After receiving Edward's reply, Goodwin's family thanked each other and wept, the little boy with black curly hair was tightly held in the arms of his weeping mother, as if he was about to lose sight of him, and a relieved Goodwin also stood behind, constantly comforting his wife.

Edward walked silently and led the horse to him—for no more reason than he hated dreaming and reading fairy tales. But he knew that those things were really beautiful, and they would make people look forward to and be nostalgic, so he ...... Just leave it to someone else.

Goodwin picked up his son without saying a word, put him in Edward's saddle, and didn't say more than half a word, but bowed deeply, and the meaning and expectation of it naturally didn't need to be said. Edward nodded slightly, then climbed on his horse, and led the little boy in front of him towards the headquarters of the Knights of the Sacred Tree in Dongcheng District.

Throughout the journey, "Little Goodwin", who sat in front of Edward's saddle, did not say a word, and the little boy seemed to understand what was happening, so he did not make any noise or ask too much, just quietly watched the scenery along the street that kept leaving his field of vision.

Edward was quite satisfied with this, the Goodwin Chamber of Commerce was a complete surprise - although it was a surprise to bump into His Royal Highness the Prince, but a Chamber of Commerce with an independent fleet, since they did not have much reputation in Turin, it means that they must have a lot of connections and trade routes in Dominica.

You must know that in Turin, one of the four ships is flying the one-horned seahorse flag of the Minest family, and if it is replaced by a merchant ship, I am afraid that there will be more, and in this case, the Goodwin Chamber of Commerce still has its own fleet, which is indeed very powerful - having such a friend can fight for more help for himself in the future.

Therefore, Edward was not in a hurry to ask him for something in return, and he could imagine how rich the cargo of the ocean-going merchant ships was, even if he only took a percent, he would soon be richer than a silver-haired wizard who opened a coffee shop. But Edward wanted more than just money in return.

He wanted to make the head of the Chamber of Commerce owe him a debt of money, and he couldn't make him feel like he had paid off his favor - to put it another way, to make a potential friend, but a little different from Marco Tasker's kind.

When the two of them reached the foot of the garrison hill, little Goodwin looked up at the castle standing on the cliff in the distance, and looked back at Edward in a daze: "Are you going to send me to that tower?"

"I'll try to get the clerk in the castle to give you a little easier work - like packing up weapons or cleaning the church, and you're safe here, as I promised your father. Edward looked at him and said indifferently: "As long as you stay here for a few months, you can go home when the limelight passes." ”

"I didn't want to go back, my classmates at the academy called me a Dominic bastard and humiliated my mother. Little Goodwin shook his head, "I'm good at bookkeeping, I'm pretty handwritten, and I'm the best at arithmetic in the academy - can I be a clerk at the Knights' headquarters?"

"I can help you ask if the Knights need a clerk as small as you. ”

"Can I be your squire, then?" said little Goodwin as he looked at Edward, "I'll be very obedient, a young knight like you must not have an acolyte, right?"

"To be my squire, you have to be smart, brave and powerful. Edward smiled, "Do you think you're up to these standards?"

"It's impossible, no one can have so many advantages at the same time. Little Goodwin frowned: "You're just trying to force me, you just want to reject me." ”

"Who ever made the rule that a man can't have so many virtues? Who told you that you can't do that?" Edward curled the corners of his mouth, as if to say to him, as if to say to himself, "If we don't ask for something in this world, how can we prove that we have really lived once?"

"Besides, isn't it clever to be able to guess that I'm rejecting you? you only have two virtues left to grasp now, keep up the good work, the Radiant Cross is protecting you. ”

"Are you really rejecting me?" Little Goodwin said angrily, "I'll prove it to you, don't regret it when the time comes, lose such an excellent squire as me!"

"It's good to be able to openly express your anger is a brave kind of thing - although many people call this 'death', there is only one thing to overcome. ”

The two men who were arguing with each other just walked down the street on the hill and crossed the suspension bridge in front of the headquarters gate. The old Senna who lost his right arm was in charge today, which saved Edward a lot of trouble, although he had basically seen the sixty Knights of the Sacred Tree in Turin City, but few were really familiar with each other.

Edward left little Goodwin in the saddle and walked over by himself: "Sorry to disturb you, old Sir Senna, I may have something to trouble you - is the Grand Master here today?"

"It's a misfortune that you've got something to ask Master Mercer Kane. Old Cena shook his head, "Grand Master left yesterday morning to oversee the restoration of Pipe Town - probably because of Knight Valens, and there is a lot of gossip about the Knights of the Sacred Tree right now, so we have to make a show." ”

"But if you're in a hurry, you don't need to bother to go to the Grand Master. Old Senna's somewhat frightening face showed a kind smile: "As long as it's not a particularly important issue." ”

"What do you mean?" Edward's right eye jumped.

Old Cena was about to speak, but suddenly he raised his head and pointed to the church facing the castle gate, from where a familiar figure was approaching. Edward smiled and stepped forward and nodded slightly at the man who came, "Greetings to you, Master Leonardo Cambrai." ”

........................ "If that's the case, I might as well consider arranging for this kid to be at the Knights' headquarters, where he can sleep with the squires and the servants at the headquarters, and then arrange for some minor work." After listening to what Edward said, Leonardo, who was very tired, finally nodded: "Those Turin nobles have gone too far, I really don't understand why Your Majesty would use an extreme old-fashioned figure like Nafario." ”

"Perhaps it is precisely because of his old-fashioned ideas that His Majesty believes in his absolute loyalty. Edward said casually: "It is said that the more radical a person is, the more simple he is, and this Lord Nafario Brindisi is said to be very religious, a trait that the Chancellor of the Exchequer needs, rather than being financially proficient." ”

"That's right, if you can become Chancellor of the Exchequer if you are well versed in finance, it is the Marquis of Holard Minest. Sir Leonardo nodded sympathetically: "As for Nafarion, who is at most in charge of the royal library, and who lives in the garbage heap of history, he is only worthy of dealing with parchment." ”

"Then I will leave this matter to you, I promised the child's father, Mr. Goodwin, to ensure the safety of his child. Edward shrugged his shoulders: "I know this may be difficult for you, a child with half Dominic blood......"

"No, no, no, in fact I'm even more surprised - you almost died at the hands of a Dominic wizard, and you were beaten and tortured by Dominic mercenaries and locked up in a prison cell. Leonardo had a faint smile on his face: "I originally thought that you would hate the Dominicans for the rest of your life." ”

"Perhaps, but I never felt the right to implicate hatred on unrelated people, especially since I had revenge. Edward shook his head, then turned and walked towards the door.

"I have heard from the knights of the royal palace that you are already the military attache of His Royal Highness the Prince. Leonardo suddenly called out to Edward from behind: "That is...... Is that your choice?"

"In case you're wondering, yes. The black-haired boy who stood there did not look back, and replied silently, "It may not make you happy, but this is the path I chose for myself." ”

"I won't be upset, as long as you choose what you won't regret in the future. Leonardo's voice was calm: "I just want to say that you have chosen a dangerous future. ”

"But it's also full of opportunities, and more unknowns, more variables. ”

There was a brief silence, and Leonardo Cambrai watched Edward's back as he stood in front of the door, as if the black-haired boy who had been sitting by the campfire, hesitating from side to side, was moving away from him.

“............ You're not the same Edward Witwood you were at King's Bridge, though you still look the same. After hesitating for a while, Sir Leonardo spoke slowly: "What I saw at that time was a child who was extremely confused about the future, confused about what he was pursuing, and who didn't even understand why he was swinging his sword - but now, everything you do has a clear purpose, and maybe it includes the present." ”

Edward, who was standing in front of the door, turned around slowly, and looked at Leonardo, who was sinking into the water, with great calm: "I am still the same Edward Wetwood, the only difference is that I have found my purpose, and nothing has changed - whether it is loyalty to the Knights, or to you!"

After saying that, Edward saluted Sir Leonardo very respectfully, opened the door and strode out of the room.