In the Game World: the Silver Lion Duchy, Western Border Gale Territory.
The great hall of the Smith family's ancient castle was brightly lit by candlelight.
At this moment, only two people were in the hall.
One was the Patriarch of the Smith family of Gale Territory, the fifty-three-year-old Baron Eric.
The other was York.
"Very well. There are no outsiders here now."
"York, my son, you should know that successfully developing a new territory on the frontier means more than just killing or subjugating a territorial Demon Beast. So, I wish to confirm one more time... my son, surely you haven't forgotten the promise you made to me?"
Though Baron Eric was advanced in age, his spirit and bearing were excellent.
Anyone who didn't know his age would never guess he was over fifty.
After all, given his robust physique and vigorous presence, some would even believe he was only thirty.
Therefore, even as Baron Eric merely sat there, calmly and quietly gazing at York, his presence alone exerted immense psychological pressure.
Facing his father, who was as imposing and even heartless as ever, York felt a tremor of fear in his heart, yet he was now filled with a powerful sense of courage.
He took a moment to compose himself and addressed Baron Eric directly:
"I have not forgotten, Father."
"I did indeed promise you that if you secured a charter for me to develop new lands, I would bear any and all consequences on my own."
"But, Father, my losses this time were too great."
"I hired thirteen Mercenaries, which cost me nearly all of my savings."
"Therefore, I implore you, Father, to lend me five hundred Gold Coins for the subsequent recruitment of subjects and the development of the Swamp Territory."
"Of course, I don't intend to take this money for free. I will repay the loan within the next three... no... two years."
Having said his piece, York fell silent, meeting Baron Eric's scrutinizing gaze with a firm look of his own.
The hall fell into a brief silence.
Baron Eric watched York calmly.
York watched Baron Eric resolutely.
Finally, Baron Eric tapped his fingers lightly on the table.
He spoke again, his voice flat. However, he didn't directly answer the question of the loan. Instead, he asked:
"You mentioned earlier that the Contracted Demon Beast you subdued was a Tier Two Magical Beast, correct?"
"Yes!"
York replied without hesitation.
Upon hearing this, a rare smile touched the corners of Baron Eric's lips.
"It seems, my son, that you received considerable help from Viscount Callum's second daughter this time around, did you not?"
In Baron Eric's opinion, York's strength and financial resources were far from sufficient to defeat a Tier Two Magical Beast.
To say nothing of the fact that he had only brought two Knight's Squires and thirteen Mercenaries with him.
Therefore, he concluded that the one who must have helped York was the object of his affection: Lucia, the second daughter of Viscount Callum.
This help, he surmised, likely came in the form of a rather powerful Magic Item.
York didn't deny it.
In fact, he had intentionally spread this narrative upon his return.
However, facing Baron Eric, he knew this was far from enough to win his support.
Thus, he had a story prepared.
"Yes, Father. Lucia was indeed a great help to me in developing the new territory."
"Without her, it would have been very difficult for me to succeed."
"However, Father, I must make a correction. The Demon Beast I contracted isn't Tier Two, as I've let others believe. It is Tier Three!"
'Tier Three?'
A flicker of emotion suddenly stirred in Baron Eric's calm eyes.
He didn't speak immediately, but York knew this was his cue to continue.
And so, York began his explanation.
The story, in essence, was that York had used a single-use Magic Item from Lucia to grievously wound the Swamp Giant Lizard.
Then, driven by its instinct for survival, the Swamp Giant Lizard had entered into a Blood Covenant with him.
Of course, that wasn't the whole story.
The Swamp Giant Lizard had been gravely wounded, so to quickly regain the strength to protect its territory, York had it return to its lair and consume a Magic Plant it had been cultivating.
York didn't recognize the Magic Plant, but it not only healed the Swamp Giant Lizard's injuries but also allowed it to break through to Tier Three all at once.
A Tier Three was equivalent to a Great Knight in the Knight Tiers of the Human Race.
And Baron Eric himself was a Great Knight.
As one might imagine, this conversation was destined to end with York securing the loan.
However, York didn't just borrow five hundred Gold Coins.
He received one thousand.
It was an interest-free loan. Baron Eric even made a further promise.
If York could hold out in the Swamp Territory for one year, he would lend him an additional thousand Gold Coins annually for three consecutive years, allowing York to borrow a total of six thousand Gold Coins from Gale Territory to develop his own domain.
As for repayment, Baron Eric made no mention of it.
At the same time, Baron Eric also provided York with two Knight's Squires.
He even provided three artisans, one hundred Peasant Slaves from Gale Territory, and a considerable amount of supplies.
Baron Eric was clearly beginning to bet heavily on this third son of his!
Though York saw his father as an imposing and heartless man, he also knew that Baron Eric's sole focus was on strengthening the Smith family.
And this was a rare opportunity, the first of its kind since the Smith family's establishment.
A Tier Three Magical Beast... just one more step and it would be Tier Four, a Middle Tier Magical Beast within the Extraordinary Tiers.
The advantage of Demon Beasts was that they were often stronger than their Human counterparts of the same Tier, and could even break through the limitations of their Bloodline more easily.
Although the growth and breakthrough process for a Demon Beast could be slow, it was still worth a heavy investment from Baron Eric.
After all, the opportunity was too rare—the first of its kind since the establishment of their Baron Clan.
An investment of six thousand Gold Coins was truly a heavy wager for a burgeoning Baron Clan.
Therefore, it was only natural that Baron Eric had additional requirements.
Although he would not directly interfere in York's Swamp Territory, he would send a steward to oversee the funds.
In other words, York could only spend the money on the development of his territory.
Using it for any other purpose would be utterly impossible!
This also showed how seriously Baron Eric was taking the matter.
After this, Baron Eric began to actively work on York's behalf.
First, upon York's successful development of the territory, he immediately went to the Duke's Mansion of the Western Border Silver Lion Duchy and secured for York the title of Baron, bestowed by the Duke, the 'Old Lion'.
Second, upon his return, Baron Eric made a special trip to Viscount Callum's residence to arrange York's marriage to the Viscount's second daughter.
Third, after York and Lucia were married, Baron Eric immediately led a party, along with York, to the Swamp Territory to survey the land.
By the time the vast procession set off for the Desolate Marsh Territory, it was already past the thirty-fifth day in the Game World.
York was deeply conflicted about Baron Eric personally leading the expedition to survey the Swamp Territory.
The sole reason for his anxiety was his fear that Baron Eric would discover the Swamp Giant Lizard's Giant Dragon Bloodline.
Of course, York wasn't afraid that Baron Eric would try to steal his Demon Beast.
After all, he was now a Baron in his own right. Besides, in this world, a Blood Covenant was a Soul Contract; it could not be broken or transferred.
Moreover, as the master of a Tier Three Magical Beast, it was common sense that no Transcendent below Tier Four would dare to target him, unless they were a fool.
Thus, York's only real point of conflict was the matter of the Miracle he had obtained. He didn't know if he should tell his father.
York's feelings toward his father were very complicated.
Awe was part of it. As for hating him for his coldness toward his mother and his indifferent attitude toward him, he couldn't quite say that was true either.
After all, York's mother had been a Commoner, and before that, just a house slave—a maid. He himself was merely the illegitimate son born to that maid.
And yet, he couldn't truly say Baron Eric was heartless.
After all, Baron Eric treated all of his children with a stern, by-the-book formality.
Besides, if Baron Eric were truly heartless, York would never have become an Official Knight. Of course, York didn't deny that his own success in awakening his Bloodline also had something to do with it.
But no matter what, there was always a sense of distance in York's heart when he faced Baron Eric. He was also determined to hide his greatest secret—that he had obtained a Miracle.
So, throughout the journey, York always seemed to have something weighing heavily on his mind.
Of course, York concealed it well, but he couldn't hide it from his wife, Lucia.