Act 291, the first round of confrontation

"What a hero!" Lee Woods sighed.

"Mr. Brando......"

"Just call me Brando." Brando interrupted her and replied.

"Brando, I'd like to hear your thoughts on the current situation, can I?" Princess Griffiin put her hands on the desk, and gently held the white porcelain teacup—the black tea rippled slightly, like the ripples on the surface of the crystal—and she raised her head, her eyes blazing, and her beautiful eyes seemed to be plated with a layer of silver.

Brando's gaze swept over everyone in the study one by one, the royal party was as calm as ever, Her Royal Highness the princess seemed innocent but was actually shrewd, only the little prince seemed to be a little afraid of life and was hiding behind the nobleman and looking at him carefully; Only a sharp, cold gaze kept falling on him, and Brando looked at him, and saw the black-haired female knight standing behind Griffiin, who seemed to be named Nimesis, and Brando's heart throbbed a little every time he saw this woman.

He looked away.

"With all due respect, for the royal party, there is no situation now." Brando replied bluntly, "The north has long fallen to the Grand Duke of West Fah, and the two major legions of the kingdom, the White Lion Legion and the Black Blade Legion, are in the hands of the nobles of the north, and the southern legion was attacked by Mardara, and the formation is still unknown, so the Count of Denel has not signed an agreement with Instaaron for a long time, I am afraid that this is the reason." ”

He paused for a moment, and was tempted to say that although there were still three leaders in the south, Viero, Carasu, and the Grand Duke of Golan-Elson, they were all soy sauce people, and there was a huge disparity in power between the north and the south, and in fact only the princess was the one who really raised the banner of Corcova; Winter has stopped the Northern Legion from moving south, but as soon as the snow melts, hopes for the princess will be shattered.

But this is precisely the reason why the royal party chose to go along with Enlek, so he did not press it.

"The kingdom is surrounded by powerful enemies, the situation is precarious, and the Ampesel Conference does not belong to you. In fact, I'm afraid you're here to convince Ampesel's Chamber of Commerce to remain neutral with the Templars, rather than actually participating in this meeting? Brando asked rhetorically.

There was silence in the study, and everyone looked at Brando's eyes in surprise. The situation in the kingdom has changed since the death of Obergu VII, but at this point, anyone with a discerning eye can see through the weakness of the royal party; But Brando's ability to guess their true purpose behind the surface is remarkable - everyone thought they were trying to win a game at the Ampesel Conference with the help of Enlek, but the young man in front of him revealed their minds without the slightest hesitation.

Macaro and Leo Woods both felt a slight chill in their hearts, thinking that it would be terrible for this young man in front of them to be an enemy. Only Overwell glanced at Brando with admiration, after all, Brando was chosen by him from the crowd fleeing from Riedenberg, and the better Brando was, the more discerning he was.

Griffiin's eyes were also excited, and she looked at Brando as if she were looking at the person closest to her—because no one else knew that there was a secret between her and Brando; When the half-elf girl first responded to Brando's letter, she was influenced by the 'story' told by Overwell and her, and there was no trace of the girl's desire for knightly romance in her mind - plus the royal party at that time was in turmoil, or out of the consideration of buying horse bones, she secretly canonized Brando as her knight by mistake.

Her Royal Highness is only seventeen years old this year, and she is not yet old enough to push luck on a qiē, but in addition to luck, there is only fate left in the dark.

Thinking of this, the half-elf girl was also slightly moved in her heart.

"I've met Princess Magdal and heard that she's a close friend of Her Royal Highness." Brando replied. But in fact, he knew that the real purpose of the royal party was not for this reason, history was like an open book in front of him, and the selfish interests of the decaying aristocratic class of Eruin in this era could not escape his eyes, let alone the 'schemes' of the royal party on the table. And the reason why he said this was just that he didn't want to be seen as a demon.

Macarro, Leo Woods, and Overwell nodded slightly, relieved. With the relationship between the nun princess and the Temple, and the Temple's influence in the Chamber of Commerce, it is not difficult to guess the connection. However, when everyone set their eyes on the aristocratic meeting of the Gathering of Clouds, this young man's eyes still did not let go of the surrounding details, this calmness and keenness, he was also a first-class talent among the nobles.

"You guessed it right, Mr. Brando. As such, my brother's army marched from the north to the south, and there were only two ways to go—if we secured the support of the Templars and the Chamber of Commerce—if at least to keep them neutral, then the nobles of the north would have to cross the mountains of Anlek—"

"So you intend to marry Anlek, so that no matter how aggressive the nobles of the north may be, they will have to face reality. In the mountains, they were no match for Anlek, so the offensive and defensive forces in the north and south would be reversed, and the three leaders of Vieiro, Golan-Elson, and Karasu, who were safe and sound, would naturally be tied to the royal party - or rather, Anlek's chariot - if they were assured. Advance can be attacked, retreat can be defended, and in the long run, the Korkova royal family will be prosperous. ”

Brando raised his head, and there was not a trace of joy in his eyes: "Then I congratulate Her Royal Highness the princess in advance." ”

"Do you think there's something wrong?" Griffiin's face turned pale, and Brando's power was insignificant in the eyes of the royal party, but it was important in her heart. She had a vague feeling that Brando might know who she really was, the goal she had insisted on since she had been a child, even contrary to the royal party, but only one person in the whole of Eruin understood her. The man was right in front of her.

She had thought he could understand her sacrifice.

And everything else is insignificant compared to this understanding.

She saw the sparkle in Brando, the faith she had always held on her own, like another light in a storm, the indescribable surprise of finding her companion in the dark and lonely wilderness. It was not difficult for Brando, both in the letters and in his actions, to see the same insistence as herself, and this man was now looking at her with a cold face.

Her Royal Highness took a slight breath, "Can you tell me the reason?" Her tone was soft, but it was not difficult to see a trace of dissatisfaction under her frowning brows, and presumably if Brando could not give her a satisfactory answer, she would surely be disappointed by the princess.

It's as proud as it is rumored. Brando thought to himself, but without this kind of character, he wouldn't be able to make it this far.

"There are a couple of questions." He replied.

Overwell raised his head slightly, in fact, he was not very supportive of this plan. However, Leo Woods and Macaro agreed, Leowoods was influential in the royal party, and he was the only strong person in the royal party. On the other hand, Macaro also represents the opinion of his allies, and he cannot oppose it.

"First, the War between the Flame Sanctuary and the Earth Sanctuary is imminent, and the Cruz people may not be happy to see Eruin take his own foot at this time. Although the Eruin are no longer at the mercy of the Cruz since their independence, we have to admit that we are also part of the Sanctuary of Fire. Brando replied, "At this time, although it is impossible for the Temple to control the internal affairs of the kingdom openly, it is still possible to open the door for the nobles of the north." After all, in the eyes of outsiders, the strength of the North is far superior to that of the South, and the fastest way for this kingdom to end the war is undoubtedly to let the North win as soon as possible-"

"We can't fail to think about this, young man," Lewoods finally spoke, and Brando's doubts about him had completely drained his newfound favor, "but once Archduke Anlek joins forces with the royal party, it will not be so easy for the Yankees to win, and if the Temple is to act on its own, it will only cause a larger civil war; What's more, at this time, the Toquinin Lion is far from ready food, and the war between the Sanctuary of Fire and the Sanctuary of Earth is even more nonsense. ”

Brando kept his mouth shut because he knew this was history. This is how the royal party in history turned around, but he still has a real reason, but this reason is really hard to say. Can he say that Anlek has bad intentions? The problem is that the royal party is not stupid, they naturally know that An Lik has bad intentions, and Her Royal Highness the princess is taking a chestnut in the fire, she thinks she can succeed.

But history proved her failure.

But Brando can't say anything about this failure, he can't say I'm from the future, I'm a god, right?

He was silent for a moment, and the disappointment on Griffith's face grew. She clenched her fists imperceptibly, and even for a moment hoped that Brando would prove herself wrong, and the seventeen-year-old princess had been sleepless almost every night for weeks, knowing that she was walking a tightrope, but she convinced herself that she had to.

There was silence in the study for a moment, and Freya was a little uneasy, although she knew much more than before, but she still did not understand a word of the debate between Brando and the royal party. This girl from Buchi was even a little annoyed, thinking that this hateful guy next to her only knew how to cause trouble, even if he didn't agree, he shouldn't say it in front of others.

At the end of the day, she still has Brando's heart in her heart. She cares more about Brando's safety than the life or death of the royal party.

Overwell and Macaro both felt that the atmosphere was a little delicate, but they couldn't help but feel a little dissatisfied with Brando, they felt that this young man was a bit exaggerated, even alarmist. But only one stunned gaze lingered on Brando for a moment, and no one even noticed it, and Nimesis quickly became as if nothing had happened.

At this awkward moment, there was a knock on the door. Everyone's eyes shifted, and an attendant brought in a letterhead from outside the door, and Her Royal Highness opened the letter and frowned. She paused, casually placed the letter on her desk, and then broke the silence: "The results of the morning are out. ”

Everyone was shocked, of course they knew that this was the result of the investigation into the assassination in the morning, but they didn't expect the temple to be so quick to find the mastermind in just two or three hours. Only Macaro frowned, as if he had thought of something.

Brando couldn't help but prick up his ears, the assassination in the morning had obviously changed history, and he also wanted to know what the reason was behind it.

"The man who presides over is called Xerxiphus."

Overwell frowned: "I know this man, a little nobleman of Ampesel. As soon as he finished speaking, his face immediately changed. can instigate such an assassination, the characters behind it will definitely not be simple, and no one will believe that a small nobleman can afford to turn over such a big wave. The unlucky guy was obviously a substitute for the dead, but the results of this investigation were taken out of the hands of the Temple, and the problem was even bigger.

For a while, everyone's faces were a little difficult to look at. Only Brando, as if he had expected this outcome.

Brando didn't know what had gone wrong, but he had seen the Cross Assassin in the morning and knew that the Temple must have done something inside.

"Mr. Brando" was also mentioned in the letter. After a pause, Griffiin added, "The letter says that Mr. Brando not only entered the Holy Temple with weapons, but that the two men are also blood, and the Temple suspects that Mr. Brando is having an affair with the Cultists, and wants us to hand him over so that he can cooperate with the Temple's investigation." ”

After reading this paragraph, Her Royal Highness the eldest princess of Eruin is already as iron-faced.

Brando's heart was also tight, but more angry. He hadn't gone to the trouble of the Flame Sanctuary yet, he didn't expect the other party to target him first, it was too deceitful, but he didn't attack, but was going to see the reaction of the Wang Party first.

At this time, Overwell sneered: "The temple does not allow us to carry weapons, but it is very lenient for assassins. When did having a blood subordinate become evidence of an affair with a cultist? Eruin is close to Madara, and I think many of the Grand Dukes have dark nobles who have fled from Madara's side as their subordinates, right? ”

Wang Dang was deeply impressed by the words of this lone wolf, and they were all disdainful.

"Your Highness the Princess?" The attendant asked in a whisper.

"There is no precedent for the Eruin to hand over a guest to the Cruzians, let alone such a nonsense excuse," replied Her Royal Highness coldly, "but there are people who want to test our relationship, and you just need to answer them directly, and tell them that Mr. Brando is our man, and cannot be an assassin." ”

Brando watched the attendant reluctantly exit the study, and couldn't help but be slightly touched. Although he knew that there was an element of showmanship in it, but at least Wang Dang's attitude at this moment was clear, he looked at Overwell and the others, and the prejudice that had just risen in his heart because of the previous controversy had subsided a little.

"It doesn't look like the Templars are as neutral as you think." But he still couldn't help but sneer, and then tilted his head to look at the members of the royal party. After all, he is not a real politician, and he still has the schadenfrefref factor of Sophie in his bones.

The half-elf girl's brow sank in grief, and she sighed slightly—helplessly enough to make Brando a little sad, but she no longer dwelt on the issue. "Mr. Brando, we're not in a good place - it's a good thing to make you laugh. Anyway, we'd like your help......"

"You're a Highland Knight, so I'd like to ask you to get the Highlanders' support for us, I don't know if you can?" Her Royal Highness lowered her figure and asked in a pleading tone. She also saw that Brando had no ill will towards the royal party, but there was a misunderstanding of her opinion, but she believed that the final result would prove her right.

Brando shook his head.

"As you know, the Highland Knights are not like you, and I can support you personally. But it may not be easy to get all of them to buy. "Although he is not a true highland knight, he has to disguise this identity, and he can be confident that he can fool the most astute people. In fact, even if Charles is here, he can't single out the slightest fault from Brando's remarks.

Everyone in the royal party also knew that what Brando said was the truth, and couldn't help but nod heavily. But fortunately, Brando is still in control of Toniger, and this inconspicuous little place is now the key to restraining Count Denel, otherwise all the members of the royal party would have wondered if it was a wise move to turn their faces on the young man and the temple just now.

"But it's not impossible," Brando smiled suddenly, "Karasu has received the most from Madara, and the compromising attitude of the northern nobles has already caused the dissatisfaction of the highland knights. As long as you show them goodwill, they will probably be willing to fall in favor of the king, but the key is the situation, after all, no one wants to join the ranks of losers. ”

Griffiin nodded, she didn't know this, but the problem was not so simple. For Brando's mention, she just listened to it in her heart, the royal party and Brando's meeting was actually for the Highland Knights, and now that her hopes were disappointed, Her Royal Highness suddenly felt a little exhausted.

She glanced quietly at the hourglass, which was close to the start of the meeting of the nobles.

"Mr. Brando, I have one last personal question, I wonder if it is convenient for you to answer?" Griffiin looked up at Brando and finally asked.

Brando nodded.

"...... you and Yanbao?" She had always been concerned about this issue, although she did not think that Brandor was a retainer of Dilferry, because at least Swallowcastle had not fallen to the royal faction, and if Brando's behavior as a vassal was obviously overstepping, not to mention that Griffiin also believed that Brando should be his knight. But what she cares about is Brando's relationship with the young lady of the Yanbao family.

With her shrewdness, she couldn't imagine what a gain it would be to be able to pull Yanbao into her camp.

"No, I don't really have anything to do with the Earl, on the contrary, in fact I just coerced her to take me into the venue." Brando smiled and replied truthfully.

Everyone was stunned.

"Although it is a bit rude to say this, after all, the invitation to attend the meeting is only sent to the Grand Duke of Karasu, and as a small highland knight, he is not qualified to enter the Huai Lishe Manor, I think you should be able to understand the hardships of being a young man." Brando shook his head again and added.

Only then did everyone in the royal party react, and for a while they couldn't help but look at Brando's eyes a little strangely, hijacking and coercing the nobles under the nose of the temple, this guy was bold enough. If they hadn't known in their hearts that it was unlikely, they would have all wondered if the Assassins in the morning really had something to do with this young man.

Her Royal Highness smiled slightly, she didn't believe Brando's words at all, the reason was very simple - she and Dilferrey had been close friends, and in the morning the ghost could see that the countess obviously cared about Brando, would the kidnapped person care about the robbers? It may be possible, but it is never in that situation. However, she did not intend to expose Brando's clumsy lies, but laughed and said, "Very people do extraordinary things, and your actions in Tonigel have taught us a vivid lesson." But I didn't expect that you had just arrived in Ampesel, and you had given me another surprise—but she was too pitiful for Dilferry, and Monsieur Brando didn't know the slightest bit of pity. ”

Brando was reminded by Princess Griffiin that she remembered the resentful eyes of Miss Count, and suddenly couldn't help but sweat.

This was not his intention, he said in his heart that he didn't know in advance that the countess was actually a soft girl.

But at the same time, he sighed slightly, and looking at Princess Griffyin's face that had become calm again, Brando knew that his persuasion had failed. Although he didn't have much hope in the first place, compared to the royal party, he was an outsider after all, if Her Royal Highness the eldest princess changed her mind just because of a few words, then he would have to wonder if this half-elf girl was an impostor.

Thinking of this, Brando could only prepare for the next move. However, vaguely, he had a faint premonition that the attitude of the temple not only stunned the princess and her party, but also greatly surprised him. The promise of the High Priest of Wood was especially in his ears, and he never expected that the Temple of Fire would be so quick to reverse.

There must be something wrong with this.

……

Yesterday, I saw that the comment section said that it was too late for me to update the post an hour earlier, so I'll try to be an hour earlier tomorrow.

……