Chapter 191 - Episode 185: A Great Rise in Status
"Now then, I shall convey the words entrusted to me by His Majesty the King."
In the drawing room of the mansion, the knight serving as the envoy from the royal family spread open a letter and spoke.
In response, Noein remained seated on the sofa, performing a simple bow by placing his right hand over his left chest and lowering his gaze. When it came to the words of the King, even if spoken by an envoy, this level of etiquette was necessary. Beside Noein, Clara similarly lowered her gaze.
"...Oscar Roadberg III, King of the Roadberg Kingdom, declares. Baronet Noein Arqvist, while suffering a despicable invasion by the neighboring Kingdom of Lancel, you stood your ground without cowardice and repelled them single-handedly. This achievement is rare even in the history of the kingdom—"
In short, words followed praising Noein's wonderful performance.
"—Therefore, in reward for your merit, you are hereby granted the title of Viscount. The formal investiture shall take place at the investiture ceremony on July 15th, Royal Calendar year 216, and you shall attend the royal castle on this day—"
"!?
"
Hearing the envoy's words, Noein barely managed to suppress an instinctive cry. Interrupting this reading would be as rude as interrupting the King's own words.
However, internally, he could not help but be shaken. The envoy had just said that the King was granting Noein the title of Viscount. A Viscount. He had suspected he might be promoted again, but he never imagined he would skip the rank of Baron and be appointed as a Viscount.
Keeping his gaze lowered, Noein shifted his eyes to the side. Clara looked back at Noein with an expression of astonishment. Furthermore, he could tell that Matilda and Yuri, who were standing behind him, had shifted slightly.
The only person in the room who remained completely unfazed was the envoy from the royal family. Since the letter had been sealed with wax, he must have learned the contents for the first time right here, yet he understood how exceptional a leapfrog promotion was; his professionalism was impressive.
"—It is expected that you will continue to govern your territory as a loyal subject of the Roadberg royal family, protect the border, and demonstrate performance worthy of this peerage. To that end, the royal family promises as much support as possible. ...That concludes the words from His Majesty the King."
"...I have received them."
As he replied, Noein sensed King Oscar's general intention from this letter. In short, Oscar was telling Noein to hurry up and develop his territory further.
The Arqvist territory had transformed from a small plot in the boonies into a strategic point for the kingdom. It was precarious for such a strategic point to remain the territory of a small-scale lower noble.
It would be easier to simply confiscate the land and make it under direct royal control, but that would be far too treacherous toward a noble who had achieved the great feat of repelling an enemy nation's invasion single-handedly. Doing such a thing would cause the royal family's credibility to plummet. Since Noein was in a position where he should be given a great reward rather than having his land taken away.
Therefore, as an exceptional reward, Oscar promoted Noein to Viscount in one leap and promised the royal family's help for territorial development, while simultaneously telling him to acquire the power commensurate with that rank.
"Additionally, I am told this is a personal letter separate from the official document... Please, open it."
The envoy then said this and handed over another letter, also sealed with wax. Being a private correspondence, this was on ordinary paper rather than parchment.
What was written there was—roughly speaking—"Work hard to increase the population. And make the territorial army large. To that end, if there is anything you want the King, me, to help with, I'll listen to almost anything, so organize your thoughts before you come to the royal capital."
Since it was not a document to remain in official records, the content was quite blunt. The explanation of the King's true intentions behind the promotion was omitted, likely because he figured Noein would guess it on his own.
The final instruction to "burn this after reading without keeping it" was probably because the letter explicitly mentioned the royal family favoring a specific local noble.
Lordly nobles are granted the right of rule by the King precisely because they can govern that land on their own; conversely, if they cannot sufficiently fulfill their duties without the King's assistance, it means they are incompetent as nobles. Of course, there are exceptions if there are special circumstances like this time, but even so, it is not good for evidence of favoritism to remain in writing.
"...I have received this as well."
"Congratulations, Lord Arqvist. To be promoted suddenly from a lower noble to a Viscount is something that rarely happens even in the history of the Roadberg Kingdom... though, considering your achievements, perhaps this is only natural."
"Hahaha, thank you."
Since envoys from the King to the nobility are required to have a certain status, this envoy himself was a Baronet of the court nobility. Being offered words of celebration by such an envoy, Noein responded with a forced smile.
Even being told congratulations, it was a bit ambiguous whether Noein should be honestly happy. In exchange for gaining the firm backing of the royal family, he would obtain a troublesome and busy position. He gained the possibility for the territory to develop and for himself and the residents to become even wealthier, but for a while, the days of peaceful pioneering at his own pace would be gone.
But it was too late to complain now. The road connecting to the Kingdom of Lancel had already been carved open.
After having the maid Kimberly guide the envoy, who had traveled a long way to deliver the letter, to a guest room, Noein slumped sloppily against the sofa once only his inner circle remained. Matilda and Yuri, who had been standing, also sat on the sofa opposite Noein and Clara.
"That was an unexpected great rise in status... honestly, it's a bit of a pain."
"A Viscountcy and help from the royal family must be quite incredible. Shouldn't you be happy?"
"I mean, it's not all good things. Though it's not all bad things either."
As a Viscount, he could hold his own in most situations of kingdom society, whether it be social gatherings or business negotiations. That status was incomparable to a lower noble. On top of that, Noein was a favorite of the King. If it was for the sake of territorial development, he would likely have considerable freedom with the royal family as his backing.
On the other hand, he was a newly emerged noble, a youngster who had been a lowest-rank Knight-Bachelor until a few years ago, and had suddenly become a Viscount. He would attract troublesome hostility and favor from other nobles.
In particular, many nobles from other factions would likely envy Noein. While no fool would physically attack Noein, who was watched over by the King, he had to be prepared for backbiting in noble society, or worse, baseless rumors being whispered.
Also, those trying to get close to Noein to get a share of the profits would likely increase. Dealing with them would also be quite tedious.
"...In the blink of an eye, you and Father have become equals. As I thought, you are an amazing person."
The one who spoke with deep emotion was Clara.
"Ah, that's right, I'll be the same rank as Arnold-sama. It feels kind of strange."
Noein replied with a wry smile. Since Arnold, whom he felt was in an overwhelmingly superior position during the early days of pioneering, was now his equal—albeit only in rank—he truly felt the reality of his own great rise in status.
"...If I'm becoming a high-ranking noble, there will be many things to prepare, and I'll probably get busy again—"
"Do not lament. We squires will all help you."
"I, too, shall support Noein-sama with all my heart and soul."
"Of course, me as well. I will do anything I can to lighten your burden."
Yuri, Matilda, and Clara all spoke while looking firmly at Noein.
"...Thank you. If you put it that way, I guess I have no choice but to work hard as the lord."
Noein smiled as if resigning himself. Since the situation had changed drastically, he had no choice but to struggle to obtain happiness for himself and his residents within this reality.