early morning.
Before the first ray of sunlight illuminated the earth, the heavily armed knights and city guards were organized and rushed to all parts of Lutecia.
Today is the day when the Kingdom's Central Meeting is held. The inner city has been under martial law early. Although citizens are not prohibited from traveling, the solemn atmosphere and the heavily armed guards still make people subconsciously avoid the main road leading to the Royal Square.
In various parts of the inner city, the manors and villas belonging to the nobles were also lit up early in the morning. As the first touch of fish belly white emerged from the east, all kinds of luxury carriages set off from all over the royal capital, like The converging streams generally flow towards the central avenue of the inner city and then directly towards the Royal Square.
Charlotte also got up early.
Today, she styled her long golden hair into diamond curls, and chose a Yunet-style aristocratic skirt. The tone is still black, with golden patterns, narrow shoulders, slender waist, and a skirt on the lower body. It is more swollen and plump, making her look more mature and dignified.
After a brief breakfast, Charlotte, accompanied by Sebastian and others, boarded the carriage and headed to the Central Council Hall.
The Central Council Hall is located on the side of the Royal Square, across the square from the Lutetia Cathedral. It is located on both sides of the palace, one on the left and one on the right. The three landmark buildings of Lutetia are arranged in a triangle.
It was almost an hour later when the Castel family's carriage slowly drove into the square along with the huge procession of nobles.
"Master, we are here."
The carriage slowly stopped, and Sebastian's respectful voice came from outside the carriage.
Charlotte said "hmm" and then stepped out of the carriage with Shirley's help.
The Royal Square in Lutetia is very large, it is said to be 500,000 square meters, but at this moment, almost two-thirds of the square is filled with carriages of nobles, each one more luxurious than the other, and the carriages on the side are The various family crests are even more dazzling.
When Charlotte stepped out of the carriage, she immediately felt eyes from far and near focusing on her.
There were nobles, as well as knights and guards standing guard.
And along with the sight, there are also people's whispers:
"It's the Castel family, the young countess."
"The pearl of Boulder, the fairest maiden of the new moon?"
"She seemed more beautiful in person than in portrait."
"Elegant manners, beautiful and dignified, it is indeed as fascinating as the rumors..."
"Young, rich, and very capable, it would be a pity not to get married."
"After all, she is the saint of the Lord of God. It is said that she caused a miracle in the cathedral a few days ago, which even alerted the chief priest, the chief judge and the cardinal demon hunter."
"What? A miracle? Real or fake?"
"Of course it's true. This is news within the church. If it hadn't been for the Blood Demon Order incident later, I'm afraid it would have spread long ago."
"Hiss... Is New Moon finally going to give birth to a saint?"
"This is not clear yet. The church's reaction seems a bit strange. It has not officially announced the canonization yet. I don't know if it was the influence of the past few days. Some people also say that she seems to be dissatisfied with the church."
"Dissatisfied with the church? Her?"
"I don't know the specifics. The church has a very strict tone. The only thing that is certain is that it seems to take her very seriously."
"..."
Everyone's discussions continued to reach Charlotte's ears. Although they all deliberately lowered their voices, Charlotte still heard everything clearly with her keen perception.
She was used to it. As the protagonist of the Boulder-Castell War and one of the sources of this central meeting, she was already prepared to be the center of attention.
By the way, you can also hear some additional news.
However, her eavesdropping did not last long.
Because soon, a noble came forward to greet her.
"Beautiful lady, good morning. Are you His Excellency the Earl of Castells? I am Bono of the Daun family. Nice to meet you."
"Hello Count Castells, I am Count Durant, you look so beautiful today."
"..."
The nobles who came to say hello were more enthusiastic than the last, and almost all of them were members of the big families of the Crescent Kingdom.
Even if they were not from a big family, they were often the new nobles of the kingdom, especially those who made their fortune through trade and alchemy products.
Charlotte also smiled and returned the greetings one by one.
Unlike when she was in Boulder, although most of the nobles who came to say hello praised her appearance, few of them courted her, and most of them just expressed their kindness enthusiastically.
On the one hand, this is due to Charlotte's previous declaration of celibacy. On the other hand, it is also because these nobles who came to say hello did not come for the "marriage", but really just to make friends with Castel. good.
This is not only because the Bold-Castle War allowed the kingdom lords to see the strength of the Castel family, but also because of the Castel family’s mithril mine...
The only difference is probably that big families are more equal and more respectful, while upstarts and smaller families are more respectful.
In short, although it is not as if the stars are over the moon, Charlotte is still very popular.
And just as Charlotte was greeting the nobles with a smile, suddenly, the surrounding voices suddenly became quieter.
Charlotte's heart moved slightly. She looked up and saw two middle-aged nobles in rich clothes walking over side by side.
Behind them, there were many other nobles surrounding them, as if they were following each other's lead.
One of them was wearing aristocratic clothing with a crescent moon emblem, and was thin, while the other looked more prim and serious, with the emblems of a sword and a griffon hanging on his chest.
Charlotte's heart moved.
These turned out to be two acquaintances.
Among them, the nobleman with the crescent moon pattern on his robe is Charlotte's old acquaintance, who leased the No. 7 Manor on Riverside Street to her Moon Guardian Duke John de Angelo.
As for the other one, although she had not met him directly, Charlotte was "fortunate" to meet him once in the sacred and eternal realm of the church. He was also one of the nine great dukes of the kingdom, Theodore, Duke of Prussia. · De Prutz.
This combination surprised Charlotte.
As far as she knew, the Duke of the Guardian of the Moon was a staunch royalist and a strong supporter of King Louis V in strengthening centralization of power.
As for Duke Prutz, he is a member of the Three Princes' Party. Although he has no direct conflict of interest with the Royal Party, he is relatively conservative in political leanings.
"Your Excellency, Earl of Castells, long time no see. How do you feel about living in the manor?"
Duke Yuehu was the first to say hello, as enthusiastic as ever.
Charlotte saluted slightly and said with a smile:
"Very good, Your Majesty the Duke, thank you for your help. I am lucky to find such a comfortable manor in the inner city of Lutecia."
"Haha, you came too late! There are many nobles entering the royal capital these days, and almost all the manors in the inner city that can be rented have been rented. I also happened to hear that your butler is looking for a place to stay, and I remembered that I There was still an empty seat, so I just did it casually.”
Charlotte smiled:
"Your smooth operation has solved the problem for the Castel family."
As she said this, she apologized again:
"It's a pity that I haven't been able to visit you in person these days."
"Haha, even if you want to visit, I have to decline. The Central Council has the regulations of the Central Council, but...after the meeting, we can choose a time to get together. Some of my old friends are very interested in Cass. I’m very interested in Ter’s mithril mines.”
Duke Yuehu smiled.
Charlotte also laughed:
"Then I'll just look forward to it."
The two exchanged pleasantries and made a verbal agreement on a gathering after the central meeting. This was also one of the purposes of Charlotte's trip to the royal capital, to open up the connection between the Northland and the central nobles.
Then, she glanced at Duke Prutz next to Duke Yuehu, and noticing her gaze, Duke Yuehu patted his head and said:
"Look at how anxious I am! I forgot to introduce you. This is Duke Pruts, the noble knight most expected to become a legend in the kingdom. He is also very interested in the minerals in the North."
Charlotte held up the hem of her skirt and saluted gracefully:
"My Lord Duke Prutts."
Duke Prutts also nodded in response.
Seeing the lukewarm attitudes of the two people, Duke Yuehu scratched his head, hesitated, and said:
"Ahem... Your Excellency, Earl, I know that you have some opinions on some nobles because of the third prince. However, Mr. Prutz is not what the rumors say... Well... In short, the central nobles are more complicated than the central nobles. Sometimes We have no choice and are helpless.”
Charlotte's heart moved slightly, and she realized that this was Duke Yuehu's hint that she did not need to be hostile to Duke Prutz because of the third prince's matter.
In fact, she didn't have any hostility at all. Although she felt hostility from the other party in the sacred eternal realm, it was just the evolution of the spiritual world and the psychological implication naturally brought by the label of the Three Princes Party.
Now face to face, she didn't feel any negative emotions from the other person at all.
It's just that Duke Prussia is obviously taciturn, and Charlotte is essentially a passive person, so she has nothing to say.
Of course, since Duke Yuehu explained kindly, she would naturally appreciate it.
"My Lord Duke, I know that the third prince is the third prince, and the nobles of the kingdom are the nobles of the kingdom."
she said with a smile.
Seeing Charlotte's frank eyes, Duke Yuehu also relaxed a little, and his smile became even brighter.
The three of them walked towards the parliament hall together while chatting.
The other nobles automatically gave up their positions.
However, after taking a few steps, the surrounding voices became quiet again.
Charlotte's heart moved and she looked to one side, only to see Eleanor coming from the other direction diagonally opposite, accompanied by Count Gaston.
The two sides soon met at the door of the parliament hall.
Gazes came from all directions, all falling on Charlotte and Eleanor.
For a moment, the atmosphere in front of the meeting hall was a bit strange.
Duke Yuehu looked at Eleanor and then at Charlotte, looking a little hesitant.
Charlotte smiled at Eleanor and said openly:
"Ms. Eleanor, long time no see. You seem to be recovering well."
Eleanor looked at Charlotte with a complicated expression. She sighed and said gratefully:
"Charlotte, long time no see. Thank you very much for your help."
After hearing Eleanor's words, Duke Yuehu was stunned for a moment.
It wasn't that he was surprised by Eleanor's gratitude. In fact, it was well known that Count Castells had "rescued" the Duchess of Bold from the third prince.
What made him curious was that besides gratitude, there seemed to be some other emotions in Eleanor's tone.
That seems...respect?
Respect?
A duke versus an earl? !
Duke Yuehu felt that he might be crazy, but with many years of experience, he was sure that he was not wrong.
Could it be... is it because of Count Castel's status as a "saint"?
Duke Yuehu was curious, and on the other side, Charlotte had already finished greeting Eleanor.
After Eleanor greeted the other two dukes slightly, she entered the council chamber. Looking at the other's back, Duke Yuehu said curiously:
"Your Excellency, your relationship with the Duke of Bold is somewhat surprising."
Charlotte smiled and said:
"Bold is Bold, and the third prince is the third prince. I have a pretty good personal relationship with Ms. Eleanor, but politics cannot be mixed with personal emotions."
Duke Yuehu listened thoughtfully.
Charlotte no longer explained, but glanced at the hall and said:
"Your Majesty the Duke, let's go in too."
Duke Yuehu nodded slightly and entered the Central Council Hall with Duke Prutz and Charlotte.
The Kingdom's Central Council Hall is also a well-known landmark building in Lutetia. It is also a Gothic palace with a very large interior space.
The first impression after entering the parliament hall, Charlotte was reminded of those luxuriously decorated classical halls in previous Western literature. The entire parliament hall was semicircular. The space is so big that it probably won't be a problem to accommodate a thousand people.
In the council hall, almost two-thirds of the nobles were seated. When Charlotte entered, a waiter quickly led her to the corresponding location.
There are also explanations for seats in parliament.
On the high platform in the front, the king's throne is placed in the center. On the left side of the throne is the queen's throne, and on the right side is the high priest's seat.
Under the high platform, there are seats for nobles. There are many seats for nobles. The most eye-catching ones are the twelve seats listed at the front that are more gorgeous than other seats.
It belonged to the twelve principal lords of the kingdom, including the nine dukes of the kingdom, and the three chief priests of the theocratic principalities.
Duke Yuehu and Eleanor were quickly led to the twelve seats. Among them, Duke Yuehu was in the second seat, Duke Prutz was in the seventh seat, and Eleanor was in the twelfth seat. .
As for Charlotte, she was led to the first of the remaining noble seats under the Twelve Duke Lords.
"Your Majesty, this is your seat."
The waiter said respectfully.
Charlotte's heart moved slightly, she nodded and sat down.
In the Kingdom's Central Assembly, the position of the seat inherently represents identity and status. The higher the status, the further forward.
There is no doubt that Charlotte, who defeated the Duchy of Bold and owned a large and prosperous territory, is already regarded as the first person under the duke. Even some marquis in the kingdom are even ranked behind her. , just side by side with her.
Although Castel is still a new noble in the kingdom, the family's heritage and strength have already been recognized by the nobles and the royal family.
The nobles took their seats one after another, the twelve principal lords' chairs were also occupied one after another, and the dukes and officiants took their seats one after another.
Except for the first seat, the fifth seat, and the ninth seat, they are still empty.
They belonged to Duke Gaston who had been stripped of his title, another duke who was imprisoned and deposed, and the princess who was replaced by the Holy Royal Court.
Among them, the Duke of Gaston, who is the first seat, has even had his title taken back. In the future, he may even completely remove his seat, and the princess in the fifth seat and the ninth seat of another duke , because the newly appointed Duke and officiant have not been formally appointed, so they have no right to attend.
After all the nobles were seated, melodious music sounded, and the royal knights with shining armors boarded the high platform surrounded by several nobles and clergymen in gorgeous clothes.
The first two people, one wears a crown, holds a scepter, and wears a dark blue shawl decorated with crescent moon patterns. The other wears a white holy robe inlaid with gold and holds the "Holy Book" in his hand.
It was King Louis V and the Grand Priest of the Crescent who arrived.
