Reports of a hundred noblemen (8)
I believe the answer is:
accounts
'reports' is the definition.
('account' can be a synonym of 'report')
'a hundred noblemen' is the wordplay.
'hundred' becomes 'c' (Roman numeral).
'noblemen' becomes 'counts' (count is a kind of nobleman).
'a'+'c'+'counts'='ACCOUNTS'
'of' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for accounts that I've seen before include "Stories" , "Rates" , "Details of financial transactions etc" , "Narrative descriptions of events" , "Gives financial reckoning, or explains cause" .)