Duke's party arrived safely at Kath where the prisoners were clubbed and stoned to death by the Villagers after their crimes were read out by Duke in the Village square. Though a barbaric expression of justice today, it was the norm in Brune's culture at the time.
Since most of the refugees from the other villages who were attacked by the Bandits settled down on Kath, most of the victims the Bandit group created felt appeased from Duke's actions. Though the Villagers also wanted to handle Waxer and the group who agreed to a second life of labor and penitence, Duke made a passionate and convincing enough speech to quell the already hurting mob's anger.
Duke's action of letting the so-called "lowly" peasants of Kath deal with the ones who hurt them became a source of discussion among the Nobles who had received news of Duke's miraculous victory. They felt Duke made unnecessary actions of bringing the Prisoners to the Villages.
[He could've just executed all of them on the spot and save himself the hassle!] Most of the Nobles who received the news thought, but since he singlehandedly took care of a dangerous Bandit group most of them avoided, Duke's honor and valor grew among some of the more righteous Nobles.
"Duke what?! He defeated them with no casualties?! Impossible!" Darius shouted after receiving the news of Duke's second victory against the Bandits. In his anger, Darius kicked the attendant who delivered the information, he was especially agitated since he had just come home from the Consulate meeting he deemed 'unbearably boring'...
[First, that wench got into the Consulate, and now THIS?! What is happening with Maine?!] Darius distressed from the continuous victories Maine was making...
["I will be sure to repay you for this"] *Flinch* Darius quaked as he remembered Duke's words...
"Y-Yeah, haha-ha... Yeah, That asshole still owes me anyway! 400 Gold isn't something a poor County like Maine could easily afford... And maybe the bandits he caught and fed to the people were merely fakes! Y-Yes fakes! Yeah, no way that dumbass Duke could pull off destroying a bandit camp like that. That lazy fatass would've probably executed them on the spot out of fear if he really did capture those scary bandits like that, haha"
Darius rationalized to himself, still ignorant of the legendary economic win Vivian managed to pull off right after he left Lyons... The news that Silvan got beat up was covered up by the Medicis to lessen the disgrace Silvan had made on their family name.
Although most of the Nobles deemed Duke's actions unnecessary, the surrounding Villages and commoners hailed Duke a small hero of the people for letting the people get their revenge, greatly increasing his favorability among the common folk much to the ignorance of the snobby Nobles up top... wait, actually, even Duke himself was unaware. It was just his own sense of justice that blessed him, you could say.
Duke returned to Maine, a small hero under the triumphant cheers of the people.
"The Count has returned~!" The people cheered.
"He really defeated them damned bandits! What I tell ya! I never doubted em' for a second!" A man cheered.
"Yeah... sure you didn't" Another next to him skeptically responded.
"Woo~! You might not be as handsome as your grandfather, but a Pendragon's a Pendragon, ain't I right, Sally?! Good job Duke my wee boy! But still, Kyaa~! Love Gwaine for life~!" An older grandmother fangirled as she remembered Gwaine's triumphs during her younger years... much to the dismay of the granddaughter next to her.
"G-Grandma! You're embarrassing me!"
The once despondent town of Maine became lively again when they heard of the surprising news of Duke's second victory against the Bandits.
When Duke miraculously managed to holdoff Kath with almost no military casualties, it became big news, not because of Duke's skill, but because everybody was surprised that Duke managed to do it and laughed it off as Duke's idiotic luck that they believed compensated for his lack of talent and obesity.
But when news spread that Duke not only beat the Bandits but even eradicated them at their fortified castle-like hideout, hope began to flow back into the hearts of Maine and most of the South who had been loyal to the Pendragons long before the initial conquerors of Brune set foot in the South.
When the South was once an independent kingdom, the second son of Vasuvius the First Emperor, Penric Alastor Brune, He the Second Crown, managed to conquer the Kingdom that once made up the South and got married to their beautiful Princess, unifying her family's name, Aragon, and Penric into the illustrious duchy of Pendragon, making the South the first foreign region under Brune.
This was why when the Pendragons fell, the South was left into a state of decay where their heritage was lost, and Maine's hope withered.
But now, the small yet flawless victories Duke brought gave Maine and all of the South something to be excited about.
Now no one could deny Duke's adequate competence with his two continuous victories.
The Central Region had the Imperial Family, the North had the Bizmachs, the East had the Medicis, the West had the Charlemagnes, and now once again, maybe just maybe, the Pendragons have risen once more for the South...
Vivian looked once more outside through the carriage windows where she was met with vast lands covered in yellow wheat with a dash of green and brown soil here and there.
Throughout Vivian's journey, glimpses of the incoming drought could be seen if one was experienced in farm work enough. Luckily, Dan, Bardis, and the other Knights also did farm work as simply being Maine's Knight paid too little to keep up with living expenses. And so, Vivian heard of the weird situations farms were experiencing during a passing conversation Dan and Bardis were having.
Vivian immediately made Bardis give her a report of the farms and wheat fields they've passed through as she was a sheltered Princess all her life and have yet to have experience with farms.
Through Dan and Bardis' explanations, Vivian was able to gouge out just how severe this incoming drought would be...
[It was more serious than I thought... I should set limits to my expectations for Maine's harvest this year... To think that this disaster was dodged through the passing small talk of two Knights...] Vivian worried and calculated to herself as she stared at Bardis and Dan... much to their curiosity.
[[Why's she's lookin' at us?]] The two Knights wandered...
"Let's survey some of the farms Maine is associated with before going back home... It'd also be nice if we could meet some of the Farmers" Vivian smiled at the Knights as they hesitantly followed her orders.
[Maybe we shouldn't have mentioned anythin' about the farms...] Dan shouldered Bardis as the two regretted their big mouths...
Vivian went around Duke's territory, meeting Farmers and their families.
And after the long detour, Vivian's journey finally ended.
*Yawn* Vivian was woken up by Byran as they arrived at their final destination... Maine.