I leaned back in the wagon, staring out of the window at the rising sun, which, frankly, looked way too cheerful for how I was feeling. 'Leonard knew the Highcliff noble sign, huh?' That wasn’t something a common background would’ve taught him.

'He’s not from a big family either' I mused. If he were, he wouldn’t be running a caravan for a living. 'Maybe the son of a big merchant?' Well, whatever his background, the fact that he could recognize the sign was impressive. Even I couldn’t have done that without the endless hours the old butler spent drilling it into my skull.

Ah, Wilfred Highcliff. The name wasn’t just a random lie I pulled out of nowhere. It belonged to the actual heir of a small barony—a little detail from the countless noble house lessons the old man hammered into me. I still remember questioning the point of memorizing *every* single noble house name, even the most insignificant ones.

And his response was always the same: "As a noble, thou shalt always need it, young master."

At the time, I had thought sarcastically, 'Sure, that’ll come in handy someday.' Well, look at me now. Turns out the old man wasn’t entirely full of hot air.

"Guess I owe him a gift," I muttered to myself, shaking my head.

Speaking of gifts...

'The princess’s birthday' I remembered. Every noble house had to bring a gift, or it would be considered a grave insult to the crown. Worse, it would be a huge embarrassment for House Blackwood—a giftless noble attending a royal event? Might as well send a resignation letter.

Of course, that certain *barbarian* had kindly incinerated the fancy gift Blackwood had sent along with me. Along with my men, the horses, and pretty much everything else that wasn’t nailed down.

'So now what?' I can’t exactly go back and ask for another one. By the time I reach the capital, it’ll be too late to even send a raven. Plus, I’m not entirely convinced there isn’t some spy lurking within the house, so informing them of anything wasn’t exactly high on my list.

'What to do?' It’s not like I can just grab something off the shelf and present it to the princess. Grandmother had spent days agonizing over the perfect gift, something fancy and luxurious enough for royal tastes.

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And now, thanks to *that* walking flame-thrower, I’ve got nothing.

'Not to mention, I’m a bit light on funds' I thought bitterly. I had a small stash of silver and gold on me, but the real haul had been in the chariot… which, of course, was now a melted pile of slag. I shivered just thinking about it. 'It takes at least 1,064 degrees Celsius to melt gold... that’s lava-level heat.'

'How did I even survive that monster?' Burrak wasn’t something I ever thought I’d face in my lifetime.

'Well, I’ve got two stops before the capital: Norelana City and Sharptown' I’ll figure something out there. Hopefully.

.

.

.

"Lord Highcliff... we shall halt for a moment here to rest the horses before reaching Norelana," one of Leonard’s men stammered, his voice quivering like a leaf caught in a gale. "I hope that won’t be... any trouble."

I couldn’t help but chuckle. 'The guy looked like he was one wrong word away from fainting.'

"Oh, of course," I replied, smiling just enough to make him squirm. "Resting the horses is very important."

He gave a nervous nod and turned to leave, but I wasn’t quite done with him yet. "Wait," I said, and his spine visibly straightened. "What’s your name?"

His eyes darted around as if searching for an escape route, clearly terrified by the simple question. "It’s Torsten, my lord... Torsten."

"Torsten," I repeated, drawing out the name as if I were tasting it. "That’s a fine name. Tell me, Torsten, how long hast thou worked for Leonard?"

"Uh, f-five years, my lord," he stammered, his eyes wide. "I’ve served him well, I hope—v-very well!"

"Oh, I’m sure thou hast," I said, smiling as I leaned a little closer, watching him squirm.

"well, i guess thats goodbye for now Torsten "

He practically sprinted away, and I couldn’t help but laugh to myself.

After what felt like a few hours on the road, we finally reached Norelana. It was a city under the rule of Count Verkas, just like the village we passed through earlier. The road had been long, but it was unavoidable—we had to pass through here to get to the capital.

Leonard, halted at the city gates. I watched as he dealt with the guards. Surprisingly, they waved him through quickly, exchanging pleasantries like old friends. 'So, he’s got connections' I mused, leaning against the wagon.

Cities and villages were entirely different beasts when it came to security. In villages, the guards barely glanced at you. But here, in a proper city, every commoner was strictly searched. Nobles like me, of course, were an exception.

Once we were through, I stepped out of the wagon to stretch my legs and take a look around. Norelana had a certain elegance to it, like an old noble who’d aged gracefully. As the main city in Count Verkas’ region, it was clearly well-maintained, with cobblestone streets, tall buildings, and the occasional statue of a past ruler dotting the corners.

'Cities...' I couldn’t help but think back to the Blackwood lands. In most regions, the population was spread thin across tiny villages, each with fewer than a thousand people. Then there were the towns—proper market towns where you could find goods from across the region, or sometimes even overseas. Towns had walls, strategic locations, specialized industries, and populations anywhere from 2,000 to 5,000 souls.

But cities? Now those were rare.

Even in Blackwood territory, we had only one. Blackwood City, once a thriving trade center back in the good old days, was now little more than a ghost town, with maybe 1,500 people living there—if that.

'Thanks to Grandmother , for letting only the highest merchants and skilled folk live there.' I thought, 'That’s how it *used* to be. Now it’s probably a haunted shell of its former glory.'

I sighed, shaking my head."Well, at least Norelana looks alive."