The Knights running the punishment hall were once soldiers under the Count.
They were all hard-headed and valiant men.
When they found out that Noah had schemed to kill Roy for no reason, they were disgusted.
But their disgust turned to anger against Noah when the fact that Roy was coerced into a duel of honor because his maids and friends were threatened was revealed.
That was playing dirty, something a noble, especially a mage, should never do.
Targeting someone’s family was considered taboo. It was also the most dishonorable act known to knights and soldiers. It was called “playing dirty like a devil.”
They wanted to slap some sense into Noah right there and then.
However, they couldn’t kill or harm him as he was a Baldwin and the son of their Lord.
Thus, they put him in a place where he would experience the life of a prisoner.
Noah’s punishment was to stay in a tiny, damp room, eat the food of a prisoner, and reflect on his actions for six months..
Noah had never eaten anything less than a fancy meal, but now he had to eat bread as hard as a rock, and he was suspicious of someone spitting in his soup.
“As soon as Mother hears about this, she’ll return to the county, and I’ll be free of this shithole!” Noah threw the bowl of murky water away.
Thinking that he would be freed in a few days or so, Noah’s eyes brightened, and then they narrowed into thin slits.
He was planning something ill against a certain someone.
…
Badulf’s looked at the times.
Three hours later, Arthur’s fiancee will arrive at his doorstep with a few other members of the Achlys.
Badulf wanted to host them with his family, but except for Roy and Arlo, everyone else was either not in the County and wandering outside or couldn’t attend.
Take Noah, for example. He wouldn’t be able to attend because he was in solitary confinement.
Meanwhile, Arthur was having too much fun dancing with death and chasing down a traitor in the uncharted land, which was beyond the boundary of the Empire.
The Count didn’t know, but Arlo and Roy had escaped the Manor through the back door with several other people.
“Do you have a beef with the Achlys?” Roy asked as he followed Arlo down the street.
Arlo nodded, “They disgust me. We’re dysfunctional. I am not a hypocrite. I won’t deny that. We’re bad. But they are worse than demonic devils. They treat humans like experimental rats and check the strength and traits of their poison on their slaves, killing or mutilating them in the process. Heck, they even treat their own family members as slaves. The main family of Achlys is full of shit. The reason they are so strong is that they’ve enslaved all of their branch families and hold their lives in their hands. If they refuse to work for them or follow their orders, they are killed. Even children aren’t spared. I definitely don’t want Arthur to marry the daughter of Achlys. I don’t want us Baldwins to be connected with them in any way.”
Arlo didn’t want to meet with the daughter of Achlys. That’s a part of the reason why he wanted to leave the County in such a hurry.
“What if Bernice isn’t like her family and truly loves Arthur?” Roy questioned.
Children shouldn’t be blamed for the sins of their parents.
If she hadn’t harmed anybody, wasn’t Arlo just being prejudiced toward her, just like the Count was to him?
Arlo answered, “Even then, she would’ve to break off all her connection with the Achlys before I would be willing to accept her as a daughter-in-law of the Baldwins.”
Suddenly, a slim man with a white mustache who was dressed in black came up to them, and with his white-gloved hand on his chest, he slightly bowed to Arlo.
“My lord, the ride you asked for is already prepared. It’s 37 meters away, parked next to the exit on the third street.”
“Thanks, Jamun!”
Arlo patted the man’s shoulder before he rushed past him.
“The pleasure is all mine.”
To help Arnard Leglaz Orlando Baldwin was his greatest achievement yet.
Roy and the others ran after him.
Soon, they could be seen appreciating and entering a carriage driven by wooden-tailed horses that were said to be faster than warhorses.
The carriage wasn’t stopped at the checkpoint.
The guards at the gate didn’t have the guts to stop Lord Arlo and question him.
They opened the way for him.
The carriage drove out of the County, leaving it several kilometres behind in a couple of minutes.
『Ding! You’ve retrieved Ninam’s hand-made knowledge book, Mana Threads, from the system!
A book appeared in Roy’s hand out of thin air. He was in the carriage surrounded by his friends, followers, and family. But they didn’t feel bewildered or suspicious as they thought he might have taken it out of an inter-spatial storage ring or something along the line.
Roy eyed it.
Immediately, the system’s notification rang in his mind.
『It will cost you ten SP to learn it.』
‘My skill points are at 0. I guess I can’t learn it instantly. But I can try to comprehend it manually.’ Roy opened the book.
It wasn’t worthy of attention as it had a dull cover.
Arlo wondered what this black book was about and asked, “What are you reading?”
Roy raised his head and replied, “A book about magic.”
“Put that boring stuff aside.” Arlo raised his hand. The horses stopped moving. They were mentally connected with him due to the power of the runic stone that was equipped with the carriage. He didn’t need to whip them to make them move. Similarly, a thought was enough to make them stop.
“B-but why?” Roy was taken aback by the abrupt change in his emotions.
Arlo looked menacing as his face hardened.
“It’s time,” Arlo said as he opened the door to the carriage.
“… Have you finally decided to tell me how I can break my limits?”
“Yes, I’m about to teach you the Limit Breaker technique!”
Roy and Arlo stepped out of the carriage. Curious eyes followed their backs.
They stopped after stepping twenty meters away from the carriage.