Chapter 453: 453 Rank Advancement [1]

Chapter 453: Chapter 453 Rank Advancement [1]

Night fell.

The grand hall of Thornvale Manor stood in quiet tension, its old stone pillars casting long shadows beneath the flickering sconces. Outside, the wind howled faintly through broken eaves.

Michael sat alone for a while, letting the silence settle. Then came a soft knock—two short raps—and the door creaked open.

Roran stepped in, a stack of fresh parchments in hand.

“My lord,” he said, approaching. “A brief summary of what we’ve confirmed so far.”

Michael didn’t look up. “Go on.”

Roran nodded and began.

“Of the original twenty-two senior staff members, seven are under suspicion for direct embezzlement. The garrison is still being assessed, but at least two captains were on Helmric’s payroll. We’ve detained them.”

Michael’s expression didn’t change.

“The armory holds only a third of what it should. The stables are missing records of transactions. Trade route permits have been duplicated and falsified. And food supplies were being sold off before they even reached the manor kitchens.”

He placed the stack of reports on the table.

Roran’s report went on.

And on.

To his credit, the knight was thorough—painfully so. He spared no detail, listing infractions, missing inventory logs, guard rotations, unfulfilled tax promises, and inconsistencies in merchant documentation. Names, figures, even suspected aliases. Everything delivered in that same steady, disciplined tone.

Michael tried to keep up.

He really did.

But sometime between the fifth mention of a missing shipment ledger and the third suspicious land grant, a sharp pulse began to build behind his eyes. It throbbed once. Then again. By the time Roran started talking about garrison supply routes and armor oil requisitions, Michael could feel the headache blooming like a wildfire behind his temples.

He raised a hand, cutting Roran off mid-sentence.

“Enough,” he said, the word more of a sigh than a command.

Roran blinked. “My lord?”

Michael pinched the bridge of his nose and leaned back in his chair. “You win. I surrender. If I hear the word ‘logistics’ one more time tonight, I might stab something.”

Roran offered a faint smirk, stepping back with a salute. “Understood.”

Michael waved him off, then paused.

“One more thing,” he said, opening his eyes just enough to focus. “Have you heard anything from the local lords under my banner?”

Roran’s smirk faded, replaced by a more serious expression. “Not yet. We’ve had limited time since arrival. I haven’t received any replies to the notices we dispatched. Some may not even know you’re here yet.”

Michael’s brows lifted slightly. “Is that so.”

The knight nodded. “But rest assured, my lord. Give us a few more days, and we’ll start collecting proper information.”

Michael gave a slow nod. “Good.”

He leaned back once more, fingers drumming the chair arm faintly. Truth be told, he wasn’t too worried.

He already had someone working on that.

A shadow in the dark.

Lyra.

The silver-haired assassin hadn’t wasted a second since entering the manor. While the others prepared rooms and secured routes, she’d already begun slipping through cracks in the territory’s power structure. If there was dirt to be found, she would find it.

Michael had never imagined he’d find use for the dark elf so soon after arriving.

But life had a funny way of throwing him the pieces he needed at just the right time.

Roran gave another brief salute. “I’ll leave you to rest, my lord.”

“Mm,” Michael muttered, eyes already closing. “Do that. And Roran?”

“Yes?”

“If another servant brings me another scroll tonight, toss them into the well.”

The knight chuckled. “Understood.”

Just as Roran reached the doorway, Michael spoke again.

“One last thing.”

The knight turned, attentive. “Yes, my lord?”

Michael opened one eye, his voice low but curious. “How are Ace and Lia doing?”

Roran blinked, caught slightly off guard by the sudden shift in topic.

“You mean… with managing the manor’s general affairs?”

Michael nodded once. “I want to know if they’re overwhelmed or holding up.”

A faint grin tugged at Roran’s lips. “They’re trying, my lord. Emphasis on trying.”

Michael arched a brow, waiting.

“They’ve taken to the roles as well as can be expected,” Roran continued. “Lia keeps storming into rooms like he owns them. Ace’s been quietly fixing the messes he leaves behind.”

Michael let out a quiet chuckle.

“That sounds about right.”

Roran folded his arms. “They make a strange pair, but they’re earnest. And… I think they want to prove something. Not just to you. To themselves.”

Michael nodded slowly, eyes drifting shut again. “That’s enough. I’m not expecting miracles. Just effort.”

“They’re giving you that,” Roran said. “Clumsily, but sincerely.”

Michael’s voice was barely a murmur now. “Good.”

Roran lingered for a moment more, then took his leave. The door closed with a soft thud.

Michael sat in silence.

The headache throbbed dully behind his temples, but he didn’t mind it so much now. The pieces were falling into place. Slowly. Unevenly. But still—they were falling.

Thornvale was bleeding.

But it wasn’t dead.

Not yet.

And with the right hands to guide it, perhaps—just perhaps—it could live again.

He let the thought settle, then rose from his chair and stepped toward the window, watching the cold moonlight spill over the cracked courtyard below.

Michael exhaled, slow and steady.

“One step at a time,” he whispered.

A kingdom couldn’t be built in a day.

But it could begin with a single night like this.

In any case, there were more pressing matters for him to focus on now.

With less than two days until the college exams began, Michael’s priority had shifted entirely to advancing to Rank 2.

Aside from the marks he’d earn in Aurora’s general entrance exams, reaching Rank 2 was the primary requirement for admission into any Awakener Academy.

Two months ago, the idea had seemed nearly impossible. And truthfully, it hadn’t been easy.

But now…

He was just one step away.

Michael called out his status and turned to check a particular tab that held the key to his advancement.

[Evolution Points: 4,358]