FL - Chapter 44: The Bloodstone

After Louis resolved the issues brought by the fifteen hundred slaves, Crimson Tide Territory's development progressed far more smoothly than he had imagined.

Within a single month, new houses rose steadily from the ground. Barren fields were cleared at a rapid pace.

Hope finally appeared on people's faces. The desolate, impoverished land was transforming into a genuine territory.

Louis sat in his office, looking over the territorial intelligence Bradley had compiled, and gave a satisfied nod.

Good. The foundation was laid. It was time for the next, more important step.

It was time to move forward with the next phase of his plan.

Louis picked up the Bloodstone he'd brought from the Southeast Province. A deep crimson crystal whose surface shimmered with an uncanny luster, as though the blood within it still flowed.

This was a special magical mineral capable of testing whether a person possessed the talent to become a Bloodline Knight.

Only those with knightly bloodlines could make it react.

Louis drew a dagger across his fingertip. A drop of blood fell onto the stone.

The next second, the Bloodstone gave a subtle tremor and blazed with a dark-red radiance.

It meant Louis possessed the aptitude to become a Bloodline Knight.

Of course, the stone could only test whether someone had the potential to become a knight. It couldn't measure how strong their talent was.

But Louis wasn't worried about that. He had the Daily Intelligence System.

If any child with exceptional talent appeared, the system would alert him sooner or later. Then he could focus his efforts on cultivating them.

So how many children in Crimson Tide Territory had the gift to become knights?

Louis planned to use this stone to test every child in the territory and seek out those with potential.

He would train knights who truly belonged to him. Knights who belonged to Crimson Tide Territory.

They wouldn't be knights dispatched by his family. They would be loyal knights, handpicked, hand-trained, and hand-forged by him.

Louis's knights should be fervent believers.

They should trust him without reservation. Follow him without hesitation. Swear loyalty to no one but him.

Not merely fealty. They should see him as their true leader, even as something close to faith itself.

...

Over two hundred children were assembled on Crimson Tide Territory's square. Most were under fifteen.

A nameless excitement crackled through the air. Every child was holding their breath, waiting for something, their heartbeats quickening with anticipation.

Their gazes were locked on the figure at the center of the square: Louis.

He wore a black cloak, the emblem of House Calvin pinned to his chest.

He was like the sun hanging high above. Warm and blinding.

At the sight of Louis, fierce admiration welled up in every child's heart.

Most of them were the children of refugees and natives. Their parents had been saved from the brink of starvation by Louis himself.

And through the words and lessons of their teachers and parents, they had come to hold Louis in the deepest reverence and love.

In their hearts, the image of Louis was the sun itself.

"Today, I will select some children to become knights," the sun spoke.

The moment the words left his mouth, a frenzy of murmurs swept through the square.

"Become a knight. Does that mean riding horses and holding swords?"

"Can we protect Crimson Tide Territory like Lord Louis does?"

"C-Can I really become a knight?"

The children chattered feverishly, their eyes bright with surprise and excitement.

These children came from the lowest rungs of society. They were still young. They had no idea what the word "knight" truly meant.

Their understanding was simple and direct.

A knight was the closest warrior at the great lord's side. His personal guard. The mighty and noble figure everyone looked up to.

To become a knight meant standing shoulder to shoulder with the sun himself, fighting in the most glorious place of all.

"Quiet. One at a time."

The testing officially began. The knights and teachers directed the children into a line, making sure each child approached in order.

Louis stood on the elevated platform at the center of the square. On the table before him rested the Bloodstone.

The stone's surface shimmered with that strange, uncanny glow, its deep crimson luster pulsing as though alive. It drew every child's gaze.

One after another, the children stepped forward. Following Louis's instructions, they pricked their fingers to draw a small bead of blood and let it fall onto the Bloodstone.

When the testing first began, every child was bursting with excitement, waiting for a miracle to happen.

But as child after child's blood fell and the Bloodstone simply sat there, inert and unchanged, their faces fell. The atmosphere sank into a hush of disappointment.

Louis felt some disappointment himself, but showed none of it.

This was inevitable. Only the rarest few possessed the talent to become knights.

A little girl stepped forward and let her blood drop onto the stone.

Then.

The Bloodstone emitted a faint glow. It shuddered gently, and a dark-red radiance bloomed from within.

In that instant, everyone stopped breathing. Their eyes went wide.

"It's her! She's a future knight!" The children passed the whisper in low, trembling voices.

The little girl stood there, staring blankly at the Bloodstone, struggling to grasp what had just happened to her.

Confusion and raw excitement flickered in her eyes. Her legs quivered. She couldn't comprehend the miracle before her.

Louis gently patted her shoulder. "What's your name?"

The girl seemed startled. She stammered, "My name is Lilia."

"Congratulations, Lilia." Louis looked at her. "You are Crimson Tide Territory's first homegrown knight."

At those words, the little girl's legs nearly buckled. She could barely hold herself upright. Tears welled up in her eyes in an instant.

She stood there in a daze, stunned that she was going to become a knight.

All the children on the square stared at her, whispering among themselves, envy burning in their hearts.

Hearing the admiring murmurs of her peers, Lilia straightened her back with pride.

Though her legs still felt weak, the surge in her heart made her feel as though she were soaring.

"I will become an outstanding knight and protect Crimson Tide Territory!" Lilia made her vow to Louis.

Louis listened to the girl's innocent words and smiled. "I look forward to that day."

With Lilia's successful test, the mood on the square grew even more charged.

Children were always blindly confident. Every one of them believed they would be the one-in-a-hundred. The one chosen to be a knight.

But reality was always cruel.

Nearly half the children had already stepped up to be tested, yet only three had passed and been found to possess the Bloodline Knight talent.

In the crowd, there was one boy of particularly small stature. In his eyes, anticipation burned bright. But so did a shadow of fear.

He hoped to become a knight. He was terrified he didn't have the talent.

He wanted to be a knight. He wanted to stand at Lord Louis's side. He wanted to repay the Lord's kindness.

His name was Weir.