- Fantasy Lord: Start with Daily Intelligence
- FLDI Chapter 15
Chapter 15: Choosing the Frontier Territory
The Northern Province was established twenty years ago, and after two decades, it still remained largely untamed. Only Loren City, the provincial capital, showed signs of civilization.
But even those signs were faint.
Compared to the orderly nobility of Frostmoon Province, Loren City appeared chaotic, wild, and filthy.
Yes, filthy.
The streets were littered with piles of waste, and a foul stench permeated the air. If Frostmoon Province represented the beauty of the kingdom, then Loren City revealed its most decayed side. Dirty water flowed through the streets, and the faces of the freemen here were just as gaunt and pale as the serfs of Frostmoon. It was evident that life was extremely harsh here, even for those who were considered freemen.
This was the reality of the kingdom’s newest province, where the king’s laws held little sway, and the local lords ruled absolutely.
Oppression, exploitation, and disorder were the norms here.
Even in the provincial capital of Loren City, life was extremely difficult.
Thor and his party had now entered the Northern Province on the ninth day of their journey.
After forty days of travel, they had finally crossed the long road to arrive at Loren City.
But as soon as they entered the city, the entire group grew somber.
Even Raine, despite his already difficult life, couldn’t help but feel the weight of the situation. Compared to the freemen here, his life had actually been better.
He could clearly see that the light had disappeared from the eyes of the people here.
When Thor and his group arrived, the townsfolk simply stepped aside without emotion.
“Sir!” Raine spoke in a low voice, his youthful face filled with unease.
“Let’s go. First, we’ll register at the city hall,” Thor replied, equally silent. Though he had read about the Northern Province in books, seeing it firsthand left him speechless.
But there was nothing he could do about it.
Even his father wouldn’t have the authority to change anything here in the Northern Province.
This province was under the control of a marquis.
“Yes, Sir!” Raine nodded.
After arranging for the knight squad to set up camp, Thor took Raine and Steve with him to the center of Loren City.
Loren City wasn’t large, and the city hall building was easy to spot.
Among the low buildings, the city hall, made entirely of bluish stone, stood out with its grandeur and solemnity.
As the three of them approached, they were quickly stopped by two guards.
“Greetings. I am Thor Dressrosa, here to register as a pioneer knight,” Thor announced, displaying his family’s crest. To avoid any trouble during the journey, Thor hadn’t worn it, but now that they had arrived in Loren City, it was time to show his identity.
The eagle crest gleamed brightly under the sunlight.
The two guards were visibly startled and quickly saluted Thor with a knight’s bow.
“Honorable Knight Thor Dressrosa, please forgive our offense. You may proceed!” one of the guards said respectfully, clearly nervous.
The Dressrosa family was well-known throughout the kingdom, and these guards didn’t dare to offend him.
“Thank you.”
“You’re too kind, Sir. Please, this way!” the guard responded quickly, leading the three of them into the city hall.
The city hall was enormous, almost as large as Dressrosa Castle.
Inside the hall, people bustled about—officials, and knights alike.
When Thor entered, the family crest on his chest immediately drew attention.
Several people paused to bow to him with knightly respect.
Though the Dressrosa family only held a count title, their reputation rivaled that of some marquis families. Even a pioneer knight from the Dressrosa family commanded serious respect.
Thor returned each salute as he passed by.
The guard led them to a registration desk.
“Welcome, honorable Knight Thor Dressrosa. The available frontier territories in the Northern Province are listed here. You may select one for your registration,” said a blonde girl behind the desk, her tone humble and cautious.
“Thank you.”
Thor nodded and accepted the map she handed him.
As a pioneer knight, one couldn’t just claim any land at random.
The kingdom had established clear rules.
All pioneer knights were required to register at Loren City and choose a specific territory to develop.
This land would become the core of their future domain.
Only after fully developing their chosen territory could a pioneer knight fulfill their duty.
Thor was well aware of this process.
He took the map and studied it carefully.
The map was large, much clearer than he had expected.
The Northern Province was marked with numerous circles, some red and some green.
The red circles indicated territories that had already been claimed, while the green ones were still available.
Looking at the map, Thor noticed that the eastern and southern parts of the province were nearly all marked in red, with only the western and northern regions still having many green circles.
This was no surprise.
Although only a few dozen individuals had officially been granted titles in the Northern Province, the number of pioneer knights was much higher. Even though many pioneer knights perished, new ones continued to arrive, steadily increasing the numbers.
By Thor’s estimate, there were at least a thousand pioneer knights in the Northern Province.
The Northern Province was vast, almost twice the size of the northern frontier from Thor’s previous life. It would take far more than a few dozen or even a few hundred people to fully develop it.
In fact, even with the current thousand knights, less than one-tenth of the province had been explored.
But this had little to do with Thor.
As information from the past few days’ intelligence reports swirled in his mind, Thor’s gaze scanned the map, focusing on the remaining green circles.
Unlike most others, who had to choose blindly, Thor had an advantage.
With the help of his intelligence system and his careful planning over the last few days, he had a few promising options in mind.
Now it was just a matter of narrowing them down.
Time passed as Thor deliberated.
The blonde girl waited patiently, not daring to rush him.
Finally, after thoroughly scanning the map, Thor made his decision.
“I’ll choose the Maine Valley.”
Thor spoke softly as he handed the map back to the blonde girl.
“Understood, honorable Knight Thor Dressrosa. I will process your registration right away!”
The blonde girl nodded quickly and began handling the paperwork immediately.
(End of chapter)