That evening, the beautiful Countess Don Loni returned to Salion's room, but this time in court attire, and also sternly refused the Duke's request, bringing only a letter from Queen Lydia. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 ｉｎｆｏ

Salian, who had to lie alone in bed, read the Queen's handwritten letter, and it turned out that Her Majesty had asked her favourite to meet her in secret with her in the garden of the back of the palace the night of the next night, while repeatedly stressing that no one should know about it. Seeing this, Salian was a little melancholy just now, and his mood was relaxed.

"Oh, my dear majesty is too bold, isn't it?! I thought that sending the countess was the limit, but did she really love me? Or did she do this to win me over? ”

Thinking about it, Salian fell asleep peacefully, and what he dreamed of was of course self-evident. So, the next morning he left his room and went to the central market of Alcalá, a world of flowers, where Salian found the most expensive barber shop to groom his hair and beard. Then I spent the whole day dressing up.

That night, when the moon was shining brightly, it was indeed a good day for cheating, and Salian dressed up and arrived at the garden mentioned in the letter at ten o'clock on time. It is surrounded by huge plants that go unnoticed. Queen Lydia had arrived before Salian, and she wore a wide coat with a hood, and if she hadn't taken the initiative to reveal herself, she wouldn't have been able to tell who it was.

"Thank you, Sir, for being punctual in time, I have some secrets to tell you that cannot be explained by letter, for these actions are bound to be opposed by my husband and most of the courtiers. ”

Sally thought to himself, it turned out that Her Majesty did not want to have anything to do with him, but had some special plans to implement. I can't help but feel a little lost, but I am still unmoved on the surface.

"Haha, dear majesty, I will definitely support you, no matter what!" he swore assurance.

Queen Lydia smiled slightly and whispered, "Some time ago there was an adventurer named Merenbu who wrote to me to support his large-scale voyage plan, and it is said that this person is an out-and-out liar who has deceived the kings of many countries in Itkanya. His idea of finding the fabled New World was propagated everywhere. ”

"Then what do you think, Your Majesty?" said Salian disapprovingly about this kind of charlatan.

"Although this person is not very reliable, I have also heard Lantoni say that our country is located in the southwesternmost part of the continent, and there are too many plateaus and mountains, and if we want to develop our economy, we must develop land and sea. And then attacking the Moors also required a lot of money. ”

"Well, of course it's acceptable to take a certain risk, but does Your Majesty have confidence in that person?"

"So I gave him a chance to talk to him in this secret garden tonight, just an hour later. And I'm a woman who would be afraid to meet a strange man alone, and you're a recognized model of knighthood on the continent. I also want you to help me see if that person is a liar. ”

"I see, Your Majesty, I see. ”

"Hehe, with you by my side, I can be completely relieved. Lydia gave Salian a sweet smile.

Soon, at the end of the garden came a man with vain steps, a man who had been adrift on the sea all year round, unconsciously uneasy even on land, and always had to make sure every step before daring to go. Through the bright moonlight, it can be found that he is about thirty years old, with bright eyes and a dark complexion. Hanging from his waist was a scimitar, a favorite weapon of sailors and pirates, the perfect weapon for naval warfare without armor. Because even the simplest chain mail cannot fight on a slippery deck, the scimitar, which is highly lethal to the flesh and is not easy to block, is popular in sea battles.

As soon as the man saw Lydia, he knelt down in front of her.

"The greatest Queen, Your Majesty Lydia, I am your humble subject Mylumbu. Thank you for your willingness to meet me in person. ”

"Well, stand up and speak, Mermbu. I've read your recital, and it's a good idea that you want to do your part for the prosperity of our country, but how do you arrange it?"

"Your Majesty, I have been preparing for a voyage for the last ten years. From the records of the northern Laplandians, we know that on the opposite side of the sea in the west of our continent is a rich continent, full of spices and gold, and now the trade routes to the east are controlled by the infidels, and those of us who run the sea can only be middlemen, and the profits are too low, if we can find the continent on the other side of the sea, or go further, according to the theory that the plane we are in is a sphere, and even reach the far eastern islands from the west, it must be a profitable business!"

"Hehe, this idea is indeed very tempting, so let's talk about your conditions!" For such an adventurer, of course, he would not do anything without interest.

"Your Majesty, what I want is at least five large merchant ships and a full complement of sailors and soldiers, and if I find a new continent, I want the title of Governor and ten percent of the profits!"

"Hmph, this is a typical blackmail, I can't help but think that we are too easy to deceive, right?!" Salian, who had been watching coldly from the sidelines since just now, suddenly said at this moment.

"Who are you, and I don't really want much compared to the huge profits I get. "Mylenbu thought that Salian was just an ordinary guard, and didn't take him seriously.

"Don't be rude, this is Sallian, Count of St. Valentine. McBrun, it makes sense that the kings would say that you are a liar, and these conditions are undoubtedly the lion's mouth. Lydia subdued the two opposing pairs.

Salian said to the queen, "Your Majesty, although the minister is not opposed to the development of seafaring, the funds required for such a voyage are not a small amount!"

"So be it, then, I will give you three ships and some money, and you can find the crew yourself, and I can promise you the share after success, but the governor shall be appointed by me! ”

"Your Majesty is wise, then the minister will arrange it!"

Mylumbus left satisfied, still with his swaying steps. Salian, on the other hand, stayed behind and continued to question the Queen.

"Your Majesty, you are now the ruler of Toledo and Castia, and you have produced the most fearless sailors and the most courageous swordsmen on the continent on your land, and with them you have been able to defeat the kingdom of Gera of the Moorians. Besides, our Divine Grace Empire will also support you. ”

"Yes, but I don't want to need a lot of money to speed up the war because it is very likely that a protracted war will make the country weak and the people in dire straits, and that the rebuilding of the kingdom of Gera will be necessary. ”

"Well, you are indeed thoughtful, and the ministers don't understand navigation or anything, but you have the courage to convince the ministers. In the courtier's opinion, although that Merenbu looked unkempt, he was not a liar, and he could indeed be given some support. If you need financial support, you can also share your worries. ”

"Your Excellency Count St. Valentine, I still have some money, you have done enough for me, not to mention that you can play your best role when attacking the kingdom of Gerla. ”

"Yes, the minister will do everything he can. Salian also quietly left after kissing the hand.

With all the events in Alcalá over, and the summer on the Mulassen Peninsula being hot and rainless, except for Mademoiselle Lantony, who stayed here because she still had the family business to arrange, Salian took Chieko Nanjo north across the border to the kingdom of Franços. Now that he has left the academy, he has a good time for a few days, and Salian has also gone to François for the purpose of finding out the news.

After they left, Queen Lydia took out 150,000 pistor gold coins from her private treasury, which were of great denominations on the Mulassen Peninsula, each equivalent to two Gul shields of the Divine Grace Empire or the florin of Itkanya. These were all the private money of Queen Lydia, with which she had purchased three 3,000-ton armed merchant ships from the United Province of Nyllandes, the largest and best mass-produced ships of the era, and the crew and soldiers were recruited by Mylumbu herself with the rest of the money. He was going to train these people for three months, and then set sail with the wind when the east wind was blowing on the sea.

Franços, a first-class power on the continent, is opposite to the ancient Eastern Kingdom that formed the Divine Grace Empire, she developed from the ancient Western Kingdom, and unlike the system of electing emperors in the Divine Grace Empire, her kings are inherited by the Valois family from generation to generation, and it has to be said that the characteristic of this family is that there are heirs from generation to generation, and their kings can slowly establish their authority and eliminate the separatist forces in various places. Fortunately, Françose's centuries-long war with the Long-eared tribe resulted in the death of a large number of feudal lords, allowing the king to annex the noble lands that had only orphans and widows.

Today, the king of the country is Feli de Valois, the eldest brother of Princess Dievoya de Valois, the female representative of the Auguste Academy, who was a frail and ambitious king. What's more, he also has a power-hungry mother, Marie de Medeo, the empress dowager who wields real power. She used to rely on her beautiful appearance to gain power, but now she relies on status and scheming.

This may have something to do with her origins, Marie de Medio came from the famous Medio family of Itcania, and was one of the five major banking families in mainland China, along with the Varno family, to which Miss Lantoni belonged. The family was very powerful in the central region of Itkanria, and had close ties with the neighboring Central Orthodox Church of the Holy Capital, and had a number of cardinals and popes in the family, and they also had a monopoly on banking activities in the papal domains. A strong and vicious personality may have been inherited from the family, and several of her children have inherited this sinister personality, which Salian has learned a little bit in August's Academy.

Here we have to say that the double standard of Salian is indeed a bit excessive, if the emperor of the Divine Grace Empire has the ambition to dominate the continent, then he will think that he is a brilliant monarch, and he is eager to conquer the four directions for this monarch immediately, and if the monarch of the François Kingdom as a rival has this idea, he will think that it is a kind of unreasonable act of ambition and ignorance, and completely disdain it.

Along the way, Miss Chieko Nanjo listened to Salian talk about the general situation of their western continent, and as a stranger from the Far Eastern Islands, she could only express her opinion as an interested observer.

"I am also very impressed by your patriotism, Your Excellency the Duke, but as far as I have seen along the way, the roads of this François country are smoother and more convenient than those of your empire, and all the important cities are under the control of the king's soldiers and the royal flag. Your kingdom is full of places under the sole jurisdiction of the monks and lay princes. ”

Yes, this is the last thing Salian wants, the Kingdom of François is steadily advancing towards the goal of centralization, while the Empire of Divine Grace is still in the quagmire of political struggle.