Fort Govellen, Swain's visit continues.

Among the few people who are qualified to speak in the headquarters of this thirteen lessons, Count Hecate naturally can't take Swain to appreciate the charm of this castle due to physical reasons, and Artemis obviously doesn't want to see Swain very much now, and of course he won't be a tour guide for him, and as for Yang, it's even more impossible.

So when Swain left Count Hecate's room, Manfred had to come and receive him. While Swain and Count Hecate were haggling, Manfred had already treated Young, and although Yang looked more embarrassed than the Count's injury that night, it was easier for Manfred to deal with.

Like an old butler familiar with the castle, Manfred thoughtfully led Swain to visit the corners of the ruins that had gone through the ups and downs of history, and could tell stories and rumors about it.

Compared to the Jericho family's Midnight Castle, Gouverenburg, although it also has a long history, has a completely different character from the Midnight Castle.

The earliest accounts of the Jericho family and the Midnight Castle are no longer available. Although the previous Earl of Midnight was a great historian, he did not leave a single account of his family and the castle that had been passed down from generation to generation. And the world does not have a deep impression of the castle south of Pritown and the Midnight Earldom. People who have been there, like Wood, will say it's a scenic, classically elegant castle, just like old Winston.

Fort Govellen, a castle that originated in the time of Edney Wayne I, has become a mysterious legend along with Glamorgan. The bloody history of the 27th Earl of Glamorgan has given this castle a very resounding and mysterious reputation. There has always been a legend of the treasure of Glamorgan, and it is said that successive Earls of Glamorgan have worked hard to manage this castle, and in order to avoid the fate of their predecessors, each Earl of Glamorgan will try their best to keep their property in a secret place to avoid being poisoned by kings or emperors in the future.

Whether this legend is true or not remains a mystery, but one thing is certain: Castle Govélen was indeed run by successive Earls of Glamorgan. It is a castle built purely for military purposes, and it still retains many of the defensive structures characteristic of the mid-Chivalric era. Strangely enough, however, the close Victor never cared about this behavior of Glamorgan, and no king or emperor interfered with the enlargement of Fort Govellen, and always turned a blind eye to the threat on the side of the couch.

By the time Maxsimian No. Heckat, the current Earl of Glamorgan, moved into Govellenburg, the practices of the previous era were naturally unnecessary. Count Heckat did not want to make Fort Govellen impregnable, as his predecessors had done, but he did not demolish the ruins either. He gave his castle a new-age décor, and the floor-to-ceiling windows in his office were the result of the new count's change. However, most of this change is due to the interior decoration of the castle, which from the outside is still a solemn military fortress.

Manfred tells Swayn the history of each of the towers and walls of the castle, and he can tell the exact age of the fortifications, their construction, and the techniques used, as if he were the owner of the castle all along. Even Swain was amazed at Manfred's familiarity with the castle, at least, he couldn't have remembered every corner of Midnight Castle in such detail.

Of course, Manfred's introduction was limited to the castle itself, and it was impossible for him to take Swain to see the secret places of the thirteen lessons. Swain was also very aware of this, and one of the purposes of his visit to Govélenburg was to win over Count Heckat, but the other purpose was not this castle.

After walking around the castle, Swain made a final request.

"I've always heard that the Earls of Glamorgan have built tunnels under Fort Gourwelen in order to leave a way back, but I don't know if it's true. If it's convenient, can you show me around?"

Manfred smiled, and although the underground secret passage was his lair, and there were his dark-sighted laboratories inside, his expression was still very kind and friendly, and he was not nervous at all.

"Do you also believe in the legend of the treasure of Glamorgan?"

"If it did, it would probably be a fortune that could destroy half the world. The Earls of Glamorgan were of extraordinary origin, and the wealth they left behind must have been enormous. Of course, if they really have to stay. Swain looked at Manfred scrutinously, without the slightest hint of joke on his face, "I want to see the tunnels here, just to satisfy my curiosity." ”

"It's a shame that there is no treasure, but if you don't hate the darkness and dampness underground, come with me. ”

Swain followed behind Manfred. After all, this was the fourth time he had seen this strange-looking man, and every time he saw this person, he would show a different posture. The first time was at Triumph Boulevard, when Swain thought it was a strange-looking man, and that afternoon he saw him for the second time in his mansion, and Manfred's behavior did not seem strange to Swain, Mr. Schneider acted as if he were a dutiful ordinary employee, and even his kindness did not match his appearance at all. And the third time, it was a chance meeting at the Astrad I College the day before yesterday, and that time, Manfred's majestic head had already loomed in front of Swain, although Swain still didn't understand why Manfred made that level of prompting him, both like a threat and like a devil's invitation, Manfred's last words that day always made Swain quite concerned.

Manfred opened the hidden entrance to the tunnel, and it was indeed as dark as he said, with the sound of ticking water from time to time. Walking into the tunnel, the light projected by the incandescent lamps on the walls was not bright enough, this latest invention did not play its due power in the ancient castle tunnels, the artificial light seemed to be swallowed up by the darkness, Swain could only barely see the road under his feet, as for Manfred in front of him, half of his tall body was hidden in the darkness.

"There's also electric light in here. Sven looked at the light bulbs on the wall and said, "Are these tunnels still useful?"

"These tunnels have been used as prisons in the last era, and although in modern times, even the most independent nobles have no jurisdiction, but this castle has another identity after all. ”

"But I don't seem to hear any voices, it seems to be a little quiet?" If this is really the place where the prisoners are secretly held in Section 13, it will be too quiet. The battle with Yang the day before yesterday reminded Swayn that he would concentrate on manipulating his magic perception in such a vigilant place now, but at the moment there was no magic discovery coming from the end of his magic power.

"Of course," the figure in the darkness moved, as if Manfred had turned his head, "we rarely have a chance to actually go into battle in our normal work, and even if we catch the prisoners, there will be no judge who can judge them, will we?"

Swain nodded, no further questions.

Walking in the dark tunnels, the ticking sound still appears from time to time, and the footsteps and ticking sound are harmonious, becoming the only rhythm underground. The roads here were crisscrossed, and Swain had seen the forks in the road a few times, and if it hadn't been for Manfred to lead the way, he would probably have been lost in this labyrinthine tunnel.

Manfred was quite familiar with the place, and even the dim light didn't affect his direction. Maybe even the Earl of Hecate is not as familiar with these tunnels as he is, after all, it is only within ten years that the Hecate family has received the title of Earl of Glamorgan.

After walking for about a decade or two, the narrow tunnel suddenly widened, and even the light brightened, and a rotunda appeared in front of Swain. The rotunda had two entrances to each other, and Sven walked from one end, not knowing where the other was leading. On either side of the passage, around the rotunda are cells of cellure.

"This is the cell that was once used to hold prisoners?"

"That's right, these iron fences can even be traced back to the time of the original Earl of Glamorgan, 'Alain the Cruel'. Alain Philip was born out of wedlock, abandoned by his family at an early age, and reduced to living in a mercenary group, so when he suddenly gained power, his twisted personality made him unexpectedly cruel. This place is now cleaned up, after all, the current era does not allow the indiscriminate use of lynching, and the terrible scene here at the beginning is something that some old people in the Ministry of the Interior can't stand it. ”

Swain looked around the hall, where there were still blackened blood stains in some places, and he could have imagined what hell it had been like in the first place.

The ticking sound could still be faintly heard here, but along the way, Swain found no signs of dripping water in the tunnel, which was the tunnel used by the Earls of Glamorgan to escape, not the sewers.

"Is there a dark river underground?"

"I don't know very well, the original moat has dried up, and according to the design drawings left behind by this castle, there used to be a river, but now it may have been diverted. ”

Swain nodded, historically the Emerald River flowed through Glamorgan, but now that it has been rerouted, it is not surprising that there may still be a tributary of the Emerald River under Fort Govélen.

There is nothing to see in this rotunda, although it was once used as a prison, but in this era, it is true that a rusty iron fence like this no longer serves a very good purpose, not to mention that the prisoners of the thirteenth class cannot be stopped by these slender iron branches.

Walking out of the other passageway, the light quickly dimmed again, the road here was too complicated, and Sven could only roughly estimate the direction and distance. Judging by the number of steps he had taken underground, the tunnels were probably beyond the confines of Fort Gouveren compared to his previous visits to the castle. After all, these tunnels are mainly used for escape, although they are also used for some shady deeds, but the end of the road must lead to an extremely distant exit.

After another half an hour of walking with Manfred, Swain returned to where he had entered. Swain couldn't remember all the branches along the way, most of them just glanced at it, and if they all walked down, he didn't know how much time it would take.

After leaving the dark underground, it was already sunset, and even the setting sun became very dazzling in Sven's eyes for a while.

"Thank you for taking me on a tour of the castle, it was a very interesting experience. ”

"It's best if you're satisfied. Manfred bowed slightly, like a humble butler, "It's all this time, do you want to stay and dine?" Although Govélenburg is not as good as God's, and the Hecates do not have a feast like Metternich to entertain you, I think Your Excellency the Earl would be eager to have dinner with you. ”

"But Count Hecate's body doesn't look like it's suitable for expending too much effort. ”

"The face of the Hecate family does not allow us to let our guests go home hungry at dinner time. ”

Manfred was talking about "we," and Swain made a note of that.

"Who, then, will be the company? Miss Hecate probably has a problem with me right now. ”

"Hahaha, if I sit next to you, you won't have much appetite! Please rest assured, although the young lady is straight, but after all, she is the daughter of His Excellency the Earl, and the etiquette of the nobles of the imperial capital, our young lady of the Hecate family will not be less. ”

Swain glanced at the red-hot sunset, he didn't really mind eating here, and Atmiss had slaughtered him like that for lunch, and it was nothing to get it back.

"Forgive me for taking the liberty of it, it seems that I have never seen Mrs. Hecate, and there is no portrait of her in the house. ”

Manfred didn't answer the somewhat presumptuous question right away. His smile suddenly fell, and he stretched out his hand, waving slightly, as if the sun was about to set in his hand, and he was caressing the red hair of the setting sun.

"Since you sent Yang back, you should have asked his name. ”

"Actually, I know more. ”

"For example?"

"He and Miss Heckat are siblings. ”

Manfred let out a long sigh, looking like a lonely old man.

"Jan Noe Darres, that's his mother's last name. ”

Swain listened quietly, the secret was not hard to guess, and he wondered how far Manfred would go with him.

"Mrs. Hecate's original name was Lisa Diana Noe Darres, and we used to call her Lady Lisa. It was a very beautiful lady, she had very attractive red hair, that kind of red, like the sunset today, which could dye the whole sky red, and she also succeeded in dyeing the sky in the heart of His Excellency the Earl. When Madame Lisa married His Excellency the Earl, the Darex family was still a small nobleman without even a title, barely maintaining a façade with only a surname and the help of former relatives. Old Darex is a miser, what he has always wanted is to sell his daughter for a good price, to earn him back a knighthood and an objective dowry, to be honest, with the charm of Lady Lisa, there are indeed many young masters who are fascinated by her, but these people either have no money, or they are the younger sons of a big family, and it is impossible for the eldest son to marry a woman who is not from the wrong family.

In the end, His Excellency the Earl came to the fore. At that time, the Hecate family was still only a baron, but the title of the director of the Ministry of the Interior made old Dareth fall in love with this son-in-law at once, rich, status, and such a reliable gentleman, and most importantly, the condition proposed by Count Hecate at that time was that he did not want a dowry, so old Dareth happily married his daughter to him. ”

"Aren't the Hecates unhappy in their married life?" Although this is someone else's privacy, since Manfred has said so much, Swain doesn't mind chatting. However, what he cared about most was why Manfred was so open and honest this time, which was different from the impression left on Swain by the previous three meetings.

"Of course not, you've met His Excellency the Earl just now, and you should be able to tell that he's a man who cares a lot about his reputation. But he was so sincere with Lady Lisa that he was willing to put aside his reputation and marry the daughter of a declining nobleman, or ......" Manfred paused, as if he was a little hesitant about what he said next, "still a woman of disrepute." ”

Sven raised an eyebrow, although she had a guess after knowing Yang's identity, but it seemed that the actual situation was even worse than he thought.

"Mademoiselle inherited her mother's attractive red hair, but she was very different from Lady Lisa. Madame is mature and welcoming, huh...... Enthusiastic. When the elder Dareth decided to marry her off to His Excellency the Earl, she did not have any resentment, and in fact, her desire to spend money was indeed not something that the depleted Dareth family could afford. The lady was keen on balls, dresses, jewelry, and the luxuries popular in the imperial capital that she did not want, and there was none that His Excellency did not buy for her. How could a lady not like such a good husband? It's just that she likes too many things. ”

Although Manfred did not say it directly out of avoidance, how could Swain not hear this level of hint.

"Yang was born when Miss was two years old, oh yes, speaking of which, your two younger sisters were also born in that year. His Excellency knew that the child was not his, when Madame was pregnant, but he did not show it at all. However, when it came time to name the child, he did not use Hecate's last name, but called him Dares.

It was then that Madame understood that her secret had been revealed, and she was very nervous, lest His Excellency the Earl would divorce her. But His Excellency the Earl did not do so, and he behaved calmly, and treated Yang like his own child, except that he did not call him Hecate.

The calmer her husband became, the more nervous Madame became, for she feared that one day she would be abandoned by the Count. I am sure that His Excellency the Earl did not have such an idea at that time, he was such a loving lady, but the magic of the Hecate family could only be inherited by one child, and it was impossible for him to give inheritance to Yang, who did not have Hecate blood. His Excellency the Earl can give a lot for his wife, but the Hecate family, he will not back down a single step.

It was a tragedy, and Madame was frightened by her husband's attitude, and her guilt turned to fear, but the Count did not untie the knot in his wife's heart, he was such a man, who valued his manners, paid attention to the grace of the moment, and did not speak intimate words. Because of this fear, my wife had a serious illness after giving birth, and unfortunately, I am not a gynecologist and can do nothing about it. In the end, the lady lost her fertility, and the count, who was unwilling to divorce, had no choice but to let his daughter inherit the Hecate family. ”

Manfred let out a long sigh at this, but said no more.

"And what about the lady? Is she still alive?"