frost, and a chilling wind dyed the world silver.

In contrast to the lively spring scenery he departed in, the Ascart Fiefdom that he returned to felt serene. Riding on horseback, he immersed himself in the beauty of nature as a feeling of peace and satisfaction welled in his heart.

It was never easy to verbalize the emotions evoked by home.

Roel didn’t think that the Ascart Fiefdom was prosperous or bustling; the nearby Rosa City was way ahead of it. It was not the safest place in the world either; that would be Holy Capital Loren where the pope and the church dwelled. It was not even the place he was the most familiar with as he couldn’t recognize all the major streets.

Even so, he found himself missing this land whenever he had been away for a while.

This was the place he had grown up in. It was filled with memories of the time he had spent together with his family members. Just returning to this place could quieten his uneasy heart.

As for his feeling of satisfaction, it stemmed from the sight of prosperity arising from the Ascart Fiefdom’s recent years of swift development.

The Ascart Fiefdom used to feel desolate during wintertime. Those who were already having a tough time surviving struggled to keep warm and find food during this cold season. But over the past few years of development, the situation had completely changed for the southern region of the Ascart Fiefdom.

Tattered huts susceptible to draught had been insulated with warmer wood and stone houses. There was ample food and firewood to go around, evident from the trails of black smoke rising from the villages along the way. Hunters could even be spotted every now and then.

Without a doubt, life for the common populace had improved drastically as compared to before. These improvements translated into reputation and prestige for Roel.

He was warmly welcomed each time their convoy stopped by a village to stock up, a sharp contrast to the careful attitude civilians usually took to nobles. The people of the Ascart Fiefdom saw Roel’s visit as a huge honor, something that they could brag about to the nearby villages.

Many of them hoped that Roel could stay in their village even if just for a while longer, but he didn’t accept any of their offers. Their convoy would immediately set off after replenishing their stocks at two times of the usual market price.

“Lord Brother is truly popular… Are you really not going to stay for a night? It’s likely that Lord Father hasn’t reached home yet,” Alicia asked with a proud smile while looking at the villagers waving at them from the roadside behind.

“You’d be right, but we’ll have to make a short detour elsewhere first.”

“Detour? Lord Brother, is there a place you need to head to?”

“Mmhm. I’m going to visit a friend.”

Roel looked out of the window to gaze upon the distant mountain forests. Alicia spent a brief moment in thought before realization showed on her face.

All it would have taken was a single word for Roel to summon anyone in the Ascart Fiefdom for an audience with him. There was only one person she could think of who warranted a personal visit from him—’Chronicler’ Kayde.

As an ex-member of the Twilight Sages Assembly, what Kayde had done for the world was sufficient reason for Roel to accord it respect. But even when casting aside historical reasons, there was still another compelling reason for him to be courteous to the treant.

While Roel had invited Kayde to the Ascart Fiefdom in order to help the latter, the treant hadn’t been idling around after moving over. It had been contributing to the Ascart Fiefdom in its way.

After Kayde laid down its roots in the southern mountains of the Ascart Fiefdom, it summoned the werewolves of the Karon Forest, who arrived after months of traveling. These werewolves raised a bloodbath in the southern mountains and implemented a new order amongst the demonic beasts, placing them under Kayde’s rule.

This effectively resolved the wolf threat that had been plaguing the fiefdom once and for all.

To be fair, the Ascart Fiefdom did hold regular campaigns against the wolves, but those were only sufficient to keep the demonic beasts from posing a major threat to nearby villages.

But ever since Kayde stepped in, there wasn’t even a single strand of wolf hair to be found on the road. This played a huge part in ensuring internal supply routes. It wasn’t rare for visiting merchants to be awed by the high level of security within the Ascart Fiefdom.

What surprised Roel even more was the treant using its racial ability and the mana flow in earth veins to construct a sensory web that encompassed the entire Ascart Fiefdom.

Anyone who channeled mana comparable to an Origin Level 3 transcendent or above would immediately catch Kayde’s attention. Large-scale military mobilizations also wouldn’t escape its notice. It was practically a CCTV constantly on the lookout for threats in the fiefdom.

Should an enemy invade the Ascart Fiefdom, Kayde could also have the werewolves and demonic beasts under its command coordinate with Roel’s troops to pull off different military maneuvers to corner the invaders.

In other words, Kayde single-handedly contributed to the internal security, defense, and threat detection capabilities of the territory, not to mention that he doubled as an excellent drinking buddy too. No one could deny that he was an asset to the Ascart Fiefdom.

Roel couldn’t have been more proud of himself to have brought the treant over.

It was only right for him to pay a visit to this meritorious subject of the Ascart Fiefdom every now and then. Besides, there were matters that he needed to talk to Kayde about.

Alicia wholeheartedly supported his decision to visit Kayde with gleaming anticipation in her eyes.

Her relationship with Kayde could be described to be that of a worshiper and an idol due to her boundless life force. The treant always made sure to prepare a gift for her every time they met. Furthermore, she was planning to enter the southern mountains in the first place.

“Lord Brother, I have a surprise prepared for you.”

“You did?”

“I wasn’t planning to show you yet, but you’ll find out about it anyway once you enter the mountains,” Alicia spoke with a mysterious smile.

“Hm?”

As confused as Roel was, he didn’t probe any deeper into it.

Just like that, the Ascarts’ convoy strayed from its original path and drove into the southern mountains.

…

What kind of things should one prepare when visiting a friend?

This often posed a dilemma, but the answer was straightforward when it came to the ruler of Ascart Fiefdom’s southern mountains.

“Lord Roel, here are all the alcohol we could buy from nearby villages. Would this be sufficient?”

“This should be enough.”

Roel glanced at the dozens of giant wine vats towering in the heretics’ arms before answering Cynthia’s question affirmatively. With the gifts in place, he held Alicia’s hand and began making his way into the mountain.

He had left the other members of the convoy in the village, choosing to only bring the heretic army with him for this meeting with Kayde. This was to ensure the highest level of confidentiality.

There were many evil cultists after Kayde’s life, which was why it had to migrate to the Ascart Fiefdom in the first place. It was of utmost importance for them to keep Kayde’s existence under wraps. Even if not for that, Roel wouldn’t want outsiders to know about this hidden ace they had.

Who in the Ascart Fiefdom could be absolutely trusted with this secret?

The answer was clear: The heretics under Roel’s command.

Putting aside the fact that the heretics were absolutely loyal to Roel, it was also worth noting that they already knew about Kayde’s existence.

The Strength Sect used to reside in the Land of Chaos, but they came under the attack of evil cultists who coveted a treasure of theirs. Outnumbered, they were forced to seek refuge in the dangerous Karon Forest, where they only barely survived thanks to Kayde’s grace.

As for the Unyielding Sect, they happened to be escorting Roel when he visited Karon Forest in search of the ‘Drunken Treant’, which resulted in them learning about Kayde too.

Under the silvery moonlight, Roel’s group quietly ventured into the forest. They noticed that the trees ahead were slowly rearranging themselves to open up a path for them.

Treants could control trees as easily as breathing, and they commonly utilized this ability to prevent others from intruding on their territory. Yet, it was now being used for guidance instead.

After spending an hour walking through the forest, the group finally arrived at a mountain valley filled with giant trees. At the center of the grove, a treant opened its eyes and gazed upon the young man standing before it.