"A gift?" Roland raised his eyebrows. "What is it?"
"The Hawes and Lista Families of the Northern Region... Your Majesty, the two earls refused to obey your rule and colluded with other nobles to rebel. My father saw through their tricks and gave them the punishment they deserved," Cole said regretfully. "But due to my negligence, I didn't expect you to return to the Western Region in advance, and the heads as evidence were destroyed on the way."
"Wait, your father directly executed the two earls?"
"Uh," he tilted his head and looked at his assistant. "Yes."
"This is more intense than I expected... Using the heads of the two earls as proof of allegiance means that it will be difficult for them to gain the support of the Eastern Region nobles. At least, the possibility of them joining forces to rebel against my territory is greatly reduced." Roland thought to himself. But now that Nightingale was not around, he did not know whether Cole was deceiving him or not.
He pondered for a moment and whispered to Barov beside him, "Are there two families in the Northern Region?"
"Horse Head Hawes and Double Spear Lista are both aristocratic families in the Northern Region, more famous than the five families in the Western Region. The ancestors of the Lista Family fought for the Wimbledon Family, and the double spears on their family emblem were taken from the flag of the Kingdom of Graycastle," Barov said unhurriedly while stroking his beard. Barov stroked his beard and said unhurriedly, "Of course, this was more than two hundred years ago. But the Kant Family is not famous. I remember it was a family that only appeared in the last 50 years... I didn't expect that Timothy would choose Carr Wen Kant as the ruler of the Northern Region. Even if it was to contain the other two families, it would be difficult for them to play their role if there was a huge gap in strength, and it would easily cause dissatisfaction among the older families. "
"So what he said is true?" Roland automatically ignored the old director's nagging to show off his extensive knowledge.
"Well... it's unlikely that he's lying," Barov said in a low voice. "This matter concerns the honor of the nobles. If you agree to accept their allegiance, and it's proven to be a lie, the Northern Region will be in chaos first."
What she said made sense. He nodded slightly, and it didn't matter whether it was a lie or not. The key was that his bottom line was already there. If he could accept giving up his fief, then everything could be discussed. If he insisted on seizing power, then no matter how precious the gift was, it would be meaningless.
Thinking of this, Roland smiled at Cole. "First of all, I have to express my gratitude to the duke. Protecting the honor of the royal family is the responsibility of every noble, and your father did a good job. Secondly, the two earls deserved it. The kingdom will not pursue Duke Kant's actions. "
"Is, is that so? Father will be very happy to hear this. "Cole seemed to sigh in relief." He has always wanted to serve a real king, and now he finally has the chance. "
"Is that so? I'm also very willing to accept the Duke of the North's allegiance … provided that he follows the new laws of Graycastle."
"New laws?" He was a little surprised. "What's that?"
"It's about the withdrawal of the nobles' enfeoffment rights." Roland looked at Cole's expression and said word by word, "From now on, there will be no more enfeoffment of nobles in the kingdom. You can understand it as all the territories in Graycastle will only have one master, and that is the king."
"What? Your Majesty, this... "Cole's expression changed dramatically, and he turned to look at his assistant again.
"Is this guy really the duke's second son? Although he looks a little young, he should not be worse than his maid... At least the latter just opened her mouth slightly and looked calm. Of course, it could be that she did not understand the meaning of his words at all. "Don't worry.
The nobles are still the nobles. Your luxurious life will not change, and you still have the opportunity to reach new heights. "Roland clapped his hands and asked the attendant to hand over the" propaganda booklet "that had been prepared in advance." This set of laws has been fully implemented in Longsong Stronghold. In the booklet, you can read many short stories about the reform and examples of nobles who have devoted themselves to it. It seems that the nobles will lose some of their privileges, but in fact, they will be liberated from their fiefs and thrown into the big stage of the kingdom, or even the whole continent. "
Cole looked puzzled. "But... I don't know..."
Cole's performance made Roland a little disappointed, but after thinking about it, he felt that it was normal. After all, he was still the second son who had just reached adulthood. He probably only played the role of a messenger on this trip and could not make the final decision.
"It doesn't matter. You can send the message back to Duke Carr. Before he replies, you can stay in Neverwinter and enjoy the unique scenery here. I think you'll like it here."
Although sending the second son showed his sincerity, Roland did not intend to waste this sincerity. He temporarily detained him as a guarantee to prevent the other party from taking risks out of desperation.
He thought that the meeting would come to an end, but he did not expect Cole to make another request.
"Your Majesty, can I see how the paddle steamers and steam engines are made in your territory?"
This was a novel request. Roland looked at him with great interest. "Are you interested in this?"
"Yes, I've heard of these strange boats in King's City. After coming to the Western Region, I found that they are everywhere. I'm very curious about how paddle steamers travel without sails," Cole said with a hand on his chest.
"I see." He nodded with a smile. "I'll ask Barov to arrange it."
...
After dealing with the Northern Region messengers, Roland returned to his office and was about to finish the design in his hand. Suddenly, he heard rapid knocking outside the window. When he turned around, he saw two figures he didn't expect.
Lightning was lying on the windowsill, and Maggie was squatting on top of her head and pecking at the glass.
Roland's heart suddenly tightened. It was only the third day. The paddle steamers should not have come back so soon. Did something happen?
"Why did you come back first?" He opened the French window and asked hurriedly, "Where are the others?"
"Your Majesty! We caught the demon! "
"But Anna, Leaf and Nightingale are all injured, coo!"
"Fortunately, it's not a big problem!"
"But it still hurts, coo! Would you allow Miss Nana to come with us? "
Listening to the two rushing to finish, Roland felt like his heart was on a roller coaster. He let out a long breath and asked, "Are they really okay?"
"No, coo!"
"I'll ask someone to bring Nana here." He turned around and walked out of the room. "Next time, remember to say everything in one breath!"
...
The next evening, two paddle steamers finally appeared at the west end of the Redwater River.
In order to prevent the crowd from panicking at the sight of the demon, the First Army had cleared the No. 22 trestle and prepared a covered carriage. A temporary wooden house was also set up in the castle's back garden as a laboratory. The research on the demon and the Sigil would be carried out under the supervision of Leaf.
Seeing Anna and Nightingale coming down the trestle, Roland was completely relieved. It had only been four days since they set off, but it felt like months. Especially after hearing the news that the two were injured, time passed even slower.
"Thank you for your hard work." He raised the corner of his mouth and opened his arms to Anna.
The latter did not answer, but quickly threw herself into his arms and hugged him tightly.
Nightingale sighed and said, "You said you would wait for us in the castle... The dock isn't safe, Your Majesty."
"You too," Roland said with a smile. "Thank you for your hard work."
"Well..." She turned her head away uncomfortably. "Actually, it's okay."
Anna released Roland and pulled Nightingale over.
Then Vendy, Leaf...
This time, all the witches hugged Roland, including Agatha and Iffy.
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