Lord: Starting with Biological Modification

It was the sixth day since Velin had left.

The ceaseless, dreary rain had finally stopped, but the sky remained a leaden gray.

The military camp outside Light City had turned into a mire.

New recruits slogged through the mud as they sparred, their longspears thudding against wooden shields.

Diana stood on a high platform, clad in light chainmail, not uttering a word.

She had been standing there all morning.

A cold wind swept by. In the distance, a few soldiers on logistics duty huddled together, necks sunk into their shoulders, whispering amongst themselves.

"Look at our Countess. She’s really fallen for it. Is it worth all this for some ’swamp deserter’?"

"Keep it down! You want to get assigned to muck out the stables all night?"

"What’s there to be afraid of? The whole city’s saying it. That Velin fellow has our Countess wrapped around his little finger, and he’s long gone. Poor us, we’re the ones stuck out here in the cold wind."

The soldier then mimicked someone running away, drawing a round of muffled snickers from the others.

The voices weren’t loud, but they carried through the damp air and found their way to Diana’s ears.

Her hand, resting on the pommel of her sword, lifted and then fell again.

’She wasn’t preparing for war over a "deserter."’

’She was preparing to fight for a promise made by the Dawn family.’

’She believed in Velin, just as she believed that dawn always followed the night.’

Just then, the sound of urgent hoofbeats grew from a distant rumble to a roar. An attendant on a swift horse burst through the camp gates, flinging mud far and wide.

"My Lady Count!" the attendant gasped, tumbling from his saddle before he could even catch his breath. "Outside the city... A company of Knights has appeared! They’re approaching Light City!"

Diana’s heart leaped.

’Has he returned?’

She strode quickly down from the wooden platform. Ignoring the reins the attendant offered her, she commandeered his mount and swung herself into the saddle.

"Could you make out their banner?"

"Too far, My Lady! But their bearing... they’re definitely not a merchant caravan!"

Diana asked no more questions. She dug her heels into the horse’s flanks, and the steed whinnied, bolting toward the city walls.

She all but flew to the top of the ramparts. Gripping a battlement, she stared out at the horizon.

A line of black dots on the horizon slowly grew larger, their column’s silhouette sharpening into focus.

At its head, a banner snapped in the wind.

It was not the familiar insignia of the Grey Marsh Territory.

It was a brilliant golden banner, emblazoned with a radiant, bursting golden sun at its center.

The Sun Clan—one of the most powerful families in the southern Duchy, sovereigns of Woyuan Province.

"It’s Lord Roland! Heavens, it’s Sir Roland Sun!" a young Knight beside her exclaimed, his voice filled with awe and excitement upon recognizing the banner.

Diana’s grip on the battlement slowly loosened.

Her heart sank.

’The rumors were true.’

’Her cousin, Roland Sun, had really come for this.’

...

「An hour later, in the castle’s drawing room.」

Oak logs crackled in the fireplace, chasing away the chill of spring.

Roland Sun unfastened his traveling cloak, and an attendant stepped forward to take it.

Beneath it, he wore a well-tailored Knight’s formal suit. Though his shoulders bore a light dusting from the road, it did nothing to diminish his upright posture.

He was taller than he had been two years prior, his features now more resolute. Only his signature golden eyes remained as bright as ever.

"Diana, it’s been a long time." His voice was gentle, filled with the concern of an older brother.

"Cousin, welcome back." Diana shifted in her seat, forcing her voice to remain steady. "Have your Knightly travels concluded?"

"Not yet," Roland said, settling gracefully into the armchair opposite her. "I simply received a letter—one that compelled me to make a special detour to come here."

He didn’t beat around the bush, getting straight to the point.

"The letter said you’ve been bewitched by an opportunist from the swamps, to the point of making enemies of Count Philippe and Viscount Valerius."

Diana’s spine went ramrod straight.

"That is slander from two cowards, Cousin. Their lies weren’t worth you making a special trip."

"Perhaps," Roland said, not arguing the point. "But I am more concerned with the reputation of the Dawn family. Diana, we are nobles. We must act with integrity, and the respect we earn should be won honorably. Aligning ourselves with a schemer will only tarnish our glory."

"He’s not the kind of person you think he is!" Diana couldn’t help but retort.

"Is that so?" Roland lifted the hot tea an attendant had served, blowing gently at the steam. "A man who could make both Philippe and Valerius flee in a panic... I doubt his methods are very ’honorable.’"

"Diana, I don’t object to you finding allies for the Dawn Territory, but an ally’s character is paramount."

Diana was momentarily at a loss for words.

She couldn’t very well reveal the whole scheme about impersonating an inquest from the Church.

’That was hardly a plan to be proud of.’

She could only change the subject stiffly.

"Let’s not speak of this. Cousin, where have your travels taken you these past two years? Have you seen anything interesting?"

At the mention of his travels, Roland’s stern expression softened.

"I’ve been to many places and met many people. But if I had to name the most memorable, it would be a place in Sword Tooth Province called Shiyan Town."

’Shiyan Town?’ The name was vaguely familiar to Diana, but... she couldn’t place it.

"An incredible battle took place there," Roland said, his voice filled with sincere admiration.

"A Pioneer Baron, to protect his people, resolved to hunt down a Level 5 Magical Beast—a beast that even I would find troublesome."

"I initially tried to persuade him to give up. A noble’s first duty is to preserve their bloodline. But he refused. He said, ’A lord must stand or fall with his territory.’"

Roland set down his teacup, his golden eyes fixed on Diana.

"Later, I fought beside him. His bloodline wasn’t particularly strong, nor was his equipment the finest. But he made up for all of it with his wisdom and courage."

"He used the terrain, his strategies, and coordination to run circles around that behemoth. It was the most magnificent battle I have ever seen. It gave me a new appreciation for the meaning of the word ’Knight.’"

Roland let out a long breath, as if reliving that thrilling day.

"*That* is a true noble. Diana, if you are to find a husband, you should look for a man like that. He has the sense of duty to protect his people, and the wisdom and courage to match. Not some so-called ’ally’ who relies on schemes and plots to climb the ladder."

As Diana listened, a complex mix of emotions stirred within her.

On one hand, she felt a yearning for the kind of heroic deeds Roland described; on the other, his disparaging remarks about Velin grated on her ears.

’Why couldn’t the man at her side be a hero like the one from Roland’s story?’

"Cousin, we are only allies. It’s not... what you think," she explained vaguely.

Roland clearly misinterpreted her expression, thinking she felt ashamed.

He softened his tone. "I understand. I will stay here for a few days to help you handle this matter. The Sun Clan will not stand by and watch the Dawn Bloodline be tarnished."

The atmosphere in the drawing room grew tense and awkward.

Just then, an attendant hurried in, bowed, and presented a message tube.

"My Lady Count, an urgent message. It came by raven."

As if granted a pardon, Diana immediately took it.

She opened the tube and unrolled the parchment.

It contained only a single line of text, written in the standard Haitian script she knew so well.

She read the line twice over.

The frustration, grievance, and anxiety that had weighed on her for days vanished in an instant.

’He’s back.’

Diana slowly rolled the parchment back up, clutching it in her hand.

She rose to her feet and looked at her cousin once more.

All her previous negative emotions had vanished. Her back was ramrod straight, and her lake-blue eyes were clear and bright.

"Cousin, I’m afraid I can’t entertain you any longer."

Roland looked at her, taken aback.

Diana spoke, her voice filled with a newfound confidence.

"Tomorrow, I invite you, and all the vassals of the Dawn Territory, to a certain place."

She paused, looking at Roland’s confused expression before continuing, enunciating each word.

"To witness a gift that no noble could possibly refuse."

With that, she turned and walked out of the drawing room without a backward glance.

’She had to inform all the vassals. Now.’