The baronet was a title directly above ordinary knights.

"What the...

— Baronet!

The Prime Minister's statement shocked the nobles, and this was understandable.

"It's unheard of! Give the barbarian an inherited title!

A baronet could pass on his title by inheritance, not forever, but only to his son and grandson. In some ways, this was considered better than an honorary baron, whose title was retained only for the time being.

I didn't even intend to follow the path of nobility, but who knew that I would get the title.

To be honest, I was dumbfounded. In the game, it was possible to become a nobleman by completing quests related to the Marquis or High Nobles and accumulating achievement points.

This path had as many cons as pros.

Although you became a nobleman, in reality, it was more like a vassal of a great nobleman, and therefore there were restrictions in the game.

And what happened to the restrictions now?

Since commoners and nobles can't disobey the king's orders anyway, aren't they practically non-existent?

Hmm, it seems so, but...

At this moment, the Prime Minister shouted:

"Everyone is quiet!"

"But...

"These are the words of His Majesty.

—…

The confusion that seemed to be unresolved so easily was soothed by the mere mention of the king. Such was the weight of his name in this country.

– You will be informed of the date of the title as soon as it is set.

In general, this was the end of my role. The Prime Minister did not even ask if I would accept the title. Probably, he did not think otherwise. However, I was not going to refuse. It was not an easy game. In other words, obtaining a noble title promised all kinds of conveniences and new entertainments.

"Portian Mirian of Clan Nartel, step forward!"

…

After my turn, the process of announcing rewards according to achievements continued for some time. At this time, my teammates also came forward and received decent rewards, although not as big as me. Misha, Ainar and Mr. Bear each received 10 million stones as a cash reward and the opportunity to choose a rank 5 essence or equivalent equipment. In addition, the mage Raven appealed to the Prime Minister for the right to study royal magic, instead of the usual reward.

In Ervena's case, it was a rank 4 essence or its equivalent, the biggest reward among my comrades. She was recognized as the second participant in the battle with the Corpse Collector, and also received compensation as a member of the family of the deceased Daria. Although she wasn't able to attend this event, there was only an announcement today, and the real award would be given later, so it wasn't a problem.

"Mr. Yandel, is Ervena still in her Holy Land?"

"As far as I heard, the funeral is already over, but she must still be grieving.

Raven asked for news about Erwen, but then hesitated. I asked if she wanted to give her something, but I received no answer.

A lot of time passed, and the long process of awarding ended, the banquet began.

"What a wonderful day. I ask everyone to enjoy this event with the protagonists of the new era with a joyful heart!

***

Due to the large number of guests, the banquet was held in two different halls:

In the large inner hall, where the award ceremony took place, and in the open-air garden, where all kinds of delicacies were laid out.

It wasn't mandatory, but most researchers liked to hold a banquet outdoors. Such was the atmosphere. It was quiet inside, classical music was playing. As more than half of the nobles preferred to enjoy the banquet here, the explorers were uncomfortable staying.

"Mr. Yandel, what are you going to do?"

"Of course, I'll go outside.

We also preferred to go outside.

"If we stay here, we can expand our network.

As my title of baronet was confirmed in any case, it was not necessary to create a network today. I didn't want to do it today.

"Yandel!" Yandel is here!

"Huh?" What is a nobleman doing here?

"Hahaha!" Yandel wouldn't have done that!

The researchers who greeted me warmly when I came out must have felt a sense of distance when they heard that I would be given a title of nobility. It's good that I came out. Whatever one may say, but relations with these guys seemed more expensive to me than with noble bastards.

"Everyone is looking only at you. Why don't you say a few words? Inside, we've heard more than enough, but I think it's going to sound different when you say so," said Kyle, who was following behind me.

Yes, you have to make a little toast, or something like that.

I thought for a moment what to say, but... I just decided to act in a barbaric way.

There was no need to think long. What for? We've already heard enough trivial praise, so...

"Well done!

This should be enough for today.

"Now let's eat, drink, and have fun!"

My toast ended very quickly. The barbarians, who by nature prefer short words, shouted back:

'Behellaaa

The researchers did the same.

"To think that the day has come when I can drink in the royal palace!"

"Yandel is becoming a baronet, why are you worried?!" Let's enjoy!

"Hooray!"

The researchers stopped feeling discomfort from staying in the palace and began to have fun at the banquet. Including us.

"Wow, Bjorn! Try this! I don't know what kind of meat it is, but the bones are crispy and delicious!

"Uh, this is not the kind of food where you need to eat bones...

"Huh?" Why?

"It doesn't matter. Eat it. If only it was delicious...

Fatty food, the taste of which is different from Misha's home cooking. A drink that is easy to drink, and many comrades with whom you could drink and talk about the hardships of the past.

It feels like it's an afterparty or something.

Then came a merry pastime worthy of a banquet. Sometimes the atmosphere was darkened when it came to talking about a departed comrade, but after a short minute of silence, everyone came to their senses. So time passed, and the sunset was already approaching.

"Sounds like you're having fun?"

Melter came out, who was enjoying a feast indoors with the nobles.

"Did you have fun inside?"

— Of course not. I had to restrain myself from running out of there.

"It looks like you've been through a lot.

I could understand why Melter was with the nobles inside. After all, he was the head of the clan. I was sure that he didn't want to miss the opportunity to talk to the nobles, because one day he might need their help.

"Since you're here, take the bottle."

"A bottle...?"

"Why use a glass?"

"Haha, if I had known this would happen, I would have left earlier. But where are your teammates?

"Except for Abman, everyone got bored and went to another place.

"Really?" I thought that this barbarian would be different.

"Oh, she can't drink that much.

More precisely, she could drink, but, drunk from the atmosphere and emptied several bottles, she passed out.

"Yandel, there's another bottle here. You're not drunk yet, are you?

— Of course not.

Now that Melter was here, I continued to drink with the warriors around me. This was one of the advantages of Bjorn Yandel's body. He tolerated alcohol incredibly well.

"Ugh, the smell of alcohol...

When I was drinking to death for the first time after waking up in this body, Misha returned.

"Oh, Misha. Did you have a good time?

— Yes. There was a performance going on, and it was fun. It would be great if you came too...

"Something like this will happen again later. But where is Raven?

"She's drunk and talks about complicated things with mages.

Does she talk about difficult things while drunk? It is worth staying away from it.

"I'll go for a walk a little."

Having asked Melter to leave, I left the drinking party for a while and walked with Misha in the garden. It was not as noisy as at a feast with warriors, but everyone had a lot of fun. Nobles could also be seen everywhere.

"Oh?" I can't even imagine an army of thousands of corpses.

"Me too. It must have been so scary. You're amazing.

Just as when I was the star of the count's banquet, the nobles were the first to approach the explorers and express interest. Well, not all of them had heavy butts like titled nobles. The young nobles from the collateral line were essentially no different from middle-class commoners.

And? But why didn't anyone come to us?

It was strange, but I soon understood. How could anyone approach dozens of stern, screaming warriors?

"Bjorn, would you like to sit down and rest?"

"That would be nice...

I wasn't that drunk, but the effects of the last battle hadn't fully healed yet, and it was hard for me to walk for long.

— ... Why are you sitting on the ground? Sit next to me.

"I think it's going to break.

Misha sat down on the bench, and I sat on the grass, and we just passed the time in silence. Maybe it's because I've had so much to drink? The noise of the banquet came from afar like background music, and all kinds of thoughts raged in his head.

"Yandel!" You are Sir Bjorn Yandel, who received the title of baronet, aren't you?"

While I was spending my time in cozy silence, some of the nobles recognized me and came up to me.

But Sir Bjorn Yandel? Do they already address me as a nobleman? I didn't want that time to be interrupted, so I brushed them off with the appropriate excuses, but I couldn't use this method for everyone.

"Haha, so you were here?"

He was not a collateral, but a titled aristocrat. Someone with whom a bad relationship can lead to trouble in the future... Dvalka's half-brother.

— … Барон Мартоан.

"To tell you the truth, I've come to see you a few times before, but I haven't come close because you seem to have had a good time."

Excuses.

Obviously, he just couldn't break through the warriors to come up to me.

— Thank you for your attention.

"Haha, it's not worth it. After all, you are the protagonist of this banquet.

After the formal greeting, I had a short conversation with Baron Martoan. The conversation turned out to be more informative than I thought. Apparently, when commoners get into the nobility, they always have tension, but it was different with me.

"Why?"

"Because your title was conferred by His Majesty the King himself. An explorer who is closely watched by the king? Who will dare to touch you? Everyone will strive to be your friend.

A king, huh?

I have always felt this, but every time the conversation turned to the king, I felt uncomfortable, including from the words of the leader.

In any case, if it's true...

In a joking mood, I greeted the butler, who was standing next to the baron.

"Well, it's been a long time, butler.

The butler's face turned white with my greeting. Well, he must have been frightened, because the barbarian who used to smash heads and gnaw bones now has great fame and power.

"P-Please forgive my behavior at that time..."

When I grinned, the butler flinched and apologized. I didn't really like it.

Tsok, now it seems to me that I am just mocking a weak child.

Even a sandbag had to be able to hold up to blows to make it fun. I stopped teasing the butler and continued my conversation with Baron Martoan. Naturally, Dvalka's name came up.

"By the way, where did my younger brother go?"

Perhaps to get closer to me, Baron Martoan used the expression "my younger brother," which he never used. Misha and I froze at the same time.

What the hell is this?

Is he joking now?

"Where did he go...?"

When I asked, barely controlling his expression, the butler's face paled even more. From this I understood two things.

First: apparently, this guy knew the situation.

"My lord, as I said, Riol Warb Dvalki—"

And secondly, the baron also knew about it. He just forgot.

"Oh, yes. My memory is no longer what it used to be, with my age. Haha.

The baron laughed embarrassedly. My insides, which were fine even after a bottle of alcohol, boiled. So that's why?

*Compression*

When I came to my senses, Misha squeezed my hand tightly with a worried face. I tapped the back of her hand to tell her not to worry, and then removed my hand. I was no longer the one who had nothing. There were too many things to be held accountable for.

"Yes, I understand. Don't worry. As you get older, you may have problems with your head.

—... And? Oh, I guess you can put it this way. Hahaha.

I held out my hand to the baron and asked him to shake his hand.

"I need to go somewhere, so I have to go." It was a pleasure to meet you.

"Really?" It's a pity. See you next time.

Baron Martoan returned my handshake and spoke in a tone of disappointment. He asked me at last:

"Anyway, where are you going?"

I waved away the hand that I was shaking to the baron, as if removing dust from it, and answered:

"I just suddenly wanted to wash my hands.

Dirt must be washed off.

***

Baron Martoan was slow-witted.

—... Is it? In any case, I'll call you another time, so don't refuse. Now that you've become a nobleman, there's a lot to learn.

The baron let me go indifferently. Perhaps the problem was me. Usually a barbarian is not expected to make such a sarcastic remark.

Perhaps this is one of the few drawbacks of the barbarian.

"You've been very patient.

Mike stroked my hair, as if proud of me.

I slowly got up and went into the house as well. I could ask any magician passing by to wash my hands, but I also wanted to go to the toilet.

"Are you sure I don't need to go with you?"

—... Do you consider me a child?

I separated from Misha and went to the toilet with the help of a guide.

Coming back, I was about to return to the banquet hall when someone who recognized me approached me.

"Ah, there you are!"

It was Count Ferdehilt, the organizer of the banquet I had attended last time. Then he also said something strange to me when handing me the prize - No7777: "Necklace of Garfas".

"I'll contact you separately when you're more prepared."

Until today, he has never contacted me.

"You sound as if you were looking for me.

"That's because it is. Why don't we go there and have a drink? It doesn't take long.

"As you say."

As he was a man of authority incomparable to that of Baron Martoan, I obediently followed him inside.

"Here.

When I sat down at the table, the Count poured me a drink, and I immediately drank it.

"My colleague is waiting for me. May I know what case you are on?

"Haha, of course.

Fortunately, the Count seemed to understand and got down to business without displeasure.

"This is Arabella, my youngest daughter. You've already met her once, right?

I feel somehow uncomfortable...

"And what do you think?" Isn't she beautiful?

And indeed, the Count put his arm around the shoulders of his daughter, who was standing next to him, and pushed her towards me.

"I-I'm Arabella...

The Count's daughter, who looked to be 10 years old, shuddered when she saw me and babbled her name.

Ha, I never thought this could happen to me.

"How is it?"

My brain stopped working from the unprecedented situation, and I couldn't answer anything. Though he seemed to think I was thinking about it.

"Oh, if you already have a girlfriend, don't worry. You can just take her as a concubine.

—... Concubine?

"Oh, didn't you know?"

The Count laughed at my muttering and said:

"It is the duty of a nobleman to produce many descendants to help this country. As a nobleman, you will be able to take three concubines into your house, in addition to your main wife.

Duty, damn it.

For some reason, I wanted to go to the toilet again.