Shadow Covenant

Chapter 36 036 "News from the East"

The afternoon sun shines on every inch of Palermo, casting a rare veil of tranquility on the city.

Today is a holiday. If you are in the noble area, you will find that many noble families are happily enjoying the few good weather in October.

He took his wife, children, and a dozen servants to have a picnic party on the garden lawn, and the curling smoke added a little idyllic atmosphere to this inner city garden.

Although Palermo is a seaside city, as time goes by, the October of 1191 in the valley calendar will come to an end with the end of the Harvest Festival.

And November, the month of winter awakening among the population of the Northland, will soon be accompanied by a cold current that can freeze the inland sea all the way south, enclosing all the harbors on the entire west coast into the embrace of the cold wind.

We will have to wait until next spring to come to the party again.

At that time, there will be a lot fewer ships on Qianfan Sea, and the bustling and bustling ports in the past will usher in a short period of calm.

Part of the reason is that the sea route between the south and the north was cut off due to the weather, and the sea of ​​ice floes in the north was impossible to sail at all. Not only were the ports of ships frozen, but even the huge sea was filled with ice floes from farther north.

Another part of the reason is the arrival of the new year.

Many businessmen and mercenaries who have been working abroad for a year are going to go home to rest. Even those who don't have a home will choose to spend a few days in a warm and comfortable hotel or tavern. They don't have to think too much and just have fun for a few days.

This also promoted a sharp increase in the consumption of city-states in various places with the arrival of the New Year, among which wine is a relatively popular commodity.

Therefore, other industries are already preparing to think about how to go out of fashion this New Year.

Edith controls two-thirds of the mid-to-low-end alcohol market in Palermo, not only all bars and hotel suppliers, but also sells alcohol to several cities in the Northland. Edith has a double-digit alcohol agent family.

It's very busy right now.

The horse-drawn carriages waiting for loading outside the wine manor even ruled out a long queue of less than one kilometer from the door. Many horse-drawn carriages are preparing to load the freshly brewed wine to the pier, and then transport it to the Northland by ship. Before the ice floe completely spread, it was sent to the local agent.

"The Edith family's liquor business is doing really well!"

People who pass by or see the wine estate will sigh sincerely. Since the Edith family confirmed the wine business in these years, it can be said that the growth can be seen in the eyes, and the progress is getting faster every year.

I even heard that the wine market of the Edith family has been improved in the past few years, and it is very close to the taste of the Northland.

The wine has a strong aroma and a sweet taste.

Already well-known in the Northland, businessmen who opened up the market and traveled all the way to wine estates to seek agents have seen double-digit numbers this year.

If nothing else, the scale of Edith Family Liquor will expand next year.

This is recognized by almost all nobles in the noble district.

It's just that the heavy taxes brought about by alcohol can only put the Edith family in a position of no equal.

The earl is not enough, and the ordinary viscount is not comparable to him.

This is also the reason why the Edith family spent huge sums of money a few years ago to send several heirs of the family who are expected to become spellcasters into the noble and mysterious mage tower to study mysterious magic.

In the Kingdom of Baviallo, or the entire Southern Principality, 500 years have passed since the era of great pioneering.

The titles of Baron and Viscount only depend on how much money you give to the ruler, as long as you have enough wealth.

Today you can be a wanted criminal, but tomorrow you will be a guest of honor in a neighboring country and granted noble status.

But this is not the case for earls and dukes. They are more like the real cornerstone of the kingdom with fiefdoms and private soldiers. There can be hundreds of viscounts and barons, but earls and dukes are extremely rare in a country.

Like Baviello, the number of earls with real power and fiefdoms has been maintained at around ten since the founding of the country, and there are only three dukes.

What they have in common, apart from their outstanding contributions to the kingdom, is that each family has powerful professionals, or they are backed by strength beyond ordinary people.

Even the Baviallo Kingdom is located in the Amber Territory of Dongshan Province, and the Stanley family with the "Duke of Bauhinia" is backed by an adult silver dragon.

In return, a large amount of silver coins and silver ornaments will be sent to the dragon's nest every year, and the various wishes of the awakened adult silver dragon will be satisfied.

Therefore, if you want to get promoted, a strong professional is essential.

Although the Edith family also recruited from the outside world, they mainly chose the path of strengthening themselves and nurturing future generations.

If there are no accidents and luck is good, after 30 or [-] years, with the help of grown-up high-level professionals, the title of Viscount may be successfully removed, and an additional fief or even a city belongs to him, just like now Like Palermo.

At this time, the owner of the wine estate, Susan Edith, did not act as vigorously as when she was in the outside world. On the contrary, her brows were a little gloomy, and she didn't read any of the wine-related reports and contracts in her hand.

Logically speaking, she should be at the desk under the exquisite grid window, bathed in the afternoon sun, and deal with business affairs leisurely, but since when she started, her mood has been messed up.

Perhaps it was after the news that her taciturn nephew, Woody Alester, had disappeared from the mouth of the servant in the morning.

It wasn't until there was a respectful knock on the door that she changed from standing by the window to sitting upright, and took a sip of the already cold black tea.

Before the visitor came in, the question had already been sent to Cromwell who had just entered the door.

"found it?"

"Mrs., I didn't find the whereabouts of Master Woody, but another matter. Last time you asked me to investigate the lofty forest, someone came back from the eastern city-state."

"Well, Earl Rhys's? What news did he send?"

Although a little anxious, Susan still held back and forced herself into a working state.

Although Woody had already told her once, and she believed it in her heart, she was still eager to know whether it was true or not—from her channel.

"Yeah, that's the Earl of Rhys's Master Felius who was studying in the Tower of Pure White. He came down from the high tower in the academy area last night and came back through the portal. It is said that he was rushing to his sister's wedding."

Cromwell felt the gaze cast by Susan in front of him, and told her the news he had just received and the cause and effect in an orderly manner.

"Back home, Felius invited friends from the former academy the next morning. It is said that he brought a dimensional bag of elf products as gifts."

"..."

"So it's really possible to open up trade?"

After a long silence, Susan returned to her shrewd and courageous side, and issued orders one by one, until finally she handed over Woody's matter to Cromwell.

"If you haven't found it later, you go and bring a thousand gold coins and ask the priests of the Shrine of Dawn or the Shrine of Life to help you find it with magic. People will never disappear out of thin air. They are the best at it."

"Understood, ma'am, what about the Narutov family? Today he sent another invitation letter, wanting to invite you to the banquet in the manor, madam, and discuss the transfer price of the winery by the way. If it is not suitable, they seem to still We can talk again."

Cromwell asked while responding.

"Push it away, let's say that Ebola's academy requires that the apprenticeship of the mages increase their study expenses, and they don't have the ability to buy wineries in the short term. Let him ask other companies."

"By the way, Cromwell, pay attention to the tone of helplessness."

The aristocratic woman who closed her eyes and was already lying on her back in a chair without knowing what she was thinking said without looking at her head.

"Got it, ma'am."

As the door closed and the sound of footsteps faded away, the room became quiet again, and then there was a faint sigh.

……

Not long after, in a European-style manor that was more luxurious than a wine manor.

The sound of angry abuse came from the soundproof study room that was completely sealed and magically treated.

"Damn! This bicth, did she really say that?"

"Yes, master, she asked the butler Cromwell to tell me."

"Logan, don't worry. It seems that our wine queen seems to have noticed something. She has a very keen sense of smell. I underestimated her."

There are only three people in the room, a middle-aged man in charge of clothing, and the other two are middle-aged nobles in gorgeous costumes, either sitting or standing.

They are the managers who have controlled the Lutov family these years, the Lutov brothers.

Among them, the aristocratic middle-aged man with an angry expression raised his mustache at the corners of his mouth slightly when he spoke. It was Logan Rutov.

And the one sitting with his face still indifferent was his brother, Marko Lutov.

"Brother, what should we do?"

Logan was still very angry, but he was quite convinced of his brother. After all, without him, he would not have the ability to bring the Lutov family to this point.

"She should have known."

"Then take the secret that was supposed to be used against the Quinn family and deal with her."

"Just to see the effect."

After finishing speaking, Marco smiled, let go of his crossed hands on the table, and stood up.

He patted his younger brother on the shoulder and said earnestly.

"Logan, you have to remember that sometimes, just knowing without power is useless."

When talking about power, the eyes of the two brothers flashed an inexplicable light at the same time.

And, in a few days, the rainy season, which lasts throughout November, will begin.

……

At the same time, in the underground mine in Old Street.

Woody went all the way down the corridor, and then saw a touch of blue lake as far as he could see, and the sound of turbulent water.

I saw that the ten-meter-wide river was at the bottom of the corridor, and the river water was crystal clear, and the pebbles at the bottom could be seen.

The most surprising thing is that this section of the river seems to be inserted into the rocks. It is blocked by rocks in front, back, left, and right, but it still flows continuously.

At this time, Woody realized that the goblin passage was not in the weak monster's lair, but here.

　How to write slow ~ fast pace ~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)