Arnold stared at the map on the wall, his gaze slowly moving up from Lionheart, stopping for a moment in Nilan City, north of the Cold Mountain Territory, and then continuing to look up, staring at the Qinghe River flowing from the Dragonbone Mountain system.

"Wostar House......

He could see that he couldn't help but mumble to himself.

"Where are you targeting?"

Serena silently appeared behind Arnold, speaking out coldly.

Arnold didn't care, he was used to it, and he wouldn't be scared by his sister at all.

"Perhaps...... But now is not the right time. ”

"Because of the alliance proposed by Northway?"

Arnold clenched his fists.

"What are you going to do? Although those guys haven't officially stated their position yet, they are actually full of expectations for this alliance. Even John Fonner would want you to agree to the Alliance, because that would be too beneficial. ”

"When the benefits are delivered to our door, I will not forget who sent this gift. Arnold turned and looked at his sister while glancing at the little maid behind Serena, "Northway will make this suggestion, it must be because they can gain greater benefit from it. ”

"So, what could it be?" Serena smiled, still with a cold and somewhat arrogant smile, "Tamska and Fegraf seem to be two strong allies, but aren't the so-called allies the enemies of the future?"

"You're right, but at least until they become enemies, allies are allies. Northville now needs allies, or rather, people who can support and help them. ”

"Since they need allies to support and help them, it means that they have enemies to deal with. Serena narrowed her eyes, "Askar Alliance, there is no need to think about this question at all, but the key is where they are targeting. ”

"Æthelwolf is a very shrewd guy, he is not easy to deal with. Arnold turned his face sideways and looked at the city of Vodahara, east of the Cold Mountain Territory, "However, the more this happens, the more people want to compete with him." ”

"I don't think you can get anything from the mouth of any Duke of Æthelwolf, the alliance was proposed by them, and the initiative has long been grasped by the other party, even if you propose a meeting, there is no guarantee that the other party is not prepared. ”

"But there's always a need to meet, Northway, and this family is probably the most powerful in the Empire right now. Even if the history is not old enough, two generations of Northville dukes have proven themselves and the family. ”

Arnold looked at Alice behind Serena, the little maid now with her head bowed and her neck curled, her eyes dodging, as if trying to avoid Arnold's gaze.

"You seem to like her and keep her by your side all the time. ”

Serena also turned her face to look at Alice and chuckled.

"It's a lovely kid, don't you think so?"

Arnold looked at his sister suspiciously, but he didn't pay too much attention to it, he was used to his sister's eccentricity.

"I'll put my meeting with Northway and Tamska after the New Year, and after meeting them, I'll go straight to the Imperial Capital. Both Cold Mountain Collar and Lionheart need someone to sit in, and I'll keep John behind to assist you. ”

Serena frowned.

"But John Fonner may not be completely loyal to you, he is 100% loyal to his father, but in the end he betrayed his lord. ”

"A sane person, emotions can sometimes be a hindrance to him. The more clear you are about the pros and cons, the easier it is to get into misery. He knows which side to be on now, at least until I come back, and it should be fine. ”

Arnold looked at Serena's face, the corners of his mouth loosened a little, and reached out to stroke his sister's forehead.

"And, even if there is a problem, I'm sure you can fix it. ”

"You don't need to add to this, my troubled brother. Serena glanced at Arnold, with a bit of contempt for her brother in her eyes, but also confidence in herself, "It's you, if you go directly to the imperial capital after meeting with Northway and Tamská, it will be a rather long journey, how many people are you going to take with you?"

"I'll bring Titus, and I'll bring half a Blood Cross. ”

"Less than two thousand?" Serena raised her eyebrows, "Even if it's half a Blood Cross, this power is too thin, not to mention that you have to go to Northville and Tamska first." ”

"I've got three dukes to pass through along the way, and if I bring too many people, they'll probably be upset. Arnold's finger tapped on the map, "Besides, if you bring too many people, you will have less room to turn around when you arrive in the imperial capital." There is nothing directly at stake for us in the affairs of Tiamat Territory, and I don't want to give anyone an excuse. ”

Serena immediately understood Arnold's intentions.

"That makes sense, but just in case, bring the entire Knights with you, and this kind of power can also be your bargaining chip. ”

"That's not appropriate. Arnold shook his head, his expression a little more serious, "Don't forget, my father is still in Whitehorse." ”

Serena was stunned, and her expression immediately became serious.

"You've met Louie, haven't you?"

"Yes. ”

"What kind of person do you think he is? Serena smiled no longer so arrogantly, and pondered for a moment, "If Northville proposed this alliance because they could get enough out of it, then what was the reason for Tamska to accept it?"

Arnold stared at Serena for a moment, and after looking at his sister's face for a moment, he lowered his head again.

"This alliance is to use marriage as a bond to connect the three dukes, if Louis marries...... If he marries a woman of the direct line of Figlaf, then he, or his child, is eligible to inherit the Duke of Leng Shan, according to the succession I have previously confirmed. ”

Hearing Arnold's words, Serena couldn't help but lower her face.

"Do you think so too......"

Arnold didn't speak, he knew that Serena must be able to think of this.

"So, what are you going to do about it?" Serena suddenly turned her face and looked at Alice, with no expression on her face.

And Alice was suddenly startled by Serena's eyes like this, and she bent her neck and didn't dare to make eye contact with Serena.

"Thankfully. Arnold put his hand on his sister's shoulder, "Our dear uncle is back in time?"

Serena frowned, but did not turn her face away, nor did she say anything.

"Remember our cousin?"

"Mathilde?" Hearing Arnold say this, Serena suddenly came back to her senses, "You want to ...... Marry Mathilde?"

"In terms of identity, Mathilde is our cousin, and she is also of the age to talk about marriage, although she is a few years older than Louis, but not much older. ”

Arnold said lightly, obviously he had already planned this.

"Webster is the younger brother of the previous Duke of Cold Mountain, and the only branch of the current three generations of the Feigraf line, so there is no problem in seeing him as a direct line, and his daughter is fully qualified to be the Duchess of Snowlon. ”

"Will Louis accept it?" Serena frowned, thinking carefully about the possibility of this matter, "The direct line of Fegraf he wants to marry can bring him the succession of the Duke of Cold Mountain, and Mathilde is completely out of his expectations, right?"

"If he doesn't accept it, then the thing in the alliance is canceled. Arnold's expression was resolute, "No one, no one can take you from here. ”

Alice couldn't help but glance at Arnold, and then immediately lowered her head cautiously. However, as soon as she looked down, she saw Arnold and Serena's hands clasped tightly.

She knew what she was doing, and she didn't see anything.

"And what about Northville?" Serena's smile bloomed again, but this time there was not much arrogance, "Duke Æthelwolf wants you to be his son-in-law, don't you have a little heart, brother?"

Arnold took his sister's hand and put it to his heart.

"Am I intrigued?"

"It's hard to say. ”

Serena smiled slyly.

"I'm going to have to look closer. ”

"Ahem. ”

Arnold coughed twice.

"This thing...... We'll talk about that in the evening. ”

I didn't hear anything, I didn't hear anything......

Alice said this silently in her mind.

"Anyway," Arnold took a deep breath, avoiding his sister's gaze slightly, "and you'll help me manage the territory after I'm gone." It's not very stable in the territory right now, especially Hulkassi, you can't deal with those counts as simply and rudely as you did with Albert and Edward, sometimes we need to be patient......"

"Then why don't you put up with Louie's provocation?" Serena thought to her brother, and there was a little more banter on her face, "He put forward such a condition, he is provoking you, why can't you bear it?"

Arnold's face sank suddenly.

"That's the bottom line. ”

————————————————

As the main church of White Horse City, the Chapel of Prossi does not look very grand, but rather like a small country church, not dilapidated, but a little old.

There were only a few clergy in the church, and occasionally the archbishop took a few students as a teacher, but even at its maximum, there were no more than twenty people in the church.

This is completely inconsistent with the name of the "Great Church".

In fact, it was also true that the Church of Prossi was originally a small church in the lower part of the city of Whitehorse, and later became known as the Great Basilica, simply because of the presence of an Archbishop Benedict.

And the worldly fame and prosperity never changed the habits of the archbishop's life, and he still read the Bible in the dim candlelight, preached to the citizens in the poor streets and alleys, and even when he went in and out of the duke's court and decided to kill, Benedict's heart never changed.

After conquering Rota Castle and witnessing the receptacle of Count Gunther, he returned to his chapel called the Great Sanctuary and continued to live an ordinary life.

However, he has been involved too deeply in this world, and even if his heart remains unchanged, he cannot avoid this world leading him in.

The dim candlelight reflected on the archbishop's wrinkled old face, and his eyes were calm, without joy or sorrow.

"You didn't come late at night to hear me preach, did you?" "The lightless eyes lifted up to look at the girl in front of him who was hiding her body in a black robe, "Miss Michelia." ”

"Your Excellency, I would like to know ......" The voice of the girl known as Miss Michelia trembled a little, and there was a faint anger in it, "Northway's marriage proposal, my brother has consulted you very much. ”

"It's been a long time since the Duke has been to this church. The archbishop looked at Michelia calmly, "He's been a little farther away from the archangel lately. ”

"So, then, do you agree to the marriage proposal?" said the girl, with a little more urgency.

"It's not up to me, miss. The archbishop smiled kindly, "It's up to you. ”

Michelia pursed her lips tightly.

"I don't want to marry Northway, I don't want to marry a man who is fifteen years older than me. ”

"Mr. Alfred is a very good man, I have met him, I can assure you. ”

The archbishop was already smiling peacefully.

"But I still don't want to marry him. Michelia shook her head firmly, "The only one who can convince my brother now is you, I know that Louis is an extremely arrogant person, he can only listen to you, and even his mother can't completely restrain him except you." Please, convince Louie, to reject the offer. ”

"Miss, it's not that the Duke is obedient to me. The archbishop shook his head, and at the same time sighed, "You know, the reason why he listens to me is because I have never quarreled with him. ”

"What do you mean ......"

"Lord Duke is such a person, if you know what he thinks, follow him, he will naturally obey his words, but if you point fingers too much, it will inevitably cause him to be disgusted, this is the character of Lord Duke after all. Therefore, I can't change the Duke's decision, and besides, this should be a family affair of the Tamska family, and in this matter, it may be better for you to get rid of your mother. ”

Michelia grimaced.