nyslfriends #203 - Section 203
#203 - Section 203
"Women!"
Rod shook his head; these women sure changed faces quickly.
Who could have imagined that just an hour ago, this high and mighty queen was in such a debauched state, entangled with him?
After casually tidying his clothes, Rod followed Jessibel out.
Soon, the inheritance ceremony began.
As her guardian knight, Rod naturally had to protect Jessibel, the soon-to-be queen.
A royal procession couldn't be small, of course.
Jessibel rode a white horse, surrounded by hundreds of cavalry soldiers guarding her front and back, as they exited the palace's main gate.
With the new king ascending the throne, many commoners naturally came to watch, hoping to catch a glimpse of the new ruler's face.
"The new king seems quite handsome!"
Many young girls' eyes lit up; Jessibel's reputation in the Auston Kingdom was quite good, so she instantly gained a lot of support.
Listening to the surrounding cheers, Jessibel revealed a brilliant smile; her dream was finally about to come true.
Rod, on horseback, scanned his surroundings.
Although he didn't expect any problems, it wouldn't hurt to be careful.
Suddenly, a faint sense of killing intent appeared in his perception.
The moment he sensed that killing intent, Rod's brow furrowed slightly.
He still wanted to hide in the crowd, but he found that an invisible force had already locked onto him.
A fierce look appeared on his face.
Raising his hand, he took out a crossbow, aimed it at Jessibel, and a sharp bolt shot out instantly.
Swish!
The poisoned bolt flew towards Jessibel.
Sensing the danger, Jessibel's expression changed slightly; the bolt was too fast, and even if she noticed it, she wouldn't be able to dodge it.
The crisis of death surged into her heart.
Poof!
Suddenly, a silver longsword swung out from her side, directly deflecting the approaching bolt.
Jessibel was stunned for a moment, then looked at Rod beside her.
After reacting, she forcibly regained her composure.
First, she reassured the panicked crowd caused by the attack, then ordered a team of knights to capture the assassin who had tried to kill her.
After arranging everything in a clear and orderly manner, Jessibel finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank you!"
Looking at Rod, Jessibel spoke with some difficulty.
Her eyes showed a hint of gratitude.
After all, if it weren't for this guy, she might have already died just now.
"Is that all the thanks I get?"
Rod looked at Jessibel with a playful expression; he didn't need such empty gratitude.
If she wanted to thank him, she should offer something substantial.
Jessibel pouted subconsciously, but after realizing it, she put on her high and mighty expression again.
"You greedy bastard."
With a soft snort, Jessibel lightly nudged her horse's belly, continuing her inheritance ceremony.
Seeing this, Rod shook his head helplessly.
This woman was becoming more and more like a tsundere.
A glance revealed that the assassin from the crowd hadn't escaped far before being captured.
"Lock him up first, and make sure he doesn't die, and don't let anyone approach him. I'll interrogate him myself after Her Majesty is registered."
Rod casually instructed, and the surrounding knights naturally didn't dare to refuse.
After all, Rod was the guardian knight personally appointed by Her Majesty the Queen.
He was considered their direct superior.
After this farce, the knights guarding Jessibel's side were no longer as lazy as before, each one on high alert.
After spending nearly two hours, Jessibel completed an inspection within the castle.
Escorted by numerous knights, she returned to the palace.
The knights stood guard outside the palace, Jessibel dismounted and walked into the palace hall.
Surrounded by a group of ministers and nobles, she walked towards the throne standing in the palace hall.
Jessibel's pace was neither fast nor slow, but at this moment, she seemed to be the center of the world.
Wherever she passed, the ministers and nobles standing on both sides of the throne respectfully lowered their heads.
Only Rod, who was following Jessibel, remained calm, trailing half a step behind her, until they reached the edge of the throne.
Like an indestructible iron shield, he guarded Jessibel's side.
Looking at the man in front of her, Jessibel's tense mood inexplicably calmed down.
It seemed that as long as this man was by her side, there wouldn't be any problems.
Jessibel turned around, faced away from the throne, and slowly sat down.
As the minister placed a crown symbolizing the king's authority on Jessibel's head,
Jessibel, the center of attention, seemed to exude a trace of majesty and holiness.
From today onwards, she was the king of this country.
"From today onwards, I am the new king of the Auston Kingdom."
"I will use my life's energy to ensure that the kingdom's people live prosperous lives."
Jessibel said her oath faintly.
After speaking, she paused for a moment and looked at Rod beside her.
"Great Knight Rod bravely slew the giant and brought back the giant's heart."
"According to the kingdom's previous agreement, I will grant him the title of Baron of the Auston Kingdom and the corresponding territory."
As her voice fell, the group of calm ministers and nobles all revealed surprised expressions.
They didn't expect Jessibel to actually abide by the previous agreement.
You must know that the current territory of the Auston Kingdom is only the size of three or four baronies.
Moreover, fertile land accounts for less than half of the area.
The remaining half is either barren mountainous areas or dense forest areas.
If a piece of fertile farmland was given to Rod, the entire Auston Kingdom would be greatly weakened.
Jessibel stood up, drew the knight's longsword from her waist, and placed it on Rod's shoulders.
"From now on, you will be the Baron and honorary knight of the Auston Kingdom, Baron Rod, the Auston Kingdom is proud of you!"
Jessibel took out the badge she had prepared in advance and pinned it on Rod's chest.
After handing over the letter of appointment, it also meant that Rod officially became a baronial noble.
Rod looked at the location of his territory on the letter of appointment.
He couldn't help but look at Jessibel.
If what was written on it was true, at least two-thirds of his barony should be in the complex mountain forest area.
Arable land accounted for less than one-third of the entire territory.
In addition, there were several small towns and villages.
The total population would not exceed five thousand people.
Under normal circumstances, an ordinary baronial lord should have at least ten thousand people under his command.
Looking at Jessibel's evasive eyes, Rod shook his head and didn't bother to argue about it.
After all, his main purpose was only for the identity of a baron.
As long as he had this status, he could openly launch wars against the surrounding lords.
No land?
No population?
Then go grab it, go fight for it.
Although most of his territory was mountain forest area, it was surrounded by the territories of many nobles.
If he could annex all of these nobles' territories, he could at least obtain a territory comparable to an earldom.
When the time came, as long as he obtained the recognition of the imperial emperor, he would be a small king.
Even if he didn't get the recognition, it didn't matter.
As long as he had enough strength, having or not having this title made no difference to him.
As long as he could annex all the nobles on this continent.
He would be the uncrowned king of this land.
What need was there for the imperial emperor's recognition?
When the time came, it would be just a matter of him asking the emperor to abdicate.
Reputation wasn't important, the most important thing was strength.
Seeing that Rod silently accepted this territory, Jessibel also breathed a sigh of relief in her heart.
The current Auston Kingdom was barren, and its national strength was lacking.
If she really gave up a piece of fertile land, the entire kingdom would fall into turmoil.
Therefore, she could only play a word game.
After all, although the reward order stated that the title of baron and territory and treatment would be given.
It didn't stipulate that the territory couldn't be an uncultivable wasteland.
Giving out a piece of uncultivable mountain forest, although it still inevitably reduced the territory of the Auston Kingdom, was still within her acceptable range.
After all, that mountain forest area couldn't be cultivated, and the only source of income for the surrounding villagers was by cutting down trees and exchanging them for money.
Trees couldn't grow in a short period of time, and it was also difficult to grow crops on barren land.
In terms of value, it was naturally incomparable to those fertile fields.
Handing over this mountain forest area wouldn't cause the Auston Kingdom to lose much.
The only one who suffered a loss was Rod, the newly promoted baronial lord.
"At most, I'll compensate him later."
Jessibel sighed in her heart; this was also something that couldn't be helped.
Anyway, it would still be their child who inherited this kingdom in the future.
Thinking of this, the guilt in Jessibel's heart disappeared a lot.