Chapter 346: Focus and Pressure
When Victor arrived at the viewing platform, the venue was already crowded with people. The Master of Ceremonies chanted aloud the names of Viscount Randall and Viscountess in a strange tone, announcing their arrival.
Victor was led by Sophia's arm to the Randall family's viewing table under the guidance of his attendants. The nobles along the way rose up to greet the Viscountess Randall, and Victor and Sophia responded with impeccable smiles of grace on their faces and bowed their chins.
In public, Sophia behaves like a gentle and beautiful viscountess, and Victor knows that she is not dead set on the Chamber of Commerce and the title, but she also wants to leave a way out for herself and her subordinates.
That's good, if Sophia loses her fighting spirit, it doesn't meet Victor's expectations.
Nelson led the family attendants to meet him and bowed half-kneeling to Victor and Sophia, "Good day, sir, ma'am." ”
Sophia smiled and said generously, "Lord Nelson doesn't have to be polite. ”
Victor pulled Natalia to his side, took her by the hand, and said to Nelson, "Let me introduce you, this is Sophia's guard knight, Natalia...... Madam. ”
The knight of the guard swore to follow his master for life, to serve as his master's shield and sword, and could not form a family on his own, but had the right to refuse the marriage appointed by his master. The owner usually betrothed the illegitimate daughter of the family to a male bodyguard, and the female bodyguard knight was often a personal maid who acted as the male head of the family. This is mainly to ensure the prosperity of the family's main lineage, and one of Viscount Fred's personal maids is Audelle's female guard knight.
Sophia originally arranged for Natalia to be the little baron's personal maid, but the queen refused. It was through this incident that Sophia decided that Catherine wanted to manipulate Victor and use him to control the Wimbledon Chamber of Commerce. By mistake, Natalia loses the opportunity to become Victor's legal partner and can only serve the man as a lover.
In Victor's plan, the knights of the Sabertooth Tiger Merchant Group will be sent out to take over the Bucks Merchant Order, Sophia will stay in the Randall territory, and Natalia, as Sophia's guard knight, will naturally stay. And she has always been in love with Victor, and has persuaded Sophia and Victor many times to reconcile.
The female knights are all delicate and charming, and Natalia is no exception, and although Victor himself does not have deep feelings for her, he does not resist her. On top of that, capturing Natalia's heart will not only affect Sophia, but also weaken her control over the Sabertooth Merchant Order.
It's unlikely that Natalia will betray Sophia, but Victor is sure she'll use House Randall's herald, who is the key to controlling the Sabertooth Merchant Order. When the backbone of the saber-toothed tiger merchant group secretly falls to the Randall family, Victor can establish a master-slave relationship with Sophia.
Family politics is like this, family relations are always entangled with political interests, it is difficult to distinguish between each other, and it is difficult to distinguish between right and wrong. At the very least, Victor will promise not to treat Natalia badly, as long as he does this, it doesn't matter if he uses it or not.
Although Victor can't give Natalia a name, he wants to give her the treatment she deserves, including introducing her to the core of the family, but Nelson, the dirt bun, obviously doesn't know what kind of greeting to do, and stands there, looking at his lord at a loss.
"It's like seeing Alina!" Victor had to remind his henchman.
Natalia's heart was already in a state of joy at this time, she glanced at Victor in shame, lifted her skirt, and took the initiative to salute, "Natalia has seen Lord Nelson. ”
Nelson hurriedly returned the salute solemnly, "I have met Mrs. Natalia, may Mrs. Natalia's youth last forever and her beauty will last forever." ”
"Sit down. Victor smiled and pulled Sophia to sit down.
Nelson sat down on Victor's left hand side, leaned over and whispered, "My lord, I found out that Tournans was not a priest!"
Sophia and Natalia looked at each other and smiled, and Victor said angrily, "You just found out?"
"Hmm. Nelson nodded vigorously and said with a smile: "My lord, when you talked to Viscount Negus, I knew that the identity of Turnans was not trivial. Later, I heard Bishop Perro refer to Tournans as the Bishop. So, he's not a priest....... he's an archbishop from the Holy See!"
“......”
Victor was stunned for a long time, and muttered, "You are not wrong to call him a bishop...... Tournans is also the strongest fierce warrior of the day, and his martial arts have reached the pinnacle, and most of the Golden Knights are no match for him, even if they don't use divine skills. ”
"What?!" Nelson stood up and said excitedly, "The Fierce Warrior can reach the level of a Golden Knight?!, my lord, can I ask Bishop Tournans for a secret ......"
The words came to an abrupt end, and Nelson bowed his head in disdain. Sophia didn't intend to let him go, her beautiful eyes turned and she asked with interest, "Lord Nelson, what's the secret?"
Nelson touched the back of his head and laughed dryly, but he didn't say a word. Victor said, "My dear, I forbid Nelson to talk about the secret form in public. ”
"Secret form?"
"Hmm. Victor nodded and said calmly: "You are the mistress of the Randall family, so I naturally won't hide it from you." As he spoke, Victor saw the other end of the semi-circular viewing platform, where Tournans was waving, and he turned to Nelson and ordered, "Lord Tournans is greeting you, you come over." The matter of the secret form is already an open secret, and if he asks, you can ask him for advice. However, the original secret form can only be told to him with my consent. ”
"Yes, my lord!" said Nelson bowed, striding towards the viewing platform where Tournans was.
Victor continued, "Nelson was originally the leader of a mercenary group, and the secret form was a refining method he invented. After he became a vassal of the Randall family, his life stabilized, and only then did he have time to cultivate the secret form, and his strength also increased by leaps and bounds, becoming a fierce warrior of the silver rank. ”
"I saw that the training effect of the secret form was excellent, so I wanted to use it as a secret method to train the soldiers of the family. It's a pity that Nelson's method is only suitable for fierce warriors, ordinary people who cultivate the secret form will be injured, and in serious cases, it will also cause internal bleeding, and cultivating the secret form requires a lot of time and abundant food. So, together with Nelson, I made a modification to the secret form so that ordinary soldiers could practice it, but the effect was greatly reduced. ”
"It would be great if Turnans could help Nelson improve his secret form. ”
Sophia nodded slightly, noncommittal. As a high-ranking knight, she is not interested in martial arts at all, and the reason why she wants to squeeze Nelson is only to prove that Victor has reservations about her, so as to alleviate her guilt.
After a few years, when she met Victor again, her little husband's aggressive enthusiasm made her a little upset.
"Victor, there are very few fierce warriors who can reach the Silver Rank, and Sophia and I have both heard of Lord Nelson's reputation. However, the Violent Warrior's brains don't seem to be very flexible, so it's no wonder that Lord Tournans likes to be with Lord Nelson. Natalia chuckled as she used Victor's old name.
Huh? This is where the competition for favor begins?
Knights are arrogant, and Natalia is no exception, although she is far inferior to Nelson, but she has a naturally noble bloodline. Natalia wanted to suppress the Nelson siblings, of course, out of aristocratic instinct, but also for Sophia, for the saber-toothed knight, and for herself.
Victor was a little displeased, and he was insightful of Natalia's careful thoughts. Of course, competing for favor is a good thing, which shows that Sophia and her knights have developed a sense of integration into the Randall family. However, Victor believes that they must be made to understand who is in charge of the Randall family's power sequence.
"Tournans is admired by Sylvia as the best man of the day, how can he really be stupid? I once wanted to exchange the secret form for the secret technique of the Church, but the holy warriors of the Randall Collar had already mastered the training method of the secret form, so the church did not agree to the request to exchange the secret method. Nelson cultivated a primordial secret form, and there was a big difference between the semi-public training method. Do you think Turnans befriended Nelson simply because he found a sense of superiority in him?"
Natalia raised her eyebrows and said in surprise, "You mean, Turnans is secretly deducing Lord Nelson's secret form?"
"I can't think of any other reason than that. Victor shrugged his shoulders and said, "The secret techniques of the church's martial arts are never passed on or exchanged. Tournans could glimpse the difference between the secret forms through Nelson's behavior, and he didn't show any expression, but only secretly figured it out, which was enough to prove that he was not a dull person. I guess that Turnans' preference for playing the priest is influenced by his family, and it is the duty of a high-ranking paladin to study martial arts, and no one does this better than him!"
"Nelson is the same, not smart on the surface, but actually very wise. He only does what he is good at, and gives what he is not good at to people who are good at it, and a person who is self-aware is by no means a fool, and it takes vision and wisdom to know people and make good use of them. The War Bear Mercenary Regiment is where it is today thanks to Nelson, who has established his prestige by leading the way and upholding the principle of not abandoning his companions, and he has gained trust by offering loyalty to the Lord and obeying my word. Prestige and loyal subordinates, that lord doesn't like it?"
"Natalia, do you think Lord Nelson lacks political wisdom?" asked Victor coldly, staring into her eyes.
Somehow, Sophia only felt an evil fire rising up, and she couldn't help but sneer: "Are you laughing at me for not understanding politics! Hehe, loyalty? Who should I be loyal to? Catherine or you? What qualifications do you have to talk to me about loyalty? I am still the only man with you, you say, how many women do you have?"
"Madame, you have lost your temper. ”
Victor raised his chin and squinted at Sophia, his expression on top of his head as if to say: You just don't have political wisdom. It's a pity that with that handsome face, he is like a teenager who has won a bet, and there is no deterrent. At least Sophia and Natalia think so, this little man has been pampered and slept with by them, no matter how noble and powerful he is now, it will not make them feel pressure, but a little crying and laughing.
Sophia suddenly felt that she couldn't be angry with Victor, and she turned her face away from him.
Hmph, strike you first, and you will understand that I am no longer the little baron I used to be.
No matter how good the X-3 is, it can't see through people's hearts. If Victor knew Sophia's current state of mind, he would be extremely depressed.
Victor was silent on the surface, but secretly proud in his heart, he turned his eyes to the venue and began to look around.
There were thousands of people on the aristocratic viewing platform, and the most striking was undoubtedly the barbarian elder Harald, who sat taller than the squire behind him, and the legendary berserker seemed to feel Victor's gaze, and a pair of cold eyes turned to nod at Sophia.
Sophia clenched her right hand into a fist, nodded on her forehead in response, and then glanced sideways at Victor, her chin slightly raised, her red lips raised, and a charming arc.
This is a strong man that Sylvia is not sure to defeat...... As long as he is still standing behind Sophia, the major forces will not easily cut off the trade of the Wimbledon Chamber of Commerce, and can only play some unseemly means. No wonder Sylvia wants to win over Sophia, with Harald here, the major forces dare not force the York family to hand over the rock bricks, and can only use soft tactics to achieve their goals.
The middle-aged man next to the barbarian should be Pope Clement, and he couldn't tell that he was in his 70s at all. It is said that he is not only a legendary priest, but also a knight who has been promoted with energy potions, well, knights can become priests, and paladins can only come from the seven families.
Embither and Archduke Williams looked happy...... Why are you talking all the nonsense about good food?Caterina is indeed beautiful in a duchess dress, but she has fulfilled her responsibilities as the heir to the family of procreation, Embiser, I am afraid there is a question mark over whether you can keep this high-ranking knight's wife...... Then again, Sylvia retreated into the background, this stingy fat man is in power, and there will be no shortage of women around her.
The lady with short blue hair was Baroness Angel Diocletian of Bronze Halberd City, the daughter of the Moon Bear family, with royal blood and the title of princess. The adult next to Princess Angel was probably her grandfather, the Golden Knight Duke of Munstock...... This highness belongs to the western camp of the Sassan Empire and is loyal to the Barcelius family, so Princess Angel's influence in the Sassan Empire is not insignificant.
How can Princess Fanny of the Aleano family be so close to the Marquis of Farul of Naville? By the way, Princess Fanny has a golden knight lover in Naville, is it the Marquis of Farul?
Judy is still so gentle and beautiful, she can't see me...... It's okay, we'll see you at the banquet tonight.
Why didn't you see Her Highness Roland......? Wait, that's the viewing platform where the unmarried lady receives the winner's flowers!Your Highness, although you are unmarried, is it really good that you sit there and let the young ladies of the York family become foils? You don't notice that everyone else is far away from you except Anna, the little girl.......
Baby Gillian sees me...... Hmm, who's that man?!
Victor only glanced at the people on the viewing platform, and when he met Gillian's gaze, the eldest lady cast a defiant look, and then whispered to a handsome man beside him.
There were more than 7,000 nobles and commoners in the venue, and their voices were intertwined, interfering with each other, chaotic, and difficult for even the Golden Knight to hear, but Victor could distinguish any person's voice as long as he wanted to listen.
Gillian and the gentleman seemed cordial, but they talked about the weather...... She was jealous and deliberately angry with Victor, which was very much in line with Miss Chebman's temper.
Due to the mutual exclusion of silver knights, the partners of the heirs of large families need to cultivate their feelings from an early age, and Gillian has no childhood sweetheart to marry, and her spouse can only be chosen between ordinary knights, trainee knights, or elven blood nobles.
Ever since Victor learned that X-3's overrun would cause misunderstandings, he no longer easily probed the Knight's elemental attributes. But at this time he couldn't care anymore, he just wanted to see if that man was the partner of Gillian's marriage.
It's too far...... Undetectable!
Victor shook his head and exited the overrun state. However, for the Golden Knight, who had insight into elemental changes, the slight disturbance of the fire elemental shone as brightly as a candle flame in the dark. Three pairs of eyes looked at each other, and Roland took the lead in standing up and shaking his snow-white little hand vigorously at Victor, looking happy and excited as if he had seen his brother who had been reunited for a long time. The Duke of Munstock also stood up and took the initiative to greet the ancestor of the Barcelius family, the descendant of the Sword Saint Draven. The two Highnesses rose one after the other, and the Marquis of Farul of Neville, of course, could not sit still, he got up from his seat and saluted Victor's jaw. Tournans touched his bald head, feeling that the bishop should not miss such an occasion, he exchanged glances with the Pope covertly, got up solemnly, drew a triangle on his chest representing the Holy Mountain of Light, and waited for Victor to return the salute.
On the viewing platform of thousands of nobles, in addition to the Pope and the Barbarian Elders, the three Golden Knights and the legendary Paladins were undoubtedly the focus of everyone's secret attention, and this time, Victor became the focus of the audience.
Countless pairs of eyes looked over, Victor stiffened, stood up from his seat, and saluted His Highness one by one with an elegant attitude, and then looked directly at the man beside Gillian, only to see the handsome knight bowing his head with a wry smile to show retreat, Miss Gillian lowered her eyebrows, but the corners of her mouth bloomed with a satisfied smile, Judy's eyes were overflowing with adoration and admiration, Natalia looked at Victor in a daze, and her beautiful eyes rippled.
Sophia finally felt the pressure from Victor.
But why are there some prides and expectations?
The sound of a long horn resounded through the viewing platform, and two knights on tall horses paced onto the field, and the world-renowned martial arts final officially kicked off.