The ceremony for Adam had been simple, with the baron lifting the young man up to the status of a baron, before he lifted himself up to the status of a count. The nearby knight glared at Adam with a terrifying fury. The young man had taken the title meant for him, and had promised the town meant for him to another, a local, lowly guard captain.
“What did I say?” Adam asked, patting Charles on the back. “Once I’m done here, you’ll be in charge, you can be sure of that.”
Charles blinked. His voice had long left him. The man who had killed his lord, the various knights tasked with protecting the town and nearby villages, and many of the commoners, had kept his word. He blinked once more, still trying to process what had happened.
“Alright, let’s put you to work, Sir Charles,” Adam said, chuckling lightly, awkwardly. “We’ll leave you here to administer the town since we’ve got to go and fight. Figure out stuff from the workers of the previous lord, ask them what the tax situation is like and all that.”
‘Of course,’ the newly appointed knight thought. ‘Money and power, that’s how it always is. Suppose I can’t say nothing about it though…’
The soldiers made their way up to the castle, while Adam and the others remained at the town centre. He glanced around, wondering if he could find the young fellow.
Perception Check
D20 + 4 = 20 (16)
He managed to spot the figure glaring at him. Adam furrowed his brows, before motioning a finger towards them. However, they disappeared into the crowd and the shadows.
‘They must have really loved the lord…’
“I want to thank you all for accepting me so easily as your baron,” Adam began, standing tall, the light of the flickering fire cascading all across his puthral armour. “We didn’t meet on the best foot, but I hope that you will remember me as a decent lord. I can’t do much for you right now, though if you have any issues you may bring them to Sir Charles, who will work to deal with the town’s matters in my stead.”
Adam could see the awkwardness all among the people. “However, know that I am no tyrant. Next month, I expect you to all work hard, as you have done so for years and years, and be glad that you will be able to enjoy the fruits of your labour, for next month you shall pay only half your tax!”
A liveliness filled the town upon hearing they would only need to pay half the tax for the next month.
“Like I said, I’m no tyrant, so from now on, the townsfolk will pay half the tax twice a year, during months of the lord’s choice. I have chosen next month, and I will leave it to Sir Charles to pick the second month for this year. I am but your lord temporarily, and I will do my best to work together with Sir Charles so that Rockcastle will prosper for you, your children, your grandchildren, and so on and so on!” Adam raised a mug of ale into the air.
“Lit! Lit!” came the response from the villagers, who raised their mugs into the sky, before sipping their ales.
“What does that mean?” Adam whispered to the stunned knight beside him.
“It means they wish you will live a long life.”
“Well, yeah. Me too.” Adam chuckled lightly, his smile softening.
‘…’ Sir Charles remained silent, thinking deeply about Adam’s proclamation. ‘Who are you?’
Adam retired to the castle, which had been set within the rocky hill. The town wrapped around the hill, with a large field with guards to one side, though it only half as lively as he had seen previously. The castle was certainly larger than the castles of the nearby towns, and was no doubt hard to impregnate, especially with the large river which ran through, and the several towers set within the rock.
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‘Nice.’
“Good evening, Count Moonglow,” Adam called, arriving into the dining hall where the Count had been eating with his soldiers.
“Good evening, Baron Fateson,” the Count replied.
“How’s the food?” Adam asked, glancing between the servants. “Not poisoned, I hope.”
“Not poisoned.”
“Well, I can double check if you give me a few minutes. Not hard to check for poison.”
‘Were you not poisoned?’
Adam frowned, reading the thought on the Count’s face. “I wasn’t expecting it last time, but I can check for poison given a quarter.”
“That quickly?”
“Yes.”
Matteas wasn’t sure if he should be surprised by such a statement, considering how Adam could rain down fire from the sky.
“Alright, well, I’ll have someone lead me to my treasury, and once we catalogue everything, we can split everything then.” Adam glanced around. “Who is the leader of the servants?”
“I am,” a young man said, stepping forward. His hair was dark brown, trimmed and neat, swept to the side. His eyes were a dark, dark grey, not quite black. He was thin, and carried himself as though a ruler that been glued to the back of his neck and his back. “I am the attendant head.”
“I was about to comment on how young you are, but I know how annoying that is.” Adam raised his brows knowingly. “Great, you can fill me in with the situation at the castle, the amount of workers, their names, their salaries, and so on. We’ll do that after we check out the treasury though, so I know how much to pay you and whatever.”
“There is no need for you to deal with such matters, my lord.”
“I’m sure there’s no need, but I want to make sure my house is in order,” Adam stated, smiling once more.
“Such matters are typically dealt with by myself, my lord.”
Adam continued to smile, and as the seconds passed, his eyes stopped smiling. “It seems as though you are all quite a loyal bunch to your old lord. I understand that it might displease you that I killed your previous lord, the same lord who aimed to murder me, but I want to make sure you understand the situation. If you wish to be stripped of your roles here, I am more than happy to allow you to leave with the clothes on your back, a pouch of silver, and a dagger to protect you as you make your way to the nearby villages and towns, one by one.”
The attendant head stared at Adam, his eyes widened slightly, and he could feel the chill at the back of his neck. “A baron who has no respect for his staff, is no lord worth following.”
“Staff who have no respect for their baron, are not staff worth employing,” Adam replied, thought he raised his brows slightly at the attendant head. “I am certain, with your age, that you are stellar at your role. It would be a shame to lose your job because you do not want to serve your temporary lord, who will not spend much time within the castle, and will leave you to your business once he understands the situation within the castle.”
The attendant head swallowed, certain that he had baited the young baron into trying to kill him, but he made no such moves.
“I don’t care that you disrespected me in front of the Count. I don’t care that you disrespected me in front of the other staff. What I care about is that you are trying to play with the livelihoods of those you grew up around, and those you lead. I’m not entirely certain what the attendant head deals with, which is why I wanted you to help me understand, but you don’t seem to want to.”
Adam frowned, trying to play a fine line between being compassionate, but also getting the job done. “Understand that I will not just punish you for your disobedience, but those around you as well. If you will not tell me what the other servants do, then I must fire them. If you will not follow the simplest of orders, then I must fire you. You, with your generations of serving this family dutifully, fired. Why? Is that family so important? Is it Rockcastle, or its rulers, you should be serving?”
The young attendant head did not reply to Adam’s words.
“If you want me to do my job properly, then you should do yours. Now, fill me in with the situation at the castle.”
“As you say, my lord.”
“Thank you.”
The attendant head let slip a look of shock towards the new Baron, understanding he was not noble born. Even the Count threw a look towards Adam, blinking.
“A word of advice, Baron Fateson,” the count began, staring at the young man, who continued to shock him. “It is not right for a man of your rank to thank their lessers.”
Adam swallowed for a moment and closed his eyes. ‘Lessers?’ He inhaled deeply, before letting out a long, tired sigh. “A word of advice, Count Moonglow. If you have a man that wants to make you a king, don’t give him a reason not to.”