The Sovereign System.

[Kayson Diego has declared his loyalty. Do you accept?]

[Y/N]

Luke stared at the translucent window in shock, his usually sharp mind lagging behind. His thoughts spiraled as he tried to comprehend what was happening.

'Isn't this the same window that appeared when I made Sebastian my subordinate? Why is it showing up now?' he thought, bewildered.

"Haha, why do you look so surprised? Didn't I declare you my brother back then?" Kayson laughed, his amusement evident.

"Y-Yeah, you're right. Sorry, I was just thinking the same thing," Luke replied. "We must never lose ourselves, Kayson, no matter what the future holds for us. I'm counting on you to keep me human."

These words came from deep within his heart. The slight satisfaction and pride he had felt after thoroughly outmaneuvering the enemy and cutting them down had scared him. It threatened to overturn his moral compass. He needed someone to keep him grounded in case those feelings ever overwhelmed him.

Kayson's expression turned serious, and his grip tightened on Luke's shoulders. "Worry not, brother. I will be your shield, even if it's yourself you need protection from," he said solemnly.

Luke nodded, slinging his arm around Kayson's shoulder. "Let's head back to camp. It's been a long couple of days."

The two walked back together, the mood significantly lighter than when they had left. An hour later, Kayson was fast asleep, his soft snores filling the tent.

Now alone, Luke stared at the translucent system window he'd been avoiding this whole time. He had refrained from dismissing it, worried that it might inadvertently decline Kayson's loyalty if he did.

Without hesitation, he confirmed the prompt.

[DING]

[User has accepted Kayson Diego as a subordinate]

[Congratulations, Epic tier subordinate acquired]

[Please select a skill]

Warrior's Insight: Heightens your awareness of individual combat techniques and weaknesses.

Silver Tongue: Your words can influence conversations and decisions, steering others toward desired outcomes. Effectiveness depends on user's Charisma.

Iron Will: Fortifies your mental state, allowing user to resist fear, intimidation and psychological attacks.

The window shifted, revealing three new skill options, just as it had when he'd accepted Sebastian as a subordinate. At first glance, Luke realized these skills were noticeably different from the previous batch.

'Are the skills I can choose based on the subordinate?' Luke wondered. However, the sample size was too small to draw a definitive conclusion.

'Warrior's Insight is a good skill, but it's only useful in individual combat. If I'm to become a General, I won't often find myself in one-on-one fights,' he mused, eliminating it from consideration.

Iron Will was also tempting, but it seemed similar to the Steady Heart skill he already possessed. While useful, Luke sometimes felt almost inhuman when Steady Heart was in effect.

If Iron Will had a similar impact, he preferred to stay away from it.

That left Silver Tongue. After reading the skill's description a few times, Luke felt satisfied. He could already see its enormous potential, but there was one glaring issue—it was directly tied to his Charisma grade, which was a meager E+.

However, Luke had recently developed a theory about the mysterious Charisma stat. He had been tracking his stats nightly, attempting to understand how to increase them.

His Charisma had increased by a single grade twice: after the mock battle and again yesterday, following the mission to destroy the granaries. This led him to a simple, albeit intangible and frustrating, conclusion.

Fame.

If his theory was correct, he could increase his Charisma by gaining fame and spreading his name among the populace. For now, the effects were negligible, but perhaps after they reclaimed Xiu Fortress, his name would become well known.

From there, he could verify his theory. If true, it would provide him with a clear avenue to increase his Charisma and, by extension, enhance the effectiveness of his skills.

'It seems the best choice for me would be Silver Tongue,' Luke concluded, his eyes hovering over the skill.

[You have selected: Silver Tongue]

As soon as he made the choice, Luke let out a sigh of relief and laid his head back on his makeshift pillow. But before he could settle, another window popped up in front of his eyes.

[Stats available for upgrade]

'This is the window I saw after coming here!' Luke shot up, his eyes wide with shock.

Back in Valand City, when he was attacked by the traitors and Sebastian had saved him, this window had appeared. At the time, Luke had mistakenly thought it applied to him. Since he was moments from death, he hadn't paid much attention and upgraded whatever he could.

It was only afterward that he realized the upgrades had been applied to Sebastian, not himself. Seeing the window again now meant these upgradeable stats were likely for Kayson, who had just become his subordinate.

Taking a deep breath, he selected the window, and another appeared in its place.

Subordinate: Kayson Diego

Title: Viscount's son

Stats:

Strength: C

Agility: C+

Endurance: B-

Combat: B

Loyalty: A

Stat points: 12

Kayson's status window appeared, clear and detailed. While the stats might not seem extraordinary at first glance, Luke had a point of comparison—Sebastian.

After receiving his upgrades, Sebastian's abilities had reached near-superhuman levels, particularly in speed and agility. Even so, the gap between him and Kayson wasn't as wide as Luke had anticipated.

'Now, how do I upgrade these?' he wondered. As the thought crossed his mind, plus and minus signs appeared next to all the stats except for Combat and Loyalty, which were grayed out.

Luke nodded; it made sense. Even the system seemed to have its limits. If he had been able to pour all the stat upgrades into Kayson's combat ability, the man would have become unstoppable.

Subordinate: Kayson Diego

Title: Viscount's son

Stats:

Strength: A-

Agility: A-

Endurance: A

Combat: B

Loyalty: A

Stat points: 0

Once he had spent all the available stat points, Luke stared at the updated window with satisfaction. He had a feeling that, after this initial boost, there would be no way to further increase these stats directly.

Sebastian's highest grade—excluding Combat and Loyalty—was his Agility at A-. Even then, the butler's capabilities were at a superhuman level. Sebastian himself had assumed he was blessed by the gods, a testament to how impressive such a grade truly was.

Luke's eyelids began to feel heavy and he dismissed the window. He turned his head and briefly looked at the peaceful guy on the other side of the tent and smiled softly.

'I bet he'll get a shock tomorrow…' He thought with amusement.

Soon enough, Luke's fatigue got the better of him, dragging him into a deep and dreamless sleep.

When morning came, he sat up and looked around, only to find that Kayson was already gone. It was unusual, considering Kayson typically slept in unless Luke woke him.

Rising to his feet, Luke lowered his head to step out of the tent and was immediately greeted by the smell of baked legumes. Arthur, Brian, and Kayson were already sitting around the fire, chatting.

"Morning, sunshine," Kayson greeted him with a grin. "Breakfast will be ready shortly. Take a seat."

Luke muttered a few unintelligible words under his breath and dropped into one of the makeshift chairs. His eyes were bleary, and his thigh muscles still felt tight from the long hours of riding he'd endured lately.

"I'm surprised you didn't go see your horse," Kayson added with amusement. "Or have you finally decided we're better company?"

"Oh, shit, you're right," Luke replied, making a show of getting up. He caught the exaggerated expression on Kayson's face and couldn't help but burst into laughter. "You look like you're about to cry, man."

As expected, a stick came flying toward him, smacking his shin. "Ai, so violent," Luke complained, rubbing the sore spot. "This is why you're still single, even with that handsome mug of yours."

Arthur and Brian laughed, clearly entertained by their antics. "You two are like an old married couple. It reminds me of my grandparents," Brian quipped, slapping his leg for emphasis.

Kayson shot a glare at the ginger-haired teen before promptly ignoring him and turning his attention back to the beans cooking over the fire.

"Good morning~" a familiar voice called, making all the students flinch.

"G-Good morning, General," they stammered, scrambling to their feet.

Hayden waved his fan lazily, offering them a smile. "No need to stand on ceremony. We'll have quite a boring day until the siege weapons arrive," he said nonchalantly.

Everyone sat back down, but the harmonious atmosphere from moments ago was gone. Even if Hayden weren't the acting General, Luke suspected the mood would still be strained in his presence.

"General, were there any movements from the fortress last night?" Luke asked, breaking the awkward silence.

Hayden shook his head. "None. Though, apparently, the soldiers were looking quite nervous atop the wall," he chuckled, his fan moving to cover his mouth. "Who could blame them? Their death is quite near, after all."

The talk of death so early in the morning left a bad taste in Luke's mouth, but he forced himself to nod along. A quick glance at the others confirmed that they, too, were uncomfortable.

"Will we be having a strategy meeting today, General? It would be nice to know what duties you have for us," Kayson piped up respectfully.

"Yes, of course," Hayden replied with a smile. "Our first assault will be tonight after the siege weapons are fully set up. However, I am hoping that young Commander Drakon's heroics have left the fortress without food, and they will peacefully surrender."

Luke's eyes narrowed. This didn't sound like something the bloodthirsty General Hart would say—it didn't align with the man's character.

"What will we do with the enemies if they surrender?" Arthur asked softly, his voice tinged with unease.

At this, a sinister smile crept onto Hayden's face, only to be quickly obscured by his fan. "They will either be killed or enslaved, of course," he said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"R-Right," Arthur replied, nodding hesitantly.

"Will it be the same for the citizens?" Luke asked, his hand unknowingly clenching into a fist.

"Hmm, I suppose that depends. After all, the King wishes to occupy Xiu Fortress, so it wouldn't make sense to destroy its populace," Hayden replied, though his expression briefly betrayed disappointment.

Luke felt the tension ease from the atmosphere and his own body. Bloodshed on the battlefield was one thing, but slaughtering innocent civilians was something entirely different—immoral and outright despicable.

Hayden let out an amused laugh, its tone unnervingly feminine. "Why are you all so tense? This is the battlefield, gentlemen. It's either kill or be killed. You're fortunate to be on the winning side."

"My apologies, General. This is our first campaign. Please forgive our inexperience," Luke replied, lowering his gaze in a show of humility.

Hayden waved a hand dismissively. "It's no matter, young Luke. With more experience, you'll come to understand the need to use your mercy sparingly."

"Thank you, General," Luke said, bowing his head slightly.

"The food is ready," Kayson interjected, grabbing a bowl from nearby. He scooped some beans into it and handed it to Hayden first, who accepted it without a word of thanks.

The group then sat around the fire and ate breakfast—one of the most awkward meals Luke had endured in quite some time. While they had dined with Hayden the previous night, the General had been preoccupied with Commander Tryst and other members of his retinue. This time, his full attention was on them, and the tension was palpable.

As soon as he finished eating, Luke shot to his feet and excused himself politely. Kayson quickly followed suit, mirroring his actions.

Luke glanced back to see Arthur and Brian staring after them, their expressions painted with betrayal. He suppressed a laugh at how pitiful they looked but couldn't fault them—he understood their plight all too well.

"Where are we going?" Kayson asked, pointing to the east. "The horses are that way."

"I'm going to see my but—Ahem, father," Luke said, quickly correcting himself.

"What?! Your father is here?" Kayson asked, his shock evident.