Not to mention making threats, they didn't even dare to approach.
Often, upon seeing Karl El's figure from afar, they would immediately turn around and swiftly retreat from the Temple District.
Then, they would secretly dispatch one or two scouts to keep watch from a distance, anxiously waiting for this demon, Karl El, to leave.
Karl El and Geralt both noticed these furtive knights.
Geralt had initially been somewhat worried and even advised Karl El to take the recovering Raymond back to Badov first, to avoid getting involved in unnecessary trouble.
But he clearly underestimated the deterrent power of the martial prowess Karl El displayed outside the temple that day, and even more so, Karl El's current standing in Foltest's heart.
Karl El waited until Geralt's injuries were almost completely healed and confirmed by the priestesses.
He also used his X-ray vision to confirm that Raymond had no abnormalities and was in stable, healthy condition before setting off back to Badov.
As for Geralt, as an experienced Witcher, silently leaving a place and avoiding those unprofessional scouting knights was an exceedingly simple matter.
Almost immediately after Karl El, Raymond, and Dalton left Erlend via the portal, Geralt also vanished from under the noses of the White Rose Knights' scouts, as if he had evaporated into thin air.
In fact, on the day the conflict occurred, Duke Sievard was furious after learning that his knights, including his confidant Tyllus, had all been injured by an unknown person.
This was not only a loss of his personnel but also a blatant challenge to his ducal authority.
He immediately wanted to gather his men and personally apprehend that arrogant individual to defend his authority and honor.
However, just as his anger was burning, his subordinates delivered detailed intelligence about Karl El.
Vizima Martial Arts Tournament champion, a baron heir personally pardoned by Foltest, and the hero who lifted Princess Adda's curse—
This series of titles and deeds was like a bucket of cold water, extinguishing some of Sievard's impulsiveness.
He suppressed his anger and began to wonder if the stories of Karl El single-handedly defeating a squad of fully armed knights were exaggerated?
—
He hesitated, wondering if he should still insist on sending people to arrest him?
To confirm, he summoned knights who had participated in the Martial Arts Tournament, including the White Rose Knights who later awoke and were brought over.
Those who had personally experienced it, without exception, described Karl El with fear and lingering dread, detailing his ghostly speed and overwhelming power.
Dennis even described the entire process in detail, emphasizing, "Your Grace, the opponent merely met their gaze, and no one even saw how he moved—"
"Tyllus and all the knights who made a move were severely injured. That kind of power—it was like a giant from legends."
After hearing these firsthand testimonies, Sievard was instantly speechless.
At most, he had only about a hundred elite knights under his command.
If even a squad of knights could be dealt with like swatting flies in a single encounter, then even if he committed all his forces, he might not be able to pose a substantial threat to that Martial Arts Tournament champion.
Even if he succeeded in apprehending him, how many knights' lives would be the cost?
Training a loyal and well-equipped knight was costly, and losing even a few would cause him distress for a long time.
Moreover, he had to consider Karl El's identity and Foltest's possible attitude.
After much deliberation, the practical pros and cons ultimately outweighed the so-called authority and honor.
Sievard decided to abandon the idea of troubling Karl El, forcibly swallowing his anger.
He comforted himself, reasoning that clashing with a young noble deeply valued by the King and as powerful as a giant was not worth it.
However, he would not let the matter of that mutant rest.
Since Karl El was not someone he could provoke, he would wait until the other party left, and then he would go after that Butcher of Blaviken.
As a result, his knights futilely staked out the temple's periphery for over half a month, never again seeing a trace of Geralt.
Some time after Karl El and the others returned to Badov, an important change occurred within the territory.
At Karl El's suggestion, Raymond personally drafted and submitted a formal application to Foltest—
Requesting to change the name of the Family fief, Badov.
Things progressed unexpectedly smoothly; the letter was delivered to Foltest's hands two days later.
When the King saw the new proposed place name on the application, he was first stunned, then burst into hearty laughter, extremely pleased.
"Good! What a splendid Erl Family! Indeed, they are nobles loyal to the Temeria royal Family. I grant this request!"
Foltest unhesitatingly picked up the seal and stamped his approval on the application.
Then, he spoke loudly to the courtiers around him, "Send out the order! Make the change on the kingdom's map immediately. I want everyone to know this place!"
Soon after, an official announcement was issued, and the kingdom's map was updated.
From then on, the map of Temeria no longer featured a barony named Badov.
In its place was a new name, carrying the loyalty and honor of the Erl Family.
And the King's Heralds, riding swift horses, solemnly posted the decree bearing the royal seal on the slightly weathered public notice post in the center of the village.
Then, they galloped away in a cloud of dust, heading to the next place where royal authority needed to be proclaimed.
The entire process was swift and decisive; for this remote village, the royal presence seemed limited to this single document.
Initially, not many villagers paid attention to the newly posted item.
For most people, who toiled daily for sustenance, literacy was an unattainable luxury.
Those curved characters were less important than the crops soon to ripen in the fields or the hungry, wailing livestock in the pens.
It wasn't until Dalton, Philip, and three other guards solemnly affixed copies of the same announcement to the trunk of the most prominent large oak tree in the village, and then took up a guarding stance, that some villagers' curious gazes were gradually drawn.
They gathered in small groups, pointing at the announcement and whispering to each other.
They speculated about what new decree Lord El had issued—was it a tax increase or conscription? The atmosphere was somewhat somber and uneasy.
Dalton looked at the villagers before him, most of whom were thin and sallow with blank eyes, and understood.
He cleared his throat, raised his voice, and prepared to personally read the contents of the decree to these illiterate subjects.
"Silence!" he first shouted, quieting the noisy discussions slightly.
"By order of Lord Karl El, an important decree is hereby proclaimed!"
The villagers immediately fell silent, their eyes nervously fixed on Dalton's mouth, as if awaiting a judgment of fate.
"Effective immediately, the former Badov Barony is officially renamed Terra!" Dalton's voice was clear and strong.
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