Sovereign of the Ashes

Chapter 442: House Sneller

Sein did not knock. Instead, he vanished in a flash.

With his formidable constitution, Sein had complete control over his muscles.

For instance, he did not even need to fly into Geyzes City. He simply leaped over the city walls to get in.

His constitution of over two hundred points allowed him to match knights who had recently advanced to Rank One in arm wrestling.

As Sein's constitution grew, his fighting style evolved too.

However, Sein did not fully capitalize on his superior constitution during the confrontation with a Rank Two black mage a few years earlier because he was uncomfortable with engaging enemies at close range.

Yet, his formidable constitution only afforded him an unexpected advantage.

Opponents who underestimated Sein, viewing him as merely a frail mage, were in for a “surprise” if they dared to approach him too closely!

House Sneller’s residence contrasted sharply with that of the House Grantt in the Viridescent Land.

Although some of the local nobles of the Western Archipelago favored castles just like the nobles on the main continent of the Magus World, most of them resided in large manors with expansive compounds surrounded by high walls.

The customs, traditions, and perspectives among the nobility also varied significantly between those from the Magus Continent and other regions.

Although Baron Sneller’s residence appeared somewhat dilapidated from the outside, the inside was actually rather well-maintained.

The baron employed nearly two hundred servants, excluding the guards who patrolled the premises.

Baron Sneller’s manor was usually protected by three hundred guards. However, due to the ongoing war, the earl had conscripted two hundred of these guards to defend the walls of Geyzes City.

The remaining hundred guards at the manor represent the last of House Sneller’s strength.

Should Geyzes City fall to the Joseh Kingdom, these guards would be the last force protecting House Sneller’s retreat to the heart of the Delton Kingdom.

The lower-class civilians were always the ones who suffered the most during a war.

Although the nobility, such as House Sneller, was also affected, they did not have to worry about food shortages and were often the first to flee when danger loomed.

In fact, many nobles in Geyzes City had already escaped to the safer hinterland of the Delton Kingdom or even to its capital.

Many of House Sneller’s women and secondary heirs had also relocated to safer areas.

Yet, Baron Sneller himself and his eldest son stayed behind.

Apart from Earl Hank of Geyzes City keeping a close watch on Baron Sneller and others, preventing them from leaving, there was another compelling reason for their reluctance to abandon their home.

Unlike other noble houses with histories spanning merely a few hundred years, House Sneller was an ancient lineage, having been established thousands of years ago.

There used to be an earl among its ancestors but a few centuries ago, the House Sneller had begun declining.

Although House Sneller had been relegated to an ordinary baronial family within the Delton Kingdom, it remained a formidable force in Geyzes City.

In fact, it was considered the second most influential noble house in Geyzes City, surpassed only by Earl Hank.

Their influence did not stem from financial might or military strength, but rather from the extensive lands they owned.

House Sneller controlled nearly two-thirds of the arable land surrounding Geyzes City, primarily used for cultivating buckwheat.

Even in the toughest times, House Sneller would prefer to part with their treasured antiques rather than sell off their land.

This decision reflected a deep-rooted wisdom passed down through generations of the House Sneller.

Wealth and antiques could be regained, but land, particularly fertile land, was difficult to acquire.

The perpetual conflict on Thousand Leaf Coral Island had established that among the three kingdoms here, gold and antiques were not as valued as food, which was the true currency of survival.

Should the war relent even slightly, House Sneller—with its vast lands around Geyzes City—could easily recover within a decade or two. The generations of House Sneller’s leaders had always believed that.

Unfortunately, since the Delton Kingdom lost much of its territory over a hundred years ago, Geyzes City became the front line in the conflict with the Joseh Kingdom, ushering in difficult times for House Sneller.

Wars broke out every few years, causing not only a severe loss of civilian lives around Geyzes City but also devastating farmlands and leading to rampant looting of food.

Over a hundred years ago, House Sneller could easily muster a private army of over a thousand men. Now, however, they were stretched to equip more than three hundred.

As for the two hundred servants in the manor, House Sneller incurred no significant expense beyond providing enough food to keep them alive.

In contrast, the guards require not only sustenance but also a significant investment in equipment and weapons.

At this moment, the current head of House Sneller sat in a room at the back of the manor with a frown on his face.

The Joseh Kingdom had been aggressive this year, aiming to annex eleven cities along the border of the Delton Kingdom, with Geyzes City among them.

Despite its apparent decline, House Sneller retained significant treasures from its thousand-year heritage.

Over a century ago, when Geyzes City nearly fell to the Joseh Kingdom, House Sneller brought out an ancient magic item.

This artifact, passed down through generations, played a pivotal role in crushing the Joseh Kingdom’s vanguard and preventing the fall of the city.

However, this incident brought mixed outcomes for House Sneller.

The Delton Kingdom’s royalty used their status as a bargaining tool and a threat to extract two precious magic items from House Sneller.

Earl Hank, too, currently had his eyes on House Sneller’s treasures and even openly declared that the fate of Geyzes City hinged on House Sneller’s actions.

“That bastard!” In a rare loss of composure, Baron Sneller slammed his hand down on the armrest of his chair.

House Hank was a knightly family led by Earl Hank, a senior squire.

Earl Hank—a senior squire leading House Hank—appeared rugged but was deceptively shrewd.

Despite seeming more affluent than House Sneller, Earl Hank refused to budge and consistently pushed House Sneller to act instead.