The Witcher: Lord of the Empire

Early the next morning, Hardy knocked on Lann's room with toiletries in hand and found that his young master had already gotten up and dressed neatly. 

The windows were closed, making the room a little dark in the early morning. Lann held a piece of magic crystal in his left hand that the butler had brought yesterday. It was said to be a component used by a wizard for long-distance communication. 

Failed to absorb skill points. 

Sighing and putting down the crystal, Lann began to think deeply. Is it because I haven't become a witcher yet and can't absorb magic power, or is it because I need magic items to contain stronger magic power, or is my guess wrong from the beginning? 

"Master, it's time for you to wash up. You are going to visit Her Majesty the Queen today." Hardy said softly, looking at his master's admiration for the magic objects on the table. 

"Don't talk like your grandpa." Lann waved his hand impatiently, looked at Hardy's raised eyebrows and suppressed laughter, and tapped his head lightly with his knuckles. 

"By the way, tell your grandpa that while collecting magic items, help me collect information about witchers. If any witcher appear in Cintra or the surrounding area recently, please notify me immediately." 

"Witcher?" Hardy was stunned for a moment. "Are they... the mutants created by those wizards?" 

Lann hesitated to speak, wanting to correct Hardy's thoughts. But what the young servant was talking about was exactly what ordinary people in the mainland and even everyone except the witchers thought of the witchers. 

All kinds of rumors make ordinary people respect and fear them, while the wizards who know the inside story are contemptuous and fearful of them. 

Lann sighed: "Yes, try to collect as much information about them as possible. I'm very interested in witchers recently." 

"Also." Lann hesitated this time, not sure whether he should do this or not. "By the way, let him ask about a person called 'Master Mirror'." 

"Yes." Hardy didn't know what the name meant, but he just agreed to his master's instructions. 

'Master Mirror? What a strange name.' 

Hardy thought for a while and then reminded of something else. "One more thing, Master. The attendants selected for you have arrived. They are waiting for you downstairs. Do you want to see them now?" 

"Are they here now?" Lann went to the window. 

He saw ten young men with different looks and shapes standing in the courtyard. They each stood in the courtyard with restraint, looking at the surrounding environment excitedly from time to time, but trying their best to restrain their excitement. 

The general feeling is that they don't seem very intelligent. 

"Let everyone stand first." Lan said: "They have passed Enns's test, but they still have my test." 

The knight's squire, or retinue, is the direct line of troops for the current Lann in the future. Lann does not intend to train these assistants according to the methods of this era. 

"Let everyone remain standing?" Hardy asked doubtfully, obviously not quite understanding what his lord meant. 

Lann affirmed: "Let everyone remain standing until I return." 

Hardy hesitated to speak, but still couldn't hold it back. "Master, do you want to train them into guards?" 

Lann shook his head. "More than that. I expect more from them." 

After washing up, Lann came to the royal castle and was led by the waiter to the castle's living room. At this time, Queen Calanthe was receiving the general of the army inside. 

From time to time, from inside the closed door of the drawing room, the laughter of the Queen and the loud guffaws of the General could be heard. 

The Queen who came from a royal family is dignified and elegant, but she also likes to go on military expeditions all year round and has the boldness and chic of a warrior, which gives her particularly strong cohesion in the military. 

After a while, the closed door opened, and Lann nodded to the general who came out. 

"Good day, General Vesekid." 

"Good day, Lord Lannister. I haven't had time to congratulate you yet." 

In the drawing room, the Queen seemed to be in a good mood. The attendant on the side was bringing a new wine glass and placing it in front of Lann, filling it up. 

"Little Lann, my little lion, did you finally remember to see your aunt today?" 

"What you said makes me sad. When will I not come?" Lann replied with a smile, pointing to the general who just left, "What's wrong, aunt? The war is not going well?" 

"The Nilfgaardians have never been a threat to us." Calanthe said proudly. 

  Lann sighed inwardly. Calanthe became famous at a young age and was fierce and willful. Perhaps it was this arrogance that ultimately destroyed her and Cintra. 

"I came today with a request." Lann saw the interest in Queen Calanthe's eyes. "I would like to ask you to arrange a position for me in the army... Yes, I want to go to the battlefield." 

"Impossible." Calanthe refused, "You are only fifteen years old and not even married yet. I don't want the newly established Lannister family to be exterminated." 

The Queen stood up and put a hand on Lann's shoulder. "I know why you want to do this. It's to avenge your father, and you also want to make Lannister famous again. You want to earn your own glory. It shows by your performance in the tournament. You are exactly like your father." 

"But it's not the time yet." The Queen shook her head. 

No, no, the reasons why my father is so brave and good at fighting are definitely different from mine. 

Lann wanted to say something else, but the Queen raised her hand to stop him. "But... after all, you are indeed not young anymore, and you should take on some of the responsibilities in your blood. I heard that you have started to choose your own team of attendants. Then you can go to the city defense army first where you can practice in real combat and learn how to train soldiers." 

For a moment, a system prompt sounded in Lann's ears: 

[Mission discovered] 

[Defense of the City. Iron Guard - Part 1] 

[The Queen has rejected your request to take charge of the army. Maybe you can start with the city defense army to prove yourself? Of course, everything starts with the most basic training. Like teaching your soldiers how to hold a sword and where to point it.] 

[Accept/Reject] 

"I will follow your will and you will not be disappointed." Lann promised sonorously. 

Calanthe said with a smile: "I heard that you have been helping people everywhere this year, and you have gained a reputation as a 'Lannister always keeps his promises'. The reputation is a good one, but it is somewhat disgraceful. Now get to work and I hope you don't run around in the future." 

"I didn't expect such a trivial reputation to reach your ears." Lann laughed. 

The goal has been achieved, and there are even unexpected surprises. Lann was about to resign when his mind suddenly recalled several ideas that came to mind when he was sorting out his notebook last night. 

"Aunt." Lann just stood up. "Actually, I have always been a little confused about this marriage with Verden. If I remember correctly, my uncle's brother is the King of the Skellige Islands. Why can't we borrow troops from him?" 

Yes, Calanthe's husband has a king brother.