Defending Against the Pig

The Luxem Manor was located near a hillside that overlooked the rest of the Stonefall Village, which meant that Tom, as well as everyone who wanted to meet with Ryan, needed to climb up the hill to reach him.

“Master Ryan—!” Tom’s eyes widened at the floating book. He had already seen the Kobolds yesterday and had gotten used to it, but the floating book was new.

‘But this is Master Ryan, and almost everything around him is unexplainable at this point. I need to concentrate.’ Tom thought, pushing his concerns away as he looked at the former prince.

“What is it?” Ryan asked calmly. It was important for a leader to set an example for his people, so he kept himself unbothered.

“Someone from Crowehaven sent a message, saying that Baron Illus is on his way here with his entourage,” Tom reported. He glanced at the Kobolds, the little dragon, and the extraordinary pile of gems just nearby. “You need to hide them or make them leave! I mean… that’s my suggestion, Master Ryan. Forgive me for speaking out of turn.”

“Who’s Baron Illus?” Ryan asked.

“You… you don’t know of him, Master Ryan? Aren’t all nobles supposed to know each other?” Tom asked with slight confusion.

“Well, it’s good court etiquette to know people within your circle, but this Baron Illus must be so far out from my social circle that it is my first time hearing of him,” Ryan explained with a shrug. “I presume that he is around the area, and this place is very far from the capital. He's likely one of those nobles who are rarely invited to social gatherings.”

“I… I see.” Tom looked at Ryan, who looked completely undisturbed by everything.

“Very well. We don’t exactly know what he’s going here for, do we? But the best that we can do is stay prepared,” Ryan said with a nod. “Let’s prepare a small delegation to welcome him… and as for the Kobolds and Chrysus.”

“If Baron Illus witnesses them…”

“Yes. That will be an issue.” Ryan muttered to himself.

‘I don’t want to expose myself right away. I have no idea about the current rank of Baron Illus nor do I know what kind of person he may be—friend or foe. Either way, if word slips out about the Kobolds and Chrysus, it’ll definitely blow out of proportion.’

“Do you wish for me to do something about it, Master Ryan?” the Grimoire asked.

“You can do something about it?” Ryan turned to the floating book.

“It’ll cost you 5,000 Grimoire Points, but I have experience in creating a protective invisible shield that will protect everyone and everything inside it from being seen. Its cost is actually much greater because of its ordinary scale, but this can shield them from the eyes of that Baron.”

‘It’s not actually a bad thing, right? All Chrysus and the Kobolds need to do is stay put in the shield, and they won’t be seen. Alright, that sounds like a fair deal. Let’s go with that, Builder.’

“There are also extra costs, depending on how long I must sustain it.”

‘What?’ Ryan asked.

— — — — — — —

Kingdom Building, Done Right!

Kingdom Spells

Classification: Area-Wide, Emission

Dome of Invisibility

Casts a great dome around a certain radius of an area which provides a shield from the eyes of others.

Cost: 5,000 Grimoire Points

Sustaining Cost: 100 Grimoire Points Per Hour

— — — — — — —

“Master Ryan?” Tom looked at the muttering Village Master and became a little worried.

‘Is the stress getting to him? We don’t know what Baron Illus is here for… but the fact remains that Master Ryan is an exiled Prince, so his former rank does not mean much now. If the Baron wishes to throw his weight around, I’m not sure what Master Ryan can do without offending him.’

“And there we go.” Ryan ran his fingers through his hair and glanced at Tom with a grin. “Notice any difference?”

“Huh, notice…? Wait, where did all the Kobolds and little dragon go?” Tom craned his neck and looked around wildly. “I have been standing here the entire time, Master Ryan, so how did it happen?”

“Trade secret.” Ryan winked. “But that kind of settles our issue with hiding them. If we try to get all of the Kobolds to get up and run back to the Ironcross Mountains, they’ll end up being spotted by Baron Illus, and it’ll be a mess to deal with.”

“Y-yes, my thoughts exactly, Master Ryan.”

“Good.” Ryan stretched a little and glanced at the sun. “I’m once again reminded that I need to prepare for the delegation. How long do you think it would take for them to arrive?”

“If Baron Illus is using fast horses and a magic carriage, he would be here already, I think,” Tom answered. “But his territory and estate are not actually that far from here. It’s actually much closer than Baron Luxem’s actual estate, Master Ryan.”

“I see. His estate is closer? Then it seems like I might have an idea of what he came here for,” Ryan said.

“You have an idea?” Tom looked at the young man in shock.

“I might be wrong, but if I say it out loud, I might jinx myself or something, so let’s keep it at that.” Ryan grinned.

Tom saw the grin on Ryan’s face. However, it wasn't the usual relaxed and good-natured grin. Looking at it, it was actually a little scary.

There was a dangerous glint in Ryan’s blue eyes, and it was as if he was preparing himself for battle.

Tom gulped instinctively.

‘To think that our Master Ryan would be able to switch from his usual carefree manner and turn into this at a single change of circumstance. It’s no secret that someone like him has a character unlike any other.’ Tom thought. ‘I think it’s a great thing that grandfather told us to give him a chance… because if we had actually shown our displeasure to Master Ryan… there's no telling what might have happened instead?’

Ryan cleared his throat and addressed his aide,

“If people are already coming to our door, then we have to give them a warm welcome, don’t we, Tom? Let’s go.”