Stepping into the Hall of Heroes, Thales immediately saw the large fireplace with which he had an indissoluble bond, as well as the dark and ferocious spear on the gun rack above.
In the hall, many vassals from Longxiao City who are qualified to participate in the political hearing day have arrived.
Thales frowned as he looked at the scene in the Hall of Heroes.
The layout of the hall has been changed: in addition to the Grand Duke's seat in front of the fireplace, many seats have been placed on both sides of the oval stone hall, facing the Grand Duke and facing each other, leaving only the middle area empty.
But even on such a solemn occasion, the people of the North still showed their rough and unrestrained side.
Apparently some nobles were dissatisfied with the position of their seats. After sitting down, they deliberately adjusted it by one or two steps, as if they were trying to compete with the arranged seats. Looking from a distance, the conference site, which was originally in the shape of a three-sided pocket, was
After the arrival of the vassals, it gradually became messy and scattered. In addition, the noise and noise of the northern nobles meeting acquaintances or meeting for the first time made the whole hall seem a bit messy.
Reminds the prince of the Exeter banquet.
But Thales noticed that when the Grand Duke lowered his head, the six nearest seats remained motionless. Even though many vassals behind them were moving their seats, no one dared to cross or even touch those six seats.
Looking at the six seats, Thales, who had already expected it, already knew it.
Thales' arrival seemed to have alarmed many people, and the noise was much quieter: many northern nobles turned back and looked at this foreign prince who had not appeared often in the past six years, showing various expressions in their eyes.
The prince lowered his head and deliberately avoided eye contact with these people. Under the leadership of Lord Justin, he came to an extremely remote seat, away from the dense crowd of Northland nobles. Rolf stood against the wall behind him.
"Listen, just keep a low profile," Lord Justin said coldly: "If anything happens, I have already told the people around me, they know what to do..."
But the Lord's words paused.
With the sound of a seat mopping the floor, a young man unceremoniously moved his seat to Thales' side and sat down heavily.
Thales was also stunned.
"I never like that every meeting of the Northlanders is like a quarrel between gorillas," a familiar voice came from the side, chattering incessantly and vividly: "You know, a male gorilla in heat beats his chest.
Roaring at a love rival..."
When Thales was stunned, Lord Justin's face became ugly:
"His Excellency Viscount Ian Roney."
"As the envoy of Qiyuan City, it seems that your seat is not here?"
Beside Thales, Ian, who was imitating a gorilla to beat his chest, closed his O-shaped mouth, retracted his hands, and nodded indifferently: "I know, my seat is over there..."
Following his fingers, Thales turned to the other side of the hall: Ned Monty, the "Dead Crow" whom he had met a few days ago, was sitting in the chair of the Qiyuan City Mission with a bold posture, laughing.
Behind him, a group of nobles from the Qiyuan City Mission stared in this direction with livid faces, staring at their theoretical leader, Ian Ronny, from a distance.
"I promised to introduce him to some beautiful widows with 'bold style' in Windy City, so Monty finally agreed to help me hold off those old guys," Ian sighed: "But I didn't tell him
, in Fengcheng, the aesthetic standards of Xitao people are actually different from ours."
Thales also sighed. He no longer wanted to complain about this shameless heir to Qiyuan City.
As the Prince of Stars and the people from Qiyuan City took their seats, the unique noise of the Northland returned to the hall.
Until a loud shout shook the entire audience.
Thales recognized this voice, it was the herald's call.
Following his call, several nobles who seemed to have extraordinary weight at first glance walked into the hall in just a few minutes, sooner or later, sooner or later, as if they had made an appointment.
"Count of Firenberg, Solon Curterson!" As the herald called out, the first man who walked in was about fifty years old, and he was actually wearing a military uniform. His eyes radiated a sharp light, which made people laugh.
Thales couldn't help but frown.
"Holt Nagel, Earl of Stone Tomb and Hatting County!" This is an old nobleman. He is slowly moving forward with the support of his attendants, but the nobles beside him all subconsciously get out of the way.
the way.
"Earl of Wildwood, Stone Linner!" Earl Linner seemed not much younger than Curtson. He was dressed rigorously, had a serious expression, and looked intently, as if he was about to rush to the battlefield at any time.
"Count of Hunting and Origami, Kahn Kierkegaard!" This middle-aged guest is of medium height, has a plain face, and walks slowly. He comes alone without an entourage, and seems to be unfazed by external things.
But the most striking thing is that his left sleeve is empty: this is a one-armed earl.
"Earl of Iron County, Brooking Hester!" This visitor is the youngest, in his thirties, with a golden beard and a smile that matches his angular facial features, which is impressive.
The five men walked into the hall one after another. Under the gaze of the nobles in the hall, they walked to the front of the stone hall and took their seats without hesitation in the five seats closest to the Grand Duke.
The discussion and noise in the hall suddenly died down.
"They, plus Prime Minister Lisban," Ian whispered in Thales's ear, "are the six most trusted and important earls of King Nunn during his lifetime. It is said that each of these six families is powerful.
They are comparable to a country, and the total number of soldiers they can pull out to fight without hesitation exceeds 20,000, which is almost twice as many as the Walton family."
"They all seem to be experienced rulers." Thales said softly.
"King Nun does not allow his subordinates to have corpses or people with low abilities, so what you see are those who have served under him for decades and spread his reputation far and wide in Dragon Sky City and even Exeter.
The heroes are not like us in Qiyuan City, forget it. All in all," Ian shook his head: "This is also one of the legacies of King Nun."
"It also made Longxiao City the strongest and most terrifying force in Exeter." Thales carefully observed the five counts and added.
"That was in the past, when King Nun was still there," Ian shook his head disapprovingly: "And now? Humph."
Thales nodded.
But then he heard the interaction between the five earls.
"How is your territory, Kahn," Count Curterson, who was dressed in military uniform, said with a steely voice: "Since His Majesty broke the neck of their previous Grand Duke, the brats in Fengzhao City no longer dare to provoke you.
"
"Cut the nonsense." The one-armed Count Kahn Kierkegaard did not give Curtson any face. His expression remained unchanged and he looked like he was rejecting others: "We all know why we are not bothering here.
Excuse me."
Curtson, who was asking for trouble, snorted and turned his head.
"The soul-killing gun is still as sharp as before," Count Nagel, who seemed to have the most seniority, fixed his eyes on the soul-killing gun behind the Grand Duke's seat and sighed: "But the one sitting under it is the one we are loyal to.
That person is no longer here."
These words made the expressions of the five earls all darken.
Najir shook his head, his eyes melancholy: "When was the last time we people got together?"
"Six years ago," behind him, the serious-as-ice Earl Linna replied in a cold voice. He moved his seat heavily, as if everything around him was distasteful to him: "First came the stars, then the disaster, and then
It’s the dragon, and finally the Black Sand Territory… When we arrived with people, all that was left was His Majesty’s funeral.”
The five people were silent for a moment.
"Huh," Lin Na hadn't finished his words yet, he shook his head coldly: "The inexplicable king selection, five outsiders plus Lisban, decided who our king would be, turning the most powerful Longxiao City into a
It became Exeter’s biggest smile…”
"Linner!" The golden-bearded Earl Hester interrupted him angrily, "For the sake of the sunset goddess!"
"Stop your whining!"
When Thales heard this, he couldn't help but feel a shadow in his heart.
Selma.
What kind of group of vassals have you faced in the past six years?
Count Linna snorted disdainfully and was about to speak.
"The Earl of Eagle County and the Bleeding Land," the herald's voice sounded again: "Regent of Longxiao City, Charles Risban!"
Finally, Thales saw a familiar person.
The Earl of Lisban was still so steady and calm, and he stepped into the hall with an unquestionable expression.
Unlike before, the nobles all fell silent the moment Regent Lisban came in.
Only the five counts looked at him without showing any signs of weakness, and Count Linner even sneered slightly.
Regent Lisban walked up to the five earls with an indifferent expression: "Everyone, it's my honor to welcome you."
"It's not you, Charles," Count Nagel shook his head and showed an ugly smile: "It's not you... We came in response to the call of the lord."
Lisban turned his head and glanced at Najir.
"Of course." The Lord Regent said softly. He turned around and took a seat closest to the Grand Duke's seat.
The other four people didn't even look at Lisbane.
It was as if he was not one of the six at all, not their companion.
Looking at the interaction between the six counts, Thales frowned.
"Ian."
The prince suddenly took a step towards little Ronnie and spoke softly:
"Tell me, Longxiao City is not your only hope in this matter."
Ian, who was waving to his delegation from afar, was slightly startled.
He turned around with confusion on his face: "What?"
Thales looked firm: "Tell me."
Ian frowned slightly, as if he had thought of something: "You don't seem to have much confidence in us?"
Thales shook his head, showing no emotion: "Just tell me."
Ian narrowed his eyes.
"Of course not," in the end, the heir of Qiyuan City snorted: "Longxiao City is just one of them."
His face darkened: "At this time, my sister has probably arrived at the garrison city with a mission."
Thales pondered for a while.
"Guard the city, Grand Duke Lecco."
He thought of the bald old prince and the scene when he roared loudly in this hall six years ago: "Of course, twenty years ago, they were also among the reinforcements."
The prince raised his head with a worried look on his face: "But what you can think of, Lumba can also think of, just like you coming to Longxiao City."
Ian whistled and waved his hand nonchalantly: "My sister will find a way. God knows how she will use those big pants to seduce the old bald man into sending troops, or who knows which mouth."
Thales frowned.
He noticed that Ian's eyes slowly condensed in mid-air, thoughtfully.
"You don't seem to like your sister very much?"
Ian snorted softly, seemingly disapproving of it.
"Don't get me wrong, we used to be very good friends," little Ronnie looked at the stone carving of Dragon Spear in the Cloud above his head and snorted softly from his nose: "But now we are almost like mortal enemies."
His expression was sarcastic.
Thales raised his eyebrows: "Do you mind if I ask why?"
Ian didn't speak, he just glanced at Thales with a complicated expression.
At this moment, a louder shout than before came from the door:
"The bloodline of Nekaru and Sara"
The Northlanders in the hall all turned their heads!
With the collision of countless seats, all the Northlanders stood up.
Even the six earls are no exception.
They all solemnly clenched their right fists and pressed them firmly against their hearts.
"The Successor of the Dragonlance Family"
Ian sighed and stood up slowly.
Under the urging of countless dissatisfied looks, Thales quickly stood up.
"The ruler of Longxiao City"
Amidst the thunderous shouts, Thales saw a light figure in the gap between the layers of shoulders, but he came slowly with heavy steps.
is her.
Accompanied by Nicolai, the girl he knew so well walked past the vassals on both sides and walked to her seat.
That's the only seat.
The girl's face was calm, her posture was elegant and appropriate, and she moved forward step by step.
"You asked me why," Ian's voice came slowly from his ears: "Look, this is why."
Prince Star was suddenly stunned and turned his head.
"What?"
Ian raised the corners of his mouth and showed a sarcastic smile.
"six years ago."
"The first female Grand Duchess in the history of Exeter, succeeded to the throne in Longxiao City, in this hall," Ian's eyes turned cold, he turned his head, glanced at the soul-killing gun on the fireplace, and then looked at
The girl who came slowly in the center of the hall said with a gloomy tone in her voice: "The Grand Duchess."
"Since then……"
"My dearest twin sister, the woman who was conceived in my mother's womb with me."
"Just think of me as...her dearest brother."
Thales was stunned.
Thumb, thump, thump...
Through the layers of crowds, the steps of the young princess continued.
She endured the unscrupulous gazes of countless men, passed over countless men's overt or covert discussions, walked through the rough and historic floor tiles of the Palace of Heroes, and walked into the forum where only male nobles had been qualified to enter for hundreds of years.
.
Step by step, walk to your seat.
For a moment, Thales wished he didn't have dexterous hearing or clear vision.
Because he saw that the men in the hall, old and young, noble and low, were all looking at the figure of the Grand Duchess and her appearance from front to back, from top to bottom without any scruples.
He also heard them chuckling, joking, making obscene comments about the Grand Duchess's figure, face, and even her...
An inexplicable anger surged into his heart, causing Thales to clenched his fists unconsciously.
The more you squeeze, the tighter you squeeze.
But the girl is still moving forward.
Thumb, thump, thump...
Her footsteps hit the centuries-old earth of the Palace of Heroes, making a crisp sound.
The floor tiles of the Palace of Heroes are still as solid as ever, indestructible.
But the girl is still moving forward.
Thumb, thump, thump...
Her boots continued to hit the floor tiles, and even though the floor tiles never broke or wavered in the slightest, she never paused or stopped.
Never retreated.
"You know, from that time on, those eyes of my sister," Ian's voice continued, a dangerous light flashed in the eyes of the heir of Qiyuan City: "Those beautiful eyes no longer looked at the makeup
and clothes, look at the dowry and money, look at the young men and women who may become her reliance and destination in the future, and look at the things that women are born to care about and care about."
"Instead, he looked at his father."
"Looked at me."
Thales said nothing.
The girl's body is light and her expression is calm, but her footsteps are still heavy.
It was as if he was carrying a huge burden.
"You changed the rules, Thales," Ian said in a slow and unhurried manner, but full of irresolvable depression: "You and Lumba."
He looked at Thales with an unsettling look in his eyes: "It's you."
"You took my sister away."
The girl finally stepped onto the steps that belonged to the Grand Duke.
Nicolai stood on the first step. As her most important guard, he stopped here and could no longer move forward.
The girl could only walk up the steps alone.
Step up to her seat.
Alone.
As the girl walked to her seat, the herald's deliberately prolonged shout came to an end: "The Grand Duchess"
"Selma Walton!"
Under the gaze of countless people, Thelma sat down slowly, unable to hide her pale face.
Everyone under the steps, the vassals of Longxiao City, bowed their heads.
Pay respect to their lords.
But Thales heard it.
With the blessing of the Sin of Hell River, he heard it very clearly.
In the chest of the Grand Duchess, bursts of strong and powerful pulsations were continuously transmitted to his ears.
That was Selma's heartbeat.
Fresh and powerful.
Even the cluttered sound of people sitting down in the hall could not be covered up.
Thales sighed longly.
"So that's it," Thales sat down in his seat and looked thoughtfully at Ian next to him. "For the crisis of the Freedom Alliance, you came to Longxiao City, while your sister went to Guard City...
If you fail..."
"No." Ian interrupted him coldly.
The eyes of Qiyuancheng's heir had a fire that Thales couldn't ignore: "I will not fail."
"She will be the only one who fails."
"It can only be her."
Thales turned his head and looked at Ian.
"You just said," the second prince nodded slowly, his words carrying profound meaning: "I took away your sister."
Ian frowned.
Thales sighed and slowly clenched his fists: "That's right."
"What I took away," Thales took a deep breath and looked at the Grand Duchess on the Grand Duke's throne, who was looking at the audience calmly: "It is indeed 'your' sister."
Thales smiled.
He turned to look at the Grand Duchess who was about to speak, leaving Ian with a confused look on his face.
Just now, when Thelma slowly walked up to her seat, and when Ian told that story with hatred, Thales suddenly came to his senses:
It turned out that six years ago, he still had Rumba.