That's right, that's what adventure is like!

Chapter 125 The Countess

"Lord Karan."

Lucia gave a slight bow, performing a standard aristocratic gesture: "I apologize for disturbing you."

Roland stopped in his tracks, keeping a distance that was neither too close nor too far, and carefully examined the countess.

The afternoon sun slanted down from the side, casting a soft halo on the light golden hair, and the long eyelashes cast shadows, making the gray-blue eyes appear even more peaceful and serene.

With a straight back, relaxed shoulders, and hands clasped in front of the lower abdomen, one naturally exudes a noble air that seeps into the bones, making one appear neither awkward nor impolite, no matter where one is.

Unlike the confidence that comes from great strength, this comes from a composure that comes from years of aristocratic education.

Roland's gaze lingered on the refined young face for a moment before he spoke softly, "What is it, sir?"

Lucia did not answer immediately.

She first turned her head to look in the direction of her carriage, making sure no one was paying attention, before taking out a folded piece of parchment from her sleeve and handing it over with both hands.

"Please take a look at this."

Her voice carried the reserved elegance characteristic of aristocratic women, yet it softened slightly, and there was a hint of barely perceptible expectation in her eyes.

This attitude —

Roland noticed something was wrong, took the slightly cool parchment, and looked down at the opened parchment.

It is yellowish overall, with severely worn edges, and looks quite old. It is covered with scribbled symbols and lines, and in the middle is a pattern that looks like a tree stump.

At the bottom was a line of blurry small print, the handwriting mostly smudged by an unknown liquid, making only a few words barely legible.

—"Preserve", "Future", "Cherish".

These are some words that often appear in poetry, as well as those lines and outlines that look somewhat familiar.

"Could it be a treasure map?" Roland raised his head and voiced his guess.

"Yes," Lucia nodded gently, "Three days ago in Broken Rock Town, a wandering merchant came to my door and sold it to me for 200 gold coins."

She paused, a glint of light flashing in her grey-blue eyes: "I asked Staro carefully, and he said it was a drawing of the surrounding terrain, so—"

Lucia didn't continue speaking, but her meaning was very clear, her eyes filled with hope.

Even though she was a noblewoman, she couldn't just send her own guards to search for treasure in the caravan; she had to get Roland's permission first.

Roland did not give an immediate answer, but instead carefully examined the map.

The lines are quite blurry, and some of the markings are also illegible. At first glance, they cannot be matched with the surrounding environment at all. Only the undulations of a few dark lines are somewhat similar to the surrounding hills.

Considering that the parchment has been oxidized for at least twenty years, and the terrain of the field has changed a lot, it is indeed quite possible that this is true.

After a moment's hesitation, Roland waved the map in his hand: "Sir, may I take this with me to study it first?"

Lucia paused for a moment, opened her mouth as if to say something, but finally nodded, her voice even softer: "Of course."

"I will give you an answer by tonight at the latest," Roland said, turning back to his carriage.

Aleta sat in her original spot with a universal language dictionary spread out on her lap. When she saw him coming, she moved slightly to make room for him.

The convoy quickly packed up, everyone returned to their posts, and set off again into the distance.

The carriage swayed and rocked. Roland leaned against the pile of goods, took out the map again, and squinted as he examined it.

"This treasure map is useless," Elena's voice came from the crystal. "Whether it's real or fake, it's most likely already been taken."

Roland nodded, agreeing with the assessment.

A real treasure map won't just come to you, and it certainly won't be worth only 200 gold coins. Someone has probably already been to that location and sold the useless piece of paper to someone else.

However, he also understood Lucia's thoughts.

Life on the road is too monotonous and boring, and we need to find some fun every now and then. According to the map, the location of the treasure is not too far from the convoy.

More importantly, "she was probably leaving the protection of her elders for the first time," the experienced Elena saw through Lucia's true nature at a glance, "her attitude was too gentle, lacking the authority of a person in power, and at the same time she was full of curiosity about the outside world."

Upon hearing this, Roland couldn't help but chuckle softly.

He knew Lucia was being a bit too obvious, but he hadn't expected even the soul inside the crystal could see through the problem.

"You're absolutely right," he began, introducing Lucia's background. "Actually, she inherited the title less than a month ago, and she wasn't originally the heir."

Tell me more.

Seeing that Elena was interested, Roland began to explain the specific reasons.

In the Kingdom of Kessel, the nobility can be roughly divided into two factions.

One type is the old aristocracy, which has existed for more than three hundred years. They have considerable strength and resources, but have been targeted by successive kings and can only huddle in the southern part of the kingdom.

Another type is the newly emerging nobles supported by the royal family. They have no territory, and their power is mainly distributed in the court and the army. They are the foundation for the royal family to continue to this day.

When the empire invaded, the old nobles were naturally overjoyed. They not only formed an alliance to refuse the king's decree on the surface, but also secretly pledged allegiance to the empire.

The newly emerging nobles fared much worse. They were too closely connected with the royal family to pledge allegiance to the empire, so they had no choice but to grit their teeth and stick with the king to the bitter end.

However, as the situation gradually became clearer and it became clear that destruction was inevitable, the emerging nobles would still try to find a way out.

For example, a son who was originally intended for a marriage alliance, rarely appeared in public, had received a good aristocratic education, and was not the original heir was secretly moved to a safe place.

In this way, once the family is destroyed, this heir can immediately inherit the title, leave the Kingdom of Kessel, and continue the family's glory.

Lucia is an example of this.

"—It's hard to understand," Elena said after a moment of silence, her tone tinged with a hint of sarcasm. "There are countless paths to take, yet you choose the most cowardly one."

Roland leaned against the cargo box, feeling the wheels churning over the grass, without saying a word.

"To place the future of the family on the shoulders of the younger generation and to die in battle," Elena continued, "is to feel that this is an act of protecting the honor of being a noble."

"In reality, it's placing the responsibilities that should be borne by oneself onto young people, forcing them to face unfamiliar places alone."

Unfamiliar things—it's just a shameful escape.

Roland didn't offer any opinion, but simply turned his head to look at the carriage in front of him. The curtains were tightly closed, and he couldn't see the people inside, but he still remembered the light in Lucia's eyes when she made the suggestion.

He was very familiar with that light.

"Freedom," he said softly, "at least for Lucia, she has gained freedom."

"No longer bound by family orders, no longer confined to aristocratic ballrooms, this one—"

He paused, then continued, "At least for now, this countess has gained a certain degree of freedom."

Elena fell silent.

Aleta looked down as she flipped through the dictionary, but her lips curled up slightly.

"I will grant her request," Roland said, folding the map back up and tucking it into his pocket. "I want to see if she deserves this freedom, if she deserves to bear the expectations of her family."

He silently added a sentence in his mind.

Whether it's worth making into a good story.