Exclamations of surprise and astonishment suddenly sounded in the hall, and a pair of eyes of disbelief and surprise were all focused on the young man's indifferent face.

In the midst of this oppressive atmosphere, the young Duke of Ully Wirtz raised his head proudly, and his silver-gray pupils were filled with a fierce color.

That expression... It seems that the person who is being scrutinized at this moment is not him, but the young man who is looking at the knights in the hall, and whether the entire Duchy of Byrne is as it should be in his memory.

The thin figure, the immature face, but exuding a sense of oppression that is not angry and self-threatening, the sharp gaze scanned the entire hall, and all the people who looked at him held their breath and trembled.

The whispers in the hall grew louder and louder, and the knights were talking, but the counts at the round table frowned and looked at the uninvited and aggressive young man in front of them.

With the exception of Loren and a handful of knights, most of the knights present did not know the excessively young Archduke of Ellemont, but they did know the red and white coat of arms on the boy's chest, separated by a black cross.

It was the coat of arms of the Wirtz family of Dragonheart, Lord of Elems.

They knew the banner held high by the two heavily armed retinues behind the boy, and the Iron Crown held high by the three-headed dragon.

Heavenly Dome, Dragon King Family, De Salion.

“... What the hell is going on, doesn't it mean that the Imperial Mission will not be able to reach Byrne until two days later......"

“... It doesn't matter, it's how these people get in......

“... The gates of the Red Blood Fortress were closed, and there were defenders everywhere outside the city, so it was impossible for no one to find the ranks of the Mission......"

“... Was it an accident? Or was it planned......

“... What the hell does the Empire want to do without saying hello?! What does the Duke want to do......"

The chaotic noise, the sound of questioning mixed with the grinding of teeth, the impassioned expression and the reddened eyes stared at the figure of Yuri Wirtz.

The silent counts were even more stunned, so shocked that they didn't even have the time to look at each other and talk in a low voice, and their faces were even more difficult to see.

They know better than the knights ... Early this morning, information about the arrival of the Imperial Mission in Byrne had just arrived from Loyal Soul Castle, and it was indeed two or three days away.

In other words, this Duke directly left the mission and came to the Red Blood Castle alone with a few retinues!

Is he young and vigorous, or is he really not afraid of death... He really didn't worry about which hot-blooded, wanted to be a hero knight suddenly jumped out and shot him under the horse?!

Not to mention outside the palace gate, even in this hall right now, there are guys who want to do this!

In contrast, Loren, who was confronting Duke Yuli at this moment, was the one with the calmest expression in the hall, and the calm demeanor of the "new duke" was in stark contrast to his panicked vassals.

Of course, the main thing is that he is no longer surprised......

Since the Duke was able to sneak up to the Red Blood Keep alone and meet with him privately, it was not surprising that he had left the mission behind and had run to the Council of the Round Table alone.

"Knock ————!"

The two duke's retinues raised their spears and landed heavily on the hard bluestone slabs, and the trembling sound echoed for a long time, making the whole hall silent.

"In the name of His Majesty Eckhart II, the twelfth supreme emperor of the Empire......"

The indifferent young man took a step forward, his gaze swept over the entire hall again, and his immature but sonorous voice sounded every word clearly in everyone's ears:

"I, Lord of Elemand, Yuri Wirtz of Dragonheart City, on behalf of the Heavenly Dome Palace, have come to Byrne to convey the will of the Empire to the Knight Lords of the Thirteenth Lords of Byrne——!"

As his words fell, the atmosphere in the entire hall became even more oppressive.

Everyone knew that the Imperial Mission would come sooner or later, but it should have been two or three days later, not unprepared right now... This "uninvited" Duke really caught everyone off guard.

"Your Excellency the Duke of Ellemont, please forgive me for being abrupt in the following words......" The frowning Count of Eckert was the first to stand up and walked in front of the young man:

"But as far as I know, the Imperial Mission is still far away at the North Gate of Byrne, Loyal Soul Fortress, and you have come here alone without any prior notice... Can you explain to us why?"

Yuri Wirtz turned his head, and his silver-gray eyes turned indifferently to Count Eckert, who was a few heads taller than him: "I beg your pardon for being presumptuous, but could you please tell me first, your name is ......?"

"Tris Eckert of Fort Fury, honored to meet you. Count Eckert stroked his chest with his right hand and bowed slightly: "When I was young, I had a relationship with your father and grandfather. ”

"It turned out to be the famous Master Tris, the dean of the Knight Academy. ”

The young man immediately turned around and bowed respectfully to the Lord of the Flame Castle, his expression immediately adding a little reverence: "Father has mentioned you many times in the past, and until he died, he still remembered the days when he heard your life in front of you. ”

"No one is better than Master Tris Eckert in the way of knighthood—if it weren't for my father's untimely death, I would have gone to Castle of Fury to ask you for advice. ”

"Don't dare to be. Count Eckert replied neither humbly nor arrogantly: "The Grand Duke of Wirtz is really a prize. ”

"When today's matter is over, I must ask you about my father's affairs. After a slight pause, the young man's words suddenly changed:

"But I can't answer your question just now!"

Count Eckert's face did not change, but his sharp eyes narrowed slightly.

"I am not here on my own behalf, but as an envoy of the Heavenly Dome, the Duke of Ellemont, I have come to read the will of the Empire to Byrne. ”

Yuri Wirtz raised his head haughtily, and his words became aggressive again: "Because of this, until a new Duke of Byrne is officially elected, none of you present is qualified to speak with me on an equal footing, let alone have any right to raise any questions to me, the Lord of Ellemont!"

"Whether you agree or disagree, the Thirteen Lords of Byrne are all vassals of the Empire, and they must unconditionally obey the will of the Heavenly Dome Palace, the will of the Supreme Emperor of the Sakran Empire——!"

The young man's cold voice echoed in the hall for a long time, and in just the next second, the tidal wave of noise immediately exploded countless angry, questioning, and panicked words rushed towards him.

And Yuri Wirtz, who was standing at the center of this storm, did not change his face, arrogant and indifferent, as if everyone in the whole hall was not taken seriously by him.

"Since you've made your request in good faith......"

Calm words rang out, quickly quieting the restless hall.

"Then we are honored to share this news with you. The black-haired wizard with a sinking face raised his eyes and met the boy's eyes again:

"The Thirteen Lords of Byrne have jointly elected their new duke. ”

"And this Duke is in dialogue with you on an equal footing, and is ready to listen to what you have to read, the will of His Majesty the Supreme Emperor of the Heavenly Dome Palace and the Empire!"

"Really?"

The young duke puffed up his chest with a solemn expression, and looked at the black-haired wizard seriously: "Bishop Byrne has been summoned by the Lord, and I, as the envoy of the Heavenly Dome Palace, have not been able to participate in the ceremony......"

"Your Excellency Loren Turin, with all due respect, your title of duke... The name is not right, the word is not good!"

As soon as his words fell, countless dissatisfied voices rang out in the hall.

"On the contrary, Duke Yuri Wirtz. Loren smiled slightly: "According to the ancient tradition of Byrne, the Council of the Round Table and the knights of all Byrne have elected me as the new Duke of Byrne, and we have all made an oath before the Holy Cross. ”

"Although it is a pity that the bishop was not present, the church has not explicitly stipulated that the new duke must have a bishop to preside over the ceremony... It's just a convention. ”

"As for whether the Heavenly Dome Palace agrees, aren't you, as an imperial envoy, standing here now?"

Loren raised his head slightly, his expression solemn: "If the empire is willing to agree to this result, of course we are happy to accept the blessing of the Heavenly Dome Palace." ”

"If you don't want to... Byrne will be with you to the end!"