After the welcoming ceremony on the platform of the airship, the welcoming banquet began in the Palace of the Golden Roses. The nobles of this ancient kingdom gathered together in the Eagle Hall, which was decorated with crystal lamps and gold-embroidered silk curtains. They toasted each other and warmly and politely with the nobles who could bring them more benefits. At the same time, every noble was paying attention to the royal valet in blue and red uniform standing at the end of the long hall. Every time the valet read out a family name, at least one noble would stand up and come to the front of the stage to pay his respects to the victorious princess and the knights who had fought in the war. They raised their wine glasses high above their heads and read out all the titles of Veronica again and again. Everyone was smiling as if they were really happy for the knight princess to return safely.
The defeat in the western region of the kingdom seemed to have been forgotten, and no one mentioned the festering defense line in the Shadowy Forest. The nobles described today's grand occasion as "triumphant". Although from a certain point of view, leading the knights across the entire land of Chaos, bringing vital frontline intelligence from the depths of the darkness, and helping the fortress in the west to repel the army of monsters were indeed commendable, it was not clear whether this glory was what the knight princess wanted.
From the very beginning, Hao Ren was not used to this seemingly warm but actually cold banquet. After a while, he asked to go outside the hall for some fresh air. Apparently, Rudolph III thought that the guardian from a thousand years ago was not used to this strange environment a thousand years later, so he readily agreed. The main purpose of today's banquet was to welcome Veronica and the knights, and the ancient guardian was an unexpected character. His Majesty was already having a headache about the ancient warrior. Now, seeing that the guardian was not interested in the order of the nobles, of course, he was happy.
The silver-inlaid oak door of the Eagle Hall closed behind him, and the surroundings suddenly became quiet. Under the guidance of the guards, Hao Ren came to the terrace and took a deep breath of the clean air of the land of Order. White City was located in the center of the Great Plains. The hot and humid air from the south and the cold wind from the north were blocked by the mountains and forests, so the climate in the hinterland of the plains was quite pleasant. The night breeze was slightly cool with just the right amount of moisture, and a deep breath was refreshing.
The city was still brightly lit, and the prosperous White City had the richest nightlife on the continent. Hao Ren saw several large fireworks markets in the main city below, and some places seemed to be continuing the celebration activities that had not ended during the day. Hao Ren retracted his gaze and looked at the exquisite white stone pillars beside him. These stone pillars in the ancient elven style supported a ring of stone beams above the terrace, and the ring beams were entwined with blooming roses and some unknown plants from another world. As far as he could see, he could either see people celebrating in peace or exquisite and luxurious decorations. These things formed a sharp contrast with his experience in the land of Chaos.
It was hard to imagine that the world had been in a spiral of endless war for 10,000 years. This world of Collow was different from any "doomsday" he had ever seen. At first glance, the reason for this difference seemed to be a short-sighted, befuddled life. But when he thought of what the old knight Morian said on the airship, Hao Ren felt that was not the case.
Footsteps came from behind him.
Hao Ren turned his head and saw the purple-haired Veronica. The princess had finally changed out of her bloodstained knight armor and put on a gorgeous light blue princess dress. Even her long hair had been carefully combed by her maid into a hairstyle commonly used by noblewomen. She seemed to have changed her style. But when he saw the princess walking toward him, Hao Ren knew that her style had not changed at all. Veronica strode toward him, and the gorgeous and complicated dress was kicked around like a cumbersome rag. She was probably the only one who could wear such a gorgeous dress and walk like a marching army.
"My Lord Guardian," Veronica came up to Hao Ren and said casually, "why did you come out?"
"It's a little stuffy," Hao Ren smiled. "I came out for some fresh air. Why did you come out? "
"Disgusting," Veronica said with an exaggerated expression. "I waited for them to finish flattering me, so I quickly found a chance to sneak out. This damn dress is driving me crazy. I really don't know how my sister can walk around in this dress every day. It's harder to deal with than the scale armor of the Frost Guards of the Eternal Winter. "
Hao Ren also knew the temperament of the princess. Anyway, none of the princesses he had met were normal, so he just laughed it off. "It seems that you don't like those nobles."
"They said that I came back triumphantly," Veronica frowned. "But I know what happened at the border. An entire legion was almost wiped out. I heard that the soldiers who returned were less than two brigades. It was clearly a defeat. "
"In the war with the Chaos, as long as you come back alive, it is considered a victory, and if you come back alive without letting the Chaos cross the barrier of Order, it is considered a great victory." Hao Ren recalled what Sir Morian told him and replied with the proverb of this world, "'But as long as you return home, it is a victory.' Don't you all say that?"
"I know," Veronica sighed. "And I also know that those nobles … they are actually not stupid. Of course, they know what happened and what they are doing. This is their duty. They must maintain an atmosphere of uplift and let the people believe that our kingdom is still strong. Even if one day the barrier really collapses, they have the responsibility to ensure that everyone dies after eating their last meal. As the Kohds say, it is better to drink wine in the belly than to spill it on the ground. "
Hao Ren smiled. "That makes sense."
Veronica shrugged. "Yeah, it makes sense. Unfortunately, I don't like it. I feel like I'm more like a soldier. It's only when a soldier wins a battle that it's worth celebrating. I don't want to run back in shame."
"That's not what a princess should say."
"You sound just like my father." Veronica turned her head and looked at the cloudless night sky. "But it's true. You're an ancient from a thousand years ago."
Hao Ren suddenly coughed violently …
After he finally stopped coughing, he quickly took out a few pieces of paper from his dimensional pocket and handed them to Veronica. "I have talked to your father, and he agreed to use the power of the kingdom to help me find people. He asked me to give you these documents. You can take a look."
Veronica immediately took the pieces of paper. She had long been curious about the "old friend" that the ancient guardian mentioned was still active in this world, so she was particularly enthusiastic at this time. She knew very well that the Ancient Guardian's friend was naturally another Guardian. A warrior who could survive from the previous generation to this day would not be an ordinary person. If there really was such a powerful being living in seclusion within the kingdom's borders, it would undoubtedly be great news if she could use the Ancient Guardian's name to invite him out of seclusion.
But when she unfolded the pieces of paper, she was a little stunned.
These pieces of paper were printed with exquisite portraits. Such exquisite portraits were not rare, the gadgets made by alchemists could print similar things, but the people in the portraits were a bit inexplicable. The first piece of paper was a girl with short black hair, a bright smile, sitting on the sofa eating melon. The girl did not have the temperament of an "ancient warrior" at all, but more like a weird girl next door. The second piece of paper still seemed to be her, but the back of her head had become silver-white hair, a pair of triangular wolf-like ears on her head, and a furry tail behind her. She was standing in an unknown wilderness, staring at the full moon in the sky.
If the changes in the second picture were still imaginable, the third picture was a bit unbelievable. On the third picture …
It was a huge wolf … or maybe a dog, because Veronica had never seen a wolf that could laugh like that.
Although it was a little rude, Veronica was surprised to see a silly expression on the face of a canine creature …
"These …" Her Royal Highness looked up at Hao Ren with a searching gaze.
Hao Ren nodded. "All three pictures are of her. I don't know how she will appear in front of you, so I have to list all three of her forms. Oh, by the way, the third picture is missing a reference. Tell me, the height of the big white dog … wolf is about the height from here to the small balcony below. "
Veronica was dumbfounded. "… Three forms?!"
Then she glanced at the balcony below and exclaimed, "So huge!!"
"Yes," Hao Ren nodded. "She has three forms. Facing different enemies, she can exert the equivalent of five to ten times the usual strength, but only in the first two forms she has the ability to communicate with people."
"Will she lose her mind in the third form?" Veronica's expression was particularly confused. She did not even know how she accepted the three forms, and even followed this logic to ask, "This is … complete beastification?"
Hao Ren tried to make himself serious. "She won't lose her mind, but in the third form, she can't speak human language, and basically relies on barking to communicate … You'd better find someone who is good at dog training to negotiate with her, in case there is a misunderstanding and a fight. To be honest, your knights may not be able to beat her."
"Is she the guardian beast of the ancient times?" Veronica muttered to herself with a dull face, and without waiting for Hao Ren to answer, she continued, "The secret art of the ancient times … How wonderful."
Hao Ren: "…"
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