Imperial Crown.

Chapter 15 You are the one who blasphemes God!
"This is Denise, right?" Angel asked, "No wonder you can't stop thinking about her."

At this time, Denise was wearing a black veil and sitting on a chair next to the coffin. Although she did not make any movements, she had become the focus of the entire hall.

She was wearing a black silk dress. The thin and soft material clung to her legs, perfectly highlighting her plump outline. The hem of the skirt fell below her knees, and under the lace hem were black stockings that reflected an alluring luster.

She put her legs together, and only the insteps of her feet in high heels were exposed, but the curve was enough to arouse people's imagination.

The most fatal thing is her identity as a widow. Coupled with the sad and slightly dazed look under the black veil, she is like a delicate, fragile and easily breakable porcelain, making people almost want to hold her in their arms and protect her.

boom.

The door closed and Raven bowed to everyone present.

At the same time, footsteps were heard and a graceful figure appeared in the hall.

It was Lux.

Compared to the previous times, this time she was dressed more formally and wrapped her golden hair with a white headscarf.

Normally white clothes would make a person's skin look darker, but Lux's skin made the plain white headscarf look dull, and her sapphire eyes sparkled.

She was wearing a natural linen priest robe, which was a low-quality fabric, but it looked extremely noble and charming on her. As she walked, her body pressed against the fabric, and the fabric also outlined her figure. Although she was not intentionally seducing, she attracted the attention of all the men present.

Under the gaze of everyone, Lux walked to Donald's coffin and held an ∞-shaped wooden object as long as a mobile phone in front of her chest with both hands. Half of it was painted gold and the other half was painted silver.

This is the holy relic of the Church of Light. The two circles represent the Lord of Light ruling the sun and the moon, and their nesting together symbolizes His infinite divine power.

Everyone was extremely solemn, except for Raven, whose expression became a little strange.

Because the shape of this holy weapon was so strange, Raven had the urge to add a stick to it.

Lux thought Raven was sad, so she sighed secretly and said:

"Today is Baron Donald's funeral. Please join me in praying for him..."

Donald's funeral began to proceed in an orderly manner.

It was not as luxurious as the current popular ones. There were no magical lights and shadows, and no "celebrities" were invited to give blessings. It was only Lux who hosted it, and it could even be said to be a bit simple.

But this also made the nobles present very satisfied.

Firstly, this fits their stereotype of the Griffith family - after all, a family that falls into the hands of gangsters should not prosper.

Secondly, it was because they didn't want to stay in this castle any longer.

Nowadays, any noble with a little wealth will choose to add a magic circle that can control the temperature in their castle. Although it is expensive, it makes the originally hot summer cool and pleasant.

The Griffith family obviously did not have such financial resources. Even people sitting in the front row could smell a faint hint of Donald's "body odor" through the spices.

After the prayer, Lux looked at Raven and said, "Today is a special day. It is not only the funeral of Baron Donald, but also the coronation ceremony of Baron Raven."

"He was a devout believer, an upright gentleman, a good lord."

Denise, who was sitting next to the coffin, almost broke it.

Pious? Honest? Kind?

Are you talking about Raven?

Her eyes moved carefully between Raven and Lux.

The former had a calm, even sad, expression, showing no embarrassment at all;

Denise shook her head helplessly.

Lux was either in cahoots with Raven or she was deceived by this seemingly handsome man.

Denise prefers the latter.

"Next, please invite Baron Donald's widow, Lady Denise, to come forward."

Lux's voice rang out, and Denise came back to her senses, gracefully standing up and walking to Lux's side.

Raven nodded secretly. It had to be said that even if the two stood together, it would be hard to tell who would win.

One is a mature widow, the other is a pure priestess.

"Lady Denise, I would like to ask you, are you willing to hand over your husband's title to Baron Raven?" asked Lux.

"Of course, Raven is our nephew. Thanks to him, my husband was able to complete his last journey in peace." Denise paused, using all her strength to calm her tone: "He is pious, kind and upright. He respects his aunt and respects his brothers. He is undoubtedly a qualified heir."

Lux smiled. She was very happy to hear others praising Raven, because it meant that her judgment was correct. "Then please invite Mr. Raven to the stage."

Raven straightened his dress, stood up and walked in front of Lux: "Priest Lux."

Lux's eyes were filled with smiles. "On this solemn occasion, in front of Baron Donald, and under the witness of the great Lord of Light, are you willing to fulfill the responsibilities of a baron?"

"Yes." Raven's voice echoed in the hall: "I am willing to take on the responsibility of the Baron of the Griffith family and take care of my aunt and my brother in every possible way."

"I am willing to uphold the fine traditions of nobility that began with knighthood, and to adhere to humility, integrity, mercy, bravery, justice, sacrifice, honor, and soul."

His voice was clean and pure, and the oath was like a performance of an elegant opera, which moved the nobles present and made them talk in low voices.

"It's really surprising. These words don't sound like something a gangster would say."

"Who wouldn't say the words that have been rehearsed in advance?"

"This is different. Listen to his voice, how magnetic it is; listen to how energetic and passionate his emotions are! I simply cannot believe that he has never received an aristocratic education."

Listening to these voices, Raven felt secretly proud.

Yes, it is true that I have not received an aristocratic education, but in my previous life I was selected from among millions of people, and I received much more education than you!

Do you know how many times I practiced reciting in front of the mirror just to get some extra points for my special skills?!

Lux turned around, opened a wooden box, and took out a hat with both hands.

The hat is made of crimson velvet and has a brass crown on top. A silver thread divides the hat into two parts at two-thirds of the way. Below is a carefully polished brass hat band, evenly inlaid with six silver beads representing the baronial title.

This is the Baron's crown!
Raven knelt on one knee with his hand on the hilt of the sword and lowered his head slightly until he felt a slight pressure above his head.

Baron Raven Ota Griffith is crowned at this moment!

Lux said, "May you live up to the path of kindness and integrity."

Raven pounded his chest with his fist: "May the Lord of Light guide my way forward!"

Ingres saw all of this, with contempt and disdain in his eyes.

It's just like a monkey learning how to dress like a human. For such a person to wear a baron's crown is nothing but a humiliation to all the nobles!

The wooden doors on both sides of the hall opened, and maids dressed in black and white maid uniforms walked in. They carried trays in their hands, walked to the wine table, poured the red wine from the glass bottles into high-heeled glasses, and then distributed them to the guests table by table.

Looking at the red wine in the glass, a hint of sarcasm appeared on Ingres' lips.

Don't you respect your uncle? Don't you have integrity and kindness? Then I will use this as an excuse to beat you to death and see what excuse you can use to provide yourself with inferior wine to fool your uncle's funeral!

"My fellow devout believers, let us use this holy wine bestowed by God to end this ceremony together, to comfort the heroic spirit of Baron Donald, and to celebrate the rebirth of Baron Raven!"

At Lux's voice, everyone raised their glasses. Angel raised his glass calmly, sniffed it, and raised his eyebrows in disdain.

He didn't smell the signature sour smell of liquid amber.

Haha, it seems that I have overestimated you. You are reluctant to use even the flowing amber.

He glanced at the other guests, and sure enough, after drinking the wine, everyone's expression changed, with surprise and disbelief in their eyes!
Snapped--

The wine glass was smashed to the ground, and the glass and wine splashed everywhere, immediately attracting a lot of attention and screams.

Raven frowned and asked, "Baron Angel, what are you doing?"

"What am I doing? I was just about to ask you what you are doing!" Angel's nose turned red with excitement. "This is the funeral of the respected Baron Donald, an elegant, excellent and true nobleman, but you are using this cheap wine to defile him. This is simply an insult! It is a deception and blasphemy to the Lord of Light!"

Raven was startled.

Could it be that this guy tasted the glycerin and figured out what I had done?!

This panic was soon replaced by calmness. Raven raised his glass and asked in confusion: "I'm sorry, Baron Angel, I don't know what you are talking about."

"You don't know what I'm talking about!?" Angel laughed and said, "You are so shameless, Baron Raven!"

"I think everyone here wanted to do the same as me. As long as you can sincerely apologize to us, then this matter can be easily put behind us, but you chose to betray our goodwill!"

He turned his head with a look of pride, opened his arms, and said loudly: "Dear gentlemen and ladies, let us tell him how this red wine tastes?"

The many nobles present looked at each other, not knowing what to say.

Especially Viscount John, under Ingres' tough attitude, he even suspected that there was something wrong with his taste buds, and lowered his head to take another bite.

That's right. Sweet, mellow, top-quality wine!

Under his leadership, the nobles present began to taste the food once again, and the looks they gave Angel became increasingly strange.

This gave Ingres a bad feeling.

Seeing this scene, Raven's heart was completely settled. He raised his glass and asked loudly: "Baron Angel, this is not a classroom, you are not a teacher, and we are not your students."

"Could you please tell me what's wrong with this wine?"

John also stood up at this time: "Yes, Baron Angle, this wine is obviously very mellow, what's the problem?"

Angel froze in place, unable to believe what he heard.

mellow!?
This wine that looks so inferior is actually delicious! ?

But the looks from those around him made him dare not disbelieve it. He had to believe it.

Especially his eldest son Judra, who looked at him with a hint of confusion, embarrassment and... pity!

"Give it to me!" Ingres walked forward, snatched the wine glass from his son's hand, drank it all, and then froze in place.

This was the smoothest and most delicious wine he had ever tasted. It was sweet but not cloying, and the light sourness highlighted the unique aroma of the grapes. Compared to it, even his favorite wine, [Condensed Fire], which cost eighty silver coins a jar, seemed worthless.

Judea couldn't bear to see her old father suffer the gazes of the crowd any longer, so she stepped forward and supported his arm: "Father, let's go."

But this sentence only further aroused Ingres's arrogant temper. In his opinion, this was not concern, but a naked provocation to his authority!

He has been winning all his life, winning titles and respect, and he will never allow himself to lose his prestige and reputation here: "You have to call your position in public!"

Then he turned around and looked at Raven: "No, wine shouldn't be like this!"

"This is not wine... That's right! This is not wine, but the blood of the devil!" He pointed his spear at Raven and roared loudly: "It must be Donald! Donald made a deal with the evil god and obtained the evil spice, so this wine is so sweet!"

When these words were spoken, the nobles present all changed color.

It was well known in the aristocratic circles of Nord Province that Donald had been obsessed with "magic experiments", and the deaths of his children and original wife were even more confusing. However, Donald's wife was just a commoner and had no power behind her, so no one was willing to look into it.

When this incident is mentioned again today, it immediately brings back everyone’s memories, and some people even threw the cups to the ground in fear!

Raven's face turned pale and he asked, "Baron Angel said so. Do you have any evidence?"

Seeing the reactions of the nobles around him, Angel felt that he had grasped the point. He shouted, "Evidence!? What kind of evidence do you need? This wine without any history is the evidence!"

Raven said, "I improved this myself."

"Improvement? Ha! This is the funniest joke I have ever heard in my life!" Angel refuted loudly: "Everyone knows that the Griffith family has never had a tradition of brewing wine, and you, Raven, are just a bastard who grew up in an orphanage and a rat in a garbage dump! You can improve the wine?"

Hearing this, Raven laughed, an angry laugh. "Baron Angel, I respect your age and your status, but that's no reason for you to insult me! You are tarnishing my honor and the honor of the Griffith family!"

"I now demand that you apologize to me and the Griffith family immediately!"

Angel's nose turned red, and he said with a cracked mouth: "No, you should apologize, and apologize to the Lord of Light and the royal family!"

"Because you used the evil wine brought by the evil god in this sacred ceremony, you should kneel down and repent now. In this way, I can send you on your way for free, so that you don't have to end your sinful life painfully on the stake!"

"Very good." Raven's expression calmed down. He turned to Lux and said, "Priest Lux, please make the judgment."

Lux had long been frightened by this sudden change and was at a loss as to what to do. She really lacked social experience. Now that Raven had said this, she came to her senses and said seriously:
"Baron Angel, please apologize to Baron Raven."

Angel said: "Priest Lacus, you must have been deceived by him. This kind of wine should not appear in the world at all..."

Lux said: "Yes, this kind of wine is indeed not something that mortals can brew..."

Angel's eyebrows were full of joy: "Haha, I knew it, Raven, you still don't plead guilty!?"

But Lux's next words made him feel like he was falling into an ice cave: "Baron Raven does not need to plead guilty, because this is a gift from the Lord of Light."

"W-what!?" Angle froze in place.

Not only Angel, everyone present was stunned at this moment!
Even Denise looked at Raven with surprise. She really couldn't imagine how Raven had persuaded Lux! ?

Lux said: "Baron Raven is an upright nobleman and a kind lord. He always cares about his people. Therefore, the Lord of Light bestowed His gift and allowed Baron Raven to discover a way to improve fine wine."

"And this improved wine, which is the one you are drinking now, is called 'Angel's Tears'!"

One stone can cause a thousand waves!

These nobles looked at each other, all of them were shocked.

Lord John is certainly no exception.

This talk of being kind and righteous enough to move the Lord of Light is just nonsense.

What really surprised him was a fact - the priest of the Church of Light openly supported Raven and openly supported Raven's wine!

This is definitely not something that a town priest can decide.

Could it be that there is a hidden story behind Raven's inheritance of the title? Could he be the illegitimate son of a big shot in the Church? ?
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Angel roared like a madman, his hair and beard disheveled like a mad beast.

He pointed at Lux: "I understand! I understand! You are no longer a priest of the Lord of Light. You were seduced by Raven and you fell. That's why you defended Raven like this!"

The latter's face turned pale all of a sudden, and she bit her lips tightly with her pearly teeth. Her eyes turned red with anxiety: "You, you are slandering me blatantly!"

Angel seemed to have grasped the last straw: "You said you didn't fall, but where's the evidence? If it wasn't for Raven..."

His voice caught in his throat.

A light burst out from Lux's fingertips, brighter than any candle in the world, as if she had summoned the sun at her fingertips.

That is undoubtedly the gift of the Lord of Light, a light that can only be summoned by the most pious and purest divine magicians!

At this moment, no one can question Lux's purity or the sincerity of her faith!
Angel's face suddenly turned pale, and even his huge nose shrank a lot. He clenched his fists, his lips trembled, and he said in a lost voice: "No, impossible... Impossible!!!"

"This is the truth, Baron Angel." Raven walked up to Angel and said condescendingly: "You have not only insulted me and the Griffith family, but also the priests of the Lord of Light!"

"You are the one who blasphemes the gods!"

A buzz of discussion arose.

"Ha, Baron Angle is still as impulsive and stubborn as he was when he was young. This time he hit a wall."

"When you were young, you refused to take any loss. You offended someone, but you earned a reputation as a straight-talker and a hateful person. Now, your true colors are revealed!"

"Now this is interesting. Do you think Ingres will tie himself to the stake?"

"Him? Forget it. He talks big but he's actually very proud and he values ​​his life. I think he's just trying to find a way out now!"

Angel was a third-level warrior with sharp five senses. At this moment, the discussions reached his ears clearly, making him feel his heart pounding and all the blood in his body rushing to his head.

He wanted to make excuses, but he couldn't find any; he wanted to take responsibility, but he didn't want to face death.

Admit his fault? This is definitely not an option for him. It would be better to kill him than to expect him to admit his fault!

"It was my father's fault." Judra stood in front of Angel and bowed deeply to Raven and Lacus: "Baron Raven, Priest Lacus..."

He turned around and faced everyone: "And all the distinguished ladies and gentlemen."

Angel guessed what Judra was going to say, and he wanted to stop her, but his body couldn't move.

Judra said earnestly, "My father said something excessive without any investigation. This responsibility will be borne by our Wharton family."

"On behalf of the Wharton family, I express my deep regret and guilt for disrupting this solemn and serious ceremony."

He stood up and faced Raven. "Baron Raven, the Wharton family will never shirk its responsibilities. But now, please allow me to take my father away. I will come to discuss compensation with you in person in the future."

These words were very appropriate, leaving no room for criticism. Raven turned to look at Lux: "Priest Lux, what do you think?"

Lux wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with her little finger: "It's all up to Baron Raven to decide."

"Thank you." Raven bowed slightly and turned back: "Mr. Judra, I agree to your request, but I hope for a real promise, not empty words."

"Then please ask all the guests present and Priest Lux to be witnesses." Judea thought for a moment and said, "There are still two pieces of land in Eagle Territory under the name of my Wharton family. I hereby make a promise in the name of the Wharton family - these two pieces of land will be returned to Eagle Territory as compensation to the Wharton family!"

"you--"

Angel's eyes almost popped out of their sockets. The two pieces of fat meat that he had worked so hard to snatch from John were actually thrown away like this!

But what came out of his mouth was not a rebuke, but a mouthful of salty and thick blood.

Angel, wearing full helmet and armor, fell to the ground with a loud bang.

……

(End of this chapter)