I, who was eager to retire, became an Imperial General.

Chapter 273 Seven Virtues Admired by All, Merit Awarded to Lieutenant General John Suspected

"No gift!"

Looking down at the black-haired youth, William's eyes were filled with undisguised joy and admiration.

Before this, he had not felt so excited and exhilarated at court meetings for five whole years.

Since his disagreement with Wolff over national policy, his five-year career at court has always begun with countless tedious trivialities and ended with William slamming his fist on the table in particular displeasure, amidst the 'loyal' audience of the conservative party's ministers.

But at this moment, he could feel the unusually gloomy expressions on the faces of the conservatives and the jubilant looks on the faces of the reformers.

Recalling the specific intelligence regarding the Faoken Gulf that the surveillance forces had recently submitted.

William immediately understood, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

From this day forward, his ambitions, which had been constantly hampered in the past, will be completely freed from the mire.

And let the empire's iron hooves, with unstoppable force, crush all those who try to stand in its way in the future!

What brought about all these changes was the minister before him, whom he had not held much hope for, who had miraculously achieved an unprecedented victory on the battlefield of Faoken, where he had faced death at the cost of his life.

John Maslow, you are indeed as my sister said, a lucky general surrounded by miracles, destined to rebuild the empire's glory!

William murmured this to himself with immense pleasure, then watched John slowly rise, maintaining his bow as a sign of respect, displaying not a trace of impoliteness—a truly perfect performance. His smile deepened, and he then smiled and began to address John according to protocol:

"My loyal warrior, raise your valiant head and come forward to tell me and my beloved ministers what good news you have brought to the empire?"

"By the grace of Your Majesty, your army has successfully annihilated the Allied Fifth Legion, Seventh Legion, the Blood Howl Legion of the Saga Kingdom, and the divisions of the Morning Star Clan, Black Swamp Clan, and Mad Fang Clan at Faoken. Furthermore, you have slain Frank Francis, the commander of the Allied Seventh Army, in the Battle of Star Coast, and his body has been preserved in ice. Moreover, our army has now completed the complete occupation of Faoken Bay. This victory is all thanks to Your Majesty's glory and the bravery of your soldiers!"

John's steady voice, like the tolling of a bronze bell, echoed continuously throughout the palace.

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the imperial ministers began to change.

There was jealousy, amazement, excitement, fervor, hostility, and admiration.

However, neither the conservatives nor the reformers dared to question or interrupt, and no one spoke in hushed tones or made any covert actions at that moment.

Instead, they all surprisingly remained united at this moment, turning their gazes to William, who had somehow risen from the throne and was beaming with an unprecedentedly joyful smile.

The most distinguished monarch awaited, after showering the young imperial hero with praise, and then announced the reward that had been discussed in the council five days earlier.

"John Maslow, I have witnessed the bravery of you and your soldiers!"

William's deep, authoritative voice echoed from within the palace. Then, under the watchful eyes of everyone, he slowly extended his arms outwards, raising them above his head, while looking directly at John below. He then proclaimed in a clear voice:
"Your courage is like facing the breath of a dragon, undeterred even if it means being burned to ashes. In the name of the Empire, I bestow upon you the honor of 'Drachenmut' (Dragon's Breath Courage), and I wish you to forever be the sword of the Empire!"

"Buzz!"

Having said that, William, whose body was now shrouded in ancient magical runes and whose aura as a super-ranked mage was now fully revealed, raised his hand and lightly pointed in the direction of John, bestowing the power of the Perus family's unique spell called 'Law Contract' upon this loyal subject.

"Whoosh whoosh!"

A large number of ribbon-like magical runes, under William's control, swirled around and merged into John's body.

John instantly noticed that his hands were gradually becoming scalding hot under the amplification of this power.

Furthermore, the magic circuits within his body temporarily changed from blue to red, and the magic power that had remained in the circuits and had never been refined began to be rapidly purified and showed a slight increase. A magical projection of a dragon's head roaring in flames appeared on the back of each of his hands.

Before John could even recover from this sudden increase in strength, William stepped down the first of the seven steps and then spoke to John again:

"Your loyalty is like wielding a blade barehanded, your resolve proven with blood, unbreakable. In the name of the Empire, I bestow upon you the title of 'Iron-Blooded Loyalty' [Eiserne Treue], and I pray that you will forever be the shield of the Empire!"

"Buzz!"

A clenched bare hand, with a magical projection of a ring of thorns appearing on John's chest.

"Your steadfastness is like an ancient mountain range, standing firm against raging winds and snow. In the name of the Empire, I bestow upon you the title 'Steadfast Mountain' [Felsenfester Wille], hoping you will forever be the cornerstone of the Empire!"

A solitary peak, standing firm against the wind and snow, appeared behind John.

"Your wisdom and strategy are like that of a wolf pack hunting its prey, working in perfect unison, planning carefully before acting. In the name of the Empire, I bestow upon you the honor of 'Wolf Pack Wisdom' [Listenreichheit des Wolfsrudels], and I hope that you will forever be the brain of the Empire!"

"Buzz!"

A claw mark, depicting tactics, appeared on John's forehead.

"Your foresight is like that of an eagle soaring through the fog, discerning the future. In the name of the Empire, I bestow upon you the title 'Eagle Eyes' [Weitblick des Adlers], so that you may forever be the eyes of the Empire!"

"Buzz!"

A pair of golden eagle eyes, piercing through the clouds and gazing into the distance, appeared in John's eyes.

"Your impartiality is like the scales of the Empire, unbiased and unwavering, guided only by the law. In the name of the Empire, I bestow upon you the honor of 'Legal Justice' [Rechtschaffenheit des Gesetzes], hoping that you will forever be the conscience of the Empire!"

"Buzz!"

A projection of a scale made of sword and shield appeared in John's heart.

"Your dedication, like deep roots in fertile soil, silently nourishes the empire. In the name of the empire, I bestow upon you the honor of 'Sacrifice and Dedication' [Aufopferung], may your spirit forever stand as a monument to the empire!"

"Buzz!"

A broken longsword, with the shadows of oak leaves growing around it, appeared on John's legs.

"despair!"

As the final hymn ended, John, surrounded by countless magical runes and whose magical power had been purified and replenished to an unprecedented level, finally came back to his senses from this indescribable experience.

He discovered that William had continuously bestowed upon him a blessing composed of the seven virtues of the Empire, combined with the unique magic of the Perus royal decrees and contracts.

At this moment, without going through any troublesome magic condensation and magic rune imprinting, he directly advanced from a mid-level mage to an upper-level mage in just a few dozen seconds.

Furthermore, he could sense that these seven buff-like status effects, which William had applied to him, did not seem to have a duration limit, but rather resembled permanent buffs in a game.

This discovery immediately filled John, who was already distressed by his own weakness, with ecstasy.

At the same time, he stared intently at William Perus, who had somehow appeared before him and was now smiling and looking directly at him. He hoped that this patron, whom he had treated as an unprecedentedly powerful and demanding figure, might cast a few more of his unique spells to help him directly advance to the rank of Super-Rank Mage.

"Of course, it would be even better if we could go straight to the Grand Rank!"

Therefore, Your Majesty, please give me seven more buffs, no, please give me as many as you have!

I can handle it!
Really!

John screamed inwardly, fearing that His Majesty William, a veritable super dad, might hesitate to give him a massive buff out of concern for his own resilience.

He even widened his eyes to the extreme and straightened his chest like never before.

He tried to demonstrate his weak muscles by getting blood pumping, thus proving that he was far from being able to withstand this blessing.

"..."

William was unaware of John's insatiable desires.

At this moment, he felt the five rings on his hands, crafted by master artisans and imbued with a great deal of magical power, being subjected to an extraction beyond their limits, shattering and disintegrating into quicksand that vanished into the air in an instant.

A complex look flashed across William's eyes.

But he quickly put that feeling behind him.

Instead, he forcefully suppressed the dizziness caused by the unprecedented depletion of magic power resulting from the continuous release of seven super-level law amplifications.

But feeling the 'amazed' and 'admiring' gazes cast upon him by his loyal subjects, William, who had been heartbroken over the loss of his five legendary rings, immediately felt his frustration vanish and was replaced by unprecedented joy.

At this moment, he clearly realized that he had just spent a lot of money.

And this unprecedented blessing of power was bestowed upon the subject who had brought him glory.

It completely satisfied them and gave them an unprecedented sense of awe.

Otherwise, why would the other party be so shocked that their eyes widened to this extent?

He was so excited that his face flushed and his muscles were taut to the extreme.
Isn't this proof that the other party is so moved that he's about to burst into tears, wishing he could just kneel down and prostrate himself before him, saying, "John Maslow is willing to die for His Majesty William"?

"Truly, what loyalty! John Maslow, I knew I hadn't misjudged you. You truly are my most loyal subject!"

Seeing John so 'excited' that tears were almost streaming down his face [actually, his eyes were swollen and painful from staring so wide], even William couldn't help but feel a little moved by the other's sincerity, his eyes welling up with tears.

However, he did not make any overly intimate moves rashly.

He understood that if he were to act too intimately with John under the watchful eyes of his ministers, it would only cause trouble for his loyal subject and would not be of any help.

Rather than engaging in a meeting between ruler and subject under these circumstances, it would be more appropriate to wait until after the bestowal of titles and rewards, and then, under the pretext of inquiring about Fauken's future plans, send someone to invite this loyal subject to the palace for a detailed discussion.

Thinking of this, William immediately suppressed his desire to deepen his relationship with his beloved general, John.

Then, under John's 'amazed' [actually disappointed] gaze, he nodded to the presiding officer who had been waiting beside him, following the procedure of the conferment ceremony.

Seeing His Majesty nod, the other party immediately took out the pre-prepared document of bestowal and then loudly read it aloud:
"In the name of His Majesty the Supreme Emperor William Perus, I hereby bestow upon Commander John Maslow, who led our army to victory in the Battle of Faoken, the right to inherit all the cities and villages within the Faoken Bay territory in perpetuity!"

After speaking, the master of ceremonies put away the document in his hand, then took a box from the servant beside him, opened it, and handed it to John along with the document.

The box did not contain any magical artifact or rare item, but rather a piece of soil that could be found anywhere in the empire, symbolizing production and the need to always keep the empire in mind, no matter where one is.

Having acquired most of his memories of studying at the academy from his predecessor, John understood that this was a necessary step in the process of bestowing the title, so he was not too surprised. Instead, he respectfully accepted it and held it in his palm.

After John completed the handover ceremony, William slowly drew his sword from his waist and then gestured to John to kneel on one knee.

Then he spoke loudly:

"John Maslow, in recognition of your merits in Fauken, I hereby promote you to Viscount Fauken, Governor-General of the Empire in Fauken, and Commander of the 303rd Independent Division of the Third Air Army of the Empire, with the rank of Lieutenant General, to oversee all matters in Fauken. I hope you will forever guard the frontier!"

After saying this, William lightly tapped John's shoulders with his sword, and the investiture ceremony was completed in the presence of the assembled courtiers.

Upon hearing that he had skipped four ranks and been promoted directly to lieutenant general, even John was stunned and greatly astonished.

So much so that he didn't hear the subsequent words from the master of ceremonies regarding money and other special rewards.

In fact, John had anticipated that even if he and Irias reached an agreement, and even if the reformers and William worked together on the matter of rewards, under the suppression of the conservatives, he would at most be promoted three ranks to become a major general.

But now he's been promoted directly to lieutenant general?

When did Wolfsburg become so kind?

John became increasingly convinced that something was wrong, but due to a lack of information, he couldn't be sure what trick Wolf was up to.

"It seems I'll need to go see Conrad later."

Otherwise, he might be forced to step down from his position as lieutenant general before he could even secure it, due to various unforeseen circumstances.

"However, overall, everything is still within acceptable limits. After all, it was only a matter of time before I clashed with the conservatives. It's just a little earlier than expected. In addition, the reformists and William are currently drawing fire in front of us. Even if the other side really wants to make a move, I won't become the main target of their attacks."

"However, in the future, we could consider releasing the initial reform plan to test the conservative party's attitude."

"Of course, the reform plan must be carried out step by step. Otherwise, if it is too rash, I may be forced to step out from behind the scenes and become the target of the conservative party and even the reformists."

This is clearly the worst-case scenario.

John pondered this silently in his heart, and then slowly suppressed his thoughts.

At the direction of the master of ceremonies, he accepted all the special permits and rewards in front of him, and thanked them loudly according to etiquette, followed by a series of emotionally charged words of gratitude and a feeling that he had no way to repay them.

Then, amidst the complex gazes of the nobles in the hall, he followed the captain of the guard who had led the way, and headed towards the outside of the hall.

"Tap, tap!"

……

(End of this chapter)