Chapter 24: Chapter 24: A Smooth Landing
Night fell. The sea gently lapped against the coastal reefs, making a SPLASHING sound.
Although Duane and his people planned to spend the night on the ship, now that they had reached land, they had to get off and stretch their legs.
No matter what, the feeling of standing on solid ground was always better than rocking back and forth on a ship.
So, the servants scoured the nearby woods for a pile of firewood and lit a bonfire.
On the beach, Duane and Kaelon engaged in a spirited sparring session, venting the frustration of being cooped up and unable to practice for the past few days.
"My Lord, you truly are a genius at Swordsmanship!"
This wasn’t Kaelon trying to flatter him. He wasn’t the sycophantic type; this was his heartfelt praise.
"Spirit Swordsmanship emphasizes grace and flexibility, with varied offensive moves. It takes an ordinary person half a year just to fully grasp the fundamental movements, let alone attack the way you do."
Duane laughed and boasted, "Perhaps I really am the Swordsmanship genius you say I am."
In reality, his Spirit Swordsmanship Skill Level had already reached the "Skilled" level during that first sparring session.
The "Enlightenment" that came with breaking through a Skill Level had boosted his Swordsmanship by a great deal.
He even had a feeling that if his Strength were equal to Kaelon’s, they would be evenly matched in a Spirit Swordsmanship spar.
It was true that Kaelon’s Basic Swordsmanship was formidable, but his attainments in Spirit Swordsmanship were somewhat lacking.
"Alright, that’s enough for tonight. Conserve your strength."
Duane ended the spar and walked toward the bonfire, simultaneously calling up his attribute panel.
His Spirit Swordsmanship Skill Level had reached (Skilled 15/300), and the recent breakthrough had granted him 0.2 attribute points.
He continued to add the attribute points to his Strength.
As a refreshing sensation washed over him, Duane’s Strength reached 6.2.
’Right now, besides Basic Swordsmanship and Basic Riding Skill, which have reached the Master Level, the rest of my Skills have all reached Skilled. Only...’
He looked at Basic Brewing. The Skill Level for this skill was only (Initial 49/100); it hadn’t improved at all.
Duane planned to have Owington guide him in brewing personally once they were settled.
"Ralph, how are you feeling?" he asked, approaching the bonfire.
The old steward was squatting by the fire to warm himself, while his son, Haien, attended to him.
Before they left, Ralph had been in excellent health. Perhaps it was seasickness; he had nearly thrown up bile, and his condition had deteriorated as a result.
Ralph pulled the blanket tighter around himself and forced a smile. "Thank you for your concern, my Lord. I just took the medicine Ronald prepared, and I feel much better than I did the last couple of days."
Ronald was the castle doctor Ralph had hired.
"Don’t worry, my Lord. Ralph’s condition is very common. With a few days of good rest, he’ll recover quickly."
The middle-aged doctor had prepared plenty of herbs for seasickness before their departure, so he wasn’t worried about Ralph’s situation.
Duane nodded slightly, instructed Haien to take good care of his father, and then went ahead.
At that moment, Raymond was standing watch in the distance with Michele’s squad of soldiers. Seeing Duane approach, he walked over.
"My Lord, you can leave this to us. You must be tired from your spar with Kaelon. You should get some rest."
"I’m not tired yet."
Duane’s gaze followed the winding "main road" ahead. The moonlight didn’t reach very far, obscuring the distant scenery.
"How is it? Have you seen anyone from the island?"
Raymond nodded. "When we first disembarked, it wasn’t dark yet. While we were on watch, we saw a few figures in the distance. They didn’t dare come close, though. They just took a quick look from afar and then left hurriedly."
"They were probably residents from here."
No matter who they were, the news that a ship had arrived at the port and people had landed on the island would definitely reach Broken Wave City.
Perhaps someone would come tomorrow.
"We have three squads. Make sure to schedule proper rest for everyone, and try to keep them all at a certain level of readiness."
Duane instructed, adding, "That includes you."
Raymond felt that this young Lord before him was very considerate, lacking the typical arrogance of most Nobility.
And over the past few days of interaction, he had also discovered that the Baron had his own way of handling things.
Although the Baron often operated under the assumption that "someone is out to get him" and arranged his measures accordingly, Raymond couldn’t deny that, at this stage, such an assumption was very necessary.
He had a feeling that if it weren’t for Black Forest Island’s poor conditions, the Baron would surely accomplish great things in another Territory.
"Rest assured, my Lord. I’ve already arranged a three-squad rotation."
He said with a smile, "Kaelon will take over for me in the second half of the night."
"Mm, good!"
Duane turned and greeted the Guards who were patrolling in groups.
The main reason he was making his presence known was to increase the group’s cohesiveness.
Although this group of people who followed him to Black Forest Island was unlikely to betray him, getting them to admire their Lord had many benefits.
Only after doing all this did he return to the ship’s cabin to rest.
Perhaps it was because arriving safely at Black Forest Island had taken a weight off his mind, but he slept very soundly that night.
The next morning, Duane woke up early.
It was a bit of a shame that the port was on the northwest corner of the island, so he couldn’t see the sun rising over the horizon.
"My Lord, your washing water is ready," Jasmine said. She had already made preparations early in the morning.
Duane had already grown accustomed to this life of being served by others.
"How did you sleep last night, Jasmine?"
Although the maid was doing better than on her first day, she was still a bit reserved. Faced with the Baron’s question, she lowered her head slightly.
"I slept very well, much more soundly than the past few days."
In truth, it wasn’t just her; many people felt much more at ease.
Just then, Owington brought out a set of formal wear. It was adorned with numerous pearls and gold thread, looking quite magnificent.
"My Lord, you will likely be meeting your subjects today. How about wearing this?"
Duane finished washing up, took a serious look at it, and then shook his head.
"It’s too flashy. Besides, formal wear is for banquets. It’s not suitable for today."
The situation on Black Forest Island was still unclear, and it would be inconvenient to move around in formal wear.
"Bring me my suit of Light Armor. I’ll wear that today."
"Light Armor?"
The Male Servant was a bit surprised. ’Shouldn’t he be displaying the noble side of a Lord right now?’
"Very well, I’ll go get it."
After getting dressed and eating breakfast, Duane disembarked from the ship.
At this moment, the hundred or so people made the quiet dock bustle with activity.
The servants were moving supplies of all shapes and sizes off the ship, temporarily placing them in an open area not far from the port.
Freck and Connor Haydon were discussing how to make room for the third cargo ship to dock.
After unloading the cargo, they would inspect the ships and were expected to rest at the port for two or three days before heading back.
Duane only had Jack and John stay by his side. Owington and Jasmine had also joined the unloading team.
There wasn’t a huge amount of stuff, but it was all rather miscellaneous, and it took a full two hours to unload the cargo from two ships.
Only the grain on the last ship remained.
Duane wasn’t in a hurry.
Earlier in the morning, he had seen many figures moving about in the distance. He didn’t know if they were passing farmers or someone else.
He was waiting, waiting for someone from the island to come over.
According to the information Lloyd provided, although Black Forest Island had no Lord, the Kingdom had appointed an administrator named "Monbodt."
In previous years, this was the man who collected taxes for the Kingdom.
’As the administrator, Monbodt should come over after hearing the news, right?’
CLIP-CLOP CLIP-CLOP~
Before long, the sound of hoofbeats startled Duane.
His first thought was that someone had finally arrived. His second was that there were horses on the island!
He looked toward the source of the hoofbeats and saw three horses in the lead, followed by a squad of weapon-wielding "Infantry," galloping toward the port along the dirt road.
"On guard!"
Michele’s Guard Squad had taken over the morning watch.
He shouted the command, and the squad members immediately formed a line across the road, blocking the newcomers.
