Necromancer: Kingdom Building with My Legion of Undead Knights

Chapter 158: The Burden Lifted

Darion tried hiding the smile threatening to form on his face.

Actually... more than a smile. It almost felt like he was about to blush.

Anytime someone praised him seriously or spoke highly of him, it affected him more than it probably should. Something about being acknowledged like that always got to his head a little, especially because he wasn’t used to it.

From his memories of living in the Emperor’s palace, praise was almost nonexistent when it came to him. Nobody looked at him and said: "Well done." Nobody praised his efforts or tried encouraging him. If anything, most of what he remembered were insults, mocking looks and whispers. The bastard son. The unwanted one.

Meanwhile his siblings had always received the opposite treatment. The legitimate princes and princesses were praised for every small achievement.

Swordsmanship, etiquette, studies, horse riding... there was always someone applauding them or speaking proudly about their progress. Darion meanwhile had mostly existed in the background. And whenever attention did fall on him, it usually wasn’t pleasant.

Now, this wasn’t even the first time something like this had happened since arriving in Percvale.

He remembered Seren’s mother telling him before that he was "a good one," separating him from the foolish Barons who had ruled Percvale previously.

But she had not gone deeply into it.

Her words had felt more like cautious approval.

This though? This felt different.

King Michul was actually explaining why he respected what Darion was doing.

"Since the time I loaned Percvale those seven thousand gold coins thirty years ago," Michul continued, "This is the first time I’ve seen a Baron from that Barony seriously discussing rebuilding."

The king’s voice remained calm, but there was sincerity in it.

"Not discussing only surviving, borrowing or making excuses."

His eyes remained on Darion.

"But rebuilding."

The hall stayed silent while he spoke.

"And not only that," Michul added, "You somehow managed to raise three thousand gold coins."

Darion noticed immediately that the king emphasized that part more heavily than everything else.

Three thousand gold coins...

Clearly the amount still impressed him. Darion couldn’t even blame him.

If someone had told Darion a little over a month ago that he would one day walk into another kingdom carrying three thousand gold coins, he probably would have laughed in their face.

Back then Percvale could barely feed itself.

Now he was sitting inside a royal hall negotiating debts with kings.

The emphasis on the coins made a small amount of nervousness creep back into him.

Would the king ask where the money came from?

Darion hoped not.

Because what exactly was he supposed to say?

"Ah yes, I used necromancy, captured a king, threatened another ruler and acquired compensation through a war involving undead wolves and burning barracks.’

That definitely sounded like a fantastic conversation starter.

Nothing about the truth sounded reasonable. Especially considering how little time he had officially ruled Percvale.

Over a month. That was all. No sensible explanation existed for a dying Barony suddenly producing three thousand gold coins that quickly.

Almost as if sensing Darion’s thoughts, King Michul suddenly spoke again.

"I won’t ask how you acquired the coins," the king said calmly.

Darion internally felt relief so strong it almost physically hurt.

Thank goodness!

Michul gave a faint amused smile afterward.

"But regardless of how you obtained them, it still tells me something important."

Darion listened carefully.

"That you’re working hard."

The king gestured lightly toward him.

"You inherited a ruined territory drowning in debt, yet instead of running away or wasting what little remained, you immediately started rebuilding."

Michul shook his head slightly.

"I won’t lie to you, Baron Darion... if I inherited what you described, I might have died from the stress already."

That caught Darion off guard enough that a laugh escaped him before he could stop it.

King Michul laughed too afterward, the sound echoing lightly through the hall.

Even one of the guards behind him looked like he was fighting not to smile slightly.

But the men were clearly well trained. None of them actually broke formation or openly reacted. They remained standing straight with disciplined expressions despite the obvious amusement passing through the room. Darion respected that a little. He didn’t know for sure but maybe if it were Percvale’s knights, one of them probably would have snorted loudly already and ruined the atmosphere completely.

The tension that had filled the room earlier had eased almost completely now.

"You’re responsible," Michul continued afterward. "That’s the important thing."

His voice became calmer again.

"You didn’t squander the coins."

His eyes briefly moved toward the returned bag sitting on the table.

"You’re trying to build something with them."

Darion stayed quiet while listening.

"And with that mindset," the king said, "You’ll become a great leader eventually."

That one hit him harder than expected. Not because he fully believed it yet. But because hearing someone say it aloud felt... strange.

Back on Earth, nobody had looked at him and seen leadership.

And in the Imperial Palace? Most people barely looked at him at all unless it was to mock him.

Yet now here he was, sitting before an actual king being praised for rebuilding an entire Barony.

Darion smiled faintly afterward.

"Thank you," he said sincerely.

King Michul nodded once.

Then finally, after all the tension, all the negotiations and all the uncertainty, the king spoke the words Darion would probably remember for the rest of his life.

"So..." Michul said calmly.

"In essence, I’m returning the three thousand gold coins..."

He paused briefly.

"And I’m also cancelling the debt."

Before coming to Thandor, Darion and Garren had discussed the possibility of something like this happening.

Darion had brought up the idea that King Michul might forgive the debt entirely after hearing Percvale’s condition and understanding that rebuilding had already started.

Garren had not sounded convinced.

The older knight had admitted it was possible, but unlikely.

Seven thousand gold coins was still seven thousand gold coins. Even for a kingdom like Thandor, that was not some insignificant amount rulers casually forgot about.

So in the end, they had simply hoped for the best while preparing for disappointment.

And now here he was..Actually hearing the king say the debt was cancelled.

Not reduced but cancelled completely.

Darion felt something physical leave his chest at those words. A burden.

Pressure! Stress he had not even fully realized he was carrying until now.

The relief that flooded through him was almost impossible.

It felt like finally dropping an impossibly heavy weight after carrying it for miles.

Or like the greatest massage in existence after years of tension sitting on his shoulders.

This... This was progress. Real progress.

In just a little over a month of becoming Baron, he had somehow managed to erase nineteen thousand gold coins worth of debt.

Nineteen thousand!

Even thinking about the number felt absurd.

First Valdenmoor’s fourteen thousand.. Now Thandor’s seven thousand.

Percvale had effectively lost nothing here while still escaping the debt entirely.

And suddenly the numbers in his head shifted again.

Fifty thousand was what he initially met.

That was the nightmare amount Percvale had originally owed across different territories and lenders.

Now? Twenty-nine thousand.

Still terrible obviously. Still enough debt to crush smaller territories.

But compared to fifty? It felt manageable now.

Wayy Possible to pay.

For the first time since arriving in Percvale, Darion could actually imagine a future where the Barony escaped its debts completely one day.

That thought alone was enough to make him emotional. Fortunately he still managed to maintain his composure outwardly.

"Thank you," Darion said calmly, trying very hard not to sound overly overwhelmed and lose whatever noble aura he was supposed to maintain here.

"Thank you so much."

King Michul simply shrugged lightly.

"It’s nothing," the king replied.

Then after a short pause:

"I just hope it helps."

Helps?

This wasn’t helping. This was life-saving. This was kingdom-saving!

But he kept those thoughts to himself.

The king stood up from his seat afterward, causing the guards behind him to straighten slightly instinctively.

"Well," Michul said, "Thank you for coming."

Then unexpectedly, the king asked:

"How old are you?"

The question caught Darion slightly off guard.

It felt oddly casual compared to everything else they had discussed.

Still, he answered.

"I turned eighteen not long ago."

For a moment, King Michul simply looked at him quietly after hearing that answer.

Then the king stepped closer and placed a hand on Darion’s shoulder.

"I suspected something around that number..." the king said.

There was faint amusement in his voice, though his expression remained calm.

"For someone your age, you’re doing a good job."

"Thank you," Darion replied respectfully.

King Michul gave a small nod afterward before stepping away slightly.

"I’ll walk you to the gate," he said.

That surprised Darion a little.

A king personally escorting them out felt strangely informal, especially after everything they had discussed here.

Beside him, Garren finally stood from his chair.

The older knight gave the king a respectful nod.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," he said sincerely.

Behind them, the three Percvale knights quickly echoed similar words of gratitude.

Even they looked lighter now compared to when they had first entered the castle.

Garren picked up the returned bag of coins afterward, the weight of it pulling slightly against the cloth as he secured it carefully by his side.

Three thousand gold coins. Still theirs!

Then together, they began leaving the great hall with King Michul leading the way.