At first, hearing Juan's words, Arnold couldn't help but be taken aback.

But soon, he calmed down and understood that Juan was testing him.

It is not entirely accurate to say that there is temptation, because the constraints of Tamska that Juan is talking about are indeed the problems faced by Feglaf and Northway. For Arnold, although he was able to inherit the duke thanks to Louie's help, Louis's help was not out of good intentions, and while he sent Arnold to the duke's throne, he also firmly grasped Arnold's weakness - the hostage-like Tegman.

On the other hand, the relationship between Northway and Tamska is more complicated, when Duke Ulren was still the Earl of the East Horse, Northville married Tamska, but for Tamskyka, they regarded Northway more as a subsidiary of themselves, after all, Northway's earliest place of origin was granted by their Tamska. The territory of the East Horse River is still in Northway's hands, but Tamska will not forget the history of this land.

On the surface, Tamska maintained a good relationship with Figraf and Northway through marriage, but in essence, this good relationship was also disguised as Tamska's interference with the other two. For example, in the division of the Vortagen Domain, Tamska easily gained a lot of benefits, while Fegraf and Northway had to back down.

However, such a reason is not worthy of Northway's direct confrontation with Tamska, on the contrary, they need the support of Snowland, after all, once Tamska becomes an enemy, then the Eastern Territory will fall into the belly and back of the enemy, and Northway will not make such a mistake.

Juan's purpose in saying this, then, is worth pondering.

Arnold glanced at the bishop, and a few thoughts crossed his mind.

"I'm curious, Your Excellency, what is the current state of the Ascar Alliance?"

Juan's eyes jumped, then he lowered his head.

"As always, Lord Duke, we in Northville have always dutifully guarded the eastern pass for the Empire, and the Askar Alliance is only surviving under the majesty of the Empire. ”

"If that's the case, then why did the Duke of Æthelwolf propose this alliance?" Juan's nonsense was to Arnold as if it had never entered Arnold's ears, this kind of nonsense was not nourishing at all, "If the Duke of Æthelwów really wants the friendship of Fegraf, then he should show some sincerity, right?"

Juan pursed his lips, the expression on his face was no longer as confident as it had been at the beginning, and Arnold's direct words forced him to respond directly to the question.

"We are sincere and willing to form an alliance with you. However, as you must know, such a covenant is not so strong in the midst of each other's contradictions. Whether it's Northway, or Tamská, or Fegraf, we all have more important and tricky enemies to deal with now, so we should be friends with each other rather than enemies, and only if we have each other's solid backing can we support us in dealing with more urgent enemies, this alliance has great interests for all three of us, therefore, I am sure that you can see the stakes in it, Lord Duke. ”

Arnold nodded, Juan, as a messenger, did have a considerable level, not only in the persuasiveness of his words, but also in the skill and art of his speaking. From the moment he came to Lionheart, Juan basically told the truth, but selectively told the truth.

He told so many truths, but he still didn't say the real purpose of the alliance that Northville wanted to forge, and he didn't say who the enemy Northville urgently needed to deal with.

Of course, Arnold can understand this, this is an important secret of Northville, Juan will not say it so simply, unless there can be an equivalent exchange of information.

"It is because I see the benefits of this alliance that I am willing to continue to negotiate with you. Arnold's face remained unchanged, leaning on the railing of the lookout, looking very dashing, "I hope to have a face-to-face interview with the Duke of Æthelwolf, and with Louis, after all, there are too many things to consider to establish this alliance." ”

"I understand this, and I will tell my brother the truth. Juan nodded, his face not looking good, "However, we also really hope to have a good relationship with Fegraf, and even if the alliance fails, my brother hopes to marry you." ”

In order to keep me neutral in the future, or even to be a helper, when dealing with Tamska in the future?

Arnold thought to himself, and he thought that what Juan said at the beginning did not seem to be without purpose.

"These matters should be discussed after I have met with the Duke of Æthelwolf. Your Excellency the Bishop has come from afar and has given such a generous gift, please let me entertain you well. ”

"Then thank you, Lord Duke. Juan barely smiled.

Arnold watched Juan leave, his eyes gradually sinking.

Since the beginning of Duke Erren's disappearance, the Northway family has produced many talents, and both generations of dukes are known for their wisdom, while the other family members are not ordinary people. For example, this Bishop Juan, as the youngest son of Duke Erlen, after he became the bishop of the city of Vodahara, also became the main diplomat of the Northway family, not only because of his status, but also because he did have this ability.

However, compared to the Archbishop Benedict, the standard of the bishop Juan is much worse.

Although he also consciously concealed information to cover up his own reality, his methods were too deliberate, and this method made Arnold see the clues. What's more, he is far inferior to the archbishop in terms of initiative and momentum in words.

Arnold didn't get any precise information from Juan's words, but he didn't get nothing. At the very least, he discovered that Northway and Tamska had a common disagreement, which Juan had deliberately revealed, hoping to dispel Arnold's suspicions in order to broker the alliance that Northway desperately needed. He did so, perhaps because he had heard from Father Watt that Arnold was not very positive about the alliance.

Arnold pondered, his eyes unconsciously looking out into the plains in the distance. As the New Year approached, although the wind and snow had stopped, the snow had not melted, and in Arnold's unfocused eyes, all the pale colors were reflected.

While Arnold was thinking, Fonner also came upstairs, perhaps having already met Juan who had just gone down, and took the initiative to find Arnold.

When he saw the Duke leaning against the railing by the lookout, he stepped forward quickly, approached Arnold's side and called, "Lord Duke." ”

Arnold retracted his thoughts and turned to look at his most important minister at the moment.

"John, look at that. He pointed to the two boxes Juan had sent, "Northville gave me a suit of armor, come and see." ”

Fonner nodded, he had just caught a glimpse of the contents of the two boxes.

He scrutinized the armor and stroked the magic crest engraved on it, a look of surprise on his face.

"The magical weapons and armor crafted by the Arcane Artisans of Vodahara, some of the finest in the human world, are not far inferior to those of the dwarves. And this set of armor must have been carefully made by the best craftsmen in the city of Vodahara, and when Lord Alfred was an adult, I accompanied your father to watch the ceremony, and the sword and armor that the Duke of Æthelwolf gave to his eldest son at that time were probably not much different in quality from this set. ”

Listening to Funner's explanation, Arnold was a little surprised, although he could see that Northway's gift was very precious, but he really didn't expect it to be so valuable.

"It seems that Northville is really bound to win this alliance. Arnold said thoughtfully.

"Or maybe ......," Funner lowered his armor, "they have no choice but to make this alliance." ”

"Is it possible? If Northway is pushed to this point, we shouldn't be ignorant. Arnold didn't quite agree with Fonner's speculation, "If the Azcar Alliance really had such a ability, it would not have been suppressed by Northville for so many years and lost territory one after another." ”

"Northville's enemies are not the only ones in the Askar Alliance. Funner shook his head.

"Who else, who else can pose such a threat to the famous Northway?" Arnold still did not support Funner's idea, "Have you ever been to the city of Vodahara? I haven't been there myself, but I know that the castle is the most difficult city in the world to conquer today." Two generations of dukes have worked hard to expand and build this already strong castle, and the Arcane craftsmen of Vodahalla have built it into a solid foundation, the whole city can accommodate more than 100,000 troops stationed, and the food and materials in the city are enough to support 200,000 people for three years, and when Duke Erren captured the city, Vodahara's Castle was built into a floating city by Arcane craftsmen. Even the people of the White Lands, who are now making the empire talk about it, will not be able to capture the city of Vodahara, which is the strength of Northville, and as long as this city is there, they will not lose. ”

"I know that I've been to Vodahara, and I know better than you how powerful that floating castle is. Fonner sighed, "But it's because of this that I also see Northway's weakness. ”

"Northway's weakness?" Arnold raised an eyebrow, a little interested.

"No one is without weaknesses, not even the seemingly impenetrable city of Vodahara. Similarly, Northville has weaknesses, but they may have only one weakness. ”

"Tell me about it. ”

"The Norsvi trusted their castle too much, and Duke Erren relied on this fortified city to repel numerous attacks by the Askar Alliance, and when the Duke was alive, the city of Vodahalla had not yet built a floating fortress. And when the Duke of Æthelwolf further expanded and added the city, the self-confidence of the Norsviers had reached an irrepressible level, and they did not believe that anyone could break their castle, so they ......"

"So, once faced with mortal danger, they would rather stick to the city than give up the huge advantage of Vodahara, and fight the enemy in the field, right?"

Arnold immediately understood what Funner meant, and looked at the other with blazing eyes.

"Yes, but maybe now Northville is aware of this, so they start looking for something else that can protect them, after all, castles don't move, and even if they fly into the sky, they can't take a castle with them to conquer the city. ”

"Hmm...... Well, what you just said, the enemy who drove Northville to the point where he had to seek an alliance......"

"It's their castle. "When Duke Erren was in his time, the eastern border of Northville was less than a hundred miles from the city of Vodahara, and wherever he wanted to attack, he only needed to travel from his base camp for a day or two to reach his destination, and once the Askar Alliance tried to send a large army to support, Northville would shrink its forces back to Vodahara." After the years of the Duke of Æthelwolf's strategy, the territory of the Eastern Territory has indeed become larger, but the advantage of relying on the fortified city for strategic involvement in the past does not exist. And Northway, who believes too much in his own city, may find it difficult to deal with the behemoth of the Azcar Union once he leaves his home turf. ”

Anos listened carefully to Funner's words, and a strange sparkle flowed through his eyes.