Imperial Crown.

Chapter 171 The Lion's Claw (Part )
In the hall of Snow Maple Castle, servants came and went, removing cold or empty plates and replenishing the long table with new wine and food.

Although the number of visitors began to decline, they did not just leave after arriving. Instead, they would stay here for a while, trying to gain more opportunities to meet and talk with Baron Raven. As long as they could leave a slightly deeper impression on Raven, most people would be satisfied.

There are also some businessmen who have taken a fancy to those extraordinary people who came to Raven for help but failed to reach an agreement, and want to hire them to protect their property. Those extraordinary people are also waiting for a price. While evaluating the economic strength of each businessman, they also hope that Raven will change his mind.

So the total number of people increased instead of decreased, and the hall became a restaurant.

Raven also changed the place where he met people from the lobby to the study on the second floor.

At this moment, he was sitting behind the desk, supporting his chin with his hand, with a glass of clear Angel's Tears in front of him, listening to the appeal of a man opposite him.

The man's name was Kangqi, a middle-aged knight in his forties, loyal to the Groli family in the Taida Territory.

The dress he was wearing was clean but slightly worn, and his brown hair was streaked with gray and was as tangled as a bird's nest.

He held his hat in both hands, his expression tense and a little conflicted, his eyes bloodshot.

Raven tapped the tabletop lightly with his fingers, making a series of crisp sounds.

"You mean to say that the three sons of Knight Witte, who lives next door to you, used violence against your daughter?"

Kang Qi nodded and said, "Yes, Baron, I swear to my ancestors that my daughter is an extremely decent girl. They met at a dance party, and those three beasts were attracted by my daughter's beauty and wanted to chat with her."

"My daughter, oh, she is my pride, she insisted on listening to my teachings, and would rather die than agree, and then they, they..."

"I discovered this a few hours later. Although she used healing potions and invited the help of a priest, a scar was left on her perfect face forever. She also developed a strong hatred and fear of men. I'm afraid she will end up living alone."

"I only have this one child, Lord Raven, please help me!"

Raven paused for a moment and asked, "What did Baron Seleva say?"

Seleva Ota Groli, the lord of Teda and also the feudal lord of Kangchi, according to the rules of the nobility, this matter should be handled by Seleva.

"That's exactly why I came to you." Kang Qi gritted his teeth: "He said this was a private matter, and my daughter's life was not harmed. He only ordered Witt to compensate me with thirty gold coins!"

Raven was silent.

Kangqi and Witt are both first-level extraordinary people, but Kangqi has only one daughter who cannot inherit the title, while Witt has three sons.

From the perspective of interests, favoring Witt is a very correct choice.

But the problem is that nobles can do things based on profit, but to do it openly is foolish.

After all, among nobles, human relations still need to be respected.

"So, what is your request?" Raven asked.

Kang Qi swallowed his saliva and said in a hissing voice: "Blood for blood, tooth for tooth! I want those three beasts to pay equal compensation!"

Raven nodded and said, "No problem. You can go back first, Knight Conchi. You will receive the good news you want in three days at most."

Hearing this, Kang Qi was stunned for a moment: "Baron Raven, you're just going to let me go like this? I don't have to pay any price?"

He didn't expect Raven to agree so readily, and he didn't expect Raven to not put forward any conditions. This was inconsistent with his usual understanding of the nobility, and he even felt a little uneasy.

Sensing his inner thoughts, Raven smiled and said, "Knight Conchi, since you came to me, it means you believe in my ability and my character. You treat me as a friend, which is enough."

"Or am I not worthy of being your friend?"

"Uh, no!" Kang Qi came back to his senses, looked at Raven deeply, and bowed respectfully to the ground: "Baron Raven, if you can fulfill my wish, then the Griffith family will gain my friendship that I will never betray!"

Kang Qi left. Raven looked at his back and was about to ask someone to come in when the door suddenly opened again and a fragrant breeze blew in.

She was a charming and mature woman with her hair tied up in a bun and a black veil on her face, which covered her pretty face but could not hide her sexy red lips.

She was wearing a pure black dress with a tightly wrapped neckline. Her white pearl necklace rose and fell gently with her steps, highlighting her curvy figure. Even though the weather was hot, she was still holding a Yadara shawl. Under the black dress, her smooth calves were stained with traces of sweat that had just faded away.

Charming! So charming!
As the saying goes, if you want to be pretty, you should wear mourning clothes. This black dress really shows her charm to the fullest.

This is none other than Romney’s widow, Mrs. Doreen.

She walked to Raven's desk and wanted to bow, but perhaps due to fatigue or tripping over her clothes, she suddenly screamed and fell on the table.

Raven, who had just stood up, was quick to support the man with his hands under his ribs.

If there hadn't been a table between them, she would have almost collapsed in Raven's arms.

Even so, Doreen's face quickly turned red, and her voice was soft: "Baron Raven, my legs... are a little weak..."

Raven walked around the table and hooked a chair with his foot. Doreen was about to sit down when Raven suddenly pulled her into his arms.

“Lord Raven, what are you doing…” Doreen’s voice got lower and lower, and then suddenly she let out a short scream: “Ah!”

Along with the scream, there was also the sound of crisp slaps, which also made Doreen's dress ripple.

"The chair is too dirty, let me wipe it for you." As he said this, Raven raised his hand again.

With a crisp sound, Doreen's body trembled again. She bit her lips lightly and looked at Raven with eyes full of resentment.

A mischievous smile appeared on Raven's lips. From the moment Doreen walked in, Raven knew that she was seducing him, and her plan was very shrewd.

In any case, Raven couldn't kill her here unless she wanted to.

This is the rhythm of trying to make Raven curl his lips.

Unfortunately, Raven is not a novice and is very experienced in dealing with women. This action is also to tell Doreen - don't try to play any tricks in front of me.

Doreen also thought of this: "My Lord Baron... I think it's clean now."

"That won't do. How can I leave a dirty chair for the guests?" Raven raised his hand again.

This happened five times in total, until Doreen's body really became weak, Raven let go of her waist and sat back behind the desk.

Doreen glanced at Raven with a hint of dissatisfaction in her eyes. In her opinion, Raven had really gone too far.

"Are you using Angel's Kiss?" Raven suddenly asked.

"Yeah." Doreen nodded. "Unfortunately it's too expensive and there are too few units sold. I didn't order any and I'm still using the sample you gave me."

With a touch of his belt, Raven placed a bottle of Angel's Kiss on the table: "That's such a pity. A beauty like you should enjoy such good things." Doreen's dissatisfaction disappeared. She reached out and touched Raven's hand, covered it with Angel's Kiss, and slowly took it back.

In social situations, being able to receive an angel's kiss can be something that can satisfy her vanity very much.

Doreen brought up the serious matter: "Baron Raven, I came here this time in the hope that you can fight for the rights that belong to my son, my godson."

Raven was not surprised by this and raised his hand to signal her to continue.

"Actually, it's a long story." Doreen took a deep breath, "When my husband was still alive, our Simpson family signed a contract with Baron Wessassin to lease a port territory for fifty years."

"In order to rent it, I spent 5,000 gold coins at once, and I have to pay 374 gold coins in rent every year."

"My husband has a very shrewd vision. After operating this territory for 16 years, the cost has basically been recovered. Since last year, it has been a net profit every year."

Raven nodded and said, "Now that Baron Romney has passed away, Wesassin wants to take back this port territory?"

"Yes..." Doreen gritted her teeth and said, "Although our territory is rich in resources, transportation is not convenient. We can only make profits and maintain our dignity through the port."

"That bastard Vissaxin couldn't wait to take back the territory two months after my husband's death. He was only willing to return the 5,000 gold coins I paid for it, and was not even willing to pay the penalty for breach of contract!"

"So I rejected him, but just last month, a group of 'horse thieves' attacked there. At that time, I thought it was just horse thieves. Unexpectedly, Wesasi came to me again."

"He said that if I was willing to return the territory, it would be fine. If not, these horse thieves would most likely attack our castle and fiefdom."

It must be said that although Vissasim's method was crude, his timing was quite good - the Nord Province had just experienced a war, and it was the time when public security was the most chaotic. Romney took all the elite troops with him when he went to war, and these elite troops were wiped out, so that the soldiers in the hands of the Simpson family are now old, weak, sick and disabled, and have no combat capability at all.

Raven asked, "Your request is to get rid of the horse thieves and for Baron Versacem to give up his claim to this land, right?"

Doreen said, "That's what you said, Baron Raven."

"As long as you can do it, then I am willing to..."

She didn't finish her words, but her meaning was clear enough.

"As Baron Romney's comrade-in-arms, I have an obligation to take care of his wife and children." Raven said meaningfully: "A contract is a contract, and it should be fulfilled."

Doreen was delighted. "That's great, Lord Baron! When will you send troops to wipe out those bandits?"

Now the Simpson family is financially empty, and they need large amounts of gold coins to replenish troops, recruit extraordinary people, and train their sons. Every extra day the port is occupied is a huge loss; if it is really taken away, the entire family will never recover.

This is why Doreen seduced Raven as soon as she came in.

It's not just because Raven is handsome, young and rich.

"Oh, don't get so excited, Lady Doreen." Raven waved his finger. "Killing won't solve the problem."

"This..." Doreen frowned: "Then, what are you going to do?"

Raven raised an eyebrow. “I’ll make him an offer he can’t refuse.”

Faced with Raven's firm attitude, Doreen felt a little confused. She couldn't think of what method Raven would use, and she didn't think Raven would pay for her to settle the bill out of his own pocket.

But now this was the last straw she could grasp, so she nodded slightly, said goodbye and left.

Raven thought for a moment, then called Eric and Simon over. After giving them some instructions, he waved his hand and asked them to leave.

Not long after, Eric and Simon drove out of Snow Maple Castle side by side, and then went their separate ways, one to the east and the other to the west.

TEDA Territory is quite far away from Xuefeng Territory. Even with a fast horse, it took Simon two full days to reach his destination.

This shows how desperate Knight Conchi was that he turned to Raven for help.

With the experience on the Bloody Highlands, Simon disguised himself as a passing traveler and came to the most common low-end tavern.

Wearing a wide-brimmed leather hat and a grey cloak on his shoulders, he sat on a high stool outside the counter. He skillfully tossed out three copper coins to order a glass of beer, revealing the slightly worn leather gloves on his hands, looking like a tired and lonely mercenary.

This kind of person is not uncommon in the pub, and the bartender didn't say much. After serving Simon the wine, he turned around and started chatting with the person next to him.

Simon sipped his beer and listened to the gossip in the tavern.

Most of them are about trivial family matters and gossip in the alley, such as the wife of the east family cheating on someone, the child of the west family drowned while swimming, and someone in the north was addicted to gambling and his family was broken up.

Of course, we cannot forget the recent major event, which is the beating of Knight Conchi's daughter by Knight Witte's three sons.

The story had been completely distorted, turning into a piece of gossip that was half-curiosity and half-romantic. When it came to the details, it was as if they were really there watching it.

After all, to the subjects, both Witt and Kangqi were masters riding on their necks. They liked to watch the masters beating themselves no matter what the reason was, and naturally they would not sympathize with either side.

But Simon could still hear the local civilians' dissatisfaction with the three guys from their words, and they even called them the "three evils."

After all, the guy who dared to attack the knight's daughter would naturally not show mercy when it comes to harming civilians.

Therefore, Simon only spent a dozen copper coins, drank a few glasses of beer, and made a few timely and seemingly casual remarks, and he successfully found out the whereabouts of the three guys.

Tonight, the three brothers of the Witt family have booked a pub and are holding a cocktail party.

This was not the first time. Their drinking parties usually started in the evening and lasted until the next morning, so Simon was not in a hurry. He waited until dark and left before the pub closed.

The TEDA County was not wealthy, and this small town could not be compared with the Shanjin Town. At this moment, only the tavern where the Three Evils were holding a cocktail party was brightly lit, and there were more than a dozen soldiers guarding outside.

He walked around the tavern a few times, confirmed the location of the entrance and exit, and strode towards the tavern.

It was late at night and the gatekeeper was a little sleepy, but he was still alert when he saw Simon coming. But before he could ask any questions, he saw a boot sole gradually getting bigger.

boom--

The gatekeeper didn't even have time to scream before he crashed through the gate and flew inside, falling into the rubble, his life or death unknown.

The noise in the originally bustling pub suddenly stopped, followed by a woman's terrified scream.

Simon walked into the house on the splintered wood, opened his cloak, and revealed his face:
"I come here on behalf of Baron Raven."

……

(End of this chapter)