Pérot did not expect that he would return so soon.
He did not want to leave the warm house in such a cold winter, especially when the demonic beasts were wreaking havoc. However, the Duke Of Ryan had asked him to hand over this hot document to the 4th Prince.
Of course, he knew the contents of the document – in fact, all the upper nobles of Graycastle were discussing this shocking news: the King of Graycastle had fallen because of a murder, and the murderer was Gerald Wimbledon, the king's eldest son. Then the second son rushed to King's City and announced that the country could not be without a king for a day, and he would ascend the throne as the second in line.
However, this behavior was not accepted by everyone. Some people claimed that Gerald's trial was very strange. During the whole interrogation, he only showed up a few times, and he could not speak, and his hands were tightly tied. They hoped that after the matter was thoroughly investigated, the ownership of the throne would be decided.
There were also rumors that this was just a self-directed play by the second son, Timothy Wimbledon. The real murderer was the second prince who pretended to be sad, but could not wait to ascend the throne.
No matter who was right and who was wrong in this debate, the second prince, with the strong support of the Prime Minister, still temporarily held the supreme power of Graycastle as the King's Substitute. At the same time, he issued a recall order to all his competitors – the fight for the throne was over, and the princes and princesses should return to King's City before the end of winter after receiving the edict. The new king would officially confer territories and titles according to the results of the six months of governance.
Of course, Pérot could see the urgency in this order.
Whether Timothy Wimbledon could sit on the throne depended on the reactions of the other princes and princesses. If they obediently gave up the fight for the throne and returned to King's City, then he would naturally become the undisputed Wimbledon IV.
The document sent to Border Town would first be transferred to Longsong Stronghold, but the Duke Of Ryan himself scoffed at this recall order. When the king was alive, he still had a high degree of control over the local lords. As for the second prince, this forced ascension was extremely stiff. Coupled with the precedent of Gerald being sent to the guillotine, no one was willing to return to King's City alone.
However, in the eyes of the six Stronghold families, this was a timely order.
More than two months ago, the Elk Earl's unauthorized action made the Duke very unhappy, especially when it failed. The prince's reaction was also very fierce. He directly sentenced Hills Medde to be hanged. This time, both sides had shed all pretense of cordiality.
Originally, the Duke had planned to wait until the end of the Months of the Demons to solve this problem, but now with this official document, he could do it more justifiably. If Roland Wimbledon returned to King's City, then Border Town would naturally belong to the Duke Ryan. If he didn't return to King's City, then he could use force to force him – under the banner of the new King.
As for who the crown would end up in, the Duke did not care too much.
As for the ambassador, Pérot, he obviously didn't feel very comfortable. Last time, he swore that he would bring a new trade contract, but it turned out that the Elk family was the one behind it. Now he came, bringing the same bad news – whether it was the death of Wimbledon III or the new King's summon, Pérot believed that the 4th Prince didn't want to see either.
The voyage was smooth. Graycastle was a country in the south of the continent, so even in winter, the river wouldn't freeze.
From time to time, Pérot looked at the river bank through the window. Along the way, he didn't see any starving people or people fleeing, which showed that Border Town hadn't fallen yet.
This surprised him a little. After all, the last time he visited the city wall, he saw how the other side built the wall. For these muddy stone walls, Pérot didn't have much confidence.
Then he was even more surprised. A sailboat with the flag of Willow Town slowly sailed on the right side of the river – this scene seemed familiar, but now it was the Months of the Demons! How could they have the leisure to do business while fighting the demonic beasts? If they didn't transfer all the miners to the line of defense, how could they resist those brutal monsters!
Three days later, the ship arrived at the pier of Border Town.
It was still the same dilapidated wooden pier, but there was a simple wooden shed on the pier side. After the ship docked, two guards came out of the wooden shed and stared at the boatmen's every move.
Pérot immediately understood the intention of Roland's sentry here.
The 4th Prince obviously didn't want anyone to secretly leave the town through the waterway.
He jumped off the ship's side and told the guards his identity. One of them brought a horse and accompanied him to the castle.
Just like the last time, Prince Roland Wimbledon met him in the living room. Not only that, although it wasn't mealtime, the Prince still ordered the attendants to serve a rich meal.
Roasted pork leg, dried fish slices, a pot of unknown wild vegetables, butter bread and vegetable soup that could be seen at any banquet.
It seemed that the Prince liked to eat first and then talk business.
Pérot thought so, but his hands didn't stop for a moment. After all, there weren't many opportunities to eat a full meal. Even the Honeysuckle Family, when there were no guests, basically ate potato bread with bacon jerky.
After the meal, when the dessert was served, Pérot respectfully handed over the document.
Roland took it, cut the wax seal with a knife, took out the paper roll and quickly glanced at it. Then he was stunned.
The King is dead?
For this nominal father, Roland had no feelings at all. When he crossed over, he was already in Border Town, so he didn't even see his face. Not to mention that the 4th Prince only remembered his father's complaints and dissatisfaction. Because of this, he felt that he was caught in an inexplicable embarrassment – should he show a sad expression?
The following content gave him a whiff of a conspiracy. Wimbledon III died because of the murder of his eldest son? As the new King, the Second Prince announced the end of the fight for the throne and ordered me to return to Graycastle today?
Roland coughed twice and looked up, just in time to see Pérot's apologetic eyes.
So that's how it is, he thought. The Duke of Longsong Stronghold would be happy to see this happen. Whether to obey the new King's order or not, it's a dilemma for me.
He didn't bring the agreed contract, but brought bad news, like a life-threatening talisman. I'm afraid he'll feel guilty. Roland secretly smiled and folded the document again. "I see."
"Uh, Your Highness, so what are you going to …"
"Even if I want to leave, I have to wait until the end of the Months of Demons. Now it's a world of ice and snow, if I leave, what will happen to the people of Border Town? "
If it were someone else, Pérot would definitely say perfunctory words like "Don't worry, Longsong Stronghold will take care of it for you", or some other diplomatic response. But in front of the 4th Prince, who he had only met twice, he couldn't easily open his mouth. For the first time, Pérot felt disgusted with his identity as an ambassador. In the end, he just nodded and said, "I understand, do you need me to deliver a reply for you?"
Roland asked his attendants to bring him a pen and paper. He quickly wrote a reply, stamped it with his own seal, and gave it to Pérot. The latter glanced at the envelope. The cover was clearly written to the Second Prince of Graycastle, Timothy Wimbledon, not King Wimbledon IV.
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