Shay stood at the bow of the ship, watching the coastline gradually approach, feeling a sense of indescribable nervousness and apprehension, along with a hint of anticipation for the future.
As the second son of the family, Shay knew he could not inherit his father’s title, which he had no interest in anyway.
Shay’s father was a Baron, a relatively low rank within the Empire’s nobility system, just one level higher than a Knight.
For the Empire, a noble title isn’t just a simple calculation of rank; it also depends on the status of the noble themselves to determine their prestige.
For instance, there was once a noble with only a Baron title who became the King’s favored advisor, nearly holding the Empire’s power in his hands, known as having the world at his fingertips.
During his reign, even Dukes dared not act disrespectfully towards him; who would then hold against him being just a lowly Baron?
So in Shay’s view, the Baron title left in the family was not worth inheriting, and he had a good relationship with his brother, with no conflicts or disputes, nor much property to fight over.
In fact, when Shay came of age, his father handed over his share of the inheritance to him, and at that time Shay was a rising star in the Langton Knight tournament circles, using that money to buy new armor and weapons and winning the swordmanship and walking battles championship that year.
With this accomplishment, Shay joined the Empire’s army, serving for seven years both within the Empire and in the colonies.
His military experience helped Shay grow from a young Knight into a battle-hardened Knight, but did not bring additional benefits or changes, even consuming most of his small inheritance in those seven years. Original content can be found at NoveI[F]ire.net
Other than expenses for maintaining armor and weapons, and buying good horses, most of it turned into alcohol.
But don’t get the wrong idea; Shay wasn’t a drunkard. It’s just that in the colonies, many times, people were idle, especially someone like Shay, a Knight who was somewhat of an officer in the army, although there were other officers responsible for management.
After the military reform in the Empire, warfare had less need for Knights charging forward, and Shay’s rank gradually became more of a mascot or decoration in the Empire’s army.
So the biggest job for a Knight stationed there like Shay was drinking, and even tasks like maintaining weapons were gladly done by local children or youths.
Only for a small amount of money, those kids would happily polish your armor brightly.
Until Perfikot invented steam-powered Knight armor, reviving the profession of Knights.
Based on Shay’s experience and capability, he had the opportunity to join the Empire’s forming Steam Knight Order. At just over thirty years old, he was a seasoned Knight with rich military experience—the exact talent the Empire needed.
However, Shay’s luck was not good; on the day before joining the Knight Order, he and friends at the bar celebrated the occasion.
Both were drunk, and Shay’s friend clashed with another patron. Shay, in a fit of alcohol-fueled impulse, grabbed a handy tool to help his friend.
Consequently, he accidentally killed his superior officer’s youngest son, leading to Shay’s dismissal from the army and targeting by the officer.
To avoid implicating his brother and to prevent further trouble from the disdainful superior, Shay volunteered to join the Northern Territory Pioneer group, hoping for a new beginning.
He left most of his remaining property with his brother and only kept enough for a ticket to the Northern Territory.
This was an unwritten internal custom among the Empire’s noble circles: those willing to go to the colony and not return to Langton, their grudges could be cleared.
Shay hoped his skills would allow him to make a name for himself in the Northern Territory, settling things with his brother, and providing an explanation to his superior.
However, when the ship was nearing the shore, Shay felt somewhat anxious, as he was unsure if he could indeed make a name for himself in the Northern Territory.
"Passengers disembarking, please move forward and do not linger; receptionists will register your identities, and once registered, you will become true Northern People!" A robust man at the dock maintained order while advocating the benefits of becoming a Northern person: "Everyone needs to loudly state their names, ages, and any special skills.
The Northern Territory won’t treat anyone poorly, but it doesn’t support idlers. If you have skills and are willing to work hard, you won’t struggle to find work!
The benevolent Lord Brandelis Count promises any Pioneer immigrant willing to showcase their talents in the Northern Territory will enjoy a tax-exemption privilege in the first year!"
Listening to the proclamation, Shay nodded slightly. Although it seemed like the Count was suffering a loss, in reality, given the current situation in the Northern Territory, even if Perfikot wanted to collect taxes, there weren’t tax officers to do so; gathering sufficient taxes from towns was more out of the question.
Therefore, after consideration, Perfikot directly waived the taxes for these new immigrants in the first year.
For many destitute Pioneer immigrants, this was undoubtedly a welcome relief.
At least for Shay; he could relax a bit, as paying taxes with only wartime skills made finding a good job difficult.
"Next!" As Shay pondered these things, the turn to register soon arrived for him.
"Name, age..." The official in charge of registration looked at Shay.
"Shay Cormac, thirty-five years old, former soldier, Knight." Shay introduced himself with simple sentences, a habit from his army days.
"Knight?" The official registered surprise, then said to Shay: "Welcome to the Northern Territory; here anyone can showcase their talents! Knights like you can join the Lord’s army and pledge allegiance to her.
If you’re luckier, you might even become a Pioneer Knight with your own territory."