But it was not because he wanted to indulge in the airs of the nobility, it was simply because it made avoiding trouble easier. Leaving the rolling hills of Chablis, the journey over the past month had become increasingly monotonous. Although the current state of law and order was collapsing, the bandits around the towns were mostly composed of farmers who could no longer make a living. In contrast, Brand's entourage of a dozen or twenty people, well-armed and looking like the descendants of nobles on an outing, naturally deterred these desperate individuals from easily provoking them.

However, as Brand saw the deserted farms along the way, he couldn't help but sigh a little.

In fact, back in Chablis, the dragon clan maiden Aloro had warned him before leaving that a Madara Undead Army was entrenched in the south of Tonyger. This news aligned with the history Brand knew, where the 'Black Knight' Instarlon had lingered in Jandener even half a year after the ceasefire agreement due to his insatiable greed. At this critical juncture, this ancient kingdom had no time to attend to such matters.

As the month of the Late Autumn Moon (October) was drawing to a close, the upper echelons of this ancient kingdom, as Brand knew from historical accounts, were already beginning to stir, with undercurrents surging. According to his knowledge, the support behind Oberg's eldest son Hammer came from Queen Anna's faction. Anna, the sister of Duke Sifah, represented the beginning of the restoration of the Xifah Dynasty upon her entering the court. The Royalist members supporting the Colcorva family naturally had differing views on this. Furthermore, her ambiguous relationship with the powerful Marquis Klug, ultimately leading to their joint imprisonment of the king, sowed the seeds of disaster.

In early November, Hammer, the Crown Prince, suddenly announced his coronation, officially marking the beginning of internal divisions within the Royalists. Naturally, the strong-willed Regent Princess Griff would not silently endure this; she immediately declared Hammer's throne illegitimate within her territory to all the nobles and knights of the kingdom. Those supporting her were the core Royalist members who had long been dissatisfied with the Queen and the forces representing the Elves she herself stood for.

By mid-November, Duke Anlek declared support for Crown Prince Hammer. Concurrently, regions began declaring independence or aligning with different factions, thus starting the civil war in Erune. From this moment, until two years later, this civil war fundamentally shook the very foundations of the kingdom. Although followed by a brief renaissance era, the kingdom had already lost its new blood, making it difficult to rise from the ashes.

It could be said that Erune's demise hastened from this very moment onward.

At this critical juncture, no one cared much about what the 'Black Knight' Instarlon was doing in the south. However, the lack of concern did not mean that there was no actual impact. This region saw entire villages migrating, leaving behind vast areas deserted and when they passed through these empty, silent villages, a distinct sense of desolation could be felt.

However, as they moved southward, this desolation began to change gradually—

As they were about to approach the core of Tonyger—Fir City, there finally began to be signs of human activity. The lord ruling Tonyger was the third son of Count Rangdenier, Baron Gruding. Brand was not unfamiliar with this name, but he wasn't particularly familiar either. The nobles at this time were mostly indifferent and conceited—but the lords were another matter. Besides sharing the noble façade, they were also harsh, cruel, and excessively oppressive towards their subjects.

Brand and his group sensed this as soon as they entered Fir City, or rather, their initially low expectations reduced even more:

The first thing that caught their eyes were the residents living outside Fir City. Only those who were truly poor and low-status lived outside the unprotected city; generally, they were either farmers working outside the city or refugees fleeing from danger. On both sides of the main street stood dilapidated, filthy huts, men and women in ragged clothes, their faces yellow and emaciated, their eyes dull and devoid of hope for the future.

The main road was dusty, the dry air filled with the smell of animal dung. Compared to this, even the bureaucratic and sluggish noble bureaucrats of Brags seemed endearing; at least in those places, although citizens had low status, they could still survive.

However, like cruel people born from barren lands, the more desolate the land, the more they demanded. Brand understood that what caused this disparity was not that Golan-Elsen's nobles were more empathetic, but that under the same oppression, Tonyger's land was more barren, making it harder for the people to endure.

Having been a noble daughter, Antitina couldn't help but gently cover her mouth in disbelief as she looked at this scene.

"Lord, is this the territory you're to inherit... in such a place?" she asked, unable to hide her disappointment.

She originally thought that leaving the autonomous mountain people's territories, the eastern coastal Tonyger should present a wealthy scene. Being near the sea implied prosperous trade, and prosperous trade implied wealth. Even if it was not as affluent as Ambeser, it should at least compare favorably with the Bugras region, right?

Unexpectedly, what lay before her now was such a bleak sight.

Brand was a bit taken aback too, because he did not reveal to Antitina that the mercenaries of Rubis were actually his Summoned Creatures, causing this young girl to be heartbroken and self-recriminating. For at least a month after leaving Chablis, Antitina spoke to him in a businesslike tone, devoid of the friendly expressions she used to have, often rolling her eyes at him.

Although the noble daughter always regarded herself as his staff, Brand thought that this was not the attitude a house servant should have towards their lord. But of course, he would not bring it up, using his noble status to pressure a weak girl was something that, as a modern person, Brand found shameless.

...

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