On the other hand, in the Brunswick Royal Hotel, Laing and the others had just finished their dinner. They were sitting around the fireplace, admiring the snow outside the window. Brunswick was still in the midst of the Winter Veil holiday, and the snow would not melt until the end of February.
In the room, the two children were happily playing together. Although Devenhill was still very young and often needed Sylvia to help him up, the little fellow was a quick learner. He was half-crawling and half-walking behind his older brother, loudly calling out to his older brother.
Frey Derick could also feel a strong sense of familiarity from Devonshire. The little boy was playing with his younger brother, and it was very crazy.
The people around the fireplace were chatting casually. Both Laing and Suria focused their attention on Emilia. As the Duchess of the Empire, Emilia, who held three of the highest noble titles, talked the most. In fact, Emilia had encountered a lot of depressing things during her two years in Nur. If not for the support of her son and her longing for Laing, she might have already gone to Brittany to look for Laing.
During the conversation, the Duchess of the Empire could not help but reveal some secrets of the Empire. Laing and Suria would often smile after listening to them, but they would always remember it in their hearts.
Emilia said helplessly that she was naturally supported when she returned to Nur. Among them, the two elite troops in Nur, the Armoured Nur and the Blackstone Guards supported her the most. Next were the Black Lady of Nur, the Amethyst Academy of the Necromancer Elspeth von Drakken, and lastly, the Chief Justice of Nur, Theodore Bruckner, who represented a dozen knights in Nur to support Emilia's rule.
But just as Emilia said, she wasn't as capable as Laing. Nur's nobles would only seek her out when the city council was arguing endlessly or when they needed her opinion on important matters.
Emilia was very smart. As Laing's little maid, she had accumulated a lot of experience in dealing with internal affairs under the influence of Laing over the years. Every time the Countess encountered a problem, she was able to solve it perfectly. She was able to mediate and make both sides feel that it was acceptable. This strengthened her authority in the court.
Then, Emilia was always able to get big deals.
That was a huge order for arms.
Over the past two years, Emilia had managed to secure an order of more than 30 thousand crowns for the Nur factory through her connections with Laing in Brittany alone.
That was also the reason why Laing was nicknamed 'Nur's Close Friend' in Nur.
Then, there was Fugen's Ashes. With Laing as the middleman, Fugen placed a huge order for arms worth more than 50 thousand crowns. The amount was so huge that it shocked all of Nur. Fugen was basically there to clear out the Nur's stockpiles. The Nur factory was currently producing at full speed to supply Fugen's needs. Only the Nur factory in the Old World had the ability to complete such a huge order in a short period of time.
Fugen even said that he wasn't afraid that he didn't have money. He was only afraid that Nur didn't have Nur.
And for an industrial city like Nurr, what a series of huge orders meant was needless to say, right?
That was why the little maid was respected and loved in Nur. Her life wasn't bad either.
"Then, what's the relationship between Nur and Brunswick like now?" Suria was still concerned about that. She took off her high-heeled boots to reveal her long, black stockings. She sat beside Laing. Suria wasn't actually afraid of the cold, but she was clearly happy to immerse herself in the warm atmosphere.
The Duchess, who was good at dancing, had initiated the "Fireside Chat" activity when Ryan was away on his campaign. The female knight often invited people from the outside world, including nobles, merchants, freedmen, and even many serfs who worked personally, to come into the castle and have a cordial conversation and answer questions by the fireplace in the reception room. The Duchess was dignified and elegant, graceful, and approachable. Relying on this relaxed and harmonious atmosphere that was not pretentious at all, Sulia had established a stable bridge of communication between the nobles and the serfs, and her strong affinity won people's understanding and respect.
In a sense, the image of Madam Suria was more deeply ingrained in the hearts of all the residents in the territory than Laing. If Laing was like a mountain that made people gasp in amazement, then Suria was like a trickling stream that penetrated people's hearts.
Compared to Suria, Emilia was slightly more inexperienced. The way the little maid governed was that she never left her Kurfürst Palace.
"It's not bad. Karl-franz seems to have thought of the problem too simply." Emilia was somewhat amused. "Nur is theoretically under the jurisdiction of the Emperor of the Empire, but it is a free city after all. When the position of Grand Duke of Nur was vacant, the city council was already in an environment of self-government. Karl thought that I was close to his family, and my arrival could make Nur listen to his orders in Brunswick. But he didn't think that if I returned to Nur and Nur had a ruler, the city council wouldn't listen to Karl's orders either. Would I go against the city council for him? The most I can do is to increase the Emperor's influence in Nur. "
"But it's better than nothing." Laing looked at Frey Derick who was playing. "At least he got a godson."
"The Nur people's sense of identity towards the Empire came from Ludwig the Savior. After all, it was his hometown." Emilia stretched out her white satin gloves and held her beautiful little face. She complained, "As for Karl-franz, the Nur people are not interested in him at all. Or rather, the Nur people are different from the people in Brunswick. They are not interested in anything in the outside world, and they generally despise all outsiders."
"Then what about Weisseng?" Suria continued to ask. The female knight was interested in the little maid's other title.
"Historically, Nur and Weisseng were not one. The only reason they can be merged now is because I have both titles." Emilia was obviously conflicted when she said this. "The truth is, the people of Weisseng have never treated the Nur people as their compatriots. They look down on the Nur people's extravagance and arrogance. They think that the Nur people are the parasites of the Empire. The Nur people also look down on the poverty of Weisseng and the use of guerrilla warfare and ambushes to deal with the Green Dwarfs and Orcs. To the Nur people, muskets, heavy cannons, steam tanks, line shooting and the charge of knights are the only romance of war."
"Hahahaha!" Laing couldn't help but laugh. Duke Muxilon smiled bitterly and shook his head. He didn't say anything else.
The Dark Elf, who was wearing a black and white maid costume and white thick pantyhose, sat on the other side of Laing. She leaned on Laing's back and hugged his neck from behind. Olica laughed eerily. "What a foolish human. Why did you make the problem so complicated? It's simple. Start a war of conquest. The loser will turn all the people of Weisseng into slaves."
"Hahahaha!" Laing laughed even more heartily.
"What's so funny! You're still laughing! " Laing's laughter made Emilia unhappy. The little maid lifted a slender leg wrapped in black velvet pantyhose, grabbed the slipper on her foot, and threw it at Laing's face. The Empire's Duchess was flustered and exasperated. "Do you know how much effort I put into balancing the people of the two territories? I'm not you. You can solve the problem in Brittany with one sentence. I can't! "
Laing reached out to grab the slipper. The duke was still laughing. "I understand, Emilia. Your temper has grown a lot in the past two years!"
"Humph!" Emilia snorted with some resentment. "It's all because I'm forced to. If I'm too nice, I'll only be bullied."
Suria grabbed Laing's hand and was about to say something, when heavy footsteps came from the door.
"Who is it?" Sylvia, the head maid, found it strange. It was almost seven o 'clock in the evening. Who would visit at this time?
Carefully, Sylvia thought for a moment. This was the Royal Hotel of the Empire. At this time, there were not many people who could visit Laing without alarming the guards and the old guards. She decided to wait and see.
As she expected, the door was soon opened. It was obvious that Laing's personal knights and old guards had heard the noise. However, they only said a few words to the visitor before they returned to their room and closed the door.
Soon, there was a knock on the door. "Knock ~ Knock ~ Is anyone home?"
"Who is it?"
"Protector of the Imperium, antagonist of the darkness, heir to all the sacred legacies of Emperor Charlemagne from the mountains to the sea, son of the emperor himself and the emperors, Kurfürst of Ryk, Elder Prince of Ryk, and Grand Duke of Brunswick, Karl Franz, is here." The newcomer reported part of his titles very formally.
After the door was opened, Laing, Suria, and Emilia hurried out to greet him. "Welcome!"
Emperor Karl-franz walked in from the outside in casual clothes with purple and gold colors. To everyone's surprise, apart from Emperor Karl-franz, his queen, Helena, was also here. She was a mature and beautiful woman with a slightly plump body and long blond hair. She was wearing a heavy woolen coat and a long dress that was decorated with pearls.
What surprised Laing even more was that Emperor Karl-franz was holding the hand of a boy who seemed to be about seven or eight years old. The boy was wearing a tight officer's uniform and a loose robe that was printed with a skull, an iron cross, and a laurel crown. He looked very similar to Emperor Karl-franz, but his eyes were slightly hostile.
Behind them, a servant was holding a little girl who was about three years old. The little girl was not afraid of strangers and stared at Laing and the rest of them openly.
"Godfather! It's Godfather! " Before Laing could say anything, his eldest son, Frey Derick, shouted happily. The little boy ran up to the emperor with unsteady steps. "Good evening, Godfather!"
"Hehe …" Karl-franz picked up Laing's son. The emperor did not put on any airs at this time. Instead, he lovingly rubbed his stubble on Frey Derick's little face. "Frey Derick, is Brunswick fun?"
"It's fun! There's Daddy, Mummy, Godfather, Grandpa Ludwig, and Uncle Gelt!" The stubble made little Frey Derick squeal. The little boy was even more excited. Compared to Laing, little Frey Derick was obviously closer to Karl-franz. After all, they had seen each other more often.
This made Laing a little unhappy, so the duke took the initiative to speak. "Your Majesty, you've really brought me a big surprise!"
"I hope I'm not disturbing you." The emperor smiled and put little Frey Derick down. He waved his hand. "This is an unofficial family visit. Don't be shy. You're not a duke, and I'm not the emperor. I just feel that we've had a lot of interactions and should get to know each other. This is my wife, Helena. This is my son, Luitpold II. This is my daughter, Anna."
"Hello!" This was the first time Laing met Queen Helena of the Empire and Karl-franz's eldest son, Luitpold II. Judging from the behavior of his family, the emperor's family could be considered happy.
It seemed that there had always been a rumor in the Empire's palace that Emperor Karl-franz was a henpecked husband. This was because this emperor had not had a single female court official since he got married. He only had two children, both of which were given birth to by his wife, Helena.
His eldest son, Luitpold, was the name of his father, the previous emperor of the Empire. Therefore, this little boy was generally known as Luitpold II.
"Come, son, let me introduce you. This is Laing Macado, Duke of Musillon, the Chosen Champion of the Lady of the Lake, the hero of mankind. He has killed countless strong enemies and is glorious. His name has spread throughout the old world." Emperor Karl held his eldest son's hand and pointed at Laing with a smile. "Haven't you always wanted to see him? Father has brought you here today! "
The emperor's tone was very calm, but there seemed to be something different. As for what was different, it gave people an indescribable feeling. Laing felt a little strange. He saw the seven or eight years old prince's eyes light up. He quickly walked up and bowed to Laing. Then he raised his head, and there was less hostility in his eyes. He smiled and said seriously, "Your Excellency Laing, you are a hero of mankind. I grew up listening to your heroic deeds! It's really an honor to be able to meet you today! "
After saying that, the prince raised his head, and his eyes were full of little stars. He looked exactly like a fanatic who had finally met his idol and met all his illusions.
Looking at little Frey Derick, who was closer to Karl-franz, and Luitpold II, who worshipped him, Laing felt an indescribable awkwardness and strangeness in his heart. He felt very uncomfortable and strange.
Looking up, Laing saw that Karl-franz also had the same expression. The two fathers looked at each other and suddenly had a tacit understanding.
This was called the tacit understanding between men.
Both sides introduced their families one by one.
"Emmanuel, you are indeed here!" the emperor said to Emilia with a smile.
"If you can be here, why can't I?" Emilia waved her hand impatiently. "You are the Godfather. He is the child's biological father."
The emperor smiled ambiguously and did not say anything. Suria, Emilia, and Helena, three women who were extremely powerful in the human countries, ran into each other. Suria very tacitly brought them to see her collection, leaving Karl and Laing sitting by the fireside.
"I knew you would come." Laing's expression was calm.
"I'm here as a friend, not as an emperor." Karl-franz looked at the flames in the fireplace. The emperor was silent for a while. "I just don't know if you see me as a friend."
"Is there a difference?" Laing smiled. "Isn't it the same? We are allies, so we must be friends. If one day we are no longer allies, then we can't be friends even if we want to."
"Heh, that's true." After hearing this, the emperor could not help but smile. Yes, some things could not be separated. He was one, and so was Laing.
"In that case, let me ask you a question as a friend." The Emperor muttered to himself for a moment before saying, "If you were the Emperor of the Empire and you were faced with three candidates for the position of the Royal Family's Chief Grand Wizard, Otto, the former Chief Grand Wizard and Chief Grand Wizard of the Flame Academy, Gehrman, and the newly risen Grand Alchemist Galt, what would you choose?"
"Hmm …"
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