Chapter 243 Guards and Maids

After the Kamar-Taj Academy (Branch) reopened, Chen Nuo's influence and control radiated toward the Liurnia region at an astonishing speed.

This area was originally the territory of the Carian Royal Family and the Academy, but because of the Academy's previous blockade, various external forces had intruded.

Now, it was time to tell them who this place belonged to.

The Carian Knight, Mugram, led the reserve knight order and began to march toward the Moonlight Altar.

This was a journey, and also a trial.

The Academy needed to reclaim lost territories and establish new connections and rule, while the reserve knights needed a baptism of fire.

The journey was not easy; the depressions in the lake were filled with lobsters and crabs, which brought no small amount of trouble to the reserve knight order.

The reason these creatures could grow so savagely was likely due to the radiation of magic.

Their hard, thick shells were like heavy armor, making them truly difficult for the reserve knights to deal with.

However, under Mugram's leadership, the reserve knights successfully wiped out nest after nest of lobsters and crabs and successfully climbed the Moonlight Altar.

However, the scene that met their eyes caused the knights' expressions to shift slightly.

At some point, Albinaurics had actually appeared on this highland.

Albinaurics are not original life forms of The Lands Between, but artificial life created by the residents of the Eternal City using forbidden methods; their blood is silver-white, which is the origin of their name, 'Albinauric'.

However, this artificial life was born with defects. The first generation of Albinaurics suffered from disabilities; the strength in their legs would wither and degenerate with age until they completely lost the ability to walk.

The second generation of Albinaurics was a product modified by the Academy of Magic. Although their bodies were sound, their appearance was non-human and distorted, and their intelligence was low, leading them to be used as tools of war by the Academy.

Even during the reign of the Full Moon Queen, she had never chosen to accept the Albinaurics.

Almost all the powers in The Lands Between regarded the Albinaurics as experimental subjects and tools.

Seeing the fully armed Mugram and his men, the Albinaurics instantly fell into a panic, and fear began to spread.

These Albinaurics had been hiding on the Moonlight Altar for who knows how long, and had even formed a village.

"What should we do?"

Mugram turned back to look at Chen Nuo.

Although he also disliked these creations that profaned life, as a knight, he was equally unable to strike at a group of disabled people.

"This is too much!"

Chen Nuo's tone was a bit heavy.

The reserve knights under his command responded instantly.

A sense of murderous intent immediately pressed toward the Albinaurics.

These Albinaurics were not entirely defenseless; although their legs were disabled, some of them would tame wolf packs to serve as their mounts.

Among them was a young Albinauric girl, holding a bow and riding a white wolf, who stepped forward to meet Chen Nuo and the others.

If it weren't for an elderly Albinauric beside her holding her back, she probably wouldn't have been able to resist drawing her bow.

Chen Nuo ignored the girl's hostility and stepped forward to speak.

"You Albinaurics, living here secretly—are you trying to evade taxes?"

???

The Albinaurics were a bit dazed by these words.

Tax evasion?

It was the first time they had ever heard such a term.

Taxes were a burden that only ordinary citizens had to bear, and Albinaurics were not considered citizens at all.

They had never had such a 'happy' worry in their lives.

In the vast Lands Between, no power was willing to accommodate them; they could only live like rats in the cracks.

"Let an elder speak with me."

Chen Nuo spoke again.

An elderly Albinauric man walked out.

It wasn't easy to see an Albinauric of this age; most of them didn't live past middle age.

"Noble Lord, my name is Albus, and I am the village head here."

The old man, his face full of the vicissitudes of life, kept his head low, only daring to look at the tips of Chen Nuo's toes.

He had lived for a long time and experienced much, so his life experience was naturally rich.

Albus could recognize the emblems on Mugram and the other knights; they belonged to the Carian Royal Family and the Academy of Magic, and were definitely not something their Albinauric village could contend with.

Of course, there were also some marks belonging to 'The Sun' and 'The Dawn' that he could not identify.

"It's truly rare to see an elder these days, especially an elder of the Albinauric race."

Chen Nuo's gaze lingered on Albus for a moment, then fell upon the Albinauric girl beside him as he asked.

"And what about you, girl?"

"...Latenna. And this is my companion, Lobo."

The girl hesitated for a moment but still answered, not even forgetting to introduce her mount.

"Looks like a good dog. I also have a Wang Chai at home to guard the door; I can introduce the two of them later."

Chen Nuo nodded.

His calm and gentle tone slightly soothed the girl's nervous emotions.

"Lobo is a wolf."

However, Latenna still corrected him in a small voice.

"Albinaurics, this place is not suitable for you."

Chen Nuo followed up.

Hearing this, Latenna tried to argue, but Albus quickly reached out and tugged at her. Just as the Albinaurics were preparing to be expelled, Chen Nuo's voice reached their ears again.

"The Academy Gate Town is currently uninhabited; you can move there."

When Chen Nuo said it was 'not suitable,' he didn't mean he was driving them away.

This Moonlight Altar was indeed unsuitable for living; it was occupied by a large number of dangerous creatures, including several wandering Glintstone Dragons.

The ultimate goal of the knight order's trip was precisely those creatures.

The other dangers went without saying.

The Albinaurics were naturally aware of this, but that was also why they chose to settle here.

Compared to the danger of the Glintstone Dragons, the malice from other parties was what the Albinaurics feared more.

"We do not trust you, Sorcerer."

Latenna was blunt.

This indeed voiced the inner thoughts of the Albinaurics.

After all, the Academy was once the faction that persecuted them the most.

"How dare you!!"

The reserve knights, who saw Chen Nuo as their faith, shouted in anger.

Especially those of Omen origin; they shouted the loudest.

It was only because Chen Nuo hadn't given the order that they hadn't charged forward already.

Chen Nuo glanced back, and the reserve knights instantly shut their mouths and went quiet, feeling a wave of shame in their hearts.

"I am a sorcerer, but I am also a King. From the Weeping Peninsula to Limgrave, all are my territories. I once slew Godrick the Grafted and conquered Stormveil Castle."

Chen Nuo simply recounted his achievements.

The reserve knights behind him puffed out their chests one after another; their contributions were also part of this.

Even though Limgrave no longer had Godrick presiding over it, reclaiming the entire territory was no easy task.

The Omens had made no small sacrifices in the process.

However, this also earned them enough recognition; even the remaining nobles of Castle Morne acknowledged their contributions and efforts toward the Sun Dynasty.

"I once promised that beneath the King, all living beings are equal. And now, I shall also recognize the status of Albinaurics as living beings."

Chen Nuo's words left the Albinaurics dazed and lost in thought.

There was actually such a King who was willing to acknowledge Albinaurics!

"So now, are you willing to believe me? Latenna."

Chen Nuo looked at the girl quietly. Even without displaying any supernatural phenomena, that kind of convincing power was enough to make the Albinaurics bow their backs.

Latenna got down from the wolf's back and knelt devoutly before the King.

The Albinaurics had always been searching for Miquella's Haligtree; legend had it that under the Haligtree's light, even beings like them could be accepted.

But since Miquella disappeared, no one knew the way to the Haligtree anymore.

As time passed, the rumors became ethereal and vague.

The new generation of Albinaurics couldn't help but start questioning the existence of the Haligtree.

But now, the King had arrived before the Haligtree could.

"I'll leave the responsibility of the relocation to you."

Chen Nuo looked at Mugram, who showed an 'as expected' expression.

He had already guessed it would be like this.

He's not your own knight, so you don't feel bad about using him at all, do you?

If it weren't for the fact that Chen Nuo's seal on the Amber Egg had actually been effective, Mugram wouldn't have bothered with him.

"Don't forget to pay your taxes this time."

Chen Nuo looked at Village Head Albus.

Then he continued to lead the reserve knights on their unfinished journey, adding a few more 'guard dogs' to the school's entrance.

...

...

A few days later, Chen Nuo received the tax payment from the Albinauric Village.

"Where's the tax?"

Chen Nuo froze for a moment looking at the empty-handed girl, then realized something from her shy expression.

Oh, you yourself are the tax!

That old man Albus is a bit dishonest.

But, I like it.

The Albinauric girl, although she had difficulty moving, was indeed a very excellent archer.

Plus her partner, Lobo.

She was certainly qualified to be a guard.

At least, that was how Latenna viewed her own status.

After Chen Nuo accepted the Albinaurics and partitioned the Gate Town as their territory for survival, the girl had vowed in her heart to protect the King with her life.

However, this field was a bit competitive.

The number of humans or Omens who wanted to give their lives for the King was enough to form a line from Stormveil Castle to the City of Dawn.

Perhaps the girl could try a different field.

However, regarding the act of accepting Albinaurics, there were some voices of protest within the Academy.

But how would these students dare to have an opinion about the Headmaster? In the end, all the pressure went to Tops, the Prefect.

The students suspected that there were treacherous officials around the Headmaster!

This was purely because they had too little homework and were bored out of their minds.

Sure enough, when the end of the term arrived, the students all quieted down and focused entirely on preparing for their exams; they no longer had any spare energy to pay attention to anything else.

Because if they failed the final exams, they would have to repeat the grade, and taking classes with a bunch of new students would be a truly humiliating experience.

The recruitment work went smoothly; owls that had been trained and magically modified became excellent messengers.

It was mainly oriented toward the three regions controlled by Chen Nuo.

Whether commoners or nobles, they all yearned for this holy land of magic, not to mention that the King himself served as the Headmaster.

Among the new students about to enroll, there were not only humans, but also Demi-humans, Omens, and even Albinaurics.

Most were not very old, which was the time when their plasticity was strongest, making them suitable for Chen Nuo to heavily indoctrinate.

Just as everything was progressing smoothly, a small episode occurred.

A reserve knight on patrol caught a spy and brought her before Chen Nuo.

It was a young girl. Her posture was somewhat hunched, her expression was even more constrained, and she wore a long robe. Her face was quite cute, though her skin was a bit too pale.

"My King..."

"Hmm? In school, you are to address me by my title. How many times have I said this?"

"Sorry, Headmaster."

The reserve knight lowered his head and corrected himself, taking a step to the side to give the view to the girl, and continued.

"Headmaster, this person claims to be traveling on her master's orders, but we searched her and found this."

The reserve knight handed a letter to Chen Nuo.

An invitation letter from Volcano Manor.

"Do you have anything to say?"

Chen Nuo looked at the girl.

"Lord Headmaster, please allow me to introduce myself. I am Rya, serving the mistress of Volcano Manor, Lady Tanith. Traveling to various places is to recruit Tarnished with the potential of a hero to go to the Manor. This is my duty as a recruiter, not a spy."

The girl's voice was soft, but her speech was not slow.

She was likely anxious to explain herself.

After all, Omen knights and the like were a bit scary.

She had indeed been a bit on edge during the journey here under escort.

Chen Nuo opened the envelope and scanned it from top to bottom.

It was indeed just a concise invitation letter with no special content.

"Is this how you recruit Tarnished? It doesn't even specify the benefits and compensation."

"Ah?"

Rya was stunned for a moment.

Was there a problem with that?

The Tarnished she had invited along the way had never asked about such things.

It seemed that providing a place to stay for the wandering Tarnished was already considered a great mercy.

"And if it's a sincere invitation, why are you using a magically disguised appearance to show yourself?"

Chen Nuo's next sentence completely left Rya at a loss.

She hadn't expected her disguise to be seen through.

"As expected, My—Headmaster, this is a spy. Please allow me to strike her down!"

The reserve knight's voice carried anger.

To dare to offend his King like this, with a false face!

"Forget it, I have always been magnanimous; the death penalty is waived."

Chen Nuo waved his hand and said.

Rya's heart, which had been in her throat, relaxed slightly, but then she heard Chen Nuo's sentence for her.

"You shall stay and serve by my side."

"Wait, I have my own mistress, you cannot do this."

Rya became anxious all of a sudden.

But here, she was clearly unable to defy Chen Nuo's decision. She was taken away by Latenna and changed into a maid uniform.

Looking at herself in the mirror, Rya couldn't help but let out a small sob.

Beside her, Latenna couldn't bear it and tried to comfort her.

"The Headmaster is a very good person. If you obey him for a while, perhaps when he's in a better mood, he'll let you go back."

"Really?"

Rya sniffled and looked up.

"Of course. If you have any needs, you can tell me."

Latenna had a good impression of Rya, because she was one of the few people who didn't look at her with eyes full of discrimination and exclusion.

"...I'm a little hungry."

Rya said, feeling a bit embarrassed.

She had cried too hard just now, and her stomach was the first to protest.