Mercenary System: I can increase innate potential !

"My king, Count Ardan, the captain of the Saber-toothed Tigers, and his men have arrived."

On hearing this news, the king smiled, while Count Ardan showed no expression.

"Send in the captain, alone."

"Understood."

Behind the door, Maxime and his men naturally heard these words.

"Do what you want and enjoy this day as a day of rest. We will be on the road again tomorrow," Maxime ordered, although inwardly he could not help showing a trace of anxiety at the idea of meeting the king.

The mercenaries all obeyed Maxime's order, most of them slightly disappointed at not being able to see the king.

Laura gave him a little wink, as if to wish him good luck.

Maxime gave her a little wave, as if to say that everything was fine.

But the guards at the door alone made him feel a certain pressure.

These guards were, after all, part of the Kingdom's elite of knights, and could not be measured by common sense.

Without a doubt, even Kaite and Langus, who had surpassed the knight at the peak stage in terms of physique, would find it difficult to face them.

Of course it was only a slight pressure, with his physique reaching almost 5 points, as long as he didn't meet a great knight, he was almost invincible.

"Don't worry, young man, our king is a just and good king. Show respect and everything will be fine," advised one of the guards with a smile.

Maxime gave them a slight nod, as if to say he understood.

Shortly afterwards, a figure passed through the door while the king and the count were talking.

Hearing the sound of the door opening, the two turned and observed the young man with blond hair who had just entered the room.

Immediately, a certain tension was created in the room when the aura of these 3 individuals confronted each other.

After a moment, the king broke some of this tension by starting to speak.

"So here is the famous mercenary who caught the eye of Count Ardan and several barons, but who also dared to dance with my daughter."

Maxime froze for a fraction of a second upon hearing the king's words.

His gaze briefly met that of the monarch, then that of Count Ardan, who remained impassive.

He felt the wave of tension in the room, but he couldn't afford to show the slightest weakness.

He bowed respectfully.

"Majesty. Count Ardan. It is an honor to stand before you."

The king looked at the young mercenary with a piercing gaze, as if trying to fathom his soul.

He was surprised to discover that this young man could be the most powerful mercenary in the history of the kingdom.

And yet, some nobles at the stage of knights had already occupied the profession of mercenary.

This meant many things at this stage, and at the same time, it confirmed the king in his ideas and plans.

Maxime did the same and thanks to his perception, he was able to determine approximately the strength of the king.

And it was terrifying.

"Count Ardan is already one of the most powerful great knights in the kingdom. But this king... He completely surpasses him in my perception."

"Can a great knight really be that strong?"

Maxime's conclusion was that in his current state, even with Nox Limit activated, he could still be easily defeated by the king.

The difference was far too great, and a powerful physique could not make up for it.

After a heavy silence, an amused smile appeared on the king's lips.

"Get up, young man."

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Maxime straightened up, keeping a composed face, although he did not fail to notice the sovereign's slightly teasing tone.

The king rose from his seat and took a few steps towards him.

"Your name comes up often in the reports I receive. Some see you as a talented mercenary, others as a threat. I want to know what you are really looking for."

On hearing these words, Maxime thought to himself:

"As expected of the king, he goes straight to the point."

Without too much hesitation, he simply answered the truth, at least the truth in this world:

"I want to be free, your majesty. Not to depend on any nobleman, any order. I want to forge my own path and protect those who follow me."

He couldn't say that part of his goal was to become stronger in this world to protect himself and his family in the real world.

What he was saying could already be considered an offense to the king.

He lived on his territory, but he did not feel the slightest loyalty.

At that time, it could be seen as a great insult.

But Count Ardan smiled slightly at this answer, while the king inspected Maxime.

As if he were trying to analyze whether these words were true or not.

After a moment, he replied:

"A noble ideal... but a dangerous one."

"Freedom comes at a price, young man. If you refuse to belong to a lord, you will sooner or later become an obstacle for some."

The king's words put immense pressure on Maxime right away.

It was clearly a naked threat. If he refused to take orders from the king, then he would be considered a threat.

And like any threat, he would be eliminated.

After another moment of silence, the king began to explain certain things without showing any emotion.

At that moment, the majesty of a king could be felt directly.

"You know, nobles love to play a game."

"That game is to have as many talented vassals as possible."

Maxime listened attentively, standing in front of the door and keeping his distance from the king.

"A territory needs strong men, but also individuals who are excellent in military strategy and politics."

"In short, a good lord is a lord capable of finding talented people, training them if necessary, and then employing them to improve the lives of the inhabitants in his territory and to protect them."

"Or rather, he would be the perfect lord. Because it is almost impossible to spot talent at first glance. So most territories always lack talent in at least two of the three main categories."

"A lord can already be happy when he possesses even one good warrior, one good strategist or one good politician."

Listening to all these words, Maxime did not understand where the king was going with this.

"You are a mercenary, are you not?"

"Yes, your majesty."

The king fixed Maxime with a piercing glance.

"But yet, a mercenary like you is capable of finding extremely talented and ferocious warriors."

Of course, even the king hadn't guessed that his mercenaries weren't particularly talented, and that it was in fact Maxime himself who made them so talented.

"It's something that no nobleman in the kingdom is capable of doing."

"Yet you, who are only a mercenary, manage to do it."

Maxime began to break out in a sweat.

He did not think that some of the effects of his talent could be noticed so quickly by the most authoritative man in the kingdom.

Because once he had entered the king's eyes, it was only a matter of time before he guessed the reality of Maxime's talent.

"Do you know what this means?" asked the king, still expressionless.

"Please enlighten me, your majesty." Maxime replied immediately, bowing slightly.

He feared the worst upon hearing the king's words.

But he did not see that at that moment, the king smiled.

"It means that you possess a talent that would make you an excellent lord."

The king's words were such that even Count Ardan, who until then had been listening calmly, could not help but raise an eyebrow in surprise.

But he stopped himself from saying anything. Arthur was much more competent than he was at ruling a kingdom.

Maximus, still leaning, was shocked to hear the king's words.

He got up and asked:

"This mercenary is too lacking in knowledge to guess the king's intentions. May I ask what your majesty wishes to express?"

Seeing Maxime's good elocution, the king was slightly surprised. His impression improved slightly.

"This king wishes to give you your own independent territory."

"What!?" thought Maxime, completely shocked.

Even Count Ardan couldn't help but think:

"Has he gone completely mad with despair?"

What was the most valuable thing for a kingdom?

Apart from its inhabitants, it was clearly the land it owned!

This was usually the main reason for war!

All kingdoms and empires wanted to extend their borders, welcome more worlds into their territory, and strengthen their military and economic power.

But the king said he was willing to give up part of his territory?

Maxime had never considered the possibility of becoming a lord by joining Eternity.

The king continued to smile slightly.

"It's not without a price."

Maxime stiffened his expression.

He prepared to wait for the price to get this opportunity.

"Your future territory, your men and you will serve as a barrier to the kingdom..."

Maxime understood immediately that the king wanted to use him to protect the kingdom.

But he was not against it as long as the efforts made were worthwhile.

"Come and see." asked the king.

Maxime approached and stood beside the king.

The king pointed to a place in the southeast of the kingdom on the map on the table.

"Your territory will be located here."

Maxime immediately noticed that it seemed familiar.

He thought silently:

"This territory is..."

But the king's words left him no time to finish thinking.

"You will obtain the territory of Baron Barthon, that is to say his town of 20,000 inhabitants as well as the villages connected to it, or at least what remains of them..."

This immediately confirmed his doubts. It was indeed the territory of Baron Barthon.

But why would the king give him his territory?

"Could he be aware of the baron's actions?"

But it didn't matter for the moment, the king continued to explain his intentions.

"This will be your real base. With this you will have money and men."

"But your real mission is to expand the territory to the south by conquering the orcs' territory and defending it, because at the moment the orcs are relentlessly attacking Count Ardan's territory."

The king left a moment of silence and then met Maxime's gaze.

"But if we give you this territory, some of Count Ardan's pressure will be released."

"The question is, are you capable of withstanding that pressure?"

"If you are, you will be given an extremely valuable opportunity. That of having your own power."

"But if you don't have the strength to do so, then this territory will be your tomb."