A tense duel unfolded in the hall. Some people looked forward to it, some were gloating, and some were whispering, with various expressions.
"drink!"
On the field, Jihassen took the lead in attacking. He pulled out a sharp saber, stepped forward, and quickly approached the opponent like a snake. The light of the sword danced like a phantom in the eyes of ordinary people, crossing the sharp cold light.
.
Finbul on the other side was a little flustered, and was hit by swords several times. Fortunately, the precious armor prevented him from falling to the ground with serious injuries immediately, leaving only a few narrow scratches with flashing sparks.
Watching the two people wandering around and then fighting each other, the nobles in the hall were like spectators at the Colosseum, excitedly shouting the names of both parties.
"Go ahead, Finbul, kill him!"
"He can't penetrate your armor, coward!"
"Stab him in the face so that he won't dare to see anyone in the future, Jihassen."
Compared to the two people in the venue, these people around them were more enthusiastic.
Lorraine Hill, who was sitting outside the hall, shook her head secretly while watching this scene. In her eyes, this duel was like a farce, and the strength of both sides was evenly matched.
Jihassen has the strength of War Sequence 6, which is obviously stronger than Finbul of Nature Sequence 5. It is only Finbul's luxurious extraordinary equipment that keeps him going. Unfortunately, if time drags on, Jihassen will be able to find the flaw sooner or later.
Although in the eyes of the girl, such a duel was like novices pecking each other, far inferior to the competition within the Eastern sect, but it was different for the audience present. They had not seen such a high-level duel for a long time.
"Both of them are talented juniors that I am familiar with. I don't know who Miss Lacey thinks will win." While the girl was thoughtful, Earl Howard started talking.
"I don't know, I can't tell." Lorraine Hill blinked slightly and said something against his will.
"Haha, it's normal for girls to not understand this. My daughter is the same way. She is more concerned about the latest trends. She said that fighting and killing are all men's business..." Howard shook his wine glass and said casually to himself
's family.
"Oh, by the way, I don't know where Miss Lacey's hometown is. It must be a beautiful and gentle place that could raise such a good child like you." Slowly, Howard and Lorraine Hill's conversation seemed to change.
He became an elder who cared about her, was kind and talkative.
"My hometown is in a remote province in the southern part of the empire. Because my father is busy with the Chamber of Commerce all year round, when I was a child, I lived with my mother in a castle in the mountains and had little contact with the outside world." The girl said the identity she had prepared in advance.
.
"That's not bad. In fact, if you come into contact with various outside circles too early, you can easily be led astray." Earl Howard shook his head slightly as he spoke, as if he remembered something.
Bang--
While the two were talking, a gunshot suddenly erupted in the venue.
In the venue where everyone was watching, Jihassen half-knelt down, holding his chest, while Finbul was holding a smoking luxury short gun in his hand. It was engraved with exquisite patterns. It looked like a fine product customized by a nobleman.
"mean!"
"This is simply a shame." Many people on the side pointed at Finbul and cursed angrily.
It turned out that during the duel, Finbul took out an alchemical musket from his arms when Girhassen was not paying attention, and fired directly at close range. Caught off guard, Girhassen was shot and fell to the ground.
Facing the accusations and contempt from the other party, Finbul was also a little resentful. He originally didn't want to take out this customized short magic crystal gun, but seeing that he was about to lose after being suppressed, he couldn't bear it.
Unable to hold on, I finally took it out.
Seeing his companions standing there silently, several companions behind Finbul could no longer stand. They stepped forward and stopped in front of Finbul.
"Who said you can't use muskets in a duel? Guns and swords are both weapons. I've never seen anyone not allowed to use weapons in a duel."
"That's right, a duel is like a battlefield. Is it possible that there are good things that you don't need and you die just waiting to admit defeat?"
"But, this is unfair!" An acquaintance of Jihassen retorted angrily as he slowly helped him up.
"Fair? Oh, what kind of fairness do you want? Are you going to give up your strengths and use your weaknesses to fight with you?"
"Don't think that you feel good about yourself just because you have won a few times on the battlefield. How many years has it been in your family? And since the establishment of the empire, we have been bleeding and fighting for this country."
"Bullshit, can that be called struggle? It's just lying on it and sucking blood!" A nobleman with a low-level military background couldn't bear it anymore and smashed the cup in his hand to the ground.
"I fought for His Majesty the Emperor, opened up new territories for the country, and went through life and death many times in the process to achieve what I have today. Why shouldn't I be nobler than you 'white bread'!"
"White Bread" is a name privately given by the new military nobles to the old nobles. It means that these people are smeared with white powder all year round, their faces are pale, their bodies are frivolous and fat, and they are particularly "soft" and unmanly.
"Uneducated 'bitch'!" After hearing White Bread's scornful name, several young men from one of the established nobles also got angry and started yelling. For a while, trash talk was exchanged frequently between the two parties.
"Ahem, please be quiet." Looking at this scene, Earl Howard finally couldn't help it. After all, he was the host, and he would be the most embarrassed if such a scene spread.
"Everyone, please maintain the elegance that a gentleman should have." After Howard spoke, the two sides who almost started fighting in the court gradually calmed down.
No matter what, everyone will still care about this count's noble status and will not dare to contradict and offend him at this time.
Seeing that the hall had settled down, the earl clapped his hands again and signaled the musicians on the side to "continue playing."
Then, he turned around.
"I'm really sorry for frightening Miss Lacey. The young people present today went too far."
Seeing this, Lorraine Hill couldn't sit still and stood up immediately, saying that he didn't care and hoped that everyone wouldn't pay too much attention to him.
After that, the hall returned to its previous scene. Some young nobles took the initiative and entered the dance floor to dance, as a foil for everyone, relaxing the atmosphere, and the scene gradually became peaceful and soothing.
As a count's residence, it is natural that there are extraordinary healers on call all year round. After some processing and treatment, Jihassen came back from the side with a slightly pale face, accompanied by several friends.
Seeing that he wanted to get close to Lorraine Hill and say a few words, Earl Howard waved with a subtle gesture, and then several waiters followed quietly, leading Jihassen and others to the other side of the banquet, and then let them
Gradually leave.
Sitting at the table again, Earl Howard said slowly to the girl who looked like a rose and a white moon: "I made Miss Lacey laugh today because I was not a good host."
"I wonder if Miss Lacey will have time later. I'll ask my wife to invite you to a small private party at my home."
"Please rest assured that no rude people will disturb you this time. There are also a few noble unmarried ladies in the imperial capital present. I believe Miss Lacey will feel much more relaxed and interesting when she is with her peers." He sent out again.
invite.
"Lacey will naturally come to Mr. Howard's invitation. It's out of curiosity. I have rarely been in contact with aristocratic circles before, and I also want to know how everyone lives their daily lives."
"Haha, niece Lacey was joking. In fact, life among nobles is not as interesting as outsiders think. After a long time, you will feel empty and boring."
"This is also the reason why everyone has various hobbies and always wants to kill some time. For example, I like to invite everyone to have parties together. Watching the lively scenes makes me not feel lonely."
Hearing this, the girl nodded slightly. Perhaps this was the most sincere sentence Earl Howard said tonight.