Lord of the Territory (1)
With the territory's maintenance mostly wrapped up and the residents settled in, Aizen felt a weight lift off his shoulders—his original goals for coming here were just about complete. After wrapping up three rounds of mock battles, he headed to the factory.
"...Since I'm asking a favor, take it easy, alright?"
"This is all assets, you know."
After three mock battles full of close-quarters combat, the prototype and the Knight were battered in spots. He laid both machines down in the factory's repair bay and watched as the trained technicians consulted the blueprints, debating before diving into the armor repairs.
"At least it was cheap damage."
"If it'd been smashed bad, I'd have fixed it myself."
If an arm had flown off or a joint twisted out of alignment, he'd have handled the adjustments personally, but it wasn't that severe, so handing it off to the factory made sense. These folks needed to build their skills by tinkering anyway. Long-term, the goal was a factory that ran without him micromanaging—and things were heading that way, slowly but surely. Reassuring.
Of course, he could also check in on the factory's main output.
"Watching the Cyclops units roll off the line never gets old."
Giant figures several times a man's size moved through each assembly stage, piece by piece. Even by sight, there were four. If you counted the ones from a few days or yesterday ago, they might've hit double digits already.
"No major snags delaying production so far, so we'll start shipping them out one or two at a time soon."
"Speaking of, how're you handling delivery?"
"Planning to haul 'em with the Caterpillar Golems we make here."
Mina's first spark of interest had been those endless tracks—looks like her dream was finally coming true. Sure enough, off in one corner of the factory sat several Caterpillar Golem lookalikes, kitted out with the trailers they'd built before, ready to roll.
"We've got supply routes locked for materials now, and with Aizen's mine, it's even easier. Mid-to-low grade ore works fine for building and running Cyclops anyway."
"Mass-production types can't run on premium stuff only—that's why we planned for it from the start."
Mina had eyed that mine probably thinking sales potential from the get-go. In the end, all that was left was spreading Cyclops across the Vespa Kingdom.
One production line assembled the royal palace's commissioned units, while another handled civilian models—the sight hit different every time.
"Seeing tangible results like this feels good."
"We'll ramp it up gradually."
Mina said it quietly. Right now, nobles with breathing room thanks to the Phoenix County exploits were buying steadily, but she figured demand would snowball over time. From his side, it felt premature, but Mina seemed set on investing in more facilities at least.
"Gotta produce Knights on the side too."
"We'll need test runs for that."
The Knight shared a ton with Cyclops, so the current lines could handle orders, but test production was a must. Coatings and some structures differed, so they'd need extra machining setups—better expand, like she said.
"Might as well make it a special processing plant vibe while we're at it."
Maximize base Cyclops utility, then swap parts as needed... He was mulling it over when—
"Aizen, you've got a visitor!"
"Lady Erica? Did she wrap up with the Phoenix Count's folks?"
"A visitor?"
Noel looked curious, Mina tilted her head. No one should be dropping by right now...
"This guy's asking to see Aizen!"
Trailing Erica was Sir Galred from before, plus two more men. Aizen nodded to the bowing Galred and eyed the pair—burly types in hoods.
"Skin's sensitive. Bear with me."
The man said it casually, lifting his hood just a sliver. A familiar face flashed by, and he murmured,
"Freelance knight, Daniel at your service. Baron Aizen Arclight."
"...Free, lance knight?"
Noel blinked wide-eyed in surprise, Mina eyed Daniel sourly, but grinning Erica jumped in.
"He wanted to test if you're worth serving, so I brought him!"
"Serving?"
Erica's words threw him off.
****
As lord of the manor, he had to head back to the temporary office. He'd rather tweak golems and sketch new designs at the factory, but you couldn't just boot a guest—especially with Erica pushing hard. No cold shoulder possible.
"Sir Galred says you're super diligent, Daniel!"
"Lady Erica, calling a stranger by name on first meet is rude."
Noel hurried to chide her, Erica nodded. Daniel's face was hard to catch under the hood, but he seemed amused.
"Lady Noel Nexia, I presume. As kind and diligent as the rumors say. An honor."
"Th-the honor's mine."
Noel replied a beat late, glancing at Daniel. Aizen pitched his voice low, just for her ears.
"Bad vibes? I can chase him off."
"N-no, it's not that."
Still, she seemed uneasy. Maybe that's why Mina nodded and chimed in.
"Stable hand."
"No!"
Noel yelped, Mina smirked. Daniel chuckled softly.
"Horses? Got that covered."
"Then porter."
"Plenty of stamina."
"Farmer."
"Always been interested."
"Aizen's nanny."
"Call me 'Father'?"
Didn't miss a beat against Mina. Her expression said she was just teasing off Noel's reactions. Daniel played along more than expected—seemed fun-loving under the hood. Kinda entertaining.
"Hired."
"Nooo!"
Noel blocked him desperately. Wondering what the hell, she rushed on.
"You're picking a key retainer here—someone you'll work with constantly. Can't hire just 'cause he seems fun, Aizen."
"Fair point."
From his angle, an unexpected proxy candidate dropping in had him welcoming it, but Noel was right. Got swept up in the vibe—too simplistic.
"Noel's got a point, so trial and interview it is."
"I'm ready whenever."
Daniel said gravely, his squire whistled. Aizen asked quietly,
"What's the real goal coming to the territory? Doesn't scream 'life got too hard.'"
"Freelance knighthood's brutal."
"Clothes are too clean for that."
Daniel shrugged at Aizen's jab. Time to lay it out—no easy ride here.
"Straight talk: I'm on bad terms with a top Count's house here. No peaceful life guaranteed."
"If you think I'm an Abatus puppet, give me a shot to prove otherwise?"
Beat around the bush, and he nailed it. Daniel's vibe shifted.
Aizen just nodded silently. Daniel softened.
"Embarrassing tale, but the Abatus Counts and my house... bluntly, one's gotta go for the other to live."
"Blood feud?"
Daniel nodded, then carefully,
"...Had a dumb older brother. He had a girl he liked, but to lock in family succession, he cozied up to Abatus. Their girl's beauty helped."
Noel listened calmly. Mina, knowing the end, spat it out.
"Wakes up—Abatus has all the power, house full of their plants, streets owned, no clean shops left."
"Mina."
"Common story."
Mina shrugged. "They seduce with looks, spread shady biz, own the alleys."
"...And legally untouchable. Centuries of marriages—every noble's got their blood now. Even the king gets lip, prince is a toy? But they play loyal, so no executions. No pretext."
Daniel joked dryly, then whispered,
"So, I'd like to build strength here."
"Strength?"
"To protect family and friends from Abatus."
He bowed, voice steady. "Please, Baron, don't suspect me as their pawn. If you do... I might throw myself off in shame."
"Got it. Apologies for the rudeness."
No lie in that tone or aura. The rage burned real. Trustworthy type.
"Truly a house of pure evil."
Straight take. Aizen nodded.
"Anyway, welcome to New Arclight Territory... Arclight Barony."
"Thank you, Baron."
Hood hid his face, but the smile was clear. Aizen nodded, shook hands.
"You accept me—my turn now."
"Huh?"
Out of left field. Daniel sounded excited.
"Y'know, famed swords choose their masters?"
He spread his hands. "Prove you're worth my service."
Something was off—way too brazen.