Karl shrugged, a hint of helplessness in his expression.
It seemed his leisurely pastoral life was about to depart, but he still wanted to struggle a bit.
So, he blinked twice and asked with a smile, "Since it's a Martial Arts Tournament, there must be many dignitaries present."
"My status is merely that of a commoner; it seems I don't qualify to participate in the Martial Arts Tournament?"
Hearing this, Raymond said nothing, merely smiling and gently clapping his hands.
"Yes, Lord Raymond, what are your orders?"
Hans quickly approached the three of them and bowed in greeting.
"Hans, please bring the pen, parchment, and other items I prepared beforehand from the carriage."
"As you command, my lord." Hans nodded, turned, quickened his pace, opened the door, and left the room.
"Ahem, ahem, ahem... Karl, I have the authority to confer knighthood, so there's no need to worry about the qualification issue at all."
Raymond smiled, as if he had already anticipated Karl's question.
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In fact, Raymond had already considered a series of inheritance and other issues before his visit.
Therefore, he had even brought the official seal, a symbol of identity, on this trip, so he could begin drafting the conferment of knighthood on the spot.
Seeing this situation, Karl could only remain silent; he was completely at his wit's end.
Raymond clearly had a plan, and had probably been waiting for him to ask that question.
Before long, Raymond, having received the pen and parchment, quickly began drafting a series of approvals for the conferment of knighthood.
"This paper document does not prove your knightly status; it only grants you the right to a fief."
"The conferment of knighthood is complex and solemn, requiring many witnesses. It cannot be simplified. I will arrange a suitable time to complete the ceremony."
Raymond explained the necessary information about knighthood to Karl while sealing the document with beeswax.
"It's done. Tomorrow, both of you will move into my manor. Karl, your time is urgent; not a moment can be wasted."
"Furthermore, plate armor needs to be custom-made by a blacksmith, and you'll also need a good warhorse."
"This concerns the honor of our Erl Family; we cannot take it lightly... Ahem, ahem, ahem!"
At this point, Raymond couldn't stop a series of rapid coughs, covering his mouth with a handkerchief.
At the same time, Karl couldn't help but feel a change in his perception of this father he had never met.
In this era, nobles placed extreme importance on bloodlines, especially whether a child was truly their own.
Yet Raymond, meeting him for the first time today, had no procedure to verify their bloodline.
The other party seemed to have accepted him as his offspring, without a trace of doubt.
It seemed there were many things he didn't know about his mother's past with Raymond years ago... The next day, Karl and Jack, traveling in a carriage arranged by Raymond, arrived near the manor after a bumpy ride.
Karl lifted the curtain and looked up at the not-so-distant Raymond's manor, situated on a gentle slope slightly away from the main road.
This sight startled Karl, because the manor, rather than being an imposing noble residence, resembled a somewhat dim fortress, worn down by time and limited finances.
The stone-cut exterior walls showed signs of repair, and in some places, the vines were so overgrown they almost swallowed the narrow windows.
The main structure of the manor remained solid, but the details revealed its financial straits.
For example, the edges of the family crest relief on the main gate were somewhat blurred, and several layers of weeds stubbornly pushed through the cracks in the stone steps leading to the door.
Karl increasingly felt that Raymond's willingness to spend his already limited funds on him, to forge him plate armor and buy a warhorse, showed his genuine sincerity.
A sound of carriage wheels crunching over gravel, not hurried but clearly audible, grew from distant to near, finally stopping outside the manor gate.
Inside the main hall, the air seemed to freeze for a moment.
Hans, who had been waiting there, his eyes suddenly sharpened, and his fingers, clasped behind his back, stopped rubbing.
"Ahem…"
He cleared his throat very lightly, his voice not loud, yet it commanded all the servants behind him to instantly straighten their backs.
Marta, the head maid, wore a faded dark blue coarse linen dress with a clean but equally worn white apron tied around her waist.
She stood with four younger, timid-eyed maids a little further back and to Hans's side.
Their task was to keep the hall tidy and provide service when necessary.
At this moment, Marta's eyes held scrutiny and a hint of almost imperceptible disdain.
She only knew that two "distant, not-so-important guests" were arriving today, and Lord Raymond had instructed that basic courtesies be observed.
She occasionally patted her skirt, as if dusting off non-existent specks, appearing somewhat impatient.
Head Maid Marta reined in her impatience, replacing it with a rigid, professional expression, while the four young maids buried their heads even lower.
One of the young maids suddenly snapped to attention, almost stumbling as she rushed to the heavy oak door, took a deep breath, and pulled it open forcefully.
Cold wind, laden with dampness and dust, rushed into the hall, making the flames in the fireplace flicker. Two figures appeared in the doorway, silhouetted against the light from outside.
Karl and Jack walked in, carrying their luggage.
His eyes, with a hint of curiosity and caution, quickly scanned the environment of the hall and the people within it.
His posture was neither humble nor arrogant, more like a stone dropped into water, awaiting the surrounding reaction.
The moment they clearly saw his appearance, the three maids were all startled, then their pretty faces flushed slightly, and they lowered their heads, averting their gaze, not daring to meet Karl's eyes.
Karl did not rush, his eyes scanning the surroundings, thinking to himself.
"Indeed, Raymond seems outwardly prosperous, but in reality, he lives quite a difficult life."
The main hall was tall but empty, with a roaring fire in the massive fireplace.
Several ancestral portraits hung on the walls, their colors faded with age, and the edges of the canvases slightly curled.
The only thing that could be considered new was a large, severely worn bear rug laid in the center, covering part of the damp floor's coldness.
The furniture was heavy oak, old-fashioned in style.
However, it was polished exceptionally bright, clearly meticulously maintained, and without excessive luxurious decoration.
A few pieces, possibly ancestral silver or porcelain, were carefully displayed on the mantelpiece, the only remaining symbols of decency in this rather humble hall.
The air carried the scent of burning wood, the dampness of old stone, and a faint, almost imperceptible smell of cheap incense attempting to mask a musty odor.
This scene made Karl sigh inwardly, realizing that Raymond ordering custom plate armor and buying a warhorse for him must have meant selling off everything he had.
Otherwise, even if life was a bit tight, it wouldn't be this desperate.
He had only met Hans the butler yesterday. The remaining head maid and four maids were likely all the servants in the entire manor, and those four guards should also be counted.
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