Baron Acheron looked at Dias and then at the people that had surrounded them, with torches in their hands, lighting up the whole area around the city.
"What is going on Dias," he asked his butler. He was baffled by the number of people that had gathered.
"You should find it yourself, my Lord," the old butler said, pointing towards the crowd.
Baron Acheron fixed his coat and started walking towards the crowd slowly. He recognized many of them, the local blacksmith, the local farmer he usually visited, some of the city guards and many more.
The three Knights followed right behind him, but a hand gesture from Baron Acheron had them stop where they were.
"Stay; they don't have ill will."
He stopped when he was a few meters away from all these people.
"I hope your back doesn't hurt Old Barck," he said while looking at a man with brown skin and clothes covered in coal.
"I am fine, my Lord, rather..." he paused before he looked at the rest of the people that had gathered, "rather we are worried about you. We do not have enough status to visit late Baron's grave, so we wanted to wait for you here."
The young Baron Acheron smiled as he looked at the people of his fief, all of them looked sad, and many were crying. He could see the pain in them from losing their Lord.
'You are a great man, father.'
He could not help but straighten his chest with pride, but he too became sad soon after. He might not have shown it explicitly, but his father's loss was a serious blow to him. Lawrence Acheron was his supporting figure, a mentor and a best friend in many ways.
"Father may have died, but he still lives with us, in our hearts. It is even more apparent after you all have gathered here for him. I can not thank you enough for supporting him when he was ill," Baron Acheron said with a slight bow.
*GASP*
"Please, Lord, don't do that; we will have sinned."
People hurriedly said when they saw Baron Acheron bow to them. Even if it was a slight bow, it was a bow nonetheless.
In a world where nobles were supreme, commoners could not even think of a noble apologizing, much less bow in gratitude. Seeing the young lord bow ignited a fire in them, they steeled their hearts to serve the Acheron Barony to the last breath.
"Before you go, we have something we wanted to give you."
Barck gave a signal, and soon people parted way. From behind them came six little kids carrying flowers in their hands.
They wore the best clothes they could afford, their hair neatly done with flowers on their heads as a decoration. They walked up to Baron Acheron. Just as one of the adults was about to lift them up, Baron Acheron waved his hands to stop them where he was.
He kneeled on one leg in front of the kids, presenting his head to them.
In general, it was the biggest mistake a noble could commit, being defenceless, with no Knights to protect them and presenting their head to a commoner. Nobles were not seen as good people by most commoners.
Once again, people watching this could not help but gasp when they saw their Lord's trust in them, a noble willing to kneel in front of commoner kids.
"T-this. w-we, p-please f-forgive u-us," one of the kids stuttered when he saw the Lord kneel in front of them. This was one of the taboos of this world; however, Baron Acheron just smiled and looked at them with his clear red eyes.
"It's alright," he said while placing his hand on the kid's head, comforting him.
The kids soon calmed down seeing Acheron's behaviour, and a smile formed on their faces.
A little girl in blue clothes walked up to him with a crown of flowers in her hands. She stood in front of Acheron and slowly placed the crown on his head.
She stepped back, and all the kids stood in one straight line. They gave a deep bow before shouting.
"We welcome the new Lord of Acheron Barony to the Calpheon Town!!"
"WOOOH"
"Long live the new Lord."
"May the holy light bless our Lord."
"May the goddess of harvest bless our lands."
Cheers rang out as people said blessings for their Lord and the land. It was true that they had lost their Lord, but it was also true that they now had a new Lord, who was just as magnificent as the previous one.
Barck walked up to Baron Acheron before standing right beside the kids. In his hands was a long box covered in clothing. People quickly calmed down when they saw what Barck was doing.
"Previous Lord asked me to make this sword for you two years ago. He said to give this to you at the right time, and I think this is the time he was talking about."
Tears fell from his eyes as he removed the clothing, presenting a wooden box to everyone. He slowly opened it and took out a sword from inside it.
The sheath was black, adorned in golden carving; as Barck unsheathed the blade, a sharp cry rang out, and the air was visible cut apart by its edge.
"Its name is Final Burial."
Barck handed the sword to his Lord with both hands.
As Baron Acheron held the sword, he could feel the power lurking inside it. It was a single-edged sword with a silver blade and a black hilt. It was similar to his father's weapon, not a typical broad-sword, but rather it was a 'Katana,' one longer than other of its kind.
He admired the craftsmanship before re-sheathing the sword and looking at the people of his barony.
Silence took over the land as the moon shone upon him, and the wind swayed his black hair. He took a long breathe before he addressed his people.
"Greatness is not found in possessions, power, position, or prestige. It is discovered in goodness, humility, service, and character. This barony was my father's life's work; he did it well. He did his job so well that the living, the dead, and the unborn could do it no better."
People listened to his words; they remained silent and did not make a single noise. They did not want to miss a single thing their new Lord was about to say, and they all agreed with what he said about the previous Lord.
"My father was a great man. I can never match up to him. He was a Lion who ruled his fief with pride. A Lord, for whom his people could give their lives. I am not great, and neither am I a Lion."
"But I am lion's cub, and I have lion's heart."
"I am weak and ignorant today, but I will be strong and wise in future. "
"I won't say much, and I don't want to gather favour with my words. My actions will prove that I am a worthy Lord that you can put your trust in. A Lord for whom you can lay your lives for."
The hearts of the crowd shook as they listened to his words. He was a twelve-year-old, but his words lit a fire in them all.
He was small, yet his figure appeared to be towering above them all. An invisible aura grew out of him as it spread in all directions; it was like his will had manifested in the world.
The crowd was affected by his figure, influenced by that aura.
They all willing kneeled in front of him in one motion. They never planed it, and it came from deep within them. They wanted to kneel in front of their Lord.
"I am the Baron of Acheron Barony."
"I am Baron Damon Acheron."
Damon unsheathed his sword and raised it high. It was heavy, but he kept his arm steady; he did not show any weakness. He looked at the moon above and said in a soft voice.
"Long live the Acheron Barony."
In response came a roar from the people in front of him, the knights and the butler standing behind him.
"Long live the Acheron Barony."
Damon looked at his people and promised himself that he would be a worthy Lord. The trust people of Acheron barony showed towards him was rarely seen from commoners. After decades of rule, his father built this trust, and he would make sure he did the same.
Damon turned towards Dias, who stood there with a smile on his face. Damon gave him a nod before Dias brought the carriage, followed by the three Knights.
He once again turned towards the crowd and addressed.
"I thank you all for such a great welcome, now it's late, and you should rest. I will be counting on you in the future."
He then walked to his carriage before Dias helped him up. The city guards opened the gates, and people once again cheered after the carriage entered the town, making its way towards the castle.
"Did you know about this Dias?"
"No, even I was surprised when the crowd gathered to welcome you. This shows how much people of the barony care about the Acheron Family," he replied.
Damon smiled before he looked at the sword in his hand once again.
'Final Burial.'
Acheron family focused on destructive power followed by speed and agility in their fighting techniques. This sword was perfect for such a fighting style.
'One month till I will awaken my element, I wonder what it would be. Will I be a warrior or a mage? Or both?' he thought as he sheathed his blade.
'Magic.'
As he thought of magic, a childish smile formed on Damon's face unknowingly.
****************************
"Tsk, he has a glib tongue."
A man with blonde hair and a fat belly spoke as he sat on his chair with a newspaper in hand. It showed Damon raising his sword along with the speech he had given to his people after becoming a Baron. It also showed his actions, bowing in gratitude and kneeling to accept the flower crown.
"He is a shame to all the nobles," he said while continuing to read, but then he raised his head and looked at the man standing by his side, "did you send the food supplies over to them?"
"Yes, Baron Acheron should have received it yesterday," the butler informed.
"Good, I don't want the brat to think I am ungrateful," he said, praising him for his work.
"My Lord, would not affect our fief if we give them so many food supplies?"
"Tsk, what is there to worry about? If we need more, we can always impose taxes on the people and get some. Don't worry about the useless things; we have more important things to worry about," he said before asking a different question, "also, any news from that black sheep of Acheron's?"
"We have no reply from him yet, but from our sources, he did as told but failed in the end. Do we need to give any other task to him?"
"Let him be, for now. I never expected him to do anything in the first place, Damon Acheron might be a twelve-year-old, but he is smart and talented. We will use the 'black sheep' like a pawn, just as we planned."
"How is the work related to mining going?" inquired Baron Foxridge.
"Acheron's have removed their guards, and ours have replaced them. We have sent a letter to capital to send an appraiser to determine the grade of a gold mine. Someone will be here with a week to appraise it, and then we can start our mining process. But even then, it will take another month after appraisal to start mining as we need to get the permit from the capital and another month after that to gather labour and required resources. As you know, capital won't allow mobilization of labour without giving the permit," the butler explained, not missing any detail.
"Good, I can depend on you," the Baron praised, but then his voice turned hoarse, "where is that useless son of mine?"
The butler became silent when he heard his Lord, he knew where Danice was, but he could not outright say it. Sensing his hesitation, Baron Foxridge glanced at him.
"Tell me."
"The young lord is i-in a...," he hesitated at the end of his words, but when he saw the sharp glance from Baron Foxridge, he continued, "the young lord is in a brothel, last time I checked."
*CRACK*
Baron Foxridge stood up and threw a bottle of wine at a wall, splattering glass shards and wine everywhere in the room. His face was filled with anger, but he soon calmed down.
"Clean this mess and send someone to get that useless thing and bring him in front of me."
"Yes, I will inform the guards right away."
The butler hurriedly left the room, afraid that he might end up being targeted by Baron in his anger.
"GOD DAMMIT!!"
A loud shout came from the room as the butler heard noises of broken things.