The cold sea breeze blows from the long ruined harbor in the early morning, slightly lifting the veil of the otherwise foggy sea. A golden beam of light bloomed from the east of the sea, and the entire sky was awakened from the darkness by the morning light, sweeping away the gloomy monsoon rains, and the blue sky was crystal clear.

At the mouth of the coast outside Bright Star City, the auxiliaries were busy dismantling the barracks they had built, taking everything they could, and then burning the wooden fence and all that was left, and the pillars of smoke rising from a sea of fire could be seen clearly even from a few nautical miles away.

The white waves crashed on the shore, and the fleet of the Turin Expeditionary Force had already anchored outside the harbor of Bright Star City, and the flaming goshawk flags planted in Bright Star City had also been taken off and replaced with the flags of the Otovik family. Only the last soldiers were left to board the ship, and the army was about to return.

After several months, after Trist Otovic knelt down to the Kingdom of Turin and announced the surrender of Bright Star City, the war that involved the two kingdoms and killed tens of thousands of civilians and soldiers finally came to an end.

And all the surviving survivors and wizard nobles in Bright Star City also have no intention of preparing a farewell dinner for these "Turin invaders", and even the current ruler of Bright Star City, Trist Otovik, after careful consideration, chose to ignore the departure of this Turin army and turned his attention to Bright Star City.

Although the entire city-state has sworn allegiance to him, this is only the beginning - the Council of the Nine Rings of the Dominic Kingdom has not yet truly recognized the status of this "new Otovik family", many of which have been defeated by Bright Star City in the civil war. is also silently preparing for a counterattack. The Honan family, who had suffered betrayal, apparently did not let them go easily......

Although the "victory" of this war is so bitter for either side. But at least for now, everyone was able to calm down and enjoy the brief moment of peace, and be well prepared for the battle that was to come.

Leonardo Gombray, dressed in a white cloak and with a sword at his waist, stepped up the side of the flagship, tired and heavy for a long time...... All kinds of extremely suppressed emotions were swept away at this moment, and now he is the chief knight of the Knights of the Sacred Tree and the commander of the Turin Expeditionary Force!

Just last night, a royal knight had just arrived in the city of Bright Stars, and with the will of His Majesty Horace Marcherus. And it had spread throughout Turin - Sir Leonardo must at once lead the entire expeditionary force north to return to the royal city of Turin, according to the orders of the Royal Council.

For under the will of His Majesty Horace I, the whole kingdom was to hold a grand triumphal ceremony for the expeditionary force that had defeated the House of Otovik - and there was no greater glory in the three hundred long years of the kingdom of Turin!

Especially for knights, even a triumphal ceremony can be a lifelong thing to show off - Leonardo still remembers the last triumphal ceremony, when the Dominica War ended thirty years ago, when he was only a half-old boy, not even a squire.

Now this half-grown boy who used to stand only on the edge of the crowded street, looking at the knights walking on the flower-paved road with envy through the cracks of the crowd, wide-eyed and smirking. But he is about to participate in his own triumphal ceremony as the commander of the army, and the excitement is even Leonardo, who is the chief knight captain. I can't hold it anymore!

He was now even eager to fly back to Turin City, and he didn't intend to stay any longer in this Dominican land, and before dawn the entire expeditionary force had already packed everything and was ready to go.

And the mood of all the people in the entire expeditionary force was no different from that of the commander-in-chief - many of them had heard their fathers talk about the triumphal ceremonies of those years. Flowers, wine, cheers, celebrations, jousting competitions...... And who wouldn't yearn for it?

On the calm sea, the entire expeditionary force had all boarded the ships, lined up in a phalanx on the battleships as they had set off, and the icy sea breeze that blew away the morning mist blew through their cheeks, making the swallow-tailed flag hunt in the air.

Leonardo, who stood on the deck, with a proud but abrupt face, took the trumpet from the hand of the standard-bearer behind him under the gaze of the knights, and then puffed up his chest and blew it. The first sound of the desolate trumpet sounded on the sea.

Immediately after the second, the third...... The continuous ancient notes drifted melodiously on the sea, and the entire expeditionary fleet put away its anchors at the same time, and the white sails opened in the sea breeze, splitting the white waves, and sailing to the north, which was still a dark night!

............ And just as the expeditionary fleet was gradually disappearing on the horizon, another "Turin fleet" had already set sail, and the destination was not the city of Turin, but the port of The Hague that was closer to it.

Although there were quite a few southern knights and nobles who were ready to go to Turin for what might be a once-in-a-lifetime triumphal ceremony, it was clear that not all of them had the honour - at least not the auxiliaries and southern peasants who accompanied the army were not qualified to do so, and when the war was over, they would naturally have to be dismissed or returned to their respective lords' domains.

Fortunately, the spoils of war were extremely abundant this time, and almost even these peasants and soldiers who had not fought much were rewarded with a lot of rewards, so that they could not go to Turin City with the lord, and finally many complaints were calmed down, and there were no terrible scenes of mutiny or turmoil.

The only thing that surprised many was the southern hero of the battle, Viscount Otto Kwyn, who did not leave with the expeditionary force, but led the peasants back to The Hague Harbor - he was the first to lead the main force of the expeditionary force and enter the Lord's Palace!

Despite Leonardo's repeated attempts to keep him, Otto refused his invitation, so much so that all the knights of the Kwyn family chose to stay and not participate in the triumphal ceremony. Although Sir Leonardo regretted it, the significance of this triumphal ceremony was immeasurable for him, so he had to set off early.

"Is he on that ship too?"

The gentle sea breeze blew the girl's pale golden hair, and Alan Kwyn, who was leaning on the edge of the ship, was slightly stunned and muttered to himself, his blue eyes looking at the horizon in the distance: "Return to Turin City with the expeditionary force?"

"No knight can refuse a triumphant temptation, Miss Allen. Sir Lawrence, who was standing behind her, whispered, knowing who Alan was referring to, even though he didn't mention his name, "Not to mention that he's so young and has a brilliant record - half of Turin will cheer for this young 'Viscount of Hornhorn'." ”

"Viscount Fort Clarion...... yes, this guy is already a nobleman. As soon as he thought of this, Alan felt extremely incredible: "Obviously, when he first arrived at Fort Hague, he was just a waiter. ”

The Radiant Cross blessed him. Even if he didn't want to admit it, but he had to face the reality, Sir Lawrence had no choice but to say with emotion: "Let him show miracles again and again, and do things that ordinary people can't or have little hope for!"

"He's going to be popular, right?" asked Allen suddenly, in a tone of certainty, "There will definitely be a lot of girls who will be courteous to him." ”

“...... That's how it should be. After a moment of silence, Sir Lawrence nodded: "It was at that time that your father, Otto Kwyn, met Lady Angelica, and then ......"

"What about him?!" The girl's face suddenly showed a little nervousness, and her timid eyes were also a little flustered: "Edward - that annoying bad guy, will he ......"

"Will I ...... How?"

A familiar, slightly provocative voice came from behind her, and the almost unbelievable girl turned her head suddenly, and the black-haired knight, who had already changed into a brand new overcoat and a "bright star" hanging from his waist, was standing on the stairs on the side of the ship, the corners of his mouth still slightly curled.

"It's a great honor to be with you, Miss Alan Kwyn!" (To be continued......)