Chapter 45: Debates at the Banquet (II)

There were numerous nobles at the banquet, perhaps over a hundred—by Donald’s memory, this was the largest gathering of nobles he had ever seen.
At first glance, most of those present were younger noble heirs. Even local nobles with some power or their descendants would not miss such an opportunity to further their honor and status. On the battlefield, only a few could achieve glory; after a war, aside from a few nobles, most ended up having worked in vain and losing many of their private troops.
It should be noted that maintaining a squad of a hundred soldiers required at least three hundred gold sols in annual wages, not to mention the cost of purchasing weapons and equipment, as well as annual maintenance fees.
Even wealthy local nobles who earned ten thousand gold sols per year could hardly afford several such squads. Losing a private soldier meant not only wasting prior investments but also having to pay substantial compensation to their families.
It was by adopting such a strategy that the Celt royal family gradually weakened local powers, thereby maintaining its authority and the stability of the kingdom for hundreds of years.
Among the nobles, there were wise ones who understood the rationale behind the royal family’s actions. Yet, survival of the fittest is a principle universal in all worlds—only those who seize opportunities and succeed are truly successful!
Even though the nobles understood the royal family’s intentions, they still had to participate. Success would elevate their family’s status and power, while failure would merely result in financial losses. A noble family, even if it declined unexpectedly, would still experience several successes over the years.
However, although the nobles in the banquet hall conversed with each other, they were clearly divided into three factions. One faction was led by the prince, another gathered on the opposite side of the hall, seemingly in opposition to them, and the third, smaller group, held no hostility toward either faction. Its leader was Ferdinand, the young general from the Ansel family.
Compared to those nobles and their heirs, Donald, a 17-year-old noble youth, seemed out of place. He refrained from engaging in these trivial social interactions because he saw everyone as competitors and, due to his family’s decline and his long separation from the noble class, he had few acquaintances.

The mage apprentices of those nobles had personalities more akin to those of nobles who craved fame and power; they were clearly not as cheerful as the freelance mages in the guild. As Master Mesel described, these mages each harbored some of the nobles’ vices, focusing only on immediate gains and abandoning the great path of seeking truth. Thus, Donald had no interest in interacting with them and sat alone in a corner of the hall, quietly planning his strategies for the battlefield ahead. Yet just as Donald avoided talking to others, there were those who didn’t want him to enjoy his dinner in peace. Through his powerful mental senses, reaching LV3 in soul level, Donald quickly sensed someone approaching him, and it was clear they weren’t there to befriend him. Soon, the newcomer arrived near Donald—leading them was Sodo, the son of Lord Gri, who had caused him trouble before. After losing thousands of gold coins and a leatherworking workshop of incalculable value in their last encounter, Sodo had been severely scolded by his father, Lord Gri. If Lord Gri hadn’t had only one son, disinheritance would have been inevitable. There had been no news of him lately, likely because he was under house arrest. This time, due to the orc invasion and the kingdom’s call for troops, he was sent to represent his family and earn merits. But when Sodo saw Donald’s detestable figure during a military speech, he felt intense hatred upon seeing his enemy. Yet, daunted by the thought of facing the boy who had easily defeated the Snow Mage alone, he reported the situation to his master—the heir to Viscount Macbeth, Lord Gri’s lord. This was a rather handsome young lord from the viscount’s household, named Borton, who also came to enlist in the war on behalf of his family. With an orc invasion occurring only once every few decades, Viscount Macbeth, eager to become a great noble, naturally wouldn’t miss such an opportunity to earn merits and advance further. As for the Merlin family’s reappearance in the nobility of the North County, the viscount who had orchestrated their downfall naturally paid close attention. However, with the mages of the North County backing Donald, he wasn’t confident he could suppress the source of this threat openly. He thought his covert actions would suffice to eliminate the danger, but after attempting it twice or three times, Donald was still alive and well.

Fearing that a future disaster might strike his own family, the viscount took various measures after the assassination attempt failed, and the spy who tried to infiltrate the Merlin family’s estate was part of those preparations. As the viscount’s eldest son and one who had already taken charge of some of the family’s businesses, Bolton naturally knew something about Donald. Now that he saw Donald had also arrived at the camp on the northwest border—a capable young mage with hereditary noble status—this posed a significant threat to both Donald’s intentions and the family’s future. Therefore, whether to secure the highest military rewards or eliminate a threat to the family, he had to deal with Donald. After asking Sodo for more details, this eldest son of the viscount, one of the higher-ranking noble youths present, gathered over a dozen other noble youths and headed toward Donald’s location. “Isn’t this the famous genius mage from our North County, the heir of the Merlin family, who is also a hereditary knight?” Naturally, it wasn’t Bolton who spoke first but his servant, Sodo. Donald ignored Sodo’s words and simply took a sip of the wine in his hand. To ordinary people, this wine was already top-notch, but for someone accustomed to the exquisite Moonlight Wine, it was rather unpalatable. Seeing that Donald refused to engage in conversation, Sodo felt embarrassed and angrily shouted, “Rural nobles really lack manners! This is the viscount’s eldest son, and there are also noble heirs from the royal capital here. How dare you, a mere knight heir, fail to greet them politely? Have the Merlins forgotten the etiquette expected of a noble since losing their lands?” Sodo’s loud voice drew the attention of almost everyone in the banquet hall. Faced with Sodo’s accusations and the crowd’s gaze, Donald remained calm, gently setting down his crystal glass. “I ask Lord Sodo, heir of Lord Gri, which of these great noble heirs holds a title that requires me, a humble hereditary knight and mid-tier Dark Iron mage, to bow first? If so, please step forward, and I will certainly greet you with proper noble courtesy! Otherwise, I will challenge you to a duel in defense of the honor of the Merlin family!” Knowing that the other party was aggressive and conflict was inevitable, Donald naturally wouldn’t show them any leniency.

The noble youths who had followed Bolton out of mere curiosity felt embarrassed. Apart from their family’s prestige, they held no titles until they inherited their ancestors’ titles, not even a nominal lordship. To be so rude to an heir to a hereditary knightly line, especially one who was also a noble mage, was simply unacceptable.

If the matter reached the commander and the prince, punishment would likely be unlikely since it wasn’t a serious offense, but a scolding was inevitable. Moreover, they knew their own limitations well. They might be able to handle ordinary black iron swordsmen, but how could they dare duel a proper mage, let alone a mid-level black iron mage who could cast second-level spells?

These noble heirs were all future elites—almost none of them were fools—and they understood the situation clearly: they had been used as pawns by Bolton. Although they were on the same side, not knowing the full details, they didn’t want to get involved in Viscount Macbeth’s personal conflicts with other nobles. So they left Bolton’s side one after another and would not get close to him until after the banquet ended.

As a result, Bolton’s small group of nobles was reduced to just a few people with a vested interest in him, including that fool, Sodo.