Mount and Blade System: Start from Pioneer Lords

Levi strode into the hall, his eyes sweeping around like torches. Prince Felo sat in the main seat, a glass of red wine in his hand, chuckling as he waved repeatedly.

He knew this Lord of Highcliff Castle's temperament all too well; that man dared to beat a Prince of Debe in the street.

With his martial skills, which could barely knock down a barefoot farmer, he would be nothing more than a wooden target to be played with at will in the other's hands.

Standing to one side, the royal envoy seemed somewhat uneasy, evidently embarrassed by Felo's words.

"Lord Levi, you've finally returned." Fortunately, he was also quick-witted, immediately stepping forward and offering a respectful bow. "His Majesty the King has sent me to invite you to the palace. The Tylesi delegation has already arrived."

After an unknown amount of time, the mustachioed envoy's forehead was already sweating, his heart filled with trepidation, when the voice that sounded like an amnesty finally rang out.

"Lead the way then," Levi said calmly.

"The carriages outside are all prepared, but your men are a little too… robust, so they'll have to ride Mont beasts separately." Marveling at this marquis, worthy of being the Lion Hunter who quelled the southern unrest, the mustachioed envoy continued, exuding an aura of dominance.

Mont beasts were a type of semi-magical creature with a shoulder height of three blades, their entire bodies covered in sturdy keratinous skin. Their heads were broad, with a curved horn covered in spiral patterns.

Their eyes were large and round, with deep blue pupils. Their limbs were thick and powerful, and their hooves were as wide as platters, making almost no sound when they stepped on the ground, as light as if they were walking on clouds.

These beasts were gentle in nature and rarely angered. Even when faced with unfamiliar humans or other creatures, they always maintained a peaceful demeanor.

Due to their docility and excellent endurance, they became the mount of choice for many merchant caravans.

The Orcish barbarians climbed onto these giant beasts with novelty, grinning like children.

They were burly men weighing nearly a thousand pounds, and ordinary warhorses simply couldn't bear their weight.

Therefore, they had never experienced being cavalry, and now riding on the backs of these giant beasts, they couldn't help but feel excited and do things that were hard to understand.

For example, Za the Barbarian, having had his fill of riding, actually began to complain that the beast was moving too slowly. He jumped down from its back, rolled up his sleeves, and spat twice into his palms.

With arms as thick as Roman columns, he braced himself against the Mont beast, whose eyes were clear and foolish, and actually lifted the nearly ten-thousand-pound creature into the air.

Then, grinning, he began to sprint forward.

The commoners on both sides of the street, their eyes filled with terror, hurriedly dodged, fearing that they would be hit by such a fool, resulting in being turned into a meat pie with no recourse.

"Lord, your men are really… truly unconventional," the mustachioed envoy stammered after holding it in for a long time.

"These guys are just too energetic to control when they're not fighting," the lord said casually. "It's good for them to get some exercise."

As their levels increased, the barbarians' stamina also became more and more prolonged, and with the addition of system skills, each of them was so energetic that they didn't seem human.

And since these dozen or so barbarians reached the "Berserker" level, Levi had been researching how to unlock the top-tier unit, "Dragon Vein Berserker."

According to his most likely guess, to unlock this top-tier unit, the barbarians had to first possess a dragon vein.

And the most reliable way to obtain a dragon vein on the market was through bloodline inheritance: find a dragon to mate with a barbarian, then the offspring would definitely be a dragon vein orc.

Just like that dragon vein kobold in the wilderness back then, but that was impossible to imagine.

Another theory, but also difficult to achieve, was that scholars generally believed that almost all races in the Middle Ages continent possessed the bloodline of dragons.

It's just that it has become negligible under the erosion of time.

Simply put, the barbarians must also possess the hidden bloodline of the dragon vein, and it just needs to be excavated.

The last two were the easiest for Levi to achieve. The first was to eat dragon blood grass. This magical plant could only grow in dragon nests.

It is said that there is a black dragon queen in her prime in the Shadowy Forest of the Holy Sith Kingdom, but the lord is not willing to provoke a war between the two countries for the time being.

The last one is that bathing in dragon blood can give you a dragon vein, but this is just a rumor, and it is not known whether it is useful or not.

Fortunately, there is a ready-made dragon in Highcliff Castle, who eats and drinks for free every day. It shouldn't be a big problem to ask her for a pound or two of blood.

After all, Sophia, after dispelling the transformation spell, is a genuine giant beast dozens of meters long. A pound or two of blood for her is equivalent to a human having a nosebleed.

Levi thought, I'll verify it when I go back to Highcliff Castle after things are over here.

The Orcish barbarians had collectively reached the fifth-tier unit, "Giant Axe Guard," on this southern expedition, and were only one step away from the Berserker, and the Dragon Vein Berserker was also close at hand, which could no longer be ignored.

…

The place where the banquet was held was the most famous Saint Peter's Griffin Round Hall in the Debe court.

Legend has it that this hall was where the twelve saints and the kings of mankind at that time held meetings.

The dome is as high as twelve blades, and the crystal giant chandeliers are trapezoidal, gradually increasing in size from small to large, just presenting nine trapezoids, providing white light for the entire hall. It is rumored that this is because the Holy Light Goddess has nine wings behind her, providing light for the world.

This round hall covers a very wide area and can easily accommodate thousands of people.

In the middle is a round table carved from marble, with exquisite patterns carved by skilled masters, surrounded by round tables that are obviously much more ordinary, arching around the center one.

This banquet was extremely grand. The tables were already filled with all kinds of dishes, so rich that it was dazzling. There were more than a hundred waiters serving.

"This banquet is not only for the Western and Northern Territories, but also for envoys from the other two countries and nobles from the Eastern and Western Territories," Felo walked next to the lord and whispered some key points to this newcomer in the world of fame and fortune.

"It can be said that nearly 50% of Debe's nobles have come this time. Some were invited by the king, and some took the initiative to send invitations, but there is no doubt that they are all here for you, Lord."

After all, the more people there are, the more it can reflect the value of his Lord of Highcliff Castle.

Hearing this, Felo had to explain the ins and outs to the Lord: "Some barons in remote areas are doing well just to feed themselves, so where would they get the money for travel expenses to come to the royal court? Besides, nobles who haven't been invited have to pay their own way to attend this banquet, with a starting price of one hundred gold coins! The average baron really can't afford that."

"I really don't know where you got so much money to develop that rural wilderness."

Faced with this question, how could Levi say it was all thanks to those rich women's support? He just said enviously.

"Damn, isn't this highway robbery? I thought banquets were all paid for by the king himself."

"How could that be? The king is also short of money. How could he miss such a good opportunity to make money?" Felo smiled as he responded to the nobles who nodded to him, while subtly saying, "If you ask me, even if the price was five hundred gold coins, there would still be plenty of nobles rushing to send it."

"Damn, you guys really have maggots in your hearts." Levi was greatly shocked. He originally thought charging fifty was already pretty good, but he didn't expect there were even greater experts.

Sure enough, hanging all these nobles from lampposts might result in killing the innocent, but hanging ten and letting one go would definitely leave some out.

However, Levi had never heard of this kind of unscrupulous money-grabbing tactic, and he silently noted it in his heart.

Felo didn't care about this kind of evaluation, and just shrugged, "Doesn't the Lord know where these nobles get their money from? Who else are we going to fleece if not them?"

"Alright." Levi didn't expect that this Prince Felo would have some animosity towards the rich.

"By the way, you can ignore the other nobles, but you can remember these few a little." Felo thought of something and subtly pointed to the west.

A group of Western nobles in green formal attire were surrounding an old man with a tall and straight figure like a pine tree. Although the years had carved deep wrinkles on his face, it didn't diminish his majesty in the slightest.

His brow bones were high, and the corners of his eyebrows were slightly raised, as if he was constantly scrutinizing everything around him, his eyes deep and sharp.

His hair was completely white, combed meticulously, and a few strands of silver hair on his forehead fluttered gently in the wind, adding a touch of solemnity.

His attire was exquisite, a dark robe embroidered with the family crest, and a simple silver brooch pinned on his chest, symbolizing his noble status and glory.

"This is the head of the Rogan-Reese family, and also the current master of the West, Old Grey. Don't look at him as being fair and impartial, he's actually an old fox."

Felo briefly commented, then pointed to a corner in the east, where a group of nobles in azure robes were also surrounding a middle-aged man.

"This is the head of the Sea Dragon family, the Duke of the East, Finn Augustus, and also the Queen's father. He is a master of battle qi and also controls a powerful navy. He is undoubtedly the overlord of the sea. In recent years, with the help of maritime trade, his military strength has become increasingly strong."

"Although his relationship with Lady Furena is seemingly good, he is an extremely thoughtful person and needs to be treated seriously."

This Duke Finn was burly, at least two and a half meters tall, with short azure hair, which made him look extremely capable. His demeanor was calm and polite, revealing an innate majesty in his gestures.

His face was stern and serious, with sharp edges and corners, giving people a feeling of imposing authority.

His attire was exquisite and solemn, wearing a dark red robe embroidered with the Augustus family's sea dragon crest, symbolizing his status and power.

"An old man who says one thing to your face and another behind your back, and an ambitious blue-haired middle-aged man." The Lord commented sharply.

Felo didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but had to admit that it was true: "Yes, that's right."

"I was wondering if my appearance would disturb the two of you's interest." A sonorous voice came from behind.

The person who came must have known that an uninvited interruption would definitely be annoying, but he also knew a truth—as the king of Deber, sitting high on the throne, the king taking the initiative to talk to his two nominal subordinates must be a kind of honor.

When Felo turned around, the smile on his face had returned to the most appropriate noble posture. He held his chest and performed a salute in the authentic royal capital accent: "Your Majesty is too kind."

This accent is considered by the Gondans to be the most noble language. Even if a barefoot farmer learns this accent, although he would be respectful to a baron on the surface, he would definitely look down on these barons from the countryside who spoke with a foreign accent in his heart.

Outside the scope of Gonda, those so-called foreigners even ridiculed these Gonda guys as "royal capital masters."

However, in the Lord's opinion, this is purely a pathetic worm trapped in vanity.

They really think that they are nobles themselves just because they have learned the nobles' accent.

Someone once said a sentence, which is also very consistent with this situation.

A farmer who has worked under the Lord for a lifetime will involuntarily straighten his back when he sees the magnificent castle of the Lord in the distance.

Therefore, the Lord is even flattering them when he calls them pathetic worms.

Levi also imitated and responded by holding his chest: "Good day, Your Majesty Harland." Then he secretly sized him up.

This was the first time he had seen the Lord of Deber through means other than the Kink statue.

Harland was wearing a wide and gorgeous robe. Even so, his fat body could not be hidden. However, because his height was as high as two and a half meters, he had an unspeakable sense of oppression.

He had thick black hair and a black beard. To be honest, this was the first time the Lord had seen black hair other than his own, but his eyes were bright blue, which looked sharp and energetic.

This king must have been handsome when he was young, but with a debauched life, his face became rough and bloated, losing his former elegance, but still possessing a unique kingly demeanor.

"Hahaha, Levi, you don't have to be too polite."

Harland laughed three times, stepped forward and put his arm around the Lord's shoulder and took him to the marble table in the center, "This banquet was originally held for you, for which I even have to thank you."

The other party winked his bright blue eyes at Levi.

"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be able to make a killing at this banquet!"

"Oh, you probably don't know, even as a king, I am often troubled by money. That damn Minister of Finance must have embezzled a portion of the gold coins. If it wasn't for the fact that he was still a little useful, I would really want to push him out and chop him up."

Looking at the rough and bold king, the Lord finally knew why Queen Ceres said that the other party was a little crazy.