The next day's meeting took place at the town hall of Erengrad, where Maximian had a brief breakfast and went to the town hall, which was only separated by a wall. Here, several important officials of Rhodes and Erengrad were already waiting in the hall.

With blue-gray stone walls, white marble floors, and windows made of ordinary glass, at first glance, everything here is so plain. Thinking of the extravagance that prevailed throughout the empire, Maximian could not help but be struck by the low-key simplicity of the city officials of Erengrad.

As the Elector of Osterland, Maximian traveled to many places, the Empire, Bretonnia, Tyrells, etc., all of which were large or small, commercial towns, or frontier towns, but without exception, government residences were much more luxurious than private houses and ordinary facilities.

However, Erengrad was an accident, as was the case with its current owner, Rod Lawn, who appeared on a formal occasion in an ordinary leather coat. Is this good or bad? In Maximian's eyes, this is very valuable, the victor is not eager to enjoy after success, but to share the suffering with the people, and how many electors or lords in the whole empire can do it?

Thinking of this, Maximian couldn't help but have a little more respect for the man in front of him. Kislev is poor, but its rulers are not necessarily poor, at least, they are not poor in spirit, and they do not need to be filled with all kinds of luxuries.

"Your Excellency Maximian, how was your rest yesterday?"

Seeing Maximian, who was the Elector, slowly approaching, Rhodes got up from his chair and walked over to greet him first, as a sign of the friendship of the landlord.

"It was nice, the room was clean, the maid was beautiful and polite, and also, the hostel was quiet, which I liked very much. You know, in my castle, every day before dawn, you can hear the sound of all kinds of weapons, the barking of dogs, the neighing of horses...... Oh, sorry, I pulled away. ”

"It's okay, I don't mind, Lord Maximian, in fact, before coming to Errengrad, I spent most of my life in the castle, the Black Hammer Castle. Well, a small castle on the northern border, where the sound of swords and iron armor is also filled, and every morning soldiers practice on the schoolyard below, and knights feed their horses and ride them out for training. There is a blacksmith shop in the castle, and every day, you can smell that smell of steel and fire, well, that's where we men should be. ”

Rod said with a smile.

After saying this, Maximian immediately burst into laughter, but the boy Oswald, who was not yet fifteen years old, stood behind him with a look of disgust.

"The city is lively and bustling, but that flavor is missing. Even the things forged in the blacksmith's workshop felt a little less ssolemn. Cold and death are the main themes of Kislev, and I've been in the North for so many years, and I'm still used to being there. ”

After Rod finished speaking, his expression suddenly became serious. Immediately, he looked at Maximian in front of him again, and his smile bloomed again.

The latter also nodded in approval.

"Understandably, in fact, I have spent my entire life in the midst of war. When I was young, my father taught me horseback riding and swordsmanship, my uncle taught me archery, and then, when I was fourteen, I went with them on their expedition to the forest to exterminate the beastmen. You know, Oster, like Kislev, is in danger. The forests that shroud in fog all day long are hell and nightmares for civilians. As lords of the land, we must clear them of all threats in the forest, so that the farmers dare to cut down and reclaim them. ”

"I remember the first time I faced the Beastmen, I was almost killed by an Beastman, and at that time, its axe was less than a meter away from me, and if it was cut down, I would have died on the spot. At the critical moment, my father rushed on horseback, and his spear pierced the beast, half of which remained in his chest, and then he slit the beast's throat with his sword. "Shih Tzu literature

"I survived, and after the war, my mother had a big fight with my father because of it, but that didn't stop my father from continuing to take me to the front. ”

Maximian sat down and, as if opening a conversation, chatted with the Kislev lord, who was also from the battlefield.

"Time and time again, I have brushed shoulders with death, but it is also good, it has made me slowly forget my fear. I no longer feel the fear of going out to war, on the contrary, leading my soldiers to kill the enemy has become a daily routine. ”

"Your Excellency Rod, I have probably learned a little about your experience, and it can be regarded as a legend. I heard that in the Northern Wastelands, you defeated the invading Norsca coalition with a disparity of 1 to 5. Throughout the war for the liberation of Kislev, there were many times when less was victorious. You've even climbed to the top of the Troll Mountain and fought the Troll King...... Throughout Kislev, no one has a richer experience than you. ”

Maximian said with a smile. This is not sycophancy, as the Elector of the Empire, Maximian does not need to pat Mrs. Kithrie, what he said is just the truth, there is no exaggeration at all. Of course, Rhodes knew that the outside world still didn't know enough about it, and in recent years, the most dangerous enemy was not the Ice Queen Katarina, but Grimg Ironskin. The black orc almost killed himself, and going to the Troll Mountain Range was also the last step he was forced to do. The army of greenskins is gone, but no one knows when it will return. Humans are a race that is easy to heal their scars and forget their pain, and a few glasses of wine and a few women can make them forget about danger and hatred, and indulge in timely pleasures.

"Troubled times create heroes, and many times, people are forced, forced to do something by the environment and current events. If I hadn't been born in this troubled world, I would have really wanted to stay in Black Hammer Fort for the rest of my life. ”

Rod teased himself. Maximian also let out a hearty laugh again. It's just that everything you say and I talk about things that have nothing to do with the topic, which makes the people around me look embarrassed...... What about military alliances, trade agreements, and so far there has not been a single mention of them...... Only Alves, a master negotiator, saw the doorway. In front of unfamiliar people, it is easy to get into an impasse when talking about cooperation and business at the beginning. And after properly getting closer to the relationship, inadvertently revealing the true purpose can sometimes have a good effect. Small talk and bonding are like lubricants that can remove many of the barriers between the two parties. Of course, there are certain things in principle that cannot be compromised in any way.

Alves just stood behind the scenes, and from time to time he instructed the servants to refill the two of them.

Maximian's young son, Oswald, was so impatient that he stood behind his father and looked around, his disgust written on his face......

"Let's put aside the trade agreement for now, friend, there is one thing that I think is more important than trade......

Finally, the topic slowly got on track. Rhodes smiled and turned down trade talks and turned the conversation on military cooperation.

"More important than trade? Let me guess, I'm afraid there is nothing more important than a trade agreement other than military cooperation. ”

Maximian returned with a smile.

"Indeed, it is a military matter. ”

Rod's expression became serious-

"We're rebuilding the Great Wall of the North. ”