Chapter 112

Chapter 84 The Banquet Part 2

A deep and powerful voice echoed from her mouth. I froze at the sound of it, my steps coming to an abrupt halt.

This woman seems to know me… and judging by the gentle look in her eyes that contrasts with her appearance, our relationship is more than just acquaintances; we might have been quite familiar once.

But I can’t remember who she is. What should I do?

There’s a slight sense of embarrassment.

“Uh…”

Suddenly, I don’t know what to say.

“…Long time no see?”

For some reason, when these words came out, they carried a questioning tone. The woman’s originally smiling face froze for a moment before her smile grew even wider.

“Pepé, Lady has written to me about your situation. You probably don’t recognize me now, right?”

Ah, she knows.

Now it’s easier to talk. So I nodded, “Yes, sorry.”

“Why apologize? Really.” The woman stepped forward two paces, standing in front of me. Her figure, taller than mine by almost a head, enveloped me in a hug with her cold, thick armor. “Being back is better than anything.”

The tone was plain, but one could hear the genuine emotion behind it.

“Annie, you’re here,” Pasifal’s voice sounded from behind, “It’s been so long since we last saw you.”

The woman named Annie looked towards Pasifal.

“Long time no see, Pasifal. You’ve grown much stronger.”

“No way…” Pasifal lowered his head, embarrassed, “Annie, let Pepé show you around?”

“Alright.” Annie agreed, then turned to the guards by the carriage, “Wait outside, all of you.”

Then, suddenly, my hand was taken. Annie led me through the gates of the inner castle.

“Where is His Grace? In the largest reception room?”

“Yes.”

She seemed very familiar with Shantel Castle. After confirming this from me, she didn’t need any directions from me, pulling me toward the stairs, clearly knowing where the reception hall was.

“My name is Annie, Annie Elin. I am the next heir to Elin Castle.” She spoke as we walked, “Elin Castle… you don’t remember, do you? You and Lady used to visit there several times every year.”

I shook my head slightly.

“I don’t remember.”

Annie sighed lightly.

“Your mother, Lady Catherine, comes from the same family as my mother. We Elin family has served Shantel Castle since my grandfather’s time.”

“Back then… nearly a hundred years ago, before we were born. At that time, due to internal conflicts within the royal family, the entire Valen Empire was at war… the empire was very poor back then, most people couldn’t get enough food, nor clothes, and many died from the cold.”

Lifting my foot onto the stairs, feeling the warmth of her palm, I turned my head to look at Annie’s profile, listening quietly to her words.

“At that time, my grandfather was still young. He was the captain of the guard for your great-grandfather, Duke Alphonse, and the Central Workshop had just been established… Do you know, the blacksmiths at the workshop were called ‘butchers making war profits’ by the people. Because the original purpose of the workshop was to enable soldiers to kill enemies more quickly…”

Annie paused for two seconds, her eyelids lowering.

“Or those attempting to resist. And my grandfather, along with Duke Alphonse, were the ones who set up the workshop.”

“They actually intended to end the war quickly… but who would have thought that the war lasted ten years. My father said that later on, it was because too many people died… It must have been true that many people did. Duke Alphonse finally couldn’t bear the guilt in his heart and took the initiative to

He gave up the throne to his elder brother and signed a truce agreement, leading his people northward. After that, the Northern Winter City came into being.

When she said this, for some reason, I suddenly recalled the sculpture in the small square and the inscription engraved on its base.

At that time, due to the name, I had taken it as a joke. But now, recalling it, the cold sculpture and the powerful strokes of the sword, perhaps I would never fully understand the energy contained within.

“If King Althaus had ascended the throne back then, the empire might have been more prosperous… His talent in governance is evident; after all, among the four great capitals in the world, only the Northern Winter City is not a capital.”

“Time has passed so quickly, and now the Valen Empire has long since entered a stable period, finally moving towards a better direction, and everyone has started to live a prosperous life.”

She paused again at this point.

By then, we had already reached the second floor.

Through the long corridor, we could hear the lively chatter from the guest room in the distance. It was quite noisy, so Annie’s voice unconsciously became louder.

“You first visited Erwin Castle when you were seven, right? That’s when we first met. You were thin and small back then, but your eyes seemed to speak. I remember it very clearly.”

“At that time, you saw the farmers in Erwin Castle, covered in mud while working in the fields, their faces also dirty. Your expression was somewhat sad, and then you told me that when you grew up, you wanted to become a female knight and kill all the wicked bandits to protect these hardworking people… But you didn’t know that knights’ swords sometimes swing toward these people.”

She stopped in front of the guest room door and called my name.

“Pepi.”

“Annie, I’m listening.”

She hesitated for a moment, then laughed lightly and shook her head.

“It’s nothing… Edward is dead.”

“He is.”

“Is that so… The lady mentioned that you’ve become a Papal Knight now. Impressive.”

Impressive?

Not really.

“I’d rather not have this title.”

“…Did something happen?”

“Something bad.”

“Then let’s talk about it later.”

“Okay.”

She raised her arm but hesitated when pushing the door open.

I looked at her silhouette in puzzlement, and after a while, she spoke.

“It seems this war is inevitable?”

…I didn’t know how to answer her.

No one wants war. The duke doesn’t want it, the lady doesn’t want it, and neither do I.

But things have come to this point, and there is little chance of turning back.

Only hope the duke can solve the problem as quickly as he promised.

“Annie. It’s nice to meet you.”

Annie waved her hand behind her, then pushed open the door to the guest room.

“…Oh, look who’s here!”

“Hahaha, Countess of Erwin Castle! The flamingo Annie!”

I exchanged glances with the duke seated in the middle of the room and smiled.

Lifting my skirt, I turned and descended the stairs.

Afterwards, more and more people began to pour into Santel Castle.

There were nobles in splendid attire, old gentlemen with canes, fierce leaders exuding an aura of slaughter, fat lords, and merchants adorned with jewels.

The number seemed much larger than expected, and both Pascal and I were already swamped. Later, the lady sent ten stewards and maids to stand on the first floor to guide guests, while we two were responsible for important guests.

A busy morning quickly passed, and soon the banquet began.

P.S.: I’ve been too busy these past few days, but I’ll be posting twice tomorrow and the day after. Welcome everyone to join the group chat: 107938027