"Sir Leonardo?" Hearing the sound of the door being pushed open, Edward turned his face and sat up from the bed, looking at the Sacred Tree Knight standing outside the door with some surprise, the other party obviously had a little embarrassed expression, and after hearing the voice of the black-haired boy, he only nodded slightly.

"Ahem, cough, cough......" Coughing twice, Leonardo raised his hands and glanced at the sergeants standing on both sides of the door: "Commander Kane has lifted his surveillance - thank you for your hard work, go back first!"

The two sergeants looked at each other, then nodded and saluted Sir Leonardo as they drove down the hallway. It wasn't until they were far away that Sir Leonardo breathed a sigh of relief, strode into the room, and closed the door along the way.

"I'm sorry, I didn't come to see you until this time. Sir Leonardo sat apologetically next to Edward and looked around, "Looks like you're doing well - I thought they'd keep you in storage." ”

"Understand, you need time to decide what to do with this, and it should be harder than you think to make up your mind. Edward nodded quite understandingly: "So, what is the verdict for me?"

"That's what I'm here for...... Listen, that guy is coming over soon, so we'll cut it short. Leonardo patted Edward's shoulder, and his anxious face could tell that he was also in a complicated mood now: "We can't detain you for no reason, so Grand Master Kane decided to give you two choices." ”

"The first one is to forget the qiē of jì, leave the capital and go to the countryside or the east, you have good skills, you still have some money, you can live a good life when you get there, and if you are lucky, you may also have the opportunity to be a knight's attendant, and then inherit his title, this is possible. ”

"And then......" Edward naturally couldn't accept such a condition, and looked at Sir Leonardo with burning eyes: "What is the second choice?"

"Second option...... It was in the Church of the Radiant Cross that he swore allegiance to the Black Tree Banner on a white background and joined the Knights of the Sacred Tree. Leonardo's tone became very hesitant when he said this: "But I hope you can think it through before making this final decision." ”

"Are there any special conditions?" Edward noticed the change in the other party's expression, but still smiled to reassure him and said, "Even if there is, I think I will still choose the second one." ”

"Bang!" the fragile wooden door was smashed open again, and the loud noise that echoed through the corridor made both of them immediately raise their heads and look at Gaio Valence standing in the doorway, still with a stiff coffin face.

"Very well, I didn't expect you to go back to the country. A pair of cold eyes stared closely at Edward's every move: "Besides, Leonardo, I remember that Lord Kane entrusted him to me to be responsible, and you should have agreed, isn't it?"

Leonardo pressed Edward, who was just about to get up, stood up and blocked him behind him, and looked at Gaio unceremoniously: "The premise of my handing him over to you is that you promised to protect him and never kill him again, and after he swears, you will treat him as a brother of the Knights." ”

"And I've made a commitment. Gaiyo nodded solemnly, with a bit of doubt in his tone: "The descendants of the Valens family will never break their oath. ”

Sir Leonardo then stepped out of the way, glanced at Edward behind him, and then strode out of the room, before leaving the door, he didn't forget to hit a coffin face with his shoulder, and the stiff Gaiyo's cheek twitched slightly, but he still didn't look back, just watched him walk towards the stairs at the end of the corridor.

.................. Gaio waited until he saw Leonardo walking down the stairs before he closed the door and stood in front of Edward with his shoulders leaning against the door: "I think Leonardo should have told you all about that...... I don't have to repeat it, right?"

"That's right. Edward propped his hands on his thighs and slowly rose from the bed. Although he was still only sixteen or seventeen years old, he was tall enough not to look up at the knight of the Knights of the Sacred Tree: "I am willing to swear allegiance to the black tree banner on a white background. ”

"Although Lord Kane has agreed with your rhetoric, it does not mean that the Knights of the Sacred Tree have completely trusted you - yes, you are Tornier's squire, and he has expressed his wish that you will be able to wear that ring one day, but that is not enough, you need more to prove your loyalty to the Order!"

"I understand that there is no such thing as a free dinner. Edward was quite acceptable to this kind of thing, and he knew that if he wanted to join the Knights, it was not enough to rely on a ring and a few words of "truth": "What do you need me to do?"

"I think you'll remember the Blood Banner Brotherhood I mentioned to you on the night of King's Bridge. Gaiyo took a breath and said to Edward in a cold tone, "These scum came out of nowhere a year ago, and in the earliest days we thought they were no different from the bandit gangsters, but apparently they weren't. ”

"The activities of this group were extremely frequent - at first they were only plundering caravans, looting and stealing in the capital, but it seems that they suddenly changed their goals and turned to assassinate certain nobles of high status, to create panic in the city, and even to destroy it on a large scale, and to leave their mark with impunity, calling themselves the Blood Banner Brotherhood. ”

"At first we thought they were inseparable from the barbarians of the Eastern Blood, who were frenzied and terrible, and had many similarities with the heretics who believed in false gods. Gaiyo's expression turned cold: "Now it seems that maybe it is really inextricably linked with those wizards in Dominica." ”

"This organization, called the Blood Banner Brotherhood, has not really been known so far, but some rumors have begun to spread in Turin City, which is a very dangerous and tricky thing. Gaio said in a deep voice, "And His Majesty the King has entrusted this matter to the Knights. ”

"So the longer it drags on, the more severe the impact on the prestige of the Order. Edward understood, "But what the entire Knights of the Sacred Tree can't solve, are you so relieved of me?"

"No, in fact I don't believe you at all, and if I had made a decision, I would have thrown you off the top of this tower off the cliff in no time. Gaio answered Edward's question very honestly: "But you want a chance to prove your loyalty, and I respect that, so this task will be given to you." ”

"You need to find out what this damn Blood Banner Brotherhood is for, what their true identity is, why they always get information in advance, escape the Knights, and who is behind them. ”

"Sounds quite complicated. Edward shrugged his shoulders, "It will probably take a long time, and I don't even know how many districts there are in Turin." ”

"No one expects you to be able to do it, and even the slightest hint is worth it. Gayyo suddenly gave a creepy smile: "It's too late to regret it now—if you don't want to die in the gutter and wait until the day you stink and be found." ”

"Any solid clues—even the slightest hint would do? Edward directly ignored the second half of Gaio's sentence: "I can't think of it?"

Gaylo stared at Edward coldly, and after about ten seconds, he relaxed his face slightly, exhaled lightly and said to the black-haired boy: "There is news recently that there is a gang entrenched in the vicinity of a shanty in Dongcheng District, and it is said that they have some connection with the Blood Banner Brotherhood - we suspect that these people are recruiting people among the poor and the newcomers who have just entered the city, if you find this news useful, you might as well try it." ”

"But I just visited Turin once the day before yesterday. Edward looked at him, "Don't you think you should find me a guide or something?"

"You can hire one yourself, and I'm sure you'll make a lot of money during the time you've been working for the Minest family. Gaio tilted his chin disapprerovingly, "And it's actually better - at least so far, you hardly know you in Turin, in other words, it's also an excellent cover, it's much easier to blend in with the crowd than most of us, and it's hard to notice." ”

"I see. Edward nodded, and was about to walk out of the room, but Gaio Valence was still leaning against the door and not moving, staring coldly into Edward's eyes.

"I should have killed you that night. Gayor Valens stared at Edward word for word and said, "But now it seems that I may never have a chance." ”

"Shouldn't I be thankful then?" Edward smiled indifferently and replied in a rather confident tone, "I'll find the damn Brotherhood and settle this matter." ”

Gaiyo moved out of the door with a blank face, and even pushed the door open for Edward with his own hands: "Your first priority is to survive - you didn't die under my sword, and I don't want to see you slaughtered by others." ”

"Uh...... Can I take this as if you care about me?" Edward was stunned for a moment, and smiled a little slyly.

"Then get out of here with this 'concern'. Gaio Valence pressed his left hand on the hilt of his sword and smiled incredibly: "Could it be that you are going to make me more 'concerned'?"