Chapter 386 - 267: Henry’s First Noble, Part 2

Chapter 386: Chapter 267: Henry’s First Noble, Part 2

’Everyone wants to be a slacker!’

Bain was silent for a moment, knowing Henry was speaking his mind. Henry had always been a cautious man, preferring to observe from the shadows and look for opportunities.

But now, his way of doing things was completely different from a few years ago.

"My lord, I understand everything you’ve said. Things have reached this point; we can only charge forward.

You shone brilliantly in your very first battle. From that moment on, you could no longer be a rat hiding in the gutters. You are a lion, destined to run in the sun.

To rise to the very top, under the watchful eyes of all."

Henry sighed. "I don’t want to be led by the nose, but the situation forces my hand. Since we’re already riding the storm, we might as well let everyone see our power."

To be a coward now, slowly build up troops, and bide my time—it’s just too pathetic! He hated the idle gossip.

’Before I had my cheats, I had to bow and scrape. Now that I have them, I’m still supposed to sneak around? Wouldn’t that make the cheats worthless?’

’I’m going to take down the emperor! And I’m going to do it out in the open!’

Henry raised his head. "I’m not going to hide anymore. Those people already see me as a thorn in their eye, a thorn in their side. Rather than be eaten away by them bit by bit, we’ll take the initiative and crush them all under our feet."

A lion has two enemies: another lion king, and the mosquitoes and flies.

Henry’s current, almost incomprehensible posture—waging war on the great nobles of the grasslands—was precisely to sweep away all these mosquitoes and flies before his head-on clash with the emperor.

"My lord, you no longer have a path of retreat. As long as you are powerful enough, those people can only tremble before you."

Henry stood up, walked to the tent’s entrance, and gazed at the distant bonfires and the starry sky. His voice carried a trace of finality. "Then let us become that unrivaled lion. There’s no turning back."

Bain also stood and walked to Henry’s side. The two stood shoulder to shoulder.

"And one more thing, my lord?"

A faint smile touched Henry’s lips. "Tomorrow, wear your armor, Bain. Bring your knight’s sword."

Bain’s breath hitched, and as if he’d realized something, he nodded repeatedly.

The next day at noon, the sun shone brightly over the grasslands. A gentle breeze swept through, bringing with it a hint of coolness.

The distant sky was a washed-out, brilliant blue, with a few white clouds drifting lazily. On the grasslands outside the city, the atmosphere was both lively and solemn.

All the troops were assembled in dense formations, seemingly filling the entire landscape. The soldiers, clad in neat armor and holding their weapons, wore solemn expressions.

They all knew what today was. It was the day of their promotions, the day their military merits and battlefield achievements would be rewarded.

Sunlight glinted off their armor, creating a dazzling glare, like an ocean of steel.

Henry stood on a hastily built high platform, his gaze as sharp as a torch as he surveyed the heroic soldiers and fierce generals below.

’Badass!’ All the thousands of emotions he felt could only be condensed into that one simple word.

Suddenly, Henry raised his noble’s Long Sword high, its blade glinting coldly in the sun.

Henry cleared his throat with a light cough, his voice loud and powerful. "Knight’s Squire Bain, step forward!"

Hearing the command, Bain took a deep breath and strode toward the high platform. His face showed a hint of nervousness, but more so, anticipation.

’I am about to face the most important moment of my life!’

He had waited three years for this moment!

Claude, Roland, and the others stood to one side of the platform. They too realized what Henry was about to do.

Bain’s good friend, Leon, also stood in the crowd, sincerely happy for him.

Bain was finally taking this step, finally achieving the goal he had longed for day and night—to become a noble Knight.

Bain walked to the front of the platform and knelt on one knee, placing his hands on his other knee and looking at Henry with a determined gaze.

Henry slowly descended from the high platform and came to stand before Bain.

He raised his knight’s sword, its tip lightly touching Bain’s shoulder, and said solemnly, "Bain, you have grown from a common Attendant into a brave Warrior. You have rendered brilliant service to our army."

"Today, in my capacity as Count Henry Bro, master of Odoche, Westwood Laine, and Ximira Castle, I dub thee a noble Knight!"

Henry’s voice was exceedingly solemn. The soldiers all bowed their heads, paying their highest respects to Bain.

Bain’s face was flushed with emotion, his hands trembling slightly.

Henry continued, "As a Knight of the Count Bro’s clan, you shall be granted five hundred mu of land, upon which you may build your own manor. This land will bear witness to your glory and will be the new starting point for your life."

Bain looked up, tears shimmering in his eyes. He choked out, "Thank you, my lord! I will never fail to live up to your expectations!"

Henry smiled faintly and handed a prepared knight’s sword to Bain. "Rise, Bain. From this day forward, you are a true noble Knight!"

Bain accepted the knight’s sword and slowly rose to his feet. He turned to face the soldiers below, raised the sword high, and shouted, "For glory! For Henry!"

The soldiers roared in unison, "For glory! For Henry!"

Bain’s knighting was only the beginning. In the future, many more would become noble Knights, and even Barons and Viscounts.

Together with Henry, they would guard this land and create their own splendor.

At that moment, the sunlight bathed everyone, draping them in cloaks of golden battle-dress.

Next, the Grassland Riders among the six veteran teams were promoted two ranks, becoming Heavy Lance Cavalry.

They had followed Henry into countless battles, and now that they had obtained sufficient armor and equipment from Odoche’s armory, Henry certainly wasn’t going to be stingy.

Three teams of Imperial Senior Infantry became Elite Senior Infantry. This was a rank of Henry’s own creation, as the armor for Imperial Legion infantry was exceedingly rare. Henry could only compensate them through salary, benefits, and grain supply.

Two teams of Imperial skilled shooters were also promoted one rank, becoming Veteran Shooters. If they didn’t have outstanding merits, they at least had hard work to show for it.

As for the last batch of trained troops, the infantry units had not suffered major losses. After a complete reorganization, only four teams were lost.

The remaining fifty-two New Recruit Teams were all promoted to the rank of Skilled Infantry!

Among the Imperial shooter teams, some were qualified to become Imperial skilled shooters. Henry separated them into their own formations for easier management.

It couldn’t be helped. In Henry’s army, there were currently too few opportunities for the ranged archery units to earn merits.

Unless the weapons in their hands could be changed from bows and arrows to something else, such as...

As for those ten teams of Grassland Warriors who had gone into the city streets, they were practically Horse Bandits. The number of heads they had taken was something Henry couldn’t ignore, so he had no choice but to promote them all after just one battle, making them all Grassland Riders.

Their scimitars were basically head-reaping machines.

As for the four Imperial Citizen Cavalry Teams and the Knight’s Squire cavalry teams, two teams of Citizen Cavalry were promoted to Heavy Cavalry, receiving corresponding armor, weapons, and horse barding.

Henry consolidated these "ridiculously expensive" to train units into the previously sidelined Heavy Armor Knight Order. In the future, this army would become his shock tanks for field battles!

Beyond that, others also received their corresponding rewards.

Henry took an exquisite wooden box from a Personal Guard behind him. He opened it, took out a gold chain inlaid with jewels, and handed it to Claude. "This is your reward, Claude. You have served me diligently for these past few years. This gold chain is my thanks to you."

Claude accepted the gold chain, a flash of pleasant surprise in his eyes. This was Henry’s recognition of him.

"Thank you, my lord! I will surely continue to serve you loyally!"

Henry smiled faintly and then said, "Roland, step forward!"

Roland strode onto the high platform and knelt on one knee.

Henry took a massive battle-axe from the hands of a Personal Guard. The axe’s blade shone with a cold light, and its handle was carved with exquisite patterns.