From Witcher to Lord of the Empire.

Chapter 193 The New Situation
Lan En showed a look of surprise when he heard the words: "That's really great. But according to what you said, does such a superb technology have strict confidentiality measures, and teaching it to me won't cause you any trouble?"

Prince Ofel waved his hand indifferently: "Its cost is very high, and there is no way to spread it to the army on a large scale. It is mostly used to strengthen the guards, so most of the time it can only be regarded as a manifestation of the strength of the nobles. And many alchemists also After learning this technology, they will use it to conduct business, and there is nothing worth keeping secret."

Prince Ofel showed sincere eyes: "Please don't refuse this again, Lann. The technique of 'infusion' can't express my gratitude to you, please accept it!"

Lan En also returned his sincere gaze: "Since you insist, it would be rude for me to refuse. Thank you, Your Highness!"

…………

To get the "thank you" from Prince Ofir, Lane and his party need to return to Oxburgh.

But before leaving, Lane still had some other affairs to deal with in Novigrad, which was also a layout for the future.

Two days later, Novigrad Square, in an abandoned underground bank vault.

This was originally the territory of the Ghost Face Gang under the Hawthorne family, but because the gangster family set off a riot a few days ago and caused various losses to Novigrad, so now they have become a place where everyone shouts and beats them. Street rats.

All the properties of the gangster family were also confiscated. This abandoned underground bank vault is one of the properties of the Hawthorne family. It was transformed into an underground casino some time ago, and now it has been transformed into a small one by Eternal Flame. Basement meeting room.

Originally, all the furnishings inside had been cleaned up, only a round conference table was placed in the middle, and there were only two people sitting on one side of the table.

One wore a plain cloak with his face buried in a hood; the other wore a broad waistcoat with tattoos all over his chest.

They are Francis Beran, the leader of the alley gang who controls all beggars, orphans, and vagrants, and Carlo Varese, the leader of the Black Gold Society that unites most of the non-human races.

They seem to be waiting for someone.

Apart from the tables, the only decoration left in this underground conference hall are dozens of candlesticks.Now they are all lit, making the basement as bright as the ground.

Machete seemed to enjoy this environment: "This is the place to talk. The battle that the warlock created before is more like an underground organization than ours."

The Beggar King let out a soft "huh".

The machete laughed, not caring about the beggar king's indifferent attitude: "Speaking of which, I saw that you also sent people to help clean up the Ghost Face Gang during the riots in the city before. Did that Lannister go to you too?".

The Beggar King touched the back of his neck and nodded silently.

They wanted to talk about something more, when they suddenly heard footsteps coming from the underground passage.

The sound of footsteps showed that there were a lot of people coming, and the speed was not slow. Soon another group of people entered the meeting room and were illuminated by candlelight.

When the first person came in was Chapelle, who was very familiar with both the machete and the beggar king. The security officer of the eternal fire changed a silver necklace today.

Standing beside him was a blond knight.The Beggar King had already met the opponent, and the machete could more or less guess the identity of the opponent after seeing the iconic lion crest on the opponent's breastplate.

"The Lion of Cintra." Machete chewed on the title that Zoltan had mentioned to himself many times, and couldn't help but think of the snake demon hunter who sneaked into his house that night like no one else. My heart is filled with dread.

Behind them were several temple guards and Sintra cavalry, apparently their guards.One of the red-eyed warriors in light armor was particularly eye-catching.

Beggar King and Machete frowned at the same time.They were invited by Chapelle to participate in the discussion, but they had no idea what the topic was beforehand.

When I saw Lan En appearing on the stage, I even murmured in my heart:
Why would the Earl of Sintra continue to participate in the Novigrad matter?

"Thank you very much for your help during the Ghost Face Gang riot. Novigrad is very happy to have 'friendly citizens' like you." Chapelle said the words of thanks coldly, "Thank you very much for taking the time to come here today .”

Machete looked at the soldiers behind Chapelle and Lan, and pouted.He suddenly thought of his own bathhouse, where he usually likes to discuss matters, because it is enough to "treat each other honestly" and no one will carry a weapon on them.

But who let today be a meeting arranged by the Eternal Flame?
"We didn't expect Hawthorne's son to be crazier than him. What he did doesn't represent us." The machete spoke plausibly, but he didn't let his guard down because of Chapelle's thanks.

The Beggar King pulled his hood down again: "Just tell me what it is, Your Excellency Chapelle. We are not people who talk crookedly."

Chapelle nodded after seeing the reaction of the two, but suddenly directed their attention to Lane: "Although I invited the two today, it is not me who actually presided over the meeting, but Lannis." Mr. Te."

As he said that, Chapelle sat down, but he was not in the main seat, but it was vacated by Lann.

This action stunned the two leaders of the underground world.

Novigrad, who is also the security officer of the Eternal Flame, vacated the main seat for a foreign earl in his own territory?

Lan smiled, and did not really sit on the main seat, but sat on the left and right sides with Chapelle, and said:

"You two, some of you have already met me, and some of you haven't. So I still want to re-introduce myself: I am Lane of Cintra, Lane Lannister Rhianlun. "

"The reason why I made such a big circle today is mainly to thank everyone for standing up during the previous riots." Lan En said with a smile, "So in return, I want to do you a favor."

What qualifications does this Lannister have to represent Novigrad to thank them for "coming forward"?The two leaders of the underground world were stunned again. They looked at Chapelle, but found that the other's face was normal, and they didn't seem to think there was anything wrong.

Things started to get a bit difficult.

"First of all, Mr. Bellan." Lann first turned his gaze to the Beggar King, "We met before."

For the Beggar King, it was really not a good memory.

"'The news of the North gathers in Novigrad, and the news of Novigrad gathers in the Beggar King'. This sentence is still fresh in my memory." Lann laughed, "And what surprised me even more is that, Your sources seem to be extending beyond the North."

The Beggar King shook his head: "I know what your idea is, you want us to facilitate Sintra's resistance to Nilfgaard, right? Then you think highly of us, I just inquired from the merchants It’s just intelligence. That’s all we know about the South.”

Lan spread his hands: "Please don't refuse, Mr. Bellan. As I said, I am doing you a favor. I am definitely not a selfish person."

"You are a person who relies on information to make a living, but at present, in my opinion, your way of obtaining information is too loose and too passive. I want to help you refine and systematize it."

Lane said: "Now you just get information from the merchants and travelers who come to Novigrad to do business, and learn about the outside world. Then why don't you turn passive into active?"

The Beggar King smiled: "You want me to be Sintra's ear? Let's not talk about why I share the current news with you. Do you know who my people are? Homeless beggars, orphans and Tramp, why should they listen to you?"

Lane nodded: "What I want are homeless people and beggars. It's just right for them to mix into the merchant team in Nilfgaard. I believe that not everyone has chosen the current life, and it is their own choice to have a job to feed themselves." Hope. And..."

Lan pretended to reach into his bosom, but actually took out a money bag from the [item bar], threw it on the table and said: "I will subsidize them so that they can get two wages. And when Sintra is restored, I will still Will it give them a home, is that reason enough?"

The machete has been listening by the side, and he couldn't help laughing when he saw Lane throwing the money bag: "It sounds good, but is it just because of this bag of kroner?"

The Beggar King's face was also rather displeased: "Lannister, are you insulting me, or are you insulting my people?"

Lan En froze for a moment, then realized that the two people in front of him had misunderstood.

So he stood up and took the initiative to untie the purse.

Just like that, a handful of sparkling diamonds flowed out of the purse, which was kindly sponsored by Master Mirror.

The machete's laugh was gone.

Give money to the poor and shelter to the homeless.

Looking at the silent beggar king, Lan continued: "I have heard some rumors that the beggar king is actually a person of high moral character. If you feel that it hurts your self-esteem to 'accept funding', you can understand that I want to I want to hire those poor and homeless people through you and work for them. I will temporarily deposit their wages with you."

In the original book, the Beggar King once helped many people in distress for free.During the Witch Hunting Movement, he mobilized people to cooperate with Triss to evacuate all the warlocks hidden in Novigrad and go to a peaceful neutral country.

His identity is the leader of an underground gang, but his character is not pure black.And this person is indeed capable, for the current Lann, his ability can also play a role.

"Then what can I gain?"

"Isn't it enough to turn 'news from the north in Novigrad' into 'news from the mainland in Novigrad'?"

The beggar king reached out to take the money bag, and scooped up the diamonds on the table with both hands like picking up sesame seeds that fell on the table.

"Aren't you afraid that I'll take your money and run away?"

"I really want to say that I'm 'suspecting', but neither you nor I will believe such a child's words." Lan pointed to Chapelle, "So the eternal flame will be our cooperation witness."

He pointed to Kayan who followed him into the basement: "My spokesperson will also stay in Novigrad to supervise the fulfillment of our agreement."

The red-eyed cat sent the witcher to smile kindly at the Beggar King.And the Beggar King, who had already been tied into the room by the demon hunter, did not dare to despise him at all.

Seeing that the Beggar King agreed to his proposal, Lan then turned to face the machete.

The dwarf was already eager to try after seeing the big bag of diamonds.

Seeing Lan En reaching into his arms again, this time he didn't take out the money bag, but took out... a stack of papers?

The machete took it in doubt, with a face full of disappointment; but after seeing clearly the things on the stack of drawings, his eyes gradually changed.

"This is the Mahakam steel sword? No, the structure is more complicated... The Mahakam rune piercing sword? Not right..."

Although Machete was not a professional blacksmith, the sound of hammering iron reverberating in the dwarf blood and the influence of his growth environment still made him inevitably learn a lot of basic knowledge of forging.Looking at the stack of blueprints that Lan En handed over at this moment, the more he looked at it, the more frightened he became.

"No, no, no, this forging style is a bit like the design before the 'Landing in Exile' period. It is a lost thing..."

"Not just swords...but also armor, and greaves, suits!"

The machete raised his head abruptly, his face flushed with excitement.Even from a businessman's point of view, he knew the weight of what he was holding; if it fell into the hands of a blacksmith, it would only be worse than what he is now.

"Lannister... Earl Lannister, what do you entrust me with by giving me these things?"

Thank you Mirror Master for the gift.

Even though Master Mirror had helped him survive the witcher's mutation before, Lan hadn't thought about the above sentence, but at this moment, it really emerged from the bottom of his heart.Sure enough, only when a person leaves completely, will he be grateful.

"I hope to become friends with Mahakam." Lane whispered, "You can understand these blueprints as a gift, and I have more in my hand."

Chopper laughed loudly: "You want to see Elder Hogg?"

Mahakam is where the dwarves live, and Elder Hogg is their de facto ruler.Like many fantasy novels, dwarves are the largest weapons manufacturers in the continent.

In this world, the dwarves of Mahakam also have the world's number one heavy infantry.In the Civil War of the later generations, they will send volunteers to cooperate with human beings to fight. The tightly knit infantry phalanx not only resisted the impact of the Nilfgaardian cavalry head-on many times, but even had the strength to meet the heavy cavalry corps!
Lane wants to try to get their support in advance and get more military power.

That's why he made his current move: "I want to take these blueprints as the beginning of the friendship between Sintra and Mahakam, and I just want to meet the elder. As for the future, we need to talk about it in detail."

The machete scratched his beard: "I have no way to go back to Mahakam, like me and Zoltan are in the same situation. But I know more people than him, but I can help you spread this meaning to Mahakam companion."

The machete's words were not an excuse.Mahakam is an extremely closed and conservative place, but young dwarves yearn for freedom.Hence the custom that after a dwarf's 50th birthday he can leave Mahakam to experience human civilization for a year.However, if he doesn't return before the 365-day period expires, he will be permanently removed from the clan roster.

Now Lann knows Machete, Zoltan, and Yarpan are all dwarves who have been expelled from the clan.But the rules are dead, and the feelings are immortal. They can still contact their former relatives and friends to build a bridge for Lan En.

Even if the dwarves don't welcome human visitors, these lost armor-forging techniques from the mirror master should be enough weight as a stepping stone.

Machete put away these equipment blueprints like a treasure.

"Then." Lann took out a bottle of Towson's specialty red wine, "I think we need a toast at this time."

The two underground leaders who have gained a lot will not refuse.

The dwarves don't seem to like wine very much, but the beggar king does.

"Speaking of it." The Beggar King touched the diamond in his arms and said suddenly, "The Eternal Flame's Bishop Hemelfart once suggested that the Eternal Flame and all the underground forces in Novigrad should form an alliance. I have also laid out a general framework, so I don’t know how he is doing now?”

"He is dead, together with Caleb Manji." Chapelle said coldly, "We will not be an alliance, we just take what we need. The reason I will allow you to exist is because you did not disturb the lives of the citizens , even effectively helping the lowest of the low.”

The Beggar King was not angry when he heard Chapelle's unkind words. Instead, he took off his hood and smiled: "You have indeed changed a lot."

At the end of the period, the Beggar King and Chopper didn't greet Lan En and the two of them again, and they left quickly in a business-like manner.

Then came Chapelle. He came here this time mainly to play a leading role, and then he needed to go to patrol the city and appease the masses.Spreading faith has worked surprisingly well lately.

Soon, only Lan and the others were left in the underground conference room.

"What's the matter?" Kayan suddenly saw Lan turning his head to him, and asked strangely.

Lane nodded.

After arranging the gang members today, his affairs in Novigrad will be settled.Afterwards, it was necessary to take Prince Oufeier to Oxburgh, and then deliver the task to Ogierd with Vizmir II by the way.

Yes, besides the mirror master, Ogierd has another task of eating two fish, and Lane has to get this experience.

After going to Niubao, we headed all the way to Haji Fortress.

But Novigrad is very big, and there are still some things that Lane likes that have not been taken away, so Lane wants to take this opportunity to instruct Kayan to pay attention to some matters.

"In this city, there are many strange races and humans with special abilities. These are all I want to subdue. Including dream divination people who can independently perform dream divination, other shapeshifters like Chapelle, and even small Earth spirits, succubi, etc."

Lan En looked serious: "If you meet them, on the premise that they don't hurt others, I hope you can express your kindness on my behalf, instead of killing them hastily for bounty or something. In my eyes, they The value of it far exceeds the tens or hundreds of crowns."

Kaiyan's face was a bit tangled, but he still responded: "You are very different from the princes and nobles I have seen before. You seem to like these messy things... But the nobles have a bit of a strange habit. You I understand what you mean, don't worry."

But Lan shook his head: "Kayyan, you know the plan of my Demon Hunter Cult, I want much more than that. If the Demon Hunter wants to establish a base in Sintra, then the Demon Hunter must be To wipe clean a man's smeared reputation, and I'm doing that now."

"And Novigrad is the largest city in the north, and the news here will spread throughout the northern border. I hope you can reshape the image of the witcher here and reverse the prejudice of the world, even if it is only a small part."

Hearing Lane's words, Kaiyan's expression was a little unnatural: "Actually, most of the reputation of demon hunters was defeated by our cat faction."

Lan En of the Griffin School said with a smile: "Of course I know, so I hope to let the world see a different cat."

Keyan thought about it, and he could think for a while before Lann asked him to show mercy to the non-human race, but he was really not confident about the current expectation of breaking prejudice.

"It will be difficult, Lane. The reputation of witchers is not only due to our own loss. Warlocks, nobles, and politicians are also contributing to the trouble. Otherwise, you griffins would not end up like this."

Lan En knew it in his heart: "So this time I pulled the Eternal Flame to help. With them, your operation will go much smoother. Moreover, I have another support..."

Kaiyan showed a curious look upon hearing this.

…………

Novigrad City, in the courtyard to the south, in the Foxen Troupe.

The actors are rehearsing the repertoire in full swing.The troupe was almost disbanded in a catastrophe. Even with the condolences of the eternal flame, it was still a drop in the bucket for them who wanted to get back on track as soon as possible.

The condolence money can only allow them to maintain a basic life and not be displaced, but it is far from enough to restore their former prosperity.

The old troupe who had lost a large number of actors even suggested that they be merged into other troupes on the spot, but in the end the head star of the troupe, Irina Renard, resisted the crowd and kept the troupe's staff as much as possible.

Not only that, because of her performance in the previous riots, Irina was also elected as the head of the Foxen Troupe.

When Lan and Kayan arrived, the troupe was training new trainees.Not far away, you can also see everyone rehearsing a new play.

Almost half of the cast was dressed as knights, in dramatic armor with the lion's coat of arms, brandishing wooden swords and chanting lines.Not far away, there are many children playing and playing, and the kid king among them has blond hair.

"I've been thrown out by a lion!" This sentence won him the envy and support of all the children in the troupe.

Kaiyan just heard this sentence and couldn't help laughing out loud.

Yibingna's eyes lit up when she saw Lan En, who stood out from the crowd, and she casually explained a few words to the people around her, and then ran over with small steps.

Looking at the crowd of actors who are the same as the monkey version of himself, Lan En couldn't help being a little shy because of his expression management.

"Ms. Irina, although I really want you to create a few plays for me to sponsor you, but now these..." Lane pointed to the actors who were rehearsing, "It really surprised me a little gone."

A few days ago, Lann had come to the theater with the excuse of looking for Dudu, and used his banknote ability to help them through the difficult time.The art form of drama can not only rise to the royal banquet but also sink to the street square, and can also subtly mix private activities into it, which is hardly suitable as a means of propaganda.

When Lan En quelled the riots, he had already planned in his heart to take this troupe under his command, and the Foxen Troupe couldn't wait for it, and hit it off.

Regarding Lan En's reaction, Yibingna covered her mouth and smiled lightly: "These are originally planned plays. Sintra, Temeria, Redania, wherever you go, you can leave praiseworthy deeds , you are a natural protagonist of poetry and drama. I don't know where else, but half the poets and theaters in Novigrad are grateful to you for feeding them."

Lane chuckled.

After exchanging pleasantries, Yi Bingna got to the point: "Are you here today to share some stories that are not rumored, so as to enrich our repertoire?"

As far as socializing is concerned, Yibingna is very smart.It must be profitable for Lane to fund the troupe, but what can the troupe do?There is only acting, writing scripts according to the requirements of investors and performing them.

But Yibingna took the initiative to say that it was Lan En who provided stories to help the troupe enrich the repertoire. The matter changed from the troupe helping Lan En to Lan En helping the troupe, and the communication was very comfortable.

Lane likes to communicate with smart people.

At present, there are very few artists on the mainland who are willing to promote the witcher. The most famous one is Geralt's close friend Dandelion. He is [-]% responsible for the nickname "White Wolf".

At this moment, Lan En also began to tell Yi Bingna the stories he knew about the once magnificent demon hunters.

The serial betrayal story of the cat faction stabbing the wolf faction and then being backstabbed, the inspirational story of the scoundrel of the Scorpion school getting enlightenment in Toussaint and then devoting himself to religion, the sad story of the pioneer of the Griffin school slaying the dragon but being killed by human greed , and more unknown glory and sad legends of demon hunters...

Yi Bingna was fascinated by these stories full of twists and turns and extremely tense.

"But these stories lack the necessary factors to become the 'finale'." Although the stories are good, Yi Bingna gave professional opinions against it, "They can make people sigh, but it is difficult to make people happy and spontaneous for them. Discussion. We need stories that happen around us, or stories with enough sense of substitution.”

Yibingna's eyes sparkled: "The best stories are the ones that can be spread on the streets and in taverns. Love and swords are eternal themes—for example, you."

"Soon there will be stories happening around me." Lan pointed to Kayan.

After a series of follow-up discussions, the themes of Lane and Kayan will become the main focus of the Foxen Troupe in the future.

Lane's "Knight Princess", "National Battle", "Journey to Restoration" and other themes are used as the finale of the pillars; Kayan completes commissions from time to time in the city and provides materials to the troupe in real time, striving to create " Our Good Neighbor The Witcher" image and related stories.

Before leaving, Lane also specially told Kaiyan: "Don't care about money, and try to avoid the reward if you meet a poor family. The money I left for you is enough for you to squander for a long time. If you don't have enough money, you can find Chapelle or contact me for more money. .”

"We're going to be like this from now on?"

Lan thought for a while: "At least for now."

"Then what if someone repudiates or even blackmails me?" Kaiyan knew how unreasonable it is for troublemakers in this era.

Lane said that he had been prepared for a long time: "'Lannister, you must pay your debts'. Go to Chapelle, and he will deal with it as a heretic."

When the Mao faction demon hunter heard this, he suddenly felt a little hopeful. Should he take the initiative to find a rogue or something to practice his hands?
Seeing Kayan's expression suddenly eager to try, Lan rubbed his brows with a headache.

In fact, in terms of choice, it would be more stable in Novigrad to leave a more stable snake demon hunter.Like Colgrim.

But they were not happy. Only Kayan, who was contracted by the [Follower] panel, was willing to accept his request, and only the [Follower] would share experience with him when he was doing tasks.

But Kayan is a rational cat, and there are [Followers] panel, eternal flame, and theater troupe to help him take care of him, so there shouldn't be any accidents... right?

I don't know what will happen to the reputation of the witcher here when I come to Novigrad next time.

Lan shook his head, ready to leave to deal with his last business in Redania.

…………

Two days later, Niubao.

The Sintra iron cavalry rolled over and stopped at the outer city of the academy city.

As if yesterday was repeated, Dijkstra was waiting at the gate of the city in brightly colored silk clothes, and greeted Lane at the same time as Lane arrived. Obviously, he had already received news of Lane's whereabouts.

"Compared to last time, there seem to be a few fewer people behind you." Dijkstra looked at the cavalry behind Lane.

Lane looked serious: "They got a military ending."

When confronting the wild boar army, some Sintra cavalry died.

"I'm sorry." Dijkstra politely bowed his head in silence for two seconds.

Then he looked at Lei Suo and others who had newly appeared in the team, his eyes pretending to be curious: "But there seem to be many new faces?"

Lane nodded: "I'm an earl, so it's reasonable to have a few followers, right?"

Dijkstra looked at the amber snake pupils of the demon hunters and smiled: "Of course."

Lann paused for a moment, showing curiosity, and suddenly said, "Why didn't you see Ms. Philippa this time?"

Indeed, there was nothing above Dijkstra's shoulders at the moment, and there were no birds in the sky.

Dijkstra looked surprised: "Earl Lannister knows about Lady Philippa? Have you met?"

It's acting up.Last time, the matter between Philippa and Lan was not on the table. It was considered a secret, and both parties had a tacit understanding and did not say anything about it.

But others don't know, how can Dijkstra not know?Moreover, Lane and Philippa's conditions originally included "Let Dijkstra help" into the requirements.

"Have I ever met her, don't you know?"

"Earl Lannister should stop saying things I don't understand," Dijkstra said, "but if you want to visit Lady Philippa, it's inconvenient now. She didn't come to the Castle with His Majesty, but It's at Tretogg's court. You know that, after all—the king's away, and the advisors have to sit in the rear."

Lan raised his eyebrows: "It seems that His Majesty has a lot of trust in Ms. Philippa?"

Dijkstra laughed, "Of course."

The two walked and chatted, and Dijkstra led Lan back to the waiting room where he lived before.

Take a shower and change clothes as usual to wash away the dust.But thinking about meeting Vizmir II later, Lann had a whim:

"Mirva, come in."

Before Lan En finished speaking, the female servant rushed in, obviously waiting outside the house for a long time: "Master Earl, do you need me to help you take a bath?"

Lan's face darkened: "I have prepared a gift for the king, you send someone to the market to buy me something for packaging."

Milva backed out with a look of disappointment.

After a while, there was a knock on the door, and the maid brought back what Lann wanted.

After finishing these, Lann waved away the more disappointed female servant, took out two things from the [item bar], and began to decorate the gift he had prepared.

The king seemed to really care about the academic development of Niubao. He didn't wait until sunset to send a butler to meet Lane when he was free.

He was still roasting by the fire, with his son serving as a bartender.

The only difference is that there are half as many knights around as guards than before, and the eyes looking at Lann are more wary.

The majestic and majestic king, the tense and guarded knight, the two kinds of people in the room formed a sharp contrast.

The little prince Radovid was out of the situation. After Lann entered the door, he looked at Lann with his eyes motionless, not knowing what he was thinking.

"Welcome back, Lannister." Vizmir II looked up, and immediately saw the gift in Lann's hand, "This is?"

"The artwork I saw in Novigrad, I got it by chance. It is said to be in the collection of the Everik family."

Lan En laughed: "I didn't dare to occupy the property under your name, so I brought it back and planned to return it to the original owner."

Vizmir II shook his head: "It's really hard for you to put 'gift' so euphemistically. Originally, this kind of thing should be handed over to the steward, but that's the end of the matter—Rado."

Hearing the king's call, the prince stepped forward to take the long and flat package from Lane's hand.

"Is this a painting?"

"Yes."

Facing the king's question, Lan nodded.It was a painting, a painting brought from Everec, a painting made by Alice.

It is also a carrier that allows the soul in the painting to shuttle.

Radovid's eyes were full of curiosity, but he still had to abide by the etiquette in front of his father, so he had to temporarily put the painting aside.

Wizmir II suddenly thought of something, waved his hand, and a butler stepped forward.After hearing the king's soft order, he hurried out and brought back a painting after a while.

"This painting is called "The Lion and the Heroic Redanian Soldier", and it was presented to me by a painting teacher from Niubao." The corner of Vizmir II's mouth was half a smile, "The painting is about you and me Soldiers on the transport ship against a monster that suddenly appeared - you seem to call it a dragonfly monster, don't you?"

Lane paused with a smile on his face, and took the painting.It does reproduce [-]% of the appearance of my group fighting against the dragonfly monster at that time. The [-]% difference is that the redanian soldiers in the painting are impassioned, and at this time they jumped off the boat with a face of determination.

initiative.

"The heroic Redanian soldiers used them as bait to lure the monster out of the water and protect the merchants on the transport ship. The related poems and literary works have already spread in Niubao." Vizmir said meaningfully, "I am very happy Loved the painting. So I'm giving you him as a return gift."

Apparently it was the poets and artists who were on board at the time.Lan admired their artistic attainments in his heart, and gave a slight salute to Vizmir II: "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Vizmir II raised his jaw slightly, the greetings were over, and he began to get down to business.

"I heard about what happened in Novigrad, but I didn't expect such a big mess. Facts have proved that a religious organization can't really manage a city well. I plan to take Novigrad from the eternal Take it back from the hand of the fire."

Vizmir II looked into Lann's eyes with a questioning look: "Lannister, what do you think?"

If you can take it back, there will be ghosts. After your son ascends to power and until he dies, that city will still be on fire forever.

And why do you always ask me about your domestic affairs?

Lan said without changing his face: "I may have misunderstood... I always thought that Novigrad was the territory of Redania, but now it seems that is not the case?"

The atmosphere was silent for a while, until Vizmir II chuckled lightly: "You are right."

But he quickly straightened his face again: "How are you getting along with Chapelle?"

Lane sighed: "It's awkward. He's very cold and arrogant, and he doesn't like oil and salt. The instructions you gave are just to provide information, and he is not willing to send soldiers to help. Therefore, I broke out a direct conflict with Ogild , lost a lot of manpower."

Speaking of this, Lann showed his sincere regret: "They are all warriors killed by the Nilfgaardians. I didn't expect them to die in this kind of place."

The confrontation with the wild boar army and the follow-up of Ogierd's monster strength caused Lan to lose a lot of manpower.Lann brought out such a team of elites, and one death was one less.

But where is the undead in war?Especially these fighters who are destined to go to the battlefield.

"I'm sorry, they died for me." Vizmir II comforted, "I will pay their pension."

Lan shook his head: "They are my people, and I should naturally take care of the things behind them. If you want to pity them, I only hope their stories can be remembered. People who died should not be forgotten."

For Lane's request, Vizmir II was noncommittal.

"Where's Ogierd? Is he dead?"

Indeed, there is no dead body.

Lan En shook his head: "I killed his wild boar army, but only drove him away."

Vizmir II remained calm, but Prince Radovid frowned fiercely.

"Why? I thought a sword had no eyes."

Lan En said sincerely: "No matter what he did, he is a nobleman after all, and he is your subject. Even if he committed a crime, he should be judged by you. I have no right to lynch him. So I just killed him. His wild boar army, make sure he won't bother you like before."

"What about him now?"

"In the hands of the Nilfgaardians."

Vizmir II was taken aback.

"From your eyes and ears, you must know that the previous riots in Novigrad were written by the Nilfgaardians. Ogierd reached an agreement with them. The last time I saw him, he seemed to have mixed up with Nilfgaardians. Gad's ship."

Lan En was filled with righteous indignation: "He has treasoned!"

Radovid, who had been listening in, looked confused, as if he didn't realize what Lane said.

Vizmir II closed his eyes in pain: "The Everec family, after the founding feats... I didn't expect to fall to the south now."

"Imran!"

Hearing the king's angry cry, the royal steward in the house immediately stepped forward.

"Go and pass on Earl Dijkstra. I want him to draft a document to announce to the whole country. The evil deeds of the Everec family must be a warning to everyone!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

The system's notification sounded at this moment——

【Task-Fair and Selfless-Completed】

Lann showed a cryptic smile.

It seemed that he was really annoyed by the hero's betrayal, and it took Vizmir II a while to calm down.Then he looked at Lann and said softly, "Lannister, thank you for helping me discover this cancer in time."

"We're friends, and that's what I should do."

The prince obediently poured wine for Lan En under the signal of his father, and the host and guest enjoyed themselves for a while.

"The itinerary for Haji Fortress is on the agenda, and I'm going to leave in a few days. Do you want to come with me?"

Lane spent almost a month back and forth in Novigrad, and now the day of the northern talks is very close.

Haji Fortress is at the junction of the four major countries in the northern border. If you start from Niubao now, you can arrive almost a few days before the start of the meeting.

"Don't bother you, we plan to go on our own way."

"Okay." Vizmir II didn't make too much effort to keep him, "But be careful on the road. According to my information, it's not peaceful recently."

Lan En asked suspiciously: "The southerners are calling again?"

"No, I heard that there are many more monsters." Vizmir II shook his head, "Water ghosts, ghouls, and other things. Those dirty things that have been in the forest all year round have also escaped." After coming out, the city guards in many places began to ask for help."

"But I heard that there seem to be a few more demon hunters in your team? If you add your own words, there is probably nothing to worry about."

The king joked, "If possible, I'd like to borrow a witcher from you."

(End of this chapter)