The camp of the Friars of St. Jom was on the border of Mecklenburgshire, and a bonfire was lit in front of a cave deep in the forest, and more than fifty knights in chain mail sat around the bonfire to keep warm, and they were often silent among themselves, and the sword in their hands was stuck on the ground, and the cross formed between the sword and the hilt became the object of prayer of the knights, and suddenly the sound of horses' hooves sounded from outside the forest, and all the knights raised their heads and stood up and held the hilt of their swords.

"It's repaired back." A sharp-eyed knight saw that it was Xiu who walked in from the forest, so he put the sword in his hand back into the scabbard at his waist, and surrounded him, Xiu was born noble among the knights of the Monk of St. Jom has a good prestige, but this time he brought out more than 20 people to participate in the rescue of Arrod, which has angered the elders of the Monks' Society, and the other knights can't help but worry about him.

"Brother." Hugh led his horse out of the kneeless grass, and walked among the knights with a smile on his face, patting each one on the shoulder with his hand, as if he was not worried about his actions.

"Xiu, the elder is so angry that he even threatens to expel you." A knight who had a very good relationship with Xiu came to his side and whispered to him.

"I know that I was indeed reckless this time, but I have brought back good news for the elder, and I hope he will be satisfied." Xiu confidently believed that the news he had brought back was enough for the elder to retract his accusations.

"May it be so, may God be with you my brother."

"May God be with you as well, my brother." Xiu said goodbye to his friends and went to the cave alone. The entrance of this rock cave can only accommodate one person to bend down to enter, but the inside is very deep and wide, I don't know if the tunnel was once a lair of wild beasts, but now it has temporarily become a mysterious gathering point of the Monks of St. Jom, Xiu took a deep breath and bent down to get in.

"Xiu, you're back?" When the knight got inside, he passed through a dark passage, and his eyes lit up, and many white candles burned on the stones under the rock wall of the cave, and a dozen bald monks knelt in several rows, they held their hands. He bowed his head as if praying to the Lord of Heaven. There is a small hole in the cave above their heads, through which the sunlight shines to form a pillar of light, and this light has a special meaning to the people of St. Jom's Friars in a dark environment.

"Elder." Xiu hurriedly knelt down on one knee and held his erect knee with both hands. Hang your head.

"Hmm. Bless you. "Standing in front of the monks was a middle-aged monk. His face was covered with deep wrinkles, and apart from the baldness on the top of his head, there was only a sparse gray hair at the edge of his head. His blue eyes were exceptionally refreshed, his name was Bartlet, and he was originally a minor steward in the Holy See, but I don't know how he won the favor of the cardinal of the Privy Council, and obtained the right to form a monastic order in this remote area, but his career was not going well, and in this area where Lomwa religion was deeply rooted, there was not an inch of land in his hands.

"Thank you for your blessings, Your Excellency." Xiu hurriedly drew a cross on his chest, but he knew that this was just Bartlet's habit before talking about things, and he was not really unprejudiced about his own actions.

"Xiu, you have always been the most pious knight of our Monks' Society, and I always thought that you would be able to take on important responsibilities, but this time you disappointed me." Bartlet walked slowly to Xiu, his body exuded a strange smell of not taking a bath for a long time, and even basic life in the cave was a problem, which made him who had stayed in the bustling city of Rome about to go crazy, he seemed to have been forgotten by the whole world, and now his knights began to act on their own, not to take themselves as the elders of the Monks' Guild.

"I'm sorry Elder, but I brought news." The cultivator lowered his head, and he hurriedly reported the whole process of the matter to Bartlet, including Arold's request for Bartlet to become a courtier.

"What? A little earl didn't go mad to make me, an elder of the Monks' Order, his courtier. "Bartlet felt ridiculous, he had come from the center of the world like Rome, and if it was the court of the Holy Roman Emperor, he might have considered it, but what could be more funny than a country earl to make himself a courtier?

"Perhaps, Elder, you can go to the Vismar Society for a moment with this earl, and I think that the county of Mecklenburg will be held in his hands in the future." Considering that Arrod's terrible whirlwind cannon was almost devastating to break through Visma's defenses, the person who could master this terrible weapon was likely to become the ruler of the county, and if the Friars of St. Jom were to develop, they would have to have a good relationship with the local ruler.

"As a devout Christian, he should have offered us a piece of the diocese instead of making all kinds of demands to the Friars, not to mention that you saved his life, these secular nobles are always so ungrateful." Bartlet pursed his lips and shook his head noncommittally at the words of the little-known country earl.

"So, do you want to decline Count Arrod's invitation?" Bartlet's refusal was expected by Xiu, and in addition to bringing back the news, he also brought Bartlet's invitation to Arold's banquet.

"No, it is the duty of the nobles to invite those who pray to God, we have to refuse anything, our brothers have not slept under the eaves for a long time, eating cooked food, although frugality is a virtue, but we also need to serve God and Rome with a useful body."

After conquering the town of Wisma, Arold decided to hold a banquet here for those who helped him, and the banquet was held at the home of Heller, the head of the local chamber of commerce, which was spacious enough, and the cost of food and drinks was collected by the merchant in the name of the chamber of commerce, and Ararod was very satisfied with this method of earning prestige without paying for it, and Heller was eager to gain favor with the new ruler in order to secure his position and monopoly on the fur trade.

"Mr. Heller, I am very satisfied with your performance, are you interested in becoming a member of my court?" Arold watched Heller organize a steady stream of servants, distributing all kinds of food and drink to every empty wooden table, and each servant was assigned his own duties, this kind of organization and management seemed to be orderly, which gave Arold a glimpse of Heller's organizational ability, and such a person was exactly what Arold needed, because in the face of the depleting money bag for the war, Arold needed a capable person to carry out his own plans.

"It's my pleasure, but I'm just a merchant of humble birth, can I join your court?" Heller was so excited that he didn't know what to say, and entering Arold's court meant becoming a central political figure in Mecklenburgshire, which was unthinkable for a humble merchant like him.

"You can rest assured that I use people regardless of whether my blood is noble or not, not to mention that I am in charge of my territory." Alod picked up a glass full of wine on his table and handed it to Heller, much to Heller's flattery.

"Thank you for your trust, Lord Earl, I will definitely swear your allegiance to you." Heller took a sip from his glass, his face flushed with excitement, and Arold was glad that he had a courtier he could trust.

"However, you may have to wait, I will officially announce my court members after I capture Mecklenburg Castle." Arold was very much looking forward to forming a court of his own, but he didn't expect that he would also become a prince one day.

"Hmm, ahem, ahem." Just as Arold picked up another glass and was about to take a sip, Heller's face became redder and redder, and he kept coughing, the violent cough was terrifying, and the glass in his hand fell to the ground with a crisp rolling sound, and the servants who were busy in the hall stopped and looked to this side.

"Hey, Heller, what's wrong with you?" Arold saw Heller's eyes roll, his body fell limply to the ground, black blood flowing from the corners of his mouth, Arold hugged his body and shouted his name.

"Something's wrong, Count." Julian heard the movement and rushed into the hall from outside the door, and he saw Heller lying on the ground, Arold holding his neck and helping Heller unbutton his collar, and a wine glass rolled on the ground on Heller's left hand side.

"Bring me some water." Arold immediately realized what had happened, the cup had poison in it, and the wine glass that was supposed to be drunk by himself was drunk by Heller, and it can be said that Heller died for himself.

"Here comes the water, the Count." Julian looked at the terrible scene in front of him, he didn't expect that someone would throw poison in the banquet in an attempt to poison Arrod, if it wasn't for Heller drinking the wine, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"Drink it and spit out the poison." Arold poured water into Heller's mouth with all his might, but it was in vain, the poison was very violent, Heller's respiratory system was completely disordered, and his brain nerves were completely paralyzed and damaged by the poison, that is to say, he was suffocated to death, looking at Heller, whose eyes were round and his body was gradually stiffening, Arold finally put down the water glass in his hand, and the person who was just going to become his courtier actually died like this.

"Lord Earl, you're all right, are you?" Julian looked at Arrod, whose face was pale, and stepped forward to support his shoulder in worry.

"Order the soldiers to seal off the entire house at once, and no one including the cooks and servants to leave, and I'm going to catch that poisoned bastard." Arold's eyes were bloodshot, and his teeth rattled as words almost squeezed out between his teeth. (To be continued......)

PS: Isn't it a bit of a bit to write this plot on your birthday, haha?