Lord: I can see loyalty.

On the scorching quicksand, a hunting dog walks slowly with its ears drooping, seemingly unaware of the danger approaching.

In the shadow of the pile of boulders not far away, several pairs of greedy eyes were staring intently at their target.

Just as the hounds approached the pile of stones, several slender figures of sand wolves leaped out from among them, but the hounds nimbly dodged to the side.

The next moment, several arrows flew out from the rocks in the surrounding area.

By the time the sand wolves realized something was wrong, it was too late. Dozens of humans slung their wooden bows behind them, grabbed the long-handled weapons from the ground, and rushed forward.

A simple hunt came to an end.

After Gelto and his hunters retrieved the remaining arrows, he patted the hound's head, fed it a piece of jerky, and then turned to Vio, who was walking towards them, and said respectfully.

"My lord, a small number of sand wolves usually hide under piles of stones like these. Using hunting dogs to lure them is the most common method."

Vio stroked his chin thoughtfully and nodded, then asked, "Galeto, besides sand wolves, what other creatures should we be wary of in the Southern Territory during winter?"

"My lord, in fact, winters in the southern region are not cold. There are not many creatures in this desert to begin with, and they are even less likely to be seen in winter."

"Even wild beasts and monsters that can adapt to this environment will migrate away because there is no food." Gertó's words drew nods of agreement from the other hunters.

"However, there is a small grove of trees on the road from the village to the fortress, where many monsters may be hiding..."

Gertó lowered his head in thought, and Vio didn't press further. They had had a very fruitful hunt, so he ordered them to return to the village.

"My lord and the hunting party are back!"

As soon as the hunters could see the watchtower at the village entrance, shouts came from the village. Soon, people from the village ran out to help carry the sand wolf meat, and the village entrance became bustling with activity.

It has been some time since they recaptured Bordeaux, and during this time, Bordeaux has been thriving.

Not only have the villagers' lives improved, but the overall level of the militia has also increased.

With the addition of the refugee group, the militia now has nearly one hundred members and has been officially renamed the militia by Vio.

The first batch of militiamen trained almost all reached the basic level of swordsmanship, and were therefore selected as the elite team. Jimmy, who reached the intermediate level of basic swordsmanship, became the captain.

The remaining militia were also divided into two teams, led by Xavier and Ansquieu respectively.

Vio's skill level has also improved significantly since his battle with Sean, reaching the intermediate level of basic swordsmanship!

Of course, an even more important factor was that Vio also found the knightly swordsmanship technique that his father had hidden after retaking the village.

Dune swordsmanship.

Although the Dune Sword Technique is slightly inferior to other magnificent knightly sword techniques, it seems to be just an improved version of basic sword techniques.

This is precisely why Vio was able to quickly break through the beginner level in basic swordsmanship.

On the contrary, Gina, who possesses top-notch swordsmanship talent, has not made any progress during this period, or rather, she has reached the "limit" that ordinary people can achieve.

It's not that the advanced level of basic swordsmanship is the ultimate swordsmanship, but rather that ordinary people without the help of their families can only learn the basic swordsmanship.

Basic swordsmanship is like the fundamentals of swordsmanship. To advance further, one must master various knightly sword techniques or develop new swordsmanship skills on one's own.

A knight who only masters basic swordsmanship can basically only be a formal knight for life, while those who master knightly swordsmanship like Vio's father are called elite knights.

Vio naturally had Gina learn the Dune Sword Technique, but so far there have been no results. Vio himself, however, has already reached the "Introduction to Dune Sword Technique".

Boom!

Vio sheathed his sword, panting heavily, and ended his sparring session with Gina.

Although he had already mastered the basics of Dune Swordsmanship, Vio still wondered to himself, "Is Dune Swordsmanship really any different from basic swordsmanship?"

Gina held the wooden sword in her hand and slowly swung it, as if she was pondering something.

knock knock knock.

A soft knock sounded on the door.

Vio glanced at the wooden door, then, after catching his breath, said, "Come in."

"Greetings, Lord." The newcomer was Cohen, followed by two members of the Brotherhood.

They wore plain white cloaks over close-fitting leather armor, and carried several well-designed short swords at their waists, giving them the appearance of assassins at first glance.

"Sir, we've made contact with Fort Kavill." Cohen looked up, his eyes filled with barely concealed excitement.

A glint flashed in Vio's eyes as he deftly sheathed his wooden sword and sat down in the lord's chair.

"How's the situation at the fortress? Have they read my letter?"

"The area outside the main gate of the fortress was littered with corpses, and there were also suspected bandits stationed not far away, probably still under siege by bandits." Cohen recalled for a moment and said, "We contacted them through the side gate, but they didn't let us into the city, they only gave us a reply."

After saying that, Cohen took out an exquisite letter from his body, which bore the mark of the Cavill Fortress.

Gina took the letter from Vio and handed it to him. Vio opened the envelope; the letter contained only a few short lines:

To His Excellency Vio Ross:

"I have read your letter and I am deeply saddened by the news of your father's passing. I hope you can find solace in this time of grief."

"Congratulations on retaking Bordeaux village. This is a powerful counterattack by our southern border against those barbarians."

"Finally, we happen to be hosting a gladiatorial show at our Cavill Fortress recently, and we cordially invite you to attend. At that time, we can also discuss this bandit problem with you."

"Felix Cavill Donovan."

Vio frowned after reading the envelope.

According to Cohen, the fortress had been besieged by bandits for at least several days, yet they still had the leisure to hold gladiatorial performances inside.

It seems the entire fortress is already waiting to die.

"Gina, what do you think?"

Although Gina was illiterate, she could now understand quite a bit under Vio's tutelage. She frowned and whispered, "It seems that Lord Felix doesn't take this matter to heart."

Vio sneered and said mockingly, "That's normal. He probably thinks Cohen and the others are just vagrants trying to scam a meal."

"If it's an imposter, Cohen naturally can't find a 'Vio' to go to the fortress. Even if it's real, he did extend an invitation to the fortress to discuss matters, so there's no problem with the etiquette."

"Then, my lord, what do you intend to do...?" Gina gripped the hilt of her sword tightly.

"Go." Vio stood up, his gaze fixed on the fortress outside the window. "I want to see if Count Felix of Zhuosha, who commands the largest fortress in the south, is truly worthy of his title."