Bright sunlight filtered through the openwork windows, staining the airy bathroom a touch of gold. A bronze water pipe gushes out of the hand of a statue of a young girl and flows slowly into the oval-shaped bath.

After testing the temperature of the water for a while, the tired blonde girl gradually immersed her body in the hot water at the right temperature, and slowly closed her eyes with a comfortable soft moan. The gentle water relaxes every tense position of the delicate body, and the smooth skin relaxes slightly, releasing the fatigue of traveling all the way, and quietly enjoying this rare morning.

There's nothing better than taking a hot bath and getting a good night's sleep. Allen, who was immersed in the steam and hot water, was now full of thoughts and hurried to lie down on the soft feather bed.

"Would you like something to drink, miss?" the little maid walked in with a tray of treasures, and asked Alan with a smile, "This trip is really tiring, why does Lord Edward insist on taking the carriage instead of the boat?"

Because that guy...... Allen, who heard the little maid's question, laughed instead, but before she could explain, she saw a glass of crystal clear pomegranate juice: "We don't have pomegranates in our carriage, did we just buy them?"

"No, people found it in the garden. The little maid cocked her nose proudly, and then scratched her head in distress: "But the garden here doesn't look big, but it's easy to get lost, and if it weren't for a few servants to show me the way, I'd still be walking around in it!"

"It seems that this Duke of Berion is really generous. Meimei drank a glass of pomegranate juice, and Alan said with some emotion: "But why did he do this-he shouldn't have even seen Edward's face once, right?"

"Maybe it's because the Duke admires him very much. The little maid replied with a chuckle, "The servants have also told me that the Duke of Berion is a very kind and generous man!"

"Perhaps......" Alan replied softly with a slight hesitation, his blue eyes shining through the glare of the light outside the window to see Edward walking through the garden. The expression on his face did not mean joy, but an extremely serious appearance, as if he had encountered some terrible enemy.

Yes, although he didn't know why the Duke, who had never even met him, was so "generous" to him, Edward knew very well that the city of Turin was even more dangerous now than it was more than a year ago, with rats and spider-like spies popping up almost all the streets.

And how much trouble will you encounter if you accept the "gift" of the Duke of Berrion at such a time? But it is his only choice so far - as a military attache of the Wang family, of course, he can't live up to the kindness of this royal brother at the beginning, especially when the other party has a very legitimate reason.

What really made Edward curious was what he cared so much about the noble duke, and his attitude was so ambiguous - from Marco Tasker's letter, he knew that the other party had found out about his relationship with the silver-haired wizard, so what should he do next?

"Perhaps...... Some silver-haired wizard who came and went without a trace was able to explain a little to me. Almost as soon as he turned around, Marco Tasker, with a sly smile, was already sitting on a bench in the garden of the mansion. Edward, who was a little curious, curled the corners of his mouth playfully: "How did you escape the surveillance of those servants and then break in alone?"

No matter how stupid Edward was, he knew it. The servants in the house must have been spies of the Duke of Berrion - he wasn't stupid enough to believe that he really just wanted to give him a "gift".

"Good question, but I'm not going to explain why. Marco Tasker's face showed a slightly pitiful expression, and he spread his hands as if he was sad: "You now have an assassin as powerful as Ludwig Dorian, and I'm afraid that I, a useless wizard, is already a superfluous fellow in your eyes." ”

"Surely you don't think so, do you?" Edward didn't even have much interest in answering—rather he knew the silver-haired sissy too well, "Otherwise, why would you be in such a hurry for me to answer Turin?"

"Because you don't have a reason to stay in The Hague Fort anymore, do you?" Marco Tasker said with a rhetorical smile, "You have usurped all the benefits you can get in the south, and what point is it to stay any longer?"

"Forts of Horn and Fort The Hague will be my domain. The port of The Hague is destined to become more and more prosperous, and the lords of the south are slowly beginning to accept me. Edward replied calmly. By the way, he also blinked his eyes "confused": "I don't see any reason why I can't stay." ”

"But those people will never accept you, just as they have never really accepted Viscount Otto Kwyn in the past few decades!" Marco's voice suddenly rose to the top: "The lords of the south and the old nobles of Turin are all on the same page—marriages, histories, disputes...... All of these rotten trees are intertwined like a huge tower, and outsiders can't even enter their circle!"

"You're able to profit for them now, so these greedy and old-fashioned people will pretend to see you as 'their own', but only when the Minesters decide to do it...... How many people will be on your side?" Marco Tasker sneered, "They're just going to use you as a scapegoat." ”

"You're going to need a land where you have wealth and power -- but that's definitely not the South. Definitely not one of those greedy people who don't have the slightest ability to take on ambition, you need to go back to Turin. ”

"Of course, there is also danger in the city of Turin now - you need someone to sort out the relationship between all the forces in the whole city of Turin - in the Imperial Council, the nobles of Turin, the Church. Guilds: you need to spot the cobwebs lurking in the shadows and corners in time, figure out what everyone is for, and what exactly they are going to do. ”

At this, Marco Tasker regained a smug smile on his face: "I'm sure I can do it for you, and I won't disappoint you." ”

"The first thing I want to know now is about Duke Berrion Marcherus. Edward's eyes gradually became serious: "What does he want to do - is he going to use me as a gunman against Marquis Holard Minest?"

"Oh...... There may be such a thing, but I think there may be more than that. Marco chuckled, "Even whether he can keep his title of 'Duke' is a very serious question, not to mention anything else. ”

"Of course, it's impossible to deny that this Duke of Barrion is very powerful—I don't even know how he sensed what I was doing...... Maybe it's a guess, maybe it's a bribe of the inner ghost, but luckily he shouldn't be aware of the existence of the Blood Banner Brotherhood, otherwise you'd have seen my head on the walls. Marco shrugged his shoulders self-deprecatingly: "Maybe I can be a companion with the previous leader, His Excellency Cortez!"

"And what about tomorrow's Council of the Throne, do you have any gossip or rumors?"

"Maybe there is another rebellion in the north, maybe the city is not as stable as the Duke of Berrion said, or maybe there is some major crisis in the east, or maybe His Majesty Horace, who is not in good health, is preparing to make a prince early so that His Highness Anson can learn how to rule the kingdom of Turin...... Anything is possible, it's up to you to find out for yourself. ”

"But now......" Marco stood up in his chair and bowed respectfully to Edward, "Allow me to extend my sincerest greetings, Lord Edward Witwood. ”

"Welcome back to Turin!" (To be continued......)

PS: Thank you for the tip. As for Sora, the beginning and end of each volume can be the most difficult to write, because I like to put the climax on some key points of the plot, so the ending of the second volume is a little bland, just paving the way for Edward to gain a foothold in the south and return to Turin.

The third volume began.,A lot of book friends have asked if Kongkong likes to write about power struggles or palace conspiracy or the like.,In fact, these contents are more brain-burning than war scenes.,But it must exist.,So Kongkong will try to write more exciting.,I hope you forgive me.。

But please also believe that writing about hegemony and war is what Sokong is best at, so the third volume is absolutely indispensable, and the length and number far exceed the battle of Bright Star City in the second volume, please look forward to it!