Wizard: I have ten trillion nanomachines

After dealing with the remaining bandits, Hand wiped the blood off his sword.

The crisp sound of metal clashing as the sword was sheathed was particularly clear in the snowy night.

His boots rolled over the still-wet bloodstains, his gaze swept over the kneeling serfs, and finally settled on Luo Kunlun.

"What's your name?" Hand's voice was deep, carrying the authority unique to a superior, and the white mist he exhaled quickly dissipated in the cold air.

Luo Kunlun's heart sank slightly. The nanomachines instantly went into alert mode, and a slight tingling sensation came from the nerve endings, a warning that the combat support mode was being activated.

He suppressed his shock, maintaining his bowed posture, his voice trembling slightly: "My name is Loren, sir."

"Loren," Hand repeated the name, lightly nudging the headless corpse beside him with the tip of his boot. "Were you the one who just killed someone?"

"Yes." Luo Kunlun didn't seem to offer any further explanation or try to take credit. Of course, in Hand's view, it might also be due to nervousness.

This is exactly the behavior expected of a serf, even though the other party is somewhat capable.

Upon hearing this, a hint of surprise flashed in Hande's eyes. This kid looks to be only fifteen years old, right?

It's not uncommon for a fifteen-year-old to commit murder; Hande has even seen children as young as seven or eight who dared to kill.

But that doesn't make him a particularly ruthless person.

A young nobleman, surrounded by guards, came to the street. He saw a passing commoner and, disliking him, drew his knife and killed him. This was the "ruthless man" who dared to kill at the age of seven or eight.

Qin Wuyang dared to kill people in the street when he was young, but he became cowardly when he saw the majestic King of Qin. He was so frightened by a single look that he dared not move.

Cao Shaolin didn't eat beef, and eventually fell off the building. When he saw the crowd trying to kill him, he could only cry and say, "I am Cao Ying's son."

Such people are outwardly strong but inwardly weak; they are nothing more than soft-hearted people who rely on their parents' protection.

Without guards and status, they are nothing.

But the boy in front of them was different. He looked dark and thin, but he was able to take on and kill two bandits by himself without getting hurt.

Under the same circumstances, even elite soldiers would find it difficult to perform like this.

You could say he's a born warrior, which is perfect.

"Get up," Hand suddenly spoke, his tone softening. "You are all farmers on the manor; I'll take you back later."

Then he turned to a follower and said, "Raul, go back and draft a freeing document."

"Yes, sir."

"Loren, you are a brave warrior. It's a shame you're destined to be a farmer who toils in the fields."

"The Viscount has just conquered the Liuli River region and needs to expand his army. Report to the town's barracks upon your return!"

Upon hearing this, the other serfs visibly trembled, and some even couldn't help but utter sounds of envy.

Although serfs were not slaves in the purest sense, they still bore the burden of heavy labor and taxes.

To obtain a free order and regain freedom, one needed to pay a hefty ransom.

However, free people were not necessarily better off than serfs; what they truly envied was that 'Loren' could serve in the army.

In Ashvale, only free citizens are eligible to join the Viscount's legion.

Those are soldiers, the lord's standing army, provided with weapons, food, lodging, and training by the lord.

They don't need to produce anything, and they can eat three meals a day, all of them made from black bread. Even the head of the village might not be able to eat that every day.

Although it is said that one must risk one's life on the battlefield, peace is always short-lived. Almost every year and every month, lords on this continent clash over territorial disputes.

In that era, it was considered a long life for ordinary people to live to their thirties or forties, not to mention that serfs were conscripted during wartime.

In comparison, being able to join the standing army and become a professional soldier is equivalent to becoming a superior person, just like the blacksmith and the foreman of the manor.

Moreover, Loren was personally released by the knight lord, and might become his squire in the future.

For them, that was a "big shot" they never even dared to dream of.

Thinking of this, some people regretted not running out earlier to show off in front of the master.

But honestly, if they really encountered Scarface and Karen, it would only mean a few more deaths for them.

However, returning to the manor meant escaping the torment of the bandits and surviving, even if it meant remaining an exploited serf, which was better than freezing and starving to death in the deep mountains.

........................

Next, the soldiers from Hande searched the entire bandit hideout and found money and food.

The bandits' money meant little to the knight Hand, so he simply gave it all to the soldiers.

Lokunlun, who killed a bandit and the leader Karen, also received some copper coins.

The world's currency is divided into three grades: gold, silver, and copper. The ratio of each grade is 1:100, and fifty gold coins are enough for a person to live comfortably for a lifetime.

Afterwards, the soldiers rested on the spot, and the serfs cooked with the bandits' food, so that the soldiers could eat and sleep well.

However, Luo Kunlun was not included in this group, since the soldiers believed that Luo Kunlun would end up like them.

Lokunlun also intends to learn about the world and knights from the soldiers.

The worldview of serfs was too narrow.

................

Before long, the meal was ready. After everyone had eaten their fill, they rested on the spot, planning to return home at dawn.

At this point, relying on his persuasive skills and two copper coins, Luo Kunlun quickly became acquainted with an old soldier named Naken.

"Brother Naken, Lord Hand is really amazing. I definitely can't wield his knight's sword," Luo Kunlun said with a look of admiration.

"Of course the master is powerful. He's a junior knight, capable of overturning a carriage by himself."

"However, our master of Ashenvale, Viscount Roth, is even more formidable. He's a mid-level knight; with a single sword strike, he can cleave a steel plate four fingers thick!"

As he spoke, Naken extended four fingers, then brought them together. Luo Kunlun glanced at them and saw that they were about five centimeters long.

A five-centimeter-thick steel plate might not even be penetrated by a bullet, but a mid-level knight could cut it with his sword.

If mid-level knights are this strong, what about high-level knights?

"I've never seen a high-ranking knight, not even in Ashvale, but I've heard people say they can toss those huge, hundreds-of-pounds-heavy stone mounds into the air like balls and catch them!"

Upon hearing this, Luo Kunlun felt a surge of "Holy crap" – Throwing stones, Wu Song?

...................................

Based on his conversation with Naken, Lokunlun learned that the country where Ashenvale is located is called the Bauhinia Kingdom, and that there are other kingdoms such as Blackmoon and Kushan nearby.

There's more than Naken could possibly know.

Besides that, there is Roman Roth, the master of Ashenvale.

The Roth family of Ashvale.

Three months ago, they went to war with the Norton family, who ruled the nearby Luli River region, and won the war, taking over the Luli River region.

At the same time, he arranged for his ten-year-old son to marry the widow of Viscount Norton, thus becoming the master of the River Glazed, both in name and in reality.

The two territories together are estimated to cover an area of ​​around 7,000 square kilometers.

After acquiring land and wealth, it is natural to expand the army, because the new territories require more troops to defend them, and the wealth collected can directly support the supply of a larger army. At the same time, expanding the army can also consolidate the rule over the new territories.

Therefore, after incorporating the remnants of the Norton family, the Roth family also needed to select suitable citizens as guards to expand the legion to about a thousand men.

The reason why Hand led men to suppress bandits as a knight was because of Karen, a former Norton family squire who had fled during the war.

It was not uncommon for knights' squires to become outlaws after defeat, and Hand had originally not wanted to personally take action.

But it is said that last time they robbed him while he was away, they startled the horse that was tied to the stable fence, and it ran away and was lost.

It's unclear why the warhorse was tied to the stable fence, but the fact remains that it's lost.

A warhorse is not cheap, so the furious Lord Hande personally led his men into the mountains to suppress the bandits.

"Speaking of which, why are the Master and the Viscount so powerful?"