In the conference room, Lind looked around and saw that the elders of the Lars Family were indeed a bunch of old men.
They all had very stereotypical appearances, and at a glance, it was obvious they were revered elders.
Lena was a bit nervous beside Lind, probably because she struggled with etiquette when she was younger and often got scolded by these elders.
Sean, on the other hand, was much more confident, as he was the most promising member of the next generation of the Lars Family, and his future status as the head of the family would far surpass that of these elders.
Colin and Ruby seemed to be on the sidelines. Ruby couldn’t manage the territory alone without the support of the elders, and Colin had a poor track record with his previous territory management, resulting in fewer elders supporting him.
Although the elders had differing thoughts, the Grand Elder Gan Fenfu at the front had a kind expression.
“I would like to express, on behalf of the Lars Family, my gratitude for Baron Lind Roer’s righteous act. The Lars Family will remember your kindness.”
“Let’s skip the formalities and get straight to the point.”
After calmly accepting the elders’ etiquette, Lind spoke directly, too lazy to engage in small talk with these old men, as such ineffective noble forms of courtesy were wasting precious time.
Every second after their recent victory was extremely valuable, each moment determining the fate of the western Northern Border in the future.
Several elders were quite displeased with Lind’s disrespect for customs, but the Grand Elder cooperatively omitted a large portion of the etiquette.
According to the original plan, Winter Fortress would put the remaining population, territory, resources, and power of the Lars Family under the Graywhite Territory’s name.
After all, the Graywhite Territory was nominally a shared marital asset.
This way, Lind could gain substantial power while ensuring Lena’s status.
However, ever since learning about Sean and Colin on the ship, the elders’ opinions began to diverge internally.
Lind opened a map and drew a large circle in the western Northern Border.
This circle basically encompassed all the nobles sent on this expedition.
“Within this area, everything will be Lars territory in the future, but I need the population and army to help me control these places.”
One elder jumped out to say, “Isn’t that obvious? These nobles are already vassals of our Lars Family, and now we are just reclaiming these lands.”
This undermined Lind’s accomplishments, as these places were originally Lars’ territory, meaning Lind did not defeat an enemy but helped reclaim lands belonging to Lars.
“Helping to reclaim these territories is a given, but whether it’s the appointed lord or the stationed army, it should be our Lars Family’s responsibility.”
This directly excluded Lind from Lars’ jurisdiction; before the war, everyone had hoped that Lind would wave the banner of Lars’ legitimacy, but after the war, no one wanted Lind to truly become one of Lars.
“Baron Roer, your territory should probably be this area.”
Another elder stood up, making a mark on the map. This elder considered himself fair, as the territory drawn for Lind was several times larger than both Graywhite Territory and Fasen Town combined.
Lind flatly refused, “No, you may misunderstand. We are not merely to appoint lords to territories. What we need to do is connect these territories into one cohesive piece, and these lands should only listen to one command. The army should be the same.”
Seeing that the elders had yet to react, Lind continued, “You can understand this as the entire area will no longer be managed by noble lords, but rather directly by officials. From now on, noble titles will be honorary titles, with no real power or control over the military.”
Upon hearing this, one elder immediately reacted, realizing that Lind was aiming to become the Grand Lord, directly swallowing an entire territory, even planning to establish a nation within a nation.
These elders completely misinterpreted Lind’s intentions; the so-called distinction between noble titles and real power was perceived by them merely as a method to strip Lars of their power since the Lars Family likely possessed the most noble titles.
Soon, an elder stood up to oppose this, and more voices of dissent grew louder. They initially thought they were here to negotiate business, unaware that Lind intended to seize all the territories—though these territories originally belonged to Lind.
The most common way to divide up territory is through fiefdoms. From the perspective of these elders, Lind’s refusal to manage these noble fiefs meant he was rejecting the division of the cake. They had come with the mindset to manage the territories, but Lind was telling them it was not possible.
Meanwhile, the amiable Grand Elder narrowed his eyes.
“Regardless, even if we do as you say, the management of this vast territory should still fall to our Lars Family’s heir! Do you intend to take the Lars Family for yourself?”
A slightly younger elder in the group stood up, loud in his accusations against Lind.
At the same time, many began to echo, “That’s right! Don’t think just because you are a descendant of the Empire you can do as you please! This Grand Lord should be none other than the rightful heir, Master Sean!”
Lind felt somewhat helpless, wondering how even these elders were aware of this matter. However, it was within his expectations; digesting the entire Lars Family wasn’t feasible, but he was fully prepared to negotiate with these elders.
At this moment, Lena stepped forward, pulling out a battle axe from somewhere. She stomped on the negotiation table, loudly rebuking, “Lind is my husband! How can he not be considered a member of Lars?”
Perhaps due to the threatening nature of Lena’s actions, the once-chatterful conference room fell silent in an instant.
“Each of you didn’t support my brother before but instead backed my uncles. Now you’re clamoring for my brother to be the heir. I see through it all; the heir’s identity means nothing to you.”
“You just want us Lars to quarrel longer, the longer we argue, the higher your status, and the more you can take.”
“You incompetent dressed beasts, you didn’t see the schemes when grandpa was around, and you didn’t come to help when grandpa was in trouble. What face do you have to represent Lars?”
The old steward Sebas, who had been in the corner, nervously pulled Lena back and whispered, “Miss, at least they haven’t surrendered.”
Lena ignored Sebas’s advice and declared, “I don’t want the title of Lars heir; I just want my husband to be the heir of the Lars Family! I’ve said what I need to say; who agrees, who opposes?”
The elders exchanged glances; the last time such a situation happened was during the previous royal family and the Augustine family. Although the Augustine family indeed managed to turn the tide, the previous royal family retreated behind the scenes. How could these elders not worry?
At this moment, an elder glanced at Sean, who had not spoken up, and loudly declared, “I oppose! This heir should be inherited by Young Master Sean. Miss, you didn’t participate in the heir battle before; what qualifications do you have to make your husband the heir?”
Before this elder finished speaking, and even before Lena had swung her axe, Sean had stood up and directly slapped that elder across the face.
The elder spun through the air before crashing down, looking confusedly at Sean.
Sean stated directly, “I agree with my brother-in-law being the heir; he is the one everyone supports.”
Upon hearing this, many elders showed expressions of “We are prepared to fight to the death, why did His Majesty capitulate first?”
At this moment, the Grand Elder, who had been contemplating something, finally spoke up: “The young lady is correct. Thanks to Lord Lind, we were able to avert this crisis. I also agree with the young lady and Young Master Sean’s viewpoint. From today on, Mr. Lind Roer will serve as the Family Head of the Lars Family, becoming our new leader.”
Although the Grand Elder still wore a friendly smile, the other elders chose to bow their heads as they saw the Grand Elder speak up.
The Family Head essentially represented the position that Duke Lars once held in the Lars Family; within the family, status was not solely based on titles, but rather on seniority. Lind’s position could even be said to transcend the original heir’s position, directly stepping into the role of the highest leader of the Lars Family.
Moreover, in future negotiations with the so-called New Lars on the other side, Lind would have to sit in the main seat.
Lind looked at the Grand Elder with some surprise, but the Grand Elder merely smiled and nodded.
The meeting ended in a strange atmosphere; many elders left dejectedly, but Colin stopped those who had criticized Lind after the meeting.
These elders, caught by Colin, felt nervous yet excited, as Colin had always been perceived as brutal and merciless among them, often taking action against the elders due to his status as the most favored young son.
This was not a positive role; the elders speculated that Colin was dissatisfied with this brother-in-law and was preparing to stir up trouble.
Colin looked at these elders, took the whip that a servant handed him, and spoke in a cold tone, “You seem to be showing a bit too much disrespect towards my brother-in-law.”
