Heart of the Castle

Chapter 428 Celebration, Alarm, Surprise
The Mermaid Hotel in the northern part of Fermeyer is famous for its signature drink, Mermaid's Tears. The business has always been very prosperous, and there are countless distinguished guests.From the beginning of opening at noon, it often lasts until the faint morning light in the east before closing.However, on this day, the Mermaid Hotel closed its doors early, which disappointed the guests who loved the Mermaid's Tears.

In front of the entrance of the Mermaid Hotel is a piece of high-quality parchment made of a whole piece of sheepskin, explaining the reason for today's closure in beautiful and smooth cursive characters - a viscount from another place reserved all the seats in the hotel for celebration banquet.

The guests who have enough financial resources to consume Mermaid Tears are either rich or expensive. The businessman has a lot of wealth, but his social status is not very high. Although he feels unhappy, he has no choice but to leave after seeing the notice posted in front of the hotel gate. .However, in the royal capital of Fermeyer, there are a large number of offshoots of the wealthy and noble families, some of whom have the false titles of baron and viscount, and even a middle-aged man is the offshoot earl of the nine-pillar family.After these people saw the reason for the closure posted by the Mermaid Hotel, they immediately showed dissatisfaction.

"Where did this country lord come from? How dare a mere viscount rent out the entire hotel for celebration?"

"Yes, the title of viscount is in other places or he is still the number one person. Firmeyer is not a remote country. There are several of us alone."

"Earl Takla, shall we pay a visit to the Viscount and let him know what the City of Glory is like?" Someone began to encourage the middle-aged earl, but after all, Earl Takla is more noble than these nobles. The younger brother was calmer, he didn't rush in rashly because his head was hot, but he looked at the hotel gate and pondered.

Seeing that Earl Takla didn't agree immediately, those honorable children couldn't help clamoring. Amidst these sarcasm and sarcasm, Earl Takla's face gradually turned ugly, but it wasn't because of anger that he flushed. Instead, he looked a little pale with fear.

"Shut up, all of you! Open your eyes and take a good look, what is the sign next to the gate?" He suddenly warned in a stern tone, "If anyone wants to cause trouble for his family, just keep arguing here After saying this, Earl Takla no longer had any interest in staying here, so he hurriedly stepped into his carriage, gave a few instructions in a low voice, and with the driver's yell, the carriage left quickly.

Seeing Earl Takla's abrupt departure, although a few noble children who were not sure about the situation were still making noise, most of the others couldn't help but shut their mouths. When they finally noticed the After the dark gray crown and double sword badge, the faces of many people immediately became paler than that of Earl Takla.

"This is...the mark of the Knights of Embers!" A young nobleman blurted out a surprised cry.

"How is it possible, isn't the Knights of Ashes the Imperial Guard of His Majesty the King?" Another nobleman asked suspiciously. "The ones protected by the Knights of Ashes can only be the children of the royal family, or..."

"Or an important person who came to meet His Majesty the King." An elderly baron patted his forehead, "I remembered, there was indeed an important person who came to meet His Majesty the King during this period, but he His title should not be Viscount..."

Before the old noble could finish speaking, a rush of horseshoes sounded from behind the crowd accompanied by the sound of wheels rolling, and then a voice shouted loudly. "Get out of the way, get out of the way, everyone out of the way!" The voice was extremely rude, and some people immediately turned their heads and wanted to reprimand, but when they saw the family crest on the carriage, they were full of surprise and panic low cry.

"Get out of the way, that's the carriage of Grand Duke Raul's mansion!"

The middle and small nobles immediately separated to the two sides, and then a luxurious four-wheeled carriage passed by the passage they gave way to, then slowed down and stopped in front of the Mermaid Hotel.

The craftsmanship of this carriage is extremely fine, and the door is inlaid with the emblem of King Arthur's crown and double swords. Pure gold ivy is wrapped around the emblem, forming the initials of Raul Adams.In addition to the carriage itself, the horses that pull the carriage are also extravagant. They are four high-quality pure-blooded warhorses with ornaments inlaid with crystals on their bodies.

However, the coachman sitting in the driver's seat of the carriage looked very incongruous with the carriage. It was not that he was not well-dressed, but that he was extremely ugly.The coachman held the whip with his left hand, for his right hand was broken off at the palm, leaving only his thumb.His face was even more frightening. One had already gone blind, leaving a blood-red hole. This scar distorted his entire face, and a strange expression that seemed to be a smile that was not a smile was drawn from the corner of his mouth.

Such a coachman should be ridiculed, but among those small and medium nobles, no one dared to speak out rashly.Even if most of them have never seen this disabled Lord with a sword, they have heard of the reputation of Al Adil, the head of the guards in the mansion of Grand Duke Raul.

After the carriage stopped, the door slowly opened, and an old man wearing a grand duke's crown and a luxurious dress came out with the support of two young nobles, although these noble children were surprised when they saw Lord Adil acting as the coachman. They all vaguely guessed the identity of the person sitting in the carriage, but when the distinguished old man really showed up, they still exclaimed one after another.

Lord Adil jumped down from the position of the coachman, and the guard knight following the carriage then took the whip from him.He walked to the closed gate of the Mermaid Hotel, and his slightly hoarse voice rang through the streets and alleys near the hotel.

"Grand Duke Raul Adams has arrived. Congratulations to the Dawn of the North. Lord Levi Ston, Lord of Griffin, has been promoted to Viscount!"

The hotel door opened quickly, and a young knight came out, followed by an old man dressed as a housekeeper and a middle-aged knight in ordinary attire.While many people were still guessing the identity of the young knight, Lord Adil had already taken two steps back, and Grand Duke Raul walked over with the support of his two sons.

"Lord Levi Ston, congratulations on being promoted to the Viscount of the Kingdom, and congratulations on becoming the lord of North Aura City!" Grand Duke Raul said with a smile, "Yesterday I felt a little unwell, so I had to ask Hyde to attend the event instead of me." It is a pity that I did not hear the heated debate between you and Count Leonardo in the audience hall."

"Your Excellency Grand Duke Raul, you are too polite, please come in, please come in quickly." Li Wei Ston barely concealed his surprise.This prince's younger brother and grand duke really looked at him differently. This kind of behavior has gone beyond the scope of the so-called courtship or wooing, but is clearly on his side. For an old fox in the political arena, it is really very strange. and unimaginable attitude.

Seeing Grand Duke Raul and his party walk into the hotel, the anger of those honorable children has long since disappeared without a trace.Whether it is the dawn of the northern border or the status of the hero who ended the disaster, it is enough for them, the nobles of the royal capital who have no territory or income and only have a false title on their heads, to look up to.Not to mention that His Majesty the King also generously granted the young lord tens of thousands of hectares of territory including North Aura, the city of demons, plus the vast territory north of the Dusk Forest that Li Wei originally owned. Barren, but simply speaking from the size of the territory, the territory owned by Li Wei is already comparable to that of a powerful earl.

This is enough capital for an upstart family to rise strongly. The Ston family seems to be only Li Wei so far. When thinking of this, the envy and jealousy of many young nobles almost condensed into venom and dripped from their eyes. , while several older nobles all had strange expressions on their faces.

"I heard that His Excellency Viscount Li Wei is not married yet."

"Yes, if the rumors are correct, he is just 16 years old this year, and he is still an orphan!"

"This is simply a perfect marriage partner!" An old nobleman commented, "You haven't forgotten the nickname of Grand Duke Raul, have you? I'm afraid he will marry off his second daughter at the beginning of next year at the latest."

"Ha, this is like using your daughter to conquer the entire kingdom!"

The envy and hatred of these small and medium-sized nobles are all isolated outside the gate of the Mermaid Hotel, which cannot dilute the joyful atmosphere inside the hotel at all.Thanks to Dawn of the North's famous reputation—of course, it is more likely to be the blessing of Fillmeyer's handsome face, the proprietress of the Mermaid Hotel readily agreed to the hotel's request to close for a day, and concentrated on preparing for Li Wei's promotion. Celebration banquet for the viscount title.Food with strong Firmeyer's luxurious style was served on the table one by one, and the usually limited supply of Mermaid's Tears was filled to the brim with beer glasses for the knights from the north and a group of special guests. Guests enjoy it.

Most of these people can be called out-and-out country bumpkins. Before this time, the largest city Levi had been to was Dirk City in North Border County, and no one else except Mr. Dish Where to go.As the capital and commodity distribution center of Northern County, Dirk City is not small in scale, but compared with Firmeyer, it looks dirty, messy and narrow, and there is a big gap everywhere.The knights in the northern border were used to eating the rough northern border style food. When they tasted the first-class cuisine at the Mermaid Hotel even in the Glory City for the first time, they felt like their tongues were about to melt.

Also melted were several big lynxes, a silver wolf, and a group of big black crows with shiny black feathers. They all received the same treatment as the knights, except that the seats were set at the table and on the beams.The big crow that once appeared in the audience hall was extravagant, and it would quack and talk with its companions for a while, and fly to Li Wei's arm for a while, snatching the most delicious food from the hands of the Griffon Lord part.

The skills of the chefs at the Mermaid Hotel are extraordinary, such as the hotel’s signature dish, the roast pork carefully marinated with cinnamon, saffron, fine salt and honey, the most tender and delicate parts are selected, carefully cut into cubes just right , enough to satisfy the tongue of the pickiest eater.Another dish was trout seared to a golden brown and still squeaking when served, alongside a salad of buttered peas, crushed nuts and peach compote.There is also the most admired braised lamb chops, soaked in white almond milk and garnished with carrots, onions and raisins.

In addition, there are also some dishes that are equally exquisite, but the meaning of appreciation is greater than that of enjoyment. When Grand Duke Raul and his party were welcomed in, what happened to be served was the most luxurious dish among them—a roasted peacock whose feathers had been completely plucked. It was unplugged, but after the cooking was over, it was put back together in its original position intact, so that this ripe bird still had a gorgeous appearance.The chef of the Mermaid Hotel - a tall and strong blonde woman - accompanied the dish, first praised the great achievements of Dawn in the North, and then expressed his enthusiasm for Hugh in words that were ten times more enthusiastic than before. The love affair of Baron Sis.The unprepared Baron Hughes opened his mouth wide in surprise, and was embraced by the chef who was a head taller than him. The laughter almost caused the roof of the hotel to blow over.

Grand Duke Raul was also overjoyed, and almost dropped the wine glass in his hand on the ground, "Lord Griffin, there are really many talents by your side." He said to Li Wei in a rather envious tone, "The signature drink of the Mermaid Hotel and The signature dish is so famous in Firmeyer that even if I want to enjoy it to the fullest, I have to order it in advance.”

"No matter what kind of talent, there is his most suitable position. Just like Lord Baron Hughes, his position is in the social field of Firmeyer, and any woman in the City of Glory will favor him. If you put it in the north It is a waste of talents to compete with our northern knights in the harsh environment of the border."

Although Mermaid's Tears does not contain alcohol, once a certain amount is consumed, the strange meditative effect also makes people feel similar to being drunk.Li Wei drank a lot just now, and with the feeling of dust falling to the ground after meeting His Majesty the King, he couldn't help but feel a little flustered, so he casually said what Mr. Dish had taught him.

This passage made Grand Duke Raul's eyes flash sharply, "It seems that your success is not accidental, Lord Griffin. Let alone whether you can do it, many noble lords are able to know how to employ people. I'm getting older and I still can't do it."

"Split the peacock! Come on, Lord Li Wei, according to the etiquette of the celebration banquet, you should come and share the peacock meat with your own hands!" Grun Worm's sharp voice came from the other side of the noise, Li Wei Vi made an apologetic gesture to Grand Duke Raul, then stood up.

The knights of the north immediately surrounded him, and there were cheers and goblets raised high, and Grunworm pushed up to move the table, and roasted peacocks lay on huge sterling silver plates beautifully embossed, their feathers gleaming Colorful rays of light.Baron Hughes, who had a lot of lip marks on his face, squeezed over and stuffed a silver table knife into Levi's hand.Then everyone clinked glasses again and cheered each other; the big crow flew happily over the heads of the same happy crowd, squawking; Followed behind the most vigorous one among them - Mengmeng, of course - and squeezed and wiped it from time to time to take advantage of it.

Amidst the cheers, Li Wei raised the table knife in his hand and cut it towards the roasted peacock.However, just when the blade was about to touch the peacock's gorgeous feathers, a loud bell sounded suddenly, and there were not only one place, but also rapid clanging sounds from all directions.From the Green Lion's Gate to the Dragon's Gate, from the Citadel of Ashes to the Great Sept of Glory, it seemed that all the watchtowers had gone mad, comparing each other to see who could make the louder noise.

"My gods, this is a wake-up call!" Grand Duke Raul stood up suddenly from his seat, all the smiles on his face disappeared. "Filmeyer hasn't rang the bell like this for decades. The last time it was..." He suddenly stopped what he was about to say, his eyes became a little dazed, and the last few words melted into a sound that only he could hear clearly sigh. "...when my father... died."

Grunworm grabbed his sword and went out to inquire. He came back very quickly, and his face was pale, "Lord Levi Ston, something has happened! All the bells are ringing! The seven towers of Ash Fortress are all burning. There was a big fire!" He gasped for breath, "And I heard countless hoofbeats, as if hundreds of thousands of cavalry were galloping in all directions."

"Gods, what happened?" Sir Bona, who came with Grand Duke Raul, blurted out, panic that he had never seen before appeared on his face. "What should we do now?"

"What are you panicking about? Philmeyer has never fallen since the establishment of the Kingdom's capital. Let's find out if there is anything else." Grand Duke Raul scolded him sternly, and then turned to Li Wei, "Lord Griffon, it seems that the celebration banquet will be held earlier It's over. Something must have happened to the kingdom, otherwise the alarm bells would never have sounded like this. If it's convenient, let's..."

There was a hasty knock on the door, and the knights in the north put down their wine glasses and grabbed their swords to prepare for battle.Then a knight who was closest went up to open the door, and as soon as the door opened, a gray figure rushed in.

The gray figure's movements were fast and fierce, and the clanging sound of dozens of long swords being unsheathed immediately rang out in the hotel. If that person hadn't yelled out immediately, he might be chopped into meat paste in the next instant.

"Stop, I am the messenger of His Majesty Arthur XII!"

What this man said was true. He was wearing the standard armor of the Ash Knight, but without a helmet, showing a pale face due to tension and fatigue. He wore a gray wool cloak on his shoulders, and a token representing the king's envoy. The golden dagger was tightly held in his hand. "Is this the residence of the Griffin Lord Levi? Viscount Ston?" He asked hurriedly.

"I am Levi Ston." Levi stepped out from the crowd and said, "Master Messenger, what orders does His Majesty the King have?"

"The king has an order, and the lord of the griffin, Viscount Levi Ston, is invited to enter the palace immediately to discuss matters!" The Ember Knight announced loudly, then turned around and left immediately.

"Wait a minute!" Grand Duke Raul's voice sounded from the side, "What happened? The whole city rings the bell, unless the kingdom is in danger or the king... which one is it?"

The Ember Knight looked back impatiently, but after seeing the majestic face of Grand Duke Raul, he immediately shivered, knelt down on one knee, tapped his breastplate and saluted him, "Your Excellency Raul, I am very sorry, I didn't see you here just now."

"Stop talking nonsense, tell me what happened?" Grand Duke Raul growled impatiently.

"The catastrophe has come again, on a scale never seen before. Westwind County in the west, and the four counties in the south—Nardi, Salas, Ruhr, and Andrey...all lost contact!" Ash Knight said. There was a feeling of panic in the voice, "His Majesty the King urgently summoned the important officials and nobles of the kingdom to enter the palace to discuss matters. Your Excellency Grand Duke Raul, if you have not left the mansion, you should have received the order by now."

(End of this chapter)