Knight and Wand

Chapter 293 Blood and Fire Embers (Belated Thanks to the Alliance Leader)
After leaving the sacristy, Leon planned to return to the main castle.

As soon as I walked down the steps of the main hall, I saw David, who had arrived in Avalon at some point, and several Thorn Flower Knights, escorting a noble lady in a cloak into the church.

The woman came to the vestibule of the church, took off her velvet hood that was protecting her from the wind, and looked at the statue of Ilaril at the end of the main hall with a pair of sad eyes, revealing her plain and elegant face.

She looked at the foreign gods on the altar in the distance, and at the same time saw Leon walking towards her.

"Madam Adelina." Leon stopped and saluted respectfully. It was not only a respect for the lady of the feudal lord, but also a sense of guilt towards Adelina who had lost her husband.

"This is not the palace, and I'm no longer the mistress of the Thorn Flower family. You don't have to be so polite to me, little griffin." Adelina smiled slightly and lifted Leon's shoulders.

“You will always be the elder I respect the most. It is my greatest honor that you can come and witness the wedding of Olivia and me.” Leon said sincerely.

Adeline smiled and watched the young man straighten his tall body, her eyes slightly dazed.

It was as if she was recalling the figure of her deceased husband, and the longing for Elif rose in her heart. The heartache evoked by this longing was far more painful than the growing implicit exclusion of herself by her eldest son Feodor's wife.

Leon saw the sadness in the other's eyes and couldn't help but look at David who was standing beside his mother.

Adelina's second son looked at Leon helplessly and nodded his head.

Leon's heart moved slightly.

Looking at Adelina again, he lowered his voice and said solemnly: "Madam, please give me some more time. I swear, I will find the whereabouts of Lord Elliver!"

Adelina lowered her eyes and nodded slightly:
"I hope that Elifer is still alive, but you should not risk your lives for this. The Farolis family cannot afford to sacrifice more important people."

After she finished speaking, she raised her eyes and gave Leon an apologetic smile: "Please don't take Feodor's attitude that day to heart. Although he is much older than you, he is still a young man. He suddenly lost his father and the burden of the entire family fell on him. It is inevitable that he will lose his composure. This time, he was too busy with the affairs of the territory and really couldn't spare the time to come."

"Lord Feodor's reprimand is not excessive. It was my dereliction of duty that I failed to protect the feudal lord." Leon did not hold a grudge against it.

Although most people did not blame him for Earl Elliver's sacrifice, it was an indisputable fact that as a vassal of the House of Thornflower, he failed to protect Earl Elliver during the Undead War.

What's more, the new Earl of Thornflower already had some prejudice against him. He did not take this opportunity to take back some of his fiefdom as a punishment, which was very cultured of him.

Of course, even though they didn't get along very well with each other, before the wedding, Leon did not forget to follow etiquette and invite Feodor, who took over the title of count and the position of head of the family, to come.

However, it was expected that the other party did not come. Leon was not surprised. In any case, with Lady Adelina, Baron David, Baron Marcelo, Baron Redo and others coming to the banquet, he had been given extremely high respect within the Farolis family.

"So many outstanding family knights died at that time. It is not the fault of any of you that Elifer died in battle. I am proud of my husband's bravery and fearlessness. You don't have to blame yourself." After saying that, Adelina looked at the statue in the distance and sighed, "His lifelong wish was to revive the Farolis family. Whether you can find his whereabouts or not, as long as you protect the safety of the family, you will not let him down."

Watching Lady Adeline walk into the chapel, she learned the way to pray from the monk, found a seat and sat down and seemed to begin praying for Elifuer.

Leon turned his head and looked at David who had just returned from Sobonitz Territory.

The second son of the former Lord of the Thorn Flower who survived the bloody battle of Rolandar is now not only a holy war knight, but also was granted the territory of the eastern part of Kachin County after the war, becoming a great baron who rules over the area.

As the force that contributed the most in the coalition from beginning to end, and even the head of the family died in battle, the Thorn Flower Family naturally received a tilt in the distribution of benefits after the war, and the surviving soldiers obtained a large tract of territory in the eastern part of Kantadar.

The influence of the Farolis family is no longer limited to the eastern part of Kossos County and Glade County.

Now, there are many lords of the Thorn Flower Family scattered throughout the four counties of Sobornitz.

If we ignore the size of the army and population resources that have not yet recovered, and only consider the territory controlled, the Thorn Flower Family has already become a major force spanning many places in both the North and the South.

Of course, these sparsely populated territories after the disaster will still take many years to slowly digest.

"I organized several operations to go south and deep into Shannan Territory. At first, we didn't get any results, but another group of rangers who went to Usato Territory to explore came back and said that there were incidents of suspected vampires attacking residents at night in both Ruifen County and Berkua County." David reported.

Leon listened to the information David had obtained and fell into deep thought.

After the Battle of Rolandar, the zombie clusters in Vosleria and Sobornitz were gradually eliminated and expelled by the counterattacking Orland Army and the Holy War Alliance. However, in the south of Kantadar, both the army of Redwin III and the Holy War Alliance suffered excessive losses in the Undead War, and did not have enough food and troops to continue to conquer the undead in the south.

And the special vampire that attacked Kilmerton Fortress and nearly annihilated the coalition forces is now nowhere to be found.

Not only that extremely powerful vampire, but also the dragon-riding corpse leader who had severely damaged the main force of Orland's army in Mammor, and his army, are now nowhere to be found.

This may not be accurate, because the two powerful undead leaders are most likely in the south of Kantadar and are not deliberately hiding their tracks.

However, it is difficult for the living to find out the situation in the south, and the living cannot hide themselves from the eyes of the dead to spy on the enemy. Now all the news about the south is mainly obtained by the skilled and brave rangers who take risks.

Today, the chivalrous knights still haven't left the Sobornitz Territory.

The chivalrous knights who survived the war and succeeded their mentors as official rangers, except for a few who had to send their companions' ashes back to their hometowns, are still active in various places in the eastern part of Kantardar, protecting the people who are rebuilding their homes after the war.

Leon did not disappoint the heroes who responded to the oath, and they were all granted sufficient fertile land.

Even the rangers who died before the Battle of Rolandar were posthumously named Holy War Knights after the war, and their surviving families would receive the territories and huge bounties that these martyrs deserved.

However, even though they owned many fiefs in the Sobornitz Territory, the rangers still only used them as resting places and entrusted them to others with a single click. They had no interest in settling down and becoming lords. They either called on family servants to manage the affairs or simply asked trusted friends to help them.

Rather than living the life of a master sitting in front of a fireplace in a castle, they prefer the career of a knight-errant, sleeping in the open air and slaying evil spirits. Perhaps one day, when they do not die in the wilderness but are too old to even wield a weapon, these knights from all corners of the world will return to their territory and die quietly.

It is worth mentioning that when the undead disaster gradually subsided, some rangers who heard about the chivalrous oath from somewhere rushed to Avalon Castle, only to find that they were too late.

Although these rangers who missed the gathering did not catch up with the Undead War in Kantardar and Serian, they still set out for Sobonitz Territory and Mamor County, vowing to eliminate the ghouls and undead monsters that were still wandering in the countryside. It's no wonder they are enthusiastic. On the one hand, they want to pass on the ancient spirit of the rangers. To be honest, over the years, the monsters on the earth have been killed to almost extinction. The rangers have gradually become accustomed to clearing out bandits and thugs. It has been a long time since they have found a monster to fight that can practice their creed.

Leon also wanted to do his part to help these increasingly rare chivalrous knights in the world, so he simply issued a call to all lords who were members of the Holy War Alliance to establish "Ranger Posts" in their respective territories to provide free rest for the rangers.

This is not a difficult task. A house that can shelter from the wind and rain, some food and water can meet the basic needs of these rangers who are used to wandering around the world.

However, Leon has higher standards for the ranger stations at the road nodes in his various territories.

He arranged for special personnel to take care of the post stations in various places, and provided them with tools for repairing weapons and armor, as well as more complete living facilities and utensils.

Compared to the help the rangers had given him, Leon felt that this was nothing in return.

"After completing the mission from His Majesty Redwin, I will go to Roslava Territory in person to investigate the whereabouts of those vampires. For now, just continue to monitor from the periphery and tell the rangers not to venture too deep, as it is too dangerous." Leon instructed.

David nodded. After saying this, he hesitated for a moment and couldn't help asking:

"Lord Leon, I want to persuade my mother to move from Archers to Avalon to live permanently. Will this bother you?"

"Of course not. Madam Adelina is always welcome in Avalon Castle. As long as you don't mind that my place is too crowded, it's fine for you to live here as your home."

Leon agreed, but he was a little surprised.

Although Avalon is beautiful, Achesburg is the political center of the Farolis family and the living standards are also very good. Why should we leave the city where we have lived for so long?

David let out a sigh of relief, without elaborating on the reason.

When he returned home this time, he noticed that the atmosphere in the Acheron Palace was strange.

It’s not that my eldest brother treated my mother badly after he succeeded to the earldom. He loved my mother as much as I did. It’s just that some things are unavoidable in aristocratic families.

My eldest brother had been married and had a family for many years, and as the wife of a former earl, my mother did not have the legal right to continue to serve as regent in the family after her eldest adult son succeeded to the throne.

The identity of "mistress" of the Thorn Flower family naturally transferred to his wife since the eldest brother became the new earl.

The eldest brother's wife was not a vicious woman, but my mother's personal prestige in the family had been there for many years, and everyone loved her as much as they loved Elifer. My mother was from the Rahman family of Duwana. Due to various factors, even if she lost the title of mistress, she still had the power of the mistress.

Even if this was not the mother's intention.

But as time went on, his eldest sister-in-law would sooner or later be unable to tolerate this status inferior to his mother. The large group of new servants with unfamiliar faces in Achesburg had already begun to show signs of this.

In order to avoid future conflicts and contradictions within his family, David thought about whether to persuade his mother to move back to their old home town of Farolis, or simply take his mother to his own territory.

However, neither is appropriate.

As for the former, his mother had been assassinated twice, and his sisters were unable to protect her. As for the latter, the Territory of Sobornitz had just been liberated, and he didn't know whether the undead would go north again. He didn't dare to let his loved ones be in danger with him.

He also couldn't let his mother return to her parents' home in West feeling aggrieved. David didn't dare to think about how angry his hot-tempered grandfather would be.

As for Baron Redo's territory, if his father was still alive, it might not be a big deal, but he didn't know whether his father was alive or dead. Although he trusted Uncle Redo, he also felt that this move would definitely trigger rumors from villains.

No matter how upright one is, one cannot resist the speculation with ulterior motives. The decent Lord Leon in front of him is the best example. He is an upright knight devoted to Miss Olivia, but he is said to be a lecher who likes to collect blonde beauties regardless of gender.
People like to assume malicious things about others, and David always feels indignant for Lord Leon.

However, after much thought, Avalon Castle is the most suitable.

This place is actually not far from Achesburg, which makes it convenient for my mother to visit my eldest brother whenever she misses him, but in political terms, it is far away from the court power within the Thorn Flower Family, so my mother can live more freely here.

Besides, Avalon is a place of beautiful scenery with a pleasant environment. There is also the powerful Miss Olivia leading the Knights. Lord Leon and Lord Larian, who saved his mother from assassination twice before, are also here. It seems that there is no place that makes him feel more at ease than Avalon.

Leon readily agreed to David's request and promised to arrange a noble courtyard close to the main castle for Lady Adelina as soon as possible.

Unexpectedly, after going around in circles, after Selva, I took on the responsibility of protecting the wife of the feudal lord.

However, the strength under my command is now much greater than before, so this is undoubtedly much simpler.

After leaving the temple, Leon returned to the main castle and went to the government study first.

When I pushed open the door, as expected, Azerien was sitting inside handling territory affairs.

The Son of the Noble approves the allocation of fuel resources, ensuring that no fuel is missed in the lands controlled by the Knights.

This year's snowfall caused a sharp increase in the consumption of heating fuel in the territory. Fortunately, Corvis predicted the drastic temperature change in advance at the observatory in the Mage Tower, so they were well prepared.

Azerien heard the noise, put down the file, looked up and saw Leon, frowned and said, "Why are you back again? Get out, these few days are the most important days in your and Olivia's life, take a good rest, you don't need a hero like you to worry about such a small matter."

Feeling his kindness, Leon smiled warmly, then closed the door, drew a seal with his fingers, and cast a soundproof spell, and then said seriously: "David is here, and there may be news about 'him' in Roslava."

Azerien was stunned for a moment, lowered his head and seemed to exhale a heavy breath, and it took him a long time to put the quill back.

He shook his head:
"Don't worry, Leon. He is no longer my father, at least not completely. That state is a torture for him. I will go with you to find him. If there is a chance, let him rest in peace as much as possible."

When he looked up again, Azerien's eyes were firm.

(End of this chapter)