Contrary to the conservative style of clothing, the woman's words and actions are more like that of a vulgar mercenary.

She walked to the front of the chair and first gave the interviewers a nondescript good-day salute. Then he sat down in his seat, leaned forward, and faced the king: "I guess I can skip the self-introduction part?"

Monk Joe was the first to speak: "The daughter of Barbarossa, the infidels of the Abbasid Empire, the pirates who haunt the Golden Sea, any one of them can send you to be burned at the stake!"

This level of threat could not shake Aisha's will in the slightest, and she said confrontedly: "What about the Twilight Kingdom? Atheists, North Island pirates, and demonic xenos, if you really want to burn all these people at the stake, I'm afraid you will cut down the entire forest of the Moon Creek Plain, and you won't be able to gather so much wood." ”

Todd looked at the pair of different pupils and suddenly asked, "For this exam, you could have used a fake name to register for the exam, why did you use your real name?"

"There is a proverb in the South, 'The closer you get to the devil, the more visible your soul will be.'" Aisha gestured the scales with her hands, "Dear King Twilight, if I were just an ordinary woman, would you allow me to become an official of the kingdom?"

Todd thought to himself, what's wrong with that? Age and gender have never been used as criteria for judging ability.

He just wanted to say this, but when he saw Emerson and Joe beside him, facing Aisha's question, they all shook their heads slightly.

Todd also reacted instantly, it was the Middle Ages, and the set of values in the previous life had no place here.

"Being young means recklessness and ignorance, being feminine means being weak and yielding, and this is true of all people, and no one can transcend it. Aisha raised her right hand, pressed it to her heart, and said slowly: "And the name of Barbarossa can allow me to attract the attention of the king, and have the opportunity to enter this room and get a chance to show myself." ”

Todd rubbed his temples: "Miss Hyreddin......"

The woman frowned, "King of Twilight, you can call me Aisha. ”

Looking at Todd's puzzled face, Aisha said, "Just because I use my father's name doesn't mean I like that name. ”

Todd nodded, "Okay, Aisha, let's talk about the exam." I have read your test papers, and your arithmetic skills are excellent, and the market data is detailed. The only thing that I don't understand is that in the expansion of the Twilight Seaport, your answer is to create a reef and narrow the estuary, can you explain that?"

The midday sun shone through the wooden window on Aisha's face, and the aqua blue and amber pupils showed two completely different colors.

"That's done to protect the port. ”

Looking at the interviewers, Aisha explained, "The population of Twilight City is over 30,000. A large part of the kingdom's daily provisions, including grain, cloth, and spices, relied on sea transportation. However, there were two major problems: first, the coastline of Duxi City was more than three kilometers, which was difficult to defend, and second, the kingdom's navy was almost non-existent and could not defend against the enemy. Under such circumstances, if I were the commander of the enemy fleet, I would only need to cut off the sea supply lines of Dusk West City and use fire bombs to attack coastal buildings to achieve the strategic purpose of besieging the city. ”

For the first time, a serious expression appeared on Emerson's face.

The 22-year-old female pirate actually has the same opinion as him in the strategic sense of the sea lane.

Aisha continued: "This part of the sea area of the Twilight Harbor has not been paid attention to in the past. Because there are few ships sailing here, there are no suitable supply points. But now, things have changed. ”

"The idiots in the North Island who don't know how to make money in a low-key way have obtained the preservation technology of seafood from Duxi City, so that those rotten fish and stinky shrimp that were originally worthless can be sold at sky-high prices in the south. The nobles of the court and the wealthy merchants of the bazaar had long been jealous, and they had already offered a high reward among the pirates for the capture of a North Island cargo ship. ”

Todd frowned, thinking about the countermeasures for the North Island trade route to be attacked.

Emerson said to Aisha, "You didn't take this exam for the position of a kingdom official, did you?"

The latter nodded and said, "That's right, the official position is just a dispensable thing for me. ”

Emerson touched his beard: "Your purpose is to get funding from the Kingdom of Twilight for you to gather sailors and build a fleet. ”

Aisha glanced at the unremarkable old man and did not speak, which was tantamount to acquiescing to Emerson's statement.

"Why should we believe the words of a pirate?" said Monk Joe, who didn't seem to have a crush on the woman.

"Your Majesty, your Knights have plundered many lords of the Silver Ring Kingdom, and have also occupied the Northern Stone Silver Mine, not to mention the 'Nightshade', colored glaze, etc., and those high-priced trade goods sold to the South, it is no exaggeration to say that you are perhaps the richest king in the Northern Diocese. Aisha looked like a veteran negotiator: "Now all you have to do is drop a copper coin through your fingers to fund a promising ally." If you succeed, you will gain a loyal and humble friend, and if you fail, you will lose some money. ”

Looking at Emerson with an expressionless face, Joe with a skeptical face, and Todd who didn't say anything from beginning to end, Aisha lowered her head slightly and said respectfully: "Of course, anyone can do such things as talking, and success is the best proof of ability." I will soon ambush a band of pirates intent on plundering the caravans of the North Island, and their blood and heads will prove to you that the investment in me is worth it!"

Todd looked at the woman with different eyes and gently closed the roster in his hand: "Aisha, if you can prove your worth to me, I can also assure you that I am by no means a stingy person. ”

———————————————

Twilight West City North, "Lilielle" Textile Factory.

Mary sits in the studio at the back of the factory, with a freshly completed oil painting next to her, and conceptual sketches of accessories, clothing, shoes and bags scattered on the floor.

Cathy walked into the studio, put a cup of brewed vanilla tea on the work table, looked at the woman's emaciated figure, and whispered: "Master, you haven't closed your eyes for 22 hours, take a rest." ”

After drawing a sketch of a newly completed fringed dress, Mary, with two dark circles under her eyes, turned her body to Cathy, shook her head and said, "Inspiration is like spring rain and dew, when you don't grasp it, it will quietly disappear into the air, and you will never be able to find a trace of it." ”

Cathy stole a glance at the oil painting behind Mary and whispered, "Master Terrence and Lord Elijah, they're here." ”

Mary didn't look back, and continued to wave the brush in her hand: "Please let them in." ”

Terrence, who escaped from the capital of Taylor, has basically recovered his health after recuperating for a period of time in Twilight City, and his dedication to scholarship and desire for truth have made the old man's spirit better day by day.

He brought his protégé, Elijah, to Mary today, just for one thing.

Walking through the door of the studio, Terrence didn't notice Mary's presence at all, and walked straight to the painting, whispering the name under the painting.

"Venus the Sleeping", "Suzanne in the Bath", "Danae", ......

Elijah walked up to the teacher and whispered, "How can you see ......?"

"A perfect masterpiece!" Terrence asked, turning his head to Mary, "I heard that these are His Majesty's collections?"

Mary put down the paintbrush in her hand, took a sip of the vanilla tea, then spit the tea back into the cup, put the cup down with a look of disgust, and said to Master Terrence, "Yes, but Your Majesty does not want them to be made public. ”

Terrence opened his eyes: "Why?!Look at these paintings! They not only have Renaissance elements, but are also full of artistic innovations, so that more people can see them, isn't it more meaningful than hiding them here?!"

Mary shook her head and said, "Your Majesty has said that these paintings do not belong to this world. ”

Terrence looked at the design sketches of the house, and his tone was also angry: "But I see people who take shortcuts from these paintings and refuse to share them with others!"

Mary's face sank, her lips pursed, and she was silent.

Seeing this, Elijah hurriedly played the role of mediator in the middle: "Miss Mary, since Master Terrence put forward the concept of 'literary copying', whether it is painting or sculpture in Twilight, it is more in the imitation stage of the Taylor period. And these paintings, composition, color, line, all point out a new path for the progress of art. ”

Terrence turned to the door of the studio and said to the people inside, "I've been a skeptic since that incident. But if Your Majesty can prove that he really came from that world, I would gladly become a devout believer and rebrand my faith in my soul!"