Knight and Wand

Chapter 318 The King
In the not-too-noisy hotel restaurant, a young girl sat in a corner, the hood of her cloak covering most of her face, revealing only her delicate little chin and slightly upturned corners of her mouth.

On the table was a rough wooden plate, on which were placed simple grilled meat with sauce, bread, and vegetarian stew, which was obviously a far cry from the delicacies of the palace.

But for the little princess who had experienced a lot of military life, simple meals of coarse noodles had long been a common occurrence.

The slender white fingers held the sharp knife and pierced the barbecue gently but neatly, slowly cutting along the grain of the meat, picking up a small piece with the tip of the knife and putting it into the mouth.

His cheeks puffed up slightly while he chewed, but he maintained a dignified and calm demeanor. Even when he ate rapidly in small bites, he did not make the slightest indecent sound.

Leon, who was sitting opposite, seemed particularly rough in comparison with his ordinary movements.

Naturally, this hotel could not provide the chopsticks he made in Avalon. Leon was extremely hungry, so he didn't care and just followed his third brother's example, making them clean and hygienic.

Break open the wheat-scented bread, the slightly rough crust makes a slight "crunching" sound, then dip it in the broth in front of you, tear off the grilled meat and wrap it in it, then eat quickly to replenish your lack of physical strength.

As an inn in a prosperous area of ​​the Holy City, the food provided in the store is not bad. The sauce on the grilled chicken is taken from local specialty crops and has a unique flavor.

But now, neither Leon nor Ines were in the mood to savor the folk delicacies of Rolandar City.

The girl, who had a small appetite, finished her meal first, wiped her lips, and quietly looked at Leon who was still wolfing down his food across from her like a starving ghost, and asked the hotel waiter for food one after another.

After Leon gulped down the last glass of beer, he stopped eating with a look of being 70% full on his face.

Ines played with the sheathed knife to replace the exquisite Seralil velvet fan that was not with her at the moment. Although she looked calm, her heart was actually in turmoil.

She confirmed again, "Three years later? Even if it's magic, this is too ridiculous."

Leon wiped his mouth and put down the towel, nodding his head: "I know it's hard to believe, but it's not just the innkeeper." He glanced at the local merchants who were drinking and chatting not far away, then turned back to Ines and said: "I heard the same thing from other people. It is indeed September 15th, 866th year of the Holy Solar Calendar."

Leon resolved the doubts he had had not long ago. No wonder there was no trace of war in the city of Rolandar.

However, after the war, even though it took more than four years instead of more than a year to completely free the Holy Land City from the influence of the Undead War, the church's reconstruction efficiency was still so high that Leon admired it.

Ines fell into a brief silence, her eyebrows slightly knitted, revealing a look of distress beyond her expectations: "If we were really transported to three years later from that night by the magic of those traitorous sorcerers, doesn't it mean that you and I have been missing in the eyes of others for three whole years?"

"I think so, but, to be more precise, that magic was not the work of warlocks like Mette. They don't have that ability. The spell ritual I tried to activate that night was an ancient magic hidden in the palace." Leon explained.

"Ancient magic? It seems that my father has not yet discovered all the secrets of the palace in the more than ten years since he ascended the throne." Ines sighed.

She stared at Leon, who seemed to be still calm, and smiled bitterly: "Three years is just that you and I disappeared for so long. I don't know whether the warlocks' palace coup conspiracy succeeded that night three years ago. I am afraid that many things have been out of control during our disappearance. Speaking of which, you have encountered such an incredible and bizarre thing. I really admire you for being able to keep such a calm expression."

Leon consoled them, "After all, it's too late to regret it. But looking at the current situation, no matter how big the mistake was that night, I should have activated the ancient magic. Mette laughed at me smugly before, which was definitely beyond their expectations. So maybe the warlocks who invaded the palace that night were also affected by the violent explosion of the magic."

He smiled as optimistically as possible and said, "Perhaps, those sorcerers who broke into the palace were also bombed many years later like us. In this case, no matter what their original plan was, it has completely failed."

Of course, Leon did not tell Ines that the real reason why he calmed down quickly was that he had once had a bizarre "time travel" experience in which he came to this world from Earth.

Compared to the soul-traveling journey across two dimensions of time and space, if you think about it carefully, being blasted into this world three years later by mysterious and powerful magic, although bizarre, is not something particularly difficult to accept.

It's only been "scarlet" for three years, not thirty years, three hundred years, or three thousand years. This is the greatest luck.

The only thing that made him worried was the safety of Olivia, Azerien, Lohak, Corvis and other relatives and friends in the past three years.
However, the territory does not mean that it cannot be transferred without one person.

With the support of a large amount of wealth and land, Azerien is in charge of the overall situation, while Olivia, Lohark, Uncle Brian and other Avalon Knights defend their homes.

When the Territory of Avalon, which had hardly suffered from the hardships of war, encountered a crisis, it was not a problem at all for the Knights to raise an army of thousands of people on the spot to resist the foreign enemies.

In addition, as a member of the Jihad Alliance, Lords of the Jihad Army, such as Baron Ivan, who is in charge of the alliance affairs on behalf of Lord Sobornitz, will not sit idly by and watch the security issues of Avalon.

If something really happened, nearly 10,000 soldiers of the Crusades who had experienced the Plague of the Undead could gather in less than half a month to support the Territory of Avalon.

Although his own territory was not impregnable, it would not be an easy task to easily shake the safety of Castle Avalon without tens of thousands of elite troops attacking from the north and south at the same time.

Even in the worst case scenario, Castle Avalon already had a plan to face extreme crises and could retreat to the enclave in the Sobornitz Territory.

If they really went to the sparsely populated territory of Sobornitz, the enemy's army would have to march a long distance. Not only would they have to face the Jihad Alliance, but they would also have to face the severe test of how to get supplies in the eastern part of Kantadar where there were no people to plunder. Living soldiers could not compare to the undead army that had neither food nor water.

Of course, although he was confident about Avalon's safety, when Leon thought about the fact that Olivia had not been able to find him for more than three years, he couldn't help but feel anxious when he thought about the sadness and pain his wife had experienced.

He immediately asked Ines, "Your Highness, is one night's rest in Rolandar enough? I want to take you back to Orland as soon as possible."

Ines nodded, put down the wooden sheath knife she was playing with, and smiled gently: "Don't worry, as long as you take good care of yourself, I'm used to marching, I'm not that squeamish, I can set off with you anytime."

"Well, let's go to the market and buy two horses later, and set off early tomorrow morning." Leon estimated that two ordinary riding horses and five or six Serrian gold coins would be enough, and the remaining money would be enough for the two of them to travel.

Besides, the city of Rolandar is only a few hundred kilometers away from the territory of Sobonitz. In fact, as long as they can return to the territory of the Holy War Alliance, he and Ines can return home safely under the escort of the alliance lords by "face recognition".

After the itinerary was set, neither of them was the type to procrastinate, so they got up and left the hotel immediately and asked where the horse market was in the outer city.

After finding the horse dealer, Leon picked and chose in the horse pen, checking every corner to avoid encountering unscrupulous merchants.

But fortunately, the worries were unnecessary. Although these horses were far inferior to the expensive and handsome high-end Uriah war horses, they looked healthy and strong enough.

The horse dealer patted his chest confidently and assured: "Please rest assured, sir. These are the fine horses brought by King Ocrosia. They are all very strong. I absolutely guarantee that you will not buy any inferior horses!"

Leon nodded, checked the horses' teeth and hooves, and calmly used his magic to detect the magic circulation and internal health of each horse. He didn't care about the appearance. He chose two horses with the best physical potential and endurance from the cheaper ones and paid directly. The horse dealer took the heavy gold coins, verified their authenticity and weight, and couldn't help but smile.

When you meet a customer who is generous, knowledgeable, and not willing to haggle, it is a very pleasant business to do business with.

"Sir, would you really like to take the horses for a few laps to see their gait? Since you are so forthcoming, I would let you try riding them for a few laps to confirm." The horse dealer suggested enthusiastically with a smile.

"No need, I know these two horses are worth the money." Leon shook his head. After using the healing spell's living soul inspection technique to pass through the horses' bodies, he now knew the condition of the two horses better than the horse dealer himself.

"Aha~ It's really rare to meet a customer as easy to talk to as you. You don't have to pay the paperwork fee for the contract. Just consider this little bit as making friends. You are welcome to come to me again when you need a horse in the future." The horse dealer said cheerfully.

He quickly asked his groom to find the market clerk, and both parties registered and quickly completed the sales contract that could prove that the horse was "not stolen."

The horse dealer sent Leon and the other man who were leading the horses to the door, and reminded them: "Sir Shengyang, during the three-day observation period, if you find that the horses have any problems other than new injuries, remember to come to me at any time. I promise to be responsible."

Leon nodded, and couldn't help but sigh that the horse merchants in the Rolandar area, whether it was due to the social environment or other reasons, were much more hospitable and considerate to their guests than the profiteers in Kossos County.

He and Ines were leading the horses and were about to leave, but when they had walked a short distance, Leon's ears twitched slightly, and suddenly his steps froze and he stopped.

He turned around to look at the merchant who was walking back to the stable. With his excellent warrior hearing, he heard the other person's subtle mumbling:

".It is really thanks to His Majesty Azerien's blessing that the Royal Territory Meadow has reopened. Business is getting better and better."

Leon raised his hand and scratched his ears, wondering if he was hallucinating.

Ines did not have such extraordinary hearing, she just glanced at the other party in confusion and saw that he stopped moving.

Leon frowned, put down the reins, turned around and ran quickly back behind the horse dealer, patting him on the shoulder.

"What did you just say? Which Majesty did you rely on for your blessing?"

The horse dealer was startled by the photo and looked back with a look of surprise on his face.

"What? What, Your Majesty?"

"What's the name of the Majesty you just mentioned?" Leon asked anxiously with a frown.

Fearing that it was a duplicate name, Leon quickly added: "Forgive me for not knowing much as I have lived in Orland for so long. What is the surname and name of the current King of Serrian?!"

The horse dealer was filled with questions about the sudden, violent and strange reaction of the customer in front of him.

But he still answered well-known common sense questions.

"Of course, the current king's name is 'Azrain Flarel Okrosia'."

After the horse dealer finished speaking, he looked the other man up and down and said in surprise: "You don't even know this? I see, you haven't been back to Serian for many years?"

Ines also heard the conversation between the two and her beautiful eyes blinked in surprise.

"Azraen Flarel? Sir Azraen? .-The King?"

As Leon's ally, the girl clearly remembered the names of every core member of Leon's forces, and of course knew Leon's trusted deputy.

I heard that the young man who fled to Orland with Leon and was awarded the title of Knight of the Thorn Flower actually became the king of Serrian in just three years? ?

Ines opened her mouth slightly. She couldn't remember how many times she had felt so puzzled since she was with Leon.

However, when she heard Leon asking the horse dealer further questions, her eyes became even more puzzled.

Even after returning to the hotel, Leon still hadn't recovered from what he had just learned.

Bending over a chair in Ines' room, he clasped his hands together, tapped the backs of his hands, and tried hard to weave together all the information he had learned so far.

But the more he thought about it, the more Leon felt an inexplicable chill down his spine.

He found that he had thought things were too simple before.

The atmosphere in the room seemed a little silent as the two of them were thinking silently, until Ines took the initiative to speak and broke the silence.

".The horse trader said that His Majesty Azerien has been on the throne for nearly five years since his coronation. But..."

The little princess sat on the edge of the bed and looked at Leon. The contradictions in the information she received made her extremely confused.

Leon closed his eyes. He knew what Ines couldn’t understand at the moment: “Now is the 866th year of the Holy Solar Calendar, which is the 678th year of the Orland Calendar.

So five years ago from now is the year 673 in the Orland calendar.

At the beginning of that year, Azerien, Lohak, and I had just fled to Orland and became knights of the Farolis family."

He didn't need to tell the rest, the dissipation of the spirit field in the Nightmare Forest, the revival of the Thorn Flower Family, the Southern Expedition of Orlando, the Battle of Usato, the Undead Plague, and the Battle of Rolandar.
A lot of big things happened that year.

But there was no such thing, and there could never be such a thing, that Azerien would be crowned King of Serrian.

(End of this chapter)