If someone like Laine, officially appointed by the kingdom with a document, becomes a Kingdom Knight, they are fully considered part of the noble class.
For ordinary farmers, no matter how much they advance, they have reached the pinnacle at this level unless there's an exception. Otherwise, most nobles cannot allow farmers of non-noble birth to enter the noble pyramid with titles.
Out of interest, Laine also taught the child a few moves. Seeing the sky was not early, during the deep winter, the Nord place only had six hours of daylight, he had to quickly prepare to set off.
"Thank you, Lord Knight! May I know your name?" Laine taught the boy the most basic swordsmanship from the Nord Kingdom Army — Cross Swordsmanship, then took his leave.
"Laine."
"Laine?"
"Yes, my name is Laine."
"Ah, could you be...!?"
"Haha!"
After returning to the inn, it had become much more lively. Laine went back to his room to sort out his things, ready to set off.
"Hello, Mr. Knight!" A middle-aged man enjoying lunch at his seat saw Laine coming down from upstairs and, noticing the knight's badge on his chest, proactively spoke.
"Good afternoon." Laine realized this was the Imperial Merchant who had joined that group of locals for revelry in the inn last night.
"My name is Oliver, from the Empire. May I have the honor of knowing your name, Mr. Knight?" The merchant reached out proactively. Laine unobtrusively frowned; he had experienced interactions with merchants before, no trade without deception. Merchants always acted with strong purpose, and one who actively allies himself definitely has a motive.
"Laine, I'm called Laine."
This merchant appeared to be in his forties, with long hair, wearing a monocle, dressed quite lavishly, and had multiple gold and gemstone rings on his hands. However, Laine could tell at a glance they weren't very high-end goods, but the silver thumb ring on his left hand seemed out of place, and Laine could feel magical fluctuations from it. If he guessed correctly, this should be a magical item.
Interesting!
Planning to have a hearty meal before setting off, Laine, being idle, chatted with the Imperial Merchant. From him, he learned that the merchant was originally moving with a caravan, but because the Lord of Wulan Town still owed an outstanding balance, he came here especially to collect it. Laine noticed the merchant's guards were well-equipped, with uniform standard scale armor and longswords, and two guards had crossbows on their backs.
The merchant's prosperity could be seen from his guards and his attire. The roads in the wild parts of this world were very dangerous, with various demons and robbers roaming outside. However, if it was internal human affairs, nobles and merchants were mostly caught and held for ransom, rather than killed.
"Mr. Knight, may I have the honor of knowing your name?"
"I'm called Laine."
"Black hair, blue eyes, under twenty-five. When I saw you yesterday, I knew you were the hero of the Nord Kingdom they were talking about." Oliver had a face of "I know your little secret," and laughed with a hint of flattery.
"I never intended to hide my identity." Laine picked up a spoonful of meat soup and replied sarcastically.
"Mr. Laine really doesn't look like a Nord, more like an Imperial. Among our Imperial people, those of Aachen lineage have black hair and blue eyes like Mr. Laine. This lineage is the most popular in our Empire. Besides, black-haired, green-eyed people like me, the Brunswick people, and brown-haired Altdorf people are also very popular." The merchant seemed reluctant to get straight to the point and started talking about lineage instead.
"Blonde, green-eyed Brittania people must have good status in the Empire as well, while those with red hair, yellow skin, and black skin aren't as welcomed, right?" Laine laughed lightly, seeing the merchant did not intend to get straight to the point, and did not say much, only speeding up his eating.
Charlemagne had black hair and blue eyes of Aachen lineage, and among the first twelve Gallorin's Knights to follow him, there were Brunswick blood and Altdorf blood. It's not surprising these three lineages are the most popular in the Empire.
Sure enough, Laine wasn't in a hurry, but Oliver started to feel anxious.
"Mr. Laine, the wild outside Wulan Town seems unsafe. It's said people from the Justice Church are hunting down a certain evil powerful being, so..." The merchant clearly had a request, after briefly mentioning the situation, he politely asked if they could travel together, with him covering the expenses along the way.
"Sorry, I have an appointment." Laine shook his head, looking genuinely regretful.
"Have an appointment?" The merchant seemed very disappointed.
"Yes, it's not polite to make others wait any longer." Laine got fully equipped, picked up the Warhammer, and headed out into the snow from the inn.
"May the Goddess of Fortune bless your future path, Lord Knight." The innkeeper watched Laine's figure and murmured.
"There's no choice, Fake, Mather, let's set off." The merchant Oliver sighed, having stayed long enough in this small town, he had to set off.
"Let's go!"