"Count Midnight—Swain Noe Jericht?" Lady Jane frowned and tilted her head to look at Ramrem.

The maid couldn't help but sigh secretly in her heart, this lady was very different from the other ladies in the imperial capital, this lady was too natural in some things. It's obviously something that is closely related to me, but the reaction is so slow. However, there is also a cuteness about such sluggishness, and it is probably this reason why Mr. is so obsessed with Madame.

"It is the eldest son of the Sir, the father of the Sir, the heir of the former Earl of Midnight, the contemporary Earl Swain No. Jericho. ”

"Ah, that's the kid!" said Madame, with a smile of joy on her face, "Then you have to take care of him, I'm sorry, Ramrem, can you help make the coffee first?"

"Yes, ma'am, I have prepared my coffee. The maid seemed to have anticipated Madame's request, and had already prepared everything.

"Thanks, Ramrem, it's great to have you here. The happy smile on Madame's face bloomed even more, "Ah, this is the first time I've seen that child, I don't know what kind of boy he has become?

"Monsieur Earl came alone, without Mademoiselle. ”

"Ah...... Is it. Madame couldn't help but be a little disappointed.

"However, maybe Miss also came to the imperial capital, after all, this is a rare opportunity, maybe you can meet her in two days. Seeing the sad look of the lady, the maid immediately comforted her.

"Hmm. It seemed that the thought of her daughter, who was almost abandoned, made Madame's mood become quite depressed, "I wish I could see her soon, I hope she will not resent me as a mother." ”

The maid did not speak, but quietly withdrew. The lady also realized that there were still people waiting for her at this time, and that she could not meet the guests like this, so she calmed down a little and followed the maid to the parlor.

When Madame entered the parlor, she immediately saw the young man in a black coat sitting on the single sofa, and the other also looked up at Madame, and the two looked at each other's strangers.

The young earl was well-dressed, and his serious black coat was too old for a young man, but there was nothing immature on the young man's face. Not only was his clothes black, but the young man had inherited the black hair and eye color of the Jericho family, but unlike his father and grandfather, his face was rather pale and unhealthy like a sick person. But judging from the young man's upright sitting posture, he did not look like a sick man. Madame wondered what the young man was thinking at this time, and how he would feel when he met his stepmother, whom she had never met, but on Sven's expressionless face, Madame, who was not good at reading words and feelings, could not see it at all.

As Mrs. Jane looked at Swain, Swain looked at the young stepmother, who looked surprised. She looked like she was in her thirties, and she still had the innocence of a girl in her mature dress, but in fact she was the mother of two fifteen-year-old children, and she was already nearly forty. And this lady is indeed beautiful, worthy of a man's indulgence, even at the cost of the family. Her hair color and eye color are quite rare: long milky white hair, the lady used to have pale blonde hair, but it seems that because of family genetics, after giving birth to daughters, the hair color became lighter and lighter, and gradually became milky white, and her eyes were a very attractive dark red, which Sophia inherited from her mother, and the eyes of both mother and daughter looked so charming. This appearance is impressive at a glance, and in addition to the unique hair color and eye color, her figure is also surprising, or rather, she is a little too thin, her calves are almost as thick as Swain's arms, and Sven is still on the thin side. Because of the too delicate relationship, Mrs. Jane can be said to have suffered a lot during childbirth, and she was still pregnant with twins, and she almost had a difficult birth during childbirth, so the couple did not have any more children later.

Both men looked at each other, and after a moment Swain stood up first, walked up to Madame, leaned down and took Madame's hand, and kissed her lightly on the back of her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you for the first time, ma'am. ”

And when Swain finished kissing and straightened up, the lady suddenly held him tightly in her arms. "Alright, little Swain, good, good. She stroked Swain's head and patted him on the back like a child, as if she were coaxing a baby.

At this time, the maid standing behind her took two steps back without a trace. She knew very well that this was not what Madame was deliberately trying to do, she was usually like this, treating children like this, so Victoria couldn't stand her mother's embarrassing pampering, so she loved to run out so much. However, it seems that Madame really treats this Mr. Swain as if he were her own child, although no one thinks that Swain has a good relationship with her.

After a good slap, the lady cupped the face of the child in her arms, and then smiled brightly. However, in the face of this lady's innocent and lovely smiling face, Sven's expression still did not change, he did not feel embarrassed, nor annoyed, nor moved.

"Thank you for your kindness," said Swain, stepping out of Madame's embrace, "I have come to-day in the hope of seeing Viscount Ernest, but I think Sophia will be glad to know that you are so healthy." ”

Hearing Swain mention Sophia, Madame's emotions immediately became agitated. "Is Sophia okay? I really miss her! I had to leave her away from her parents after she was born, and she must have been very resentful of us for more than ten years. I, I can't hold back my tears when I think of her all these years, hopefully, hopefully, I hope she's doing well......"

Looking at the lady who was in tears, Sven was still not moved, perhaps, he took the initiative to mention that this lady had to be sad, just wanted such a result, whether it was to resolve the embarrassment just now, or to tempt, Sven could take advantage of it.

The maid silently brought coffee to the two, and Swain nodded to the maid in gratitude. While the lady was crying and sad, Swain looked at the maid beside her. The maid looks about the same age as him, fair-skinned, well-maintained, it shouldn't be a maid who does rough work, and her figure and appearance are good, but this maid doesn't have any young feeling compared to the lady next to her, on the one hand, the lady's girlishness is too heavy, and on the other hand, the maid always has a cold face and looks very serious.

The maid also noticed that Swain was observing him, and she bowed politely to the gentleman, and then withdrew from the drawing-room, for it didn't matter if she was with Madame or not on such occasions, and besides, she had another mission.

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The Triumphal Avenue is the most emblematic avenue of the imperial capital, as it faces the Tiamat Palace, and its wide streets are ideal for ceremonial occasions such as military parades. However, despite the huge flow of people on this street due to its fame, it is not yet the most prosperous commercial street in the imperial capital.

The Emerald River crosses in an L-shape in the Browning district, dividing this area into the upper and lower river districts. Crossing the Emerald River from the Upper River District leads to a street parallel to Triumph Avenue - Kinness River Street. Due to its proximity to the Triumph Avenue area, which is the center of the imperial capital, and directly leads to the Bailangning District, which is a wealthy area, it has become the most prosperous commercial street in the imperial capital.

However, compared to the nearby Triumph Avenue, Kinness River Avenue is just as prosperous and even surpasses the Triumph Avenue, but the impression left here is different from that of Triumph Boulevard. The Triumphal Avenue is the symbol of the imperial capital, when the first time to the imperial capital people walk on this road leading to the Tiamat Palace, the first feeling is majestic, bright, majestic, just like walking on the steps to meet the emperor, the ears are the royal majestic symphony.

But Kinness River Street, which is right next to Triumph Boulevard, feels like a shadow in the sun. Triumph Avenue and Kinness River Avenue are separated by only one block, and it is this row of blocks that blocks out the light from the radiant Triumph Avenue and hides Kinness River Avenue from shadow.

The flow of people on Kinness River Street is larger than that of Triumph Avenue, there are more shops than Triumph Avenue, and there are some clubs and companies on the high-rise buildings on both sides. But the land where gold and silver pave the way will be a place of filth and filth. Kinness River Street is also the street with the highest crime rate in the imperial capital. Petty theft is no longer worth mentioning, commonplace, and even gang vendettas are happening, and crime is growing and spreading in places that go unnoticed on the corners of the streets.

Of course, while these disgusting things are common in the shadows, they are not revealed, at least on the surface, in places where the citizens can see them. The emperor must maintain its glorious image, just as there can be no crime on the Triumph Road that is known to the public. People are still keen to shop on this bustling commercial street, where the people of the imperial capital buy daily necessities as usual, and tourists are happy to buy souvenirs here.

Victoria No. Jericho slipped out of her mother's side today, as always. Dressed in a gray coat with a tongue pressor on her head and her short hair tucked under the hat, she looked like an unemployed young man wandering the streets, but she was a little too young.

Victoria liked to walk down the street like this, and it was much more comfortable than wearing those strange and heavy and troublesome dresses made by her mother, which, as the thinkers of the revolutionary period had said, was a feeling of freedom. She is not the only one who has experienced the feeling of freedom, she has many friends on this street, and even she has become the eldest of these fifteen or sixteen-year-olds. This has always been her most complacent, although she can't tell her parents, but young people at this age don't like to share secrets with their parents anymore.

Now, her friends are following her, and a group of people are walking down the street, looking like a gang that ordinary people can't mess with. They were going to the same café they frequented on the street for their "regular party". However, just as they were about to reach their destination, one person caught their attention. To be honest, it is almost impossible for such a person not to attract the attention of others, and when he walks on the road, almost everyone will look at him, either explicitly or implicitly.

With his height almost standing out from the crowd, his shiny head standing out from the crowd, and his sturdy figure that everyone had to make way for, it was too difficult for such a person not to attract the attention of others.

"Manfred," complained the girl beside him, "it's all said you're going out with a hat." ”

"But the sun isn't big today, is it?" replied to the girl with a kind smile as if he didn't feel the gaze, "and what a fear of the light is to hide from the sun with a hat on such a good day." This is not the case in my heart. ”

"This kind of thing actually comes out of your mouth," Artemis couldn't help but complain, "are you a priest?"

"That doesn't stop me from yearning for the light. Manfred still smiled kindly, like a priest.

Victoria and a group of friends behind her looked at the two people standing out of the crowd, and for a moment their eyes were completely attracted, and they stopped on the crowded street, staring at the two people all the time.

"So that legend is true...... a small man behind Victoria muttered in a low voice.

"Jerry, what legend?" asked Victoria immediately.

Everyone's eyes were focused on the little man named Jerry, and this posture frightened the child so much that he couldn't help but shrink his neck. But Victoria also looked at him, and he whispered under his gaze, "I also heard this, it is an urban legend or something." It is said that the Red Pinwheel Café on Triumph Boulevard is often frequented by a strange man who orders black coffee there every time. ”

"Is this also called a legend?" the person next to him interrupted him dissatisfiedly, "That black coffee is unpalatable to death, of course it is a weirdo to order that kind of thing, what is mysterious?"

Jerry's words were interrupted before he could finish his sentence, and the timid fellow was too frightened to refute, and could only look at Victoria with pleading eyes.

Victoria slapped the kid who had interrupted Jerry on the head directly, and this time it made a lot of noise, but the boy didn't dare to resist, just cowered and lowered his head.

"Go on, Jerry. ”

"Uh-huh, uh-huh, okay, boss. Jerry froze and became a little bolder, "The most impressive thing about that weirdo is his appearance, just like the one in front of him." ”

The crowd followed his words and looked at Manfred again, and by this time the two men in front of them had already walked some distance. Victoria immediately followed, and the people behind followed her boss, slowly following the two men.

"Bald head, hooked nose, wolf-like eye sockets, in short, he looks like a standard bad guy. I was wondering how there could be such a person, but it wasn't until I met me today that I was convinced that this urban legend was not groundless. Jerry said to Victoria as he followed.

"And that's not enough to be an urban legend. ”

"Others may just be made up. Jerry looked at Victoria's back with some uneasiness, for fear that he would not be satisfied with his answer, "It is said that someone saw that strange man attacking people at night and biting people's throats. ”

"Ah, I've heard of this too, and it is said that people who have their throats bitten off will also be sucked blood. "Maybe this last part is finally like an urban legend, and many people have heard of it. They rambled on the legend, but Jerry didn't have a place to interject.

"And what about the girl next to him?"

"It can't be a vampire's prey, right?"

Victoria, who had been listening, didn't stop herself, she was with those two people. Although she didn't see any special interest on the surface, it was to maintain her image in front of her little brother, but in fact, her heart had already aroused curiosity.

"Boss?" their destination had arrived, but Victoria didn't stop to go in, but kept going. The people behind her didn't understand what the boss was doing.

"Drink your tea, little ghosts. Victoria waved her hand, leaving a dashing back, "I'll meet that Mr. Vampire for a moment." ”

The group of boys behind her froze in place, looking at their boss with a look of admiration and bewilderment.