Chapter 13: Swear Allegiance to Your Lord, Now, Kneel

Blood trickled along the curve of the throat and neck muscles, flowing toward the collarbone, where it slightly pooled before continuing down the chest.

The leading Centaur seemed to feel every beat of the carotid artery, each pulse almost meeting the cold edge of a blade. His body was stiffer than during his training, so rigid that he dared not move.

He was terrified that even the slightest movement would be misunderstood, and that the curved blade would instantly sever his throat.

Surrender or die. As he hesitated, the answer became painfully clear.

His barbarian-like, unrefined gaze slowly cleared, and he trembled as he looked at Romon.

Romon nodded, gesturing with his hand, "Let go."

Nini, the cat-eared girl, flicked the blood from her blade and vanished in the blink of an eye, disappearing from the back of her horse.

"Swear allegiance to your lord, now, kneel."

The leading Centaur clutched his neck, his horse's legs bending silently as he knelt before Romon. The other Centaurs, seeing this, followed suit.

Romon counted briefly—there were 20 Centaurs in total, only five of which were females, and they appeared to be very young.

"What's your name?" Romon asked the leading Centaur.

"Pir."

"And your other kin?"

"These are all that's left. Some died in the monster attacks, others left because they couldn't stand the conditions of our homeland."

"Do you know Pito?" Romon asked, recalling a name. A few days ago, he had seen someone named Pito on a mercenary list in the trading guild—a "Perfect Shot Centaur."

"Pito... he was the most talented among us. He was supposed to protect the clan, but he fled. He betrayed us."

"Enough," Romon intervened to calm Pir's emotions. "From today, you and your people are now 'Centaur Knights' of Thune. I will train you, teach you, until you become true knights."

Pir was the type of subhuman with a strong body but a simple mind.

The destruction caused by his pursuit of Nini, the cat-eared girl, along the way was proof enough. Romon had no illusions about suddenly awakening someone whose mind had been dulled for half his life. He would simply use him as he was.

Talia had already begun spreading the news about the labyrinth, and soon adventurers from Stone Town would gather.

By then, help would be needed to maintain order.

In a few days, the King's Royal Knights would also visit in person.

Romon examined the group of Centaurs. They looked like wild men. If they were to join Thune, their appearance would have to be addressed first.

The traditional knightly attire of the Sionnas Empire consisted of white iron armor, often adorned with family crests of those who served.

The Centaurs were tall, and standard human second-hand armor wouldn't fit them. The lower half of their bodies would also require a special design—warhorse armor for their lower bodies, excluding the horse head.

This meant the upper half would need custom-made human armor in extra-large sizes, while the lower half would be armor for warhorses, except for the horse's head.

Only by combining the two could the image of the Centaur knight be created.

As for finances, that wasn't an issue; the question was how long it would take the blacksmiths of Stone Town to craft 20 sets of armor.

"Take care of your wounds, then help with transporting the ore."

Romon said to Pir before turning to leave.

He hadn't walked far when a voice called out to him.

"My Lord!"

Looking toward the voice, he saw Hato and his family, who had just returned from Stone Town early that morning. The petrification curse on Hato had been cleansed, and his face was filled with excitement as he rushed toward Romon, kneeling before him and repeatedly kowtowing.

"My Lord!" Hato exclaimed. "Thank you for saving my life. I was reckless, foolishly venturing into the forest. If it weren't for your generosity, I would have been doomed, and my wife and daughter would have suffered as well."

Hato was overwhelmed with gratitude. Even if Romon ordered him to single-handedly challenge a giant wild boar, he would have the courage to do it.

Romon had merely done what any ordinary lord should do, but to these villagers, who had been long oppressed, he appeared as a wise, generous, and magnanimous figure.

"Hato, it looks like you're recovering well," Romon remarked.

"Yes, My Lord," Hato replied. "After the petrification curse was cleansed, I feel as though I've never been cursed at all. I can start working immediately."

"Good, because I have a task for you."

"My Lord, please tell me what it is."

"I need to set up a fence in the forest to enclose a certain structure. However, there are still monsters active in the forest, so I need you to be prepared," Romon explained, pointing to the Centaurs he had just subdued. "Of course, I'm not sending you alone. These strong Centaurs will protect you and follow your orders to assist you."

Hato had never worked with subhuman species before. The sight of Pir's bloodstained chest made him uneasy.

"My Lord, I can do it, but..."

"Don't worry, they speak the human language," Romon reassured him.

"Understood."

Setting up an obstacle for toll collection required setting up the barriers in advance.

This land belonged to a certain lord, and to enter, one would need to pay a fee.

"Go ahead and take care of it. Enter the forest from this direction, and when you see large clusters of goblin corpses, you'll know you're near a door. Your job is to enclose that door. My only requirement is that there must be enough space in front of it to allow these knights to stand guard."

Having finished speaking. 

Romon turned and began walking toward the outskirts of the village with Nini, the cat-eared girl.

Aside from the vast forest, Thune's territory wasn't large, and anyone entering the village would soon discover the mining site.

To prevent adventurers from disrupting the mining progress, Romon needed to find a new route to the labyrinth and keep those adventurers out of the village.

To the west of the village entrance. 

The main road led to Stone Town.

If he wanted to keep adventurers from entering the village, he would have to clear a new path midway along the main road, cutting down the trees and bushes, creating a road that directly entered the forest from the west.

"Nini, cut a piece of wood and make a simple signpost," Romon instructed.

"Yes, Master," Nini replied.

Weapons had different levels of effectiveness.

Using a regular machete to chop wood was quite laborious, while Nini's curved blade sliced through wood as if she were cutting through clay.

She spotted a tree with a 20-centimeter thick trunk, and with a swift strike of her blade, the center of the tree was shaved off.

She left a ten-centimeter space in the template, then began to carve the insertion rod downward.

A solid wooden signpost soon appeared in front of Romon.

"Carve: Thune Grand Labyrinth."

He didn't know the exact name of the labyrinth, but since it was Thune family property, calling it the "Thune Grand Labyrinth" was perfectly fine.

Nini, the cat-eared girl, quickly carved the text and pointed the sharp end of the sign toward the forest.

Romon adjusted his position slightly and found a stone to sit on.

"We'll wait here for Talia to return."

"Yes, Master."

Romon moved his left hand, adjusting the dark gold gauntlet, and suddenly asked, "Nini, do assassins also need mana?"

"Yes, Master," she replied. "Assassins need mana to activate abilities like Stealth, but it's not as demanding as a mage's mana usage. We focus more on speed and technique."

"Do you know any techniques to increase mana?"

"Well..." Nini hesitated, lowering her head as she knelt beside Romon. "I'm sorry, Master, but I haven't specifically studied this area. Since I was young, I've only ever used enough mana to get by. The most Spidevs taught me was assassin techniques."

Suddenly. 

She remembered something and suggested, "Master, if you want to temporarily increase your mana, you could wear special equipment. There are items in the equipment shops or with adventurers that can boost your overall mana."

"I know," Romon said.

The equipment shop had such items, and the former Thune family did as well, though they had long since squandered their wealth.

Romon was simply hoping to find time to experiment with the magic book. If Nini didn't know about it, he would just have to wait for Talia to return.

Or... maybe he could try again himself? Last time it was three seconds; perhaps this time just one second?

With that thought, he sat on the stone, focused his mind, and with a flick of his left hand, a large, thick gray-blue magic book appeared in his hand.

He closed his eyes, and the densely packed magic symbols once again spread out before him like a starry sky.

This time, he didn't dare linger on it for too long. He focused on a single diagram for just a moment.

Then, he quickly opened his eyes and, relying on his first impression, traced the diagram on the ground.

The design, a circle filled with various symbols, had no effect; nothing happened.

Romon closed his eyes again to observe. It turned out he had missed a few details and written some symbols incorrectly.

The second attempt, though brief, still caused his head to begin to spin slightly.