Chapter 356 – Sparrows Can’t Just Walk Past the Mill.
I thought that the conflict between nobles was a little more shady, gloomy, and insidious.
That’s why Tricker’s behavior of degrading Trisian in front of his vassals, and Verolder’s behavior of praising Natalya and me and standing up for me, made me a little nervous.
It was more childish than I could have imagined.
Once my interest cooled down, I felt more relaxed. I looked closely at the table where Count Verolder was sitting.
Sitting on the largest chair in the center is Count Verolder. Just looking at the size or position of his chair, it is the seat that the lord, the owner of this place, has been placed to sit on.
If so, the chairs placed next to it naturally became the seats for the family members of the lord.
Trisian spoke in a voice so low that only I could hear, perhaps sensing my searching gaze.
“The person next to you is the Countess.”
“The Countess…”
Sitting next to Count Verolder was a woman who looked quite young. She looked closely and saw a bulge in her stomach that was slightly hidden behind her table.
“Are you pregnant?”
“Yes, you are five months pregnant.”
“Hmm…”
Earl Verolder does everything he needs to do despite his seemingly skinny subject.
He looked away from the Countess. Looking closely, the table in the center used by the count couple is taller than the tables on the left and right.
Among the low tables placed on either side, the table to the left of the lord was being used by Tricker.
Beside him he saw a woman who looked a little older than the Countess and her baby boy.
“Then, is that Tricker’s family over there?”
“Yes, Tricker’s wife and son.”
For aristocrats, marriage is a means of bonding with other families. It would be even more strange if Tricker and Verolder, both middle-aged people, hadn’t gotten married.
“… Is Tricker on good terms with his family?”
“Looks at it, it’s pretty homely. He is especially affectionate towards his son.”
“Okay…”
It’s pretty good news that Tricker has a young son. Assuming things take a turn for the worst and he is about to leave, he kidnaps his son or… It will be available in several ways.
His eyes moved busily again, engraving the faces of Tricker’s wife and son in his field of vision.
There are three tables placed horizontally. Among them, the one in the center and the one on the right are in use.
On the table on the left that no one uses, instead of food and utensils, the gift I brought was placed on top.
Natalya was talking about the gift to Count Verolder, so I didn’t have to step out, so I withdrew my attention and looked away.
At the table opposite, men of various ages are seated. There are young men, middle-aged men, and men who seem to be entering old age. However, they all have one thing in common: their physique is compact.
These are the knights who got Trisian into trouble by answering Tricker’s question earlier.
Among them, a particularly fat and unassuming-looking man caught my eye. The long, ugly beard looks like a catfish’s beard.
“Is that bearded man Simir Jack?”
“Yes, that man is the closest aide to Administrator Simir Jack, his great-uncle.”
“You really look like you’re sitting at a desk doing administrative work.”
I laughed out loud because it looked like it would roll around and roll when I rolled it.
Isn’t it the epitome of a fat and greedy government official?
While learning the faces of the enemies, the conversation and self-introduction were all over, so Count Verolder stood up and announced the end of the luncheon.
“Good night. Let’s end the luncheon meeting. Officials, let me sort out the things I gave you by next week.”
“”Yes. All right.””
Rather than worrying, the first meeting with Count Verolder ended and steam leaked. The things I was nervous about before coming made me feel stupid.
When the lord and his wife got up first and left the hall, the other officials also got up and left one by one.
“Um, is this all over?”
As I muttered that while watching the backs of people leaving the hall, Trisian shook his head.
“What are you talking about? Now, isn’t it your turn to face the lord?”
“Hmm? Ah…”
Forgot for a while The greetings we made in front of the officials were a kind of debut ceremony, announcing our existence to the officials in the territory.
Now, I must have a proper conversation with the lord face to face.
After waiting for a while in the hall, I followed the guide of the servant who came and went straight to the parlor. I met eyes with Count Verolder, who was sitting on the sofa for one person in the high table.
As soon as our eyes met, he smiled lightly and invited me to sit down. As soon as we sat down, a servant served tea.
I opened my mouth while watching the misty steam rising from the teacup.
“It was an honor to invite you to luncheon today.”
“No, it must have been a burdensome position, but I thank you for maintaining a dignified appearance in front of the officials. It was the place where I invited you guys to stand.”
Maybe it’s because they’ve built up each other’s sides.
Count Verolder told us what achievements we had made in front of his servants, and we maintained our dignity as guests invited by Count Verolder.
No doubt, it was unavoidable because nobles valued dignity and etiquette. The officials in the mansion may be a mixture of commoners and nobles, but people adapt to it when they drink expensive water.
When you live with nobles, there are bound to be people who mistakenly think that they are nobles.
But at least the attitude of Earl Verolder I’ve experienced so far was more gentle than I thought. He took a sip of the tea and opened his mouth first.
“Trician says he owes a lot to you. Did he meet a strange woman in the woods to the northwest this time?”
A strange woman from the Northwest Woods.
I’m sure he’s talking about Ijicho.
From Trisian’s point of view, the commander of the guard, one of the unusual events occurred around the territory. Since it was itself, he would have had no choice but to report it to the lord, Verolder.
But in the end, I couldn’t figure out what the purpose of one was. She couldn’t tell why she was hiding in the woods to the northwest or what she was doing.
“Yes, although she ended up running away and missing it.”
“After… Even with Drake and the dragon race, my head is complicated.”
Count Verolder buried himself deep in the back of the sofa and looked up at the ceiling. I looked at him for a while and then I had my doubts.
“Is it such a big problem that the Dragons and Drakes appeared?”
“Hmm?”
I was taken aback by Count Verolder’s eyes as if he was asking me something like that, so I smiled awkwardly.
“That’s because I don’t know.”
“Is that so, is it something young people these days don’t know about?”
He nodded his head like that, as if to understand himself, and looked at me.
“The Arpargon is here, west of the Westway. It is also firmly in the center of the unexplored land.”
“Yes.”
I know because I’ve seen it on a map. Arpagon is surrounded by a huge sea of water called unexplored land.
No, it would be a little more accurate to say that it is lying in the middle of a flood. To the east, it is surrounded by a sea of water to the extent that it would be isolated if it were not for the road connected to the West Way.
“The forest in the unexplored land was originally the home of the Yongin people.”
“The home of the Yongin people… So it was a country?”
“Country? Okay. Well, I wish I could say that. The unexplored land was the country of the Yongin people.”
“So you kicked out those dragons and founded Arpagon?”
It reminded me of the high and thick walls unique to Arpagon. If, as I heard from Count Verolder, the unexplored waters were originally the land of dragons, then the city of Arpagon is said to be a city built in an enemy land.
“Yeah, you can see that. Arpagon is a city that has not been around for a long time. It’s not just the city. Count Arfagon was originally a mercenary. He received the title of count from His Majesty the King in recognition of his merits in driving out the Yongin people.”
It was the first time I heard information about the Arpagon Count family, so I naturally became interested in Count Verolder’s words.
“You mean he was a new noble born with the city?”
So, unlike Westway, Arpagon had the same name as the ruling aristocratic family name and city.
“Yes, so even though he is a Marquis, isn’t his title an Earl?”
“I knew it first.”
“Because no one will teach you about the history of the aristocratic family. You may not know unless you live nearby.”
Having said that, Count Verolder took a sip of his tea, quenched his throat, and opened his mouth again.
“Anyway, if you’ve talked about this enough, you’ll understand why it’s a problem that dragons and drakes appeared?”
“Yes.”
It is a story that not only the Arpagon family, but all the humans in this area are hostile to the Yongin people.
Conversely, even for the humans on this side, the dragon race is a hostile force. Since those guys have appeared near the living area, I have no choice but to check if they are preparing for a war over there.
