Emily didn’t respond to her words. As a child brought up among the nobility, she could see beyond mere fun.
The people in the field were laughing, shouting, singing.
It wasn’t just the smiles from victory, but... an indescribable sense of honor.
Or a feeling of belonging, of unity.
A true love for this land from its people.
If it were just for some prizes, just to fill their bellies, they wouldn’t be singing ballads around the team after the match, hoarse from shouting but refusing to stop.
They were giving their all for "our Red Tide Territory."
This was not an achievement that mere policies could bring about; it was an emotion planted deeply within their hearts.
Louis taught the people here to be proud for themselves and for him.
Emily felt a chill in her heart, yet there was a subtle stir inside her.
And this fiancé of hers, whom she originally thought only rose to fame through a few brilliant battles, was quietly sowing seeds across this barren yet fresh land that had never been seen before.
"Louis...how exactly did you do it?"
Emily’s thoughts involuntarily drifted back to Frost Halberd City, a place she knew so well that she could walk every street with her eyes closed.
The richest territory in the Northern Territory, without a doubt.
But what about the people there?
They always walked with their heads down, lived their lives cautiously.
They were well-fed and warmly clothed, yet they never smiled.
Even on festive days, they were merely ordered to line up and watch, observing the nobles’ celebrations as if they were just ornaments.
She suddenly realized—the city had never truly allowed people to live.
It had only permitted "survival."
"Why is it ?" Emily asked herself quietly.
Suddenly, she began to imagine, if she could bring this atmosphere, these competitions, this genuine connection between people back...
Might there come a day when the children of Frost Halberd City would also run through the snow, laughing and pulling their parents’ hands, giving their all for a small medal?
But she quickly understood, it wasn’t a matter of system, not something a decree or event could replicate.
The reason Louis could achieve this was not due to how much grain he distributed or how many houses he built.
It was because he personally set foot on this land. Because he gave these people trust, patience, hope.
In her father’s territory, the connection between the people and the land had long been severed by the burdens of life, leaving only cold silence and numb existence.
A thought occurred to her, perhaps...her fiancé could change the entire Northern Territory.
Indeed, Emily wasn’t wrong.
This lively and bustling "Red Tide Sports Festival," where even children could run onto the stage to receive awards, wasn’t a whimsy, nor an idle distraction thought up on a whim by a resident.
This was an event personally approved and even partly designed by Lord Louis.
The intention was certainly not just to "make everyone happy."
In this early spring season, with the chill of the Northern Territory still hanging in the air, resources were becoming scarce, and the shadow of war had not completely dissipated.
Precisely because of this, such a competition involving all the people became especially important.
Through contests of physical strength, speed, and teamwork, they could win prizes and applause, and even gain a sense of "collective glory."
It wasn’t an individual’s victory, but a victory for "us, the Red Tide People."
For Louis, this was a meticulous strategy.
He wanted to use the competition to cultivate an atmosphere of friendly competition, bringing people closer together in their pursuit of challenges.
In the laughter and cheers, they would find a sense of belonging, an acknowledgment that they were part of this place.
More importantly, those moments of practicing, teaming up, and cheering together would slowly nurture something inside them:
As long as there’s someone cheering for the same team in the square.
As long as there’s regret over a lost match, tears for a win, a transformation takes place quietly.
They wouldn’t know what to call it, for it’s something that develops imperceptibly.
It allows the residents to be more than just managed; it gives them the consciousness of being owners of the Red Tide Territory.
But Louis knew, with this in place.
When Red Tide Territory faced a great crisis, they would unite and overcome it together.
Only when the commoners’ contest finished and the cheers died down did the blare of trumpets once again reverberate through the entire square.
"Next, is the Knight Order’s exhibition match!"
The scene quieted for a few moments, then was again filled with the eager shouts of children and youths.
A row of armored knights appeared under the sunlight, Red Tide Territory’s unique black and red cloaks billowing like flames, solemn yet fierce.
They wore heavy armor, swords at their waists, their steps uniform and in sync.
As they passed in front of the audience, each movement was like a well-practiced ritual, with no superfluous actions or slack.
The sunlight reflected off their silver-gray breastplates, shining with a dazzling radiance, the rhythmic hoofbeats drumming like a war crescendo in the open square, beating into one’s heart.
Making everyone unconsciously hold their breath, straighten their backs, as if they too were an insignificant member of this iron flow.
Emily was transfixed.
As a noble child, she was constantly dealing with her father’s elite guard knights.
Those men prided themselves on being elite, well-trained, and rigorously formal...
But she had to admit that the group before her now, in terms of discipline and demeanor, wasn’t much different from them.
Even without comparing their levels and strengths, they were even better.
Their synchronized steps, their silent cooperation during coordination, the intense dedication even during a performance...