Chapter 256: Mayopel’s Pain

In the afternoon, Count Schalke came to the Castle of Longtaro to inquire about the expedition against pirates and ghost ships. The Liszt siblings needed to provide some clues to help confirm the matter of the ghost ship.

“I don’t like Schalke.”

Meopo, who had come to call on Liszt, whispered, “Actually, I don’t like either of the two counts on Red Crab Island, especially Schalke.”

Liszt, who had just woken up, asked curiously, “Why?”

“They lack respect for the Castle of Longtaro.”

Liszt nodded.

He understood. In simple terms, Uncle Mexiro’s strength was insufficient to establish enough prestige. As the next Marquis of Red Crab Island, he lacked the aura to command the loyalty of his followers.

Meopo continued, “Grandfather’s health has been poor this year, and Red Crab Island did not respond to the Duke’s order to expand. There have been murmurs below, and I know Schalke is the source of these murmurs.”

A moment later.

Liszt met Count Schalke, whose full name was Schalke Broccoli, named after the Great Broccoli Elf he owned.

Tall and imposing, with a loud voice.

Thanks to Meopo’s warning, Liszt paid special attention to Count Schalke’s attitude during their conversation. He found that Schalke still held great reverence for Marquis Merlin, but he was somewhat disrespectful to Mexiro and Meopo. Or rather, he treated them as equals.

When speaking to Mexiro, he was not impolite, but it was clear that Mexiro would not be his future lord.

He placed them on the same level.

As for Meopo, he adopted a condescending, elder-like attitude. No wonder Meopo disliked him; no one likes their follower treating them like an elder, even though Meopo was not yet the Marquis of Red Crab Island, only an heir to an heir.

But in the knightly system, Meopo was the master, and Schalke was the vassal, with a clear master-vassal relationship.

“No wonder when I first came to Red Crab Island, Meopo tried to win me over. The situation here is clearly one where the master is weak and the servants are strong… Once Grandfather Merlin passes away, Uncle Mexiro will likely struggle to control Red Crab Island.”

When a lord cannot control his followers, the outcome is often awkward. It is inevitable that followers will leave their lord. A lord whose followers abandon him is the biggest laughingstock among the nobility.

Liszt suddenly understood why his cousin had pursued the Duke’s youngest daughter despite her poor reputation. Perhaps he was trying to use the princess’s influence to suppress the followers on Red Crab Island.

A small family size is not a good thing for a noble family.

“Should I develop my career on Red Crab Island? With my current progress, a viscountcy is almost certain. If I show my strength in the future, Uncle and Cousin will likely rely on me more, and becoming a count will be easy.” Liszt’s thoughts were restless, and he was tempted to take a shortcut.

Why risk his life on the battlefield for a title when scheming could be much easier?

Although that was true, giving up his efforts on Black Horse Island to join Red Crab Island was something he couldn’t do yet. Moreover, adding to someone’s success is far less valuable than providing crucial support in times of need.

He suddenly imagined a scenario.

If he had already become a sky knight and earned a viscountcy, but his father remained a count, how could he surpass his father to become a count himself?

At that time, he would either have to become a direct vassal of the Duke or follow a marquis who could grant him a countcy. By then, his struggling uncle and family on Red Crab Island would beg him to come back, and the treatment as a count would be much better than if he went now.

Thinking this way seemed disloyal to family.

But in the noble world, family ties always give way to interests. Liszt also understood that if he couldn’t demonstrate his value, the Longtaro family would not invest anything in him.

“Of course, I’m thinking too far ahead. This trip, the Longtaro family hasn’t started to court me yet…”

While he was lost in thought,

Count Schalke had already clarified the details of the ghost ship. He immediately bowed to Marquis Merlin and said, “Please rest assured, my lord. After the New Year, I will lead the fleet and the knights to clear the waters around Red Crab Island and silence all those who speak ill of it!”

“Very well, I look forward to your performance.”

Schalke bowed again, nodded to Mexiro and Meopo, and left with large strides.

…

The New Year is the first day of the year, January 1st.

Everyone in every country chooses to put down their work on this day to celebrate the arrival of the new year.

As usual, he woke up at dawn.

Lying in bed, Liszt called out the long-awaited mist task: “Task: After a year of hard work, even a lord needs to relax and enjoy the upcoming New Year, think about the development path for the coming year, broaden social connections, or do nothing at all and wait for the New Year to end. Reward: Unknown reward.”

The reward was unknown, and the task was still incomplete, probably needing to last through the day.

Around ten-thirty in the morning,

Liszt was playing with the thick-leafed grass sprite that liked to spit, while the maid Anna, who had once wiped his face, kept sending him flirtatious glances.

At this moment, a servant from the Castle of Longtaro came to inform him that new guests had arrived.

The New Year is a family holiday, and anyone visiting the Castle of Longtaro on this day would undoubtedly be Liszt’s aunt’s family.

Sure enough, at the castle gate, Liszt and his siblings saw their mother’s sister, the Marquis’s second daughter, Melinda Longtaro, along with her husband, Viscount Roland Pinecone of Longtail City, and their two sons, Russell Pinecone and Rolly Pinecone.

Also present were Russell’s wife and their daughter, who was just over a year old and bundled up like a cotton ball.

Russell and Rolly were both Liszt’s cousins.

Among the cousins, the age order was approximately: 25-year-old Meopo Longtaro, 24-year-old Levis Tulip, 22-year-old Russell Pinecone, 20-year-old Lvera Tulip, 19-year-old Rolly Pinecone, and 17-year-old Liszt Tulip. The New Year meant everyone was a year older.

Russell’s daughter was Liszt’s only junior.

"Aunt, Uncle, Liszt greets you and wishes you a happy New Year." Liszt stepped forward to pay his respects, but he did not have many memories of these two relatives from his previous life.

Since Melissa's passing, Lee William's interactions with Red Crab Island had diminished, so the three siblings mostly visited Marquis Merlin and rarely came to see their aunt.

"Happy New Year, Liszt. You've grown so tall." Melinda was a plump noblewoman, unfortunately lacking the good looks of the Longtaro family.

And it seemed her luck wasn't great either. Like Melissa, she had married a viscount.

But Lee William had been promoted to an earl early on, while Roland Pinecone remained a viscount. In fact, in his previous life, Liszt remembered that his aunt's two sons were even more useless than "himself."

Liszt quietly cast the Eye of Magic.

He observed that indeed, the total amount of aura of his two cousins was about the same as Lvera's, and they had not reached the level of Elite Earth Knights.