A few moments later, Asher boarded the estate ship, his bright golden eyes settling on Josef, who stood tall beside his daughter, the sea wind tousling his weathered brown hair.
"My Lord," Josef said, bowing low with a hand across his chest.
"Hmm," Asher murmured, his gaze sweeping across the deck with a quiet, measured smile. "How many civilians do you carry aboard?"
"Over a thousand men, my lord. Most with wives and children."
Asher turned to face the endless sprawl of sea, the horizon a silver blur where water kissed sky. "Then hear this," he said, his voice steady like a calm tide before a storm. "I hereby bestow upon you the title of Baron. You shall be Baron Josef of the Sea Tribes, first of your name. Your duty shall be to seek out islands—uncharted, untouched—places we shall make our own."
Before the words had even fully left Asher's lips, Josef fell to his knees, the weight of the moment anchoring him. "It's an honour I shall not repay with evil, my lord!"
