Chapter 258

Chapter 45: Discussion Part One

What?

What…

Tilting my head, frowning, wiping away the crumbs stuck at the corner of my mouth.

“Who… had their leg broken?”

Is he blaming me for something?

My mind races to recall if I have ever broken someone’s leg before. The old knight’s words confuse and slightly anger me.

The culprit?

I don’t even know who his grandson is!

“I haven’t, broken anyone’s leg.”

After saying that, I think for a moment, afraid he won’t believe me, and add, “I only broke their nose.”

Upon hearing this, the old knight pauses, then bursts into laughter.

“Young lady, you’ve got spunk!”

He extends his calloused hand as if wanting to pat my head… why does everyone want to pat my head when they see me!

Impatiently, I turn my head away, dodging his hand. The old knight doesn’t seem embarrassed at all and laughs on, “No wonder you’re the daughter of Duke Suntersburg Scallia! Hahaha, breaking someone’s nose! Look at you, isn’t there a taste of the Winter City about you?”

“A tiger father can’t have a dog daughter!”

“Hahaha—”

Everyone laughs. Their laughter irritates me, so I take a big bite of cake.

Finished with the food on my left plate, but there’s still some fragrant cream on the edge.

…Waste not the cream.

I hesitate for a moment, then quickly look up at the old knight. Seeing him still standing there laughing, not noticing me, I swiftly stick out my tongue and lick the cream clean, then pass the empty plate to the back to Reckt.

There’s one more plate left, I’ll eat slowly.

“Girl, do you remember a guy named Peter?” After the laughter subsides, the old knight speaks again, “He caused trouble for you at the academy. He’s quite strong and knows a bit of Flame Order.”

Peter…

Oh.

With his reminder, I finally remember.

Wasn’t he the Flame Boy from the opening ceremony? Sophia mentioned him to me before, saying he later fought with Alex…

“Some impression.”

So this old knight came to pick a fight with me?

Even though it’s a bit pitiful that Peter had his leg broken, what does that have to do with me…

“Hahaha! Looking at your blank face, if I hadn’t brought this up, you wouldn’t have remembered, right? Too bad Peter took a beating for nothing; the girl he liked probably won’t come back. He’s still in bed. Humph, worthless brat! No skills, but always stirring up trouble, he deserves a beating.”

The old knight changes his expression quickly, turning from joy to anger, cursing his grandson, then immediately switches back to a smile.

“Well… hahaha! Actually, apart from being a bit immature, Peter is a pretty good guy, and he cares… Men will always mature! You’re sixteen this year, aren’t you? Have you thought about it?”

“Cough cough—”

I choke a little on the cream and glare at him fiercely.

This old man, what nonsense is he talking!

Disrespecting elders… If it weren’t for your age, I’d have beaten you up long ago!

“Marquis Reckmont.”

Victoria speaks softly, her face showing a cold, half-smiling expression.

“Are you deliberately trying to amuse Miss Sylvie? This joke isn’t funny. You don’t need to pretend you don’t know she’s a Papal Knight. Calling her ‘little girl’ back and forth.”

For some reason, I feel that her tone… seems even colder than usual.

Is she angry?

“Let’s sit down and talk.”

Upon hearing this, the old knight’s eyes roll, and he slaps his forehead.

“Haha! Look at my memory! Getting old.”

He bows to Victoria, gesturing for her to be seated: “Your Majesty, don’t blame me. The person I came to meet today isn’t Papal Knight Sylvie, but Princess Pei Luo of Suntersburg.”

He said what did that mean…

I followed behind Victoria, carrying dessert and sitting in the chair beside her. The old knight also sat down on the other side, and then everyone gradually took their seats.

Victoria then formally introduced these people to me.

“Marquis Reckmont, the former commander of the Order City Defense Army, and the current head of the Reckmont family. Known as the Lion of the Imperial City, he is an outstanding expert in military command.”

“Haha! I’m old now. The defense army is now in the hands of my son, who has done much better than I did.” The old knight was quite humble.

Victoria did not pay any more attention to his words and pointed to another middle-aged man who was slightly plump on the other side.

“Lord Ethanbel, a major vassal lord in the Northlands of Ethanbel, one of the greatest contributors to the War of Roses, Count Bacchus.”

“Hello, beautiful Miss Peyello.”

“Hello…”

“Please convey my regards to your father.”

“Sure…”

“Count Kapras, the governor of Kristrodny City.”

“I really like the snow scenery of the Winter City. May the moonlight forever illuminate Santell Fortress.”

“Thank you…”

“Mrs. Balma…”

She introduced each person sitting around the round table to me one by one, and I responded with a smile.

‘Neither overly intimate nor too distant, maintaining just the right distance between people.’ This was a rule of noble social interaction taught to me by my mother; if I wanted to, I could certainly do it well.

Just…

My eyes kept glancing at the small cake on the table, which I had only taken two bites out of.

After a moment, I reluctantly turned away.

A little while later, I stole another glance.

My mouth was almost watering.

Would it be particularly inappropriate to take a bite now…

When would be the right time to eat it…

All these thoughts filled my mind.

As a result, besides knowing that they were all powerful nobles in Ethanbel, I didn’t remember anything else.

“As for Miss Peyello, you all know her identity. She is the daughter of Duke Scargyj of the Valen Empire, and also the youngest Papal Knight in history, a hero who saved the citizens of the Imperial City during the disaster…”

At this point, Victoria paused.

Then I looked at her eagerly as she picked up the plate from the table and placed it on the other side.

Ah…

It seemed like she had just made a casual move, without even looking at me, continuing to speak to everyone as if nothing had happened.

“Everyone here tonight are friends, and friends should help each other. Santell Fortress has been a long-term partner of the Imperial City, and we are all close allies. I would like to use this dinner opportunity to further advance the relationship between our city and Santell Fortress.”

The room suddenly became quiet.

All the people gathered around the round table still had some smiles on their faces, but their eyes began to flicker. They quietly observed everyone around them, adopting an attitude of watching with caution, waiting quietly for Her Majesty to put forward her proposal.

“Now…”

Victoria pondered, her slender fingers tapping rhythmically on the table, speaking slowly.

“Whether it’s us or Santell Fortress far away in the empire, we might face unpredictable serious situations. I hope we can weather this together. Currently, Santell Fortress needs people, an army, a mountain that can suppress the enemy. Although the hunters of the Santell army are fierce and can fight ten-to-one on the battlefield, facing a city guard force ten times larger, even if they win, it would be very difficult to hold the city. Once a war of attrition begins, it will easily lead to a very passive situation.”

She turned to look at me: “Peyello, I hope you can regard the Imperial City as a safety net. Tell your father that if, in the upcoming war, Santell Fortress falls into a disadvantage due to a lack of manpower, the Imperial City will surely lend a helping hand.”