I Died and Became a Noble's Heir

Chapter 571: Biting Nails

His expression shifted immediately from animated storytelling to petulant annoyance. "I’m not receiving visitors! Come back tomorrow when I’m holding proper audience hours!"

The knocking continued; this time, it was more insistent.

"I said..." Young Lord Bale started, but the door opened anyway, two riders pushing through with urgency that overrode normal protocol about disturbing nobles during their leisure time.

Both men wore the garrison’s colors, their armor bearing signs of recent combat despite obvious attempts to clean up before entering the villa.

Their expressions carried weight that made Young Lord Bale’s irritation falter, recognition that soldiers didn’t interrupt lords without very good reason.

"My lord," the first rider began, his tone carrying formal respect that barely masked underlying stress. "Captain Torven has sent us with an urgent summons. You must return to the fortress immediately."

Young Lord Bale’s wine glass paused halfway to his lips, confusion mixing with the automatic defensiveness he always felt when someone suggested he should actually do something.

"The fortress? Why? The Captain can handle whatever minor crisis has emerged. That’s what I pay him for."

"It’s not a minor crisis, my lord," the second rider interjected, his voice tight with whatever he’d witnessed. "Lord Jack Kaiser has arrived at the fortress."

The wine glass fell from Young Lord Bale’s hand, crystal shattering on the expensive marble floor as expensive vintage spread across the stone that cost more than a soldier earned in a year.

The three women scrambled backward, startled by sudden movement and the expression that had appeared on their host’s face.

"Kaiser?" Young Lord Bale’s voice cracked slightly on the name, all pretense of noble composure vanishing. "THE Kaiser? Jack Kaiser, the Chosen One?"

"Yes, my lord," the first rider confirmed. "He arrived with an army of minotaurs and single-handedly killed the Disaster-class serpent that was leading the siege. Captain Torven sent us to bring you back immediately."

Young Lord Bale stood so abruptly that he knocked over a small table holding various expensive snacks, cheese, and fruit rolling across the floor as his mind tried to process what he’d just heard.

Jack Kaiser. One of five Chosen Ones in all of Elysium. The warrior who’d single-handedly killed fifteen thousand enemy troops during a conflict everyone still talked about in hushed conversation.

The son of Duke Alaric Kaiser, the man who’d wiped the entire Thorne clan from existence when Marcus Thorne had attempted an assault on Kaiser Estate.

Eliminated the bloodline, distributed their holdings, and turned every surviving supporter into a serf serving House Kaiser.

That Kaiser was at his fortress, making demands.

Young Lord Bale began pacing, his movements jerky and uncoordinated as panic set in. "Why? What does he want? I haven’t done anything to offend House Kaiser! I’ve never even met any of them!"

His voice was rising, approaching territory that might charitably be called hysteria.

"He’s come to investigate the dungeon, my lord," the second rider explained, trying to maintain a professional tone despite his lord’s obvious distress.

"The King asked him to handle the situation. But he has conditions that must be met before he proceeds."

"Conditions?" Young Lord Bale stopped pacing long enough to stare at the riders with a wild expression. "What conditions?"

"Two conditions, my lord. The first is that you must come to the fortress immediately. The Captain was very clear that Lord Kaiser will abandon the investigation if you refuse."

Young Lord Bale’s hands went to his mouth; his fingernails were already bitten down from his previous anxiety attack.

He gnawed at them unconsciously, mind racing through implications and possibilities and the complete terror of having to interact with someone who could kill him with a snap of fingers.

"And the second condition?" he asked, voice muffled by the hand still pressed against his mouth.

"Will be delivered by one of his bound beasts while he handles the dungeon," the first rider stated. "Lord Kaiser was clear that you’ll hear the second demand when he’s ready to give it, not before."

Young Lord Bale resumed pacing, movements becoming more frantic as panic built toward full breakdown.

He grabbed an expensive vase from a nearby shelf and threw it against the wall, the ceramic shattering as he vented his fear through the destruction of objects that had cost a fortune but meant nothing compared to his own survival.

"He brought a minotaur army?" His voice was climbing toward a shriek. "How many?"

"Two hundred forty-seven, my lord. They’re currently stationed at the fortress under the command of their leader. A massive creature called Brutus. Captain Torven is cooperating with all their demands while waiting for you to arrive."

"Two hundred forty-seven!" Young Lord Bale’s laugh was slightly unhinged, terror mixing with disbelief at the scale of what he was hearing. "And he killed the Disaster-class serpent? The one that was as big as this villa?"

"Single-handedly, my lord. Climbed onto its back and cooked its organs from the inside using lightning. The entire garrison witnessed it. There’s no doubt about his capabilities."

Young Lord Bale stopped pacing, his mind finally catching up to the situation despite panic threatening to overwhelm rational thought. Jack Kaiser.

Chosen One.

Military genius.

Son of the duke who’d eliminated the entire noble family for offending the House Kaiser.

Offering to clear the dungeon that had killed sixty adventurers, requiring only that Young Lord Bale show up to hear his conditions.

Could he run? ... leave? Abandon the territory, take his wealth, and disappear somewhere Kaiser couldn’t find him?

The thought lasted approximately three seconds before reality reasserted itself.

Duke Alaric Kaiser had tracked down every member of the Thorne clan, every supporter, everyone who’d had even a tangential connection to Marcus Thorne’s attack.

Turned them into serfs or eliminated them. Running would delay the inevitable, but the punishment would be infinitely worse when they inevitably found him.

Could he refuse? Do not go; let Kaiser abandon the investigation. Hope the dungeon problem solves itself somehow?

The fortress would fall. The serpent attacks would continue.

His territory would be overrun. And the King, who’d asked Lord Kaiser to investigate, would demand an explanation for why Young Lord Bale had refused cooperation with the Chosen One sent specifically to handle the crisis.

Which left exactly one option: go to the fortress, meet with Jack Kaiser, agree to whatever conditions were being demanded, and pray that cooperating would let him survive an encounter with someone operating on a scale so far above his capabilities that comparison was meaningless.

"Fine," Young Lord Bale said finally, his voice hoarse from panic and shouting. "Fine! I’ll go. I’ll meet with him. I’ll agree to whatever he wants."

He gestured toward the women who were still pressed against the far wall, watching their patron’s breakdown with a mixture of concern and embarrassment.

"You three, leave. I need to get dressed."

The women fled gratefully, clearly relieved to escape a situation that had become intensely uncomfortable.

Young Lord Bale moved toward his bedroom with riders following close behind, their presence ensuring he couldn’t change his mind or delay further.

He dressed quickly, hands shaking as he fastened expensive clothing that usually made him feel sophisticated but now just felt like a costume inappropriate for meeting with someone who could kill him without thought.

The riders had been clear that this was urgent, that delay would be interpreted as refusal, that Kaiser’s patience had limits that Young Lord Bale absolutely did not want to test.