"Family...? What do you mean by that?"
The fat man stopped his eating streak and proceeded to look at Emery in a serious manner.
"It's exactly what it implies, Lanzelot. We are all under one family, the family of the Lioness Kingdom, aren't we?"
"Yes, Lord. Of course we are." Emery replied with an unsure tone.
Until this moment, Emery still had a hard time understanding what the fat noble was implying.
Fantumar put on a dejected expression and said, "I am saddened to see the king only offers you an unused room in his palace. But fret not, I can assure you that our kingdom is rich. I can give you anything you desire and for that, I hope you will stay loyal to the kingdom."
Now Emery began to understand what the fat-ass meant to convey.
Within all the 7 kingdoms, the map of power was generally divided between its king and nobles, whereas the king would govern the land and the nobles would serve the kingdom, or more precisely, the royal family. This meant the king held the authority, while the nobles held the management.
In return, the nobles would be given land and title for their contribution to the kingdom as whole. The highest rank would receive the largest and best piece of land the kingdom had, while the lowest would receive the opposite treatment.
The nobles would then rule over the land that had been given to them and receive prosperity from it. Naturally, they would still have to give some tribute to the royal family, either by money or the land specialities. Even so, the wealth the bestowed land earned them was enough for generations to spend.
As for how one could be granted land and title, it was usually decided by merit. The more merits one had, the greater land and title one would be given.
The only other way one would be able to receive a title was when they received their knighthood.
The yearly Tournament was such an event.
It wasn't rare seeing a noble getting an increase in their noble rank if a member of their family received a knighthood. Even more when the said person received the silver knight title or even the revered gold knight title.
There were around 50 gold knights in the whole 7 kingdoms. Their numbers showed the strength of a kingdom and these holy knights had always been nurtured wholly by the kingdom since early times.
Because of this matter, when a talented squire showed up in the Tournament, a better offer of land and title would come from another kingdom. To put it simply, the act of poaching was the norm.
This practice was bluntly carried out especially to those squires, who had no proper ties to the kingdom, such as Emery, or more precisely, Lanzelot Dulat. A young man who came out of nowhere and brought immense talent with him.
After all, if Abe changed sides and jumped away from the ship called the Lioness Kingdom, with his relationship to Fantumar and the kingdom, there would definitely be a huge trouble manifesting.
To discourage such poaching activity, the tournament forces required a squire to dedicate himself to a certain kingdom first. It was established to make sure the squire would be indebted to said kingdom and would return to serve after they received their knighthood.
With the ability he showcased and Lanzelot's background, Emery would surely receive several offers from other kingdoms the moment he received his knighthood. Hence, the reason for the buttering Fantumar was doing right now.
"Lanzelot, you must know that, even though our king cannot offer you much, I, Fantumar, will definitely make sure you feel appreciated. Hence, I will say this to you. If you manage to receive a silver knight title, rest assured, because lands and the highest title will be waiting for you here."
At this moment, Emery was annoyed with the fat noble words. It sounded as if everything in the Lioness Kingdom was his to give, not the king's. Even though it seemed arrogant at first glance, it also showed how influential he was in the kingdom.
Unfortunately for him, Emery didn't need any of those things. Neither coins, land nor titles could make Emery do the things he wanted.
For Emery, the only thing the fat pig could give to satisfy him was justice for his father's death.
Now that everything has been said, when Emery was about to leave, Fantumar tried to give him a bag of coins.
No string attached, he said.
Just something for the trip, he said.
Emery could see why people were easily drawn to this man: having money and power could indeed buy a person over, eventually. There was a little voice inside him, telling to just take the money and give it to people who needed it. But when he saw the person who gave it, he couldn't do it. Therefore, No. Emery firmly refused the bag of coins.
Afterward, Emery swiftly left the place, while still trying hard to appear respectful for the fat nobles.
When Emery left the estate, Fantumar went to another room to see the figure in black armor. Breunor the Dreaded Knight who had been waiting for him.
"Sir Breunor, are you sure the kid's skills are genuine?"
"Yes, they are. It was a short fight, but my knight didn't make a mistake. This kid is probably the best squire I have ever seen."
Those words were such a great compliment, one that came from such a notorious knight at that. It should be good news, but Fantumar, instead of being happy, seemed concerned.
Seeing the man's expression, the Dread Knight asked, "What is it?"
"I never saw a lower noble that doesn't flinch when money and titles are mentioned. There is something very suspicious about this boy. He is not as simple as meets the eye. Adding his sword skills, this doesn't make sense."
"I need you to check the kid's background one more time."
Recalling the sight of Emery, who remained calm and didn't even react once during the previous conversation, Fantumar became even more anxious.
"Will the kid be a problem for our plans?" asked the Dreaded knight.
"If he really is, then we just have to kill him before he can become a bigger problem in the future."
The Dread Knight turned around and walked out of the room after Fantumar said that.
"I understand."