"I have good news." Evil Wolf Earl William's voice was as hard as iron, echoing in the study.
From his father's stern expression, Arthur couldn't discern any exciting news.
After all, as the youngest son of the family and a notorious playboy, Arthur had perfectly embodied the image of a dissolute young master in his short eighteen years of life.
The nobles of Esputa, the political center of eastern Anm, unanimously agreed that if this promiscuous young man, with energy comparable to a stud, were allowed to stay, even his seventy-year-old mother might suffer a tragic fate.
Thus, a month ago, he was successfully expelled from the local aristocratic circle and had to return to the family's territory in disgrace.
On the way back, this young noble, attempting to show off his riding skills, fell from his horse and died, allowing Xing Ze, who had transmigrated, to take advantage of the situation.
Arthur, carried back to the Keep, naturally brought great shame upon his family, which was why every wrinkle on Evil Wolf Earl's face hid his dissatisfaction with this "useless son."
William continued with a stern face, "My application for your title to the Anm Supreme Council has been approved."
"From this day forward, you are the Baron of Qingfeng Valley. After attending the inauguration ceremony of the New Temple, you should depart for your post immediately."
These words were like a heavy hammer, finally crushing Arthur's hanging heart.
He never expected that less than a month after transmigrating to Faerûn, he would be used as a political pawn and sent to that dangerous place, known as the "Baron's Graveyard."
Qingfeng Valley, located in eastern Anm Empire, is nestled between the Silvanus Forest and the Snowflake Mountains.
In the past thirty years, it has gone through twenty-eight Barons.
The term Baron in that place was not a symbol of power and status, but rather synonymous with a consumable item.
After a brief shock, Arthur quickly calmed down.
As his father said, his letter of appointment was issued by the Anm Supreme Council.
After the Anm Civil War, the merchant coalition overthrew the monarchy and established an oligarchy led by the Five-Person Council.
If he refused to accept the appointment, he would be considered a traitor, and his entire family would suffer for it.
Arthur knew very well that if he refused, without the Supreme Council needing to act, his ruthless father would personally drag him to the Council for trial.
So, instead of thinking about how to escape this, it would be better to quickly find a way to arm himself before departing and gather all available resources to increase his chances of survival in that dangerous place.
Seeing his son remain silent for a long time, only looking down at the floor, the Earl couldn't help but urge, "Did you hear what I said?"
"Don't play your little tricks anymore. This is an appointment letter issued by the Anm Supreme Council. No one can stop it except the Supreme Council itself."
Arthur looked up and replied, "I understand, Father. This is my honor, and I will not fail the family's expectations."
His straightforward answer, however, made his father William feel a sense of doubt—why was this son, who usually caused so much trouble, suddenly so obedient?
However, the Earl quickly stopped delving deeper, only wanting to send this troublesome fellow away as soon as possible.
He pushed the letter of appointment and documents over: "Here is a list of supplies provided by the Supreme Council. Go back and read it carefully. If you need anything, just say so, and the Evil Wolf Family will try its best to satisfy you."
Arthur thanked him again and then walked out of the study.
-----------------
If there was one advantage to Xing Ze, who had transmigrated, it was his exceptional execution ability.
After returning to his room, he immediately began to plan, but as soon as he opened the letter of appointment, a series of information suddenly flooded his mind:
Map information loaded, daily intelligence updated:
【Purple Intelligence】 The staff of John, Saint of the Mother Earth Shangtiya Church, will be destroyed as trash. If returned to the Mother Earth statue before noon, you can gain Shangtiya's favor.
【White Intelligence】 Groda Ironfist's wife, Valentina, gave birth to a son; the child's true father is Groda Ironfist's brother, Rom Ironfist.
【White Intelligence】 The dire wolf Black Mane will give birth at 10:14 AM today and will die from difficult labor due to malposition.
Arthur took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.
As a transmigrator familiar with Dungeons & Dragons settings, he already understood the gods and magic of Faerûn.
So, when these pieces of information appeared in his mind out of nowhere, he wasn't too surprised.
The first thing he thought of was not a system, but a revelation from a deity.
If it were a benevolent deity—such as the Mother Earth Shangtiya worshipped here—kindly helping, this would be a great blessing.
But he was afraid it might be a prank from some evil deity on mortals; such things were all too common in the Dungeons & Dragons world.
After a moment of thought, Arthur decided to verify the authenticity of these pieces of information.
After all, practice leads to true knowledge.
The difference in intelligence colors reminded him of the leveling system in modern online games.
White Intelligence should be the lowest level—because he also knew Black Mane was about to give birth.
And her stable was in Wolf Fang Keep, so Arthur decided to start there.
-----------------
The stable master was a lean man, currently in the room with his four animal trainers, chatting around the fireplace.
Since the dire wolf Black Mane was about to give birth, all the stable management had been summoned together today.
Black Mane was the Earl's favorite dire wolf, having accompanied him through life and death several times, so everyone in the stable was on high alert, fearing that any mishap would incur the Earl's wrath.
When Arthur entered the room, the stable master's smile instantly froze.
This notorious young master had always been absurd and unconventional, and his visit this time probably boded no good.
But due to his noble status, the stable master could only greet him with a smile, while inwardly praying to Mother Earth that the other party would not make any strange demands.
After hearing Arthur's warning that "Black Mane's fetus is malpositioned, and she will have a difficult birth," the stable master looked confused.
Malposition? Difficult birth?
The veterinarian responsible for assisting with the birth had been on duty for a whole day, checking every two hours; how could there be an oversight?
If these words had come from anyone else, the stable master might have pondered them, but as for Young Master Arthur, he had already heard suppressed snickers from inside the room.
Everyone's attitude was within Arthur's expectations.
Thanks to his years of "intensive cultivation," his reputation in the family territory was already universally disliked.
If it were him, he probably wouldn't believe his own words either.
He didn't expect the other party to immediately believe him; he just wanted everyone to hear what he had to say.
It was like the saying, "I don't know the answer, but the sound of turning pages must be loud."
If the intelligence was true, even if Black Mane couldn't be saved in the end, he could use this to attract his father's attention; if he could save Black Mane, that would be a great merit, which would greatly improve his relationship with his father.
After all, part of the money and manpower for the journey to Qingfeng Valley still had to be provided by his father, the Earl.
If the intelligence was false, it wouldn't have too much impact on him.
Anyway, his reputation was already at rock bottom; it couldn't get any lower.
Seeing the stable master repeatedly give evasive answers, Arthur stopped wasting words; he still had two pieces of intelligence to verify, and he had already planned everything.
Next stop, the Mother Earth Temple.
Having made up his mind, Arthur left a remark: "Black Mane is Father's most valued old companion; being more attentive is always right," and then headed to the stables.
As soon as he left, the animal trainers in the room all burst into laughter, ridiculing what new madness this good-for-nothing young master was up to today.
Only the veterinarian by the fireplace silently walked to the window, looking thoughtfully towards Black Mane's Hut.