After leaving the Earl's Palace, Viscount Leon Castells sat in his carriage and returned to his family's residence in North Port with great concern.
As soon as he got out of the car, Derek de Lencastle, surrounded by servants, hurried over to greet him and asked with a worried look:
"Grandpa, how are you? Has the young count of Castres given you any trouble?"
The old Viscount frowned at him and scolded:
"What little count? That is our lord, the respected Lord Count Castells!"
Derek was startled, as if he was a little surprised by his grandfather's sudden change of attitude:
"Grandpa, you are not..."
The old Viscount glared at him, glanced at the surrounding servants, and whispered:
"Come to the study with me."
Entering the study, Viscount Len-Castell dismissed the waiter and maid, while Derek took the initiative to pour his favorite Syonite honey wine for his grandfather.
The old Viscount picked up the wine glass and took a sip, his expression softened slightly, and Derek couldn't help but ask:
"Grandfather, why do you... suddenly have so much respect for the little... Earl?"
The old Viscount glanced at him and said calmly:
"We are the vassals of Castells. It is our duty to be loyal to the lord. Naturally, we should respect the Earl."
"But...but didn't you say before that Castel has no future and will be annexed by other big nobles sooner or later?"
Derek couldn't help but said.
He frowned, puzzled by the changes in his grandfather:
"Without the protection of the Blazing Sun and the loss of the protection of the Boulder family, Castel is still a vassal of Bold, but everyone can see that it is already on the verge of collapse. As a branch of Castel, we must
You need to plan early, and the Fallen Star Bloodborn is a force that can be invested in..."
After listening to his grandson's words, the old Viscount looked at him deeply:
"These words were told to you by your friends from the Fallen Star Kingdom, right?"
Derek made a move, quickly lowered his head and said:
"You... are worrying too much. I don't have any friends from Fallen Star Kingdom..."
The old Viscount waved his hand and said:
"Okay, even though I'm old, I'm not blind. I haven't asked about some things, but that doesn't mean I don't know. I just don't want to ask more. After all, sometimes, it's always good to prepare more escape routes...
"
"Don't worry, the Leon-Castle family will belong to you sooner or later. I don't have the energy to train a new heir. Although you don't have the talent like your father, you are better than your prodigal uncles."
, the family leaves it to you, at least the defeat will be slower."
After hearing his grandfather's words, Derek's face turned pale and red:
"Grandpa, I didn't..."
The old Viscount sighed:
"I know you don't have any bad intentions. I'm always strict with you. Several of your uncles have their own territories. It's normal for you to worry about your inheritance. You can also make friends with some extraordinary people to stabilize your position.
understand……"
"It is better to say that even I acquiesce in your actions. The North is no better than the South. If the blood descendants of the Fallen Star Kingdom want to extend their hands into Castel, our small Len branch will not have the power to do so.
To compete...rather than doing this, it is better to surrender to the past, and perhaps take advantage of the change of power to maintain or even strengthen the family's status."
"Then...have you changed your mind now? Why?"
Derek couldn't help but ask.
The old Viscount glanced at him:
"You should have known about the attack on the Earl last night, right?"
Derek subconsciously wanted to deny it, but looking into his grandfather's deep eyes, he finally nodded honestly:
"Yes I know……"
However, after nodding, he quickly said:
"But I didn't know that they actually used Arles as a cover, and I never thought that that guy from Arles would suddenly push us, Len Castel, to the forefront! This is different from what was promised at the beginning!"
The old Viscount snorted coldly and said:
"Don't you understand yet? This is the fallen star blood descendants who are forcing us, Len Castel, to take sides. After all, among the three viscounts, we are the closest to Castel, and we also have the best reputation in the earldom.
Well, the influence is also the highest. It is easy to take advantage of the in-law relationship to strengthen one's own power after problems arise in the Castel family..."
"The new moon is not a falling star, nor is it Corea. After all, those blood descendants do not dare to blatantly rule the North. In the end, they have to rely on the nobles of the North!"
Speaking of this, the old Viscount seemed to have remembered something, and suddenly asked:
"Derek, after yesterday, the blood descendants of Fallen Star Kingdom didn't continue to contact you, right?"
Derek looked like how did you know, looking a little embarrassed:
"You...you know everything?"
"To be honest with you, yes, they did not contact me again. They clearly promised that they would succeed, but it seems... but it seems..."
"But it seems to have failed, and the contact was suddenly lost after the failure, right?"
Viscount Len-Castell asked.
"Yes."
Derek answered honestly.
Seeing his grandson who was not very smart but always arrogant, the old Viscount suddenly felt tired.
He sighed and said seriously:
"Derek, stop contacting the Fallen Starblood."
"The blood descendants of the Fallen Star Kingdom are probably no match for the Earl. The Earl's background is far beyond our imagination. After all, she is the child of His Highness. Even if the family is in decline, she will still have some trump cards in her hand.
.”
"Grandpa, what happened?"
Derek couldn't help but ask.
The old Viscount paused and said:
"The Blood Count who planned this infiltration is probably dead."
"Dead...dead?"
Derek's eyes widened and he couldn't help but exclaimed.
The old Viscount glared at him:
"Keep your voice down. It's good that you know this, but... I think it will spread in your circle soon..."
"Overnight, the earl silently got rid of a Blazing Sun blood descendant who was targeting her. There must be a strong person guarding her in secret, and Castel's heritage is still there."
After hearing his grandfather's words, Derek's expression changed slightly:
"Then...then what should we do?"
The old Viscount glanced at him with disgust:
"Why are you panicking? It is the vampires of Fallen Star Kingdom who are trying to overthrow Castel, not us Len Castel!"
"But……"
"It's nothing to worry about, Derek. The past is in the past. Even if the Earl doesn't know the details of what you did, I'm afraid he knows a lot about it. Otherwise, he wouldn't beat me up. However, the Earl
I have no intention of continuing to pursue the case. Those who will be unlucky are the blood descendants who have sneaked into the earldom and the nobles who have followed them wholeheartedly."
After hearing his grandfather's words, Derek suddenly felt something in his heart:
"what do you mean……"
"I mean, this might be our chance as well, Len Castel."
The old Viscount was very meaningful.
As he spoke, he took out the review order that Charlotte gave him from his arms and handed it to his grandson:
"Derek, next you must draw a clear line between you and the blood descendants of Fallen Star, and help me complete this work."
Derek took it and browsed it carefully, then his face turned pale:
"Examine the nobles? Wait... you also need to check the family property?! Your Lord Count is going to put us, Len Castel, on the fire! And... how can we make other nobles obedient?
!”
"Grandfather, if we really do this, the reputation we have accumulated among the nobles over the years will probably collapse, and all the Castel nobles will be hostile to us!"
The old Viscount sighed:
"Of course I know these things, but we have no choice... The earl has made it clear that he will never allow us to have both sides. The power of the Castel family cannot depose all the nobles in the earl territory, but it can't deal with just one
The Viscount’s family is more than enough.”
As he spoke, he gritted his teeth:
"Since there is no choice, it is better to completely pledge your loyalty to the Earl, assist Castel in crushing the plans of the fallen blood descendants, and maximize the benefits for us, Len Castel!"
"But...but will this really not cause a rebellion among the territorial nobles? We Len Castel will definitely be the first to suffer! The earl may just be overthrown, deposed, and driven away, but we
Len Castel may be destroyed by the anger of other nobles!"
The old Viscount drank all the mead in the cup and said quietly:
"Derek, do you know how many people the Earl sent out when he took back the mining workshop?"
"how many people?"
Derek couldn't help but asked curiously.
The old Viscount made a three sign:
"Three people, only three people, except for the earl, there are only three people, and two of them are accompanying maids, plus at most one pet cat..."
"Three people? How is this possible?! There are extraordinary people and guards stationed at the mining workshop! Why does she..."
Derek looked ridiculous.
"Why? Based on the prestige of the Castel family that has ruled the Northland for hundreds of years, based on the title of Earl of the Northland, and based on Castel's influence in the kingdom!"
The old Viscount said loudly.
As he spoke, he glanced at his grandson and said:
"Even though Lord Earl is younger than you, she is much stronger than you."
"As far as I know, he broke into the mine that day with only his butler. Not only did he kill a blood descendant of the second level of Silver Moon, but he also gained the allegiance of the mine guards with a few words!"
"Not only that, even Viscount Remicio, who guards the Castel silver mine, has an old relationship with the Castel family. He even assisted the count in putting down the rebellious mine steward that day!"
"Before I left, His Excellency the Count said that he would send professional personnel to assist in the review process. If my guess is correct... it is very likely that it will be Viscount Remicio."
"The Kingdom's Army? She...she dares to ask for help from the Kingdom's Army? Castel is not a vassal of His Majesty the King! Such behavior will never be approved by the nobles!"
Derek couldn't help but said.
"But... what if the earl holds evidence of betrayal by the nobles? What if the earl has a legal reason to take back the title?"
The old Viscount said quietly.
As he spoke, he sighed softly:
"The blood descendants of the Fallen Star Kingdom were wrong, and they are still wrong after all..."
"They thought they could use provoking internal fighting among the Castel nobles to better balance the power of the nobles and make it easier for them to control them, but they didn't expect that they would instead give the Earl a big gift..."
"With the various nobles' handles, the Count has every reason to exaggerate a small matter and take the opportunity to take back his title. If someone rebels, it is no different from rebellion. With her personal relationship, she must be able to ask Viscount Remicio for help."
"I heard that the Remicio family is very short of money, and what Castel is most in need of is money. Viscount Remicio is a guy who dares to do anything as long as he has enough money. The count is fully capable of circumventing it.
There are various restrictions on the kingdom’s army, and the Remicio family is being roped in through private employment and even alliances!”
"At that time, the army guarding the Castel Silver Mine will replace the crescent flag and raise the flag of the Remicio family. Even if everyone knows that they are not Remicio's levies but the out-and-out royal army,
You can only hold your nose and admit it, and the noble private soldiers in the North are definitely no match for those well-equipped professional armies!"
"Derek, it is no longer possible for the blood descendants of Fallen Star to control Castel. If you want to control Castel, you must control the Earl, but they have failed."
"The extraordinary power is protected by a mysterious strong man, and the secular army has the Remicio family to win over. If my guess is correct, maybe Viscount Remicio has received a letter from the Earl asking for help!"
Derek was stunned as he listened to his grandfather's various analyses.
The old Viscount looked helplessly at his grandson, who was almost useless except for some extraordinary talents, and sighed:
"Derek, please stay close to the Earl from now on."
"I have a hunch...even if there is support from the legendary blood clan, those fallen star blood descendants may not be the Earl's opponent!"
"Although Lord Earl is young, when standing in front of her, even me, a second-level knight of Silver Moon, is always arrogant and dare not show off. If anyone really treats her as a child, I am afraid he will suffer a big loss!"
…
The grandfather and grandson of the Leon-Castle family had a heart-to-heart talk and almost decided on the future direction of the family's alignment.
At the same time, among the Kingdom's troops stationed outside the Castel Silver Mine, Viscount Remicio also received the letter from Charlotte sent through the teleportation array.
The fierce Viscount was sitting by the campfire, eating barbecue, picking up the letters with his greasy hands and browsing them, and sneered:
"Huh? Hire the Royal Army to guard the mines? Hey, this little earl is quite courageous! How can the Royal Army interfere in the affairs of the duke's vassal family? This is a public weapon for private use! And it is beyond the level!"
As he spoke, he picked up the large wooden cup with wine on the side and took a big sip into his mouth. However, when he saw clearly the number of employment contributions on the letter, he immediately spit out all the wine in his mouth:
"Pfft...cough cough cough...cough cough cough cough...the commission of a kingdom soldier is at least five hundred quintana?!"
After a sudden change in his expression, Viscount Remicio stood up suddenly and shouted to the adjutant who was drinking with others not far away:
"Glenn! How many clan flags did the family bring? Turn them all over for me!"