Above The Sky
Chapter 525 - 525 494 Lord Knight Ian 13

525: Chapter 494: Lord Knight Ian (1/3) 525: Chapter 494: Lord Knight Ian (1/3) Become a lord?

Even for Ian, this outcome was simply too shocking.

Ian looked towards Yisen Gard, his eyes asking a question.

—Do you know about this?

Is this the surprise for me?

The other party shook his head blankly.

—How could I possibly know about this!

Indeed, that was the case; Yisen Gard knew nothing about it.

Theoretically speaking, Lady Ellen didn’t have the right to bestow lordship, and even Marquis Ellen himself could only confer knighthoods within his own domain, certainly not extending to South Ridge.

As for Leyan Territory…

My own land in Leyan Territory?

That’s right.

Baron Leyan had passed away with no descendants, and it’s doubtful that his kin met the criteria for conferral by the Empire.

Given these circumstances, it would be appropriate for the land to be split into several knight domains, to be granted to Hillsman Knights and to Imperial Knights like me.

Ian had merited some land in the Leyan Territory incident, which seemed sensible but not very realistic…

mainly because he was so young and lacked sufficient achievements.

How could he…

Unless…

“Wait.

I was wondering why all my merits were lumped under my identity as an Inspector Knight.

So they’ve been waiting here for me?”

Suddenly, Ian had an epiphany.

Throughout his journeys, he indeed earned considerable merits, especially when assisting Tres with the train hijacking incident.

Though he got off midway to evade possible traps, when all his achievements were added up, it was enough to qualify him.

The question was, who orchestrated this for him?

“Was it Marquis Barton?

Or Lady Ellen?

Or the Second Prince?

Never mind, they were all in this together.

Besides, a knight’s domain is probably just a trivial matter to these people, used to bind me with a word…”

With a multitude of thoughts whirling in his mind, Ian and Yisen Gard had already entered the mansion together, guided by a maid into an adjacent private room.

The main residence of the Ellen Family in the Imperial Capital was resplendent even in its corridors.

The straight path lined with lamps, each as radiant as the sun, conveyed warmth.

Yisen Gard left halfway as Lady Ellen had matters to discuss with him.

After Ian was led through a set of grand doors, he found a set of silver-grey standard armor from the Knight Order of Inspectorate, identical to the one Tres wore before.

“The question is, why are they so eager to make me a lord?

I’m a citizen, at the First Energy Level, a knight; apart from not having the Second Energy Level, I’m practically touching the edge of nobility.

I’m now qualified for any major undertaking—I could go back to South Ridge right now, get a charter for pioneering, and establish a new foundation in the Redwood Forest.

They must be aware of this.”

As the young man pondered, he started to don the armor with the help of an attendant: “So, this domain isn’t just for winning me over…

It’s for me to choose.

In plain words, this statement means that henceforth, the entire Leyan Territory is mine, so it makes no difference which part I pick.”

“Not to mention the protest of the Mountain People, which is irrelevant, and I can fully negotiate with Elder Mantle…

After all, they just handed me a vast source of alchemy materials like Leyan Territory?

Viscount Grant is infuriated!

So it can’t just be for my sake…”

“Could it be, the infighting within the Ellen Family is intensifying…

and they want to prepare a way out for Yisen Gard?”

At this thought, Ian felt as though he had grasped the crux of the issue.

He looked around the grand Ellen Family residence, the aquatic light halo illuminating.

Instantly, two lights—one dark silver and the other deep purple— shone forth, together with a great deal of blue and purple mist…

At a glance, he immediately shut it off.

Inside the Ellen Family residence, there were surprisingly two at the Fourth Level!

And Lady Ellen herself was a high-order Sublimator at the Second Energy Level.

Reaching the Heart Light Stage peak of the Second Energy Level wasn’t simply a matter of consuming Magic Potions.

If a Sublimator did not clearly define their will and belief, merging soul and body into one to achieve an integrated smelting realm, the Heart Light would not be born.

Whether Lady Ellen had the talent was uncertain, but at the very least, she wasn’t a fragile noblewoman without conviction; she just hadn’t reached the point of no hesitation, which was why she hadn’t advanced to the Third Energy Level.

As for the other two at the Fourth Level…

“They are both familiar faces.”

One was the Deputy Commander ‘Frosttrace Knight’ from the Knight Order of Inspectorate headquarters that he had previously encountered.

And the other…

was the Heart Light Body of Second Prince Michael.

There was no Marquis Ellen, not even any subordinates of the Marquis present.

“Indeed.”

Ian seemed thoughtful, as he probably understood, “Marquis Ellen himself has quite an ambiguous stance towards Yisen Gard.

The internal strife within the Ellen Family must be fierce, and if he were to stay in the Imperial Capital, his safety might not be guaranteed.”

“But if he were in the distant Southern Territory, at least Yisen Gard would have a refuge in times of crisis, where he could escape from more dangerous assassinations.”

The standard armor of the Inspector Knight was surprisingly advanced; although it wasn’t Sublimation Armor, it had many functions.

After the squire had fitted the T-shaped psychic plate into the ‘Signal Bone’ at the back of Ian’s neck, he noticed that the front of the black crystalline helmet was lit up with dense layers of subtitles and marks.

“Oh?

Is this armor actually integrated with information?”

Ian was somewhat surprised.

The captions that appeared on the inside of the helmet covered many aspects, including time, temperature, wind speed, and critical target filtering…

Although it was not as accurate as the Silver Chip, it seemed from the UI that the Knight Order of Inspectorate could communicate through voice and even send messages via subtitles when executing collective tasks?

This was indeed…

quite useful.

Such collaborative combat equipment was likely standard issue within the elite military units of the Central Empire.

“And…”

Ian narrowed his eyes as he conducted a reverse exploration through the signals at the Signal Bone, discovering that there was even a direct connection port on the back of the armor…

and it was specialized, a physically encrypted port tailored for Armor Suits.

“So one cannot drive a military Armor Suit without wearing similar armor or equipment.

As expected, the time with the Pirate Armor was an exception.

It seems it’ll be hard to just grab any armor and pilot it now.”

“No, that’s not right.

With my current identity, I don’t need to steal; I have the authority to conscript.”

Wearing the armor, Ian entered the hall.

Sure enough, Lady Ellen, Yisen Gard, the Deputy Commander Frostmark, and a bird-shaped Heart Light Body shining with radiance all turned to look at him.

It seemed they had been discussing matters related to the Solitary Mountain meeting, but their attention shifted to him upon his arrival.

“Not bad, your adaptability to the Signal Bone is strong—Ian Gard told me you’re a genius Armor Suit driver, that you broke a Second Energy Level Magical Beast in South Ridge on your first time driving the Pirate Armor.

This kind of adaptability is truly that of a genius.”

Lady Ellen said with approval, “I had my doubts at first, but seeing how smoothly you operate this armor, I immediately believed it.”

The Deputy Commander Frostmark beside her also showed a very interested expression, “Your adaptability is quite strong.

As expected of a Spirit Energy User, you catch on quickly in this aspect.”

Ian was momentarily taken aback, as he hadn’t initially noticed any difficulty in controlling the standard armor.

But after Lady Ellen’s comment, he became aware of it.

“I see, this armor is very heavy, and even a Sublimator needs to exert effort to move it.

It requires cooperation with the Signal Bone to self-drive the armor, allowing one to move as freely as usual.”

Ian couldn’t help but feel a bit self-reproachful for his oversight; he was too accustomed to connecting with external devices that it felt as natural as being at home, leaving no room for doubt.

For the Humans of Terra World, although they all have the Signal Bone to connect to various electronic and Spirit Energy devices, they actually don’t have this habit.

He inadvertently displayed too much genius again.

He’d remember this time.

Just as Ian thought, the Deputy Commander Frostmark and Second Prince Michael’s Heart Light Body were here precisely to serve as witnesses for Ian’s investiture as Knight Lord of the Former Leyan Territory.

Within the knight hierarchy, there are many ranks beneath the Great Knight of the Third Energy Level.

After all, not all of the Second Energy Level could become Nobles, nor did all knights need a domain to become Knight Lords.

Within the Knight Order of Inspectorate were titles such as ‘Superintendent Knight,’ often awarded to veteran Knights with extensive merits, conferring the right to lead independent teams and establish local chapters of the Knight Order.

Furthermore, the court had its own Imperial Knights directly under the royal family, and even the Four Great Orthodox Churches possessed the right to ordain Holy Knights.

Even the Truth Institute and Spirit Wisdom Institute had their own knightly honors.

But the most common knightly title in Terra was still that of the Lord Knight.

And now, Ian was about to be conferred as a Lord.