A death at a baron's ball would become a laughingstock among the nobility, a tale that might even reach the ears of minstrels.
But that valiant knight would surely be an indispensable character in the story.
By the time the scholar arrived, shuffling along, Miss Freckles had already drawn her last breath.
The man who had gone mad and kicked someone in public was the same Iron Bull Hoof Knight who had killed Leech's stepmother. Although Leech had known the man was mentally unstable, he never imagined he would become so frenzied as to attack someone at a ball. The Iron Bull Hoof Knight's body was dragged out to be dealt with. Though he was dead, as a nobleman, he would still be granted a burial.
The banquet had to end there. No one had the heart for pie.
Leech was finally able to return to his room to rest. A manservant helped him change his clothes.
Lying in bed, his mind kept replaying the image of the light that had emanated from the knight beside Sidor Sea Water.
'Battle aura? Magic? A golden aegis? A force field? Some kind of armor charm?'
Whatever that stuff was, Leech felt like a door to a new world had opened for him. 'If I had that kind of power,' he thought, 'I wouldn't have to fear any number of stepmothers.'
He closed his eyes, and his consciousness shifted to the raven at Porcupine Castle.
The moonlight did not obscure his vision.
Porcupine Territory, with its lack of entertainment, was already pitch black. Even the lamps inside the castle had been extinguished.
'As long as everything's okay.'
In the morning, word was that Baron Simon was still raging about last night's events.
Leech made a point to ask about the Iron Bull Hoof Knight. The man's body had already been interred in the cemetery of Iron Stone City.
'That's a very sturdy corpse.'
The Baron had designs on that sturdy corpse.
Meanwhile, Leech's men brought him good news. Last night, they'd had a wonderful night of passion—no, that's not right. The pills they had brought with them yesterday had received excellent feedback.
Leech gave them another twenty-some pills. For now, the focus was on trial runs. It would be best to negotiate with the brothel owners rather than acting as a street peddler himself.
His current men weren't suited for negotiations, and as a nobleman, it was equally inappropriate for him to show his face. He grew anxious over his lack of suitable subordinates.
'First, give a few to each brothel. They'll gradually figure out the effects of this stuff,' Leech thought. Passively waiting wasn't his style, but when it came to taking the initiative, he had to admit he lacked the skills for negotiation.
Fortunately, he still had a few days. While the drug's reputation was brewing, he could focus on other matters, such as visiting the scholar in Iron Stone City.
Scholars—those who tilled the fields of knowledge.
The Lu Leiyans believed that the gods were omniscient and omnipotent. The church taught people self-respect and self-love, to cultivate noble sentiments. Scholars, on the other hand, were portrayed as dark and decadent... these were all labels affixed by the church.
In reality, scholars were exceedingly learned. They used the knowledge from books and the wisdom of their predecessors to tell you what you should and shouldn't do, unlike the church's method of saying, "I had a dream last night. It was a divine directive."
The nobility needed the church to rally the common folk and restrain them with faith.
Likewise, the nobility also needed scholars to serve them—to record history, treat illnesses, and study the future.
'They're like Mages,' was Leech's opinion. Although most scholars denied being able to use Magic, it was an open secret that scholars and Magic were connected.
The first scholars came from a single league. They then scattered across the world, serving lords and taking on apprentices for the sake of knowledge, passing down their learning through the generations.
After leaving Iron Stone Castle, Leech followed the road and soon saw a tall tower.
It was the Scholar's Tower.
After dismounting, he gently shook the bell by the door. The tower door was pushed open from the inside, and a young man poked his head out. He wore a burlap robe, was barefoot, and clutched a book in his hands.
Aside from their image as sagacious wisemen, scholars most often just looked like bookworms.
"You're Sir Leech Clarence?" the young man stared at Leech in astonishment. "You should be... I really... how is this possible? Is this a miracle?"
He was the scholar's apprentice who had come to treat Leech after his own teacher stabbed him through the chest. He was also the one who had personally pronounced Leech as good as dead. Scholars never involved themselves in power struggles, a fact Leech was willing to trust. Besides, he couldn't have killed a scholar in another lord's territory anyway.
"The Four Gods never reveal miracles in the mortal world," a voice said from behind the young apprentice. The apprentice immediately and respectfully stepped aside.
The one who emerged from the Scholar's Tower was none other than the old Taven Scholar, who had been called upon to save the victim last night.
"But, it's inexplicable..." the young apprentice stammered. "I saw with my own eyes, Sir... he was..."
"But there are such things as the Divine Favored in this world," the Taven Scholar said. "They arrive with a mission to change the world, and before that mission is complete, the gods will not let them die... or so the church says."
Although he scoffed at the church, he had to admit that for situations scholars themselves could not yet explain, the church's framework offered a more plausible explanation.
Scholars do not deny everything.
"Everyone comes into this world with their own mission," Leech said. "Whether a carpenter or a lord, each is an indispensable part of this world. By the same token, the world wouldn't change much if any single person were to disappear. To the world, we are no different from ants. A thousand years from now, the sun will still shine brightly on this land, and who will remember us then? I've come today because I have some questions I hope you can answer, Taven Scholar."
The Taven Scholar looked at Leech with some surprise. "Your wisdom surpasses that of most nobles I have met."
"Acknowledging one's own insignificance helps to avoid foolishness," Leech replied with a smile.
"Please, come in."
The young apprentice stared in amazement as the Baron, who was even younger than him, followed his teacher into the tower. It was the first time he had ever seen his teacher treat a nobleman with such a pleasant expression. Not even Baron Simon, who funded the Scholar's Tower's expenses with Jinri every month, could hope to receive such a warm reception from his teacher.
Leech was very curious about scholars. It wasn't just because he had obtained the legacy of a Necromancer; he also suspected he might have a talent for becoming a Mage. In their conversation, however, the Taven Scholar was unwilling to touch upon the subject of Magic.
Soon, he brought up the red herb he had acquired in the bear cave.
As he described it in detail, the Taven Scholar found a book.
"There are many red herbs," the Taven Scholar said, "but only a few that turn one's hair red and strengthen the body after being consumed. Of those, only one is not life-threatening: Griffin Grass."
"Griffin Grass?"
"It's a grass that appears near Griffin nests. It might be called something else in another corner of the world." The Taven Scholar nodded. "You've surely heard of the Griffin? It's a terrifying beast with the wings of an eagle and the body of a lion. According to records, this is because the Griffin itself contains a peculiar power, and its blood has a strange effect on the surrounding environment."
Leech, however, was reminded of being pursued by something when the white raven flew over the dense forest, and of the gnawed-on corpse he had encountered on the road to Iron Stone City.
A terrible suspicion formed in his mind: there was a Griffin near Pig Spine Valley!
And an injured, aggressive one at that.