After Tabor Wendell was gone, Ante sat quietly at the table alone, the sunlight shining through the window on the unopened letter before him, and the sacred and familiar sign of the goddess of water, Ni'o, made him panic.

Ante Boford, who was not yet forty years old, had reddish chestnut curls that made his otherwise slightly square face look less serious, and his brown eyes, which usually had a slight smile in them, were now covered in clouds.

He kept thinking about the dragon...... He had heard a number of rumors—in the first two years of its existence, countless rumors had spread throughout the kingdom in the footsteps of adventurers and bards. As someone who understands how much difference a "legend" can make from a fact, Ante laughs at the bizarre stories, and believes in Sean Flache's brief promise: "We'll catch it." ”

But they didn't.

Ante was even happy to hear about the failures of the Paladins who were overly proud and confident. Someone has to make them understand that even with the protection of the goddess, they are not omnipotent...... Years later, interest had long since shifted, and when the failures of the White Dragon and the Dragon Slayer Knights were gradually ignored, the dragon reappeared in such an unexpected way.

He was not ignorant—when he heard that it had flown back to the Collins Temple and left unharmed, Antt had sent someone to inquire. The dragon remained in Chriesburg, and Ed, the son of River Singal and Walla Chriss, declared the dragon to be his friend, even though it had nearly destroyed the entire castle...... But no one ever mentioned it at the time and had anything to do with Scott.

Surrender to the power of the god of water...... Raised by the paladins of the water god...... Christus...... Scott Crieses......

Where did this rumor come from? The paladins are always tight-lipped about secrets they don't want to be told. Even the most foolish of all would play dumb to avoid all the questions he didn't want to answer, and Sean ...... Sean is adept at exploiting all kinds of secrets.

Ante looked up, annoyed to realize that he had been disturbed by the name. Even if Tabor is convincing. Claims that everything he says is true, but that is nothing more than rumors, and rumors are never absolutely true.

- But Scott does have a "younger brother" that no one has ever met...... More people believe that it is actually his illegitimate child, and secretly mock Sean and his group of seemingly sanctimonious paladins for this, and even think that Scott's "disappearance" is just an excuse, in fact, it is Sean who kicks his nephew out of the Paladins in anger. And the ashamed "knight of the goddess" has since stayed away from Lutgar and has remained incognito.

Rumors, rumors...... He was always surrounded by countless rumors. And try to find a glimmer of truth from it. But at least, this rumor can't be true...... He knows this better than anyone else.

He prefers that Scott will be remembered as a "hero", and he owes him at least that......

"Your Majesty. ”

The call from the door startled Ante slightly.

"Did I disturb you?" Moira asked. Without waiting for Ante to answer, he walked in nonchalantly. She had waist-length black hair. Petite, with round blue eyes, and a half-worn dress of the same color as her eyes, she looked no different from the girl who didn't know anything about the world when she first met. Married for ten years, with two sons and a daughter, the queen, who is nearly thirty years old, still has that kind of quiet and confused innocence on her plump cheeks, even if she is always unconsciously rude, it is unbearable to criticize.

"All my duties are nothing more than interrupting our time together. Ante couldn't help but joke. Put all your worries aside for the time being.

Moira seemed to think for a moment before blushing slightly.

"Good kings don't joke like that. She complained half-truthfully, and picked up the letter that had never been opened in front of Ante. Her eyes lit up: "Is this the letter of the Sage?"

Ante's heart moved. Sage Felicity was very fond of Moira, and almost never refused Moira's request to meet her when she was still in Stonebug...... Even in the six months that no one had seen her again, she had replied to Moira's letter, albeit in a trivial small talk.

If the Sage had indeed left, Moira would be sad...... But she also had a good relationship with Walla Singal, Scott's cousin, Ed's mother, and now the hostess of Christersburg...... She might know something, and she wouldn't be wary of Moira.

"Maybe I have a better way to answer your question. Ante smiled and drew back the letter, opened it and glanced at it hurriedly—Sean's handwriting, Sean's signature...... There is no Felicity signature, and there is not a single word mentioning the reason for inviting a king to Collins for a festival that has been almost forgotten in the South.

That's really Sean Fletcher's style.

The corners of the king's mouth twitched slightly, and his smile remained unchanged: "Why don't you come with me on a trip to Collins? The Sage must be glad to see you...... It is said that she also kept a dragon in the temple. ”.

At dusk, the fountains of Stonebuch gushed with golden water, the warm spring breeze dispelled the remaining chill, and the streets became more and more idly idly populated day by day, and no one noticed a man in a gray coat who looked like a contented peddler in the crowd.

Aaron Mancini loosened his overly tight belt and looked around nonchalantly, not hiding anything for fear of being discovered. He had known a long time ago that a cloak wrapped from head to toe was far less than a casual one, and the more careful he was, the more noticeable it would be.

He even happily raised his hand to greet several people, as if he had known him for many years, and most of them would instinctively respond with the same silly smile, as if they really knew him.

Spring always brightens people's moods...... But not everyone will be like this.

He couldn't help but sigh as he walked into the familiar room of the Cherry Tavern humming an out-of-tune tune—the atmosphere here was always dreary and gloomy, as if tomorrow was the end. Even if it is a "secret talk" that cannot see the light, it does not have to be so "unsightly", right?

"I envy you for always being in such a good mood. Someone in the corner of the room said coldly, "Even if all the money thrown out was thrown into the water and all the mercenaries were gone, the ice dragon was still lying proudly on Collins Square basking in the sun...... You don't seem to care. ”

It's not "envy", it's "jealousy" - Mancini wanted to correct it, but he just smiled and shook his head: "At least I don't have to pay people to look around for where that dragon is, that's good news, isn't it?"

"Then good luck. It's not easy to snatch a dragon from Sean Fletcher. The man angrily threw him the word "blessing."

Mancini still shook his head, smiling silently.

"Just got the news...... Our King also seems to have an unexpected interest in that dragon. The other said lightly, "There is no doubt that he will go to the Temple of Collins...... And even bring his queen. ”

Even without the dragon, he wouldn't have turned down Sean's invitation—who could have said no, even if it had only a simple 'come' on the letter. ”

“...... Is that really what he wrote?"

“...... Of course not!"

"How many people have been invited?"

"Can't confirm. But we at least know what the letter says. ”

"Is there any difference between knowing and not knowing? ”

"If not out of awe, but out of curiosity...... No one will refuse. The old man knew this very well. ”

"In any case, at least we already know what he's trying to do...... Shouldn't we get the word out and put a little pressure on him?"

"What's the point? He didn't hide it at all, and it was too late...... The real question is whether anyone can stop him. ”

“...... Why stop him? Whether it's true or not, a young man in his early twenties is much easier to seduce than an old woman in her two hundreds. Besides, Sean is also old, and the paladin will die too, won't he?"

“...... Gods, my lord, watch your words. ”

"If you were so god-fearing, you wouldn't be sitting here, 'My Lord'. ”

......

Mancini always smiled, listening to the useful and useless arguments one after another, echoing,-for-tat, mocking and mocking...... Just casually say one or two when asked, "That's true." "Uh, I'm not so sure......"

-- It's really funny.

He looked around with great interest, feeling like he was looking at a flock of sparrows in a cage, chirping with a serious face, thinking that everything was under his control, but no one could really fly into the sky and see the world as it was.

"Get those guys together...... It's best to make them feel like it's their own idea. He had been worried for a while when he received this order. However, it turns out that some people get together to become more powerful forces, while others get together and only elbow each other.

But he always gets something out of a meeting like this. Some messages he may have missed, some unexpectedly useful ideas, some people who are really worth befriending......

He left the Cherry Tavern, still humming an out-of-tune tune, holding his growing belly in both hands, and staggered out of the street.

The lights on the three-storied pagoda in the distance were already lit, and Mancini suddenly remembered the order he had just received before leaving the door—he had to find a suitable place in the city to build a library.

Mancini felt a little regretful. Ante Bofrd is actually quite a king...... But alas, he is still only a king of the earth.

(To be continued......)