Duke was a noble title of the highest status apart from the royal family.
And as if to express her sincerity and determination, Stephanie continued, "Of course, it won't be the kind of noble who only has a title but no real power. When the time comes, I will give you a third of my territory and give you all the rights of a Grand Duke, such as the basic right of conscription, the basic autonomy of territorial laws, and even the right to wage war. "
This was the pure treatment of a lord.
Coupled with the title of Grand Duke, as long as Roland's abilities weren't too bad, he would be another rising star among the upper nobles of Fareins.
The kind that was so bright that it was purple.
Normally, no one would refuse such a gift as long as they were young.
Even members of the royal family would most likely be ecstatic when they encountered this, then throw themselves to the ground and call Her Majesty the Queen.
However, Roland wasn't very interested.
It wasn't that he wasn't interested at all; he was just a little tempted.
After all, the conditions that Stephanie offered were really, really good.
But … after seeing Mordenkainen's floating city, Roland wasn't very interested in the territory on the ground.
No matter how big your territory was, it was still fixed in one place.
Could it be as convenient as a floating city to come and go?
No matter how high a noble's position was, at most, they would be a king or a queen.
They would still be mortals.
But as long as a floating city was built, even if it was a little smaller, the significance would be different.
It had developed in the direction of transcendence.
So, Roland was indeed a little tempted, but he still didn't really care.
Andonara knew Roland too well, and when she heard Stephanie's words, she said with a smile, "Your conditions are useful for others, but not for him. It would be better for you to promise him a large library than to tempt him with all this power. "
"Just knowledge?" Stephanie leaned against Andonara, her body still weak now. "You don't like power, Roland, what about beauty?"
This time, Andonara wasn't happy. "What do you mean by that?"
Stephanie's reaction was also very fast, and she immediately said, "Don't be hasty, I'm just helping you test him."
"Don't do that." Andonara stopped and looked at Stephanie very seriously. "Human nature can't stand up to tests, understand?"
When she spoke, her eyes were gloomy and even contained a bit of killing intent.
Stephanie felt a chill in her heart, but she immediately nodded.
She said, "We're good friends. This is Delpon, and I'm the hostess here. Don't worry, you'll be safe and happy here."
Stephanie didn't comment.
The people of Fareins more or less had a "center of the world" complex. In their view, except for Fareins, all the other human countries were barbarians, and only the elves could be a little stronger than them.
Stephanie was not interested in the small country of Hollevin or the small city of Delpon.
However, it was not a problem for him to hide here.
Stephanie leaned against Andonara and slowly walked forward, while she asked Roland, "You were never willing to show me the secret of the multiple teleportation array before, but now you're willing, and you even said you'd invest. What deal do you want to make with me?"
"Because I suddenly feel that it would be a good choice for me if you became queen." Roland smiled and said, "The underground library of a princess like you already has a good collection of books, so the royal library, which is as famous as the Grand Library of Light, should also have a lot of good books. It's said that that place is only open to members of the royal family, and if you become queen, you should be able to let me in for a long time, right? "
"So you exposed the secret of your multiple teleportation array!" Stephanie looked at Roland in disbelief. "Do you know what this secret means?"
Roland nodded. "I think I should know better than you the importance of transportation, and the importance of smooth transportation for war strategy. Although you're a queen, and apart from being better than me in etiquette education and worldly wisdom, I should be better than you in other comprehensive qualities. "
Roland said this with confidence.
Just as he said, apart from the twists and turns of the upper class, in terms of other knowledge, Roland, who had been systematically cultivated for nearly twenty years, completely surpassed Stephanie, the First Princess, in terms of both breadth and depth of knowledge.
Stephanie didn't argue. She frowned. "Then why did you expose it? Just for some books? "
"Just for the books." Roland nodded. "The amount of knowledge determines the upper limit of a Mage's growth."
"I can give you territory, and I can let you enter the library, which doesn't conflict."
"But with territory, I won't have that much time to study." At this time, they had walked outside Delpon, and he could see the Magic Tower from afar inside the city walls. "I also have my own forces, but I've found that just maintaining such a small organization takes up a lot of my time for study. With another territory, with the identity of a Grand Duke and a high position of power, even if I don't do anything, trouble will still come to me."
Stephanie gave Roland a deep look and didn't try to persuade him again.
It wasn't that she had given up, but that she had put the issue aside for the time being.
A young Mage who could "draw" multiple teleportation arrays was worth spending a lot of energy and time to show goodwill and rope in.
The three of them then returned to the manor in Delpon in silence.
Vivian, who received the news, hurried over from the Magic Tower and hugged Roland tightly, unwilling to let go.
Andonara was very considerate and gave the two of them some space alone.
After all, Andonara had been by Roland's side all this time.
In contrast, Vivian not only had to stay in Delpon, but she also had to manage the Magic Tower and all the affairs of the magic school.
Although Vivian didn't have any complaints about this, and even somewhat enjoyed it, she was still a girl who wasn't even twenty years old, and her heart would still feel empty after not seeing her lover for so long.
The two of them spent the night alone, and then the next day, Vivian continued to deal with the affairs of the Magic Tower with a radiant face.
Roland was a little tired and didn't get out of bed until it was almost noon.
When he came to the living room, he found that Andonara and Stephanie had already finished eating.
As soon as Roland sat down, Stephanie said, "You're up so late. It seems that you're not too diligent."
Roland smiled and didn't say anything.
Nobody had a break.
Roland understood the principle of a proper balance between work and rest.
But there was no point in arguing with a woman over such trifles, so she could say whatever she wanted.
Andonara went back to the kitchen and took out the fried eggs and a glass of milk that had been specially left for Roland.
Seeing that Roland ignored her, Stephanie frowned and then asked, "How long are you going to keep me here, and when are you going to send me back!"
Roland took a sip of the warm milk. "We'll talk about it after Schuck and I figure things out."
Stephanie looked unhappy. "Are you putting me under house arrest?"
Roland put down the cup in his hand and raised his eyebrows. "Putting you under house arrest? Your Highness, although we kind of know each other and can be considered acquaintances, it's really hard for our relationship to be harmonious if you're always so suspicious. "
"But you didn't say when you'll let me return to the capital. If this isn't putting me under house arrest, what are you doing!"
Roland sighed. "I thought that as a princess who has been hanging around the upper nobility all year round, you should be quite smart. Turns out that you're only smart, but you don't see the situation clearly at all? "
These words seemed a little sarcastic.
After hearing this, Stephanie was instantly furious, and her face was a lot gloomier.
But she didn't flare up and just held back her anger and asked, "What do you mean by that?"
"About this matter, there are only three parties involved now," Roland explained somewhat helplessly. "The royal family, the Temple of Light, and the Association of Mages."
Stephanie chuckled. "Who doesn't know that?"
"But you don't understand the attitudes of these three parties." Roland cut the fried eggs on the plate into three pieces and pushed one of them in Stephanie's direction. "You represent the royal family, I represent the Association of Mages, and Schuck represents the Temple of Light."
Stephanie was tempted to say that anyone could understand this. Do you need to talk nonsense?
But she decided to listen patiently and see what Roland had to say.
"It stands to reason that most people can imagine how strong these three parties are when they join forces. No matter how powerful the enemy is, they should've been found out by now. But they just don't investigate and only push the three of us to do it! " The knife in Roland's hand directly cut the fried eggs into a dozen pieces. "Both Schuck and I are Golden Sons and won't die, so it's fine for us to do whatever we want. Personally, I think that the Association of Mages has the idea of training me and letting me do things independently. So does Schuck's side. Their pope agreed to Schuck's idea of forming an investigation team, but he's not helping anymore. Isn't it obvious? As for you … "
Stephanie understood what Roland meant.
Then her whole body went cold.
Sometimes there were blind spots in one's vision and ideas, and one couldn't change one's mind, just because one was a part of the game.
Stephanie now understood that Roland and Schuck were both out for "fun," and that she was the only one who was fighting for her life.
He was the only one who was being tested and watched by others!
"So, it's you who's really in danger. All the nobles in the capital have always wanted to see you alone, to see your ability to do things, to see your social skills, to see your 'luck,' and to see if you're qualified to be a queen. " Roland finished the fried eggs and said slowly, "So, the nobles are all watching from the sidelines, the Church of Light is watching from the sidelines, and even the Association of Mages, whose important figures have died, is watching from the sidelines."
Cold sweat broke out on Stephanie's forehead, each one the size of a soybean.
She seemed to see, in the air of this world, three illusory giants staring at her.
Each giant, with a scrutinizing gaze in their eyes.
It was like looking at a little sow struggling desperately to escape on a chopping board.
Of the three superpowers, the Church of Light and the Association of Mages, the two superpowers, had already chosen the future "core" figures of their forces.
Only she, the First Princess, hadn't even finished her exam yet.
"So, you stay in this city for now, and wait for me to go back to Fareins and break this situation with Schuck first," Roland said. "When things are over, I'll come back and take you back to the Fareins royal family."
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