Dalton heard the quarrel behind the door, and the sharp edge of the words almost penetrated the pine door. Since arriving at Knights Bay, such quarrels have occurred every day.
Even with the remnants of Naga blood, DeWitt Hearn's life was still difficult. Dalton has followed him since five years ago, watching him seek to survive in the cracks between the queen and the nobles. DeWitt's mother treats him as a dispensable ghost, while Tracy teaches him how to rule the territory in an attempt to win over people's hearts. And before leaving, Duke Tiwen did not forget to instigate a relationship between Knight Bay and the Clover Territory... Now the captain of the guard has to watch him balance the contradiction between the local nobles and the new law, and he is worried about this all day long. Unable to sleep.
Dalton was always unable to help with such matters, but on the east coast the lords could at least vent their anger through quarrels. The royal capital, Iron Claw City, is more like a prison. The legion knights of the Talbot family and the Wiggins family are enough to suppress everyone's free instinct to speak freely. From this point of view, Dalton is still happy to see the blue waves of the bay.
The sea breeze and long whistles drifted in the air outside the window, and the sun broke through the clouds. A fleet of ships with two-color sails sailed into the port. They came from the hot earth hills in the north of the kingdom and traveled all the way to the coast. Three Pulin men stood on the side of the ship, their skin as black as teak wood. A sailor shouted to them. The stevedores were tossing back and forth with their upper bodies bare, using thick hemp ropes to drag cargo containers that were taller than a person. The fisherman's small boat is close to the big boat, the fish and shrimp are covered in the net, and the watery green algae hangs on the knots. The captain gave the workers hard liquor in exchange for baskets of fresh citrus. The moment the clams and clams were dumped into the wooden box, a cat flew out like an arrow and snatched up a whitebait that fell on the ground.
"Pring's fleet," DeWitt said wearily. I don’t know when he stood next to Dalton. The quarrelsome meeting had long ended. "For the record, they were supposed to arrive last week."
"There are winds and waves on the river, sir." the captain of the guard replied. "I remember the heavy rains in the fourth week of the Fire Month. The middle and lower reaches of the Jinque River were flooded, and the Garden of Flowing Waters and the Boot Valley were almost submerged." But that's all. The Garden of Flowing Water is low-lying, and the Boot Valley is in the same direction. The large puddles in the river fill with muddy water every rainy season.
"I remember too," said the lord of the bay. "Sir Isborne Gronion went to his majesty to cry, but Lord Norman sent him away with only two ships of wheat. I would like to know how Isborne used two ships. Ships of wheat fill the stomachs of the victims throughout the city.”
"They can eat fish," Dalton points out.
"Teach them to eat on their own," DeWitt suggested cheerfully. "This is the lord they elected themselves."
The Garden of Flowing Water was originally a mysterious place where the Naga Sea Clan and the Kingdom’s army fought. When the Mysteries begin a natural ebb and flow, the kingdom's armies become unstoppable, with battle lines reaching almost as far as the east coast. Later, the fishmen retreated to the depths of the Singing Sea, and the second half of the Golden Bird River was completely liberated. However, Eastman's control of the bay was always beyond his control. The previous lord of Knight's Bay died of murder, and the ownership of the Court of Flowing Waters was also full of controversy. In the end, the queen ordered the locals to elect a respected ancient noble family as the lords to manage this transitional land.
But even in the Garden of Flowing Waters, the Glonion family is far from being said to have a long history and noble blood. The family patriarch, Isborne, did not even appear in Talbot's order before he was knighted, which shows that their ancestors had nothing to do with Eastman and Crockane. No one knows how they achieved their current status.
A horn sounded outside the window. "It would be great if all my subjects were Isbon Glonion." DeWitt sighed.
"Anyone want more than two boatloads of wheat, my lord?"
"More than that." The young half-blood count sneered, "You can't believe how brave they are - the sailors smuggled steel, but they asked me to sign two certificates of approval for wood and hairtail. The whalers were full of excuses and wanted to extend their reach to the port trade. . My Lord Merchant is trying to obfuscate the laws to add advantageous functions to himself. Could it be that the lord is their rubber stamp? Damn it! I think they are planning to kill me."
"I won't allow them to do this." The captain of the guard assured him, "I'll leave it to you. It's easy to take off anyone's head or hands and feet." Even the Queen and Duke Yotsuba didn't know that Dalton was already a high-ranking official. He was not even afraid of Lawrence Norman, the chief magician of the palace, because of the mystery of the ring. The captain of the guard hangs a cursed sword on his waist. It is both a sharp blade and a magic sword, capable of bringing curses to its enemies. He gently touched the amethyst round head of the sword hilt, which was filled with poison. Dalton will do whatever his lord tells him to do...no matter what the order is. "Is it the vampire merchant? Or the sailor in charge of trade? Or the fleet leader who disobeys orders?"
"Both," DeWitt said half-jokingly, but Dalton knew it was actually true. "I hope cutting off their heads will solve the problem. There is nothing else in the port, there are a lot of hemp ropes and eels. Hmph! I think they have made more contributions alive than dead. Next time Isbon comes to your Majesty If he wants food, I can give him the fattened eels. Do you think Sir Norman will look down on me because of this?"
No. Of course, he couldn't do it. The captain of the guard thought.
Fortunately the lord did not wait for his answer. "Sir Posier's 'Red Seagull' left port with a fleet of ships. There were more knights on board than sailors. Neighbors rumored that he had obtained a map recording the treasure island of the ancestors. Could it be that treasures depend on swords rather than sailing? Are you looking for home?"
"Although there are no fishmen in the Singing Sea, pirates are still rampant."
"Only you dare to say that in front of me. As if fish and pirates are two different things."
"Not quite, my lord."
Beside the balcony of Chaosheng Castle, DeWitt Hearn laughed loudly like at the banquet before leaving the royal capital. After all, if they could leave Iron Claw City, what would the troubles of the Knights Bay nobles and captains matter? Dalton knew his lord... Duke Tracey hoped DeWitt would serve as a winger to support the Queen, but she was destined to be disappointed. DeWitt hated Queen Flavia as much as he hated the fish scales on his body. The complexity of territorial affairs was only a temporary concern, but the harm caused to him by the royal family was permanent. Lawrence Norman was originally only willing to give him the status of viscount, but when he left the royal capital, DeWitt Hearn was already the Earl of Knights Bay. The famous "Lucky Angel" from the Southland Clover returned to the family castle in Lancaster, but only received the same title. But that didn't comfort DeWitt...he just wanted more.
More. The captain of the guard thought to himself that he might not want more islands in the sea. The Garden of Flowing Waters is adjacent to the bay, and further to the north is Pulin City...none of them are powerful princes. Tracy Wiggins did not teach DeWitt how to seize power or seize land, but Dalton believed that such abilities were no different from the magic of the Shadow Curse, and that they both ran in the blood.
Countless white gulls flew across the strait, and someone shot them with arrows. Dalton looked out from the balcony of the castle's round tower. The lighthouse town was lined with gray stone buildings and earthen walls. Common people's tile shacks were built on the ground floor, and they were densely packed at the base of the city wall like barnacles clinging to the roots of a reef. Dalton witnessed a seagull break away from the flock and come towards Tidal Sound Castle. It fluttered its wings and got into the gaps between the flagpoles of high-rise buildings.
Then, a series of rapid footsteps approached.
It's a gardener. "Letter from Yotsuba City." The straw hat on his head almost fell off. The height of three floors is not simple.
Before the captain of the guard could stop him, the lord reached past him and snatched the flower from the gardener's hand. Each petal of the blooming pansy was covered with writing, and as soon as DeWitt had finished reading it, it withered and withered. The joyful glow on his face disappeared with it.
Dalton watched the gardener pick up the stumps and quietly escape from the oppressive corridor. Duke Wiggins of the South is extremely cautious and will always only deliver letters in a way that can completely destroy the original pansy, which will surely cause many more distressing moments for the gardener in the future. But the one who is undoubtedly more irritated is Lord DeWitt. Yotsuba's letters never brought him good news, and it seemed that this time it was probably the same.
"We have to prepare," the lord said, "to entertain our new guests."
"guest?"
"Strangers who want to visit my territory." DeWitt was obviously annoyed to the extreme when he did not understand the meaning of the word. "Eastman's bane," he sneered. "I was joking with you a few days ago, Dalton, and this time it's my turn."
A few days ago, what pleased the lord was the mysterious incident of the Broken Moon God. The captain of the guard immediately knew the identity of the visitor. When it came to the Tower of Sky, he actually wanted to know what Chloe had sent the envoy to do again. "What should I do, my lord?" I had a duty, and he finally restrained himself.
"Deal with it? What can I do? I have no trustworthy manpower in my territory." DeWitt returned to the shadow of the colonnade. "Leave it to Sir Gilles Arnald or Laurent Vigue. I think they will have nothing to do all day long."
The two names in his mouth have appeared frequently in Dalton's ears recently. The former is a powerful nobleman in charge of logistics, and the latter is the commander-in-chief of the Knight Gulf Fleet. The captain of the guard is more wary of Sir Giles. In terms of methods, he is more cunning than Isborne; in terms of identity... Even if the Arnald family is not famous, Dalton cannot ignore the inhuman nature of their family. Gilles Arnald is a vampire, and it is said that his favorite taste of blood is whale blood. Dalton simply couldn't imagine it.
As Eastman's largest trading port, Knight's Bay's lifeline is naturally shipping and fleet. Unfortunately, DeWitt is not yet sure he will hold these two crucial positions. If you want to control the seaport, the support of both is indispensable.
The earl raised his fists and said, "Sooner or later, no one will be able to interfere with my fiefdom."
The captain of the guard knew that his anger was not only directed at his subordinates. He couldn't help with that. He is only responsible for executing orders and protecting the count's safety. Before arriving at Knight's Cove, Dalton hoped to be safe from mortal strife, but he later realized that it was duty that really conflicted with the Mysterious Path. He couldn't make a choice about this either. Fortunately, that day is still far away, so I don’t have to worry so much...
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