The lords of Marlin Castle were mentally prepared for the possible price the Empire would ask for. They had also secretly discussed the price. What they hoped for the most was to spend a large sum of money to settle the matter. After all, as time passed, the money would slowly flow back into their pockets.
However, the conditions of the Gryphon Duke made them dumbfounded. Was this still considered a negotiation? If they agreed to these conditions, what was the difference between Marlin Castle and losing their autonomy?
They would all become servants of the Empire!
However, Schultz was also someone who could keep his composure. He looked at the contract for a while and laughed out loud. "Sir Ferdinand, among the conditions you gave, we may only partially agree to the fourth condition, but completely agree to the fifth condition."
All the military expenses of the Empire's army must be borne by Marlin Castle. This was the foundation of everything. As for 50,000 gold marks … Although it was a bit much, looking at the first three conditions, this one was still acceptable and could be negotiated.
"Is that so? Sir Schultz, if you ask me, the first three conditions are the most important. As for the fifth condition that you agreed to, I feel that we should not just ask you to do something. This is a fair contract. " Ivan smiled and said, "If we fulfill the first four conditions, we will definitely fulfill the fifth condition."
"Also, this must be an open and fair contract. It must be subject to the supervision of all the citizens of the Empire. No favoritism or sabotage is allowed."
Laing watched this negotiation from the side. He thought to himself that this negotiation was going to end right from the start.
The Gryphon Duke was not the main person in charge of this negotiation. The Emperor had sent a diplomat to be in charge of the negotiations. Most of the time, he was just sitting there, tasting tea and snacks.
However, as long as he was sitting there, he was a great deterrent. With him and his Gryphon Knights present, the Empire's diplomat was very firm and aggressive when he spoke. On the other hand, Marlin Castle's side was somewhat lacking.
This was the status of a Saint-level expert.
Therefore, the first day of the negotiation only lasted for two hours. Some areas were agreed upon, and both sides established a communication mechanism to prepare for future negotiations.
To put it simply, the negotiation failed and they parted on bad terms.
In the evening, another banquet was held in the city hall. The nobles of Marlin Castle had stiff smiles on their faces as they welcomed the arrival of the Griffin Knights.
The huge City Hall was filled with all kinds of delicacies. There were staple foods, meat, vegetables, drinks, fruits, and so on. Not only was there a rich variety, but they also looked, smelled, and tasted good. Honey, jam, cream, cheese, butter, and so on were divided into small exquisite boxes the size of matchboxes.
Drinks included coffee, tea, various fruit juices, milk, and so on. The staple food is a variety of bread and butter, cheese and jam with the bread, plus sausages and ham.
The Gryphon Duke was undoubtedly the main character of this banquet.
If there was anything notable about him, it would be his conquest of the Red Horn Orc Tribe in the Dragon Forest.
A few years ago, the current Emperor of the Empire, Karl-franz - Frey Friedrich, had yet to ascend to the throne. At that time, the Empire's Emperor was Luitpold - Frey Friedrich. This former Emperor could only be considered a conservative Emperor. In the last few years of his life, the Emperor was plagued with illness and was unable to form an effective management of the Empire.
The famous first battle of the Dragon Forest took place at this time. The Brescia Elector, "Sleeper" Andrea - Bernardino, finally could not stand the repeated attacks of the Red Horn Orc Tribe on his territory. The Elector decided to personally lead an army into the Dragon Forest and completely annihilate the Red Horn Orc Tribe.
However, just like his nickname, "Sleeper" Andrea was not a candidate who was good at war. He was better at internal affairs. Before he was fully prepared, the Kurfürst led the army into the Dragon Forest.
His opponent was the Orc Champion, "Deceiver" Angor. This cunning Orc King gathered ten Orc Battle Gangs to form an Orc army of tens of thousands. On the other hand, he carefully lured the enemy deep into the forest. Then, he continuously sent Orc Battle Gangs to attack the supply line repeatedly. Finally, the army was crushed in the third week of the Elector's army entering the forest. The Elector himself died in battle and the army was completely defeated. The Sacred Sword "Fire of the West" and the Elector's only daughter went missing in this battle. The Bernardino Family's direct bloodline was thus cut off.
The Kurfürst of Brescia was temporarily led by Andrea's nephew, Gianni Bernardino. He was only a teenager, and many people were looking for the whereabouts of Andrea's daughter, hoping to obtain the right to rule Brescia by force.
The Griffin Duke was ordered to lead the Griffin Knights and the Empire's reinforcements to launch the second Dragon Forest Battle. During the battle, Ivan took advantage of the chaos in the Orc Army after the victory. Under the situation of increasing internal strife, he abandoned a few spoils of war and incited dozens of Orc Battle Gangs to kill each other. Then, he led the Empire's army to completely defeat the Orc Army.
The Beast King "Deceiver" Angor was killed by Ivan himself. Although Angor was revived by Tzeentch's blessing, the Gryphon Duke remained calm. He calmly pulled out the Gryphon Real Silver Holy Sword again and cut off Angor's head.
His illustrious reputation was earned through fighting.
Ivan had been bringing his son, Anton, and his godson, Laing. He picked up a large piece of steak and ate it in a few bites. Then, he said to Laing, "The beef is a little overcooked."
"I'll personally grill the steak for you later." Laing knew what his Godfather was implying. He swallowed a piece of pork and said helplessly.
Laing was very talented in cooking. Ivan loved to eat his meat. When he heard that Laing knew how to cook, Anton's eyes lit up. Laing thought it was funny. "Okay, okay! You can come too, but you have to prepare your own beef. "
"Hahahahaha! You rascal! You're still the same as before. " Ivan laughed heartily and patted Laing's head. Laing covered his head and did not dare to resist. Anton also smiled and did not speak.
The Griffin father, son, and Laing were eating in a corner.
"Oh! Your Excellency Griffin, I represent the Phoenix King, Finnuba, to extend my sincere greetings to Your Excellency Griffin! " The high elf ambassador, Taimag Den Caben, appeared. He showed a rare look of respect. "I didn't expect you to be the one leading the army to Marlin Castle."
"Oh, it's Your Excellency Taimag. I've received the Phoenix King's greetings. May I know what's the matter?" Ivan saw that it was the pointy-eared ambassador and did not have a pleasant expression.
"I want to ask if His Majesty the Human Empire intends to respect Ifetaw's position in Marlin Castle and the past trade agreements?" The high elf ambassador asked the thing he was most concerned about.
"The rights of the high elves will be guaranteed. Please rest assured, Your Excellency Taimag," Ivan whispered in his ear.
"That's great. The high elves and humans have a long history of friendship. I hope we can continue this friendship." Taimag got a satisfactory answer and nodded. Then, he lifted his chin and left with the red wine.
When the high elf was far away, the Griffin Duke said with disdain, "The pointy-eared people are always like this. They care about their own rights the most. As long as it doesn't affect their interests, they don't care about anything else."
"Yes, I can bet that if the green skin can respect the trade agreements and their ruling rights over Ifetaw, I think the pointy-eared people won't care if the green skin becomes the owner of Marlin Castle." Laing picked up the red wine and laughed. "Unfortunately, the green skin won't."
"Hahahaha!" The Griffin Duke and his son laughed together.
After three rounds of wine and five dishes, Ivan signaled that the three of them could leave. Marlin Castle had already arranged accommodation for the Griffin Duke and his son on Amber Avenue.
Walking on the cold street, the streetlights shone on the three of them. Gusts of cold wind blew through their clothes.
"So? Laing, why did you join the Lady of the Lake? "Ivan finally asked this question. Anton also looked at Laing curiously.
"It started because I received a mission from the Church of Justice to hunt down the Fallen Hunter, Berthe …" Laing told his experience softly. Ivan listened attentively and nodded from time to time. Anton heard that Laing had experienced so many dangers and exclaimed from time to time.
Ivan frowned slightly when he heard Yurik's oracle asking Laing to kill a doomsday bull. Especially when Laing told him that the doomsday bull had evolved into a four-armed bull demon. He finally couldn't help but interrupt Laing's story. "The Lord of the White Wolf is still so harsh on his followers. This is almost a suicide mission. This is not the first time something like this has happened."
Laing just sighed and continued his journey. He only skipped the part about the ancient sacred altar. Then, he talked about the betrayal of the traitor, which led to the collapse of the city gate. There was no way to defend Mjoden Haven. He had to fight the barbarian chief for the championship, but he was at a disadvantage. In this predicament, the Lady of the Lake reached out to him.
"At that time, I only had two choices. Either I hoped that the Lord of the White Wolf would not help me, or I chose to accept the Lady's olive branch. Ivan, Anton, you all know that I had no other choice at that time." Laing looked very helpless. "At that time, I couldn't think too much. My body couldn't take it anymore. My physical strength was reaching its limit. I could only grab hold of this life-saving straw."
In the end, Laing said that he came to Marlin Castle and finally killed the Fallen Hunter Bate. The Duke and his son fell into silence. The three of them walked together for a long time.
"The Lady of the Lake must have taken a liking to your potential. You're only 25 years old this year, but you've already slain the Four-Armed Ox Demon, killed the Chaos Champion, then killed the Khorne Champion, and destroyed the Aesthetic Society. Your future is limitless. The chivalrous virtues you've displayed during this process must have caught the Lady of the Lake's attention. That's why she chose you as the Chosen One." Ivan thought for a while before continuing. "Obviously, all of this was the Lady of the Lake's plan. She saw that you were in the most critical moment and reached out to you to help you. Between life and death, people will always grab hold of all the hope to survive. Besides, the Lady of the Lake is also an enemy of Chaos. It's not surprising that you changed your faith."
"Yes, sometimes life is so helpless." Laing's tone was full of helplessness. Then, he gently unbuttoned the front of his shirt.
A golden image of the Holy Grail shone on his chest.
"This is the Grail pattern! The Lady of the Lake has recognized you as a Grail Knight? "Anton asked in surprise.
"Yes. If nothing unexpected happens, I will go to Brittany after the Grass Festival and become the lord." Laing told his Godfather about his future. Then, with a look of shame on his face, he said, "Ivan, I … I'm sorry for failing to live up to your teachings. But I have no other choice."
The Griffin Duke looked at his godson and suddenly laughed. He slapped Laing on the shoulder and said, "Ha! You little brat, I know what you're thinking. The Lady of the Lake has treated you so well. It's not surprising that you would choose to change your faith. Besides, you'll have a better future under her. It makes sense that you would make such a choice. You've passed my test. Becoming a Grail Knight is also a very honorable thing. At least, it's better than being a White Wolf Knight in Nord. "
"Phew …" Laing let out a sigh of relief. He had passed his Godfather 'test.
The Griffin Duke recognized the Eight Virtues of Knights very much. He had also visited Brittany as a representative of the Empire and had formed deep friendships with many Grail Knights. He just couldn't stand the Knight King's serfdom and the recklessness and arrogance of the young knights.
The Godfather began to teach his godson, "But Laing, you have to know that Brittany is not like the Empire. This country has fallen into decline hundreds of years after its founding. Since the Knight King Tayloff, the two succeeding Knight Kings, John I and John II, were tyrants. It was under their rule that Brittany's farmers went bankrupt on a large scale and became serfs. The knightly spirit that the nobles used to adhere to gradually disappeared. The energy of justice and virtue in the past is now used to extract more benefits from the serfs."
Laing listened very respectfully, and Anton also quietly listened to his father's teachings.
Ivan continued, "After John II was overthrown by the Lake Goddess Witches and the dukes, the current Knight King, Richard 'the Tiger', can only be regarded as a good man and a good general. Under his rule, Brittany may be able to maintain a stable rule, but it is almost impossible to restore prosperity. Richard is old and has lost ambition."
"If you become a noble in Brittany, you may have to face a lot of difficulties. Have you really thought about it? My godson? "
"My Godfather, things may have to be looked at from two sides. A declining and decaying kingdom will certainly make me face a lot of challenges, but there will also be new life in it." Laing said calmly, "When the flames of war spread throughout the kingdom, the great crisis will also lead to great changes and opportunities …"
"And this is what you want!" Ivan's eyes widened slightly. The Duke of Gryphon raised the corner of his mouth. He understood Laing's ambition. "What great ambition. You are indeed my godson!"
As he spoke, the Duke of Gryphon reached out to the Gryphon Real Silver Holy Sword at his waist. The huge one-handed sword let out a pleasant sound in the cold air. The gryphon pattern on the hilt of the sword and the angel wings lit up with a golden glow. The sword was covered with various runes, and golden flames were flapping on the sword.
"Draw your sword! Laing! "
"Let me see if you have the ability to support your great ambition!" With the Gryphon Real Silver Holy Sword in his hand, Ivan's expression gradually turned cold. The pressure of a Sanctuary expert was released completely, and the two young men were forced to retreat continuously.
"If you can't take this sword, you can go to the grave with your ambition!"
Laing nodded. He reached out to the Goddess of Vengeance behind him, and his eyes were burning with a strong desire to fight.
"As you wish, my Godfather."
"I also want you to see my growth."
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