After the Emperor's explanation ended and the audience was dismissed, Cain was sent to his mansion in a royal carriage by the palace guards.
The palace guards who escorted him were the ones who had brought him.
"Thank you so much for the escort!"
Cain bowed and thanked the palace guards.
"What are you talking about, Lord Cain? You are the fiancée of our captain, so this is the least we can do."
"Please come back for training again!"
The knights waved and left with smiles on their faces. When Cain entered the mansion and opened the door, Sylvia was waiting for him.
"Welcome back, Lord Cain. You're late today."
"I was called by His Majesty. He said he had something to talk about and asked me to come to the study with Coran."
"Understood, I will go there immediately."
After bowing, Sylvia went to call Coran. The room called the "study" was actually a place for Cain to study. After changing out of his uniform, Cain sat on the sofa and relaxed when there was a knock on the door.
"Excuse me, it's Coran. I was called."
Coran and Sylvia entered the room.
"Yes, I have a report. Today, I was called by His Majesty and was told that I will be promoted to a viscount at next week's audience. Also, I was asked to inspect a town..."
"Wow! Congratulations! We need to inform Lord Galm immediately. Which town will you be the lord of?"
Coran and Sylvia seemed very pleased that Cain was being promoted.
"Details about the town will be explained on the day, so I haven't been told yet. But I heard it's near the capital."
"Lord Cain, you can handle any town! Let's celebrate with family tonight! I'll talk to the head chef."
Sylvia skipped out of the room.
"I will call you when everything is ready."
Coran bowed and was about to leave the room, but Cain stopped him.
"Ah, it's a family celebration today, so let's have dinner with everyone. Please prepare for everyone."
"Understood. I will convey that. Thank you, Lord Cain."
Coran left the study. That night, everyone, including the maids and the head chef, enjoyed a meal together. Since everyone except me was an adult, I let them drink alcohol freely, and they were very grateful. Cain thought that sometimes it was necessary to have such moments.
Then the day of the audience arrived.
Dressed formally, Cain stood near the entrance of the audience chamber. The heads of noble families lined up according to their ranks, from dukes to lower ranks. As a new baron, Cain had to stand near the entrance. Galm was absent as he was in the Gracia territory.
"His Majesty is here."
At the chancellor's words, all the nobles bowed simultaneously as King Rex entered the room and sat on the central throne.
"Everyone, please raise your heads."
At his words, all the nobles raised their heads.
"Then, Baron Cain von Silford, step forward."
"Yes."
Cain stepped out of the line, approached the king, and knelt.
"Cain von Silford, I hereby promote you to viscount and appoint you to govern the town of Drintor, which is currently a direct territory. I grant you fifty platinum coins as a preparation fund. This dagger is proof of your viscount status. From now on, you will be known as Cain von Silford Drintor."
"Yes, I accept. Cain von Silford Drintor, I will govern with all my heart for the prosperity of the Kingdom of Esfort."
This time, everything went smoothly without any issues.
"Of all places, Drintor... Can you govern that place?"
"Can a child handle that place..."
Voices like these could be heard from the surrounding nobles. Cordino, the Duke, who usually would have complained, was grinning.
"What's going on..."
Thinking this, the audience ended. Cain was led to a reception room for a detailed explanation.
After receiving tea from a maid and relaxing, Chancellor Magna entered. He usually came with the Emperor, but this time he was alone.
"Lord Cain, I apologize for keeping you waiting. His Majesty didn't want to explain and ran away, so I came alone."
"...Ran away?"
"He didn't want to explain about the town of Drintor. It's a special town."
Cain felt uneasy at these words. Chancellor Magna took out a map, pointed to a spot, and began to explain.
"This town is two days west of the capital. There is a forest with many monsters, though not as many as in the Gracia territory, and a rare dungeon. That's why there are many adventurers. In fact, there are too many adventurers. The guild master has more power than the lord, and no one wants to be the lord. The adventurers are stronger than the guards. The town has a population of three thousand, but over a thousand of them are permanent residents. The town has only a hundred guards. The number of adventurers is so overwhelming that they dominate the town."
"I see... That's why the nobles didn't complain. Can I govern as I please?"
Cain smiled at Chancellor Magna.
"...Yes, that's fine. Here is your appointment certificate. I have also prepared fifty platinum coins for you to use as you see fit."
Cain received the appointment certificate and a small bag of platinum coins from Chancellor Magna and put them in his item box.
"However, I am still a student, so I can't go to the territory yet."
"I will inform the headmaster of the academy, Duke Eric, to arrange for you to attend school freely. You only need to take the exams, and everything will be fine."
"Understood. I will do my best."
"I look forward to the results."
After the chancellor left, Cain sighed in the empty room.
"Even if I'm given a territory, it's this one... No wonder Duke Cordino was grinning. Still, it's my territory, so I can do as I please."
Alone in the reception room, Cain smiled darkly for the first time in a long while.
Thank you for always reading. Thanks to all of you, I was able to rank 1st in the Fantasy category of the daily reincarnation/transfer rankings and 6th overall. I rarely check the rankings, but I was curious about why the page views had increased so much, and I found out. It's all thanks to your favorites, reviews, and support. Although I still have a lot to improve and receive many comments, I will work even harder from now on. Thank you for your continued support.