The streets were filled with a festive atmosphere, and an equally sumptuous feast was going on in the halls of the castle - the burning fireplace banished the last of the winter cold from the rooms in the hall, and the oily roast beef and the fragrant roast leg of lamb tumbled on the grill, and the smell could be smelled just by standing outside the door.

The kitchen in the castle wing was already busy, and the flames in the boilers burned louder than the fireplaces in the halls - all of whom had been brought back from the seahorse port by Madame Angelica, and were well versed in the cuisine of the south of Turin and the Dominicans, and even a few of them could cook West Coast specialties.

Roasted suckling pig with rosemary, roasted rabbit with cheese, pickled cucumber with broth, pork sausage with mustard, mushroom cream soup, black pudding...... The attendants and the servants of the castle kept shuttling between the kitchen and the side door of the castle hall, and with great vigor and vigorously, they carried a steady stream of plates full of delicious dishes like flowing water, and the long tables arranged in the shape of "doors" were immaculate, the dark blue gold-rimmed tablecloth was spotless, and the silver-plated candlesticks and the chandelier on the dome of the hall were dyed with a layer of joy.

While you won't find the same good wine in The Hague as in Turin, the lords of the south prefer the local pear wine and cider, the mead loved by the noblewomen, and the chilled cherry wine that will impress even the most discerning guests...... Even in the face of time constraints, Mrs. Angelica, who pays attention to pomp and circumstance, still prepares this banquet with flowers.

Nearly all the visiting southern nobles, especially many knights of great repute, sat around the edge of the long table on the dance floor in the center of the hall, and nearly a hundred people were seated in the spacious and lively hall. Except for a very small number of knights who were extremely disappointed because of the defeat in the tournament. The entire dinner was almost full.

And as one of the highest status guests in the whole banquet. Sir Ellert Millard naturally took the position of his master, Viscount Otto Kwyn. The heir of Hantu City seemed to be completely undisturbed by his defeat in the tournament during the day, and he laughed and enjoyed the black pepper lamb chops mixed with cauliflower and lemon cake on his plate, and a pot full of chilled cherry wine in front of him, looking quite excited.

I don't know if it was intentional or not, Edward's seat was arranged next to him, and the black-haired knight took a sip of pear wine, and his face was a little calm that was out of place with the whole banquet, and he didn't look happy at all. It's like watching a lively drama.

"Don't you seem to be happy—is there any particular reason?" After a large glass of cherry wine, Ellet looked at Edward sideways, "You are the winner today, Miss Alan will be your fiancée tonight, and there is a castle as a dowry, and I am afraid that someone else would have been so excited that he drank himself to death." ”

"Perhaps...... But I'm not that enthusiastic about banquets or celebrations, and I'm just a little lacking in interest. Edward just smiled and shook his head: "Of course, I'm really happy now, it's just ...... It doesn't have to be. ”

Ellet nodded thoughtfully: "Maybe that's why you can win me - it's true that it's not an ordinary knight, and an ordinary knight can't be Miss Allen's fiancée or a lord within a year." ”

Or...... Let's talk about this morning in the arena while we're all sober. The proposal you mentioned. Ellert finally put down the glass, and glanced sharply at Lady Angelica, who was sitting in front of him: "Seriously. I'm very interested in that. ”

"Do you think now is the perfect time to talk about this?" Glancing at the waiter holding the flask behind him, Edward asked rhetorically, "How many pairs of eyes are staring at you in this hall?"

"I think there are quite a few pairs of eyes on you, Viscount Edward Witwood. Ellet smiled nonchalantly, "Do you know how many enemies you will have to win Miss Allen's favor?"

"But if the rewards are great, there's nothing to regret. Edward replied, "In this world, even the Radiant Cross has many false gods to fight against, and what mortal man dares to claim to have no enemies?"

“...... It seems that you are right not to drink alcohol and to be able to keep your mind clear. After thinking about it for a while, Ellert, who seemed to understand a lot, nodded thoughtfully, but still took a drink from his wine glass: "But that kind of life is not for me!"

Edward shrugged his shoulders and said nothing more. Ellett looked at the fellow thoughtfully—he couldn't believe it to the Viscount of Fort Clarion that he would make a proposal to join forces against the Minests.

Why? He lost to him in a duel, and no amount of quibbling could change the fact, and even if he really faced the revenge of the Millar family, Ellert absolutely did not believe that the Marquis of Holard behind Lady Angelica would not intervene, and that he might lose himself at that time—even if Ellert did not believe that he would lose.

No one could refuse to be friends with the Minests - especially in the face of their inexhaustible wealth and possessions. Gold and diamonds may not be able to buy loyalty, but they can destroy the loyalty of many and lure the greedy depravity of the heart.

But Ellet still didn't believe that Edward had only decided to ally with him in order to fight against the Minesters, and that there must have been some conspiracy, some conspiracy that he had not been able to discover.

He wanted to gain a foothold in the South, he didn't want to be ostracized by the lords of the South, and he wanted to rely on the Broken Horn Fortress to bring him wealth and power - all the lords wanted to do this, so Hantu City would be his best target.

Is Edward plotting something? certainly, but one thing he is right is that if he wants to fight against the Minester family, it is impossible to fight alone, and only when the whole of the South is united will there be a chance for the "one-horned seahorse" to stumble.

Accompanied by the sound of old, gentle music, rigorous steps and lyrical tunes form a dance style that is very different from Dominica's, and all the guests step onto the dance floor with their dance partners, dancing to the heartstrings of the song.

The only surprise to many of the guests was that Alan Kwyn had already left the dinner party—the servants had given some explanations, but almost no one believed that the young girl would have left such an important banquet because she was "too sleepy."

Edward, who was sitting on the side, smiled a little knowingly - although Alan is very talented in many things, and his mind is extremely sharp, but he has always been ignorant of dance and music, even with the hand-in-hand teaching of an excellent lady like Lady Angelica, it does not help, and in the end he can only reluctantly give up the idea of letting Alan learn court dance steps.

Just as Edward was about to go upstairs, a small hand suddenly grabbed the hem of his clothes from behind. Somewhat surprised, Edward turned around and slowly squatted down: "Angela...... Don't you like to go to banquets, why are you here?"

"Because Angela has something very important to tell Edward. The little maid hiding behind the pillars of the hall still had a doll-like expression: "The squire is back." ”

"Squire...... You mean little Goodwin?" Edward reacted for a moment before asking, only to see the little maid nodding and squinting curiously, "How do you know?"

Angela just knows. The little maid snorted softly, "That squire should have just come ashore by now, as if he had been looking for Edward, is Edward going to find him?"

Little Goodwin is back, which means that the mission has been completed...... Or failure to be discovered, either - but either way, you have to figure out the whereabouts of the gold as soon as possible!

"Oh, yes. The little maid Angela suddenly raised her little head: "There seems to be another guy next to that squire." (To be continued......)